Hands up who has a pile of books on their nightstand that you have PLANNED to delve into every night until your phone distracts you.
If you need a push to pick up a book (and actually read it till the end), a book club could be the perfect solution.
As the old saying goes "don’t judge a book by its cover", but in fact many of us do. I for one am guilty of this and I won’t even pick a book up unless I’m intrigued by the title and image on the front cover. By going with the flow and reading the assigned book club book, you’d be surprised how interesting it can be to devour something outside your comfort zone.
Many of us were told by teachers that the best way to get better at writing is to read more. I’ve also noticed that all the authors I follow on Instagram are avid readers themselves. It makes sense; to be able to write well, you need to live and breathe books. As much as I love reality TV, I know full well it does nothing for my brain. Unfortunately, just because I enjoy watching 'Selling Sunset', it’s not going to help me become a high-flying L.A realtor.
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As a parent, we all need a bit of escapism in our lives and while books themselves certainly provide that, book clubs ramp it up even more. Getting out and chatting to people about something completely unrelated to your everyday life is something that should be prescribed for parents. It’s certainly a great way to improve your mental health.
And while the other members of the book club are likely to be strangers initially, a few months down the line, you might even make some friends. While the book club is where you met, that’s not to say you can’t arrange other meet-ups too. If they’re also parents, no doubt you have similar interests (e.g coffee) and similar schedules.
Some book clubs instantly went virtual (due to the virus that shall not be named) and while some have returned to being in-person, others remain online. While getting out the house is often a goal for many of us, if you have young kids and it’s simply not practical, online is the way to go.
So, what are you waiting for? Stop telling your kids to pick up a book and let them be inspired by the fact that you’re a wiggly bookworm yourself!
