Putting together a book club with speakers is not labor intensive; a small group can do it easily.
Select a Venue
Begin by approaching local bookstores to gauge interest – independent bookshops that already organize book clubs are your best bet. If no independent bookshops exist in your area, try chain stores such as Borders, Barnes and Noble, etc. If bookshops cannot help, you can still create a book club yourself. Create a budget. While bookshops advertise their own book clubs, you can help by investing a small amount in your own advertising – flyers to post in bookshops, area businesses, community calendar listings, etc . As an alternative to bookstores, you can also approach local organizations such as churches, coffeehouses, and restaurants with space and a willingness to accommodate speakers. If the organization, coffee shop, or restaurant has an established mailing or e-mail list, ask if your book club can be advertised on this list.
Decide on Your Audience
Who is your target audience: university students, retirees, etc.? How much scientific knowledge should you expect on the part of readers? If your local bookshop(s) has a programming person, meet with him/her to discuss potential audiences.
Set Your Goals
What are your expectations for the book club and what do you want members to take away from the experience? This is heavily dependent on audience and will influence book choices. Do you want to reach out to people with no knowledge of science and show them that science is not terrifying and even fun? Will this be a book club aimed at other chemical engineers with a taste for literature? Do you want to find books that connect to local issues? You must decide on your goals before choosing books.
Choose Your Books
This is where local bookshops can be helpful. They know what people like to read and may be able to help with books that connect to topics of local relevance as well as broader themes. Books must be easily accessible, i.e. still in print. For most book club audiences, literary value will trump scientific importance in what is likely to attract readers. That means when choosing books for these audiences, story comes first. With that in mind, below are a few suggestions to get you started:
The Demon Under the Microscope by Thomas Hager (2007) A well-paced, people-focused story about the birth of antibiotics by a renowned science writer. The same author also wrote an engrossing book on Fritz Haber called, The Alchemy of Air: A Jewish Genius, a Doomed Tycoon, and the Scientific Discovery That Fed the World but Fueled the Rise of Hitler.
Ghost Walk by Rebecca Stott (2007) This books falls under the category of literary fiction; it’s a modern murder mystery with its origins in 17th-century Cambridge and Isaac Newton’s alchemy.
The Periodic Table by Primo Levi (1975) Short stories by Italian chemist Primo Levi, all connected to chemistry in some way. In 2006, the Royal Institution named it the best science book ever written.
The Emperor of Scent by Chandler Burr (2003) Links chemistry and the art of crafting perfumes. The book also describes the ups and downs of research and how scientific knowledge grows.
The Age of Wonder by Richard Holmes (2009) This is a history of science of the late 18th and early 19th century, a time when Romantic enthusiasm swept through science. It covers the major British figures of the time, and appeals to both scientists and non-scientists. Time magazine called it the “most fascinating book of the year.”
Uncle Tungsten by Oliver Sacks (2002) A memoir by Oliver Sacks, a neurologist and a brilliant writer. Uncle Tungsten covers his early interest in chemistry.
Four Laws that Drive the Universe (2007), Galileo’s Finger: The Ten Great Ideas of Science (2003), or The Periodic Kingdom (1997) by Peter Atkins Readers of these books by the science writer and professor of chemistry at the University of Oxford don’t require a chemistry background, but they should be someone who would like to know more about science.
Rosewood’s Ashes (2002), Affirmative Reaction and Framework for Death (both 2000), or Engineered for Murder (1996) by Aileen Schumacher The engineer and author of the Tory Travers mystery series sets her books, which feature a woman engineer, in Texas and New Mexico. Some are available as audio books. Health issues have suspended her writing in recent years, although she remains a professional engineer and certified hazardous materials handler.
Line up Speakers for the Books
Speakers must be engaging and have the ability to speak to a general audience. Most can be found at universities – science, medicine, history, anthropology, and fine arts departments are good places to search. Don’t assume each speaker must be a chemist. Ask your university’s news bureau and the editors of publications such as research magazines and college and departmental newsletters for advice on suitable speakers. For example, The Demon Under the Microscope could be accompanied by anyone with a connection to infectious diseases – historians of science and medicine, anthropologists, archeologists, or scientists working on current disease challenges. Doomsday Book could be accompanied by a historian of science who can discuss changing understandings of chemistry/science through history. Speakers do not necessarily have to speak about the book itself, but can use the book to connect to similar themes. Be creative in matching speakers and books. Speakers should, however, have some familiarity with the book’s contents.
Check out Your Competition
How many other book clubs exist in your area? Perhaps you can work with an existing book club to create a program or create a new book club from members of various other book clubs.
Promotion
Decide if you wish to open the talks to more than just book club members. If your book club is small, opening up the talks may be a way to attract new members and make the events more attractive to speakers. Get the word out to the people you wish to attend the talks. Do not rely solely on your venue partner to bring in your audience. Use local calendar listings such as those in newspapers and universities. (Note that calendar listings have cut off dates – make sure to get your information to the person in charge of calendar listings well before deadlines.) If any speakers are university-based, involve the institution in promotion efforts. Contact local press who cover science, education, or community events, post flyers in surrounding businesses, send e-mails to your contacts and ask them to do the same. If you have the money, advertise on local media.
Stay Organized
Make sure your speaker(s) and venue partners have all the information they need as soon as it is available. Share your publicity plans and make sure everyone involved has any written materials and descriptions so they can help publicize.
Follow up
Make sure to thank venue hosts and speakers. The project team should meet after the first book club event to discuss how successful it was, what could have gone better, and what you will do differently for your next event. Also, make sure to get feedback from book club members on what worked and what did not work.
