“Being a member of this group gives me a strong sense of belonging kinship and safe space to be myself” Steph
What do you enjoy about your book club? We spoke to Michelle from Chwaeroniaeth (Sisterhood) Bookclub in Swansea/Abertawe about her group’s experience of going from their first jobs at Shelter Cymru 40 years ago to forming their own book club.
Tell us a bit about your group – who are you and what brought you together?
We are 8 women who met when we were young in our first jobs at Shelter Cymru. Our ages range from mid-fifties to early seventies with diverse backgrounds, circumstances and lives. Although we chose different career paths we have kept in touch for over forty years. In May 2015 over a drink in our local the seed of the book club was formed as a good way to meet and discuss all our favourite passions: books, food, music, friendship and politics. We have gone from strength to strength, supported each other through family and life challenges, births, deaths and career changes with tears and laughter. We meet on a six weekly basis with each of us taking turns to host and provide food.
“Being part of the book club has widened my knowledge, moves me out of my comfort zone. Given me a sense of belonging, sense of connection, laughter, joy.” Liz
What do your members enjoy about being in a reading group?
We are all passionate sisters and feminists, committed to social justice and making a difference; who happen to be avid readers. Book club for us is a shared experience which gives us the opportunity to get together and the freedom to speak freely, behave badly, and embarrass ourselves…free from identities as mothers, daughters, sisters, grandparents, professionals, carers, partners, neighbours, activists.
Our book club gives us the opportunity to explore and be open to wide range of ideas, and stories, some that resonate, some that feel completely alien. However, we try to find connections and build bridges between books, themes, protagonists and our lives – to maximise empathy, shared understanding and experience rather than difference.
The book club gives us the opportunity to be enriched by the very different personal and individual perspectives and reflections offered and shared by us with sometimes wisdom and always humour. We are able to explore universal themes and stories of hope and disillusion that transcend time and experience, reinforcing life’s absurdity.
“I now read in a more enquiring way, even when not a book group choice.”) Sarah
What books would your group recommend that you’ve read and discussed together?
There are really too many, to date we have read and shared 65 books. Some of our stand out reads include A Town Called Alice by Nevil Shute, Union Street by Pat Barker, Oh William! by Elizabeth Strout, Essex Serpent by Sarah Perry, Memphis by Tara Stringfellow and Woman on the Edge of Time by Marge Piercy.
Do you have any tips for people looking to set up a reading group?
We have kept the energy within the group by introducing an annual weekend break, adding challenges such as bringing a favourite poem, childhood poem, a poem that resonates on the current headlines, and we have even acted a scene from Pride and Prejudice (in ramshackle costume) during an away weekend. Taking part in the Booker Prize Book Club challenge in 2022 re-energised the group who wholeheartedly got behind all expected challenges which included, reviewing our allocated book Oh William!, attending an exciting shortlist and eventual winners’ event, providing interviews with the media. It really recharged our batteries and gave us a sense of great pride. We never expected to be shortlisted let alone become the inaugural winners.
Our tips:
- Find like-minded people with a community of interest
- Make it fair and open, everyone gets a choice to pick a book and give their views
- Find the balance to be structured yet informal
- Don’t be too harsh, be kind if someone misses a meeting or hasn’t read the chosen book, sometimes life just takes over
- Don’t be too serious, laugh a lot
- If you can, add in extracurricular activities – e.g. visit the film of a particular book you have read together. Take a trip to visit a place of interest e.g. our next trip is Laugharne home for a time of Dylan Thomas, next on the list is Gladstones library
- Be aware of the restriction on time and expense that some members may have and account for this
- If your members are good at something let them take the lead e.g. to organise the meetings, to look for opportunities for the group and smaller, such as making contact with your library and offer to help promote their events
- Don’t judge, not everyone will like the book you’ve chosen. What it will do is open a discussion
- Keep a record of what you have read and the feedback from people.
