A few months ago I started a Book and Movie Group. My good friend SuperMom was hosted the April book, Much Ado About Nothing by William Shakespeare. There was a wedding theme to the night. The table was lovingly set with finger sandwiches, phylo cups with a spinach chicken salad, fresh veggies with dips, deli meat and cheese with crackers, pasta salads, punch and wine. For dessert there were chocolate dipped strawberries, strawberries with cream, pie and an ice cream cake. Everyone brought wedding photos or a special something from their own wedding and stories to share. I brought two invitations and told about how the wedding chapel that was supposed to be handling everything for us went bankrupt and disappeared without any notice the month before the big day. Of course, I found out about it just hours after I had sent out the invitations, making it necessary to send out new invites and put together an entire wedding in a month's time. Our wedding ended up being beautiful so alls well that ends well.
Throughout the night we watched scenes from the 1973 made-for-TV movie/play starring a very young and super skinny Sam Waterston. We made fun of the dancing and singing scenes; then we debated about whether Claudio was being played by Christopher Walken. It turns out it was Glenn Walken, Christopher's brother. We were treated to a list of some of the phrases that we still use today that were created by Shakespeare. We also played a game of Who Said It with quotes from the play. SuperMom's 12 year old daughter knew the most quotes and received a little book of quotes about love. We never did end up finishing the movie or discussing the play for all the talking and eating and playing around we did. It was a lot of fun.
Next month's book and movie is The Prize Winner of Defiance, OH. I wonder what kind of fun we will think up for that one. I was thinking of a jingle contest and exotic foods. What would you do?
In case you're interested, there is info. about starting your own book and movie group here. And Lisa from Books on the Brain has a great post here with ideas for how to keep your book group exciting. I especially like the idea of serving booze to liven things up. =)
10 comments:
"I especially like the idea of serving booze to liven things up."
Heck ya! ROTFL!!!
Hi Petunia, thanks for the shout out! A book-and-movie group sounds totally fun.
I was wondering if you would be interested in writing a small blurb about your book club for a post I'm working on. It would include links to several book bloggers, all discussing the same topic: "Why I love my book club" or "What my book club means to me". A couple paragraphs would be enough (of course, longer would be fine too). I'm asking 5 or 6 bloggers to do this, so yours would be included in the same post with all of theirs, and I would include links and a little bio. background on each blogger. What do you think?
Let me know. I'd like to have the post up by the beginning of next week.
Thanks!
~Lisa, Books on the Brain
lisamunleyATcaDotrrDOTcom
J. Kaye-it just makes sense doesn't it? ☺
Lisa-I would love to. Thanks for the invite.
Oh dear--what a mishap with your wedding location! Your party sounds marvelous. I would love to start a book club, but my friends are so spread out around Dallas that it is difficult to coordinate (I live especially out of the way). But...I may have to steal--borrow--some of these ideas someday!
Hello Petunia! I have been lurking on your blog for a little while now, and I thought I'd finally leave a comment for you tonight.
I love the idea of a book & movie group. I've toyed with the idea of starting one of my own, but I don't really know how to go about finding other readers in my area, and my own home is a little bit too small to have a big group of people over to watch a movie. I'll have to check out that PBS link to learn more.
Happy reading to you!
What a fun idea! I've never even heard of your next choice, so I can't offer any suggestions. But alcohol (in moderation) is always a good thing! lol
This is something our book group has been doing as a once a year venture for about six years now. We have a break in August when many of us are away and then kick off the new year in September with an all day meet where we discuss the book in the morning have a very long lunch in the garden if possible, see the film in the afternoon and then discuss the adaptation over tea. We always have a great time. This September we're doing 'Atonement'.
They closed down the chapel a month beforehand?? Oh no! It sounds like it had a happy ending anyway. (I was trying to do another Shakespeare title, but alas. Love's Labor Lost was about the best I could do.)
SuperMom is super creative. That book & movie club theme meeting sounds fabulous.
Trish-you might try joining some of the online reading groups. Or meet your friends once every 3 months for a dinner party/book discussion. That would be fun.
Susie-glad to meet you. Actually we can't watch a movie at my house either. It would require moving the TV from my bedroom, and that would require moving furniture. So another lady in the group hosted movie night at her house, then I had the discussion at my place a couple nights later. We've also met at a photography studio(owned by a member) and will meet in June at a restaurant. The movie viewing is optional but a nice excuse for a mom's night out.
Eva-the next book has an alcoholic character and the meeting will be at my pastor's house so alcohol will probably NOT be served. =)
Table-that sounds like so much fun. I wish I could come for the Atonement meeting. I loved book the book and the movie.
Carrie-Loves Labor Lost, too funny. And SuperMom has earned her name. Before the meeting at her house, she had been homeschooling her 8 kids all day. And the house was clean to boot. She's amazing!
Actually--yahoo reading groups is how I found out about blogging...and challenges. I stopped participating because the discussions started becoming too off topic for my tastes.
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