We had some new members at the meeting: Ian's longtime friend K., our new friends Dan and Nadya, and their friend B. In addition to these delightful newcomers were regular Books & Piers Jenfu, Shannon, Ian and myself. And the Poky Little Puppy.

We kicked off with A Sleepover Visit, which is a fairly simple--if not simplistic--story of a young boy named Michael confronting his adolescent sexuality.

He goes over to his friend Jim's house for a "sleepover visit," and the symbolism (rockets and balls, potted plants, cuddling) blatantly suggests the true nature of that visit: the awakening of Michael's homoerotic curiosity and some boy-on-boy experimentation. The book is open-ended, leaving us to wonder if he's now ready to explore the world of male/female love (in this case represented by a tender hand clasp with Jim's hot mom) or if his homosexual experimentation will lead to the realization of his ultimately gay identity.

Our second selection was Little Boy With A Big Horn.

Of course we originally selected this book expecting more blatant sexual symbolism as featured in A Sleepover Visit, but in fact, it's a very different and complex book. (We summed this up with "Sometimes a salmon is just a salmon" or "Sometimes a train is just the Industrial Revolution, even if it is going through a tunnel.") The protagonist, Ollie, blows his "big horn" and heralds (or warns) of the advent of the industrial age and the beginnings of feminism. Society isn't ready to hear Ollie's message, and eventually he is relegated to the new frontier, where his message is ultimately subsumed into the dominant counterculture. A Whitmanesque figure, Ollie is ultimately the tragic victim of conformity and fails to realize his true pioneer potential.

You'd think this would be enough in-depth explication for one afternoon, but we ordered another round of pie (the fresh raspberry was delightful) and moved on to Doctor Squash the Doll Doctor, possibly the most multifaceted work of all.

Doctor Squash, I think we all agreed, represented the dominance of the white male patriarchal empire-- "The Man," if you will. He is shown engaging in various types of oppression, "squashing" other cultures and exploiting their natural resources. Nations represented included France, Switzerland, Africa, Native America, and Mexico. The potential of a socialist revolution is hinted at, but ultimately the nations are merely the pawns-- or "dolls"-- in Doctor Squash's imperialist agenda.

Oh, and we remembered to sing the theme song! In case you were ever curious about the lyrics, they are as follows: