So let’s talk about book clubs…
When it gets down to it, books, reading, and the culture of books and reading have always been the public library’s “bread & butter.” A great way to celebrate that culture is to get involved in a book club. Book clubs are everywhere and not just at the public library. Churches sponsor and promote book clubs, as do private groups of friends and families. Even sports teams have discussion on a common book. Coaches often see reading and experiencing a common book as a great team building experience. At its most basic level, book clubs bring people together and creates community through the shared experience of reading the same book.
Each year the county Literacy Coalition sponsors One Book, One Community on that same concept: let’s get one book in the hands of thousands of people and discuss it. Let’s put aside our differences and our backgrounds and our economic and educational differences and find common ground.
At the Dover Public Library, we offer several book club options at various times on different days of the week. The Tuesday Night Book Club meets the 2nd Tuesday of each month at 7:00 PM. The focus of this group is variety and popular fiction and non-fiction. B.Y.O.B. (Bring Your Own Book Club) meets offsite at restaurants and pubs on the 1st Thursday of each month at 7:00 PM. Each month the group uses a different theme. For example, one month it may be Ohio authors or British mysteries. The next it could be plays or Civil War non-fiction. Another library book club is called the Chautauqua Literary & Scientific Circle, or CLSC, which meets on the last Thursday of each month at noon. This book club reads books on the Chautauqua Institution’s book list. Participants are given the opportunity to apply for “graduation” through CLSC, which is the oldest continuous book club in America.
In the end, book clubs are not only challenging and inspiring but great social opportunities as well. Let’s face it: we were not put on this planet to walk alone. If you love reading, we encourage you to connect with other bibliophiles at the Dover Public Library. Who knows, it may just change your life!
-Jim Gill, Director