17th Meeting: Rabbit, Run

The 17th meeting of Eat, Drink, and Be Literary was hosted by one of our newest members, Kelsey. She made her official mark on our book club with a bang, by selecting John Updike's classic Rabbit, Run. Our whole club remarked that while knowing John Updike's name, that we had never actually read anything by him. We were very glad to have righted this obvious wrong!

This novel, the first of the Rabbit series, follows a young man nicknamed Rabbit suffering what we would now refer to as a quarter life crisis. He is 26, married to an alcoholic, has a toddler and a baby on the way, and impulsively decides to leave his home and his life. He runs away from all responsibilities, searches for an identity, and leaves a nothing but uncertainty and destruction behind. 

While I am sure this novel was groundbreaking and scandalous (hence being a banned book) when it came out in the 1960's, for most of us in the book club, it felt like a tired story. We have actually read quite a few novels lately about men suffering crises of virtue and identity, and it is really only palatable in small doses. 

Updike's prose were incredible, though, and it was apparent to all of us why he is a household name. While I didn't love the book, and I especially didn't love Rabbit, I think I might be interested in reading the later books in the series in hopes that I see some actual growth in the character. 

Because of the symbolism of Rabbit's nickname (as a creature without much foresight, and with too much fight or flight instinct), Kelsey suggested that we bring "animal" themed food. I brought radishes from my garden (that's rabbit food, right?), and we had other goodies such as puppy chow, ants on a log, and monkey bread. It was probably the cutest theme yet!