A book club is an interesting place. I joined because I love to read and am writing a book. I thought it would help to discuss books with fellow readers and learn their likes and dislikes. It is certainly an ear opener! For instance, the general consensus seems to mandate the "obligatory sex scene" in a book, whereas I feel my imagination needs no assistance in that particular area. However, obviously it sells mainstream books, because it tends to be in most of them. Thus, it should come as no surprise that I frequently find I have greatly enjoyed a book that the others disapproved of and vice versa.
Case in point: a couple of months ago, our book was "Mutant Message Down Under" by Marlo Morgan. It is
a story about an American doctor who goes on walkabout in the Australian Outback with a group of Aborigines. The sufferings she endures help the tribe to teach her their spiritual principals of interrelatedness, divine creation, unconditional love, and being non-judgmental. I felt that it presented a powerful reminder of spritual principals we should all be living. Most of the others discounted the whole thing because "obviously she didn't learn anything from the experience because she still wears makeup and colors her hair". Huh? Not everyone is called to be a St. Francis of Assisi or Mother Theresa. We are all called to proclaim the Good News in our particular circumstances in life.
Then there are the ever-popular vampire books currently circulating as the "Twilight" series. Many of my book club confreres rave about them, but vampires simply do not appeal to me. Now give me a good historical suspense novel. I have the new Amelia Peabody mystery on hold: "A River in the Sky". After seeing the new "Sherlock Holmes" movie, I reread the books in a whole new light, with new enjoyment. And my friend from the Baptist church turned me on to Terri Blackstock's novels - who knew such wonderful work was being produced by Christian publishing houses? I am thrilled.
