Julie in Monterey Posted December 3, 2009 Share Posted December 3, 2009 I am so excited about this. The group will be made up 6-8 mother/daughter pairs. The girls will be between the ages of 9 and 10. We'll meet once a month over dinner. I've been in a book club myself for years. A few nights ago, I spent some time browsing at Borders and found a great book about mother/daughter book clubs. It sounds like such an awesome idea. We can't wait to get started! I often read a few of the books my daughter reads because she goes on and on about them and I *have* to find out what she sees in them. The girl has decent taste. Anyhoo, she is over the moon about the idea of this group. Anyone out there already doing this and have some ideas, great books or "lessons learned" type of advice for us? Thanks in advance for sharing! Julie in Monterey Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Home'scool Posted December 3, 2009 Share Posted December 3, 2009 Just a book recommendation: A Tree Grows in Brooklyn. Depending on the girls you may want to wait until they are a bit older (although my 10 yo read it and loved it). Francine, the main character, is just about the best role model for young girls, and she captures the yearning of a young girl up through a young woman so well. I love this book and so do both my daughters. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
plansrme Posted December 3, 2009 Share Posted December 3, 2009 I started one about 2 years ago, with girls about that age. I loved it, as did every single one of the girls, but the moms--you'd have thought they were being asked them to read War and Peace every month. I will put my and my daughter's schedule up against anyone's, and we found time to read the books, but these women just could not seem to get it together. I thought we would all be reading anyway, and we would just devote some of that time to reading the designated book, but apparently that is not the case in other families. Anyway, it was a very frustrating experience, and I lost a lot of respect for some of the moms who were involved (or, rather, professed to be but were not actually, involved). The last meeting, when half the m/d pairs who has R.s.v.p.'d to say that they were coming, didn't, was the last straw. Not that I am bitter. ;) Some tips: 1. We let the girls choose the book when they were hosting. One of the girls chose an out-of-print, hard-to-find, and really bad book (it was out of print for a reason!). It was the beginning of the end of the book club. I suggest a more collaborative process. 2. Choose books that have some meat, something to discuss. 3. For heaven's sake, make it a book that is easy to find. As for A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, my daughter and I loved that book (we listened to it together when she was 10), and I am thrilled to see it is popping up on school reading lists and such, but it has some potentially disturbing elements--a serial child molester who nearly rapes the main character, for one, and a loving-but-habitually-drunken father, for another. I had completely forgotten about the child molester from my own reading of the book, but it might be disturbing to some in that age range. Terri Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
~Kirsten~ Posted December 3, 2009 Share Posted December 3, 2009 Sounds like an awesome idea! I'm sure you will both have a fantastic time! :001_smile: I recently came across Deconstructing Penguins, which discusses how to develop parent-child book clubs, so that might be one for you to consider. Here's the Amazon link: http://www.amazon.com/Deconstructing-Penguins-Parents-Kids-Reading/dp/0812970284/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1259847791&sr=8-1. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trixie Posted December 3, 2009 Share Posted December 3, 2009 I started one about 2 years ago, with girls about that age. I loved it, as did every single one of the girls, but the moms--you'd have thought they were being asked them to read War and Peace every month. I will put my and my daughter's schedule up against anyone's, and we found time to read the books, but these women just could not seem to get it together. I thought we would all be reading anyway, and we would just devote some of that time to reading the designated book, but apparently that is not the case in other families. Anyway, it was a very frustrating experience, and I lost a lot of respect for some of the moms who were involved (or, rather, professed to be but were not actually, involved). The last meeting, when half the m/d pairs who has R.s.v.p.'d to say that they were coming, didn't, was the last straw. Not that I am bitter. ;) Some tips: 1. We let the girls choose the book when they were hosting. One of the girls chose an out-of-print, hard-to-find, and really bad book (it was out of print for a reason!). It was the beginning of the end of the book club. I suggest a more collaborative process. 2. Choose books that have some meat, something to discuss. 3. For heaven's sake, make it a book that is easy to find. As for A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, my daughter and I loved that book (we listened to it together when she was 10), and I am thrilled to see it is popping up on school reading lists and such, but it has some potentially disturbing elements--a serial child molester who nearly rapes the main character, for one, and a loving-but-habitually-drunken father, for another. I had completely forgotten about the child molester from my own reading of the book, but it might be disturbing to some in that age range. Terri I second all of the above and would add: 1) Plan at least 2-3 books in advance. Trying to get a group of kids and their parents to agree on books is difficult enough without trying to do it while the clock is ticking on toward the next book club meeting. 2) Compel attendance. It may seem controlling to set a rule that people will be dropped from the group if they miss x number of meetings; but the reality is that, after the honeymoon period, there's a tendency for participants (especially the moms) to become "too busy" to attend regularly, sometimes leaving only 2-3 kids attending on a given day. 3) Have a regularly scheduled meeting time, day, and place. When participants know the book club always meets on such-and-such a day, they have the opportunity to make it a priority so that there's less of the "too busy to make it this time" or "something came up" nonsense. I also agree with the suggestion that you check out "Deconstructing Penguins." If you haven't led or participated in a children's book group before, it's a good place to start. Above all, despite all the dire sounding info and advice, have fun! :001_smile: We're in our third year with our homeschoolers' book club, and it's one of the highlights of our month. