If you’ve been looking for something to add to your reading list, the Great Group Reads committee has released its 2013 list for books in celebration of National Reading Group Month.
2013 Selections
Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Beautiful Ruins by Jess Walter
Big Brother by Lionel Shriver
A Constellation of Vital Phenomena by Anthony Marra
David by Ray Robertson
The House Girl by Tara Conklin
How It All Began by Penelope Lively
Is This Tomorrow by Caroline Leavitt
Life After Life by Kate Atkinson
Margot by Jillian Cantor
Mary Coin by Marisa Silver
The Middlesteins by Jami Attenberg
Nowhere Is a Place by Bernice L. McFadden
The One-Way Bridge by Cathie Pelletier
Ordinary Grace by William Kent Krueger
The Other Typist by Suzanne Rindell
The Round House by Louise Erdrich
Schroder by Amity Gaige
Sparta by Roxana Robinson
Wash by Margaret Wrinkle
The Yellow Birds by Kevin Powers
Committee members included our own Roz Reisner, Rachel Slaiman, Pamela Milam, Quressa Robinson, and Linda Rosen. Be sure to send them your thanks and congratulations on a job well-done!
Here, Pamela Milam shares her experience being on the committee:
In January of this year, I sent an email to Roz Reisner and requested a position on the 2013 Great Group Reads Selection Committee. My email said, “I understand there will be many people who express an interest in joining the committee, so I won’t be shy about telling you how excited I would be to join.” The next day, Roz replied yes, and I was thrilled.
We had five months to read almost twenty-five books. The selection committee held robust discussions in a private online blog, debating which books were best suited for book clubs and choosing our favorites. We exchanged ideas and opinions, and we learned from each other along the way. Reading some books we might not have chosen on our own, we broadened our interests, discovered some gems, and deepened our sense of what it means to be readers. Two personal highlights for me: Reading Life After Life by Kate Atkinson, and meeting Roz who steered the committee with kindness and expert skill.
While some of my friends thought I was lucky to be involved, others wondered if I was crazy, spending a large portion of my summer on the couch reading. After experiencing it, I can tell you that I was lucky to be involved. It’s something I highly recommend and would love to do again. If you like to read, to encounter new ideas and meet other readers, then join or start a book club and explore the Great Group Reads selections this year.
Check back on the blog for information about next month’s exciting Great Group Reads/National Reading Group Month event!
