BookBrowse BookTalk : Conference : Questions about Book ClubsConference : Questions about Book Clubs : The place to go for questions about setting up and running a book club
https://www.bookbrowse.com/booktalk/
RE: Where to find reading guidesI don't believe there is one. Most guides are produced by the publishers when the book is first published, and few create them for thrillers -- particularly not so 15+ years ago when this book was first published. I checked the publisher's website and nothing there.

This might be of help [link]https://www.bookbrowse.com/bookclubs/advice/index.cfm/fuseaction/diy_guides[/link]
https://www.bookbrowse.com/booktalk/messages.cfm?threadid=79514C9E-5056-A34B-6231D06501217749&r=1
2021-05-12T13:10:13-05:00Where to find reading guidesRE: Where to find reading guidesDoes anyone know if a list of discussion questions exist for "No Second Chance" by Harlan Coben? Be sure it is by Coben. There are other books with the same name.
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2021-05-12T12:50:17-05:00Where to find reading guidesRE: Choosing a name for your book clubThat's a terrific name. Does your club read poetry as well as novels?
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2013-02-10T09:09:06-05:00Choosing a name for your book clubRE: Choosing a name for your book clubWe haven’t decided for sure yet, but I think my best idea so far is “The Plath to Enlightenment” :)
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2013-02-06T15:18:04-05:00Choosing a name for your book clubRE: Q&A about the BookBrowse book clubHi Susan,
I hope to have at least one book discussion a month. Upcoming discussions include Turn of Mind (May 24), The Mercy Train (29 May) and Heading Out to Wonderful (5 June). You'll also find about half a dozen books currently open for discussion at [link]http://www.bookbrowse.com/booktalk[/link] and you'll find the discussion(s) that are actively being promoted at [link]http://www.bookbrowse.com/bookclubs/[/link]
Does that help?
- Davina (Editor)
https://www.bookbrowse.com/booktalk/messages.cfm?threadid=75EE1EBF-FFAC-581F-C8D04165A0FED86B&r=5
2012-04-20T11:04:04-05:00Q&A about the BookBrowse book clubRE: Q&A about the BookBrowse book clubHello. I've just joined the book club recently, discussing 2030, and I really enjoyed the format. I've never joined a conventional book club (don't know why, guess it's because I don't want to HAVE to read a book I don't like), and I particularly like this club because I can discuss books of my own choosing. My question is - when will there be new books to discuss and what will they be?
Thanks,
SusanK
https://www.bookbrowse.com/booktalk/messages.cfm?threadid=75EE1EBF-FFAC-581F-C8D04165A0FED86B&r=6
2012-04-20T04:36:56-05:00Q&A about the BookBrowse book clubRE: Bored listening to member monologueHi Terry,
From what you say it seems to me that the short answer is that the moderator's primary function is to make sure that everyone who wants to have a say has it and that no one dominates. If she is not doing this then she is not being an effective moderator. Thus, the problem lies equally with the moderator and the other woman - because the moderator has allowed this woman to get used to answering every question first when this habit should have been nipped in the bud long ago.
At this point in time I think you're left with six options:
1) The group introduces some sort of system as you've suggested where a specific person answers a specific question - which is far from optimal.
2) The group introduces a system whereby people put their hands up to answer a question and the moderator calls on them (hello 5th grade!)
3) You resort to the tried and trusted elementary school playground tactic and just tell the woman that you've had enough and to please just shut up for once!
4) The moderator starts doing her job and firmly but gently stops the woman from answering every question and reminds her that there are others in the group who might like to speak first.
5) You change moderators to someone who will manage properly.
6) You all suck it up and allow what should be one of the best evenings of the month to collapse into an evening you start to dread - and before long people will stop turning up and the group will dissolve or split.
I can't tell you which option, or variation on option, to do, but I will observe that the only one of these options that doesn't require either the group or the moderator to take things in hand is option 6.
