I think I have to quit my book club because the snacks are getting too competitive.
By @quinnyy · Friends
One member started making elaborate, themed snacks for every meeting. Now everyone feels pressured to perform, and it's stressing me out. I just want to talk about the book without spending a day baking a literary masterpiece.
The full story
My book club used to be my favorite thing. A few friends, a bottle of wine, some cheese and crackers, and a good discussion. It was low-key. A few months ago, a new member joined. And she is... enthusiastic. For our first meeting with her, she brought a multi-layer cake decorated to look like the cover of the book. It was impressive. We all praised her. For the next meeting, at someone else's house, she showed up with a full charcuterie board where everything was a pun related to the book's characters. The actual host, who had just set out a bowl of pretzels, looked horrified. It has now completely escalated. The unspoken rule is that you have to create a museum-quality food sculpture related to the novel. I am not a baker. I am not a chef. I am an anxious person who works a full-time job and just wants to quietly read a book and then talk about it for two hours. My turn to host is in August. The book is a dense, historical non-fiction about trade routes. What am I supposed to make? A gingerbread galleon? A torte shaped like the Suez Canal? The pressure is immense. I tried to gently bring it up, saying something like, 'Wow, these are amazing! I'm not sure I can live up to this standard!' and she just smiled and said, 'Oh, it's just for fun!' But it doesn't feel fun. It feels like a competition I never signed up for. I'm so stressed about it that I'm considering just quitting the group altogether. Would that be a massive overreaction?
How people voted
- OP Is Right — 35% (82 votes)
- Both Messy — 34% (80 votes)
- OP Is Wrong — 30% (70 votes)
Readers are split: “OP Is Right” leads with 35% — 232 votes and 5 comments so far.
What people are saying
@abbyyy — LMAO
@graceeh — That sounds so stressful! A book club should be fun, not a second job. If it's not bringing you joy anymore, it's okay to let it go. On their side.
@xenatbh — you have to make the suez canal torte now
@ellieok — this is what a book club for overachievers sounds like.
@sagetbh — Soft.
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