There may be a fine line of reality that separates New York-based author Melissa Bank from her literary alter ego Jane Rosenal, but it was obvious Thursday night that the two share the same wicked sense of humor and prickly, dry wit.

Jane is the protagonist of "The Girls' Guide to Hunting and Fishing," a selection of The Sacramento Bee Book Club. The book of course is not literally about hunting and fishing, but rather is a collection of seven short stories exploring the social and sexual mores one woman faces as she journeys through adolescence and adulthood.

Using her sharp-edged humor like a sword of defense, Jane battles everything from troublesome boyfriends and cancer with a comic touch that has endeared her to readers worldwide. More than 200 fans turned out Thursday to the Crest Theatre to hear Bank read from her best-selling novel and discuss it with the audience.

Bank launched the event by asking the theater to raise the house lights so that she could see the faces in the audience.

"Let's make this like we're in it together," she told the crowd. "This time it's me reading, next time it could be you."

Alternating her readings with an arsenal of droll anecdotes and shyly disarming jokes -- "Yes, I just spilt my water on the stage. I'm telling you now just in case you thought I was hoping you wouldn't notice." Bank seemed like just another girlfriend at the coed coffee klatch. Stylishly dressed in a sleeveless black tunic, black stretch pants and black slides (chic red toenails peeking out), she infused passages with a dramatic flair and impeccable comedic timing.

"I'm a retired actress," she joked. "I have been all my life."

"I'm skipping around a lot but you're not missing anything," she said at another point, then reconsidered her line of reasoning. "I mean, you really need to buy the book to get the whole story."

Afterward, Bank answered questions, coaxing the audience into participation by saying, "I'm going to turn around and drink some water while you gather your thoughts."

Noting that "The Girls' Guide to Hunting and Fishing" is her first published book, Bank rebuked one audience member who had a context-related question because she had "speed-read" the book.

"Wait a second, you speed-read the book?" Bank asked before moving on to the actual question. "It took me 10 years to write that book."

Of particular interest to audience members was Jane's life beyond the book. As of now, Bank said, she doesn't know exactly what her next book is about ("I'm always the last to know."), but says she might eventually tie up the loose ends in Jane's story.

She admitted to the audience that the division between herself and Jane is often blurred.

"There's a lot of me in Jane and a lot of Jane in me -- we merged," she said with a laugh. "I'm going to therapy to work it out."

Bank described the writing process for "Guide" as an after-work exercise always prefaced with two cups of coffee, a "pep talk" and repeated journal entries declaring: "You are not stupid, you are not stupid. You are not."

Several audience members commented that it was the book's eye-catching cover -- a young woman smartly dressed in a red coat and galoshes retreating from the camera -- and its distinctive title that drew them to the book.

Joan Larsen of Fair Oaks hadn't read the book before Thursday's book club meeting but after the reading she was one of the first in line to buy a book.

"I thought she was great, very funny and easygoing," Larsen said.

Barbara King of Elk Grove bought her copy of "The Girls' Guide to Hunting and Fishing" after reading "Bridget Jones' Diary," another best-selling novel about a single woman's quest to find relationship happiness.

"I actually didn't think it was a good title for a book," King said. "But I really enjoyed the book; Bank is very refreshing. She seems honest and human."

For Frank Bostwick, a professor of contemporary literature visiting Sacramento from South Florida, Bank's novel is an important study of the relationship between failure and success.

"(Bank) is wonderful and funny, but there's so much more to the book than that," he said.

"It's about how difficult it is to fail, it's about survival." His companion, Christine Hamel of Sacramento, agreed. Although she had read only the first two stories, Hamel was planning to give a copy to her daughter, who's set to graduate from high school.

"This is the perfect book for her," Hamel said. "Anything to help girls get through self-doubt. I don't think girls today realize what great friends other women can be. I think this book shows that."

Related links

• Excerpt from "The Girls' Guide to Hunting and Fishing"