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What we’re about

We have been in existence as a book club in Houston for over forty years. Our focus is "significant fiction": either classics you might have read in a literature class, or modern major prize winners. We read novels, and occasionally include plays or epic narrative poetry. We are affiliated with Houston Great Books http://www.houstongreatbooks.net  and recommend their website for other book clubs of interest.

We meet on the first Thursday evening of each month. You may attend any or all meetings at your choice, regardless of whether you have read the month's book selection. (We ask that only those who have read the book participate actively in the discussions.) We select our books twice a year, six months at a time. If you like what we do and wish to take a part in selecting future books, you are welcome to join our selection team.

Our meetings occur simultaneously on-line (on Zoom) and in-person, in the Rice Village area of Houston, Texas. Our in-person venue is small and we give priority to regularly-attending members. In-person participants are invited to adjourn to a nearby restaurant following the meeting for socializing.

Our approach centers on the work itself and follows a process of "shared enquiry":

-- The discussion leader provides direction and guidance by asking question. The participants in the group look to the leader for questions, not answers.

-- None of us are experts or authorities. We welcome viewpoints from all participants. We engage in active search for the meaning of a work ...  articulate and support ideas with evidence from the text, and consider different plausible meanings.

-- We listen carefully, and disagree respectfully ... pursue the implications of others’ thoughts ...  support their different interpretations with evidence from the text.

-- We stay focussed on the work that we all share. Avoid digressing into other works or into our personal life experience or philosophy.

-- We avoid relating the work to politics or current events. We enjoy diverse views on literature but do not welcome political statements or arguments.

-- At the end of each session there is time for offering general comments, telling the group how you like / don't like the book, etc.

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