Memphis Reads Archive

There's still time to enter the drawing to attend the

Now through Saturday, July 28, register at any Library location to win tickets to this special event. Submit an entry form for each book your group discussed or will discuss between June 2 and July 28, 2007.

Morning Speaker

Mary Jane Clark, author of media-thriller novels. When Day Breaks is her latest bestseller. library catalog author website

Lunch with bestselling author

Diane Mott Davidson, nicknamed the "divine diva of the culinary cozy" and author of 13 best-selling novels featuring the irresistible Goldy Schulz. library catalog author website

Luncheon catered by Fratelli's

Conference Call with Bestselling Author

Julie Garwood, romance author whose latest release, Shadow Dance, will no doubt be her 16th bestseller. library catalog author website

Conference Call with Bestselling author

Mary Monroe, whose popular God Don't Like Ugly series has landed her on the New York Times bestsellers list. library catalog author website

Lots of Door Prizes and Giveaways
One book club per branch will win (up to 10 members)
Book signings provided by Davis Kidd Booksellers

This program made possible by a grant from Mid South Reads and the Assisi Foundation.

Labels: Tell Me About A Book

Tell Me About a Book!
A Summer Reading program for Adult Book Clubs
June 2-July 28, 2007

Your book club can win prizes, meet bestselling authors, and obtain resources to promote reading, sharing, and lively debate. Register to win at any Library location each time your group reads and discusses a book.

Click here to learn more.





Tell Me About A Book! Theme 4
New Perspectives: Understanding Others

Many book clubs enjoy discussing works that offer new perspectives on the world and its people. They select titles that expose them to cultures different from their own. Books about fictive worlds (as imagined by Science Fiction or Fantasy writers, for example) are also popular.

Consider the following questions yourself or share them with your book club.

1. Is there a book that changed the way you viewed the way the world works?
   
   
2. Have you ever identified with a real or imaginary culture as described in a book?
   
   
3. How can reading different genres help us to explore and understand what it is to be human?

Many of the books reviewed on this blog concern new perspectives. Here are links to a few titles for your consideration:

THE AMAZING ADVENTURES OF KAVALIER & CLAY by Michael Chabon (Random House, 2000).

EAT, PRAY, LOVE: One Woman's Search for Everything across Italy, India, and Indonesia by Elizabeth Gilbert (Viking, 2006).

HIS DARK MATERIALS, a trilogy (The Golden Compass, The Subtle Knife, and The Amber Spyglass) by Philip Pullman (Knopf, 1995-2000).

THE LAST REPORT ON THE MIRACLES AT LITTLE NO HORSE by Louise Erdrich (HarperCollins, 2001).

MALINCHE by Laura Esquivel (Atria Books, 2006).

ORYX AND CRAKE by Margaret Atwood (Nan A. Talese, 2003).

OUR LADY OF THE FOREST by David Guterson (Knopf, 2003).

THE ROAD by Cormac McCarthy (Knopf, 2006).

THE SHAPE SHIFTER by Tony Hillerman (HarperCollins, 2006).

SOMETHING WICKED THIS WAY COMES by Ray Bradbury (Bantam, 1963).

THREE CUPS OF TEA: One Man's Mission to Fight Terror and Build Nations--One School at a Time by Greg Mortenson (Viking, 2006).

A YEAR IN THE WORLD: Journeys of A Passionate Traveller by Frances Mayes (Broadway Books, 2006).

Tell Me About A Book! is made possible by a grant from Mid South Reads and The Assisi Foundation.

Labels: Tell Me About A Book

Tell Me About a Book!
A Summer Reading program for Adult Book Clubs
June 2-July 28, 2007

Your book club can win prizes, meet bestselling authors, and obtain resources to promote reading, sharing, and lively debate. Register to win at any Library location each time your group reads and discusses a book.

Click here to learn more.





Tell Me About A Book! Theme 3
Family Relationships: Can’t Live With Them, Can’t Live Without Them

Many book clubs enjoy reading books that feature strong family relationships. Consider the following questions yourself or share them with your book club.

1. Is there a book out there that you think every family should read?
   
   
2. Have you ever read a book that made you see things from your parent(s)/sibling(s)/child(ren)'s point-of-view?

Use the "comments" section below to share your thoughts. Click here for instructions. [pdf]

Many of the books reviewed on this blog concern family relationships. Here are links to a few titles for your consideration:

DIGGING TO AMERICA by Anne Tyler (Knopf, 2006).

THE MEMORY KEEPER’S DAUGHTER by Kim Edwards (Penguin, 2006).

