Ames Free Library Book Club - The Mostly True Story of Tanner & Louise by Colleen Oakley

Stack of books with glasses

Find your next great read and some lively conversation with the Ames Free Library Book Club! Copies of each selection are available at the Circulation Desk approximately one month before the meeting.

The Ames Free Library Book Club has two meeting options every month. We welcome all new members! Subscribe to the "AFL Book Club" e-newsletter to receive book club reminders and updates.

If you're unable to attend this meeting in person, we're happy to offer a hybrid meeting option! Contact the library at info@amesfreelibrary.org or 508-238-2000, ext. 3 and we will provide a Zoom link. Please note that we require at least 24 hours notice.

This month's selection is: The Mostly True Story of Tanner & Louise by Colleen Oakley

"Twenty-one-year-old Tanner Quimby needs a place to live. Preferably one where she can continue sitting around in sweatpants and playing video games nineteen hours a day. Since she has no credit or money to speak of, her options are limited, so when an opportunity to work as a live-in caregiver for an elderly woman falls into her lap, she takes it.


One slip on the rug. That's all it took for Louise Wilt's daughter to demand that Louise have a full-time nanny living with her. Never mind that she can still walk fine, finish her daily crossword puzzle, and pour the two fingers of vodka she drinks every afternoon. Bottom line: Louise wants a caretaker even less than Tanner wants to be one.


The two start off their living arrangement happily ignoring each other until Tanner starts to notice things--weird things. Like, why does Louise keep her garden shed locked up tighter than a prison? And why is the local news fixated on the suspect of one of the biggest jewelry heists in American history who looks eerily like Louise? And why does Louise suddenly appear in her room, with a packed bag at 1 a.m. insisting that they leave town immediately? Thus begins the story of a not-to-be-underestimated elderly woman and an aimless young woman who--if they can outrun the mistakes of their past--might just have the greatest adventure of their lives."

Event Category
Book Discussion
Event Location
Queset House, 1st Floor Presentation Commons