SEE YOU ON FRIDAY!

Our next meeting will be Friday, January 27, at 6:30 PM at Peggy Ann Strupp's house in Crane. 11539 Highway 16. Bring food to share: the theme will be "camping food" or "comfort food". A few stories mention breakfast foods, so that's a possibility! Many of the "Heart of the West" stories mention western foods or camp cooking. "Voice of the City" stories all took place in New York, so be creative! We'll eat, discuss, & watch the movie of 5 of the short stories. Please try to read ONE MORE STORY before Friday - something not on the list - so you can share it with us. SEE YOU THERE!

WHEN TO MEET; WHAT TO READ

Be sure to let me know if Friday, Jan 27 will work for you.

Here is a list of stories you should read before we meet:(*indicates my favorites)

*The Gift of the Magi (classic Christmas tale later made into a full-length movie with Marie Osmond)
*The Ransom of Red Chief (great bratty kid story)
*The Last Leaf (touching tale of empathy & sacrifice)
The Clarion Call (choices about loyaty)
The Cop & The Anthem (vagrant tries to get arrested)
Two Thanksgiving Day Gentlemen ((unexpected consequences)\
*One Dollar's Worth (images of strong women; creative solutions to protect those we love)
*Hearts & Hands (short - but I had to read it twice to "get" it!)
*Whistling Dick's Christmas Stocking (a small act of kindness makes a big difference)
A Chapparal Christmas Gift (a good heart makes a difference)
Christmas by Injunction (an attempt at doing good ends oddly but well)
The Pimienta Pancakes (all's fair in love & war)
An Adjustment of Nature (all's fair in love. A bit hard to read, but great plays on words & cute ending)
A Retrieved Reformation (can people change?)
The Reformation of Calliope (the power of a mother)
The Theory & The Hound (odd, but worth discussing the "theory")

*And for those of you who want a challenge: *"Hygeia at the Solito" (this one is longer & hard to understand - uses references from the turn of the century that we aren't familiar with - but it has TWO great twists & a nice message). Email me if you need some guidance on this one!

Email me if you are reading on an e-reader and can't find some of the stories. I can tell you what book they were published in & help you find them in your e-reader table of contents. All of the stories are also available online @ http://www.squidoo.com/ohenrystories

WHAT STORIES TO READ?

If you are just starting to read the O'Henry stories, or if you've read some but not all, make sure you read the ones that will be in our movie. Here is the description:

John Steinbeck introduces five of O. Henry's most popular short stores. In "The Cop and the Anthem" a homeless alcoholic is increasingly frustrated in numerous attempts to get arrested and jailed for 90 days in a warm cell rather than face the rigors of a New York winter. In "The Clarion Call" a NYPD detective has a crisis of conscience when he is torn between his duty to arrest a childhood friend for a murder only he knows he committed and the debt of honor he owes to him. In "The Last Leaf" a naive young girl is stricken with pneumonia after being seduced and jilted by venal actor. When she loses her will to live, her devoted sister and an eccentric Greenwich Village artist try to help her to survive. In "The Ransom of Red Chief" two bumbling con men kidnap the son of a rural sheriff for ransom but find they've taken on more than they can handle. In "The Gift of the Magi" an impoverished but devoted young couple struggle to pay for Christmas gifts worthy of their mutual love.

Fun! I'll post a list of the minimum stories you should read in a different post!

NEXT MEETING

Who could meet next Friday night, January 27? Send me (or the blog) a "yes" or a "no", and we will decide. It would be about 6:30 PM in Crane.
Thanks!
Peggy Ann