Christmas Catch Up Post #5 - Family Book Club

There are so many fun things to post about when I am taking a "break" from writing staffing training participant materials!

Hence Christmas catch-up post #5 - Family Book Club. This year marked the second Annual Family Book Club. Last year we read and discussed Manhood for Amateurs , by Michael Chabon, one of Greg's favourite authours. I enjoyed the book and it was fun to talk about it with the fam, but the book club was not well attended - just really Greg, my Mom and Dad and I. Anne were you there, I don't remember - apparently I was talking too much to notice. I fear I may have dominated the conversation a little ( so unlike me, I never do that a book club, right?).

Anyway, it was something that we liked enough to want to do again. But this year was a little different. Enter Nicole - my brother Greg's better half. She took family book club to a whole new level this year. Greg is one lucky guy.

Nicole emailed everyone in October and said she was working on a special Christmas present for Greg with his new favourite author George Saunders . She had been emailing him and wanted to surprise Greg with a family book club on one of his books. We all jumped on board, and decided on In Persuasion Nation, a book of short stories.

About a week later I opened my email and there wass a message from Greg about family book club and should we do a George Saunders book? Immediatly following was a frantic message from Nicole to not let Greg in on it, followed by tons messages about whether we should come clean and what we should do. Drama! We decided to throw Greg off the trail, so I sent a whiny email about how he picks all the books and how he needs to read more female authours blah blah blah. We ended up picking an Alice Munro book for a decoy. The stage was set.

Through out the run up to Christmas, Nicole kindly sent out many reminder emails ( necessary when working with last minute Hudson's) and let us know what was going on with the "George Saunders Gift". She had emailed him back and forth and he was such a great guy, and so excited for our family book club and had sent Greg a package full of signed copies and different editions of his books for Greg.

So exciting right!

I confess I was really excited for him to open it. Greg has always loved giving Christmas presents that make my mother cry Christmas morning. We all were excited for Greg to get a present that for sure would make him cry. I'm sure it was one of the reasons that every adult in the house was up before the kids (Nah - that would have happened anyway - big kids get up before little kids - when little kids go to bed at 11:00 )

The gift did not disapoint. Not only were there signed copies of books in editions that Greg didn't have yet, there was a letter from George to Greg saying that he would love to read one of Greg's stories and give him feedback on it. Can you believe it. Greg was crying. Heck, we all were. He looked at Nicole and said " How did you do this!". It was great. so so great.

Here is Greg surrounded by the books. I still can't believe Nicole could pull that off. And isn't it wonderful that George Saunders would send such a great package to someone he had never met? Doesn't that just make you want to believe in Christmas giving? Nicole said he wouldn't let her pay for shipping or anything. What a great guy - made me like his writing even better.

And here we are after our Family Book Club on New Years Day. The only thing missing from this picture is Sam and Karen who couldn't make it due to health concerns (we missed you) and my sister Erin's skyped in head (We are so hip and technologically advanced.) It was a great time. The high light for me was seeing Greg whisper to Nicole how much he was LOVING talking about George Saunders with his fam, and how IN LOVE they looked. (sigh)

Greg sent Mr. Saunders one of his stories yesterday along with this picture. Greg kindly forwarded his response:
"Greg--
Thanks for this, and what a beautiful family - the kindness is obvious from the photo. Got up this morning, looked at that - and I feel happy and hopeful for human nature. Seriously. You are a lucky man.

I will get on the story soon(ish). Am in Chicago where the Goodman Theater is doing a version of "CommComm." Give my best to all those shining people you have,
G"

Isn't that the coolest!

And the best ending to all this is that Nicole's present to Greg wasn't the last present opened at Christmas and wasn't the only present that made us all cry. After he opened his present from Nicole, she opened her present from him..... a letter.....a ring.....a proposal!!!

I actually missed it, because at Greg's request I took my noisy kids downstairs when she was opening her present. Andrew called me upstairs. He had tears in his eyes as he told me they were engaged! Yeah!

I mean a girl like that you need to lock down. And really, George Saunders foreshadowed it all (as good authours will do) when he referred to Nicole in his letter to Greg as his wife.

He also thinks Greg's last name is Shabada!