My book club nearly fell apart over a footnote in 'Beloved' last Tuesday

We spent 45 minutes arguing about whether Sethe's choice was justified or not, and our moderator threatened to quit after someone called her take 'too academic'. Has anyone else had a single debate spiral so bad it killed the vibe for the whole night?

3 comments

3 Comments

roberts.leo4d ago

Wait, 45 minutes on one footnote and the moderator threatened to quit? That feels a little dramatic honestly. Like are we really out here letting a book club about a novel turn into some kind of court case over a character's choice? I get that people get passionate but calling someone's take "too academic" is just a stupid way to shut down a convo, not actually a club crisis. Maybe the group needs to chill out and remember they're all just talking about a story, not solving world hunger or something. A talking stick rule sounds cute but if someone's ego is that fragile that they can't handle a disagreement about fiction, maybe they need a different hobby.

aaron7405d ago

My old book club had the exact same thing happen with a passage in "The Road" about the father's decision. We set a rule that works pretty well now - anyone can call a "time out" if a debate goes over 10 minutes, and we table it for the end. Saves the vibe for everyone. Also started using a talking stick thing, sounds silly but stops people from talking over each other. The moderator should just let folks know it's okay to disagree without making it personal.

claire_davis314d ago

Love the talking stick idea honestly. We did something similar with a little plastic dinosaur and it cut down on so much of the chaos. The 10 minute rule is smart too because sometimes people just need to agree to disagree and move on. Makes the whole thing feel less like a fight and more like actually sharing thoughts.