On the first Thursday of every month, a group of Ohio University Bobcats can be found welcoming new members with cookies and smiles.
Vernon R. Alden Library is home to the Alden Book Club, a group of passionate readers who recently held their first meeting of the academic year.
Emily-Rose Moore, a senior studying psychology, is the club’s social media ambassador and said she was eager to meet the new underclassmen this year.
“I'm excited to have the power to be able to include the freshmen and the sophomores and people that are maybe new because I feel like that can make a big difference,” Moore said.
The other executives were also excited to see what the year has in store. Delaney Cyrus, a junior studying early childhood education, is the club’s treasurer and said she is looking forward to making connections.
“I think (I am excited) for everything, like reading new books and getting to know more people and reaching more people,” she said.
Cyrus said her favorite part about the organization is getting to talk about books because she becomes closer to members through conversations.
Similar to Cyrus, Taylor Wagner, a senior studying biological sciences, said seeing new faces and participating in fun experiences is one of the multiple highlights of being a book club member.
A favorite memory of Wagner’s, she said, was when New York Times, USA Today and Wall Street Journal bestselling author Mia Sheridan spoke with the club about her book, “Archer’s Voice.”
“We plan different things to try to see what gets us more talkative and involved,” she said. “It's just kind of cool to see what kind of things we can do that are book-related.”
While the organization may not have a similar event planned for this year yet, there is fun to be had at their regular meetings. Upon entering the library, one could expect to see people eating cookies and talking to one another before the meeting has even officially started.
Wagner said the club always starts by discussing the read of the month. Members then play an online trivia game about the book, with the winner typically earning a $5 gift card for coffee at a location of their choice. Following the trivia game, they dive into a conversation about the book.
“We have discussion questions that we put up on the projector and just talk about our thoughts on different points that happened along the way through the book,” Wagner said.
Alden Book Club welcomes readers of all genres and even people who do not like to read as much. Wagner said it is important to her that the books vary in content throughout the year due to previous book club experiences.
“They all kind of fit into a little category,” she said of her high school book club.
Cyrus said that in her high school book club, members also did not have any voice when choosing what books to read.
“It is a community that works together to make it what we want it to be,” she said.
In light of these negative experiences, the organization values including members when picking books to read. At each meeting, executives take suggestions from members, and over the next 24 hours, everyone can vote in the GroupMe to select the next read.
“(The club) is open to construction from the actual members, and the execs are pretty much just like the members,” Moore said. “There is no real hierarchy or anything.”
Moore said the club tries to read from a different genre so all members can find something appealing to enjoy.
Alden Book Club meets on the first Thursday of each month at 7 p.m. in Alden Library room 319. For September, the club is reading a general fiction book and those interested can stay up to date with the club’s activities through social media or Bobcat Connect.
“There is a book that somebody is going to like,” Wagner said. “You might think that you don’t like a book, but you just haven’t found the right book yet.”
