Book Group #6 (LW's Book Group)

Behind the Scenes at the Museum by Kate Atkinson.     

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer.    

People of the Book by Geraldine Brooks.    

Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close by Jonathan Safran Foer.     

Digging to America by Ann Tyler.    

This group meets once a month at members' homes on a rotating basis. The original plan was to have the person who picked the book lead the discussion, but since one of the members (LW) is a librarian, she often ends up taking on the leadership role. The one who selects the book is not the host for that discussion. The best time to meet for us turned out to be Sundays around 7pm after for coffee "and."

LW sends out a book discussion guide and other interesting articles or reviews ahead of time--about a week before the meeting.

Discussion tip: Throw out a provocative question or quotation and ask each member to comment in turn. This prevents the more talkative members from taking over. It's a plus if you can encourage those who you know might disagree to engage in a stimulating back and forth.

Look for a diverse membership. Include people of different professions, ages, and neighborhoods. This keeps the discussions lively and tends to prevent chit-chat about the new soccer coach or one's latest bone density exam results. It also makes for a much more interesting discussion when everyone's perspective is not the same (duh!)

Don't do a meal, too. This leads to more socializing and loses the focus for the reason you're really there. Even when the theme of the meal is tied to the book, there is a less satisfying discussion.

This group usually skips meetings in August and December because these are the busiest months for members. They try to have a non-discussion, social gathering that includes families either during the winter holidays or a summer picnic or BBQ.