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Archer Book Club: June 2020

Welcome to the Archer Book Club, or the ABC!

Selection of the Month

From the cover:

When Jenny Lawson was little, all she ever wanted was to fit in. That dream was cut short by her fantastically unbalanced father and a morbidly eccentric childhood. It did, however, open up an opportunity for Lawson to find the humor in the strange shame-spiral that is her life, and we are all the better for it.

In the irreverent Let’s Pretend This Never Happened, Lawson’s long-suffering husband and sweet daughter help her uncover the surprising discovery that the most terribly human moments—the ones we want to pretend never happened—are the very same moments that make us the people we are today. For every intellectual misfit who thought they were the only ones to think the things that Lawson dares to say out loud, this is a poignant and hysterical look at the dark, disturbing, yet wonderful moments of our lives.

eBook copies are available through the following:

Discussion Points

  1.  What specific aspects of Lawson’s childhood particularly intrigued or repelled you? Is it possible to have both reactions at the same time?
  2. What are some ways in which the book explores themes of individuality?
  3. Lawson describes her hometown as “violently rural” and struggles to find a point to its existence. In your opinion, did growing up in this town help or hinder her?
  4. Lawson made the decision to infuse humor into even her most traumatic stories of dealing with infertility, loss, and arthritis. What do you think of this choice? Have you ever used humor for healing?
  5. What did you think about the author’s voice, her use of run–on sentences, stream–of–consciousness narrative, profanity, and invented words to create a unique narrative?
  6. What was your favorite story? Why?
  7. Of all the people described in the book, whom did you most relate to or empathize with, and why?
  8. What do you think Lawson was looking for in her life? Do you think she has found it?

- Questions issued by publisher (G. P. Putnam's Sons)

Further Reading and Materials

Zoom Meeting Information

Zoom information will be emailed to those who have RSVPed closer to the planned meeting: 2:00pm-3:00pm, June 10, 2020