--- Davina
https://www.bookbrowse.com/booktalk/messages.cfm?threadid=B6B633F5-FFAC-581F-C834350AD9EC917E&r=7
2012-03-17T13:36:58-05:00Bored listening to member monologueRE: Bored listening to member monologueMy group often uses your Reading Guide for our discussions. However, there is one member who answers almost every question immediately. Her willingness to answer discourages many others from speaking - and so it becomes a monologue! I have suggested passing the questions around and whoever reads the question has the opportunity to answer first. Our present moderator does not like this technique. Can anyone suggest a method to encourage everyone to participate?
https://www.bookbrowse.com/booktalk/messages.cfm?threadid=B6B633F5-FFAC-581F-C834350AD9EC917E&r=8
2012-03-16T21:32:46-05:00Bored listening to member monologueRE: If I request a Book Club book should I also request First Impressions books?Hi Gwen,
When it comes to allocating books, the Book Club and First Impressions are treated as one big pool of books, so if you received a book through either program last month you'd be unlikely to receive another this month - as we allocate books based primarily on when someone last received one so the person who has not received a book for 4 months would usually get priority over the person who received one last month.
In general we're usually able to allocate books to people who have not received one for 3 months, sometimes we'll get a book that has relatively few requests compared to the number of copies available and then we might even allocate a book to someone two months in a row but that's unusual.
So, as you've probably surmised from this, the chances of you receiving a book this month when you got one last month are very low. But keep in mind you do not have to get a book from us to take part in the book club - if you can lay your hands on a copy from somewhere else (bookstore, library, friend) and read it you are more than welcome to join the conversation.
Davina
https://www.bookbrowse.com/booktalk/messages.cfm?threadid=50F97499-5056-A34B-62D5B843120E027C&r=9
2012-02-26T15:16:51-05:00If I request a Book Club book should I also request First Impressions books?RE: Member wants us all to read different books, not the same oneThat's an interesting question that doesn't have a simple answer.
My first reaction is to say that I don't think you as a group should allow yourselves to be steered off on an entirely new course by one member simply because she doesn't like the way things are. To quote Spock in Star Trek, "The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few" (which incidentally isn't an original thought but traces back to the New Testament and before that at least as far back as Aristotle). In short, it is simply not viable for the happiness and cohesiveness of your group for you all to change a structure that you're happy with simply because one person wants it. So, I suggest you consider the possibility that this person may simply not be right for your group and you could end up bending over backwards only to find that she's still not happy.
Having said that, I know of a number of groups who do discuss multiple books at a meeting - some who follow this structure permanently but most who do it from time to time. So, perhaps this is something that you and the group members would like to try once, and if you enjoy it, consider making it a regular feature of your club (but not necessarily every meeting!)
Here are a couple of suggestions with regard to multiple books:
1. Have a meeting, perhaps once a year or once every six months, and all bring a book you love and take a few minutes telling the others about it. Many groups who do this do so at their last meeting before Christmas and then turn it into a book exchange. I think this could be a fun change of pace occasionally but, personally, I would find it deadly dull on a regular basis as, without a unifying theme (such as a single book, or at least a single topic) you're not going to have much actual discussion, instead you're simply going to be listening to a series of verbalized book reviews.
2. This is why most groups that I hear from who discuss multiple books at a meeting do so by picking two or more books on a similar theme (and aim to have about equal numbers read each book so that the conversation doesn't skew too much). For example, this could work well if you wanted to discuss two books set in a particular country - some could pick a nonfiction book, others could pick a fiction and then you could discuss how the two different books explore the setting. Or you could pick two books set in a particular time period, such as the south in the 1960s (e.g. The Help and The Dry Grass of August). Or you could pick two self-help type books and compare the different techniques. You could pick two fiction books by the same author but of course there's a risk that you end up discussing plot spoilers which might annoy those who are yet to read one of the books.
Although this technique works for many groups I'm not convinced that it would be right for yours as you mentioned in your email that this particular member says she doesn't have the attention span to read the sort of books that your group choose, which raises warning bells for me as the sort of books that lend themselves to discussing a particular topic tend to be books of relative substance, not the lightweight reads that I suspect this woman might be looking for.
I hope this helps!
Anyone out there got ideas to add this?
