A group of giggling 10-year-old girls gather every month, sitting in a tight circle on the floor to talk about’books.
Their moms aren’t far. They’re gathered nearby to talk about books, too.
‘It’s very rewarding,? said Julie Alexander, part of the group with her daughter Emma Alexander. ‘It makes us take time for things we may not think we have time for ? reading books.?
‘It’s really a good experience, being with friends and learning at the same time,? said Cary Ann Piazza, with her mom Julie Piazza.
‘It gives us time together,? said Carrie Leuenhagen, with her daughter Amy Leuenhagen.
The Clarkston Mother-Daughter Book Club group includes seven Clarkston area daughter/mother pairs, also including Gabby and Raquel Carusello, Veronica and Erin Hill, Taylor and Kelly Kanigowski, and Emily and Michelle Malinowski.
They meet seven times a year, every other month with an extra in the summer.
They started the club when the girls were in second grade at Independence Elementary School.
‘We wanted to try and get the kids together to read,? Carrie said.
Two years later, the group is still going strong, she said.
‘We just stuck with it,? Gabby said. ‘We just loved it so much. We love reading books and talking about them and meeting with friends. It’s a good time.?
The girls, who move on to Sashabaw Middle School next year, plans to keep the group going.
‘We’re going all the way through high school,? Amy said. ‘It’s a lot of fun.?
Starting out, moms and daughters would usually read the same book ? one of their first was ‘Tuck Everlasting,? a fantasy novel for children by Natalie Babbitt, Carrie said.
‘We’d model for the kids, how to discuss the books and ask questions,? she said. ‘They learn that they can have different opinions and how to share them and make comments constructively.?
The girls? book selections include lots of young-adult fantasy and historical fiction novels, including ‘The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane,? ‘Tuck Everlasting,? Anne of Green Gables,? ‘The Secret Zoo,? ‘The mysterious Benedict Society,? ‘The Secret Garden,? Shelia the Great,? and ‘The Doll People.?
‘We like a lot of authors and different genres,? Taylor said. ‘We try out new books.?
‘It gets us to read a lot of different books, books we’d never think to pick out ourselves,? Amy said. ‘It gets us to read at a so much higher level.?
‘The longer books take most of the two months to read,? Gabby said.
The moms have also been reading historical fiction such as ‘Girl with a Pearl Earring,? ‘The Other Boleyn Girl,? and ?1,000 White Women,? as well as non-fiction books like ‘Eat, Pray, Love? and ‘The Glass Castle.?
‘We try to pick a diverse group of books that talk about different things,? Carrie said.
As the girls get older, she hopes the group becomes a place to discuss serious issues of growing up.
‘We want this to be a safe place to do that,? she said. ‘I’ve been surprised ? this is way more than a book club. Now, it’s about friendships and doing things together.?
Activities have spread to community service, gardening a piece of landscaping at Depot Park this summer.
They also invited an author, Bryan Chick of Independence Township, who wrote ‘The Secret Zoo,? to their October meeting, to talk about what it’s like to create one of the books they’ve been reading.
‘The girls were excited to meet a local author and question him about writing,? Carrie said.
Starting a book club is easy, Taylor said.
‘Just get a couple friends and their moms together,? she said. ‘Everyone gets together and you plan it out.?
Hosts, who announce their book choice at the previous meeting, prepare a list of issues and questions for discussion. Lots of book-discussion questions and suggestions are available online, especially for children’s and young adult books she said.
‘It’s an opportunity to make new friends,? Veronica said.
‘You host once a year ? it’s very doable,? Carrie said.
Meetings last about three hours with book discussion first, then social time.
The girls usually spend quite a bit of time creating and acting out skits based on the book, Julie Alexander said.
‘They’re very creative,? she said.