After much (arguably neurotic) deliberation, I chose Gonzalez & Daughter Trucking Company for my book club’s October selection. I wanted to love this book. The quirky title, colorful cover, and unique premise all had me anticipating reading it with an emotion I can only describe as glee. Sadly, it didn’t live up to the self-induced hype. It was a decent book, a good book, even a very good book. Perhaps if I’d gone into this without any expectations, I would have enjoyed it more and would now be raving about what a wonderful gem of a book I’d found. I know some of my fellow book clubbers felt that way, and had gone on to recommend it to others.

So, a quick synopsis. Libertad, a woman incarcerated in a Mexican prison, relates the details of her life growing up as the daughter of a fugitive Mexican professor-turned-trucker. Like a Latina Scherazade, she captivates her fellow prisoners with her stories, through what ultimately serves as a cathartic experience. Libertad’s life on the road is anything but idyllic, yet at the same time, her story has a kind of fairy tale quality to it, as does the book itself. How she came to be an inmate is a mystery which isn’t revealed until the end, and it is both shocking and strangely anticlimatic at the same time.

I enjoyed the book enough that I would be open to reading more by this author, but not so much that I’ll be pushing this book on unsuspecting readers (as I’m wont to do). Still, I feel like I have myself to blame for my feelings, rather than the book itself.

On a personal note, this was my last book club meeting. I’m leaving Charlotte and moving to Atlanta. My husband got a job there that is a really good opportunity, and combine that with being back close to family, and we decided to make the move. I’ll miss the girls in my club, but hope I can find another good group down in Atlanta.