Ep 023: The Book Club Episode

Reading and discussing books with others deepens your reading experience. If you want to start a book club, or are having issues with an existing club, this episode is all for you. Kate and Polli have reading suggestions, anecdotes, suggestions for drama-free meetings, and more! 

The Book Club Hub @ LPL

• Book Club in a Bag: 10-12 copies of a book all in one handy bag! Learn more about this system, including our Kindle eReader kits here! 
  • SOME OF THE BAGS:
    • The Power by Naomi Alderman
    • A Man Called Ove by Fredrick Backman
    • Bel Canto, State of Wonder, AND Commonwealth by Ann Patchett (what a book club author!)
    • Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout
    • Boys in the Boat by Daniel Brown
    • Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
    • An American Marriage by Tayari Jones (new bag!)
    • Exit West by Mohsin Hamid (new bag!)
    • Redefining Realness by Janet Mock (A+ memoir action!)
    • The Dinner by Herman Koch (love 2 H8 it!) 
    • The Bookshop on the Corner by Jennifer Colgan 
    • Missoula by John Krakauer
  • Kindles can be loaded with any ebook that's available on Amazon!
• "Quarterly"(ish) newsletter with information on our newest Book Club in a Bag kits, exclusive event invites, information on our clubs, and more. Click here to sign up for the newsletter and/or browse the archives! 
• Book Club House Calls: let us come to you! A charming and well-informed Book Squad member will crash your club, armed with a list of personalized book recommendations, help for using KitKeeper/Hoopla/Libby/etc., suggestions for generating discussions, and anything else you might need! (P.S. You don't need to feed us, but we won't complain if you do.) Wanna house call? Email Kate: kgramlich@lplks.org
• Programs! We've got ten adult book clubs run through the library, plus awesome things like Book Club Speed Dating and other signature events. Got a dream program idea for your book club and the rest of the community? Polli says to come at her: pkenn@lplks.org

From Becky Spratford, Book Club Queen

Last year, we were lucky enough to host club guru Becky Spratford of the blog RA For All as she presented a talk to local book clubs on how to revamp your group. One of the most important takeaways she provided was a list of guidelines/norms for both leaders and group members. Check out her post all about the presentation and find the actual slideshow she presented! (Slides 7-9 have the handy norms.)

Remember - your club members are choosing to take time out of their heckin busy lives to hang out with you and discuss a book. You owe it to one another to take it seriously! 

SO!

We covered a lot in this episode, so if you feel overwhelmed please contact us at any time!
Also, for the record, Polli did end up trying Mountain Dew. It went not-so-good...

Twice a month, the librarians are in, with their favorite recommendations in Two Book Minimum, a toe-to-toe discussion on a book or topic, as well as news from the book world, updates from Lawrence Public Library, and beyond.

This episode was produced by Jim Barnes in the Sound & Vision studio. Our theme song is by Heidi Lynne Gluck. You can find the Book Squad Podcast on iTunes, opens a new window, Stitcher, opens a new window, or SoundCloud, opens a new window. Please subscribe and leave us comments – we’d love to know what you think, and your comments make it easier for other people to find our podcast. Happy reading and listening! xo, Polli & Kate