I Quit Book Club

I'm abandoning the Book Club. I know that must seem like a horrible thing for a librarian to say, but I've had it. I'm not doing it next year. At least not how I've done it in the past, and God knows I've adjusted it here and tweaked it there. There are some weirder than weird facts about the club in my school. And my school isn't super unique, all but two percent of my kids are Black (that 2% is Latino), 98% are economically disadvantaged and the rest are probably lying, we're nestled in the city's armpit, and most people underestimate the creativity and intelligence there (and that includes the kids).

Lets get to those facts. One, I have kids who devour books, they pick 'em up, three at a time for the weekend. Two, those kids usually don't join the book club. They read too fast for the other kids and leave them in their dust. Three, the kids don't have money for books. Books are given as special treats. Four, poor time management is an incurable plague. Five, apathy is more detrimental than the time management.

To alleviate these issues I would buy all the books, but that meant that sometimes I was unable to get the titles they wanted in the time they wanted. What started out great usually fizzled to a few hard core folks who just like the library by the end of the year.

It is a new day people! The traditional once-a-month, ladieswholunch type book club is back! There will be themed snacks and book related games and door prizes, but just once a month. Sometimes the old way is the right way.

What kinds of programs have you had to scrap and retool?