From 2006
Book groups-- 2006
I have belonged to a book group for about five years. We have seldom
read a book without merit. We read more fiction than non, but not exclusively. We have
read poetry (1) and plays (2). We have read polemics (What Happened to
Kansas) and memoirs (Personal History and Made in Detroit). My favorite book was Bel Canto
(Patchett).
About 25% have been classics like Pride and Prejudice, The Heart is a Lonely Hunter, Madame Bovary, East of Eden.
I
stay in the group most of all because I like the women. They are
thoughtful, caring people. That seems like a pretty good reason.
They read Megan Abbott's book Die a Little and came to her reading.
July 2023
I have belonged to this book group for another 17 years. About 23 years in all. We read far fewer classics and far less non-fiction nowadays. It is almost the same people but two of them have Alzheimer's, one Parkinson's, and two husbands have died, one moved and does it over zoom. We all did it on zoom for more than two years but we didn't miss many meetings. Almost all of us have had a tragedy of some sort over the period. The average age is about 78. Half of us caught Covid despite all having all the vaccines. One had it twice. We have trouble choosing books often and I pick too many. We rarely read mysteries because they don't usually have enough to discuss. We borrow a lot of ideas from an adjacent group. Although we have always been troubled by the state of the world, we are more troubled now. One or two came to Megan's latest reading (Beware the Woman), ten books later. We are hanging in there but it grows harder. My favorite book in all those years are books by Ann Patchett, Sigrid Nunez, Larry Watson, William Kent Kruger, Elizabeth Strout.
11 comments:
A good book group can provide friendship and continuity over the years, especially in hard times, personal or otherwise. Hang on to those ladies. And keep reading.
I'm hanging as tight as I can.
Thanks for sharing, Patti. I loved reading that. I've never belonged to a book group (it does seem to be more a women's thing, I think). Jackie was briefly in one years ago, but she was almost the only one who read the assigned books.
As for Covid, just when they say it is over, we are meeting more and more people who are getting it now! My brother in law in Arizona got it from a work meeting and ended up in the hospital with Covid pneumonia. But my sister and their son didn't get it. A woman Jackie taught with in the mid-'70s and again in the late '90s, got it after a trip to Puerto Rico, and so did her husband. My cousin's husband (the ones we went to Maine with) is a doctor, and he had it fairly recently, but she didn't get it.
Diane has been in a Book Club of fellow retired teachers since she retired 19 years ago. I have never been in a book club and have no desire to join one. I prefer to read whatever and whenever I want. In some ways, my blog is like an on-line book club with commentators sharing their thoughts and opinions of the books I've read.
I know of no men who belong to one but I think they could use the camaraderie if nothing else. Maybe going to a ballgame serves the same purpose.
I have never been part of a book club, but your experience with this one sounds wonderful. It is amazing that it has endured for so long and I hope it continues. It is interesting about men not being in book clubs so much.
And one of the great things about my book group is how diligent they are about reading and discussing the books. We usually talk about the book for at least an hour before we drift to other topics.
I'm so glad you've had that book group over the long haul, Patti. Groups like that can sustain you when things fall apart.
George, without hearing what you said, Jackie said the self same thing.
Ballgames don't really give one too much opportunity to discuss much, which might be the point...quiet bars might come closer (or even sports bars). Then again, some (most?) men don't want to discuss much.
The discussion lists I've been in, one (Horror at Indiana U, for 30+ years), are as close to a book club as I've come. Aside from some discussions in groups in college (extracirricular).
Thanks for sharing. I was once part of a book group of mixed gender at work, pre-COVID. It was on-and-off, people changed and then it ended. We were not regular, and many of the books chosen I did not like. I am not interested in being a part of a reading group as my reading is selfish. I did like the social aspect, and we did have some great conversation. (I vividly recall those of The Sisters Brothers and Ironweed--both my choices).
I was part of a few writing groups, & those I enjoyed more, or at least recall more fondly. Better discussion, friendship, & those lasted longer than the book clubs.
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