By Becky LeJeune
If you’ve followed the club, then you know that this month we’ve been cooking from Ford Fry’s Tex-Mex: Traditions, Innovations, and Comfort Foods From Both Sides of the Border.
Well, in addition to choosing a new cookbook each month, we’re taking it one step further with themed book club reading and snacking suggestions to go along with the club pick. Today we’ve got reading ideas and a menu suggestion for the perfect Tex-Mex themed book club meeting!
First up, Attica Locke’s Bluebird, Bluebird finds Texas Ranger Darren Matthews investigating what seems to be a racially motivated double homicide in the tiny town of Lark, Texas.
This first in the Highway 59 series examines racial tension and race-driven crime through the eyes of a black detective, making it both thought provoking and timely. Discussion topics include family dynamics and race relations.
Locke’s latest and second in the series, Heaven, My Home, is new out in hardcover next month.
Next up is Home for Erring and Outcast Girls by Julie Kibler.
This novel is a dual narrative, split between the early 1900s and present day and centers around an Arlington, Texas home for fallen women.
The book is based on historical events. Discussion topics include women’s issues and female friendships.
Kibler’s debut, Calling Me Home, was a 2013 Indie Next pick. She will also be heading up our September book club meeting on September 11! Attendance is free but space is limited so be sure to check details and register here.
And finally, Where We Come From by Oscar Cásares, set in Brownsville, Texas, and features a family that finds themselves harboring an undocumented immigrant in a very precarious and possibly dangerous situation. Discussion topics include family dynamics, immigration, and political issues affecting border towns.
Cásares is also the author of Brownsville, a collection of short stories and Amigoland.
Suggested menu:
Tropical Fruit Salad Con Chile
“Felix’s” Queso
The OG Nacho
Pralines
Classic Margarita on the Rocks
Happy reading (and eating)! And remember to post your pictures to social media using the hashtag: #BookBarCookClub
Becky LeJeune is BookBar’s local author coordinator and office manager and resident cookbook enthusiast.
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