The Red Hat Society's Laugh Lines: Stories of Inspiration and Hattitude

The Red Hat Society-named for a Jenny Joseph poem that encourages women to adopt more independence and daring as they age-continues its juggernaut with this follow-up to Cooper's bestseller, The Red Hat Society. ""Queen Mother"" Cooper founded the organization as a social club and support group for women over 50. Here, she collects somewhat amusing anecdotes from the 900,000 members world-wide, writing that Society members ""know that there is nothing better than the sense of freedom and happiness that results from playing together."" Most of the stories presented have the cheerful good humor of church bulletin gags and internet jokes. In fact, quite a few of the poems included in this volume are attributed to ""author unknown, found on Internet."" There are new Red Hat-friendly lyrics to well-known songs; wry anecdotes about aging, grandchildren and errant spouses; poignant stories about lost friends and family members; and several chapters devoted to the relationships between people and pets. Cooper relentlessly presents the Society in a positive light, and includes many members and chapters by name which, along with a large publicity push, should assure that this book will sell well with her favorite audience.