Our December Edition

"In a world that is always trying to self-improve, remember that you are enough. You are always enough."

Matchbook Book Club presents: December Newsletter   Dear Members, I hoped that everyone had a very lovely Christmas and/or enjoyed the festive holiday season thus far! This year, I was very touched by the wonderful moments spent with family and friends: it is truly a magical time for all. Come holiday time means more opportunities to catch up on books we've been keeping on the back burner. I'm sure there are those who received one or two books from loved ones! I love the thrill of getting a new book. Lastly, I want to thank you all from the bottom of my heart for another fantastic year. Whether you're following along an ocean away, or attend our meetings each month, you have made this book club oh-so-special. I could not ask for better members that are almost like family. A bookish family! Wherever you are, be with the ones you love. See you all in 2015! Joanne Festive Cheers! Laughter and merriment was to be had at our latest book club meeting. Crackers were pulled, gifts were swapped, paper crowns were worn, and there were lovely s'mores treats to try! We gathered at the Swiss Room at Marche, where we talked about our previous book, Vince Flynn's Kill Shot. While it was a fast and a light read, it was hard to keep tabs on the characters and many found the plot to be hollow in some areas. Members like Shirley and Barbara found our other selections for that month to be much more agreeable, such as Daniel Silva's The English Girl and Nevil Shute's On The Beach. The votes are in! Theme: Extraordinary Ways Holiday 2014 This month's selection aims to provide a good laugh and melt the heart. They also serve to remind ourselves to look for the extraordinary in ordinary ways. Happy reading!  Summary From Marie Phillips, author of the #1 national and international bestseller Gods Behaving Badly, comes a charming, funny story about a down-on-his-luck knight of Camelot, his eccentric band of misfits and their madcap quest to restore order to their lives, and the realm.            Sir Humphrey du Val has had enough. Relegated to the Table of Less Valued Knights--Camelot's least prestigious spot, boringly rectangular in shape and with one leg shorter than the other so that it has to be propped up with a folded napkin to stop it from rocking--he has been banned by King Arthur from going on quests, and hasn't left the castle in 15 years. After a chance meeting with Elaine, a young maiden in search of her kidnapped fiancé, Sir Humphrey, along with his squire Conrad (an undersized giant) and Jemima (Conrad''s elephant), sets off on a journey to find the distressed damsel's betrothed, hoping to restore himself to a place of honour at the Round Table.           Meanwhile, Martha, an errant queen on the run from her new power-hungry husband, is in disguise and on a quest of her own to find her long-lost brother, the true ruler of her realm. Martha soon runs--literally--into Humphrey's eccentric group, who take the incognito queen captive, believing her to be a boy. As they journey through countryside, castles and villages, they gather unlikely friends and enemies along the way. While each member of the party secretly harbours their own ambitions for the quest, their collective success, and the fate of the realm, rests on their grudging cooperation and unexpectedly interconnected lives.            The Princess Bride meets Monty Python and the Holy Grail in this funny, charming, and delightful tale about lesser-known heroes in Arthurian England.

“I declare after all there is no enjoyment like reading! How much sooner one tires of any thing than of a book! When I have a house of my own, I shall be miserable if I have not an excellent library.”  -Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice FUTURE EVENT Our first gathering of the year will be taking place in the middle of the month! Click on the Doodle here to vote for the dates! For this occasion, I have picked a very lovely French boulangerie for us to try for lunch in the heart of the Disillery District: Cluny. Take alook! What are your "bookish" resolutions for 2015? Come the new year, it's a fresh start to set a goal for yourself!