The Great Tejon Club Jubilee, Gerald W. Haslam, Devil Mountain Books, 1996
This is a group of short stories about some transplanted Southerners living and working in central California. They are quite a motley bunch. There's Wylie Hillis and Shoat Willhite; Big Dunc, who is most known for showing way too much of his rear end when he sits at the bar, and Earl, the proprietor of the Tejon Club, their home away from home. Bob Don Bundy is the "intellectual" of the group, having graduated from the local junior college, and J.B. is the narrator.
The stories start with the guys sitting around the Tejon Club, consuming large amounts of beer. One or another starts in with some tall tale, and, before you know it, they're off doing something ill-considered. One story is about going after giant African frogs supposedly in the area. In another story, their quest is to rid the area of killer bees that are allegedly coming from Central America. One day, Bob Don comes in with his new wife (women aren't really forbidden from the Tejon Club, but their presence is discouraged). She is the sort who bears a strong resemblance to a Before picture; not that Bob Don looks any better. So the guys give them a wild, alcohol-fueled party. They also try their luck at white-water rafting, but spend most of their time in the water or arguing with each other.
The best story of the group is about the gang (and their spouses and/or children) helping out a group of Hmong refugees from Southeast Asia living in the nearby woods. They celebrate an old-fashioned American Christmas in the Tejon Club complete with lots of homemade food, warm coats and gloves for all the Hmong, men, women and children, with Christmas decorations and everything.
These stories will not be compared to Great Literature. They are short, easy to read, raunchy and very politically incorrect. They are also quite entertaining and worth reading.
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