poetry book club: genesis of the club
Published by Jessica January 10th, 2008 in Jessica, Poetry Book Club.
I’ve never belonged to a book club before. It’s true. I’ve taken English and literature classes and even taught my fair share of them. I’ve read for pleasure my entire life. But I’ve never had a circle of friends who got together once a month to discuss a book we’ve all read. I’ve seen them on TV. I understand them in theory. Practice is a whole other ball of wax.
So, how in the heck did I start a poetry book club on my blog, if I only know about them from episodes of “Malcolm in the Middle”? It all started with a post on Poetry Thursday by Neil.
In this insightful column, Neil expressed a frustration many of us shared: our inability to comment critically and intelligently on each other’s poetry. In the column and the subsequent discussion in the comments, there seemed to be a consensus. We didn’t know what to say because we didn’t know how to say it. Simply put, we were out of practice when it came to discussing poetry. I thought, I can do something about that. That day, I formed a Poetry Book Club on my blog and asked for recommendations. We’ve been off and running ever since.
The book club makes sense as a way to learn about poetry, at least to me and the hardy participants. First of all, book clubs are painless. They use the most accessible type of literary criticism, reader response. You read, you respond, everyone has a valid perspective. (We’re also very polite with each other, even when we disagree.)
I also like the idea of a book club because they are a community. You can learn about your fellow participants, what they like, how they think — and that’s so much more enriching than reading alone. Personally, I’ve learned more about these books of poetry than I have about some stuff I read in college. Take that, “Paradise Lost”!
I continue to host the book club because it’s ridiculously easy. I search around Amazon for 15 minutes, post a poll on the five books I think look cool, and then announce the results when the poll has closed. I always post a deadline, around the end of the following month, so that everyone has a chance to buy the book and read it.
Then, we all read and return to my blog when the book is “due.” I post a couple of questions, which form a base for the conversation. Honestly, those questions are just the method I use to help us dive in. I’ve been blessed with PBC partners who engage with the book, post articles they’ve found and generally make the whole experience worthwhile.
This month, I’m trying something new. We’re reading You Are a Little Bit Happier than I Am by Tao Lin. (The discussion post went up Dec. 31, so there’s still time to participate and everyone’s welcome!)
While researching his book, I learned that Tao Lin blogs. So I e-mailed him for an interview. He was gracious enough to agree, so I will be posting an interview with him soon.
So that’s Poetry Book Club in a nutshell. Each month, I’ll post some information and an early review of the PBC book here at Read Write Poem. If you want to learn more about poetry, read some really diverse poets and engage in a lively discussion, I would strongly encourage you to stop by and check it out.
~Jessica
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Found your blog today. I plan to visit again and participate. I like your writing prompt ideas. I thik it may make me write about topics that I may not have written on otherwise. Come visit my blog.
LLawrence
http://crownedwithlaurels.blogspot.com/
Jessica, I want to put in a plug for the book club. I never would have found Tao Lin’s book on my own, but now I’ve opened up to a whole new way of writing poems.
I thought it was interesting to read everyone’s reactions, especially since each was different.
The interview with Tao Lin did help put the book in perspective, and from there I went on to read other interviews he’s done on the web.
A great experience all around.
Thanks Christine! I’m glad you liked the experience.
Just to plug for next month, we’re reading Matthea Harvey’s <a href=http://www.amazon.com/Modern-Life-Poems-Matthea-Harvey/dp/1555974805/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1200018024&sr=1-1Modern Life. It’s “due” on January 31. Forgot to put that in the article. Carry on…
Aarrgh! The link should look like this.. Stupid HTML!
Me too, me too.
Well, actually I wasn’t keen on Lin’s book, but discussing it was fun. Understanding what it was that other folks liked about it and delving into why I didn’t like it really helped me get a better read on my own poetic sensibilities.
We’ve read some terrific work in the last months - some I probably wouldn’t have picked up on my own, quite a few I would have.
So far Natasha Tretheway’s latest book Native Guard(Pulitzer prize winning for a reason) and Frank Bidart’s Star Dust have been my favorites. Bodart will be at Tin House (a week of writing workshops in Portland, Oregon) the upcoming summer. I hope-hope-hope to figure out a way to work with him. Me and a few hundred or so, probably!
I don’t think I would have known I liked these poets so much if I hadn’t been “encouraged” to read them.
And I am quite sure reading a lot of poetry this last year has helped me write better poetry. It’s not that my stuff looks like theirs (not by a long shot!) but I think I have better legs under me - I can go greater distance, my poet-stanima has improved. I’m happier about my poetry, anyway
I ordered Harvey’s book and I’m waiting impatiently for it to arrive! I tried running a poetry book club at my art studio, once. Four of us came together and read Margaret Atwood’s Morning in the Burned House. It was fun, but I definitely think we were all a bit nervous about speaking “critically.” Then, alas, one of the group moved, one went off to grad school and one lost her husband.
Anyway, I am excited to participate!
I agree, Deb, I never would have read as much poetry as we have if it hadn’t been for PBC. I love that I have an “assignment” each month and overall, I enjoy the books, even if I don’t love them all. I’ve enjoyed each book, except for Gluck’s Averno, which depressed me considerably.
I’m glad to hear that you’ll be participating Jillypoet with Harvey’s book. So far, it’s really good. The nice thing about an online book club, btw, is that we can’t necessarily move away.
We can get busy or we can lurk though… 