How It All Began

Our book club has been going strong for 3 years now. I figured now is as good a time as ever to tell how we got started, share a few secrets of our success, and a few tips for those who may want to try and start their own reading group.

I have always loved reading, and I started to think that it would be fun to start a group that could read together and share their thoughts. I decided that 6 members would be the perfect number because if we met every other month, each person would get to choose one book per year. The trouble was deciding which 5 to ask. Over the course of about a month, I asked several women from church. I knew some better than others, and not all of the women knew each other very well. A couple turned it down because they weren't interested or were too busy with other commitments. Finally, 5 had accepted the invitation, and we were ready to begin.

First I sent out a questionnaire. There were questions like, "What is your birthday?" "What are your favorite books?" "What is your favorite literary genre?" We discussed a plan for meeting and decided that every two months was a good idea. The person who had chosen the book would host the meeting at their house and cook a nice dinner. At that meeting, the next person would announce the new book choice. I chose first since I had organized the group, and then we went in order of birthdays from there.

We had been meeting for about a year when we agreed that we loved our meetings and it seemed to take forever for the next meeting to come around. We would have to sit on the next book choice until a week or two before the next meeting. We unanimously decided to start meeting once a month instead. We worried at first that it might be too demanding, but we have never had trouble scheduling a date, and the frequency has been perfect. We have all been glad that we changed to monthly meetings.

The more we met, the stronger our friendships grew. As I said, not everyone knew each other very well at first. Before long we were convinced we needed a fun name for our book club. We came up with the title B.A.D. Girls. It captures the feeling of having fun evenings out, stepping out of our roles as wives/mothers/employees for a time of renewal. It also describes what our group is about: Books and Discussion. We even had t-shirts made.

The nice thing about our group is our flexibility. We have a procedure for meetings, but we like to shake things up sometimes. We've met at restaurants, had special Christmas parties, had a meeting that included our spouses, gone on outings to book stores, watched a movie based on a book we read, and had book exchanges.

Sometimes we each bring a book from our shelf that we don't mind parting with, then have a book exchange. About a year ago we added "birthday books." Each of us has our birthday in a different month. When we meet during a birthday month, we each bring the birthday girl a book. It's convenient and amazing that we each have a birthday month to our self.

A while back we started a blog to help us stay even more connected. Rachel takes notes at our meetings and posts summaries for us. Any of us can post about books we are reading or articles we have found online. It has been a great tool for sharing information.

We have read all kinds of books. We never know what the next person is going to pick. It forces us to read books that we may have not thought of before. I've heard of other book clubs that vote on which books to read- more of a group choice. But, since we all love reading so much, we enjoy this broadening of horizons. We also enjoy being surprised each month.

Sometimes I wonder why our group has remained so cohesive and excited about the club over the years. I think part of it has to be chalked up to luck. The right 6 people came together. Six who truly love reading and sharing together. There's no drama or tension within the group. We really like meeting together and each of us brings so much to the group. We like to create fun environments and experiences. That kind of thing can't be planned. But you should be careful who is invited to the group. This is the main dynamic that can make or break a reading club.

Here are a few of my top tips for a successful book club:

1. Not everyone has to be best friends at the beginning (or even know each other!), but invite people who get along easily with others. Make sure the people know what they are getting into and can commit to it.

2. Everyone should have an equal share in choosing and hosting, and be equally invested in the club.

3. A structure for meetings should be established, but variances and special occasions are valuable too.

4. Embrace chances for camaraderie: our club shares recipes together, has a blog, and special activities.

There are a lot of women out there who enjoy reading and would love to be a part of an awesome book club. It's not that hard to start one. All it takes is desire and a little initiative.
If it's something you are interested in then my advice would be to go for it!

Rebecca

Author: Daphne Du Maurier

One-sentence summary: A young second wife to a wealthy Englishman aquaints herself with his enormous estate, Manderly, as well as his secretive past with his late first wife, Rebecca.

B.A.D. Girls Book Rating: 9

Our favorite thing about it: We loved the writing style and quality of this book. We also really enjoyed the setting of the book as well as the surprises of the story.

Our least favorite thing about it: We were alll thoroughly annoyed that the main character (the 2nd Mrs. de Winter) did not have a first name!

