The cathedral book reading group.

What brought your book group together?

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

In 1998 five friends, all members of the Episcopal Cathedral of St. Philip in Atlanta, decided at coffee hour after a Sunday service to start a book discussion group. Many of us would ask over coffee what the others were reading, and a book club seemed like an organized and natural development from these casual conversations.

What are your meetings like?

We meet at 7 p.m. on the second Friday of each month on a rotating basis in a member's home. We discuss the current month's title and follow it with a meal. The host chooses the menu, but all members contribute to the dinner. Occasionally the book will help select the type of meal. For example, when the group read Under the Tuscan Sun by Frances Mayes, we all brought Italian dishes and created a memorable meal! One bachelor fixed an excellent bean soup. We all gained confidence from this small triumph and now delight in planning and fixing the meal when our time to host comes. (THE bachelor is now married to another book group member.) One member--not the host--leads the discussion, but everyone participates in a lively back-and-forth dialogue.

Do you favor religious titles?

Not necessarily. Although our group's name is THE Cathedral Book Reading Group and all members are active in the Cathedral, our reading interests vary widely. However, we regard the cathedral parish as a natural resource to strengthen our discussions and book selections. When we read several books by C. S. Lewis, we invited a member of the parish who had known Lewis in England and had taught a course on him at a local university to lead the discussion. We read Viktor Frankl's Man's Search for Meaning and asked a clergyman, who is also a psychotherapist, to lead our discussion. We recently read Gilead by Marilynne Robinson and invited a young priest and his bride to lead our discussion. He had mentioned the book during a sermon a few weeks before, and his wife had just finished the book. Finally, several months ago we read Where God Was Born: A Journey by Land to the Roots of Religion by Bruce Feiler. He is the son of a well-known local family, and one of our members who had followed his career and traveled to the areas he had researched led our discussion.

How do you describe your group?

We all have an interest and commitment to good literature, but not necessarily to scholarly literature. One of our members is a published author and another works in a local bookstore. Others are a chef, an antiques dealer, an accountant, a musician, and a healthcare worker. All of us are also devoted book readers and love to share our enthusiasm for a good book.

How do you select your books?

Each year we ask all members to propose titles for the coming year and provide a brief summary of the book and a reason to select it. Then we choose our books by a written vote on all proposed titles and take the top 12. The range of our selections is broad: mystery, fiction, history, and biography. To give a flavor of our 2006 selections, we will read Strapless by Deborah Davis; Death in Holy Orders by P. D. James; The Botany of Desire by Michael Pollan; The Path Between the Seas by David McCullough; Interpreter of Maladies by Jhumpa Lahiri; Mark Twain: A Life by Ron Powers; and American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer by Kai Baird and Martin J. Sherwin. We do have a rule that all books must be readily available, preferably in soft cover, and must have fewer than 700 pages.

What have been your favorite books?

Angle of Repose by Wallace Stegner was a wonderful saga of the West and of a family through several generations. We thought the author's ability to weave a multigenerational story through several dissimilar characters was wondrous. THE book was heroic, sad, and always engaging. The Great Bridge and THE Path Between the Seas, both by David McCullough, were extended history lessons relating important parts of our recent past. They brilliantly portrayed the powerful, clever, and tragic figures that were larger than life in the closing years of the 19th century and in the early 20th century. Bel Canto by Ann Patchett and The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini were two of our favorite novels. Both told engaging stories with suspense and a rich development of characters. Both also had somewhat improbable endings, but they were narrated with skill and encouraged us to consider other books by those authors. We have also enjoyed the books in Alexander McCall Smith's mystery series, THE No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency, featuring Mma Precious Ramotswe and her friends. She always evokes smiles as we imagine her serving red bush tea and solving another mystery in Gaborone, Botswana.

What books have prompted the best discussions?

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon prompted lively discussion and an investigation into autism. We also read The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown with great anticipation. Unfortunately, many of us know our church history. Some of us were disappointed and felt Brown needlessly perpetrated fraud with his assertions. However, we all thought he wrote a very provocative best seller. In fact, most of us enjoyed the book, and the controversy provoked a vigorous discussion. Finally, we very much liked A Year of Wonders: A Novel of the Plague by Geraldine Brooks, but its improbable ending disappointed us.

What were your least favorite books?

Hirohito and the Making of Modern Japan by Herbert Bix was tedious and not worth the effort--nor was Hirohito an admirable person. Eleanor of Aquitaine by Alison Weir was not our favorite either. Not enough is definitely known about the mother of Richard the Lion-Hearted, so the biographer added other period material to flesh out the story. Villette by Charlotte Bronte was a second-rate story that didn't go anywhere. Many of our group found the premise of Dogs of Babel by Carolyn Parkhurst intriguing, but we were put off by the sadistic "club" that practiced surgery on the dogs in an attempt to make them speak. (One of our members is active in animal rescue and was disturbed by the practice.)

What advice can you give to others starting a book club?

One of our members recommended several extra glasses of wine--especially if the book is not one of your favorites and you want time to pass quickly! Others suggested that all members be involved in both book selection and book discussion and that all members read each book. This suggestion won't always work, but it virtually assures that the group's interest will remain high and that the book club will succeed.

ATLANTA, GEORGIA

Submitted by Richard Burgin

RELATED ARTICLE: TELL US ABOUT YOUR BOOK GROUP!

Send your profile and a photo to:

[e-mail] or Bookmarks / 1818 MLK Blvd #181 / Chapel Hill, NC 27514.

Book clubs featured in the magazine will also receive:

THE BOOK CLUB COOKBOOK

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

Recipes and Food for Thought from Your Book Club's Favorite Books and Authors

By Judy Gelman and Vicki Levy Krupp Featuring book recommendations and recipes to accompany your discussion.