Book club to begin Jan. 9
By Eric Valentine
What’s better than curling up with a good book? Curling up with a good book and then having interested readers talk about it with you.
And what’s better than that? Having scholars deep-dive those works of art for you, in person.
Well, that’s the book-club-on-steroids type of program the Bellevue Public Library will be offering early next year when it hosts its first Idaho “Let’s Talk About It” (LTAI) series of book discussions, starting Thursday, Jan. 9.
“Bellevue is so excited to host this library program for the first time in the south Valley,” said Kristin Gearhart, Bellevue library director. “We encourage everyone and anyone to stop by and pick up a copy of the books as they become available.”
Books in the series will follow the theme of American Classics.
“In a world threatened by rapid change, with even reading being threatened, the classics still have a great deal to say to us,” Gearhart added.
Readers will focus on difficult questions and themes and, with the help of the specific scholar for each book, will discuss that book in a group setting at the Bellevue library. LTAI furnishes the books.
“The presentation by and interaction with a program scholar is what sets these discussions apart from traditional book clubs and discussions,” Gearhart explained.
The books and the scholars, along with their credentials, are as follows:
- January 9: The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Scholar: Florence Blanchard, local freelance writer, research historian and avid reader.
- February 13: Walden; Or, Life in the Woods. Scholar: Tom Klein, Professor of English, Idaho State University.
- March 12: Catcher in the Rye. Scholar: Clark Draney, Professor of English and writing program administrator at the College of Southern Idaho.
- April 9: Little Women. Scholar: Sue Bailey, former CSI instructor with a master’s degree in creative writing and English literature from the University of New Hampshire.
- March 14: Pudd’nhead Wilson. Scholar: Kim Madsen-Dill, instructor of writing and literature at the College of Southern Idaho since 2003.
LTAI is funded by a grant from the Idaho Commission for Libraries with support from the Idaho Humanities Council, the National Endowment for the Humanities, the Institute of Museum and Library Services, and sponsored locally by Joe Bump’s Treasure Chest and Ketchum Computers.
The Bellevue Public Library is located at 117 E. Pine St., next to City Hall. Programs are scheduled on Thursdays from 6-7:30 p.m. Light refreshments will be served.
For further information, contact Kristin Gearhart, library director, at (208) 788-4503.