I’ve had my book club for over ten years now and we’ve done some great reads with amazing food & cocktails. This night discussing Becoming Duchess Goldblatt was quite special, so I wanted to share.

Firstly, you can’t have a lively book discussion without interesting and thoughtful questions. Since I was the host, it was up to me to provide the questions, the location, and a signature cocktail that reflects the book. We also try to bring foods that are inspired by or mentioned in the novel. My group of gals got really creative on this one! Don’t worry recipes will follow.

The only questions I found were HERE. Although these were lovely, I wanted something a little more indepth and varied. So, what’s a host, avid reader, and part time teacher to do. I reread Becoming Duchess Goldblatt and created my own list of questions. I like to have 10-12 in case someone wants to skip or we veer into another question in our discusssion.

I may have gone a bit overboard.

BOOK DISCUSSION QUESTIONS for BECOMING DUCHESS GOLDBLATT

Close your eyes and visualize the best possible outcome. When it’s not looking, grasp it by the neck and fling it into reality.

~Duchess Goldblatt TWEET

1. On page 7 anonymous says, “Men can be careless, not women. Women have to hold the world steady, or the whole operation will spin right off it’s axis.” Do you agree? Why or why not?
2. On page 11 anonymous asks her friend, “Am I really such a terrible person that I deserve all this?” Followed by this TWEET from the Duchess: “If you find yourself feeling embittered, roll around in a barrel of kosher salt until crusted, and then set yourself in a colander to drain.” Was anonymous a terrible person, if so why. Why do you think she thought she might be a terrible person? Have you ever felt like a terrible person?
3. On page 12 anonymous talks about Duchess’s persona and her age, saying I felt four-hundred years old in my heart.” How old do you feel in your mind? Body/Bones? Heart? Is there a difference?
4. On page 13/14 anonymous talks about the Duchess being able to talk to anyone, “she could say things I would never say in real life.” If you could reinvent yourself, would you and what would your persona be?
5. On page 19, she talks about Duchess tweeting and telling people over and over that, “I’m fictional, but my love is real.” Can you love a fictional character and or be loved by one? How does the upcoming AI fit into this idea?
6. Do you have a line or tweet from Duchess or Anonymous that resonates with you? Mine is on page 35 when she talks about the kindness of the human mind. “It will create blank spaces for itself. I think of them as little airbags in my mind, cushioning the tender places where the blows and bruises are.” And Page 211 TWEET: Close your eyes and visualize the best possible outcome. When it’s not looking, grasp it by the neck and fling it into reality.
7. On page 36, she talks about her son saying, “As long as we tell the truth of our hearts, even when you’re in heaven we’ll talk.” Do you think souls can talk to each other?
8. On page 53 and echoed on page 133, Anonymous and Duchess say, “Duchess is a friend to all” and “she loves the world.” Anonymous goes on to talk about her father saying “you love people because you recognize they’re inherently worthy, regardless of whether you think it’s your job to decide if they’ve earned it.” How do you decide who to love? Do you? Do you agree with this? How easy is it for you to put this idea in practice? 
9. On page 58 Anonymous talks about how “we all construct identities for ourselves anyway, right?” Do you agree with this? TWEET: “Fictional people can now give blood. Of course, we have always given our blood; we have always poured our every bit of ourselves for you.”
10. On page 74 Anonymous is talking with a friend and she says, “But does it cost me anything to be kind?” He replies, “Yeah, I think it does cost you something. Try taking care of yourself for once.” Do you agree with Anonymous or the friend?
11. When talking to her therapist on page 104 Anonymous expresses wanting to feel better. Her therapist replies, “Feeling better is a modern invention, and, frankly, I think overrated. When people intently only focus on feeling better, they reach for distractions. Overeating, overmedicating, abusing alcohol…” Do you agree? Why or why not?
12. Duchess TWEETS (page 150) “Food trucks never caught on in Crooked Path. We have advice trucks. People like to run out at noon and grab five minutes with a Jungian.” If there were advice trucks, would you go? What would you seek advice on? Do you think social media is our advice truck?
13. On page 179 Anonymous and Duchess explore the idea of choices. Duchess TWEETS: “If you have the education, wits, and leisure time to pursue your own interests, you have it better than 99% of the people who ever lived.” Anonymous says, “choices are a luxury.” Do you agree? Are some choices more of a luxury than others? Does it matter if you’re in emotional and mental pain, trying to make said choices?
14. When exchanging TWITTER PMs with a friend/fan, PJ (page 207) says, “It’s best if you decide to be true to the relationship rather than being true to the person. Because when a person lets you down (and he/she will!), you’ll say to yourself, “All bets are off!” and you’ll feel free to break a trust or breach privacy or be disloyal in big or small ways…If you commit to the relationship, you’re being faithful to that. Same with friendship.” Do you agree? How can you make that transition? Should you?
15. Did you like the format of the book with Duchess tweets interspersed throughout the narrative and the non-linear reflections?
16. Do you think the book would have been as interesting and as compelling if Duchess & Anonymous had not befriended Lyle Lovett? Are you a fan?

