Where: Markle Public Library, Markle Indiana (A branch of the Huntington Public Library)
When: Monday, February 27th, 5:00pm – 6:00pm EST
What: Markle Book Club. It is a book club for adults held on the fourth Monday of every month. This month’s book was Murder at Hazelmoor by Agatha Christie. They read both fiction and non-fiction books, a little bit of everything. Linda(librarian) said she usually picks the books, but only because she hasn’t convinced the club members that they can choose books too if they want.
Who: The discussion was led by Linda who is the Branch Manager. Linda had prepared snacks including brownies and strawberries with a cream cheese dip. There was also a Keurig available for making hot drinks.
The meeting took place in a meeting room that was close to the entrance. The general atmosphere was relaxed, fun, jovial, and friendly. I talked with Linda for a bit and told her why I was there. She introduced me to the rest of the group when they got there. She also said I was welcome to join in the conversation if I wanted to. Everyone was very welcoming and friendly. They seemed genuinely happy that I was there. There were six participants, plus Linda for a total of 7 in attendance. The group was all women, but there was a range of ages.
Linda passed out a couple of handouts. One was a listing of all the characters in the book, of which there were many. She also had a handout with some general book club questions on it. She started by asking each participant, by name, if they had any thoughts are comments about the book. Some of the other questions asked included, “what the participants thought about who the girl ended up with” and if anyone caught the references to Arthur Conan Doyle.”
The leader and the participants are all involved in the discussion. Anyone is welcome to ask and/or answer questions, not just the leader. Agatha Christie is one of Linda’s favorite authors, so she was very knowledgeable about Christie and her background. Some of the information she gave about Christie includes that she wrote about 80 books including the Hercule Poirot series and Miss Marple series. She is considered the mother of the cozy mystery/who dunnit. She disappeared for a period of time and the reason is still a mystery. Finally, books are still being written under her name, but by different authors. In addition to information about Agatha Christie Linda also knew about British customs such as the afternoon tea ritual.
Overall, I very much enjoyed this book club even though I was only an observer. Everyone seemed to genuinely enjoy each other's company and it was such a fun, friendly, relaxed atmosphere. If it wasn’t 40 minutes from my home, I would definitely go back.
That's so nice that the leader handed out some pamphlets that were helpful. Having a physical copy of questions is something important for people who need that visual element in addition to hearing the questions.
ReplyDeleteHi Jaclyn,
ReplyDeleteYes, they were very engaged and everyone contributed. It was almost like watching a group of friends chatting about a book they read. They seemed to genuinely enjoy being together. I was a little jealous actually. The bookclub where I work is on Wednesdays and I always work on Wednesdays so I've never been able to go.
Hi Tasha,
ReplyDeleteWhen you say book club members can choose books, would the participants get to vote on what they read, or is there another selection method the librarian would use? Is the book club a “women’s only book club,” or was it just that only women came to the book club that day? I appreciate that the librarian offered a character cheat sheet. It can be difficult for some patrons to remember particular plot points or character names because of memory issues, anxiety, and so forth. Handing out a character sheet or a printout of the questions the librarian wants to ask helps better facilitate the conversation. The information you provided, via Linda’s previous knowledge or research, about Agatha Christie is fascinating and may help readers better understand the work(s) they are reading within the larger context of the series.
Hi Lexi,
DeleteLinda didn't say specifically how they would choose books. She just said she'd been trying to get the group to choose books, but so far they just want her to do it. It's not a women's book club...it's just called Markle Book Club. It's a very small branch of a larger system, which is probably why there weren't a lot of people.
Hi Tasha! That's great that you had a good experience! Passing out handouts is a really great idea, especially for a monthly book club. I could see how someone might forget the book a little prior to the discussion if they read it early in the month. Did the librarian say why she picked the books she does? The books for the group I visited were also selected by the librarian; I wonder if it is easier than trying to get the club to agree on a book.
ReplyDeleteHi Chloe,
DeleteThis particular Agatha Christie book had a ton of characters so I think the character sheet was definitely a good call on Linda's part! I don't know what Linda's typical criteria are, but she did say Agatha Christie is one of her all time favorite authors so that was obviously a contributing factor for that pick. She said they do a little bit of everything. I got the impression she knows the group pretty well and that she takes there input into account when choosing books.
This sounds like a delightful meeting. Agatha Christie books seem perfect for book clubs because of the many twists and turns to discuss. I really love small book clubs because they are more intimate and discussions are easier to have in smaller groups. This seems like an delightful meeting too, everyone was in a great mood, the snacks seemed tasty, and the handouts would have helped the discussion.
ReplyDelete-Emma
I'm so glad you had such a great experience! This sounds like a well run book club. I also love that she handouts. I wish it were closer to your house so you could attend! Full points!
ReplyDelete