Shades of Grey

Author: Jasper Fforde

Who Picked the Book: Stephanie

One-sentence summary: In a world classified by colors, a young man slowly discovers the dark side of the rules and norms of his society.

B.A.D. Girls Book Rating: 7

Our favorite thing about it: Those of us who listened (audiobook) appreciated the humor.

Our least favorite thing about it: The style of the novel was not to our taste.

Main Topics of Discussion: World Building, Character Development, Religion, Suppression, Knowledge

Our favorite quote: “I didn't set out to discover a truth. I was actually sent to the Outer Fringes to conduct a chair census and learn some humility. But the truth inevitably found me, as important truths often do, like a lost thought in need of a mind.”

Notes: We did not hate this book, but it also wasn't one of our favorites. That's the best way to sum up our feelings. We all found the story hard to get into. The first half of the novel was slow and not as interesting so it didn't hook us. After sticking with it, we did like the second half better because we had a better sense of what was going on, how everything was structured in this new world, and things actually started happening. It was hard to be engaged when we didn't understand anything and not much was being revealed. 

We did not feel any connection to any of the characters. That's not to say they weren't likeable at all - we just weren't made to really care about any of them. We do usually prefer character-driven stories - we like getting to know characters and feeling invested in their story. We felt neither for any characters in this book. 

Some of the comparisons of this "color" society to aspects of religion or other regimes was interesting and we had some good discussion about that. We also noticed the common factor in all societies like this one - the suppression of knowledge is required to make it work. 

The book ends on a cliffhanger and we're left wondering what happens to our two main characters after the end. There is a second book and some of us plan to read it. Others are fine being done with this story. 

Memorable Meeting Moments: Stephanie flew in to meet with us and Lindsay drove in as well. We had dinner at Venezia's Italian Restaurant and went to Dessert Avenue again for dessert and discussion.

What We Ate: Lots of great Italian dishes and desserts plus coffee and tea. 

The Lion Women of Tehran

Author: Marjan Kamali

Who Picked the Book: Amberly

One-sentence summary: Two childhood friends navigate the changing political landscape of life in Iran both together and apart.

B.A.D. Girls Book Rating: 9

Our favorite thing about it: We loved the incredible story.

Our least favorite thing about it: LOTS of bad things happen to both characters.

Main Topics of Discussion: History, Friendship, Politics, Religion

Our favorite quote: "Someday, you and me — we'll do great things. We'll live life for ourselves. And we will help others. We are cubs now, maybe. But we will grow to be lionesses. Strong women who will make things happen."

Notes: We universally loved this book and this story. We liked the 2 main characters and felt engaged in the story the whole time. We loved the historical aspects and the things we learned about Iranian history and culture. We discussed childhood friendships and how they change through the years. We talked about loyalty. We also discussed religion and politics - as they're central to the story. It was hard to read the story, knowing what would happen in Iran after the overthrow of the Shah. We did think an extraordinary amount of terrible things happened to our two main characters - lots of historical tragedies were personally tied to their stories. But, we excused it because the story and writing were so good. 

Memorable Meeting Moments: Amberly took us to Little Persia for some authentic Persian food. And we spent the rest of the night at Dessert Avenue in Murphy eating and discussing the book. We wore our new book club sweatshirts for the first time together. We also celebrated Rachel's and Amberly's birthdays.

What We Ate: We had Sekanjabin drink (sweet and sour Ancient Persian Syrup and water), felafel with a spicy sauce, Beef and Chicken Kebabs with Rice. Then, at Dessert Avenue, we had various crepes, tea, and coffee. 

 

The Book of Ayn

Author: Lexi Freiman

Who Picked the Book: Lindsay

One-sentence summary: An author who is "cancelled" by society seeks wildly different methods to dealing with that in her life.

B.A.D. Girls Book Rating: 2

Our favorite thing about it: That it wasn't too long.

Our least favorite thing about it: The poop talk. 

Main Topics of Discussion: Satire, Narcissism, Cancel Culture, 

Our favorite quote: "Artist: a grandiose and insecure person who feels especially destined and uniquely condemned and, deep in their heart, fears that they must be empty."

Notes: Well. We universally disliked this book. We have never rated a book this low before. We all agreed that the poop talk was gross and not appreciated - and there was far too much of it. We felt like the first and second halves of the book felt like two different books. We didn't like the main character at all. We didn't identify with her or her motivations for her terrible decisions. She was actually really annoying. It was overall not an enjoyable read for any of us. We know this book was supposed to be a satire and many reviewers called it "hilarious" and "funny" - we did not find it funny at all. Not even a little bit. We wondered what was supposed to be satirized? Cancel culture? Any Rand? Los Angeles? Maybe all of it? 

