1. Group Composition
a. Group membership is capped at the current 12 members and will be known as CFN Book Group 1.
b. Additional CFN members wishing to join a book group should contact the Book Group Coordinator,* who will facilitate the start-up of CFN Book Group 2 once there are 6 interested members (this could include members of Group 1 who want to move to a smaller group). Group 2 may choose to follow the same organizational guidelines as Group 1 or develop their own charter. New groups will continue to start up following this process.
c. Members of any CFN book group no longer wishing to participate should notify the Coordinator who will then make that space available to a new member.
2. Book Selection
a. Book selection will be done on a 6-book cycle via the submission of up to 3 suggestions per member (include title, author, 2-3 sentence description, and anything else pertinent to selection) to the Coordinator. The Coordinator will e-mail the compiled list of suggestions to the members who will e-mail back their top 6 choices. The 6 selections with the most votes will make the schedule. Those books not chosen will remain on the list for the next 6-book selection cycle.
b. There are no off-limit topics.
c. There is no page count limit.
d. Both fiction and non-fiction books are acceptable, with the intent that the majority be fiction.
e. Books that have already been read by a member or members are acceptable.
f. If at any time a member is opposed to a particular selection (due to content, length, etc.) s/he may choose to skip that selection.
3. Facilitating Discussions
a. At the end of each meeting, the group will solicit a volunteer for the next meeting’s facilitation. The Facilitator is responsible for transitioning the group from social time to the book discussion. Facilitators may choose to provide author information or simply throw out the first question. The Facilitator is also responsible for informing the group when it is time to wrap-up the discussion (i.e., 10 minute mark) and soliciting volunteers for the next meeting’s facilitation and snacks.
b. Each member should come with questions to assist the discussion.
c. Members may attend if they have not read or finished a selection, but must realize that the group will be discussing the book in its entirety.
d. Members can participate or not at their will.
e. Members should be sensitive to the personal nature of some discussions in terms of taking that information outside the meeting.
4. Meeting Logistics
a. Meetings will be held roughly every 6th Wednesday and will be scheduled on a 6-meeting basis.
b. Meetings will take place from 7 pm to 9 pm, with the first half hour devoted to socializing. Book discussions will begin promptly at 7:30 pm.
c. Assuming availability, all meetings will be held in the Concord Free Library in the Community Meeting Room, which is located in the basement near the back staircase. The library closes at 9 pm, so there is a hard stop to all discussions at that time.**
d. At the end of each meeting, the group will solicit a volunteer to bring snacks to the next meeting (the official library policy is no snacks, but they are allowed as long as there is no mess left behind, so keep that in mind when planning). Members should bring their own drinks, if desired.
e. The group will meet regardless of the number of attendees, but members may choose to contact that meeting’s Facilitator as an FYI.
f. The Coordinator will maintain a member contact list with e-mail addresses and phone numbers and will distribute it to the group.
g. The current 6-book selection list, along with updates on volunteers for facilitation and snacks will be posted in the Book Group portion of the CFN web site. There is no plan to post the member contact list on the CFN web site, unless the group unanimously votes to do so.
5. Evaluation
a. There will be a status check at the start of every 3rd meeting to ensure the group is meeting everyone’s needs. If significant issues are raised at this time, a separate meeting will be scheduled to discuss them.
* As of 09/2005, the Book Group Coordinator is Kristi Detweiler; detmail@hotmail.com or 978-369-9963.
** If either space or time becomes an issue, First Connections on the grounds of Emerson Hospital also has a room available. Contact Linda or Ellen at First Connections to schedule.