Book groups plentiful in Whatcom County

Readers who enjoy sharing their views and questions about the books they read have no lack of places for discussion in Whatcom County

Village Books, 1200 11th St., hosts book groups that are open to everyone.

Each month, staffer Hana Boxberger sends out an E-newsletter that’s geared for book groups and often contains staff recommendations and fun facts about the reading habits Village’s employees.

The bookstore currently hosts the following groups: Afternoon Book Chat Group, Armchair Historians, Bellingham Mysterians, Cover to Cover Adventure: Youth Book Group, Engaged Citizens, General Literature, Motherhood by the Book, Pacific Northwest Book Group, Sharpen Your Saw: A Business Book Discussion Group and Speculative Fiction.

“One of the coolest things about book groups is they get readers looking at and talking about books they may not otherwise have discovered, something that may be outside of their ‘normal’ reading taste,” Boxberger says.

Bellingham Public Library, 210 Central Ave. hosts a “Bellingham Reads” group, open to all, that meets at 6:30 p.m. the fourth Tuesday of each month. The title for Jan. 26 is the Whatcom Reads! selection for 2015, “A Tale for the Time Being” by Ruth Ozeki. Janice Keller, of the library staff, says from 15 to 25 readers participate in the group, and many of them have been “regulars” since the group began in 2007. Details: bellinghampubliclibrary.org; click on Readers’ Resources.

Whatcom County Library Systems host book groups in Ferndale, Sudden Valley and Sumas. The Sumas Book Club started five years ago and has been going strong since the beginning, says Cayla Samms, who coordinates the group.

“This cool group often relates their reading to current and historical events, and book themes lead to engaging discussions where all members share their knowledge” Samms says.

The group meets at 10 a.m. the second Saturday of the month. Up for discussion Jan. 9 is “The Crying Tree” by Naseem Rakha.

Details: wcls.org/book-clubs, Lisa Gresham, 360-305-3600.

This story was originally published December 23, 2015 at 4:01 PM with the headline "Book groups plentiful in Whatcom County."