THE BECOMING DUCHESS GOLDBLATT SIGNATURE COCKTAIL

I tried out many ideas such as The Duchess Martini and the Duchess, but since anonymous and the Duchess mention Vodka in Becoming Duchess Goldblatt and or TWEETS, I thought the drink should be a Vodka based cocktail. I took inspriation from this pre-packaged Duchess Cosmo and used it as my jumping off point. I’m no mixologist, but I’ve been stirring cocktails (sipping, gulping, enjoying) and remixing my own version of tasties for a while, usually in big batches and to taste, so I’ll give you the rough idea to make approximately a large pitcher (3.5 litres? a gallon?) of yum.

TAM’S DUCHESS COSMOPOLITAN COCKTAIL RECIPE

• Bottle of Vodka (preferably potato Vodka, but there are some lovely grain Vokdas coming out of Texas like Titos 1.75L)
• 8-10 Fresh squeezed limes (you can used bottled real lime juice in a pinch)
• 3-4 cups Cherry juice (no sugar added)
• 1/2 – 1 cup Simple Syrup (easy to make 50% water, 50% sugar, heat on stove until disolved, stirring constantly, cool and use)
• 1/4 – 1/2 cup Orange Liquor or Triple Sec
• Several Dashes of Orange Bitters (to taste)
• Champagne or Proseco (top off in martini glasses)

Combine first 6 ingredients. Stir, taste test, add more sweet or bitter to your liking. Fill martini or fancy vintage cocktail glasses, leaving 1/3 to a 1/4 empty to top off with the Champagne or Proseco (Topo Chico or other sparking water can be used in place of champagne for less potentcy). But why, really. Turn your book club inot a slumber party?

DUCHESS POTATO RECIPE

Yes, I recognize they look like boobs, but I like to think Duchess would find that very titillating. For the chaste, you can also pipe them in stars clusters.

• 2 pounds potatoes (Yukon Golds or russet), peeled and diced
• Salt to taste
• 1/4 cup heavy cream
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg (I like to use fresh grated)
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper (white pepper can also be used)
• 3 egg yolks

Boil Potatoes with salt until tender (about 20 minutes)
Melt butter, preheat oven: 425° Drain tators in a colander or sieve, return potatoes to pot set over very low heat to allow more steam to release. (1-2 minutes). Mash and season the potatoes. Add 2 tablespoons of butter mashing with (preferably) an electric mixer. Add spices and heavy cream. DON’T overmash, add egg yolks, continuing to mash until potatoes are smooth but not gluey. Pipe the potatoes onto a lined cookie sheet using a large star point in a circle swirl (for boob-like ones) or pulsing for a flower look, pipe the potatoes onto a cookie sheet. Glaze with metled butter (painted on with brush) Bake approx 20 minutes until nicely browned.

DUCHESS PIE ala TEXAS

Since we didn’t have access to Ladybird Diner Duchess Pie recipe, my dear friend and book club sage made up her own version. Not sure how it compares to the Ladybird Diner one, but Carol’s was mighty tasty.

She combined two recipes using The Baking ChocolaTess recipe as the custard base.

CUSTARD RECIPE

• 1 cup granulated sugar
• ½ cup lemon juice 3 – 4 lemons,
• 1 tablespoon lemon zest
• 3 ½ tablespoons cornstarch
• 3 egg yolks lightly beaten
• 1 cup vanilla almond milk or milk
• ½ stick butter cubed
• 1 cup sour cream

In a large saucepan, whisk the lemon juice, lemon zest, cornstarch, sugar, egg yolks and almond milk while cooking over medium-low heat whisking constantly, until mixture becomes thick like pudding. Remove mixture from the heat and whisk in the butter until well combined.
Allow mixture to cool and gently stir in sour cream. Add mixture to the traditional pie crust and cool in the refrigerator

BERRY TOPPING

She used a wondeful Berry Compote recipe from True North Kitchen for the topper over the custard base.