-- Davina, BookBrowse Editor
https://www.bookbrowse.com/booktalk/messages.cfm?threadid=9040E408-5056-A34B-624541D73C3261A0&r=10
2012-01-19T02:36:07-05:00Member wants us all to read different books, not the same oneRE: How to choose books to discuss on related themesHi Marna,
Thanks for your question. I also saw your post about the similarities between The Help and The Space Between Us in The Help forum, and hope to get back there to respond sometime soon (as you're right, there are a number of similarities and I hadn't thought to compare them before).
With regard to your question about resources, have you considered looking through BookBrowse's themed categories for ideas? Click on the "Find a Book" option in the menu and then select a section from the drop down menu. For example, if you were interested in comparing books that explore "coming of age" you could explore that section under "Themes", or if you were interested in a particular time period or setting you could find books to match. With over 120 themed categories there's a lot to explore.
You can dig down even more specifically using the Book Finder tool - also under "Find a Book" - which allows you to search for books by two criteria, e.g. by a specific time period and a theme, or by setting and time period, and so forth. The results will display both fiction and non fiction - so, for example, you might decide you want to read about India, and could pick one fiction and one nonfiction read.
The best thing is that every book that will show in these results is a book that we've shortlisted for recommendation at some point over the past 12 years, so that you won't have to wade through thousands of "also rans" to find the books that are worthwhile. And because we back every book recommendation with an excerpt, and more than likely a reading guide and/or interview, so you'll have a lot of information at your fingertips to decide which you think are right for your group.
What many book clubs do is one person will search BookBrowse and then send links to their friends in the group to check out the books that look of interest. Only members can BookBrowse by all these additional parameters such as time period, place and theme, but everyone can view the individual books including excerpts.
As for background material, click on BookBrowse's review of any specific book to read the review and a back-story, which will be about something related to that particular book - as there's a good chance the "Beyond The Book" feature will provide interesting reading in itself, and links to further resources.
Last thought - if you are only interested in books with reading guides, go to [link]http://www.bookbrowse.com/reading_guides/genre/[/link] to browse books by theme which have reading guides.
Hope this helps.
Very best
Davina
BookBrowse editor
https://www.bookbrowse.com/booktalk/messages.cfm?threadid=57CA021D-5056-A34B-62A8E39FE1D59669&r=11
2012-01-13T00:50:57-05:00How to choose books to discuss on related themesUsing BookBrowse to Find Reading GuidesWhether you feel you must have a reading guide when discussing a book, or you just want to make great selections for your book club, I suggest you use BookBrowse to pick your book club choices: [link]http://www.bookbrowse.com/reading_guides/genre/[/link]
There are various sites that list reading guides, but BookBrowse has the advantage that we only recommend books for book clubs that we personally believe are best in class and, in addition to a reading guide of each, we always provide an excerpt and a range of reviews, so you have everything you need to decide which books are right for you. All visitors can search the almost 1000 recommendations by genre, title and author; and members can search by time period, setting and theme as well.
https://www.bookbrowse.com/booktalk/messages.cfm?threadid=79514C9E-5056-A34B-6231D06501217749&r=12
2011-12-29T18:58:45-05:00Where to find reading guidesRE: Where to find reading guidesWe receive questions similar to Marsha's a lot - in fact rarely a day goes by without an urgent email from someone asking where to find a reading guide!
The bottom line is that discussion guides exist for only a tiny fraction of books published. This is because almost all guides are produced by the publishers, who tend to only create them for books that they think are particularly suited for book clubs, and often only when the book is in paperback.
To find a reading guide for a specific book:
1) Google "book title reading guide" and scan the first two pages of results.
2) Visit the publisher's website, search for the book and check for a link to a reading guide.
If neither of these reveal a guide then the chances are that there is not one in existence (and this is likely to be the case if the book you're reading was published more than about a decade ago, isn't a normal book club type book, or is not yet in paperback).
