Welcome to the Book Club
For the love of words.
Reading has always been something I do both with myself and for myself.
I love words and always have. I’ll read just about anything within arm’s reach, and I’m never without a novel nearby to keep me company.
I joined my first book club shortly after college. At the time, I was craving thoughtful conversation that wasn’t tied to professional development. I wanted to use my brain to explore literature purely for the joy of it, not for a grade or as a stepping stone in my career.
There was a brief stretch when life became too hectic to commit to both reading a novel each month and showing up to discuss it with other humans while looking reasonably presentable.
Then came motherhood.
When you’re raising young children, people love to shout “Self-care!” as though it’s as easy as grabbing a soda from the mini-mart. For me, self-care meant carving out time to read a book and then talking about it with people whose company I enjoyed and whose opinions I respected, even when we disagreed completely.
Book club offered something I deeply needed: a sense of accomplishment and a chance to engage my mind in a way that was entirely separate from my amazing, exhausting boys.
More than twenty years after joining my first book club, I’m still reading with some of the same people.
When we gather, there are no wrong answers and no judgments. Some of us are devoted completionists who will “hate-read” our way through books we can’t stand. Others abandon a book the moment it fails to capture their interest. Some listen to audiobooks, some swear by paperbacks, and some are fiercely loyal to their e-readers. Many of us mix and match.
What matters most is not how we read, but that we do.
My book club is one of my happy places, and I’d love to invite you into it.
Read along with us if you’d like, and let me know what you think of our selections. The conversation is always richer when more voices join in.