In the end, we decided this book was probably written for a very niche group of people who understand a certain New York City and Los Angeles subcultures that we just do not understand. Therefore, the book not only didn't resonate with us, we didn't actually understand the point. There was no plot, no development, no growth, no takeaway. 

Memorable Meeting Moments: We celebrated Rachel's birthday with a dinner at Maggiano's and had our book discussion in the large lobby of Lindsay's hotel. We got to witness a rousing game (or two) of Jenga between a wife and husband, who took photos for us. 

What We Ate: Maggiano's! We had bread with olive oil and balsamic drizzle and shared the fried zucchini appetizer. Our entrees, were: Branzino, fettuccine bolognese, salmon, and shrimp diavolo. We also enjoyed some desserts: chocolate mousse cake, warm apple crostada, and Gigi's butter cake. We were treated to a plate of lemon cookies to celebrate Rachel's birthday. 

The Unmaking of June Farrow

Author: Adrienne Young

Who Picked the Book: Rachel

One-sentence summary: A woman uncovers a special ability she has while discovering an entirely different life that she has to fight to save. 

B.A.D. Girls Book Rating: 8 (unanimous)

Our favorite thing about it: The story was interesting with lots of twists.

Our least favorite thing about it: We didn't love the non-communication, however central to the story it was. 

Main Topics of Discussion: Marriage, Memory, Self Identity, Motherhood, Religious Fanaticism, Time Travel

Our favorite quote: “The curse on the Farrows had broken the natural laws of the world, and with it had come so much suffering. But in this, there'd been the most unexpected of gifts.”

Notes: While we were all annoyed by the various characters who didn't communicate vital information to other characters, we universally enjoyed this book. It was a tad slow in the beginning until June walked through the door, but most of us found it very easy to read. The characters were developed well for the most part. We have read several time travel books and it's always interesting to see how each author sets up the "rules" in their novel. This one was no exception. However, we did find some of the timeline hard to follow and understand. In the end, we all just said, "whatever," and continued reading. Some of the plot points became predictable as we found out more about the characters, but the unfolding of the story was still well done and enjoyable. 

Memorable Meeting Moments: This was our Christmas meeting so we exchanged gifts, played our Jeopardy game (made by Lindsay this time!), crafted photo ornaments from one of our cruise photos, and missed Stephanie since she was in California.

What We Ate: Christmas Lasagna with homemade bolognese and pesto ricotta, focaccia with garlic olive oil dip, roasted Brussels sprouts, and Brown Butter Snickerdoodle cobbler with vanilla ice cream. 

The Ministry of Time

Author: Kaliane Bradley

Who Picked the Book: Dara

One-sentence summary: A young woman's job of caring for a time-travel "expat" gets complicated when she has to juggle her relationship with him and the confines of her job. 

B.A.D. Girls Book Rating: 6

Our favorite thing about it: The historical fiction and time travel aspects.

Our least favorite thing about it: The story could have been so much better and it faltered in places - most notably rushing the relationship and the ending. 

Main Topics of Discussion: Time Travel, Relationships, Extra Characters, Story Development, Narrative Pacing, Culture

Our favorite quote: “Everything that has ever been could have been prevented, and none of it was. The only thing you can mend is the future.”

Notes: We all enjoyed reading this book, despite our lower-than-normal rating. It was engaging and not hard to pick up. We liked the unique concept and the historical fiction woven in. The ideas of culture shock between times is always fun and interesting to read about. We liked the flash backs to Gore's doomed expedition - both because it fleshed out his character, which was badly needed. But also because we liked the history and it was interesting. 

We thought the fact that the main character was not named was an interesting choice. She was only ever referred to as "the bridge." We discussed it, but we couldn't really figure out why the author made that choice. If anything, it made an already under-developed character even more remote to us as readers.

Our critiques are mostly about the story and the characters. The most endearing and interesting characters were the minor ones - Margaret and Arthur. The main character and Graham seemed distant, like we never really got to know them. And then that made the romance seem surface-level. We didn't connect with it and it seemed rushed. 

Likewise, the final events seemed rushed. We felt that some of the slower parts of the story could have been condensed or cut and more room made for unpacking the events and revelations that happened at the end of the book. We did like how it ended, though. 

Memorable Meeting Moments: We were down to four this time with Stephanie in California and Lindsay in Oklahoma  - and neither able to travel in for this meeting. It also poured rain during the meeting.

What We Ate: Chips and Guacamole, Gin, Lemonade and Cranberry cocktail, Brisket Chili with fixings, Salad, Cornbread, and Chocolate-Dipped Chocolate Ginger cookies (with sea salt and with sugar sprinklings)

October 2024 Meeting

 We didn't have a traditional meeting this month and we didn't read a book! We did get together, though - for a wine tasting just East and South of Dallas. We had a great time together and enjoyed the day even if we didn't enjoy every wine we tasted! The snacks were superior, for sure.