One of the gentle pleasures I have discovered in Waterloo is a book club organised by Words Worth Books. I attended in the spring for the first time, not because I have any experience with book clubs but rather because I simply happened to have read, very recently, the book they were set to discuss that month. That, and the meeting was taking place at a location in walking distance of my house. So it was easy.
I honestly didn’t know what to expect. I was both relieved and pleased. The group, whose membership varies slightly from month to month, is small enough to allow everyone to share their thoughts. And everyone does. Moreover, the level of discussion is excellent. These are good readers with insights into the text that I may not have had. There is usually sufficient difference of opinion to warrant further scrutiny of the text. It’s the kind of interplay that I consider essential for due appreciation of the integral nature of art to life.
Having entered upon the project by happenstance, continuance has required me to read novels which I almost certainly would not have chosen on my own account. That turns out to have been a good thing. For example, tomorrow evening we will be discussing Last Night in Montreal by Emily St. John Mandel. This first novel – she has a second out at the moment – is beautifully crafted. I consider it a real find, one which I have since been urging upon my friends. And I definitely would not have stumbled upon it had it not been for this book club. I hope the others in the group will have been as impressed as I was. On the other hand, I fully expect they will open my eyes to aspects of this novel that I have not yet considered.
Here are the other books that the book club has discussed since I have been participating:
