The Book Discussion Group meets the second Wednesday of each month, at 10:15 AM in the Library’s Dorothy Herron Room, where there is space for social distancing. Anyone who loves to read and talk about books is welcome to join in.
| Date | Book |
|---|---|
| Jan 12 | The Four Winds by Kristin Hannah |
| Feb 9 | Mr. Churchill’s Secretary by Susan Elia MacNeal |
| Mar 9 | The Cry of the Kalahari by Mark & Delia Owens |
| Apr 13 | Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden |
| May 11 | The Midnight Library by Matt Haig |
| Jun 8 | High Hearts by Rita Mae Brown |
| Jul 13 | Wilding: The Return of Nature to a British Farm by Isabella Tree |
| Aug 10 | Contested Will: Who Wrote Shakespeare by James S. Shapiro |
| Sep 14 | When Books Went to War by Molly Guptill Manning |
| Oct 12 | The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie by Alan Bradley |
| Nov 9 | Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier |
| Dec 14 | Book Woman of Troublesome Creek by Kim Michele Richardson |
How the Book Discussion Group Began
When Barbara and Wayne Zurl moved to Maryville in 1994, Barbara looked in vain for a book discussion group. When she approached Kathy Pagles at the library, Kathy said, “Why don’t you start one?” So Barbara did and invited several friends to join her in discussing Amy Tan’s The Joy Luck Club. That first meeting was in May of 1994.
Barbara continued as facilitator of discussions for the next six years. She always did an excellent job of researching the book and the author, and insured that discussions stayed focused. All ideas were accepted as valid, especially when there was disagreement. When Barbara moved on to co-ordinate the Ex Libris program of reaching out to assistive living facilities, the members took over, obtaining books on their own and rotating discussion leadership duties.