Main Topics of Discussion: Setting, Flowers/Greenery, Guilt, Strength, Marriage

Our favorite quote: "If only there could be an invention...that bottled up a memory, like a scent. And it never faded, and it never got stale. And then, when one wanted it, the bottle could be uncorked, and it would be like living the moment all over again." (37)

Notes: We all agreed that we were surprised in varying degrees about the ending of the book. We also all agreed that we were frustrated with the behavior of the main character when she first arrived at Manderly and her naivete regarding the costume Mr. Danvers suggested. Overall, we loved the descriptions in the book and were enthralled by the story and the characters. We noticed how the lands and flowers surrounding Manderly were described with characteristics relative to what was happening in the story at the time. We discussed at length the miscommunication or lack of communication between Max and Mrs. de Winter as well as the strange (an understatement) behavior of Mrs. Danvers. We all agreed that Rebecca could have almost been the main character, although she was not the narrator, because of her prominence in the story. We also (warning...spoiler ahead) discussed how we felt about Max after learning that he murdered Rebecca, especially after she hinted that she was pregnant.

Memorable Meeting Moments: What wasn't memorable about this meeting? First, we were served a gourmet dinner by chefs Josh and Jon (not pictured...sorry!). Then, we celebrated our own Rebecca's birthday (Becky) with book gifts. Then, we were treated to a candle-lit dessert right out of the book...an English Tea with cakes and goodies. And finally...a B.A.D. Girls first...we watched the movie, Rebecca, which was directed by Alfred Hitchcock and filmed only two years after the book was written. What a great (and full) evening!

I Capture the Castle

Author: Dodie Smith

One-sentence summary: A teenage girl who lives in a castle in England in the 1930-40s chronicles her life in her journal including meeting the new inhabitants of the adjacent estate who bring with them excitement and her first experience with love.

B.A.D. Girls Book Rating: 8

Our favorite thing about it: We loved the sharp, witty writing, which we all agreed was top-notch. We also really enjoyed the eccentric castle setting and the engaging main character, Cassandra, who is also the narrator.

Our least favorite thing about it: A few of us thought the book started off slow and the action took a while to build. Also, some of us did not like the ending, which, although it is not sad, leaves the reader with many questions as to what happens next.

Main Topics of Discussion: Love, Unrequited love, family, responsibility, imagery, setting, journaling, relationships

Our favorite quote: “Just to be in love seemed the most blissful luxury I had ever known. The thought came to me that perhaps it is the loving that counts, not the being loved in return – that perhaps true loving can never know anything but happiness. For a moment I felt that I had discovered a great truth.”

Notes: We all enjoyed reading this book and following Cassandra’s story. We agreed that the setting of the castle lends itself to the story and really sets the stage for the eccentricities of her family and the occurrences within. The writing was so evocative visually and we especially connected with the musings and description of the dinner party.

As far as characters, we discussed almost all of them. We thought Topaz’s name was fitting and were amused by her character and how the author rounds out her personality nicely with the revelation of her hard work for the family around the castle. Mortimain makes a funny and frustrating father and we wondered at his lack of a sense of responsibility for his family. And we wondered if he really was crazy. We all agreed that Rose was annoying and self-centered. We did not appreciate the way she acted as a character. We were amused with Miss Blossom and her bluntness and way with wording the truth! We absolutely loved Stephen and thought that maybe he was a tad bit too perfect. We all willed Cassandra to love him as we were reading the book.

As far as plot, we were shocked by the development of Neil and Rose’s relationship. None of us predicted that. We were all puzzled by Simon kissing Cassandra. We could not figure out what he thought of her and why he would have done that if he was so in love with Rose. We discussed the boldness of Cassandra and Thomas when they imprisoned their father and if we would have taken such drastic measures in such a situation. As indicated in our favorite quote, the plot is replete with cases of unrequited love: Stephen for Cassandra, Simon for Rose, Cassandra for Simon and perhaps a couple of others.

Memorable Meeting Moments: This meeting took place in Becky’s new house. Since they haven’t moved in yet, we had a camp-out of sorts complete with camping chairs in the middle of her empty living room. We were honored to have our meeting in her new space and get the grand tour.

Classics We've Never Read

Ok, everyone list at least 5 "classics" they've never read, but would like to, (this point is very important) in the comments section. Maybe, just maybe, there will be one in common!