NCompass Live - Oct. 1, 2014 http://nlc.nebraska.gov/ncompasslive/ Many times your book club members select a title that doesn’t come with discussion questions or someone selects a book that you anticipate will be challenging or difficult to discuss. How can you prepare and what are some tips and tricks for making the group run smoothly and the discussion meaningful? Join Vicki Wood, Youth Services Supervisor at Lincoln City Libraries and Lisa Kelly – Nebraska Library Commission - as they present lessons learned from leading book groups.

2. Vicki Wood - Library Coordinator - Youth Services
v.wood@lincolnlibraries.org
402-441-8565
Lisa Kelly - Information Services Director
lisa.kelly@nebraska.gov
402-471-4015

3. IF YOU HAVE A GOOD BOOK GROUP …
• Everyone who belongs understands that they will be reading books that
they may not enjoy.
• Everyone comes to the discussion and has finished reading the book.
• People in the book group are open and willing to read topics not
necessarily in their comfort zone.
• You realize you read a book differently for discussion than you do for
pleasure.

4. BOOK GROUP DISCUSSION TIPS AND TRICKS
1. Read the book. This may seem obvious, but it is the most important step,
so it is worth stating. You should finish the book well in advance of your
meeting so that you have time to think about it and prepare before you book
club meets.
2. While you are reading, mark pages with post-it notes if there are passages
or quotes that might be worth reading out loud to the group for comments.
Take notes on anything that strikes you and you want to remember.
3. Using your notes, come up with eight to ten questions to ask your group.
Avoid questions that are too general such as "what did you think of the
book?" and avoid questions that have yes or no answers. Keep questions
open ended which will yield better answers and discussion.
4. Ask the person who selected the book to remind the group why they
thought their title would be good for the book club to read.

5. BOOK GROUP DISCUSSION TIPS AND TRICKS
5. Read book reviews both professional and on book sites such as
amazon.com. The reviews can often help you form questions about topics or
themes for your discussion.
6. Research the author and share their biography with the group.
7. Discuss characters of the book and ask members to comment on them. Talk
about traits, behaviors, and whether or not members were sympathetic to the
characters.
8. Discuss the setting of the book; the location and the time in which events
took place. If the work is a period piece, think about how the time was
represented. What did your book club members learn from reading the book?
9. What were the major themes of the book?
10. Why do you think the author wrote the book?

6. BOOK GROUP DISCUSSION TIPS AND TRICKS
11. Are you reading for story, character, setting or language and how does this
book satisfy or not satisfy you? Check the four doors of reading here.
12. Would handouts help? For some books, writing a summary, a list of main
characters, and a description of the setting might be helpful to distribute to
your book club members.
13. Show a film clip of the movie for which your book is based. The Library
Commission also has several book club kits that include a DVD of a movie
with the same title. It may be a nice change of pace to read the book and
watch the movie together to generate a different kind of discussion with your
group.
14. Let others answer questions first. When you are asking questions, you want
to facilitate discussion, not come off as a teacher. By letting others in the
book club answer first, you will promote conversation and help everyone as
though their opinion matters.

7. BOOK GROUP DISCUSSION TIPS AND TRICKS
15. Make connections between comments or expand upon an answer of a book
club member. By connecting people's comments to the questions, you'll help
build momentum in the conversation.
16. Go around the room and ask every book club member about a topic, a
question or comment, or something that interested him or her about the
book.
17. Discuss the title of the book and how it fit with the content.
18. Discuss the cover of the book and how it fit with the content.
19. Wrap up the conversation with a question such as - was the ending satisfying
to you? if not, how would you change the ending? Would you recommend
this book to any of your friends and why?

8. ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS?
Vicki Wood - Library Coordinator - Youth Services
v.wood@lincolnlibraries.org
402-441-8565
Lisa Kelly - Information Services Director
lisa.kelly@nebraska.gov
402-471-4015