The Book Club Papers

Shortlisted for the 2020 Cheshire Literature Prize

The Book Club Papers- This story was written as a response to the pandemic, was shortlisted for the 2020 Cheshire Literature Prize and published in the 2021 Anthology Unlocked: Writing from the Cheshire Prize for Literature 2020 [UCSF0093] available here

Being a record of the meetings of the Really Good Book Club kept by myself, Secretary of the Club.

February 2020.

Book - Don’t Know What You’ve Got Till it’s Gone by Gemma Crisp.

Average score - 7/10

Present – Linda – Host, Helena, Rachel, Zara, Andrea, Christophe, myself. Apologies, Rose.

After a slightly lacklustre debate around the book, reflected in that deadliest of scores, seven, Linda produced her strawberry layer cake. Then we got down to the real discussions – books we’re all reading which aren’t for book club, TV recommendations and holiday plans.  As usual Zara has lots planned. We are in awe of her ability to track down a bargain. Lake Bled and Venice are on her schedule so far. Rachel has tickets to Coriolanus and there was much discussion about the best place to eat and whether that should pre or post show. Andrea asked what we thought of the news chatter about this new virus. As you might expect Andrea had never heard of it, whereas Rachel seemed to have been tracking its progress in minute detail. Linda wished everyone would stop using the word ‘lockdown.’ ‘It’s so American. We don’t do lockdowns in Britain.’ Agreed to meet at Christophe’s next month on the understanding he’ll make chilli chocolate brownies and doesn’t have to finish the book.

March

This is Going to Hurt by Adam Kay.

No agreed scores due to current uncertainty and lack of credible discussion.

Group meeting temporarily by email. Chilli chocolate brownies on hold. The last four days have been spent exchanging messages as to whether the meeting should go ahead at Christophe’s. Much use of  words like ‘contagion’, ‘risk’ and Linda’s beloved ‘lockdown’. Group split between Rachel, Christophe and Andrea who wanted to meet, Rose who was ‘easy either way’ and Linda and Zara who said better not. Decided to leave it this month and have a get together online. Not very successful to be honest. No-one wanted to discuss the book. Christophe concerned he has 38 chilli chocolate brownies which he and Leon will now need to eat. I asked why 38 but he didn’t seem to know.

April

Lockdown by Peter May

 9/10

Meeting online. All present though it’s fair to say some more present than others! Rose, that’s you I’m talking about. Although it does feel as though we’ve been in a perpetual meeting since the 23^rd March. So many emails! So many Whatsapp groups and funny (?) videos! I feel I need to bury my phone in the garden for a few days to stop those bloody notification pings. Anyway, we’re online until this lockdown (even Linda has accepted that’s what it is) is lifted. Christophe says he’s not making any more brownies. It apparently took him and Leon two weeks to eat them all and they’ve each put on a stone in weight. Can’t just be down to the brownies, surely?

May

Zoom by Istvan Banyai

We’ve abandoned scoring for the duration. Attempting the book is now considered sufficient.

So, a Zoom meeting. It was by no means a unanimous decision to go ‘on camera’ and I don’t believe there’ll be the appetite for it again. To be honest I get quite enough playing ‘Celebrity Squares’ with work meetings and by the time everyone had finished shouting ‘can you hear me’ and trying to explain how to unmute and turn the camera on there wasn’t a lot of energy left for discussing the book. Which, as it was a picture book, didn’t matter too much. See how our standards have fallen. Can’t even manage words.

 June

In Praise of Walking by Shane O’Mara

Back to an email group and a giant sigh of relief from most members. I have a sneaking suspicion Rose and Zara did their own little Zoom meeting without the rest of us but as long as I don’t have to watch myself watching everyone else that’s fine by me. It seems that the entire neighbourhood is out walking. Certainly everyone in the group pulls on the hiking boots and marches forth at least once a day. Helena and Zara have started meeting up for walks which is nice. Things are looking brighter all round, tentative talk of days out tonight. Rachel has ventured out to some newly opened gardens and Andrea is planning on a trip to the coast. Such excitement at the thought of a glimpse of the sea and even the taste of ice cream. Christophe says he will make an ice cream cake for next month but as none of us will be eating it he didn’t receive the praise he was clearly expecting.

