45/365 Book club discussions

I've never been very good at deciphering the subtext in literature (in both prose and poetry). Call me dense, but I've always been of the mind that if you want to tell me something, just tell me.

I'm feeling, however, like participating in a monthly book club is helping to improve my ability to read between the lines. But I've taken oodles of literature classes in the past, so why would this social book club be a catalyst?

Perhaps it's age and maturity. Or perhaps it's because in college, I could rely on the teacher and my fellow subtext-loving classmates to elevate the subtleties. At book club, though, we have a small group, and if we're not careful, the talk can easily become just a reiteration of plot points ("Remember that part where he...") rather than a true discussion of the book.

So even though I'm not being graded, perhaps I'm mentally working harder out of a sense of responsibility to my fellow club-mates. In fact, while reading our most recent selection, I found myself making notes that I wanted to be sure to bring up in the discussion.

Maybe it was just this book that inspired me. I'll just have to see if I can keep it up.

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