Before the meeting begins Checklist

1. Remind everyone of the purpose of the meeting/discussions in a circle so that every team member can see one another.

2. Remind members there is a limited time to speak and comment on another person’s presentation. We can limit the initial discussion time to 2 minutes and 1 minute to comment on what another person has said. The leader will interject with anyone who cannot observe the 2- and 1-minute speaking time limit. The leaders may say, hey Abu, that is great and well said. But let’s give another person the chance to speak.

3. The leader should also remind members to be courteous. No need to describe someone’s opinion or the authors or characters in the books as not sense or irrelevant…What about saying thank you for the comment, but I beg to differ, or this is how I think about the book, the character, the theme, or the plot.

4. Confirm the date/time and location for the next meeting. Depending on the general host, administrative staff, or the permanent leader, the hosting of the discussion should rotate each month. Any person who selects the monthly book should host the next meeting.

There are six permanent leaders of the club. They serve voluntarily. They are the following:

1. Program Facilitator

2. Logistic Coordinator

3. Communication Coordinator

4. Activity Coordinator

5. Timekeeper

6. Recorder

Starting the meeting:

• Welcome members: I appreciate you all attending today. We have a lot to cover today, so we really should begin.

• The host will take charge of the meeting and the discussion.

• We should discuss only one topic at a time.

• Sometimes, the host will pass a token around. The person holding the token becomes the next speaker.

If the meeting is 1 to 2 hours, we will spend about 15 minutes on social activities such as eating, smoking, laughing, or catching up. We will also spend about 5 minutes handling logistic or administrative matters. We will use the rest of the time discussing the book.

Anyone can propose a place to host the club discussions as long as the majority of members approve.

We encourage our Modern Book Club members to frame the book in three situations: The existing condition, the emergent outcomes, and the emergent benefits.

1. The existing problem: Before reading the book, you should understand your current situation, behavior, condition, or state of mind regarding the book.

2. The emergent outcomes describe the impacts of reading the book, what becomes of you and how you think and behave after reading the book.

3. The emergent benefits are the incredible things, knowledge, experience, and change in behaviors or opinion you have learned from reading the book.

The answer depends on who is discussing the book and what genre of literature or books we are talking about. In order words, we must be creative in posing questions relevant to the book we are discussing. Most book clubs discuss answers to questions such as:

1. What is the significance of the title?

2. Would you have given the book a different title? If so, why?

3. What were the major themes of the book?

4. How did the book make you feel?

5. How do you feel about how the story was told?

6. What did you think about the main characters?

7. Which parts of the book stood out to you?

8. What themes did you detect in the story?

9. What did you think about the ending?

10. What is your impression of the author?