Siblings survive their artist parents

Just finished a book that might appeal to bookclubs that enjoy something a little quirky, like Miriam Toews or Jessica Grant characters.  The Family Fang by Kevin Wilson is the story of a family of performance artists.  Caleb and Camille are completely devoted to their art.  They enlist their children Annie and Buster (called A&B) in their disruptive performances.  It is comic and painful at the same time.  It could lead to some interesting book club discussions around what exactly is art, and where is the line between being a professional and being a parent drawn?

Light and sweet British comedy of manners

Been busy reading "teen" fiction and "so junky I don't want to admit it" fiction and even a little "unhappy" fiction.  But here's a happy one I can recommend for book clubs.

Major Pettigrew's Last Stand is by Helen Simonson. Major Pettigrew is a retired widower in a small British town. He falls in love with Mrs. Ali, the Pakistani shopkeeper, who has also been widowed. Their fumbling romance is closely observed by the other inhabitants of the village. The characters are realistic and three dimensional and I've grown to love them. If I saw Major Pettigrew in the street I would rush over to shake his hand, much to his chagrin no doubt.

In high school I enjoyed books by Miss Read and Jane Austen. This has a similar tone. There's social criticism in them, but it's delivered in a light manner.