The Book Club
BY SOPHIA VILENSKY
When I moved to the western suburbs at the ripe old age of 23, I was considerably nervous about how my social life would fare. My neighbors were lovely, but mostly retired. They could offer me dinner parties with fancy wine and good stories, but what did I have to offer them? Certainly not lived experience. I didn’t even know how to take care of my lawn.
A photo of the book club at their annual Christmas party.
Then, the woman across the street asked me if I was a reader. (Could she tell I’d been an inside kid, based on the way I was weeding?) When I said yes, she came over with a stack of books. When I made it through them, she invited me to join her book club.
26 or 27 years ago—time flies when you’re having fun—a group of Minneapolis-based flight attendants started a book club*, kicking things off with Chris Bohjalian’s Midwives. Some tennis friends also joined the club, and soon enough, they had a pretty strong group going. Despite moves, growing families (and shrinking, once the nests began to empty), job changes, and all the other things that go down over the course of 30 years, attendance hasn’t dwindled. Most of the original group retain their membership cards, even though they’ve hung up their wings.
Every few Saturdays in the Western suburbs, you’ll find the ladies meeting. They take turns picking books and hosting their friends with corresponding food, drink, and—naturally—thrilling conversation. Nicolette Randall of Chanhassen, Minnesota, my neighbor, saw the switch from Northwest to Delta before retiring from tending patrons of the skies. Today, she puts her hospitality skills to use for the yearly Halloween book club. Guests come in book-related costumes. She cooks. We laugh. The first time I was invited to the club, we read Louise Erdrich’s The Sentence and told our own ghost stories. The following year, it was Emilia Hart’s Weyward.
If you think about it, it makes sense that a club like this would thrive in Minnesota. Think of the cold, cold winter—what better activity is there than cozying up with a book? Now, think of a balmy summer day. Taking a book to the lake sounds lovely, doesn’t it? Life is fairly slow around here, and books allow us to travel while retaining some of that good Midwestern creature comfort. We have great libraries and bookstores here, too. There’s Excelsior Bay Books (a book club favorite), Magers & Quinn, Wild Rumpus, SubText (don’t forget the airport location!), Milkweed, and Content in Northfield. The worldwide phenomenon Little Free Library nonprofit organization is based in St. Paul.
And you know what else Minnesotans like? Shared experiences. There’s something so comforting about making it through a snowstorm together. Hotdish was made to feed a whole crew.
While so many book clubs eventually devolve into something a little less literary and a little more hangout-centric, this one never lost its basis. Sure, the meetings are fun and the conversations are fruitful. Members take time to catch up and play games. But they also always, always talk about the book. They know each other’s tastes (Jude gets grossed out easily and Pam—she’s the one responsible for starting the club—likes a story that really makes you think) and respect each other’s picks. The biggest rule? Everyone has to say something about the book they just read. There are no silent attendees; each member has a voice and a respected opinion.
Though those flight attendants had all the traveling opportunities imaginable, something prompted them to escape together, month after month, through book after book. In each other’s living rooms, they tie everything they learn via their novel or non-fiction to their lived experiences. And while they might not take to the skies as often, I can assure you they’re still traveling together, near and far.
*That’s the name of it, by the way: just book club. A classic moniker, and I know there are chapters all over the Twin Cities. Join one! Or start your own? The one rule is that you come with something to say. If you don’t yet have your own brilliant life stories to share, you’ll at least have a story to talk about.
Sophie Vilensky
Sophie Vilensky (or Sophia, if you met her in second grade or she’s feeling fancy) is a Minnesota-based beauty, wellness, and entertainment writer who loves stone fruit and reality TV.