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Julie in Monterey Posted December 3, 2009 Author Share Posted December 3, 2009 THANK YOU SO MUCH! I would love to hear more recommendations. I have another girlfriend who is totally on board. We decided that we want a firm commitment to attend and read the book each month. My book club is much more loose in terms of attending each month and even reading the book (I personally can't stand that!). We plan on meeting on a regular 3rd Thursday type of thing (thanks for the recommendation to do that) and also based on your advice, perhaps we'll discuss a 3-6 month list at the first meeting. Looking forward to another other ideas and encouragement you might have! Thank you ladies! I love the hive! Julie in Monterey Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kareni Posted December 4, 2009 Share Posted December 4, 2009 Some books for you to investigate: The Mother-Daughter Book Club: How Ten Busy Mothers and Daughters Came Together to Talk, Laugh, and Learn Through Their Love of Reading by Dodson Book by Book: The Complete Guide to Creating Mother-Daughter Book Clubs by Hudson The Kids' Book Club Book: Reading Ideas, Recipes, Activities, and Smart Tips for Organizing Terrific Kids' Book Clubs by Gelman 100 Books for Girls to Grow On by Dodson Great Books for Girls: More Than 600 Books to Inspire Today's Girls and Tomorrow's Women by Odean Magic, Mystery, and Mayhem : A complete guide to starting and running your own mother-daughter book group by Donahue. This last one appears to be out of print. Regards, Kareni Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kidlit Posted December 4, 2009 Share Posted December 4, 2009 I don't have any advice or suggestions, but I just wanted to say that this sounds like a ton of fun! I'd love to do this when my girls are a little older (and reading independently :tongue_smilie:)! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Angel Posted December 4, 2009 Share Posted December 4, 2009 Julie, Which book did you find in Borders? Was it any on Kareni's list? Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Cindy Hudson Posted December 4, 2009 Share Posted December 4, 2009 I'm so excited to know you'll be starting a mother-daughter book club. I'm the author of one of the books recommended in a message above, Book by Book: The Complete Guide to Creating Mother-Daughter Book Clubs. Here are a few ideas for you: Look for books appropriate for both moms and daughters so both age groups will be happy reading. Don't read outside of the recommended age group if you can help it. Yes, girls may have the ability to read more difficult texts, but they may not grasp the concepts well. Plus, there's so much good fiction for middle-grade and young adult readers there's no reason to look for older books. If you set ground rules that everyone agrees to at the beginning, it makes it easier to talk about if members stop participating as they said they would. Schedule something just for fun about once a year. I'm in two groups, one that's been meeting for nine years and the other for six. It hasn't been perfect all the time, but overall it's been a great experience that I wouldn't trade for anything. It's a great way to communicate with your daughter, since you can bring up almost any topic when you're discussing a character in a book. I have more ideas, as well as suggestions from moms and daughters in other book clubs around the country, at my website, http://www.motherdaughterbookclub.com. Good luck, and let me know if I can help in any way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Julie in Monterey Posted December 4, 2009 Author Share Posted December 4, 2009 OH MY GOSH! My daughter is going to *flip out* when she hears the author of the book I discovered about mother-daughter book clubs wrote me a message! Now these message boards take on a whole level of WOW with us! Cindy, I was thrilled to see this book! I love that you took the time and effort to share your journey with others. I saw it, and thought to myself, "OF COURSE!" I'm not sure I would have thought of this on my own for some time. Since I picked up your book, a friend and I have gathered 4 strongly interested parties. I'm thinking 6 pairs might be a nice size to start with. Any strong opinion on a first pick? I want it to "hook" the group! I'll keep you posted here as to how it goes in January. Julie in Monterey Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
orangearrow Posted December 4, 2009 Share Posted December 4, 2009 I am hoping to start one of these next year!! This year, we started a History Girls group and we're reading through 6 of the American Girls characters and meeting every other month. It's been so much fun (we've completed two of the characters so far). Next year, I want to do a mom/child book discussion group and meet at a restaurant or something and gab over dinner or ice cream. :) I'm off to check out the links to the suggested book club books... :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Cindy Hudson Posted December 6, 2009 Share Posted December 6, 2009 Hi again Julie - I'm so glad you're finding my book helpful. I think 6 pairs is a good number to start with. That's what we started with in both of my book clubs. With 12, you have plenty of people who may have different opinions, which is good for the discussion. But it's not so many that everyone will have a hard time getting their thoughts about the book in. There are lots of great books to get you going. Here are some you may consider: The Mother-Daughter Book Club by Heather Vogel Frederick. I know lots of clubs who start with this title so the girls can talk about what they like and don't like about the fictional club. It may help you set some ground rules. Granny Torrelli Makes Soup by Sharon Creech. This book about solving problems with friends is really sweet, and it will have you all hungry for soup. Caddie Woodlawn by Carol Ryrie Brink. Interesting historical fiction based on true stories of the author's grandmother. Boy by Roald Dahl. This memoir of Dahl's childhood is funny, strange, and it shows where Dahl got the inspiration for some of the wild characters in his books. Great for a historical perspective of Wales, England and Norway too. Feel free to keep the thread running here. Or you can email me questions at info@motherdaughterbookclub.com. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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