While America slowly reopens and society starts to climb its way back to normal, there may be some who are still skeptical about getting out and about. For homebodies and people who prefer to stay indoors, there is still a way to experience the world without ever having to leave your house.
It’s amazing how thoroughly a good book can transport you beyond the confines of your home. And what's more fun than sharing the joy with others? You may be surprised at how beneficial participating in a book club may be both from an intellectual and communal standpoint.
Books are one of the greatest sources of knowledge. While the internet is more accessible, print is oftentimes more peer-reviewed and therefore more accurate. Nonfiction works, biographies, memoirs and other primary sources are a great way to learn about history, science, politics and anything else worthy of research.
The human mind is a muscle that needs to be used frequently to keep it sharp. Reading stretches those muscles and keeps your brain functioning while improving comprehension. Books can educate anybody at any age so long as they take the time to sit down and read them.
Beyond instructing, reading can serve to inform people of past or current events, cultures or subjects. It can stretch into the future to presuppose or it can be a simple advent of entertainment just like watching television, but more interactive and fruitful.
Reading is one of the most accessible hobbies while still being easy on your wallet. With self-publishing on the rise and more titles published in the last several hundred years alone than one could ever read, there will always be fresh content available for both technology users and old-school print-lovers.
Small bookstores still exist in many American towns, and Amazon can help fill the gaps left by local shops. If books start piling up and taking up too much space at home, donate old books to a local school to share your reading list with the next generation. Alternatively, Amazon sells digital tablets to store your libraries of digital books, letting you swipe through and save your spot on as many books as you like all on one single tablet — a great space-saving tip for seniors in assisted living communities.
If you aren't into purchasing books for further re-reads, check out your local library. Libraries are often free to join, and getting a library card is easy. Not to mention the fact that it unlocks thousands of titles to be read and enjoyed.
Perhaps the best part of reading is the ability to share the literary experience with others. There are many ways to go about this, and one is starting a book club with people you know. Chances are you may know other avid readers who would be interested in reading alongside others and discussing books.
For people of faith, book clubs can also be used as a devotional time or a Bible study. Not only does this provide an outlet for worship during the weekdays, but it also forms a new fellowship through faith to explore His Word together. Study groups can either read the Bible together or read through a daily devotional book and share their experiences during sessions.
You can meet in person or online. With the internet, people can now discuss books with people they know and strangers via online forums, literary communities and media pages. Taking your reading one step further and discussing it with others helps you to synthesize and express your opinions on it while also engaging with the thoughts of others. Bonding around your common hobbies helps you strengthen your current relationships or forge new ones with people across any distance.
Book clubs have a myriad of options when it comes to deciding content. There are enough genres in fiction to sate any kind of taste. There are adventure, fantasy and sci-fi novels for lovers of action and storytelling, and there are excellent biographies and nonfiction works across all fields of study and intrigue.
There are also romance novels for more tender audiences who enjoy a good love story. For more artsy people, there’s also poetry and plays from America and beyond that have been translated and made available to the common public. Finally, there are historical novels for history aficionados and several classic novels that have risen to prominence since their publishing.
Whatever your taste or interest, there is something for you to read and enjoy. Once you finish one book you may find that the sense of accomplishment that follows is enough to make you want to finish another book. And another. Soon, you may have a library's worth of knowledge stockpiled in your brain. Click here for some suggestions on where to start.
If you love reading, are looking for a new hobby, or yearn for a way to interact and connect with others in your community, starting a book club can not only relieve you of boredom, but instill creativity, curiosity and a chance to reach out to others. Start one in your neighborhood or with other residents at Bethesda Gardens assisted living community in Frisco today!
