MSI Book Club Advice or Reading Group Tips

About the group:

• The ideal group size is 5-15 members, depending on your meeting space.
• For location, you could meet in a restaurant that matches the theme or setting of your book; you could meet in a living room or library, coffee shop, community center, or book shop.  Alternatively, you could have a meeting over the Internet. 
• You could share costs by having a potluck.
• Give everyone enough time to locate the book and read the book before your meeting.
• Choose a meeting time to accommodate as many of your members as possible.
• Try to start the meetings on time and keep to the decided time frame (e.g., 1 to 2 hours).
• Encourage all members to come prepared, whether it is with notes for discussion or simply to have read the book.

 
Tips for taking part in a book discussion:

• Remind all members of the importance of keeping on topic during discussions .
• All personal discussions and social small talk should be kept to the periods before and after the literary discussion.

Tips for facilitating a book discussion:

1. Having an assigned leader can make all the difference to a successful meeting. It helps to keep discussions focused and on track, and prevents awkward starting silences when no one is willing to kick off the conversation.
2. While it is a good idea to have reading guides and prepared questions for discussion, it is also important to let the discussion “flow” and be spontaneous. If conversation is lively and members are participating enthusiastically, no need to rush on to the next topic or make sure that you have checked off all discussion points on your list!
3. You may wish to use an “icebreaker” activity to loosen up your group and get your discussion off to an enthusiastic start. Each person might have about 2 minutes to answer a chosen question and have someone call the time. Here’s a few suggestions: What character did you identify with (or would like to be) and why? What was your favorite location mentioned in the book?  Have you been there?  Would you like to go there and why?
4. If your participants don’t know each other, possibly you would want to have something more personal, such as what are their hobbies; or what are 3 of their favorite books, name a gift they will never forget, what’s the hardest thing they have ever done, what’s the first thing they think of when they think about God. 
5. You may have one or two props related to the story, such as maps, photos, or food. This can help stimulate the members' thinking about some aspect of the story.
   
6. Choose one question at a time and toss it out to the group. Encourage as many who wish to share to participate. 
   
7. Select a number of questions, write each on an index card, and distribute. Each member (or a team of 2-3) takes a card and answers the question. 
   
8. Pick out a specific passage from the book description, an idea, a line of dialogue — and ask members to comment. For instance, “How does the passage reflect a character or the work's central meaning?” 
   
9. Choose a primary character and ask members to comment on him or her. Consider things like: Character traits, motivations, how he/she affects the story's events and characters. 
   
10. You may wish to distribute handouts that summarize the plot and the main characters to everyone.