Host An Unforgettable Book Club Party

Zeitoun by Dave Eggers ”The true story of one family, caught between America’s two biggest policy disasters: the war on terror and the response to Hurricane Katrina.”This book is about a Syrian businessman in New Orleans who was arrested and accused of being al Qaida after Hurricane Katrina.   Zeitoun and his wife ran a house painting business, but as the storm approached, Kathy evacuated with the kids, while Zeitoun stayed behind to watch over things.  As the storm water rose, Zeitoun took his canoe to help the stranded people and animals.  While in his home he was arrested and taken to a makeshift prison while his wife anxiously waited to hear whether her husband was dead or alive.   There are many things that happen in this book that are hard to imagine actually occurred in the United States and will fuel many a book club discussion.

Book Club Ideas

There were so many horrendous events that (shouldn’t have) happened in this book, but for my book club party ideas for Zeitoun, I wanted to focus on what makes New Orleans great:  Mardi Gras, awesome music and Cajun food.

For Mardi Gras decorations focus on purple, green and gold for the color scheme.

Include beads, beads and more beads.  The bigger, the better!Shindigz has a great selection of mardi gras beads and other mardi gras decor.

Decorations could also include a canoe which is what Zeitoun used to bring supplies to dogs and help others.  This Amazon link will take you to a page with other canoe decor.

The Our New Orleans album is a great mix of the various musical styles of New Orleans, including Blues, Jazz, and Cajun Folk.  All net proceeds from the sale of this album will be donated to the local relief efforts of Habitat for Humanity, with a portion specifically set aside to provide housing for local musicians left homeless by the disaster.  Below are some other great music recommendations for a book club party for Zeitoun.

Book Club Menu

New Orleans has some of the best food anywhere.  My favorite dishes include Shrimp Etouffeand powdered sugar coated beignets.   I included a Syrian dish, Red Pepper Spread, in honor of Zietoun.  I served the spread with crackers and pita triangles, which I placed in a canoe shaped serving dish.

The recipe for these New Orleans Beignets is from In A Cajun Kitchenby Terri Pischoff Wuerthner.  A portion of the profits from the sale of the book will be dedicated to recovery of cultural institutions and archival repositories in an attempt to preserve the history and culture of Louisiana.

Book Club Resources

Ratings at the time this post was published

Discussion

1. In one word, can you sum up your emotional reaction while reading this book?
2. What do you think motivated Zeitoun to go off on his canoe to help the people and animals in need?  Do you think you would have done the same?  What motivated Dave Eggers to write this book?
3. There are many unfair, unjust events that happen in this book.  Was there a particular section that really angered you?  Was there a section that made you smile?
4. Did you learn something new about the events surrounding Hurricane Katrina?  Were things better or worse than you previously imagined?
5. If you were able to ask Zeitoun a question, what would you want to know?  What would you ask Dave Eggers?
6. Why do you think mayhem ensued after Hurricane Katrina?  Does everyone in the group agree?  How could things have been handled differently?   What can be done to be sure it doesn’t happen again?

Purchase Zeitoun at your favorite bookseller

The Author

Dave Eggers is the author of six previous books and is the founder and editor of McSweeney’s, an independent publishing house based in San Francisco that produces books, an eponymous quarterly journal, a monthly magazine (The Believer), and Wholphin, a quarterly DVD of short films and documentaries.  In 2002, with Nívine Calegari he cofounded 826 Valencia, a nonprofit writing and tutoring center for youth in the Mission District of San Francisco. In 2004, Eggers taught at the University of California–Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism, and there, with Dr. Lola Vollen, he cofounded Voice of Witness, a series of books using oral history to illuminate human rights crises around the world.  A native of Chicago, Eggers graduated from the University of Illinois with a degree in journalism.  He now lives in the San Francisco Bay Area with his wife and two children.  -From Randomhouse.com

Dave Eggers donated the proceeds from Zeitoun to help rebuild New Orleans.

Here is an interview with Dave Eggers about how he came to write Zeitoun:

Awards for Zeitoun