Do you love to read and wondered how you could find others that love to read just as much as you? Here are a few tips on starting with the place you are at the most, work.

Lots of people love to read: Libraries and independent booksellers are going strong, not to mention Amazon itself. And lots of people love to get together and discuss books that they’ve all read, leading to a fun way to socialize and share — a book club. Of course, you spend a lot of time with people for work, and you might enjoy spending some time with them that doesn’t involve projects or deadlines. If that’s the case, then you might want to combine a love of literature with free time at work and create a work book club.

There are all sorts of ways you can create a book club at work. You can have one that’s themed — maybe you have a group of co-workers that are really into mysteries, or maybe they’re even interested in management or business-themed books. What other organizational aspects do you need to cover in a book club? This graphic explains them.

How to start a book club at workInfographic by Quill

Yesterday, our book club had the honor of having author Mary Malcolm come speak to us.  We love having so many local authors that we can pull from!  Mary was very engaging and such a bubbly personality!

Anyway, Mary writes some romance novels and now has a series that is New Adult (because of the age of the character) but leans more towards mystery.  The first book is called Trouble Comes Knocking. 

Synopsis

It’s hard not to answer when trouble comes knocking.

A girl who can’t forget…

Twenty-two-year-old Lucy Carver is like Sherlock Holmes in ballet flats, but her eidetic memory is more albatross than asset, and something she usually keeps hidden. When she notices that something’s amiss at her dead-end job, she jumps at the chance to finally use her ability for good. That is, until, a man is murdered, and she becomes the target of the killer.

A detective on his first case…

Detective Eli Reyes is overbearing, pompous, way too hot for Lucy’s own good, and seems as determined to ruin her relationship with her boyfriend, John, as finding the murderer. He brings Lucy in on the case, thinking she can help him get to the truth, only to cut her loose when he realizes he’s gotten far more than he ever bargained for.

A past that won’t go away…

When memories from her childhood invade her present, Lucy discovers a mystery bigger than she could have imagined. With the killer still after her, and Eli nowhere to be found, she takes things into her own hands, determined to expose the truth no matter what—before trouble comes knocking…again.

The book that I read for the meeting was called Accidentally a Bride and was a novella that was never meant to be published on its own according to Mary.  It was supposed to be part of a series but something happened and the rest weren’t published.  I have to say that the book has a LOT of potential but just let me flat overall.  Mary did say that she is doing some rewrites to the book (due out in Dec) and expanding it, so it will be interesting to see how she expands the book.

Here is a group shot of us…it was a rather warm day outside and we had to deal with crazies outside since we met at Panera which is very close to the Cowboy Stadium and they were playing there yesterday (still have no idea if they won or lost!).  Mary is in the center.

About Mary

This month we read Bristol House by author Beverly Swerling.  Despite the fact that there were no discussion questions available we managed to have a good conversation about the book.  I believe everyone really enjoyed the book and while we might have had bits and pieces that we didn’t like, it didn’t stop us from finishing the book.

Synopsis

In the tradition of Kate Mosse, a swiftly-paced mystery that stretches from modern London to Tudor England

In modern-day London, architectural historian and recovering alcoholic Annie Kendall hopes to turn her life around and restart her career by locating several long-missing pieces of ancient Judaica. Geoff Harris, an investigative reporter, is soon drawn into her quest, both by romantic interest and suspicions about the head of the Shalom Foundation, the organization sponsoring her work. He’s also a dead ringer for the ghost of a monk Annie believes she has seen at the flat she is subletting in Bristol House.

In 1535, Tudor London is a very different city, one in which monks are being executed by Henry VIII and Jews are banished. In this treacherous environment of religious persecution, Dom Justin, a Carthusian monk, and a goldsmith known as the Jew of Holborn must navigate a shadowy world of intrigue involving Thomas Cromwell, Jewish treasure, and sexual secrets. Their struggles shed light on the mysteries Annie and Geoff aim to puzzle out—at their own peril.

This riveting dual-period narrative seamlessly blends a haunting supernatural thriller with vivid historical fiction. Beverly Swerling, widely acclaimed for her City of Dreams series, delivers a bewitching and epic story of a historian and a monk, half a millennium apart, whose destinies are on a collision course.

