TESS JAINE
Anne Bandoli, Adrianna Hyde, Myles Payne, Liz Todhunter and Robyn Packer enjoy meeting for books, wine, and nibbles in Mapua.
A novel way to enjoy books Book clubs are not a new concept but one that is increasingly popular, especially when you add wine and cheese. Adrienne Matthews takes a look at a couple of Nelson's book clubs.
B
ook clubs are rarely just about reading books. They are social gatherings that bring people together from often diverse backgrounds, where life experiences are shared, ideas are challenged and where friendships are formed. They aren’t even a 20th or 21st century thing. There are records of groups gathering in the time of Socrates 400BC to talk about writing. Fast forward to the luscious French salons of the 19th century where women, liberated from the throes of the Industrial Revolution gathered to improve their conversation, flaunt their finery and discuss their latest reads. The trend spread across the globe. By the end of the 19th century it is estimated there were over two million Americans in book clubs. New Zealand’s first book clubs were the Worker’s Educational Association (WEA) study circles established in 1915. By 1926 sets of books were being transported around Canterbury and the West Coast and in 1973 the WEA’s Book Discussion Scheme (BDS) was formed to provide sets of books to groups around the country.
It is thanks to American talk show host, Oprah Winfrey that book groups exploded in numbers across the globe in the 1990s. The launch of her own book club where she promoted “must reads” sent the world into reading hysteria, something that has never abated with book club culture firmly entrenched in most countries of the world. There are many types of book clubs in New Zealand. The BDS scheme continues to grow with 50 affiliated groups in Nelson and 1300 nationwide. For a modest membership fee, each group is sent a set of the same books either monthly or bi-monthly along with a set of notes to aid with discussion. There are more than 1000 titles in their collection in a range of genres and styles. For some years, until the meeting time changed from night to day, I belonged to BDS group Nelson 009. Established 38 years ago it still has one original member. A few members have passed away and some have moved on, but a core of kind, thoughtful and interesting souls remain, some having been part of the group for over 20 years.
31
