Readers Share Stories About Their Book Groups

Abby M.
Our giant e-book membership fell aside throughout COVID. We tried to regroup in the summertime of 2021, however it didn’t appear to work. A couple of of us who’re avid readers determined to get collectively in early 2022 and discuss a e-book (THE INVISIBLE LIFE OF ADDIE LaRUE). We had such enjoyable that we determined to maintain going — and our new group was born.

There are solely 5 of us, however all of us stay to learn — versus the outdated group, the place attendance was at all times iffy and lots of by no means learn the books. We have change into a tight-knit group, and we snigger and revel in one another’s firm. We normally meet at somebody’s residence, however often we exit, particularly in December. We additionally do e-book challenges a couple of times a 12 months. Most just lately, we every learn a e-book the place the creator had the identical first and final preliminary as we do. I learn Armistead Maupin’s TALES OF THE CITY.

Beth S.
We have been assembly since 2011. I began the e-book membership on the urging of my spin teacher on the Y. I not take spin, and he or she not teaches it, however we’re nonetheless seeing one another within the e-book membership! Over the years, ladies have come and gone, although there are 4 of us who’ve been within the group the entire time. We come from totally different political persuasions and walks of life. We vary in age from mid-50s to mid-70s. New members be a part of on the invitation of one of many members.

We probably by no means would have met a few of our members with out the e-book membership as we stay in a big metropolitan space. But all of us get alongside and genuinely get pleasure from one another’s firm. We don’t at all times all just like the books picked, however we at all times have vigorous and respectful discussions. (The member who hosts picks the e-book and leads the dialogue.) I hope we are able to proceed for a few years to return!

Our group is known as Book Parkers as most of us stay in a suburb of Chicago that ends in Park — Elmwood Park, Oak Park and Forest Park! The e-book membership can also be how I found Reading Group Guides and Bookreporter. I used to be googling for inquiries to ask once I was internet hosting e-book membership. I’ve tremendously benefited from each the e-book membership and your newsletters! Oh, and I preserve a listing of all of the books now we have learn. Over 100 now!

Diane A.
I’ve been subscribed to Reading Group Guides for fairly quite a few years, however our e-book membership is even older! Our group first met in late 2000, and I feel six of the unique 12 members are nonetheless with us. Most everybody in our group is similar basic age. Over the years, we’ve lamented about elevating kids, caring for growing older dad and mom, and our jobs. Today, we love to speak about retirement hobbies and grandchildren.

We have a Google spreadsheet that paperwork each e-book we’ve learn via the years.  At our December assembly, we resolve on our studying listing for the approaching 12 months. Sometimes we barely talk about the e-book, and generally we complain if we didn’t like studying it. Usually everybody has learn the e-book, however there’s no judgement if somebody simply comes for the fellowship.

Janice E.
I’d prefer to inform you about our e-book group. We are a bunch of 8-10 ladies, ages 24-72, and two of our members are literally the daughters of two authentic members. We have grandchildren and youngsters of all ages in between. Some of us have been assembly for 18 years, and a few of us have been associates for even longer. We met as a result of we had been neighbors, coworkers or dad and mom of children who went to highschool collectively. I do know I can rely on these ladies for love and help in each state of affairs. We have celebrated and cried, purchased new houses and downsized as empty nesters.

We like to learn all kinds of books, our favourite being historic fiction. Discussions in regards to the books at all times open the door to tales about life. Between us all, we learn far more books than we ever may talk about every month. This 12 months, we’re dedicated to being extra targeted on all making an attempt to learn the identical e-book on the similar time so we are able to have a dialogue and use the Reading Group Guides questions. We attempt to change issues up, so now we have carried out dinners with a theme based mostly on the e-book we learn. In the autumn, we learn some classics in recognition of the beginning of the college 12 months.

Our greatest rule is that you simply present up, even for those who didn’t know which e-book we had been studying. To us, having “book group” as soon as a month is a cause to find time for us and our friendship. We alternate who hosts, which normally consists of dinner, however everybody brings meals. We are inclined to make our choice on which e-book to learn from a consensus — possibly it’s what’s widespread, a brand new launch or a favourite creator. We usually search Reading Group Guides suggestions for our subsequent e-book, and right now of 12 months we’ll overview the listing of favorites from final 12 months to see what we missed.