Review

I thought this was an interesting book from a historical and a conspiracy theory type angle. And talk about mixing the past with the present and several types of religion! Some things were not as expected and of course some were. It was a good mix of mystery, romance, history and religious education.  I think the mysticism wasn’t expected but added to the depth of the book.

I gave it 4 paws up!

Today my book club was lucky enough to have author Julie Kibler visit and talk about her book, Calling Me Home.  Overall everyone in our group loved the book and was bawling at the end.  There are so many issues discussed her and it is hard to believe how citizens acted just 70 years ago towards people of other races.   Julie told us about how she came to write this book (loosely based on a true story) and what she went through to research the things she needed to authenticate the story.  I think one of the most interesting things I learned was about “Sundown” town – where African Americans could not be within the city limits after sundown.  James W. Loewen wrote a book about it and you can also find information on this website.

Julie kindly posed for a photo with our group too!

Synopsis

Calling Me Home by Julie Kibler is a soaring debut interweaving the story of a heartbreaking, forbidden love in 1930s Kentucky with an unlikely modern-day friendship

Eighty-nine-year-old Isabelle McAllister has a favor to ask her hairdresser Dorrie Curtis. It’s a big one. Isabelle wants Dorrie, a black single mom in her thirties, to drop everything to drive her from her home in Arlington, Texas, to a funeral in Cincinnati. With no clear explanation why. Tomorrow.

Dorrie, fleeing problems of her own and curious whether she can unlock the secrets of Isabelle’s guarded past, scarcely hesitates before agreeing, not knowing it will be a journey that changes both their lives.

Over the years, Dorrie and Isabelle have developed more than just a business relationship. They are friends. But Dorrie, fretting over the new man in her life and her teenage son’s irresponsible choices, still wonders why Isabelle chose her.

Isabelle confesses that, as a willful teen in 1930s Kentucky, she fell deeply in love with Robert Prewitt, a would-be doctor and the black son of her family’s housekeeper—in a town where blacks weren’t allowed after dark. The tale of their forbidden relationship and its tragic consequences makes it clear Dorrie and Isabelle are headed for a gathering of the utmost importance and that the history of Isabelle’s first and greatest love just might help Dorrie find her own way.

My Review

Oh my….this book definitely tugged at my heartstrings especially at the end. The book is very powerful with the subject matter – interracial relationships – that were forbidden in the early 1900’s, mostly because of the small mindedness of people that didn’t want to accept something that they did not consider normal. But two people did not let that rule their lives despite what their family wanted.

Dorrie is a strong character but needs to learn to trust again. Isabelle has gone through a lot in her 90 years and I couldn’t believe the things she found out near the end of her life. Dorrie learned a lot from Isabelle on that journey and I think Isabelle found peace.

Definitely have tissues handy near the end of the book, the things that are revealed will touch your heart and soul. Love, Relationships, Trust and Faith – you will find it all here

My book club met today and we discussed Unbroken by author Laura Hillenbrand.  This books makes for good discussion since not a lot is written about the war in the Pacific during WWII.  If you read this for a book club, there are some good discussion questions on the author’s website.  Not all of us had finished the book (I will admit I wasn’t sure I was going to make it through the first 100 pages!) but all of us had read at least half the book.  I plan to finish it up over the next day before picking up some new books for other blog tours.

Synopsis

On a May afternoon in 1943, an Army Air Forces bomber crashed into the Pacific Ocean and disappeared, leaving only a spray of debris and a slick of oil, gasoline, and blood. Then, on the ocean surface, a face appeared. It was that of a young lieutenant, the plane’s bombardier, who was struggling to a life raft and pulling himself aboard. So began one of the most extraordinary odysseys of the Second World War.

The lieutenant’s name was Louis Zamperini. In boyhood, he’d been a cunning and incorrigible delinquent, breaking into houses, brawling, and fleeing his home to ride the rails. As a teenager, he had channeled his defiance into running, discovering a prodigious talent that had carried him to the Berlin Olympics and within sight of the four-minute mile. But when war had come, the athlete had become an airman, embarking on a journey that led to his doomed flight, a tiny raft, and a drift into the unknown.