July

Bubble by Stewart Foster

Tonight we started compiling a lockdown lexicon. Who would have thought ‘Bubble’ would ever need a new definition for example. In other news Zara has been to a restaurant! Where once we would have asked about the extent of the menu and the quality of the food tonight the questions were ‘how safe did it feel?’ ‘Did the staff have masks or visors?’  But the fact remains that Zara has been OUT FOR A MEAL THAT SHE DIDN’T COOK HERSELF. Christophe’s photos of the promised ice cream cake were quite overshadowed.

August

The Restaurant: A History of Eating Out by William Sitwell

And now we’re all at it! Eating out to Help out is an actual thing where you get to eat at lots of lovely restaurants for half price and while you are savouring your asparagus risotto you can feel worthy because you are officially HELPING OUT. So tonight’s group was all about where we’d been and what we’d eaten and where we’d recommend next. It’s like we’ve all returned to the real world. Or the world has returned to us, I’m not sure which. There’s even talk of GOING ON HOLIDAYS. In other news Christophe has stopped baking because he says it’s cheaper to eat someone else’s cakes for a change.

September

Quarantine by Jim Crace

Andrea is self-isolating. Her app pinged her and now she has to stay at home for fourteen days or ten days or eleven depending who you talk to. It certainly put an end to our discussions about whether we should meet in person this month. Linda offered her barn and there was lots of agreement about not sharing cars and bringing our own flasks and cakes and measuring tapes and is it 2 metres or 1 metre plus or something else. Anyway, then Andrea’s app pinged and then no-one was keen on meeting up any more. So here we are online again. Christophe sent photos of Leon’s Cherry Bakewell. I think it was supposed to cheer us up but instead it made my Mr Kipling’s Angel slices look quite inadequate.

October

100 Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez

Tiers or Tears? A very subdued group tonight. Everyone had read the book, for a change, but maybe it would have been better if we hadn’t. The sunny days of Eating Out and Helping Out seem a long time ago. Walking isn’t as much fun in the rain. The Whatsapp groups are quiet. Christophe made gingerbread men but even they have glum faces today.

November

Forever and a Day by Anthony Horowitz

Lockdown 2.0. Even James Bond would have struggled with it this time. Will we ever meet again in person? Will we ever visit another book shop? Would I remember what to do if I did? Christophe and Leon are fasting. Just when I could do with a picture of one of their ridiculous confections. At least the twinkling lights of Christmas are ahead of us.

December

Christmas is Cancelled by Aurelia B Rowl

Maybe the twinkling lights are dimmed BUT Christophe baked his special boozy mince pies and DELIVERED THEM TO US AT HOME, along with one of those little bottles of wine each and a Christmas napkin with a cheerful plum pudding on it. We all raised a glass to the end of 2020 and the hope of book club meetings to come. We decided we will only read happy books next year.

January 2021

Journal of the Plague Year by Daniel Defoe

OK, so last year’s resolution to read only happy books has already fallen by the wayside. But is it any wonder? Nonetheless a certain stoicism has entered into book club this year. Everyone had read the book, everyone contributed to the discussion, everyone was upbeat and determined to keep on keeping on. It was Christophe’s birthday last week and Leon had baked him a three tier cake – very appropriate we thought. Sadly the restrictions meant he couldn’t bring us each a slice round but we sang happy birthday and talked about vaccines. All in all a satisfactory start to the year.

February

Ordinary People in Extraordinary Times by Nancy Bermeo

The anniversary of our last ‘real’ meeting. We have given up planning our reunion and are just enjoying each meeting as it comes round. Christophe had baked chilli chocolate brownies in honour of the occasion and posted them out to us. Rather surprisingly they all arrived in time, some slightly squashed but the thought  - and the flavour- was there. Everyone joined in and we have a list of books agreed for the next twelve months so no matter what happens we’ll keep on reading. Cheers.

The End.