Book Club Spotlight - South Weber Readers Book Club
Q:Does your group have a name and/or a theme? How long has your group been in existence?
South Weber Readers Book Club. We have been in existence for about three years.
Q:How many members do you have? How many men, how many women? What age are most of your members?
There are around 20 members. Some read the book each month but cannot attend the monthly discussions. They say it is an
incentive just to know others are reading the same book. Several of those that don't attend are males. I would say it is 3
to 1 female. In attendance at the discussions, it is generally 3 females in their early twenties and the rest of the adults
range from early forties to early sixties.
Q:How often do you meet? Where do you meet?
We meet monthly except during the summer. We rotate homes and we volunteer. It is generally scheduled out for three months.
Q:Do you eat at your meetings? What do you eat? Who brings the food?
The person who is hosting the discussion is the one who prepares or buys the food to serve. There is a full gambit of food
served. We meet at 8pm so mostly desserts.
Q:Who leads the discussion? Do you use reading group guides?
The discussion is lead by either the person who recommended the book or if they are unable to make it, someone else has been
assigned to lead. We use guides that either the person finds on the internet, are in the back of the book, or have developed
themselves.
Q:What kind of books do you read?
The members are quite diverse in their likes so we read quite an array of topics. Some books we have read include: The Help,
The Bone Garden, Wild Swans, The Hiding Place, and The Book Thief to name a few.
Q:How do you choose your books? Do you choose one new book at each meeting, or do you choose the books for a
number of meetings ahead of time?
We choose our books for the next quarter. A person is assigned to a month and brings with them a list of possible books and
their synopsis. We then decide as a group and our list is set. We have generally also tried to read a book that someone in the
group has read previously, or has had recommended to them. We have read books from a wide range of topics/story lines. We do
try to pick books that are considered “clean.”
Q:What were some of the best discussions or favorite books the group read?
We had a great discussion on faith and perseverance with the book, The Hiding Place by Corrie Ten Boom. After reading The
Historian by Elizabeth Kostova, a historical thriller set in modern times about the ancient “Vlad the Impaler” a.k.a. Dracula,
we were all left wondering if he wasn’t still alive. We shared special moments from our own lives when we discussed The Last
Lecutre by Randy Pausch around the time of his death. All of us fell in love with Captain Jack Elliott in These is My Words:
The Diary of Sarah Agnes Prine by Nancy Turner. We lamented the senseless death of a newly alive Renee in The Elegance of the
Hedgehog, by Muriel Barbery. It is interesting to read a novel whose narrator was death, in The Book Thief by Markus Zusak.
Q:How do you keep things fun?
Just taking the time to get together is fun, and has provided new friendships we might not otherwise have had. It has also been
fun to read from a wide range of topics and types of books. Many of these books I would have never known about or read, but have
come to thoroughly enjoy each and every one of them and discussing them with the group.
Q:What advice would you give to other reading groups?
Get started!! Do pick three of four books in advance. Some will have read the current selection, but will be glad to start
reading ahead. Also helps with getting on waiting lists at library if you have picked a popular title.
Davis reads supports and encourages the many book clubs in our community. If you would like your book club to be part of this page, please contact Bonnie Flint or any Davis Reads board member.
