Monday, January 7, 2008
The Book Club Question
I'm hosting a ward book club at my house this week and I'm starting to feel a little apprehensive about what I've gotten myself into. People have such different expectations, tastes, sensitivities, etc. and I'm wondering how to navigate through all of this. I was in a book club once and suggested a book, but one girl was too offended by it to finish it. Ever since then I've doubted my own judgment a bit on what's appropriate for a general Mormon audience. So I'm appealing to my blogging friends for suggestions. Do you have a favorite book that you think would be reader friendly for a Relief Society group? Also, I'm pretty open to any genre but I do think the book should have some literary merit beyond just being printed words on a page, something that merits discussion.
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6 comments:
Hey I have been thinking a lot about starting my own book club down here, and have thought a lot about the same question. If you figure it out let me know. I was part of one that had the same problems, some thought they were great others wouldn't finish the books. I don't think a great book club is one that only reads LDS literature. The point of getting together is to share ideas and have different views and opinions about the books. I am curious to hear what you think and find out about it.
The last book they read in our branch was "Desire of the Everlasting Hills" by Thomas Cahill. Being the illiterate soul I am, I didn't read it..but the sister over the book club is, I believe, an English Professor at BYU. I dare say she would pick an appropriate book for a RS book club, no?
A book I read for a Church Book Club was Till They Have Faces, by C.S. Lewis. It was perfect because it isn't a "church" book, but it could lends itself to gospel conversation and there is no way anyone could be offended by it and of course its fabulously well written. Other great books that people usually find the time to finish are The Hiding Places by Corrie ten Bloom, Man's Search For Meaning, and I think that book that Jordan and read this past year, When Broken Glass Floats would be great too.
I started the book club in our ward several months ago and here are a few books that have been a hit (we haven't done any church books yet.) The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho, These is my words by Nancy Turner, Twilight series (3 books so far) by Stephanie Meyer(?), The Mitford series (7-8 books in the series I think) by Jan Karon. We did Follow the River- that didn ot go over well at all- most did not finish the book. Beauty by Robyn Mckinley was really good too. Good luck!
Ha ha. that is funny. I don't know. I'm a little weirded out by book club for reasons i can't explain. or maybe i'm just anti-social. But, it's odd though because as far as I can tell, it seems that RS book club is where people read the raciest books. But maybe that's just how we do it out here.
Mary,
I don't know if you'll get this, but I've become addicted to the Association for Mormon Letters discussion board, and I think that you'd enjoy it. You can just lurk without submitting anything, but anytime you had a question about something like this again, people there are extremely intelligent and often very thoughtful, and they welcome new questions.
please check it out if you get the slightest moment.
http://forums.mormonletters.org/yaf_forum.aspx
-trevor(do you know more than one?)
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