Book Club Ideas

Book clubs are wonderful places to challenge you to read different books and discuss them with others. For me it is also a great social evening out.

I had never realized how differently two people could view the same book till I joined book club and discovered if twelve people read the same book we could get twelve different points of view. Now when I read a book for book club, I'm always anxious to see how my friends in book club will see the book and what the discussion will uncover.

Book clubs are also a great way to widen your reading horizons. I have read many books in book club that I most likely would not have read on my own. Sometimes I am delightfully surprised, other times a bit disappointed, but I always learn a bit of something new from each book and from each book discussion.

In this lens I will tell you a bit about how the book club I belong to works and share with you some of the books we have read over the years.

photo is book club at our annual holiday meeting in 2012

my experience with book clubs

The book club I belong to has been existence for since the late 1990s. I joined it when I moved here in 2002. The book club consists of about 12 people, with some leaving and other joining at various times.

This book club is rather informal. We meet once a month and take turns hosting the book club. The month before it is your turn to host you let everyone know what book you will be reading the next month. When it is time to host the club at your house you provide light snacks, drinks and dessert.

The discussions are either led by our leader Judy (who started the book club) or by the person hosting this months book club. The discussions might follow a set of questions that the discussion leader has put together or we might just start discussing the book and see where the discussion leads.

Depending on the type of book, sometimes we just discuss the characters in the book and other times we take more time discussing the plot. Everybody has an opinion and it is really fascinating to see the different views people have on various books. Some people like to second guess the author and suggest alternative ways the author could have taken the book. Usually some people really like the book and others don't...that is what makes it interesting. When there is a wide variety of opinions we might discuss why you liked or didn't like a particular book. Occasionally everyone likes the same book!

photo is of author Raymond Scott Edge talking at one of our meetings

Each month we rotate hosts for our bookclub. Whoever is the host for the month chooses the book to be read and discussed. Read along with us in 2014.

We have read a wide variety of different books in 2014. Others not shown below include:

• Face Value by Michael Kahn
• The Kitchen House by Kathleen Grissom
• The Black Count by Tom Reiss ( It is rare that we find a book that nobody really likes but this one just did not fit the needs of our book club)

In 2013 we read an eclectic selection of books.

The Lucky One by Nicholas Sparks

Frozen Heat by Richard Castle

The Light Between Oceans by M L Stedman

Lone Wolf by Jodi Picoult

Angry Housewifes Eating bon Bons by Lorna Landvik

Other 2013 selections included.

Home Front by Kristin Hannah

Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

The Affair by Lee Child

Sweet Hush by Deborah Smith

The Last Time I Saw You by Elizabeth Berg

Our September 2010 book club was a bit different. We read a true story about a woman who deals with Alzheimers as it effects both of her parents and both of her inlaws. The author, Susan Rava,came to our book club to lead the discussion. I thoroughly enjoyed reading the book. Susan has a wonderful writing style and she really brings the reader into her story. In person, Susan was delightful. It was very interesting to hear her talk about how she wrote the book and the process of getting it published. She also gave us more insight into Alzheimer's and how it effects the families of those who have the disease.

The August 2010 selection for our book club is The Help. It is an excellent novel that talks about maids in Jackson, Mississippi during the 1960s. It is a very compelling book that has now been made into a movie. I thoroughly enjoyed both the book and the movie.

At our book club several of the ladies had also seen the movie so we talked about both the book and the movie. We had a very lively discussion. This is one of the best book club meetings we have had, everyone enjoyed the book and had lots to say about it. We started off the meeting by everyone telling their favorite part in the book. It was a good discussion starter.

Our July 2010 book club meeting was really special. At this meeting author, Raymond Scott Edge came and spent the evening with us. It was a wonderful time listening to Dr. Edge talk about his two books Flight of the Piasa and Witches of Cahokia and hearing about how he writes and the things that give him inspiration.

I had read his first novel Flight of the Piasa over a year ago and when I found he would be available to come to our meeting I was delighted. His book is based on a famous cliff painting overlooking the Mississippi river in Alton, Illinois. This painting called the Piasa was first described by the French explorer Marquette in the 1600's. Dr. Edge weaves a wonderful story based on this painting and details from events in Chinese and American history.

I won't tell more and give away the plot...but I will tell you this book is a must read! I am looking forward to reading the next book with the same characters Witches of Cahokia.