We’ve selected reading groups in three regions to be our official Women’s Prize for Fiction reading groups. The groups are shadowing the 2013 Women’s Prize and sharing their thoughts on the shortlist on the Women’s Prize Google Communities page. If you and your reading group are reading one of the shortlist, you can also join in with the conversation on this page.
The three regions taking part are the South East, Nottingham and Cumbria/Lancashire and here the participating groups introduce themselves:
Cumbria/Lancashire
Rigghead Readers, Cumbria Library Services
Rigghead Readers was formed in November last year. We have seven members and aim to read as widely as possible covering both fiction – for example, Tender is the Night and non-fiction, such as Richard Macfarlane’s The Old Ways. We also like to cover local authors such as Jacob Polley and Sarah Hall, who we are scheduled to read later this year. We have already read The Pinecone by Jenny Uglow, which like many of our books was provided by Cumbria Library Services. As we are a dispersed group living in a rural area we make the book evening a social event too and have made every meeting despite facing floods and snow.
The ‘All Js’, Carlisle Library
Tall or short, blond or brunette, single or married, divorced or widowed, business woman or vicar, realist or dreamer, we’re all Js. Jacquis, Janets, Janines, Jens, Jennies and Julias who love to read, even though some Js have to conjure non-existent time from their packed schedules to enter the world of the latest reading group book.
The All Js meet about every six weeks to discuss their latest novel, and only the J who collects the books from Carlisle Library ever knows in advance which title from their wish list will be unveiled on the evening. And even then, the other Js like to prolong the suspense of the surprise by insisting J introduces the next book with a charade. (After The Luminous Life of Lily Aphrodite, is anything impossible?)
The All Js’ views and book choices are as diverse as the individuals in the group and it’s astonishing where their discussions can lead. And that’s what the All Js love about getting together. That and J’s mum’s home-made biscuits and cakes.
Houghton Book Group, Cumbria Library Services
Houghton Book Group are a fun, informal gathering who meet one Tuesday night a month at the local pub. We use the Cumbria Libraries reading group service and have read a wide variety of titles. The group’s stand-out favourite book ever is Dirt Music by Tim Winton; this was read three years ago and has yet to be toppled. We will be reading all of the shortlisted titles for the Women’s Prize for Fiction shortlist and we will let you know how we get on via Google+.
Alston Moor Reading Group, Alston Library
The Alston Moor Reading Group was set up in 2004 and meets on the first Thursday of every month. Over the years countless books have been enjoyed, some not so much, but there is always a lively, fun and interesting discussion on the book of choice. Three of the original members still take part in the group which is made up of men and women.
The Johnby Reading Group
Our name is a bit misleading – we usually meet once a month in Johnby but most of our members come from surrounding villages, like Penruddock, Stainton, and Greystoke. We have far-reaching appeal! We enjoy reading books that spark debate – ones that are loved by some and loathed by others, such as The Suspicions of Mr Whicher – and encountering new authors. It’s rare that we’re unanimous in our thoughts of a title, but Niccolo Ammaniti’s I’m Not Scared stood out as a book we all appreciated. While a book provides the focus of us getting together, we relish catching up on recent life events and, of course, local gossip.
IVC reading group
We are a group of people who are members of Border and Lakeland IVC who all live in Carlisle or just outside. We started the group about a year ago, and have found our local library in Carlisle to be very helpful in obtaining books for us. We meet in each others’ homes and have lively discussions about the current book, usually with a glass of wine or a cup of tea (the drivers!) The first book we read was Dissolution by CJ Sansom and our latest read was Miss Garnet’s Angel by Sally Vickers.
South East
Purley Book Group, Reading
The group began on a summer evening in June 2005 with 10 women who wanted time out to socialise as well as enjoy sharing books together. We have met every six weeks since then and are still going strong with seven original members. We have plenty of enthusiasm for books, films of the books, wine and, of course, lots of chat. Favourite books have included The Bell Jar, The Grass is Singing, A Fine Balance, Engleby, and We Need to Talk About Kevin. We are looking forward to reading Bring Up the Bodies by Hilary Mantel.
h4. Leighton Park PTA Book Group, Reading
We’ve been meeting twice a term for two years. We generally have around 12 people attending each session, held in the school library, with the inevitable cakes and coffee (sometimes wine) and always plenty to say!! The group is organised by myself (school librarian) and three parents and, at this time of yea,r we’re inviting nominations for and choosing next year’s reads. The opportunity to get involved in shadowing the Women’s Fiction Prize was an unexpected ‘gift’ and everyone is looking forward to meeting up with other groups from the region. We’ll be reading Zadie Smith’s NW. This has been a lucky term for us – we’ve also just enjoyed hosting an evening with Tracy Chevalier and are off to see the new Great Gatsby film next week. The PTA Book Club is a great way for parents to get to know each other and socialise as well as providing an opportunity to share our love of books!
