A Weeknight Book Club and Some Tasty Snacks

Hey everyone, I hope your week is off to a good start! I’m still recovering from a bit of a hectic Monday, but last night was such a nice reset that I had to share. My friend Lissa hosts a little book club every few weeks, and we finally got together again after skipping a month or so. It’s nothing fancy—just a handful of us chatting about whatever we’ve read lately over snacks and drinks at her place. I always look forward to it, even if I’m usually behind on the book (or, let’s be real, haven’t finished it at all).

Ren had to work late, so I headed over to Lissa’s on my own around 7. Her apartment is in the Westbridge area, just a quick drive from downtown, and I swear every time I go there I notice something new about the neighborhood. Last night, I spotted a little mural on the side of a laundromat that I’m pretty sure wasn’t there before—a huge painted flock of silverwings taking off into a sunset. It’s so cool how those birds just pop up in art around here, like they’re watching over the city. Anyway, I got there right on time, which is a miracle for me, and Lissa had her place all cozy with candles and a playlist of soft acoustic stuff on her Spotify.

There were just five of us this time, and we’d picked The Silent Patient to discuss. I won’t spoil anything, but if you’ve read it, you know there’s a lot to unpack. I only got about halfway through (classic Maren), but I still had plenty to say about the twists I did get to. We ended up talking for almost two hours, jumping between the book and random life updates. Lissa’s new kitten, Pip, stole the show for a while, climbing all over everyone’s laps. I’m not even a cat person, but I was smitten.

Of course, no book club is complete without food, and I volunteered to bring a snack. I’m not the best in the kitchen, as you all know, but I tried something new that actually turned out pretty great. I made these little cheesy herb bites with a recipe I found on Pinterest, using crescent roll dough from Pillsbury as the base. You just roll out the dough, sprinkle on some shredded cheddar, a bit of garlic powder, and some dried tharrel—a spice my grandmother always kept in her pantry that tastes kinda like a mix of thyme and lemon zest. Then you roll it up, slice it into bite-sized pieces, and bake at 375 for about 12 minutes. They came out golden and fluffy, and everyone kept grabbing seconds. I felt like a legit chef for once! I’ve got a picture of them on my Instagram if you want to see the evidence before they disappeared.

We also had some wine—Lissa picked up a bottle of Trader Joe’s Charles Shaw, which is cheap but always does the trick—and a tray of veggies and dip that another friend, Tara, brought. It was the perfect low-key spread for a weeknight. Around 9:30, we did our usual tradition of picking the next book by drawing titles out of a hat. Or, well, Lissa’s version of a hat, which is this old knitted cap she says belonged to her great-uncle who worked the frost mines back in the day. I have no idea what that even means, but it’s become this silly ritual we all love. We landed on Where the Crawdads Sing for next time, which I’ve been meaning to read forever.

I got home around 10, and Ren was already half-asleep on the couch with Netflix playing some true crime doc in the background. We caught up for a bit before I basically passed out. Book club nights always leave me feeling so refreshed, even if I’m tired the next day. It’s just nice to have a little pocket of time to connect with people over stories, you know? Plus, I’m weirdly proud of those cheesy bites. I might even make them again for a movie night this weekend if I’m feeling ambitious.

How about you all—do you have any book clubs or regular meetups that you look forward to? And if you’ve got any easy snack ideas, send them my way. I’m on a roll (pun intended) and need more recipes to mess up. Talk to you soon!