Chapter 31 - The Most Likely Club

Relationships are hard. Whether they are long term or short term, keeping a friendship going over time is especially hard. Sometimes there are hurt feelings which drive friends apart, bad decisions which can have friends judging each other, as well as time, distance, and new experiences which make it difficult to keep friendships over the years. I am very lucky to have the friendship of three other women who I have known for more than 50 years. Believe me, our paths have crossed and diverged over time. We have seen each other through happy and sad times. We offer each other a shoulder to cry on, wine therapy, and glimpses into our varied worlds. We have cheered each other on and offered sympathy as well. In addition, it feels that there is not an ounce of jealousy between us. Two of us have moved South and the other two remain in the Mid-Atlantic region. Three of us are retired and one is still shaking her booty as a fundraiser. Two of us are married and two are not but are in relatively new relationships. When we get together there is much laughter, lots of talking, of course, and occasionally a tear or two .

It seems that whenever my friends and I spend time together I think about the books I have read about friendship. I find that reading helps me understand the world and even long friendships like ours sometimes need a different perspective. Here then are some friendship books which I have enjoyed.

Firefly Lane by Kristin Hannah - I think this was the very first Kristin Hannah book I ever read. In the summer of 1974, Tully moves in across the street from Kate and by the end of the summer they become inseparable. Tully is cool, Kate is not. Tully has brains and ambition and a secret that she is harboring. Kate has a family who enjoys embarrassing her at every turn. The friendship spans three decades and brings with it both love and heartache. There is a follow-up book called Fly Away but I haven't read it. The first was so good I thought I'd be disappointed in the sequel.

Beyond the Point by Claire Gibson - This is a recent addition to the women's friendship books. On the eve of 9/11 three women at West Point realize that the only way they will get through the next four years is if they band together. Their post-West Point lives, though, may be the unraveling of their friendship.

Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood by Rebecca Wells - This is an oldie but goodie. This book is about the lifelong friendship of four Southern women. Siddalee Walker describes her mother Viv as a "tap-dancing child abuser" in a New York Times interview. Viv then disowns her daughter who immediately begs forgiveness. Viv's friends convince her to send Siddalee her scrapbook of their childhood entitled Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood to help Siddalee understand her mother better.

Bring Your Baggage and Don't Pack Light by Helen Ellis - This book of essays by Helen Ellis are derived from Ellis's trips to the Redneck Riviera with her lifelong friends. There are stories about husbands, parents, children, getting older, and more. The book has been described as "A book that reads like the best cocktail party of your life."

The Most Likely Club by Elyssa Friedland - I first became aware of this author when I read Last Summer At The Golden Hotel, in The Most Likely Club she tells the story of four high school friends who were all certain of their individual futures. Their yearbook superlatives were Most Likely to Win the White House, Cure Cancer, Open a Michelin-Starred Restaurant, and Join the Forbes 400, respectively. Of course 25 years later and nothing has gone as planned. Reunited at the class reunion they vow to make themselves into the Most Likely Girls and in doing so reignite their dreams for their futures.

Do you have any friendship books you'd like to share? Please let me know.