(Photo courtesy Alexis Broderick)

By Alexis Broderick – News Editor

The Jonathan Law Book Club is back and ready to discuss the books members read over the summer. 

For the first part of each meeting, the club discusses the book it is currently reading. There are no set discussion questions. 

“I like to have the conversation flow naturally based off of what everyone found most striking or compelling about the book,” librarian and Book Club advisor Ms. Briggs said.

For example, one recent book had them talking about how shocking the ending was. With other books, they’ve talked about the author’s world building, or whether the characters are relatable, or whether the plot kept them interested. 

Briggs said the Book Club has read a couple of duds, but for the most part they really tend to like the book picks. The club is essentially student-run; students or Briggs make a book suggestion which the students then vote on. The winner becomes the next Book Club book.

The club meets once a month during Common Time in the TLC. Typically, meetings are towards the end of the month so they don’t conflict with Advisory.

“Our pick for September/October is ‘Strange the Dreamer’ by Laini Taylor,” said Briggs. 

The club read realistic fiction over the summer and has been wanting to get back into fantasy, which is a popular genre for the group. 

In November/December, they’ll be reading “Artemis” by Andy Weir, a sci-fi novel about a heist on the moon.

The amount of kids in the club varies each month based on people’s availability, but each meeting typically has around six to eight students.

The Book Club’s primary goal is to enjoy literature. 

“Reading for pleasure can be hard to fit in when the school year is in full swing, but my wish for students is that they remember what they love about reading and use our books and discussion time as a fun ‘break’ from academics,” said Briggs.

Book Club began at Law in 2010. Before then, the library/media specialist before Briggs ran the club.

The club chooses two books to read over the summer. These are the books the club meets to discuss in September. 

“Picking summer books is nice because we have more time to read them, and it’s fine with me if this doubles as students’ summer reading,” said Briggs.