The Book Club Experience (Part 2)

ByRobin Lee Hatcher
6 Comments

A little over two years ago, I blogged about the book club I’d been participating in for 16 months. Since I have continued in that book club, I thought maybe it was time for an update. Our little club has read and discussed 26 more books, and I have confirmed some things about myself as a reader.

  • I am very willing to suspend disbelief if the author is able to pull me into their fictional world.
  • I am a forgiving reader. It takes a lot for me to truly dislike a book.
  • When discussing a book, I can do a lot of nodding, agreeing with other people’s reasons for liking or not liking a book, and yet it doesn’t change my mind. What I felt is what I felt.
  • Which brings me to, I am a “feeling” reader. I want a story to make me feel. I don’t analyze a story with my brain (although I can). I react with my heart.

That got me to thinking about my own writing. While many writers say something like, “I see the story in my mind, like a movie,” I always say, “I feel the story in my gut.” Which must mean I both read and write for all the feels.

My book club reads general market books (we are all Christian writers). In today’s world, that often means fast-forwarding through foul language and/or sex scenes, and I have become even more appreciative of those general market writers who can bring me into their worlds without all the junk. Writers, even Christian writers, need to read widely. We learn as we read just as we learn as we live. In the world but not of it.

I won’t share all 26 titles we’ve read since my last post. Instead, I’m going to share the books that I rated 4 stars and above. Remember, however, that these books could have language or other reasons they might not be for you:

  • The Rom-Commers by Katherine Center (4🌟)
  • Finding Dorothy by Elizabeth Letts (4.5🌟)
  • The Wednesday Wars by Gary Schmidt (5🌟)
  • My Friends by Fredrik Backman (5🌟)
  • Twice by Mitch Albom (4.5🌟)
  • The Borrowed Life of Fredrick Fife by Anna Johnston (5🌟)
  • The Correspondent by Virginia Evans (4.5⭐️)

When not reading for book club, I prefer Christian fiction, both historical and contemporary. And even though Christian fiction is only about 10% (maybe even less) the size of the general market, there are so many wonderful books and authors to choose from.

As we’ve probably all said before and probably all will say again, So many books, so little time.

~robin

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Best-selling novelist Robin Lee Hatcher is known for her heartwarming and emotionally charged stories of faith, courage, and love. Her 95+ books have won multiple awards, including the RITA, the Christy, the Carol, the FHL Reader's Choice, and the National Reader's Choice Awards. Robin makes her home in Idaho.

6 Comments

  1. Good post, Robin. I always find it interesting to listen to the reasons why readers like or dislike books (especially when I’ve had an opposite reaction). Opinions are so varied. And as you said, so many books, so little time.

  2. I have never been in a book club, but think it would be an interesting thing to do.

    Recently I selected a book from my library that was wrapped in brown paper: a “Blind Date with a Book”. The description sounded intriguing, so I gave it a go. When I unwrapped it, I discovered it was Heartwood, by Amity Gaige–a Jenna Bush selection, and highly recommended.

    I did find the plotline, story, characters intriguing, and I was definitely rooting for the lost hiker to be found alive. But after reading so many Christian fiction books, I found some of the language highly offensive. And some of the scenes as well.

    I plan to stick to my trusted and loved Christian fiction writers in the future.

  3. My husband and I both listened to The Borrowed Life of Frederick Fife at your recommendation–and we loved it! We also both loved The Correspondent. He loved My Friends, but I just couldn’t get through it for some reason, even though I love Fredrik Backman’s books. It’s always interesting to me when I can’t connect with something written by an author whose books I have loved.

    1. When the book club read My Friends, two of us really loved it (both gave it 5 stars), but others were like you and didn’t connect. There were lines that just zinged me. One was “You can’t love someone out of addiction. All the oceans are the tears of those who have tried.” That hit me so hard because I was married for so long to an alcoholic. The other line I remember is “Children aren’t responsible for their parents’ happiness, but they still try.” That made me want to weep.

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