How to start a book club







(NC) -- You've decided that you want to read great books and you're looking forward to thought-provoking reads and lively discussions. Here are some steps to getting your book club up and running:

Recruiting members

As with any project, it's best to start small and build. Begin by talking to friends and colleagues who share your love of books. Once you have a core of three or four interested, you can reach out. An ideal size is eight to 16 members. Recruit with social media, or with a poster in your community centre, library, or laundromat. And also, notices in the local newspaper are all good ways to find the right people.

Choosing books

You could go with a theme—a specific author, country, or genre—or you could sign up to a book club network that will select the books for you. The popular Amnesty International Book Club selects books with human rights experiences. The Amnesty book club also offers people the chance to take action on a critical human rights issue.

Meeting place

A book club is a social event as well as a chance to discuss good books. Many clubs take turns meeting in each member's place, with drinks, snacks, sometimes even meals to accompany the talk. Libraries, places of worship and community centres will often provide meeting rooms. You can pump up the socializing by meeting in a café, bar or restaurant—whatever suits your group.

Timing

It's important to pick a schedule and stick to it—the first Tuesday of the month for example, or the third Thursday. Once a month seems to work for most groups but you can shorten or lengthen that. Most clubs meet mid-week, but it can be a breakfast, lunch or evening meeting, whatever works best. Depending on the chat, the meeting should last an hour and a half or more.

Keeping in touch

Send out meeting reminders via email, Facebook or Twitter. You might want to set up a group on social media or a blog. Keep a record of your group, noting the books you've read and special events. It can help bring new members up to speed.

Name

Create an identity for your club. The Awesome Authors Club? The Beyond Words Book Club? You choose how serious you want to be.

The most important thing of all is to have fun.

Information about the Amnesty International book club is available by writing to Amnesty International Book Club, 1992 Yonge Street, Suite 319, Toronto, Ontario, M4S 1Z7, or online at amnestybookclub.ca.


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