Jean H.
My e-book membership fashioned in September 2002, and I joined it in January 2004 once I moved to the realm, so I had a number of books to learn with a purpose to “catch up.” We meet at our church for an hour each Sunday morning from September to May after which month-to-month in members’ houses in the summertime. Currently now we have 15 on our electronic mail listing, though normally solely 6-9 present up on any given week. We are aged 45-85. I imagine all of us have faculty levels and have labored/are working in fields of engineering, chemistry, biology, remedy, educating, enterprise administration, accounting, library/media and homemaking, amongst others. We are single, married, divorced, childless, college-age kids, grownup kids and grandparents.

Our membership adjustments as folks transfer away, lose curiosity or die. We have totally different political beliefs, so we strive to not discuss politics. We’ve supported one another via troubled youngsters, separations, divorce, lack of dad and mom, sickness, surgical procedures and extra. We managed to fulfill nearly throughout the pandemic’s early months and held spaced-out conferences outdoor in the summertime of 2020. We’re completely satisfied to be assembly in individual as soon as once more.

Over 22 years, we have learn 275 books, averaging 12 or 13 books a 12 months. That consists of one e-book we learn twice, one e-book we deserted as a bunch after one week, and two collections of quick tales. We’ve hosted native authors, to various success, and have Zoomed with one creator. Every member has an opportunity to supply options, after which we select our books three or 4 instances a 12 months. Summer hostesses at all times get to decide on the e-book title. We have used an area library’s Book Club Bag of Books (10-12 copies on mortgage for six weeks) many instances. Members purchase new and/or used books, borrow library books and use e-readers. We at all times attempt to discover dialogue questions — Reading Group Guides is a Godsend for us — to information our discussions, and our greatest discussions are once we disagree on whether or not or not we appreciated the e-book.

Because we examine 125 pages every week, a few of our discussions revolve round guessing what is going on to occur to characters or the plot. Sometimes we’re even proper! Our members have totally different studying pursuits — one loves mysteries, one loves biographies, one refuses to learn any extra WWII/Holocaust books, and one likes to psychoanalyze the characters, whereas others are in no way discriminating. We all agree that e-book membership will get us to learn past our standard style — and that it is a good factor.

Liz E.
This 12 months, our 14-member group will have fun its thirty fifth anniversary! We stay on an island in the midst of the Niagara River between Buffalo and Niagara Falls, NY, known as Grand Island (French explorers described it as “grand” or giant). The group started as an offshoot of the native Welcome Wagon, which launched new islanders to one another at month-to-month luncheons.

I used to be the primary to volunteer to host a month-to-month e-book dialogue group within the night. As a consequence, I in some way change into the de facto moderator for many years as a result of I produced “discussion” notes on every title we learn (earlier than publishers adopted go well with). They included a personality listing with descriptions, a brief abstract, dialogue questions, a report of who picked the title and/or hosted the assembly, the following title and hostess (and finally what we learn on the similar time final 12 months). Finally, I listed really helpful titles, which had been primarily the titles I had learn within the interim between conferences. The e-book notes helped provoke reminiscences of the e-book (if that they had learn it lengthy earlier than) and likewise served to maintain members on matter.

Over the years, we added a number of traditions, like having a picnic slightly than a real dialogue assembly in July or August. For quite a few years, we additionally held a joint assembly with one other Island Book Group at vacation time till they disbanded. In the start, we allowed the hostess to supply decisions for the following assembly, in addition to refreshments. Later, we discovered it simpler to supply a year-long listing of books, in addition to hostesses. Everyone was allowed to counsel titles that we voted on.

Our members diversified extensively in age once we started. We turned so widespread as members needed to convey extra associates that we needed to restrict our dimension for a number of years to a quantity that hostesses may accommodate of their dwelling and eating rooms. Because now we have been in existence for thus lengthy, I introduced my youngest daughter to conferences as a result of I used to be breastfeeding (she can be 31 this December). Members usually ask how she is now as she helped me serve refreshments for years when it was my flip to host. We have misplaced members when their husbands obtained jobs throughout the nation (she and her husband truly moved again years later!) or who moved to assist look after aged dad and mom. Now that we’re all a lot older, now we have misplaced members resulting from age-related illness. (We donated a tree to the library “garden” in reminiscence of certainly one of these valuable associates.)

