Saralee Says
Some folks gather together to watch football games, others to play bridge and card games. Today book clubs have become a reason for people to come together. Book clubs do not have to be difficult. People who join them are not necessarily trying to read the great classics. A lot of those who join book clubs are not big readers, they just like to be with other people who like books. These clubs are what bridge clubs are to card players or booster clubs are to sporting enthusiasts.
Women of my generation join book clubs like our mothers joined gardening and bridge clubs. It is fun to read, or try to read, a book at the same time that others are reading the same book. It is not as hard as a literature class, there is no pass fail grade, and the homework can be done at your own pace.
The book clubs I belong to read fun books, scary books, enlightening books and just good trash. When it comes to opinions about books, my husband Larry and I are often compared to James Carville and Mary Matlin – the married couple who are political opposites. Carville helped elect President Clinton, and Matlin currently works for Vice President Cheney. Like Carville and Matlin, Larry and I are guaranteed to disagree when it comes to books.
We agree more than disagree about books and for that reason do not always belong to the same book club. This is going to be interesting and fun because we are going to read the same book at the same time, then share what we each thought of the book. Instead of verbalizing, we will write our thoughts and hope to hear vigorous feedback from you.
Our first selection and recommendation for your reading group is Bel Canto by Ann Patchett (Perennial). I admit, I won the toss of the coin and got to choose the first book for the City Paper book club. Larry picked the next book, which is Red Dragon by Thomas Harris – just in time for Halloween.
Larry's Language
Reading groups or book clubs are wonderful opportunities for making new friends, business deals, and swapping of tall tales about sports, your stock market investments, politics, and the last date you had. Oh, they are also designed to encourage the reading of good books, trashy books, and entertainment.
The first official book club I joined in Nashville was probably The Weekly Reader program at Donelson Elementary School. It was OK, but limited because no food was served, and there was no discussion about sex or politics. I was persuaded to join my next book club forty years later with the promise of fabulous desserts and all inclusive, no holds barred conversation.
Reading can be and often is a very solitary indulgence. If you have ever been held captive while your wife or significant other shops and shops, an entertaining mystery, biography or history book can save your life, not to mention your marriage. All of us can smile and say “uh huh, that looks great” while continuing to read. When standing in line, flying on an airplane, or waiting on the doctor, a good novel with vivid characters or tell all business book helps avoid boredom and relieve stress.
Once you have mastered the reading part, the book club is easy to organize.You just need a host/leader to provide food and drink who is willing to risk their home as a gathering place for book lovers who will probably want to prowl through each book on your shelves. Invite your friends, co-workers and anyone you want to date to join. Decide how often to meet and what you will really discuss about the assigned book. In other words, is this book club going to explain and study the setting, characters, plot of each book or is this going to be an excuse to get together, eat, drink and socialize while making a few bookish sounding comments. If so, decide if guests who cheat and use Cliff’s Notes are welcome.
We can help you. Our City Paper book club will be fun because we will give you the inside scoop and it will be user friendly because I never believed in reading directions or wasting time on hoity toity stuff. Saralee and I will recommend books in these columns and make suggestions for discussion ideas. Probably we will disagree about what inspired us to pick a certain book, and what we like and do not like about it, but getting there will be most of the fun.
