read // the literary ladies

I love reading.

I love reading in the same way I love music.

I get swept away very easily in them both, and they set the tone for my frequent daydreams and wild hairs.

I often get emotional when I read, my body relaxes, and my whole mindset shifts.

Then, similar to when I watch a great movie or my beloved trashy TV, if it was a big hit, frankly, especially when it is not, I love nothing more than to dish with someone who experienced it as well. I love hearing other points of view and getting into healthy discussions.

“A reader lives a thousand lives before he dies . . . The man who never reads lives only one.” ~ George R.R. Martin

Back in 2016, I finally got the nerve and put myself out there by asking a few moms from the kids’ school and a few friends if they would like to be in a book club with me. A few said yes, we found a date, I picked the book, and it was set!

The first book we read was The Nest by Cynthia D’Aprix Sweeney, and we met on a weeknight at one of my favorite local bars.

It. Was. Fabulous.

The first official meeting of the Literary Ladies // 11.29.2016

It was everything I was looking for; a night out away from the mundaneness of staying at home, healthy discussions with all different points of view, and best of all, stimulating conversation.

That last one there, stimulating conversation, was one of the driving forces to creating the book club, eventually named The Literary Ladies.

Being a stay at home parent, hell, any type of parent really, leaves you with brief moments of intelligent conversation. It’s lonely during the day and then when you finally have a chance for adult interaction, it tends to be about THE KIDS. Like I said, most topics tend to circle around your kids, their activities, their problems, their highs and lows, etc. This topic, as a mother, is great when you need some help sorting something out, but to have it dominate your entire life, which kids do already, is very annoying. My eagerness for stimulating discussions was taking it’s toll, and the book club fixed that right up.

Since December 2016 our group has grow from about 6 to almost 20, with growing pains here and there. We have read over 20 books, drank copious amounts of wine, laughed, argued, ridden bikes at night while listening to rap, and even enjoyed themed/local cuisine.

I am really proud of what I have created.

Proud even when I had to recently take a step back from attending due to scheduling/personal conflicts. I was torn, I didn’t want to dissolve the group, but I needed to take a step back from it for a bit. Luckily, I approached a friend and trusted member to take over in my absence. Thanks Laura!

I try to make it to the meetings when I can and I miss the ladies when I can’t. Life gets busy, but knowing that something I created, that so many people found to be a positive addition to their lives, gives me great joy.

Even though my schedule is super crazy right now, and about to get a whole lot crazier, more on that later, I still want to make sure I foster my love of reading and not let that fall between the cracks as well, so that’s why you will see READ as a monthly category here at my little corner of the internet.

Books that I read and deem worthy of sharing will pop up here and I would love to have a mini book club session with y’all and have that lead to that always hard to find stimulating conversation that I so crave.

Some of the other books The Literary Ladies have read over the past few years included below.

#1 Commonwealth by Ann Patchett • #2 Crazy Rich Asians by Kevin Kwan • #3 Hello Sunshine by Laura Dave • #4 Educated by Tara Westover • #5 Mindset by Carol S. Dweck • #6 The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho • #7 The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion

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