Energize Your Book Club…
Here’s the handout I presented at the Vernon Area Public Library on Friday night.
The new library is spectacular!
Energizing Your Book Club
Coordinating Food and Drink
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Brooklyn by Colm Toibin (have New York Cheesecake)
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Little Bee by Chris Cleave (make Honey Bee’s- Rum/Lemon Juice/Honey)
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The Kingmaker’s Daughter by Phillipa Gregory (England- have a tea party)
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The Book Thiefby Markus Zusak (Germany- Rye Bread or Soft Pretzels)
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Moloka’i by Alan Brennert – (add pineapple juice to a pitcher of iced-tea)
Fieldtrips and excursions
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Loving Frankby Nancy Horan – Visit Frank Lloyd’s Wright home in Oak Park
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Kite Runner by Kahled Hosseini– Rent the movie
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Behind the Scenes at the Museumby Kate Atkinson – Visit one of our fabulous Chicago museums
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Once We Were Brothers by Ronald Balson – Visit the Holocaust Memorial in Skokie
How to pick your book club books?
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Keep the books varied. Don’t read two books about any one subject, place or time period in a row.
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Pick a book that corresponds (loosely) with the month. For example in January read The Snow Childby Eowyn Ivey because it’s a cold, snowy month. In June, read The Distant Land of my Father by Bo Caldwell in honor of Father’s Day.
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Let the moderator or host of that month pick the book that is read. He or she should want to read the book they are discussing.
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Some clubs vote from a long laundry list of books in January for the whole year out, while others go month by month. Both ways are okay, just figure out what works for your book club’s group dynamic.
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Take a break in either August or December, which seem to be busy months for most groups. Book club should not be laborious. Have either a free read, a book exchange party or both!
Get in touch
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Authors love to be contacted. Their emails are usually available on the jacket of the book or on their website. Ask them a question that you can discuss at book club; for example, “Which character was hardest to write? Did you always plan for this particular ending? Why this title?”
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Skype! Several authors love to Skype (video conference) with book clubs. They also are happy to chat via speakerphone. It’s a great enhancement to book club discussions.
Props in all shapes and sizes
Friends, neighbors, teachers and librarians can make excellent props. So do books, spices, magazines, photos, YouTube videos, music and more.
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Forever Lily by Beth Nonte Russell is about an American who adopts a child from China. A book club member brought her neighbor to our meeting who had adopted a child from China as well. It was quite enlightening to learn her personal point of view as we discussed the book.
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Chicago Public Schools recently bannedPersepolis by Marjane Satrapi. Ask a local teacher to come to book club to discuss why they believe this book was banned.
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When reading a book with any historical content, bring library books that show pictures. For Snow Flower and the SecretFan by Lisa See bring a non-fiction book that shows photos of the foot binding process. Bring a National Geographic or travel magazine that shows pictures of the inside and outside of the Taj Mahal after reading Beneath a Marble Skyby John Shors.
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Read The Girls by Lori Lansens and then watch YouTube videos that show conjoined twins in today’s era.
Research and Questions
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The moderator, leader or host (MLH) should gather info about the author. It’s a simple Google search and can often offer insight into the book.
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MLH can get discussion questions from the publisher but it’s also good to have some of your own. Try and find a quote from the book you found interesting or inspiring. Read it aloud and ask the group to discuss it. Ask the group if they learned anything new from the book, find out which character they related to the most and why, see if anyone found any recurring symbols or themes throughout the book. Cast the book as a movie and see how everyone imagines each character.
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If some members are less comfortable speaking up and others overly loquacious, it’s a good idea to write your questions out on index cards and hand them out to the group. Have each person read the question on his or her card and be the first to reply to it.Play a game! Turn simple questions and/or answers into a Trivial Pursuit or Jeopardy type game with the group divided into two teams.
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OF THE GOOD BOOK FAIRY
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great suggestions!