Book Club Night Kit
Alan Opts Out
Courtney Maum
Cozy night
A Greenwich ad executive gives up the rat race and moves into his family's backyard playhouse. It's a funny, warm satire that makes it easy to talk about what we actually need to feel at home.
Come Opt Out With Us
Leave the inbox and the errands at the door for a slow evening of warm cider, mac and cheese, and Alan Opts Out. Cozy socks strongly encouraged.
Reading level: Moderate
Pages: 352
Best for: Friends who like a good laugh, a soft blanket, and an honest chat about what makes a life feel full
Discussion
Warm-up
- 1.Alan runs off to a backyard playhouse. Where was your childhood hideout (a fort, a treehouse, a closet corner), and how did it feel to be tucked away in there?
- 2.If you opted out of one small modern thing for a month, just for your own peace, what would it be, and what do you think you'd fill that space with?
Digging in
- 1.When did you find yourself laughing with Alan, and when did you want to bring him a mug of something warm and sit with him for a while?
- 2.The novel asks what we really need. Name one thing (not a gadget) that makes your home feel like home. Did the book make you appreciate it more?
- 3.Alan's wife works hard to keep their place in a tight-knit social circle. Did her side of things tug at you? Have you ever felt that quiet pressure to keep up and belong?
- 4.Which scene or moment felt the most comforting to read, the one you'd happily revisit on a rainy afternoon?
Going deep
- 1.By the last page, did the story leave you feeling hopeful about the ways people who love each other can meet in the middle? What stayed with you emotionally after you closed the book?
- 2.Thinking back across the whole novel, did it change how you feel about the things you own or the things you want? Is there a small change you're tempted to make, or one you've decided you're perfectly happy without?
On the table & to sip
To eat
Farmhouse cheddar baked mac and cheese
A nod to the rogue dairy farmer who sets everything off. It's creamy, bubbly, and easy to make a day ahead and warm up.
Skillet cornbread with honey butter
Fits Alan's live-off-the-land dream. Serve it straight from the cast iron so people can tear off warm pieces.
New England apple crisp with vanilla ice cream
A cozy Connecticut dessert that feels like a backyard autumn. Throw it together while guests arrive and it bakes as they settle in.
To sip
Farmstand mulled apple cider (no alcohol)
Simmered on the stove with cinnamon and orange peel so the whole house smells like a country weekend. It's the non-alcoholic option everyone can share.
Whole-milk hot cocoa bar (no alcohol)
Another dairy-farm nod, with marshmallows, whipped cream, and a sprinkle of cinnamon so guests can make their own.
Maple bourbon hot toddy
A little Greenwich polish in a very cozy mug, sweetened with maple and finished with lemon.
Run of show
7:00
Cider and settling in
Hand everyone a warm mug at the door and point them to the blankets and cushions.
7:15
Warm-up circle
Start with the childhood hideout question so everyone shares a small, happy memory.
7:35
Supper by the stove
Serve the mac and cheese and cornbread family style and let the chatter drift wherever it likes.
8:05
Heart of the conversation
Pick the theme and deep questions that fit the room. Skip any that don't land, there's no rush.
8:45
Crisp, cocoa, and trivia
Bring out the dessert and cocoa bar, then play a relaxed round of trivia in teams or all together.
9:15
Scorecards and cozy goodbyes
Fill out scorecards, swap bookmarks, and send people home with a jar of leftover cider if you have extra.
Host tips
- Set up a pretend 'playhouse corner' with a string of fairy lights, a quilt, and a few pillows where guests can curl up while they talk.
- Keep the question cards face down in a bowl and let people draw one when they feel like it, so nobody is ever put on the spot.
- Make the mac and cheese and the cider base the day before so you can sit down and enjoy the evening too.
Playlist
Soft acoustic folk and front-porch classics about home, simple living, and slowing down
- 01 Our House - Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young
- 02 Little Boxes - Malvina Reynolds
- 03 Big Yellow Taxi - Joni Mitchell
- 04 Harvest Moon - Neil Young
- 05 Banana Pancakes - Jack Johnson
- 06 Home - Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros
- 07 Skinny Love - Bon Iver
- 08 Here Comes the Sun - The Beatles
Trivia
- 1.In which Connecticut town does the novel's social striving take place? (Greenwich)
- 2.Which U.S. state shares a border with Greenwich, Connecticut? (New York)
- 3.What is the title of Courtney Maum's debut novel, published in 2014? (I Am Having So Much Fun Here Without You)
- 4.Courtney Maum's 2019 novel Costalegre was inspired by which famous art collector and her daughter? (Peggy Guggenheim (and her daughter Pegeen))
- 5.What was the title of Maum's 2021 memoir, which is about horses and healing? (The Year of the Horses)
- 6.Which American writer famously went off to live simply in a cabin by a pond in Massachusetts in 1845? (Henry David Thoreau, at Walden Pond)
- 7.Buy Nothing Day, an anti-consumerism protest held around Black Friday, started in which country? (Canada (in Vancouver, in 1992))
- 8.How many pages long is Alan Opts Out? (352)
Bookmarks
Print, cut, and tuck one at every seat, a small keepsake from the night.
Rate the book
Coziness factor☆☆☆☆☆
Laugh-out-loud moments☆☆☆☆☆
Heart and warmth☆☆☆☆☆
Characters I'd invite over☆☆☆☆☆
Would reread under a blanket☆☆☆☆☆
The thing I'd never opt out of: ______________________
One comforting word for this book: ______________________
My dream playhouse would have: ______________________
That's a wrap
Thank you for coming
We hope the company was good and the conversation even better. Until the next chapter.