Meeting Notes: Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli

We met to discuss Stargirl on Saturday night and, as usual, had way too much fun.

Melisa was sick and wasn't able to join us. I really missed her contributions and her contagious laugh.
Fortunately, we had two guest worms, Bridget and Kara. Bridget had a book club anxiety dream that she'd read the wrong book and was told not to speak. Of course this wasn't the case, but I found it so funny that I decided to include it here on the blog.

I made some star-themed treats.

{Kara} 

You can read about my baking fiasco here. I am too lazy and annoyed to retype it.

At least the cookies turned out.

And the drinks. Drinks are imperative for a successful book club. At least for us. I decided to make a modified crantini because a) I am a fan of vodka martinis (okay, vodka in general), and b) I thought they'd be festive. I also cooked up a big pot of glogg, which was pretty delicious.

{Kayla}

                        {Bess, Annabelle, and Marissa}

{Kayla and Bridget}

{Courtney: hostess}

Oh yes! And we talked about the book too! Read Bess's summary (below) for our reaction.

Stargirl was a quick, fun read. The book is aimed at young adults and middle school students, so it might be the "youngest" book we've read so far. We kept that it mind as we discussed the themes, but still it was  hard to get past the simplicity of some of the concepts. Stargirl is a sophomore in high school who names herself and changes it as she develops. She'd been home-schooled until the year the novel takes place in. The narrator and protagonist is actually Leo, a timid boy who falls for Stargirl but harbors complex feelings toward her. She mystifies, and to some extent delights, the whole school by singing Happy Birthday to students, practicing random acts of kindness, and cheering and dancing her way through sporting events. Leo is attracted to her free spirit, and soon they start going out. (We actually weren't sure why they liked each other at all, but they did.) Leo begins to wish she'd be more like everyone else, and finally, after the two of them become social pariahs (after she attends classmates' families' funerals and cheers for the opposing team), he tells her so. He tries to explain to her that she's not connected to others, which upsets her because she wants to be connected to the whole of the universe. That conversation and that topic was sort of interesting. If you are connected to the whole planet, can you be connected to individuals? Along the same lines, how close do you have to be to someone to let them share personal moments with you? I did like considering what the world would be like if we were fully connected, not just with all of humankind, but all the plants and animals and everything. Leo takes his come-to-Jesus talk a little too far, though, and soon Stargirl gives herself a "normal" makeover for him. 

We spent some time talking about whether Stargirl ever did anything that offensive or hurtful and why many of her actions even turned most (but not all) of us off. We also wondered if, in trying to be open-minded, the book equated normal with "bad" and weird with "good," which is a little simplistic. There were some nice passages about Stargirl (although some might have been a little cheesy) and some nice descriptions in general. I liked the scene with Stargirl in the dessert talking with her teacher and Leo about extinct animals and what footprints we all might leave behind. On the other hand, I felt like the book could have had more scenes and less explanation, but I wonder if the author did that on purpose because it was almost like everything was being viewed through the eyes of the whole school instead of an individual. I do think scenes can draw the reader in more though.

On the whole, we liked the book for what it was. 

Playlist for the night (nearly all of this music I've discovered through my awesome brother, Scott):

1. Sweet Jane: Cowboy Junkies
2. Welcome Home, Son: Radical Face
3. I've Got a Feeling: The Besnard Lakes
4. Wedding Bells: Lissie
5. Pursuit of Happiness: Lissie
6. New Tradition: Company
7. Lola: Cud
8. T.K.: Clinic
9. Seven Nation Army: Nostalgia 77
10. Crying: T.V. on the Radio
11. Little Girl: Dark Night of the Soul, featuring Julian Casablancas
12. I Walk the Earth: King Buscuit Time
13. Infinity Guitars: Sleigh Bells
14. Rill Rill: Sleigh Bells
15. Your Kisses Are Wasted on Me: The Pipettes
16. Seven Nation Army: Ben (L'Oncle Soul)
17. Can't Stand Me Now: The Libertines
18. Lights Out: Santogold
19. Single Ladies: Pomplamoose
20. Gangsta: tUnE-yArDs
21. That's My Bitch: Jay-Z and Kanye West
22. More Than a Feeling: Boston (this song doesn't totally fit in, but it got Bess singing)
23. No One's Gonna Love You: Cee-Lo Green
24. Stop Stomp-Stompin': The Coathangers
25. Whip It: Devo
26. Bad Reputation: The Hit Girls
27. Oh Bondage, Up Yours!:  X-Ray Spex
28. A Mihna Menina: Os Muntantes

Check back soon for details on our next read.