Kim, I had mixed feelings about the book when I finished it too. I was really excited starting out because right from the first couple of pages I found myself intrigued. Sure the family was dysfunctional, yet they were oddly functional at the same time. It felt a little like The Royal Tenenbaums meets American Beauty.

I liked the way Gowdy intertwines the stories, and really fleshed out the characters with the notable and disappointing exception of Joan. I was a little let down too, that we never heard the actual composition. But I believe it was the author’s intention to leave Joan obscure and use her as a method of defining the rest of the family.

I thought the parents' mutual homosexuality and its resolution worked. Older sister's (memfault) near asexuality also worked. NSM, younger sister's (memfault) hypersexuality although it was an interesting contrast to her sister and her parent's lack of heterosexual urges.

All in all, it was a fun read. I wasn't so enamored by it that I'd run out and read all of Gowdy's works, but I didn't have to trudge through it either.

Poor lonely Book Club thread.

What is the significance of the song "Mr. Sandman"? Why did Gowdy choose this song to build her narrative around?

I think it may have something to do with the lyric "Mr. Sandman, I'm so alone/ain't got nobody to call my own" and the idea that Al refers to himself as "Yours" to Gordan and Sophia.

Book Clubbers, do you think this thread is a failed experiment? Should we think about closing it, or do you think things will pick up now that the holidays have passed, and most of us are in the dead of winter?

Well, I just never managed to get this particular book!

There are many many more that might tempt me.

Should we think about closing it, or do you think things will pick up now that the holidays have passed, and most of us are in the dead of winter?

Should pick up. I'm a slacker who keeps forgetting to read the books.

I'd like to keep it. The Thanksgiving to New Years period was kind of insane for me so I got out of the swing of things here, but I'm hoping to jump back in. Even in the ones where I didn't have time or wasn't done in time to participate in discussion, I enjoyed reading the books and following up on the conversation when I could.

ETA - did we shift the discussion dates over the holidays from what's in the first post? I seem to remember something like that. Either way, looks like we need to do some book picking if we mean to go forward.

If we need more books to pick, I'd like to suggest either Louisiana Power and Light or Confederacy of Dunces. Both are light and fun which might help get people back into the groove and hey! LaF2F.

Though CoD actually is in NO, LP&L is probably my favorite for the narrator's insights.

I would like to keep the thread. I have really enjoyed participating in and reading the discussions, even when I don't feel I have much to add.

I know I have not volunteered to be a book selector, so I sort of feel like I am speaking out of turn here, but I wonder if the choice of books hasn't been limiting discussion. As much as I enjoyed The Red Tent and Mister Sandman, they weren't action packed, and I'm finding it almost impossible to get into Dirt Music because again there is very little action (a quarter of the way through). It's not they aren't good books or somehow unworthy, but I find it hard to say anything interesting about them. I did love reading the comments about Dinah's story in relation to the Midrashim.

I'm not saying every book needs to be a rollicking adventure through space and time, but three books in a row about domestic troubles and internal struggles is a little much for me personally.

I also would hate to see it close. But quite frankly, I've gotten really, really bogged down in job-related stuff (both wrapping up my current cases and searching for new employment) and haven't had the time to really get involved all that much.

I seem to remember there were a lot of very good ideas about running a successful book club, both online and off. Maybe somebody would like to volunteer to shepherd this thread for the next few months and see if we can't generate some interest in some really good selections and discussions.

For my part, I intend to read every selection and participate to the extent I am able.

Please keep it, this and UnAmerican are the only threads I manage to keep up with.