When does a piece of jewelry become a conduit for friendship and community involvement? The answer is when it is shared by thirteen middle aged women with sometimes little in common other than each owning a share in The Necklace.
This biographical read by is the engaging story of how thirteen women from Ventura, California of various backgrounds come to form a circle of friendship based on the communal ownership of one brilliant, stunning diamond necklace. Just the fact that they convinced each other to take part in the experiment is marvelous in my mind. When the necklace gets marked down to $13,000 from $37,000 . . . well, that's an opportunity too good to pass up!
And because I am roughly the age of the participants I can see both the value and the excitement of belonging to such a group. (Shoot, the whole reason I belong to my book club is for the fellowship; it is a benefit that also forces me to read books I wouldn't necessarily choose for myself. Part of the fun is the discussing the books and the differences of opinion that we all have.)
It's good that the author is not a member of this "club" because I believe she then gives us a clearer picture of each of the ladies of this unique sorority. What begins as a challenge proceeds to shape each of the women and touch them in surprising ways. What they learn about sharing the necklace is important; sure it's fun to share a gorgeous piece of jewelry; but it comes with its share of problems as well. The relationships that they build from those struggles are worth far more than the $1000 they each paid for their share.
What did they learn? Why that one of the healthiest things for women is to have and maintain friendships with other women.
1 comment:
With you wearing that shirt and the necklace, you do look awfully similar to June Cleaver.
And I've never heard of that book, but it looks interesting.
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