An ass out of you and umption

[mrissa]

Crowded Culver's in the middle of Wisconsin. Table of four guys in their mid-twenties dressed in hunting winter camo and orange jackets, eating burgers and cheese curds and frozen custard. As I stood there propped against a wall waiting for a table to open up, it became clear what they were discussing:

"Like Mirror Dance? I liked that one, with the crazy clone brother."
"No, not Mirror Door, Mirador. It's a place. They're all places, all the titles. Fake word places."
"I just read Melusine."
"Well, you gotta borrow the others. There's this actress...."

I did not jump in to tell them that truepenny had put trains in the last volume, but oh, was I tempted.

Comments

[p-j-cleary.livejournal.com]

I wonder if their book club had just reached the "M"s?

[dd-b.livejournal.com]

I actually had to think several seconds to figure this out. The concept of a book club going alphabetically by title is freaking weird.

[truepenny.livejournal.com]

Psst. My last name also begins with M.

[p-j-cleary.livejournal.com]

Heh, it was just the titles all beginning with "M" that got me, but a sub-sort of titles, then authors...hmm. Sort of an "OCD Book of the Month Club."

[dd-b.livejournal.com]

Yes (though, thanks to LJ, I have to dig to come up with that sometimes). But they were discussing at least THREE books, all of whose titles started with M, by two authors, only one of whom has a last name starting with M. So it was the titles that it seemed to me it must be referring to -- explaining all the books in the conversation.

[ckd]

It's possible they sorted LMB under "McMaster".

[dd-b.livejournal.com]

Gack. Yes, I suppose that's possible; in the general sort of "any kind of screw-up is possible" sense :-).

[sleary.livejournal.com]

My local used bookshop does. Drives me nutty.