Summer of Reading - #2 Community-wide Books

The idea of everyone reading the same book and then coming together to discuss and share is quite popular in multiple areas – colleges and universities, communities, and on a small level, local book clubs.        

One Book/One University -  One current trend is for colleges and universities to select a book that is either assigned to all incoming freshmen to read over the summer or one book that will be read across campus during the year.    If you are a freshman and have been assigned to read the book before arriving on campus you should consider the following:

• READ THE BOOK!  Do not wait until you arrive on campus.  You will not have time.
• There may be discussion groups scheduled during orientation.   Think ahead about what ideas or insights you learned from the book and how you might share these.
• During the fall semester you may be expected to make connections to the book in some of your classes.
• Often speakers and events are scheduled around the book and theme.   Be sure to attend the events, especially if you have a chance to hear the author. 

One Book/One Community

• The library system where I live has these programs two or three times year.  The books are available to borrow through the library and there are facilitated discussions at each branch.  I have read many books I might not normally have read and met very interesting people through these programs.

Formal and Informal Book Groups

I currently facilitate three groups – two formal groups through the library and one with my friends. Again, these are ways to expand your reading and talk about books and ideas with other people.   Some tips are:

• Stay on topic.
• Avoid side-bar conversations.
• Be open to ideas that are different from your own.
• Do not dominate the conversation.   It is important that everyone get a chance to talk.
• In a more formal group it is the responsibility of the facilitator to make sure these things happen.   In an informal group with friends it is everyone’s responsibility.

The next post will look at fiction or non-fiction trade books assigned in a class in addition to a textbook – the purpose of these assignments and how to read the book.

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My other blog, www.ReadtoEnrich.blogspot.com has over 160 discussion guides that I created for the various groups I facilitate.

Summer of Reading: #1 Why Read?

The blogs this summer will focus on my favorite subject, reading, starting with independent reading (choosing on your own what to read) and moving through all aspects, ending with reading and learning from textbooks.

 So, why should you read?  What are the benefits?

There are multiple benefits to independent reading, not the least of which are entertainment, escape, learning, enlightenment, and pure joy.  There are so many types of books it is impossible to list them all, but there is something for everyone no matter what your interests, profession, etc.

While reading is mainly a solitary activity, it can be social when talking about a book in a group.  There are an amazing number of book groups – no one really knows how many as most of them are a group of people who decide to get together on their own to discuss books.   When my friends group met at a local restaurant there were two other groups meeting at the same time!

Besides the endless reasons to read listed above, there are two specific benefits:

• Increasing or maintaining your power of concentration: Many people think that all of the time we spend on our electronic devices is lowering our ability to concentrate for an extended period of time.  See Nicholas Carr’s book, The Shallows: What the Internet is Doing to Our Brain, for further information.  By reading without interruption you are keeping your power of concentration strong.
• Gaining empathy:  When we read about someone else’s experiences and feelings from their perspective we are better able to understand how they feel and can transfer that awareness to our everyday lives.  (Schwanenflugel & Knapp. (2016). The Psychology of Reading. New York, NY: The Guilford Press.)

Whatever type of books you like, hopefully you will have time this summer to read for the pure pleasure of reading!

The next blog will address the popular program on college campuses, One Book-One College, how the books are used, and some strategies for reading.

Consider voting for your favorite book this summer at The Great American Read, sponsored by PBS.  My vote went to The Book Thief, by Markus Zusak.

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First Semester Success: Learning Strategies and Motivation for Your First Semester (or Any Semester) of College, by Dr. Arden B. Hamer, is available at amazon.com, wordassociation.com and barnesandnoble.com. Click on the upper right link.