We’re gonna start something a little new today. Every now and again [read: whenever you email me], I’m going to answer questions you guys may have… I have no idea what kind of lunacy I’m opening myself up to, but I’m kinda pumped about it.
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So on Monday, as I was hustlin’ through my inbox, an email came through from Caroline asking all manner of questions about the book club I attend. And because our first book club of 2012 was on Saturday morning and because it is one of my very favorite activities, I will answer Caroline’s questions.
[And because I like Caroline. Obvi.]
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First of all, here are a few posts I’ve written in the past about book club(s):
- And what if two years later I don’t like the penguin? (My Marietta book club)
- Smile, Wednesday #2 (My first Nash book club meeting!)
- Smile, Wednesday #7 (When the Nash girls read In the Woods
)
- I just love it. (When I hosted book club the first time)
- Book Club: Major Pettigrew’s Last Stand (When I hosted book club last spring)
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Caroline sent me a collection of questions about book club. Let the interview begin!
How do you start a book club?
Well, Caroline, you just find some friends who like to read. You pick a book. Then you say, “one month from today, let’s talk about this book.” Then you put it on your calendar and then you meet and talk about the book. You can find discussion questions online or just make them up yourself.
Another option – ask around! Maybe your friends are already book clubbing and you just don’t know! That’s how I got in this one in Nashville. A friend said, “I go to book club” and before the whole sentence was out of her mouth, I said, “CAN I PLEASE COME?!?” And thirty books later, I’m still there.
How many people should I invite?
If you get above fifteen, it is hard to have a discussion. But not everyone will read every book. Our list has about twenty girls on it, but we usually average between five and twelve girls at each gathering.
But listen. If there is only two of you, go for it! It’ll grow in time. No pressure.
How often do you meet?
We shoot for one book per month and one meeting per month. But it can be loosey goosey, especially in the summer when folks aren’t always in town.
What have you read?
Well, this isn’t an exhaustive list, because I’ve been in book clubs pretty consistently since 2005. But here are a few of my favorites over the years.
- Eat, Pray, Love
- Hadassah
- Memoirs of a Geisha
- Don’t Shoot It’s Only Me
- In the Woods
- The Hunger Games
- I Am the Messenger
- Major Pettigrew’s Last Stand
- The Help
- When Knighthood Was In Flower
- The Queen of the Big Time
- March
- A Woman of Independent Means
- The Ghost Map
- The Alchemist
- The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society
- Scratch Beginnings
- Peace Like a River
- Bossypants
- One Day
Phew. And we just simply pick books by telling each other what we like, hence the huge variety. You can either pick the book for the next month at the current month’s meeting or you can schedule out a few months in advance.
We have found that scheduling a few months at a time is good- then people can reserve at the library, decide which ones they want to read, that kind of thing.
So that’s how you do book club. It’s no biggie, it’s low stress, and you get to read amazing books that you would have never picked on your own!! Hope that answers all your questions, Caroline.
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Are any of you in a book club? Got more advice for Caroline? What’s the best book your book club has read lately?
If anyone else has questions for a future “Ask AnnieBlogs” post, bring it! Leave a comment here or email me at annieblogs [at] gmail [dot] com.
