We hear from many groups that would like to explore reading poetry but aren’t quite sure how to pick a book, where to start discussion, or how to have fun with it. Not to fear! Read below for tips on how to make poetry fun and how to start your discussion. And don’t forget to check out our post that features some of our favorite poetry books for discussion.
1. Read a book by a local poet, and have them come and speak with your group.
If your group is interested in introducing poetry to your reading list, but isn’t sure how, take a look at the books below for a variety of approaches. Beyond just reading collections of poems, you can also explore essays about poetry, novels written in verse, and memoirs that feature lyric, poetic language. Here are our recommendations for where to start!
If you’d also like some suggestions for fun ways to integrate poems into your group or for approaches to discussing poetry, check out our post that addresses these very questions.
by Mary Oliver
In Upstream,
Thanks to everyone who stopped by our booth at Winter Institute, and to everyone who came out for the book lovers extravaganza event we hosted at Milkweed Books! If you couldn’t attend the event, you can still read below to find out about these wonderful books and authors!
Little Free Library, a wonderful organization that RGC has partnered with in the past, has just launched a new initiative. Action Book Club (ABC) pairs a love of reading with community service in an effort to strengthen both minds and communities. Any pre-existing book club (or new club!) can sign-up to get involved. Many of the books we recommend here at RGC are also recommendations of ABC so it’s easy to integrate your own group’s reading with an ABC service project. Margret Aldrich of Little Free Library took a few minutes to answer some of our questions about this exciting initiative and provide details about how to sign up.
The February Spotlight Group is The Desert Sleuths Book Club!
The Desert Sleuths started a mystery book club three years ago to accommodate the gals who come to Palm Springs, CA for delightful winter weather.
We are from all over the country and Canada, and enjoy reading, discussing and laughing away an afternoon every month. We have read Defending Jacob, Room, The Husband’s Secret and Bruno, Chief of Police.
Think of great pairings in the world, such as red wine with steak, hot chocolate with snowstorms, Simon with Garfunkel. Each one alone is fine, but the combination creates something new and different.
The same is true for reading groups. We often limit our book choices to one genre or the other, fiction or nonfiction. But one way to enrich your group’s discussion is to read a novel alongside a work of nonfiction, whether a biography, cultural study, or even the author’s own memoir or journals.
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