Ahead of Zamperini lay thousands of miles of open ocean, leaping sharks, a foundering raft, thirst and starvation, enemy aircraft, and, beyond, a trial even greater. Driven to the limits of endurance, Zamperini would answer desperation with ingenuity; suffering with hope, resolve, and humor; brutality with rebellion. His fate, whether triumph or tragedy, would be suspended on the fraying wire of his will.

In her long-awaited new book, Laura Hillenbrand writes with the same rich and vivid narrative voice she displayed in Seabiscuit. Telling an unforgettable story of a man’s journey into extremity, Unbroken is a testament to the resilience of the human mind, body, and spirit.

In the craziness of my last month (losing my father and my job of 23 years), things have taken a bit of a back seat to my blog….and I forgot to share with you May’s Book Club Book aka BCB.  So here it is a few weeks late!

We enjoyed Crazy Little Thing by author Tracy Brogan.  We had a shorter discussion since this book didn’t have any discussion questions, but I think we all agreed that it was good but Sadie made us a little nuts with her insecurities!  Aunt Dodie we loved….but then how can you not love an eccentric relative?!?!  This is a fun summer read.

Synopsis

Sadie Turner can organize just about anything — except her own life. When her cheating spouse topples Sadie’s impeccably tidy world, she packs up her kids for a summer vacation at her aunt’s lake house, hoping to relax, reboot, and formulate a new plan — one that does not include men.

Any men.

But eccentric Aunt Dody has other plans; she’s determined to see Sadie have a little fun—with Desmond, the sexy new neighbor. Tall, tanned, muscular—and even great with her kids, Desmond is Sadie’s worst nightmare. He must have a flaw—he’s a man, after all—so Sadie vows to keep her distance. But as summer blazes on, their attraction ignites, and the life Sadie is trying so hard to simplify only gets more complicated. But maybe a little chaos is just what she needs to get her future, and her dreams of love, back in order.

Review

The book had me laughing out loud in many places but I deducted half a star because Sadie was so negative and while I understand she got a bad rap from her ex, at some point you have to stop focusing on what “might” happen and enjoy what is in front of you.

I still thoroughly enjoyed this book and do recommend it and give it 4 1/2 paws!

Author Website * Twitter * Goodreads

This month we read 419 by Will Ferguson.  I chose this book after I saw a write up in the paper last year and the topic sounded very interesting – the scams that you receive in your email inbox probably every day from Nigeria wanting you to hold money for someone trying to leave the country.  There were mixed reviews from my book club and you can see my review below.

Synopsis

A startlingly original tale of heartbreak and suspense

A car tumbles down a snowy ravine. Accident or suicide?

On the other side of the world, a young woman walks out of a sandstorm in sub-Saharan Africa. In the labyrinth of the Niger Delta, a young boy learns to survive by navigating through the gas flares and oil spills of a ruined landscape. In the seething heat of Lagos City, a criminal cartel scours the internet looking for victims.

Lives intersect, worlds collide, a family falls apart. And it all begins with a single email: “Dear Sir, I am the son of an exiled Nigerian diplomat, and I need your help …”

419 takes readers behind the scene of the world’s most insidious internet scam. When Laura’s father gets caught up in one such swindle and pays with his life, she is forced to leave the comfort of North America to make a journey deep into the dangerous back streets and alleyways of the Lagos underworld to confront her father’s killer. What she finds there will change her life forever.

Review

I really liked the concept of this book – the 419 story. I know I get so many of those scam emails it makes me crazy, but I just spam them and delete. Anyway, it is interesting that people do fall for these scams and this is what happens when one man falls prey to the scam and ends up losing everything and putting his family in a situation that no one would hope for.

There are 3 different stories that all intersect at the end. Of course we never find out why Amina was walking away from her previous life. I can speculate but would have been nice to have that tidbit too.

I do think there was a lot of text (backstory) that could have been cut out, I found myself skimming those sections, and don’t think anything would have been lost had they not been there. Some of it was necessary to paint the picture of what it is like growing up there and what they experienced, but not all.

We give this 3 paws.

