MLA 2013: Observations from Sitting in on 22 Book Clubs in 30 Days

If you’re a nonfiction author in search of a book deal, you’ve probably considered doing something odd every day for a year and recounting the experience. Perhaps setting a bird-watching record. Or not shopping. Or following the advice of Oprah Winfrey. Or, perhaps, attending a book club a day.  Allen Verbrugge of the J.J. Hill Reference Library and College of St. Scholastica shared some funny and insightful reflections on his experience of joining 22 book clubs in one month. [[{"type":"media","view_mode":"media_large","fid":"765","attributes":{"class":"media-image alignright size-medium wp-image-246","typeof":"foaf:Image","style":"","width":"300","height":"177","alt":"BookClub"}}]]Instead of a book contract, Verbrugge embarked on the project in preparation for a planned series of large-group business book discussions at the Hill Library. He visited book clubs in private homes, libraries, churches, bars, businesses, and elsewhere. What he shared was more observational than prescriptive and provided attendees with a host of options for meeting whatever goals they set forth for their book clubs. To frame his observations, he followed the Book Club Cheerleader’s motto: “They come for The Book, they stay for The Fun, and they leave if you screw up The People part.” The Book Choosing a book is certainly an important aspect of a book club, but there is no single most-effective strategy. While planning titles long in advance allows time for marketing and promoting your book club (which may help grow your attendance), it doesn’t incorporate the surprise factor that book club members highly value. Verbrugge recounted several stories of near giddiness among club members when the next month’s title was about to be revealed. The Fun Different book clubs have different goals. Some are pure entertainment (those in private homes and bars tended to focus on fun). Some may have a more educational component (like those in businesses or churches). With an educational goal, the club moderator tended to take a more active leadership and speaking role, there were more rules, and more documentation. With an entertainment goal, the moderator tended to take a lower profile and the social element of the group was well acknowledged. In most cases, club members enjoyed conversations - and had more fun - the more that conversation cycled between group members.  Moderators can facilitate this by laying low and allowing members to take turns, while being prepared to prompt if conversation lags or becomes lop-sided. The People Right after the books themselves, book club members most appreciated the people in their club. High value was placed on contributing to a conversation about a book and sharing personal stories and experiences. Although intangible, there seemed to be something validating in how discussion changed club members’ understanding of a book’s topic and/or themes. In addition to including certain “types,” (such as the Dominator, the Digressor, the Negatron, and the I-Haven’t-Read-the-Book-But-Would-Just-Like-to-Say-One-Thing-People) many book clubs are largely made up of folks who are either older and/or women. Verbrugge ended by asking how we might expand involvement in the book clubs we lead by reconsidering how we promote our clubs, the time at which they’re held, and the titles we include. Book clubs are good for physical and emotional health. They help us to talk about things that we should talk about, but that may make us feel uncomfortable. They provide a venue for our natural tendency and timeless desire to talk about books. But you might want to start off with one or two a month. 22 is for professionals (and aspiring stunt memoirists) only.