• 4 cups frozen wild blueberries no need to defrost (fresh blueberries will also work. Carol used HEB Frozen berries)
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground cardamom
• ¼ cup pure maple syrup more to taste
• Pinch of fine sea salt
• 1 teaspoon of freshly-squeezed lemon juice

Combine all ingredients except lemon juice in a medium saucepan. Heat over medium low stirring frequently until berries get syrupy and begin to break down, about 8-10 minutes. Remove from the heat. Stir in lemon juice. Once berries have cooled, transfer them to a jar and store in the fridge until ready to use. She added the compote to the custard then topped of with home made whipped cream (adding a smidgeon of gelatin to keep the whipped cream firm).

DUCHESS CORONATION CHICKEN

My good friend Liza is from England and she often brings Coronation Chicken (a staple in England) to our meetings. Originally created by Constance Spry and Rosemary Hume at Le Cordon Bleu London (called: Poulet Reine Elizabeth.) to be served at the 1953 Coronation Luncheon of Queen Elizabeth. For our Becoming Duchess Goldblatt Book Group, she tweaked the classic recipe adding a dash of Texas or Southwestern flair to make it Duchess Coronation Chicken.

THE DRESSING

• 1/2 cup mayonnaise
• 1/2 cup plain yogurt
• 4 Tablespoons olive oil
• 1 1/2 teaspoons chili powder, use more or less depending on your taste
• 2 teaspoons lemon juice
• Salt and pepper to taste

THE SALAD

• 2 cups cooked chicken breast cubed
• 1/2 cup Chili coated dried mangos
• 1/2 cup coarsely chopped pecans
• 3 sticks of celery, stringed and finely sliced
• 3 green onions, diced
• 2 tablespoons fresh chopped parsley, plus extra to garnish

Combine all dressing ingredients in a large bowl until well blended. Add salad ingredients and mix until everything is well coated in dressing. Garnish with fresh chopped parsley.

LYLE LOVETT COLLARD GREENS SALAD

Again this recipe was inspired by Lyle’s fave food: Collard Greens. My creative friend Liza took the bacon-laden hot dish and turned it on it’s side creating a yummy, healthy salad that was flavorful and healthy.

• 1 16oz bag collard greens, washed (I used about 3⁄4 of the bag)
• 1/4 cup olive oil, plus a little extra for coating collard greens
• Sea salt
• 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
• 2oz chopped sun-dried tomatoes
• 2oz bacon bits
• 1/3 cup red onion, chopped
• 1-3 cloves raw garlic, minced (I used at least 3!!)
• 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• Fresh ground black pepper
• Extra Sharp Aged White cheddar shredded (goat cheese would be a good choice, too).

The bag of collard greens she purchased (HEB brand) came ready washed and chopped into largish strips, all she did was de-stem and cut the strips a little smaller. Place strips in a large bowl. Drizzle about two or three table spoons of olive oil on collard strips and sprinkle on some salt. You don’t want to saturate the greens you just need to get them a little bit glossy looking. Massage the oil and salt into the strips with your hands until all pieces are well coated. Whisk together apple cider vinegar with the rest of the olive oil and minced garlic to make a dressing. Add salt and pepper to taste. Combine sun-dried tomatoes, bacon bits, onions and red pepper flakes with greens. Pour apple cider vinegar dressing over the collard green strips to taste. Let marinate in the refrigerator for a couple of hours. Even tastes great the next day! Add cheese right before serving.

So now you have everything for a smashing book club gathering to discuss and share this fabulous inspiring book. And always if you’ve read a book for FREE, please review for the author on Goodreads and Amazon and share your love and suggest others to read it!

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Have you made recipes inspired from the novel? Which questions will you use in your book club? Have you had the original Ladybird Diner Duchess Pie? What’s your fave quote from the book or fave Duchess Tweet? What’s your fave Lyle Lovett song?

Tam Francis is a writer, blogger, swing dance teacher, avid vintage collector, and seamstress. She shares her love of this genre through her novels, blog, and short stories. She enjoys hearing from you, sharing ideas, forging friendships, and exchanging guest blogs. For all the Girl in the Jitterbug Dress news, give-aways, events, and excitement, make sure to join her list and like her FB page! Join my list ~ Facebook page