RUNNING WITH SCISSORS: A Memoir by Augusten Burroughs (St. Martin's Press, 2002).

A SPOT OF BOTHER by Mark Haddon (Doubleday, 2006).

SUSANNAH'S GARDEN by Debbie Macomber (Mira, 2006).

YOU KNOW BETTER by Tina McElroy Ansa (William Morrow, 2002).

Tell Me About A Book! is made possible by a grant from Mid South Reads and The Assisi Foundation.

Labels: Tell Me About A Book

Tell Me About a Book!
A Summer Reading program for Adult Book Clubs
June 2-July 28, 2007

Your book club can win prizes, meet bestselling authors, and obtain resources to promote reading, sharing, and lively debate. Register to win at any Library location each time your group reads and discusses a book.

Click here to learn more.


Tell Me About A Book! Theme 2
Biographies vs. Historical Fiction: The Importance of the Individual in Fact or Fiction

Biographies and Historical Fiction are favorite genres for many book clubs. Consider the following questions yourself or share them with your book club.

1. How important are "the facts" in historical fiction?
   
   
2. Is there a place for modern ideas in historical fiction or biographies of historical figures?
   
   
3. What can we learn about the future from the past?
   
   
4. Do biographies and historical fiction appeal to you for the same reasons? Do you enjoy them both?

Use the "comments" section below to share your thoughts. Click here for instructions. [pdf]

Click here for Memphis Reads reviews about Biographies and Historical Fiction.

Tell Me About A Book! is made possible by a grant from Mid South Reads and The Assisi Foundation.

Labels: Tell Me About A Book

Tell Me About a Book!
A Summer Reading program for Adult Book Clubs
June 2-July 28, 2007

Tell Me About A Book! Themes: Four themes have been selected to promote reading, sharing, and lively debate among adult book clubs. Starting today, the Memphis Reads blog will post a theme every two weeks and invite you and your book club to consider related questions.



Theme 1:
African-American Literature: Unique Experiences

African-American Literature is a diverse genre that includes a long tradition of literary fiction and such popular subgenres as "urban" and "inspirational." Consider the following questions and share them with your book club. Use the "comments" section below to share your thoughts. (Click here for instructions).

1. What defines African-American Literature as a genre? What makes it unique?
   
   
2. Which subgenre is your favorite?
   
   
3. Who are your favorite authors? Your favorite characters?

Browse Memphis Reads reviews of African-American Fiction titles. Learn more about Tell Me About A Book!.

Tell Me About A Book! is made possible by a grant from Mid South Reads and The Assisi Foundation.

Labels: Tell Me About A Book

Tell Me About a Book!
A Summer Reading Program for Adult Book Clubs
June 2-July 28, 2007

Starting today, your book club can register to win prizes as part of a special summer reading program. Prizes include tickets to the Book Club Extravaganza, a unique, half-day event featuring bestselling authors, workshops, and a free luncheon. Enter the prize drawings at any Library location each time your group reads and discusses a book. Be sure to pick up the guide entitled “How to Start and Sustain a Book Club.”


Tell Me About A Book! Themes

Four themes have been selected to promote reading, sharing, and lively debate among adult book clubs. Starting today, the Memphis Reads blog will post a theme every two weeks and invite you and your book club to consider related questions.

The themes are:

• African-American Literature: Unique Experiences
• Biographies and Historical Fiction: The Importance of the Individual in Fact or Fiction
• Family Relationships: Can’t Live With Them, Can’t Live Without Them
• New Perspectives, New Views

Tell Me About A Book! is made possible by a grant from Mid South Reads and The Assisi Foundation.

Labels: Tell Me About A Book

Your book club can win prizes, meet bestselling authors, and obtain resources to promote reading, sharing, and lively debate. Register to win at any Library location each time your group reads and discusses a book.

One book club per branch will:

• Win a Book Club in a Bag with books and resources to help your book club share thoughts and opinions.
• Win a personalized READ Poster, similar to the Denzel Washington and Orlando Bloom posters you see at many libraries.
• Win tickets to attend a BOOK CLUB EXTRAVAGANZA on Saturday, August 25 (up to 10 members per club). The half-day event features best-selling authors for the free luncheon, keynote address and conference calls. The Extravaganza also includes workshops, door prizes and giveaways. Book Clubs who won either the Book Club in a Bag or the Read Poster will still be eligible to win tickets to the Extravaganza.
  

Tell Me A Book! is made possible by a grant from Mid South Reads and The Assisi Foundation.

Labels: Tell Me About A Book