The moment I realized I was reading book club picks all wrong

I was leading our monthly discussion on that new Sally Rooney novel, and three people said they hated it because the characters were unlikable. I jumped in to defend it, talking about themes and prose, but they just stared at me. Then one member said, 'We're not here to analyze it like a college class. We're here to find out if it made us feel something real.' That hit me hard. I had been treating every book like a puzzle to solve instead of an experience to share. Has anyone else realized they were approaching book club debates from the wrong angle?

2 comments

2 Comments

jana_fox501d ago

Ngl my friend had the same wake up call after a tense discussion about a thriller.

ray3631d ago

Hear hear. I had a similar wake up call when our group spent twenty minutes arguing over whether a character was morally good or bad and nobody mentioned how the book made them feel. Realized I was treating discussion like a debate club exercise instead of a chance to connect. Sometimes you need that blunt reminder that the heart of reading is sharing what it stirs in you, not proving you read it right.