November 2016 Host:  Stephanie

Yes Please by Amy Poehler

From the Back Cover

Do you want to get to know the woman we first came to love on Comedy Central's Upright Citizens Brigade? Do you want to spend some time with the lady who made you howl with laughter on Saturday Night Live, and in movies like Baby Mama, Blades of Glory, and They Came Together? Do you find yourself daydreaming about hanging out with the actor behind the brilliant Leslie Knope on Parks and Recreation? Did you wish you were in the audience at the last two Golden Globes ceremonies, so you could bask in the hilarity of Amy's one-liners?

If your answer to these questions is "Yes Please!" then you are in luck. In her first book, one of our most beloved funny folk delivers a smart, pointed, and ultimately inspirational read. Full of the comedic skill that makes us all love Amy, Yes Please is a rich and varied collection of stories, lists, poetry (Plastic Surgery Haiku, to be specific), photographs, mantras and advice. With chapters like "Treat Your Career Like a Bad Boyfriend," "Plain Girl Versus the Demon" and "The Robots Will Kill Us All" Yes Please will make you think as much as it will make you laugh. Honest, personal, real, and righteous, Yes Please is full of words to live by.

October 2016 Host:  Sarah

War Dogs by Guy Lawson

Summary

This is a true story of how two stoner teenagers from Florida were awarded millions of dollars of US government military contracts and how they learned the ins and outs of international arms dealing.  This is a well-researched piece of journalism that reads like fiction, but sadly is not.  One issue is that they were sending outdated Chinese ammo to the front line in Afghanistan.  The labels were removed from the ammo and they were shipped loose in the containers; an obvious danger to the soldiers.  Hurried outsourcing by the federal government allowed these two teenagers to make millions of dollars into their twenties, they even landed a $300 million contract in 2007.  This is an insightful read into how the government procures and distributes arms contracts.  This story has also been made into a movie. 

                                                           Menu

Salad

Lasagna (I forgot to take pics until after dinner)

Cake