January Book Club: Theme - Deep Thoughts VOTE NOW!!!!

January's Book Club theme is....Deep Thoughts. One of my favorite Saturday Night Live bits growing up was 'Deep Thoughts by Jack Handey'. I have no idea why I thought they were funny. Most of them were quite stupid, but my friends and I would buy each other greeting cards with Deep Thoughts quotes on them that related to our friendship. As an OC girl who would frequent Disneyland multiple times a year with friends, this was one of our favorites.... (deep thoughts - disneyland)

Although the theme title is inspired by this SNL bit, the list of nominees are meant to expand your mind and your heart with inspiring true-life stories and ground-breaking research done on a wide-range of topics that effect our everyday lives. I hope whichever book we choose has us diving deep into great discussion over a great glass of wine. I know this list of nominees are not the typical for this group, but as a fresh start for 2025, I thought this would be a great way to kick off a new year book club.

Please cast your vote in the comments below by Sunday, December 1, 2024. January's book club selection will be announced on December 4 at our book club meeting. I've included Amazon links to further research the book and uploaded pictures of the book covers.

And the nominees are.....

1. Maybe You Should Talk To Someone by Lori Gottlieb - From a New York Times best-selling author, psychotherapist, and national advice columnist, a hilarious, thought-provoking book that takes us behind the scenes of a therapist's world--where her patients are looking for answers (and so is she). With startling wisdom and humor, Gottlieb invites us into her world as both clinician and patient, examining the truths and fictions we tell ourselves and others as we teeter on the tightrope between love and desire, meaning and mortality, guilt and redemption, terror and courage, hope and change. Amazon Link.

2. Briefly Perfectly Human by Alua Arthur - A deeply transformative memoir that reframes how we think about death and how it can help us lead better, more fulfilling and authentic lives, from America’s most visible death doula. For her clients and everyone who has been inspired by her humanity, Alua Arthur is a friend at the end of the world. As our country’s leading death doula, she’s spreading a transformative message: thinking about your death—whether imminent or not—will breathe wild, new potential into your life. Amazon Link.

3. Quiet by Susan Cain - In Quiet, Susan Cain argues that we dramatically undervalue introverts and shows how much we lose in doing so. She charts the rise of the Extrovert Ideal throughout the twentieth century and explores how deeply it has come to permeate our culture. She also introduces us to successful introverts—from a witty, high-octane public speaker who recharges in solitude after his talks, to a record-breaking salesman who quietly taps into the power of questions. Passionately argued, impeccably researched, and filled with indelible stories of real people, Quiet has the power to permanently change how you see yourself. Amazon Link.

4. Never Split The Difference by Chris Voss - This book is a masterclass in influencing others, no matter the circumstances. After a stint policing the rough streets of Kansas City, Chris Voss joined the FBI, where his career as a hostage negotiator brought him face-to-face with a range of criminals, including bank robbers and terrorists. Reaching the pinnacle of his profession, he became the FBI’s lead international kidnapping negotiator. Never Split the Difference distills the Voss method, revealing the skills that matter most when it comes to achieving your goals in both your professional and personal life. Amazon Link

5. Shantaram by Gregory David Roberts - An escaped convict with a false passport, Lin flees maximum security prison in Australia for the teeming streets of Bombay, where he can disappear. Lin searches for love and meaning while running a clinic in one of the city’s poorest slums. The keys to unlock the mysteries and intrigues that bind Lin are held by two people. The first is Khader Khan: mafia godfather, criminal-philosopher-saint, and mentor to Lin in the underworld of the Golden City. The second is Karla: elusive, dangerous, and beautiful, whose passions are driven by secrets that torment her and yet give her a terrible power. A novel inspired by a true story that has the world of human experience in its reach, and a passionate love for India at its heart. Now a series on Apple TV+. Amazon Link.

6. Finding Me by Viola Davis - From Viola - "This is my story, from a crumbling apartment in Central Falls, Rhode Island, to the stage in New York City, and beyond. This is the path I took to finding my purpose but also my voice in a world that didn’t always see me. As I wrote Finding Me, my eyes were open to the truth of how our stories are often not given close examination. We are forced to reinvent them to fit into a crazy, competitive, judgmental world. So I wrote this for anyone running through life untethered, desperate and clawing their way through murky memories, trying to get to some form of self-love. For anyone who needs reminding that a life worth living can only be born from radical honesty and the courage to shed facades and be . . . you" Amazon Link.

7. Dinner With Vampires by Bethany Joy Lenz - A deliciously witty and inspiring memoir by One Tree Hill star Bethany Joy Lenz about her decade in a cult and her quest to break free. What none of the show’s millions of fans knew, hidden even from her costars, was her secret double life in a cult. Written with powerful honesty and dark humor, 'Dinner for Vampires' is an inspiring story about the importance of identity and understanding what you believe. Amazon Link.