"Outside a dog a book is man's best friend, inside a dog it is too dark to read!" -Groucho Marx========="The person, be it gentleman or lady, who has not pleasure in a good novel, must be intolerably stupid." -Jane Austen========="I don’t believe in the kind of magic in my books. But I do believe something very magical can happen when you read a good book."-JK Rowling========"I spend a lot of time reading." -Bill Gates=========“Ahhh. Bed, book, kitten, sandwich. All one needed in life, really.” -Jacqueline Kelly=========

Friday, July 10, 2015

Book Blogger Hop, July 10th

Book Blogger Hop
Question: Are you a member of a book club? How many? Where do you meet?


Answer: Yes, I am a member of two books clubs.

  • My church book club has been going for twenty years (I just realized) and all the gals who currently attend are members of the church. We have invited others but they tend to fade away if they are not linked in to the church first. We meet monthly, on the 3rd Tuesday of each month in the evening, and rotate around through the different homes. The gal who is hostess for the moth also leads the discussion. The majority of our books come from the library book club kits. We sign up for the kits up to a year in advance then pick up the kit from the library and have to return it within two months. It works really well because it cuts down on the expense. Also the librarian who selects the books for the kits usually (not always) does a good job finding books which facilitate good discussions. The kit contains 15 books and a discussion guide. See what I mean about convenient? Contact your library to see if they do something similar. Our library system probably has over 200 books in kits now. For a look at our megalist of all the books we've read for the twenty years check out the link. MEGALIST Book Club selections 1995 to present (and beyond.)
  • My second book club has been going for around 10 years. It is made up of gals who all worked together at an area high school. Even though several have since retired, or in my case, moved schools, we have stuck together. We are a closed group and have all been together since the beginning. We meet once a month, on the 4th Wednesday in the afternoon, rotating between our houses and occasionally restaurants or Indie bookstores. A discussion leader is assigned monthly and that person is usually not the hostess. We spend time at the end of the meetings selecting up-coming books. We usually try to select at least three months in advance to allow people time to get the books from the library or to purchase them.
I think the reason for the longevity of both groups is two-fold. 
  • One, we have a scheduled day of the month that doesn't vary. If someone comes in the group and wants us to shift our meeting time, we tell her sorry. This way everyone gets the date in their head and on their personal calendars. If you are having trouble keeping a club going it might be because you haven't a fixed a date. Try it and see if it helps. Mine meet the 3rd Tuesday in the evening and the other meets the 4th Wednesday in the late afternoon.
  • Two, we spend part of time talking about things not related to books. All the gals in both clubs are now friends of mine because we visit and share about our lives. If someone doesn't show up, we miss them. This does take a while to develop, so patience is required.
Are you a member of a book club? How is ours set up?

7 comments:

  1. Sounds like two wonderful book clubs.

    I bailed out of my teacher book club when I retired. :( I didn't feel like I fit in any more.

    My friend book club has been going on for at least 20 years. We also have a set date every month. I think that does help.

    I saw your question about the linky on the Hop...I will check it out and get back to you.

    Have a wonderful weekend. Terrific answer to the question.

    Happy Hopping!!

    Elizabeth
    Silver's Reviews
    My Blog Hop Answer

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    1. Can you give the Hop linky a try again.

      I see someone has been added recently.

      Let me know. You can e-mail me if you like.

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    2. I'm guessing the reason my teacher book club is still going is because it is a closed group so new teachers aren't entering that I don't know.

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  2. I agree wholeheartedly about our book club; we share so much more than books. I'll never forget that every member of BC showed up at Patt's service and I wasn't expecting that. We've been through struggles and joys together and have interesting perspectives and opinions to share on books, whether we loved them or hated them. :)

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    Replies
    1. Yes, we have been through a lot more than books together. I treasure our times together.

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  3. Sounds like a lot of fun! Wish there was a club close by for me.

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