Starting a Book Club at work - good/bad idea?

[kelliebelle]

Hi everyone,

I am thinking about starting a Book Club at work. I would like to get your feedback on suggestions and opinions about this idea. It would be limited to my department, which consists of about 100 people. Of course, not all of them would join, probably only 20 or so, I would expect.

We would only be reading paperbacks (for affordability) and we would meet either at work (I would probably have to get this approved ) or at a local restaurant.

I'm just trying to think of anything I might be missing before I start to market this idea with my co-workers. Would you all mind just giving me some things to consider when taking on a venture like this? I appreciate any feedback, constructive criticism, suggestions, etc.

Thank you

 

[Ell]

Here's a pretty good link from BookBrowse about starting a book club.

I think their point about size of the club is significant. In a larger group like yours (20), a lot more planning will be needed and it will, by necessity, be more formal. The larger the group the more difficult it is getting people to participate in discussions. Larger groups tend to get dominated by a few verbal, strong personalities and quieter types won't talk even when they have a lot to offer . It'll take strong leadership skills to make sure everyone feels comfortable and not intimidated.

That's all I can think of for the time being.

 

[honeydevil]

i think it is a nice idea, but i wouldn't meet at a restaurant!! it is just to unpersonal and really hard to find one, everybody likes!! just try to do it every meeting at another persons home, then you can get to know the people and it is more comfortable!! good luck

 

[hay82]

I would say that 20 is quite a lot of people for a bookclub. I would say about ten would be enough and would make it easier to have an relaxed discussion about the books.

 

[kelliebelle]

Thank you all for your replies, links, and suggestions. Now that I think about it, 20 would probably be a high estimate of the # of people who might join my book club. It would probably end up being more like 8-10, and I realize that would be more ideal. I'm still in the "thinking-about-it" stages, and I may not even mention it to my co-workers. I try not to be pessimistic about things like this, but this idea might cause more problems than it's worth. I don't exactly work with the most friendly and laid-back sort of people, and that wouldn't make for an enjoyable book club.

Anyway... Thanks for the suggestions.

 

[honeydevil]

I don't exactly work with the most friendly and laid-back sort of people, and that wouldn't make for an enjoyable book club.

Anyway... Thanks for the suggestions.

the idea is great so just try to find nice people!! if not at work, then find people from you gym, neighbors or even nice employers in your fav restaurant!!

 

[Ell]

Maybe you could find a friend or two outside of work that would also be interested. At least you'd have a core group that you know would get along.

Then you could put up a notice at work to find more preople to make up the rest of the group. I think 8 - 10 would be an ideal number. Larger and you run into the problems I mentioned above; too much smaller (less than 6) and it's not much of a discussion if one or two can't make it.

Maybe think about the types of books you'd like to discuss, scout out a few titles and put them on your notice. That way, you'd start out with people interested in similar books.

Don't give up on the idea. It can be lots of fun and quite informative.

 

[honeydevil]

Maybe you could find a friend or two outside of work that would also be interested. At least you'd have a core group that you know would get along.

Then you could put up a notice at work to find more preople to make up the rest of the group. I think 8 - 10 would be an ideal number. Larger and you run into the problems I mentioned above; too much smaller (less than 6) and it's not much of a discussion if one or two can't make it.

Maybe think about the types of books you'd like to discuss, scout out a few titles and put them on your notice. That way, you'd start out with people interested in similar books.

Don't give up on the idea. It can be lots of fun and quite informative.

thanks thats my opinion!!
good night

 

[Ashlea]

I found the easiest way is to have a different person lead it each time and have a few questions ready to start a discussion when it starts to slow down.

 

[Cathy C]

*At work*, I'd say no. That will lead to a bunch of problems in the long-run, even if you get permission. We tried similar things in our office and while everyone worked hard to avoid it, problems included people not cleaning up after themselves, so that early arrivers the next day found the kitchen and conference room a pit (not every time, but on enough occasions that people complained to the bosses.) There were also accusations of favoritism because other groups then wanted to use the same great idea for their own meetings. Then the insurance company complained because there were cars in the lot after hours when the policy said there wouldn't be, etc., etc.

Outside of the office is definitely better, but I agree that restaurants are difficult. Is there perhaps a nearby library with extended hours? If it's only a few blocks away, it could work.

Fortunately, if you get a devoted 5 or 6 people that will show up every week, you'll have a wonderful time. But it has to be as important as the rest of the demands on their life. That's only the case for a very few, though.

When it works, it works well and I wish you luck with it!

Cathy

 

[hatter]

Some words of encouragement

I think it sounds like a lovely idea. I'd go ahead and do it and then work the kinks out as you come to them.

I thought you might like to hear that a friend and I started a book club just over a year ago now. We treated the whole thing fairly casually and still tend to make things up as we go along. We invited a heap of friends, who in turn put the word out to other friends.

We have a core group of about 6 who turn up regularly, and a larger group of 10-15 people who receive all our e-mails notifying people of the books we're planning to read and when and where we're next meeting. People from that larger group turn up occasionally and like to know what we're doing even if they aren't able to show up often. A couple of people hardly ever turn up but have told me they still want to get the e-mails as they like to try and read the books at the same time, and since it's essentially a large network of friends they sometimes end up discussing the books when they catch up with people outside of the book club.

As it's all fairly laid back we meet in a pub on a Sunday afternoon. We all suggest books to read and then vote on which book we read each month. We try to make sure that everyone has their book picked at some stage so that we don't always go back to the same person's choices. In this way we read a fairly eclectic range of books, and that makes it challenging and fun.

Getting people to talk was a bit of a challenge at the beginning, but now people are fairly comfortable, and if someone is quiet someone else always makes the effort to draw them in to the conversation by directing a question to them or just asking what they thought.