10 Reasons Why All Children and Young Adults Should Have a Book Club

I know I have fallen a bit behind on my blog posts…. More important things are going on in the world right now. Hopefully, I’ll get back to my biweekly blog posts this week, but if not I’ll continue to provide information on the BLM movement through twitter. Here is a great list on Emily Underworld of ways to help, petitions to sign, how to donate, and how to educate yourself on the BLM movement. At the very least everyone should be educating themselves. It is not an excuse to be ignorant of worldwide issues when the resources are readily available.

Now, onto the subject. This week I want to discuss book clubs. I know a lot of adults who participate in book clubs, but not many children and young adults. This seems ironic to me because children are still learning to read, and having friends to do it with makes it so much more enjoyable. I think having a book club is a necessary social activity and growth, especially for young people. In this post, I will be writing about 10 reasons why all children and young adults should participate in a book club.

Before I start this post I should mention that I am 19. I do not have children and have absolutely no idea how to parent. I will instead be writing this post in reference to when I was younger, and a book club had a positive impact on my social life and reading habits.

1. Reading is Essential for Learning

Reading is super important! Now that scientific research has shown that intelligence can change, for better or worse, I really believe everyone should be working on their minds. Reading is one of the most fun ways to increase intelligence and knowledge. Starting to become a book lover can be daunting at first, but with a little effort, it can turn into a favorite hobby.

Oh! And let’s not forget about expanding our vocabulary. Want to learn how to voice your opinions eloquently and not repeat the same words over and over? Read a book. I think this first point could apply to adults since you never stop learning, but young adults and children just have so much more to learn. Getting a jump start on knowledge and vocabulary can make a huge difference later in life.

2. Talking about books is fun

It really is. Being able to talk about books with my best friends is one of the highlights of my childhood. I still remember the first book we read, Princess Academy by Shannon Hale. Plus, I was a socially awkward child, and talking about books was one of my few conversational strong points.

Let’s not pretend that everything needs a logical reason. Book clubs have a lot of benefits, but the best reason to start one is for fun.

3. Reading is a Lifetime Activity

Unlike many childhood activities, you never grow out of reading. By setting up or encouraging your children to start a book club, you are providing them with something they can take with them for the rest of their lives.

4. It’s a great way to make friends

I made a lot of friends in my book club, and am still friends with some of them today. I’ll be honest. Most of my time spent at the book club wasn’t even discussing books. My friends and I always discussed the book at the beginning of our meeting and took the first opportunity to run outside and start a game.

Even making friends now is usually based on books. Books provide infinite conversation topics and can be used to share your opinion. My closest friends have similar book interests as me, but having friends with different interests encourages me to expand my horizons.

5. It’s good practice at discussing opinions in a civil manner

Yeah, so many people do not know how to express themselves without belittling others. Did they not have a book club when they were younger? Anyway, not everyone is going to like the same books and this gets children used to disagreeing with other people. At first, I didn’t like disagreeing with my friends, but I soon learned that disagreement sparked discussion. Sometimes I learned to take a new perspective on a topic, and sometimes we all accepted that we had different tastes in books.

6. Book club is a great excuse to drink tea and eat fun snacks

The responsibility of choosing a snack when I hosted book club was left up to me. I had a ton of fun trying out new recipes and setting up cute tea parties for my friends. By the end, our favorite dish was “Raspberry Chipotle Dip” which was basically cream cheese with lots of yummy things on top. Our book club disbanded around high school when our lives got busy, but Raspberry Chipotle Dip is still the group favorite.

7. A book club is a great way to connect with your children

While I don’t advise participating in your child’s book club meeting as a parent (unless there are serious conflicts), there are other ways you can get involved. First, guess who I always went to for book recommendations? Yep, my mom. She was always reading something, so she was my first choice for book recommendations. Plus, I could always talk to my mom about the book while I was reading, which was super fun for me. Second, you can always help set up the meeting. I usually planned the food and drinks, but my mom helped with anything I needed. Confession: I did leave her to do the clean up most of the time…

8. Books Inspire Thought and Change

I only know this because I’ve experienced it in my life. Reading books makes me think about what I have and experience in life. I love that a book can inspire me to ask questions and pursue dreams (for example, starting a book blog). Book clubs can expand on that inspiration! I can’t tell you how many times a conversation about books has turned into a discussion about issues relevant in today’s world. The best part? These conversations are hardly ever confrontational, although, they can be–don’t get me wrong. But starting a discussion from a common point of interest puts all parties on the same side from the start. I love that talking about books has opened my eyes to new ideas and perspectives, and I think all children and young adults should be exposed to that.

9. Book club is practice for school

I didn’t realize the full benefit of my childhood book club until I started high school and college and had to write lots of essays and papers. All essays are either based on reading and reporting research or stating your opinion on a topic. Sometimes both. Book clubs are great for developing these skills. First, a book club discussion is based on your “research” of the book chosen. You have to come up with conclusions and examples in the book on the spot for discussion. This is great practice for when you have to read a research paper and figure out what the research is really saying. Second, you ultimately have to state whether you liked a book or not and why in every book club meeting. That is the essence of an opinion and is a skill I’ve used countless times in my education.

10. Public schools just aren’t doing it

I’m going to try and limit what I say on this topic because that rant could go on for a while. Long story short: the public schooling system sucks. There might be good teachers and schools that make it work, but overall, the system does not work for the majority of students. Just take a look at this reading list for high school students on Goodreads. *deep breath*. MANY OF THESE BOOKS SHOULD BE READ AFTER HIGH SCHOOL!!! It’s not like I’ve read all of these books, and I’m not even going to look through the whole list. I saw some good high school reads, and I saw all the ones I was forced to suffer through. I remember reading Romeo and Juliet and Lord of the Flies my freshman year and hating both of them. Why didn’t I like these stories that people had so many good things to say about? I didn’t understand the language of Romeo and Juliet and missed the point because the version my school provided was censored. Because… in high school, sex doesn’t exist. *very heavy sigh*. Don’t even get me started on Lord of the Flies. (sorry if you liked that book. It’s just not for me). By senior year my reading level was great, and I learned to love Shakespeare. But that took a lot of work on my own. Those first few years almost destroyed my love of reading. Public school English classes are not going to inspire a passion for reading, but a book club might.

There’s another reason all children and young adults should have a book club. Look back at that list of required reading for high school and you’ll notice how many of those books are written by white authors. I am guilty of being ignorant to this too. I looked back at my reading log, and it’s embarrassing. I’m learning, but what if the next generation was better? What if having children’s book clubs was normal?

Further Questions

Did you have a book club when you were young? Besides books, there are lots of things that bring people together like sports and art. What other activities have created a community for you?

May your days be full of magic and dragons,

Peyton

• Instagram
• Twitter
• Goodreads