Reading Women
Posted by: Ted Balcom
I was recently browsing through the new Libraries Unlimited catalog and came across an announcement for an upcoming book that sounds like it would interest many Buzz readers. It’s called Reading Women: A Book Club Guide for Women’s Fiction, and it will be published in January.
The publisher states that “the popularity of romance fiction has been unsurpassed for decades; but recently the popularity of its sister genres, chick lit and women’s fiction, has also grown…although some might argue that these genres offer little for reading group interaction, (the author) demonstrates quite the opposite, showing these books to be not only enjoyable, but often thought-provoking and eminently discussable.”
The author is Nanci Milone Hill, head of reference and information services at the Nevins Memorial Library in Methuen, Massachusetts, and she is a veteran book discussion leader and book reviewer. Her guide covers 100 titles from the genres of women’s fiction, romance, and chick lit. Each title is explored with background information on the author, bibliographic and series information, and a story synopsis. Discussion questions, lists of author web sites, and a sample of read-alikes are also included.
If you’re interested in planning discussion programs focusing on the works of say, Elizabeth Berg, Maeve Binchy, and Amy Tan, as well as many similar authors, this new guide should be worth looking into.
December 15th, 2009 at 12:34 pm
Thank you so much for including my upcoming book on your blog! I just wanted to point out that the estimated date of publication is May 2010, not January 2010. In addition, I am currently the Head of Readers’ Services at the Nevins Memorial Library, not the Head of Reference and Information Services. That was my title when the blurb first went up on the Libraries Unlimited site.
Again - thanks so much for including my book. It is a subject that is near and dear to me and I hope many find the guide useful.
December 23rd, 2009 at 4:04 pm
Yeah, I can’t wait that long Nanci. Tell them to speed it up!