Reading Between the Wines: Call Me Mrs. Miracle (January Meeting)

December Book Selection: "Call Me Mrs. Miracle" by Debbie Macomber

Meeting Date: January 7, 2011 @ 7pm (please email me for meeting location-- 2readingbetweenthewines@gmail.com)

The following is the guide we will follow for the discussion at the meeting. I'll take notes and post some of the points that were made or discussed at the meeting. Please feel free to review the questions and post your thoughts on the questions if you will not be attending the meeting.

Discussion Points/Readers Guide Questions:

After a short conversation at our November meeting we decided that it might be a nice idea to choose a Christmas book for our December book to get us or keep us in the spirit of the holiday season.

What did you think of the book overall? Was it a good book? Would you recommend it to someone? Other thoughts or opinions on this title?

Questions (taken from http://www.debbiemacomber.com/index.cfm):

1. Do you sympathize with J.R’s unwillingness to leave the tragedy in his past behind, especially at Christmas? Should he have made more of an effort for his son’s sake? What do you think J.R. could have done to help his son view Christmas in a positive perspective?

2. Have you ever had the experience of trying to track down the Christmas season’s most popular toy, the gift of the moment? (Remember Cabbage Patch dolls and Tickle Me Elmo?) If so, share that experience and what the gift meant to the child who received it. Do you think Intellytron (if he was a real creation) would appeal to the kids in your life?

3. Mrs. Miracle has lots of clever, pithy sayings, which appear at the top of each chapter. Which was your favorite, and why?

4. What do you think of Lindy Lee as a boss? Have you ever had one like her, someone who’s constantly “delegating” and expecting her employees to implement all of her (or his!) ideas? Do you think she’s unreasonable—or ultimately fair?

5. Looking after Gabe is Holly’s first real experience with a child. Does she do a good job? Does she make any mistakes? What advice would you give her?

6. Holly’s parents are selfless in their volunteering. Have you or anyone you know done this kind of work? How would you describe the sacrifices—and the rewards?

7. Holly helps her brother while he’s deployed in Afghanistan by taking care of his son. What can we do to support the troops, the individual men and women serving overseas?

8. There are a lot of meals in this story! What’s the significance of preparing and serving food in Call Me Mrs. Miracle? Does your family have a special Christmas recipe?

9. What was the most moving moment in this story for you? The funniest? The most romantic?

10. Debbie attributes the origin of the Mrs. Miracle character to the Biblical quote “Do not forget to entertain strangers . . . for some have entertained angels unaware.” (Hebrews, 13). Do any of the characters in this story suspect there’s something unusual about Mrs. Miracle? Do they realize that she’s played a role in their lives? If you have ever had a brief encounter with someone who had a positive or even life-changing effect on you, share that experience.