Making A List: Four Literary Families Do Thanksgiving

1. The Millers, of River Bend Chronicle: The Junkification of a Boyhood Idyll amid the Curious Glory of Urban Iowa.

A family that once fashioned a Christmas tree out of twigs hacked hastily from a trellis vine has got to have some interesting tricks up their collective sleeve. (I include the Millers knowing full-well that I’m totally bias—one of a small group of lucky people who’ve been able to read the upcoming debut memoir about a family in upheaval while their city crumbles around them. Look for it March 12, 2013 from—you guessed it—Lookout Books!)

What we’d eat: TV mix from a Hefty bag.

Why we’d fight: Nathan ate my napkin holder.

2. The Sedaris family, of, like, 300 books, plays, essays, and handy etiquette guides. 

Few literary-loving Americans are unfamiliar with the exploits of the gotta-love-’em Sedaris family, and who wouldn’t want to cozy up in Raleigh and watch the siblings stage a full-length production of Mame in the kitchen.

What we’d eat: An interesting mix of Southern and Greek cuisine—Moussaka Mac & Cheese, anyone?

Why we’d fight: For the spotlight.

3. The Karamazovs, of The Brothers Karamazov.

The most intense Thanksgiving… ever.

What we’d eat: Beets or nothing.

Why we’d fight: Why not fight? Does it even matter?

4. The Bundrens, of As I Lay Dying.

My mother is a turkey just doesn’t have the same ring, but I’m certain this Depression-era Mississippi family would go to great lengths to make sure my Thanksgiving needs were met. Plus, this family has got some juicy secrets.

What we’d eat: A modest meal of potatoes and mule.

Why we’d fight: To see who has to sit by the coffin at the dinner table.

– Anna Sutton, Lookout Intern