BOTM -- January Selection Report

Still catching up after many weeks of no blogging.  I was very tempted by several of the January Book of the Month Club selections.  Lucky You--a Southern, female, buddy, fresh start story--really appealed to me, but it's not actually released until March and the idea of reading it early seemed risky.  I like to let the people speak a bit first.  When I went to read two of the books I had selected from summer BOTM offerings, I checked Goodreads and noted that each had under 3 stars (at the time).  It's sort of a bummer to crack the spine of a book you've paid for, knowing that many readers have been underwhelmed.  One of those books, The Fall Guy, I read anyway and liked well enough (3 star read for me).  The other one, Rich and Pretty, I still haven't been able to justify spending my reading time on.  Anyone want to sell me on it?

Back to January though.  I didn't place Lucky You in my book box, but it's on my radar.  I chose Janet McNally's Girls in the Moon and Kathleen Rooney's Lillian Boxfish Takes a Walk.  McNally's book is about girls who sing, if I can recall.  I'll find out when I read it!  Rooney's Lillian Boxfish Takes A Walk was perfect for me!  Lillian Boxfish walks around NYC on NYE in 1984.  Not the safest course of action for an eighty-five year old!  As she walks, reflections on her career and marriage are interspersed with her interactions with new/old friends she encounters.  Loved Lillian's wit and spunk and that Rooney pulled that off without writing a gimmicky "feisty old lady" book.  Plenty to think about here with regard to gender, motherhood, marriage, aging, careers, desire, city life, and more.  Rooney teaches at DePaul University so I imagine if I pay attention, I could probably attend a Chicagoland reading.

Here's the pic I snapped of my January BOTM box when it arrived.  Gillian Flynn's The Grownup was a bonus!  Note that I am still brightening my kitchen with arrangements I put together with grocery store bunches.

Are you a BOTM Club member?  What did you choose in January?  Report on February's selections coming soon.