Bookworms, Sunbury Library
We are 14 regular readers who huddle over coffee in the corner of Sunbury Library on a Tuesday afternoon every six weeks, and have been meeting since September 2010. We swap opinions on our chosen book and chew over anything remotely connected with the subject matters especially those connected to our own life experiences. We usually give our books a mark out of 10. We love it when we really enjoy a book we wouldn’t have otherwise read. We’ll be reading Maria Semple’s Where’d You Go Bernadette.
Ashcroft Reading Group, Fareham
A group of 10 female readers meeting monthly at the Ashcroft Arts Centre. The group has been running for six years, with quite a number of original members. We read mainly contemporary fiction and love discovering new writers… We’re excited to be reading A M Homes’ May We Be Forgiven. We look forward to our discussions, sometimes second guessing whether others will like or loathe the book! At the end of each session we award the book star ratings, both as a personal read and as a reading group discussion.
Books and Banter, Slough Library
We are a friendly group with a range of ages from mid-30s and beyond. We like to read anything and everything. In the last few months we’ve read and very much enjoyed fiction like Wool by Hugh Howey and Her Fearful Symmetry by Audrey Niffenegger, and non-fiction like The Shock of the Fall by Nathan Filer. This range of fiction, genre fiction and non-fiction is typical. We like to read something different from what we would normally read and get to the bottom of why we like or don’t like a book and what is interesting about them. We also love to talk about reading in general and just have a good chat. Our Women’s Prize for Fiction title is Life after Life by Kate Atkinson.
Perouse Reading Group, Epsom Library
With the origin of the core group lost in the midst of time, the Perouse Reading Group consists of 10-12 members who meet one evening a month in Epsom Library. Always prepared to read an eclectic range of books…the members of the group are not shy to express their views and a lively debate often ensues. We’ll be reading Flight Behaviour by Barbara Kingsolver.
Nottingham
Nottingham Library Tuesday Readers Group
_Reading Flight Behaviour by Barbara Kingsolver_
We are a group of about 14 people who have been meeting together for over 10 years. We meet at the Central Library and tend to read either literary fiction or the classics. We have some great conversations, especially when we don’t agree about a book. We have a wide age range of members; although most of the group are female, we do have several men who are part of the book club.
Nottingham Library Thursday Book Club
_Reading Where Did You Go, Bernadette by Maria Semple_
Our group has been meeting for about five years, and membership has changed a lot over that time. The group has recently grown in size which is great and we currently have about 10 active members. We read all sorts of things – thrillers, modern novels and classics and are really looking forward to reading the Women’s Prize for Fiction shortlist.
Aspley Book Club
_Reading N W by Zadie Smith_
We are a small but enthusiastic book group who have been meeting together for over 10 years in Aspley Library. We have very different tastes which makes for some really good discussions. We have shadowed the Orange Prize for many years, and are looking forward to reading one of the books from the Women’s Prize for Fiction shortlist.
Punjabi Ladies Club
_Reading Bring Up the Bodies by Hilary Mantel_
As the name suggests we are a group of Punjabi ladies who love to read. Our group has been meeting together for over 10 years and has grown in size significantly during this period. We meet in people’s homes and are a very friendly group. We now have over 20 members. We are willing to try all sorts of different genres and have read crime, children’s books, literary novels, classics… we haven’t tried horror yet!
Wollaton Library Reading Groups
_Reading May We Be Forgiven by A M Homes_
These are 2 reading groups that meet on a Tuesday evening at Wollaton library; the second formed from the waiting list to join the original group. Both groups will tackle difficult books such as Julie Myerson’s Then but will happily read thrillers, literary prize nominations and classics. The groups are multigenerational and mainly women. We would welcome new members.
Wilford Wanderers
_Reading Life After Life by Kate Atkinson_
We are determined readers who, when their meeting place closed, continued to meet in each others’ homes. This now takes us across a wide area of the city; our reading reflects this as we read a wide range of genres.
Get involved
Check out the Women’s Prize Google Communities page to see what these reading groups think of the shortlist.
Get involved with the Women’s Prize for Fiction – let us know what you think of the shortlisted books by commenting below or log on to Google+ (if you’re not a member you’ll need to create a gmail account) to share your views with the rest of the Women’s Prize Google Community.