During the COVID years, our “advanced” ages put the vast majority of us in a threat class, so we didn’t meet in any respect. When we lastly did get again on observe, we picked up with the titles we had not learn on our final listing. I requested to be relieved of my moderator duties. My month-to-month “book notes” had crammed quite a few binders. A committee of three took over. We now meet on the native library group room throughout the early afternoon with volunteer moderators and hostesses. Driving at night time, particularly throughout the winter, had change into a daunting proposition to many.

I’ve saved a Master List of the titles now we have learn through the years. New members started proposing titles that we truly had learn. It is as much as eight pages lengthy!

Mary Lou W.
Our e-book group had an fascinating begin. Somewhere in late 2019 and early 2020, proper earlier than the pandemic, a 40-something lady posted a message on NextDoor. Her senior mother had simply moved to Denver and didn’t know anybody. The lady requested if anybody can be fascinated by assembly for lunch, and he or she gave the title of the restaurant and the date/time. Would you imagine that over 50 senior ladies confirmed up?

Out of the unique 50, a number of smaller teams had been fashioned — for instance, a film dialogue group, a knitting group, a strolling group, and…a e-book group. I used to be not concerned within the very earliest beginnings of all this senior enjoyable, as a result of I used to be in the midst of tutoring for the bar examination and had no spare time. I used to be decided to affix up as quickly as bar overview ended.

The first group I attended was the film group. About six of us met to see Little Women, and it was a blast sitting within the movie show with all these individuals who simply needed to make associates. How enjoyable.

And then March 2020 occurred, and that was the tip of in-person get-togethers. The e-book group was nonetheless of their early days, however they made a seamless transition to Zoom. I used to be in a position to attend the assembly, and I met probably the most wonderful group of senior ladies. We all beloved books, all of us had been in numerous levels of seniorhood, all of us lived in Denver, and all of us had been fascinated by making associates.

We continued to fulfill on Zoom till we obtained the all-clear about COVID and all of us might be vaccinated. The first time we met in individual, all of us exclaimed about how tall or quick we had been, because it wasn’t simple to inform these particulars on Zoom. We began assembly for lunch simply to go to with one another, along with our month-to-month e-book dialogue conferences.

I now think about these ladies to be such good associates. We’ve been to one another’s homes, gotten collectively to sit down outdoors within the park in the summertime, and stepped as much as assist when certainly one of us wanted it. I obtained a lot help from them final fall once I was in an auto accident that totaled my automobile and left me with a cracked sternum and on oxygen for 10 weeks.

I think about it one thing of a miracle the way in which this all occurred, starting with a loving daughter posting on NextDoor that her mother was new to city and needed to make some associates. Who knew?

Suzie D.
When my husband and I retired to the gorgeous island of Anguilla within the Caribbean in 2001, one of many first issues I did was be a part of a e-book membership. In 2003, I took over the “management” of our group and proceed to get pleasure from it 21 years later. We normally have round 15 members, which fluctuates throughout the seasons as about half of our group are “snowbirds.” We learn quite a lot of genres with every member submitting and main the dialogue of her e-book. We meet month-to-month both in somebody’s residence or at a restaurant. I’ve discovered that e-book golf equipment are an effective way to make associates and browse books you usually wouldn’t select.

Vesna D.
We have been assembly for 5 years. We meet at my home and from time to time take a discipline journey to a restaurant or vineyard for that individual month. We had been a highlight group once more in a web-based e-newsletter, and we had been so very fortunate in 2020 to be a Book Club Girl-sponsored membership. We miss these days of containers and containers of recent titles and swag coming every month! We now have 4 mom/daughter pairs and could not be happier to see each other every month. With the unpredictable climate in Sparta, NJ, and the peak of the flu/chilly season every winter, we Zoom January via March.

This actually is the most effective factor I’ve carried out for myself. The door opened to us resulting from our love of books and has stayed open all these years as we developed a powerful sense of group and friendship with each other.