On Sunday, our Book Club had Rachel Caine as our guest.  My husband met Rachel at our mail box location and struck up a conversation with her when he saw all the books.  Hubby does know what a voracious reader I am so of course that would catch his eye.  She gave him her card and said to get in touch and she would come speak to us.  After months of conversations and a postponement due to weather, we finally were able to meet and have a conversation about her books, publishing, contracts, the production of Morganville Vampires into a web series, her many talents (including web design) and many other things.  It was a delightful 2 hours and I know several of us could have sat there and for a few more hours talking to her about anything and everything.

We all read a book by her and my pick was Working Stiff, the first book in the Revivalist series.  I really enjoyed this book even though urban fantasy really isn’t my normal genre to read.  I did realize pretty quickly that a coworker would enjoy this book, and I was right!  This is the first of a 3 book series so I will be looking for the next 2 in the series so I can see how it all end.  I did give this book 5 paws in my rating system.

Thank you Rachel for joining us, it was fun!

This month our book club read this book by Swedish author, Jonas Jonasson.  Definitely an interesting book!

Synopsis

It all starts on the one-hundredth birthday of Allan Karlsson. Sitting quietly in his room in an old people’s home, he is waiting for the party he-never-wanted-anyway to begin. The Mayor is going to be there. The press is going to be there. But, as it turns out, Allan is not… Slowly but surely Allan climbs out of his bedroom window, into the flowerbed (in his slippers) and makes his getaway. And so begins his picaresque and unlikely journey involving criminals, several murders, a suitcase full of cash, and incompetent police. As his escapades unfold, we learn something of Allan’s earlier life in which – remarkably – he helped to make the atom bomb, became friends with American presidents, Russian tyrants, and Chinese leaders, and was a participant behind the scenes in many key events of the twentieth century.

Review

This was our book club read this month. I found it quite amusing tied in with a lot of history. Sometimes it seemed like the author rambled on, but it did all eventually tie in together. On the back of the book it compared it to the movie Forrest Gump and I’d have to agree. It seemed rather ludicrous that a Swede would find himself in the company of many heads of state throughout his 100 years of life, but that is what made it interesting. Look at it as a history lesson disguised as fiction.

I gave it 4 paws.

This month’s book club book was The Silver Star by Jeannette Walls.  It is a fiction book but some have said that it sounds somewhat like her life.  I haven’t read her other books, so do not know if that is true or not.

Synopsis

The Silver Star, Jeannette Walls has written a heartbreaking and redemptive novel about an intrepid girl who challenges the injustice of the adult world, a triumph of imagination and storytelling.

It is 1970 in a small town in California. ‘Bean’ Holladay is twelve and her sister, Liz, is fifteen when their artistic mother, Charlotte, a woman who found something wrong with every place she ever lived, takes off to find herself, leaving her girls enough money to last a month or two. When Bean returns from school one day and sees a police car outside the house, she and Liz decide to take the bus to Virginia, where their Uncle Tinsley lives in the decaying mansion that’s been in Charlotte’s family for generations.

An impetuous optimist, Bean soon discovers who her father was, and hears many stories about why their mother left Virginia in the first place. Because money is tight, Liz and Bean start babysitting and doing office work for Jerry Maddox, foreman of the mill in town;a big man who bullies his workers, his tenants, his children, and his wife. Bean adores her whip-smart older sister;inventor of word games, reader of Edgar Allan Poe, nonconformist. But when school starts in the fall, it’s Bean who easily adjusts and makes friends, and Liz who becomes increasingly withdrawn. And then something happens to Liz.

Review

I really enjoyed this book. I didn’t realize it was set in the late 60’s/early 70’s when I first started reading the book (not sure why!) but I don’t think that really matters other than times were different then.  The book brought out a wide variety of emotions which is always the sign of a good book to me.  I felt for Bean and Liz and what they went through and how fast they had to grow up with a mother like theirs.  But I think meeting their Uncle actually helped them and him move forward with their lives.

I knew something was up with the character Maddox and have to say he got what was coming to him.  He was definitely slimy and not a person that anyone should have to deal with in their lives.

I thought the story was well written and the characters seemed so real, like someone I might have known growing up.  We give this book 5 paws!

About the Author

Jeannette Walls is a writer and journalist. She was born in Phoenix, Arizona. She graduated with honors from Barnard College, the women’s college affiliated with Columbia University. She published a bestselling memoir, The Glass Castle, in 2005. The book is being made into a film by Paramount.

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