In which case, I suggest our DIY Discussion Guide tips at: [link]http://www.bookbrowse.com/bookclubs/advice/index.cfm/fuseaction/diy_guides[/link]
Davina - BookBrowse editor
https://www.bookbrowse.com/booktalk/messages.cfm?threadid=79514C9E-5056-A34B-6231D06501217749&r=13
2011-12-29T18:52:57-05:00Where to find reading guidesRE: Where to find reading guidesHi Marsha
I've searched high and low and there doesn't seem to be one. Virtually all are produced by the publisher so I checked there first, and nothing... http://www.hachettebookgroup.com/books_9780316069465.htm
What I can offer you is our DIY discussion guide suggestions...
[link]http://www.bookbrowse.com/bookclubs/advice/index.cfm/fuseaction/diy_guides[/link]
I think if you take a deep breath and look through this page you'll easily be able to come up with half a dozen topics to get the conversation rolling.
Good luck!
Davina
https://www.bookbrowse.com/booktalk/messages.cfm?threadid=79514C9E-5056-A34B-6231D06501217749&r=14
2011-12-29T18:23:48-05:00Where to find reading guidesBook SwapsBook swaps are an option, and can link in with reading clubs.
"We have to start seeing books in the same light that economists see money. That is, there is a large national or international amount which is in fluid supply. Occasionally, they are retained in one locality, but eventually they are released back into the stream from whence they came. Fabulous and important though money is, we're sure, knowledge, learning, information and entertainment: everything that books open to us, are of equal importance at least."
Check out this link: [link]http://compostbook.blogspot.com/2011/11/books-on-tap.html[/link]
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2011-11-12T23:00:24-05:00Book SwapsRE: How to keep a book club conversation on track and broaden conversation?Kathy,
It's been interesting watching the discussions develop in BookBrowse's new book club section as it has made me question what getting off track actually means. For example, one of the most popular topics in the discussion about "The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks" is "Do you always thoroughly read consent forms before signing them?" While in the discussion about "The Help", "Is racism inherent or taught?" has proved a hot topic.
I wonder whether your group would consider these sorts of conversations on or off topic? I think one could argue that they are off topic in the strictest sense because most of the responses are commenting on personal experiences/opinions rather than connecting these to events in the book; but I would argue that they are very much on topic in light of why many of us read (or at least I do) which is to use books to add to our experiences and test our own preconceptions.
What do you think?
https://www.bookbrowse.com/booktalk/messages.cfm?threadid=E0866484-FFAC-581F-C8E3238DE2E52CDD&r=16
2011-09-12T13:08:21-05:00How to keep a book club conversation on track and broaden conversation?RE: How to keep a book club conversation on track and broaden conversation?It's a problem that can happen in any group! Sometimes getting "off track" can really enhance the discussion and bring it to a deeper level. For the leader, it becomes a judgement call. More often it just winds up being a frustration for the group and the discussion rolls out of control. When that is the case I hear my self saying: that's interesting, but.... Or, getting back on topic....
As leader, I am not shy about keeping the discussion on track!
When everyone starts talking at the same time I let it go for maybe a minute -- then I say quite loudly: HEY! (silence falls quickly!) You are all leaving me out of the discussion -- I can't hear any of it!
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2011-09-12T12:15:34-05:00How to keep a book club conversation on track and broaden conversation?RE: Bored listening to member monologueThe ideas shared are very helpful. I think I would take advantage of her willingness to do research. I am the discussion leader in one of the two monthly groups I attend. One of the things I have been doing is sharing info
about the author. We don't spend a lot of time on this part of the discussion but it has been interesting and often informative about the book itself. I would ask the person to do that research and then give her a set
amount of time to share. I would hold her to that time. Reading a summary of the book is a extreme waste of
precious discussion time!!
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2011-09-12T11:54:11-05:00Bored listening to member monologueRE: What's a good size for a book club?We have a total of about 16 people in our book club but some of those are only occassional attendees. We have a core group of about 8 that are always there so each month we have between 8-12 actually attend. That number seems to work really well for us.
https://www.bookbrowse.com/booktalk/messages.cfm?threadid=B32FEBD3-FFAC-581F-C8D2F0805B3CDBFA&r=19
2011-09-09T16:37:04-05:00What's a good size for a book club?RE: When and where to meet?We meet in our local library the last Wednesday evening of each month at 6:00 pm.
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2011-09-09T16:34:19-05:00When and where to meet?