Manayunk Book Club July Meetup

Happy Summer everyone! Keep your fingers crossed for good weather, as we're headed back to the park for July. Once again, we had an tight race. The winner by just one vote is Talk Talk by TC Boyle (http://us.penguingroup.com/static/rguides/us/talk_talk.html).

"Talk Talk is centered on three main characters: Dana Halter, a deaf teacher of English literature; Bridger Martin, her boyfriend; and Peck Wilson, the career thief who steals Dana’s identity. The novel opens with Dana being pulled over for a routine traffic violation. A check on her driver’s license reveals Dana Halter to be a dangerous fugitive with a long rap sheet that includes auto theft and assault with a deadly weapon. Her identity has been stolen and, for the time being, she is powerless to prove it.

What better way to parody America’s ideology of self-reinvention, a vital component to the American dream, than with a story about identity theft? The subject also allows for Boyle to reexamine another bete noire, our culture’s crass consumerism, as well as address the anxieties of living in the information age, where one’s legal and financial identity is more vulnerable than ever before. But Talk Talk, while full of Boylesque humor, is not a satire at all. It is instead a book that reads with all the breathless, headlong pace of a thriller, while at the same time examining deeper questions of language and identity."

A friendly reminder: If something comes up and you can't make the meeting, please change your RSVP to no on the Meetup site. Most of you are good about that, so thank you.

Don't forget the bug spray and see you on the 31st!