The Cherry Cola Book Club

By: Ashton Lee

Narrated by: Marguerite Gavin

Set in a small town in Mississippi, The Cherry Cola Book Club is the touching and sometimes hilarious story of a young, upbeat librarian who has been given an ultimatum to increase the library’s circulation dramatically - or risk having to close its doors.

Maura doesn’t just start a book club; she gets involved in unique and unexpected ways with her library patrons. She entertains and advises them, she has potluck dinners, and life in the town begins to imitate art. The patrons begin to relate their own lives to the work of writers like Margaret Mitchell and Harper Lee. In moving and personal ways, Maura helps them deal with such subjects as long-lost love and a brush with death, offering advice on nearly everything - including romance. No topic is off limits. Along the way, Maura raises the profile of the library - but will it be enough?

©2013 Ashton Lee (P)2013 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Worth a listen

Any additional comments?

It was worth listening too once, I enjoyed the storyline, but its not a book theat made me rush back to it when I had to put it down.

Boring and Poor Narration

Would you say that listening to this book was time well-spent? Why or why not?

This book was difficult to listen to because so many of the characters sounded the same, in addition the narrator was not good at distinguishing who was talking. The book seemed to take forever and I only finished because I was doing a boring job that had to be completed.

Would you listen to another book narrated by Marguerite Gavin?

No

If this book were a movie would you go see it?

No

Too predictable and draggy

Being a lover of book clubs, I thought I might enjoy this book. However, it had no depth and was very predictable. I only continued listening because I was painting and it made the arduous tasks of painting and cleaning a little more tolerable. There are so many other great books that would use your time and credits more wisely. I'm not usually critical, but would rather be honest as I value other reviews when I'm trying to make my listening selection.

Steady read

It was a pretty good book. I liked the characters. A new author for me. The older women were my favorite. The narrator did a good southern accent.

FEEL GOOD CHICK BOOK

I was looking for something with a bit more grit. This is a feel good chick book. It is lovely the way the characters work together and become friends. I love how the "bad guy" gets in the end. I love how the author works out the love interests. It was a lovely little book, but definitely not gritty.

The Cherry Cola Book Club Review

I very much enjoyed this book. It had a southern feel to the story. Being from a small town in the south, I could appreciate the politics that goes on in counsel and Mayor debates. There is always a need for industry to come into a town, however without the basic needs for education and other meaningful amenities. A town will not grow without having a library.

Library book club full of "characters"

If you love your library and reading books, this is an excellent take on keeping a library going. This story is witty, informative, and full of southern small town charm. The Cherry Cola book group in Mississippi, was born out of desperation when librarian, Maura Beth Mathew finds that a crotchety city councilman wants to close down the library and use those funds to start a commercial area. If numbers of library users and library events don't raise, the library closes.

The characters who make up the book group are quite interesting and diverse. Their discussions of Gone With The Wind and To Kill A Mockingbird cover everything from history to personal issues, with great warmth and lots of humor. Of course, the councilman's contributions are definitely meant to foil the fun.

I really enjoyed this book, learning a lots about libraries and librarians, but mostly I enjoyed all the characters and their creative efforts to keep their library the center if their community and a treat in their lives. I listened to the audio version of this book and thoroughly enjoyed it.