The most recent venture of my book club was “Mennonite in a Little Black Dress: A Memoir of Going Home.” I missed the meeting where this book was selected so had no idea what to expect when I headed out to the bookstore. The sales lady pointed me in the direction of Women’s Memoirs. “Wow!” I thought. “Book club is going high brow!” Not exactly.
I don’t want to suggest that “Mennonite in a Little Black Dress: A Memoir of Going Home” is low brow, smutty or anything of that ilk. In fact, the author writes from her own recovering Mennonite, very educated, academic perspective. Her word choice is carefully crafted and impeccable, though at times forcing the reader to his or her dictionary.
It’s her style that made it not high brow. I wish I knew how to explain that in more specific terms. But I don’t. And I didn’t like her style. I dig editorials. I read several blogs religiously. I like writers who write in the same way I imagine they speak. It makes me feel like I am having a conversation with them.
I suspect that for many reader, they will feel like they are having a conversation with Rhoda Janzen throughout “Mennonite in a Little Black Dress: A Memoir of Going Home.” But me, I wanted to cut the conversation short.
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