This month we are reading Dial A For Aunties by Jesse Q. Sutanto
“Sutanto brilliantly infuses comedy and culture into the unpredictable rom-com/murder mystery mashup as Meddy navigates familial duty, possible arrest and a groomzilla. I laughed out loud and you will too.”—USA Today (four-star review)
“A hilarious, heartfelt romp of a novel about—what else?—accidental murder and the bond of family. This book had me laughing aloud within its first five pages… Utterly clever, deeply funny, and altogether charming, this book is sure to be one of the best of the year!”—Emily Henry, New York Times bestselling author of Beach Read
One of NPR’s Best Books of 2021!
One of PopSugar’s “42 Books Everyone Will Be Talking About in 2021”!
What happens when you mix 1 (accidental) murder with 2 thousand wedding guests, and then toss in a possible curse on 3 generations of an immigrant Chinese-Indonesian family?
You get 4 meddling Asian aunties coming to the rescue!
When Meddelin Chan ends up accidentally killing her blind date, her meddlesome mother calls for her even more meddlesome aunties to help get rid of the body. Unfortunately, a dead body proves to be a lot more challenging to dispose of than one might anticipate, especially when it is inadvertently shipped in a cake cooler to the over-the-top billionaire wedding Meddy, her Ma, and aunties are working at an island resort on the California coastline. It’s the biggest job yet for the family wedding business—”Don’t leave your big day to chance, leave it to the Chans!”—and nothing, not even an unsavory corpse, will get in the way of her auntie’s perfect buttercream flowers.
But things go from inconvenient to downright torturous when Meddy’s great college love—and biggest heartbreak—makes a surprise appearance amid the wedding chaos. Is it possible to escape murder charges, charm her ex back into her life, and pull off a stunning wedding all in one weekend?
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Jesse Q Sutanto grew up shuttling back and forth between Indonesia, Singapore, and Oxford, and considers all three places her home. She has a Masters from Oxford University, but she has yet to figure out how to say that without sounding obnoxious. Jesse has forty-two first cousins and thirty aunties and uncles, many of whom live just down the road. She used to game but with two little ones and a husband, she no longer has time for hobbies. She aspires to one day find one (1) hobby.
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
Readers guide for
DIAL A FOR AUNTIES
Questions for Discussion
1. Meddy feels a lot of guilt and responsibility to keep her mother and aunts happy, so much so that she was willing to forego moving to New York with Nathan. Do you think this was the right choice for her? What would you have done?
2. Which of Meddy’s aunts would you most want in an emergency, and why?
3. Although Meddy’s mother and aunts are constantly sniping at each other, at the end of the day they are willing to drop everything to help Meddy. Can you relate to this, whether it is with your group of friends or with your family?
4. A large part of the immigrant experience is learning a new language. Big Aunt, Second Aunt, and Ma struggled to speak English well, while Fourth Aunt has mastered it and sometimes wields it as a weapon against Ma. Are you familiar with the struggle that immigrants face with adopting a new language and have you witnessed immigrants being made fun of or belittled for not speaking their adopted language fluently? How do you think we as a society can help prevent this from happening?
5. Meddy does not have the best experience with dating, so her mother takes it upon herself to find a date for her. Have you ever been set up by a family member or friend? What has your experience with dating apps been like?
6. Although Meddy broke up with Nathan abruptly when they were in college, he was immediately happy to see her again and didn’t push her too hard for answers. Were you surprised by how readily he accepted her hurried apology, and how willing he was to help Meddy with hiding the truth about the dead body?
7. If you were to accidentally kill your blind date—which, let’s face it, is something that could totally happen to anyone—who would you call to help dispose of the body? Would it be someone in your family? Disclaimer: of course in a real-life situation we all know the first thing to do would be to call the police!
8. As the child of immigrant parents, Meddy often feels out of place. She’s neither fully at home in California nor in Indonesia. Have you ever felt displaced in a similar way? Do you think it’s something that can be overcome?
9. Have you ever felt, like Meddy, burdened by expectations placed on you by your parents or other family members? So much so that you feel unable to speak your truth? Is Meddy a pushover, or is she being selfless?
10. Do you think Maureen is a redeemable character? Would you have been able to forgive her if you were in Jacqueline’s position?
ABOUT WATERTOWN BOOK CLUB:
Watertown Book Club is a small group in Watertown, SD that meets about once a month. We talk books, book stores, life, etc. We are very flexible with our meeting times, as we all read at different speeds. We like to just meet and have coffee, tea, or a shake and just have a nice discussion. Lately we have been meeting at Scooters Coffee but the meeting place can vary. We have a Facebook page where we discuss a few things and also message one another in our group. If you are in our area, and interested in joining us, please reach out to us on Facebook.