Thursday, November 10, 2011

Book Club Tonight! And We're Eating Cake

I've been part of my book club for many years, and it's one of the things in my life that really makes me happy. I'm grateful to Himself for encouraging me to join, indeed even asking one of the members (they worked at the same office) if there were room in the club for me.

I know some book clubs are more social than literary; ours is a mix of both. We have a great time together at our monthly meetings, but we also discuss the books we're read. Whoever hosts the meeting picks the book and wines and dine everyone, too.

I chose Eat Cake, by Jeanne Ray, for our November book. I've read it before, and the storyline pops into my mind from time to time. It's meatier than a beach read, but not as heavy as some we've read. Frankly, it's delightful. I'm looking forward to discussing it this evening.

For supper, I'm serving a (fake) cassoulet with crusty bread and fried green tomatoes alongside a nice red wine. The weather is cooperating with my chosen menu: it's windy and chilly outside this evening. Dessert will be ginger-pear cupcakes with creamy lemon frosting. I considered a fancy cake in keeping with our book, but I just wasn't up to it mentally or culinarily. (I'm quite certain the latter is not a word, but it suits perfectly what I wanted to convey.)

I'll leave you with this quotation from the book:

Cakes have gotten a bad rap. People equate virtue with turning down dessert. There is always one person at the table who holds up her hand when I serve the cake. No, really, I couldn't, she says, and then gives her flat stomach a conspiratorial little pat. Everyone who is pressing a fork into that first tender layer looks at the person who declined the plate, and they all think, That person is better than I am. That person has discipline. But that isn't a person with discipline, that is a person who has completely lost touch with joy. A slice of cake never made anybody fat. You don't eat the whole cake. You don't eat cake every day of your life. you take the cake when it is offered because the cake is delicious... a cake is a party, a birthday, a wedding. A cake is what's served on the happiest days of your life.
So I will bite into my cake this evening with relish!

3 comments:

  1. Culinarily sounds good, but I get the red underline, so it is not yet acknowledge by machines as a word!

    And I love that paragraph from the book. I remember one of my last classes at the YMCA, we had to quit membership, that the nice instructor was saying that she was looking forward to the rodeo to get a piece of the scrumptious apple pie. The yoga instructor said she couldn't be a model, though mind you, she was a cute real one, because she loves dessert very much! There, two healthy women who enjoy.
    On the other side, I have a friend that, everytime we are together celebrating and we eat chips, or dessert, she points to how bad it is for us... arghhhh, if you are eating it, enjoy it and move on to keep your normal healthy daily eating.
    That person is trying to get comfort at the expense of the others, she or he is trying to feel better by refusing the cake in public. Something else it's the case of very continuous get togethers, sometimes I've had several in a week, and I've refused dessert, or eaten a tinny bite instead, as you say, cake for celebrations is fine, cake every three days may not be that clever.

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  2. Wonderful! I'm going to look this book up! I love the snippet you've included.
    Have a wonderful time :)

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  3. Looking the book up now...wishing I could come and share your book club time. :)

    Did you catch my post yesterday? You must pop over:
    http://handbookofnaturestudy.blogspot.com/2011/11/nature-study-when-you-travel-kona.html

    Thought of you!

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