"The Little Voice of Vista": How to Organize a Book Club
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Friends who know Vista all know that he is a bookworm who loves reading. In addition to immersing myself in books, I am also keen to participate in reading communities: I have not only established my own [reading club] (https://www.facebook.com/vistareading), but also like to participate in various reading clubs of different natures.
Looking back on my reading history, I was surprised to find that I have been participating in reading clubs for more than ten years. Whether it is the [HPX G5 Book Club] (https://www.cheers.com.tw/article/article.action?id=5095654) created by me and a group of friends, or the [Book Fans Alliance] (https://www.bookfans.org) and [Reading Life School] (https://bit.ly/3AgQRtJ) that I have participated in in recent years, I have gained a lot of knowledge and inspiration! I am very grateful for the richness and beauty that reading brings to life, and I am also glad that reading clubs have become an indispensable part of my personal life.
Because I have participated in and participated in various reading clubs for a long time, friends often ask me: How to run a reading club in a lively and exciting manner? In particular - how to effectively introduce a book to everyone? Well, today let me talk about how to organize a book club and how to introduce books!
Benefits of introductory reading books
Before I start sharing, I would like to talk about the benefits of participating in book clubs, especially being responsible for reading books.
The benefits of participating in a book club are obvious. In addition to having a dedicated person responsible for guiding and sharing practical cases at each gathering, what’s even better is that because the partners have different academic and experience backgrounds, they can receive a variety of diverse [viewpoints] through the book club (https://www.contenthacker.today/2018/12/how-to-take-good-notes.html).
I used to prefer reading by myself, but after joining a book club, I fell deeply in love with reading together. The reason is simple, because “one person can read quickly, and a group of people can read deeply.”
In fact, there is so much fun and gain from participating in a book club! Because I participated in the book club, I also encouraged myself not to be lazy. What’s even better is that in the process of everyone’s communication and interaction, some friends found jobs through the reading club, while others found mentors and even career development directions from the reading club. As far as I know, there are still people who have found their life partners in reading clubs, which is really enviable!
So, what are the rewards of being responsible for reading books?
First, in order to make the content of the introduction meaningful and bring you specific gains, we must spend time to read the book intensively in advance, force ourselves to have a dialogue with the author, and develop the ability to criticize and think. Secondly, because we want to share the essence of the book content with our partners and hope to stimulate resonance and response, during the preparation process, we can also use this to cultivate summary [Key Points] (https://www.vistacheng.com/2021/07/reading-pet-peeves.html) and communication and expression abilities, which can be said to complement each other.
Well, I believe now you can understand the benefits of guided reading! Next, let’s talk about the preparations you should make before reading introductory books!
Preparation for introduction
To hold a book club successfully, I think there are several necessary conditions:
First of all, you have to choose the right book, that is, you must find a book that everyone is interested in or that is suitable for a group of people to read together and discuss. Secondly, it is best for participants to study the book in advance, or at least for guides to make preparations in advance, so that the benefits of holding a book club can be fully utilized. Next, the book club organizer or guide must also thoroughly control the flow of the event and the overall time allocation, so that every guest can speak freely and come back with a full load.
In addition, of course, there are bonus options - that is, if the organizer can find a venue with beautiful lighting and a good atmosphere to hold the book club, and there are delicious meals and coffee to choose from, that would be even better!
Ling Jian, CEO of the Mingdao Cultural and Educational Foundation, said that if you want to run a reading club sustainably, you must pay attention to the following points:
- The core characters must have perseverance in order to successfully promote the book club.
- Choose books carefully every time, and try to choose books that everyone likes.
- The operation of the book club must achieve a balance between intellectual, emotional and interpersonal relationships.
Over the years, I have participated in the management and operation of many reading clubs, and I have also observed various reading clubs with different styles. To be honest, these three suggestions from CEO Ling are very practical!
How to read a book?
Now, let’s get back to business and talk about how to Introduce a book?
Judging from my many years of experience participating in book clubs, some facilitators prepare rich and beautiful briefings, and of course there are others who can tell the entire book club with just one mouth! In fact, briefings are not absolutely necessary for organizing a book club. The question is, as an island reader, have you taken the time to read the book intensively in advance and sort out the key points of the summary?
Of course, if you want to create a wonderful book club bulletin for everyone, in addition to sorting out the author’s introduction and the background information of the book in advance, outlining and organizing the key content is naturally indispensable! However, I think the most important thing is not the information that is readily available, but that you should spend more time and share with everyone your reflections, doubts and gains after reading this book.
In addition, it is also important to set the process and time allocation of the reading club. Someone once suggested that the introduction time should not exceed one-third of the entire event. I am not convinced about this. We can decide according to the situation. However, the key point is to reserve enough time for everyone to ask questions and speak, avoid focusing the topic too much on certain people, and also take care of some partners who are shy, introverted or rarely speak. In this way, everyone can participate in the interaction and enjoy the [fun] of reading (https://www.vistareading.com/2017/07/benefits-of-joining-a-book-club.html)!
I would also like to remind you that if you are both a guide and a host, please remember to play the role of threader so that each partner can play a role - never guide while being too active and then turn it into your own personal show.
You know, a competent guide must not only prepare the content he wants to share in advance, but also must pay attention to the status of the book club members at all times, try to encourage everyone to participate in the discussion, and remember to make a strong summary at the end of the book club, or even a call to action (https://www.vistacheng.com/2022/01/how-to-write-an-effective-call-to-action.html).
Starting from the perspective of “purpose”
By the way, if you are interested in how to organize and run a reading club, I would like to recommend you to read “[The Power of Shared Reading: Guidance Techniques for Leading Community Learning] (https://bit.ly/3tHV0Wr)” written by my friend [Lin Yangcheng] (https://www.facebook.com/hank2011181). This book not only talks about theory, the author also shares a lot of practical experience and useful information. I have recommended this book by name before, and I have read it several times and found it very rewarding. If you want to build a lively social reading club from scratch, don’t miss this great book!
Finally, I would like to quote the “Purpose Theory” mentioned in the book “[Purpose Theory of Innovation: Mastering Consumer Choice, Innovation Does Not Have to Be Luck] (https://www.books.com.tw/products/0010760251)” by Clayton M. Christensen and others, which means that what customers want is not your product or service, but a solution that can solve his problem.
Innovation not only requires understanding the needs of customers, but also understanding what customers choose to do with this product?
In other words, friends who come to [Book Club](https://www.bookfans.org/[Book Club Design] How to Plan a Book Club, Book Club Design/) may not all come for this book. They may want to meet their peers, or they may want to find solutions to problems. Therefore, as a guide or book club host, you must naturally start from the perspective of “purpose” to find out the “reasons” for guests to participate in the event, and then provide an excellent book club experience.
By the way, if you like the program “Vista’s Little Voice”, please subscribe to my YouTube channel! I also hope that you can share this program with more friends, so that everyone can fall in love with reading and writing together.
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Further reading
- “Vista’s Little Voice”: Vista Reading 1/30/2022 - 2/5/2022
- “Vista’s Little Voice”: How to choose a good book in a bookstore
- “Vista’s Little Voice”: Vista Reading 1/16/2022 - 1/22/2022
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