Recycle Book Club is pleased to welcome Catherline Marshall-Smith to our book club meeting at Recycle Bookstore in Downtown Campbell. She will be coming to sign autographs and discuss her recent novel, American Family.

The book club will meet for half an hour for group discussion at 6:30pm before being joined by the author at 7pm.

About American Family

How much would you be willing to sacrifice in order to have and raise your child?

Richard and Michael are celebrating their three years of sobriety by moving in to Michael’s bungalow in Manhattan Beach, California. While Michael is at work, Richard impulsively makes a phone call to his ten year old daughter who is in the custody of her mom’s parents in Oregon. Richard knows he should have discussed this with Michael but they did talk about connecting with Brady when the time was right. They just hadn’t identified when that time would be. Richard, on this day, at this hour, with boxes of his belongings in chaos around him, decided now was the right time.

In making this phone call he starts the juggernaut of family law that threatens to destroy all that is good in his life.

Things get worse as the couple learns that both Brady and her grandparents, who have been her parents for five years since her mother’s death, are fundamentalist Christians.

Both parties lawyer up only to find that the lawyers have their own agendas that supersede the needs of this family.

Events move smoothly in court for Richard and Michael until the possibility of Brady’s witnessing a questionable sexual situation is suggested and magnified by the grandparents’ attorney. Brady is whisked back to Oregon and the men have to decide how much they are willing to endure to get her back.

About the Recycle Book Club

Recycle Book Club meets once a month (sometimes twice) here at Recycle Bookstore to discuss a book-of-the-month, like all book clubs do. The difference is that the author actually comes to the store! After the members have met for 30 minutes (6:30-7:00), the author joins us to answer questions and sign books (7:00-8:00). There are NO requirements to participate. In fact, you don’t even have to read the book!