Hi Everyone,
Tomorrow
night, Monday at 6:30 PM, our March book club will meet again at Natilie’s
Pizzeria on North Main Street in Butler as we did last month. I hope you
enjoyed reading The Aviator’s Wife by
Melanie Benjamin, the story of Anne Lindbergh, the wife of Charles Lindbergh. I’m
anxious to hear all of your opinions and interpretations of this book.
In attendance
for our February meeting were Christine, Ginnie, Jody, Barb K., Mary Beth,
Lori, Cheryl, and myself. We discussed the book My Life in France by Julia Child and Alex Prud’ Homme. Julia’s
easygoing and genuine personality comes through in her book like a tasty
cinnamon roll dipped in a warm cup of tea. From the very first chapter, she
became my best friend as she shared with me all of her memories of France, her life
with her husband Paul, and her rocky road to cuisine success. I loved traveling
with her to the France of post WWII, her descriptions of life as it was then:
lack of public utilities, outdated appliances, shopping at specialty markets, traveling
in their Buick station wagon “The Blue Flash.” Every story seemed to hark back
to a memory my daughter Makenzie has related to me of her life living in
Europe. Even my own visits to Italy and Portugal were relived through many of Julia’s
very perceptive anecdotes of European life. I remember the many trips around
Naples we had made two summers ago, and each time we awed at how the city still
appears as if it was bombed by the Germans only yesterday. Streets thousands of
years old are still used to support heavy traffic, and buildings that date back
to the days of Caesar still stand crumbling in many neighborhoods.
Julia’s
amazing biography offers a profound perspective on life, something all great
books should do. Through her story, Julia teaches us to love and accept our
family and friends, to find what makes us happy and work hard at it, to never
give up on our dreams, but most of all to be ourselves. I admired her
craziness, like the holiday postcards, especially the Valentine card of her and
Paul in the bathtub. I admired her complete honesty as she shared her failures
with her early experiences at the Cordon Bleu and in her efforts to write the
cookbook. We even learned a bit of history on the Cold War Era as Julia enlightened
us on the mentality of that time through the personal trials Paul had faced
working with a government provoked by McCarthyism.
I really wish
I had asked Jody to write this email because her perspective would be so much
more enriching for all of us. Did you know that Jody is interning at the Heinz
History Center? Did you also know that her job is archiving Pittsburgh
cookbooks and recipes? You are my idol right now Jody; you and Julia Child of
course! Please, Jody, offer additional comments to this email and I will post
them on our blog: http://tsmithkcwwbc.blogspot.com/
For homework
tonight, think about your own relationship with your husband. As Anne Lindbergh
spent much of her life in the shadow of Charles, nevertheless, she accomplished
much. How do you feel about her willingness to be subservient? Can you compare
Anne’s relationship with her husband to your own now or at any time in your life?
See you tomorrow at our secluded spot to discuss this riveting story, and for
some good girl talk.
Yours in
reading,
Tammy
