Becky – Found the stories quirky and nostalgic, and thought the author did a very good job describing growing up. She enjoyed all the characters even if she didn’t necessarily like them all. However, she loved Roy and how he always had time to stop and visit with people. She thought he would make a great character in a novel. Becky found Catherine to be very naïve. She liked her life lessons and thought she had a very independent upbringing, for example the trip to NYC, which was bizarre. She thought it was great how her Mom was able to separate Catherine’s actions from her.
Maggie – Thought this was a funny, poignant, entertaining read. She wondered how Catherine would have managed if she hadn’t had Roy. Maggie also found Catherine to be unbelievably naïve and was sad for her when she didn’t know that Miranda was referring to sex. When she read the part when Catherine cleared out her mom’s bridge party by referencing how Marie Sweeney saw more of Delores’s husband than Delores did, she was reminded of a time when she asked her mother in the middle of a party what a douche was.
Artie – Was pressed for time and found it hard to read fast because he didn’t want to rush. Artie again brought up the question of a memoir and whether or not it’s true, or just what the author wants to be true. He occasionally struggled with the idea of her being four years old, yet writing things like, ‘the cataract fogged eyes of the Dalmatian’ because a child wouldn’t think that way. Roy was a spectacular character, but he found it hard to believe Catherine’s parents would allow her to spend so much time with him, but then wondered if he was placing today’s values on them. He found the story of Warty very moving. The author revealed things as she learned them and Artie thought the theme was the loss of innocence.
Miles – Described himself as a stickler on the veracity of autobiographies and memoirs. But since it was a collection of story fragments from when the author was between four and thirteen, it gave her license to be less consistent with the truth than he usually allows. Miles loved the coming of age themes and realized that he had never read one from a woman’s perspective, which he found interesting. The author’s tone brought him back to how you think as a child, and he found the writing beautifully and innocently woven from this perspective. He loved the Warty story and how Cat’s father said exactly what needed to be said in regards to Warty. Miles noted that nearly everything that needed to be said was spoken through dialogue. At one point Miles said something like, ‘a wonderful morsel in the life of Roy from a little girl’s perspective’ sending Sandy into throes of linguistic love.
K’Lynn – laughed out loud so much and recalled the scene when Catherine is in the psychologist’s office describing the kid with the corduroy pants up past his waist and his goofy eyes. K’Lynn said a good memoir makes you care about the author and their subject, and that this did just that from page one. K’Lynn didn’t think it odd that Catherine was naïve about sex and recalled asking her mom what a blow job was in junior high. She mentioned that she has several students who could benefit from working at a store. She liked the line that went, ‘Everyone has a cross to bear and the sainthood part comes from how you bear it.’ She didn’t want the book to end, it made her laugh, cry and think.
Sandy – Took her longer to read than normal because she wanted to think about it as she went along. She related to the Catholic parts. As she read each chapter, she would think it couldn’t possibly top the previous one, but it did every time. Sandy found it fascinating that Catherine was able to move on after Roy left. Sandy was often trying to figure out Cat’s age while reading and never got a good idea of how old Roy was. Sandy also saw Catherine as very innocent, but didn’t think her naivety about sex at that age was abnormal.
Caroline – Was a little put-off by Catherine because she thought she was a bit full of herself. Caroline enjoyed reading it the most when she thought it was a novel, then would suddenly remember that it was a memoir and would think that Catherine was saying, “I’m such an amazing person.” Caroline identified with the mom having everyone hide when people came to visit because they do this at her house whenever the Jehovah Witness come to call. She had a hard time believing that as an 8 year old Catherine was making dresses or that she was mistaken for a newlywed at the age of 13. It reminded her a bit of the Tiger Mom story in that she kept wishing she had someone else’s perspective to hear from.
Letitia – Read in a rush so she couldn’t savor it but found it very entertaining. Loved the Dolores story. Wondered if Caroline rated it lower because she’s a teacher and wouldn’t want a student like Catherine in her class. She thought Roy was an amazing character. Letitia liked it so much she will give this year as a Christmas present. With all Catherine’s exposure to abuse and horrific things through her delivery job you’d think she’d be a bit more worldly and less naïve as a result.
Michelle – Michelle didn’t have much to say about the book itself, but related how much she identified with the story from having worked next door to a pharmacy owned by an older couple in Longview when she was a child. She could picture everything, the stocked shelves; the owner, who was a sweet doting old man in a white lab coat, with eyeglasses and grey hair. Michelle would go on trips with her mom to collect money from customers who tried to pass bad checks, and saw a lot of life that a child often wouldn’t, much like Catherine did on her trips with Roy. Michelle said that if she wrote a memoir, people wouldn’t believe a lot of what she would write either. A memoir is to be believed because that is how the author perceived the experience.
Pat – I thought the book excelled in so many ways. The strong characters, the sense of the time and place, the perspective of a child, the nuanced shifts in her realization of the adult world around her that occurred with every chapter that never felt forced or self-serving. I thought it was an amazing bit of writing to pull all that off, and as Miles mentioned earlier, almost all through dialogue. Each chapter was a perfect story in and of itself. I liked how she captured how a child thinks and relates to the world, and the loss of innocence that comes with age. There are not too many books we have read that I would like to read again, but this is one. It also gave me a perspective on Catholic guilt that I hadn’t realized before. She wanted to believe so badly, but couldn’t and certainly wasn’t helped by being shamed for trying to use her head. How could nuns say such horrible things? And yet still she wanted to believe so badly. So when she finally said screw it, the sense of freedom from that shame was almost palatable. Great pick.
The next pick is Fun Home by Alison Bechdel. I have already read my copy if anyone is interested in it. The above link also has a 3:40 video on the process she used to do her drawings for the book.
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