Book Groups

We love talking about books almost as much as we enjoy reading them. Our book groups cover a wide variety of fiction and non-fiction. Copies of the book in discussion are often available throughout the partnership. 

Genealogy Book Group

  • Certain Saturdays, 3:30–5pm
  • Blackfoot Room (*except where indicated)

We read mostly non-fiction books featuring a genealogy or family history theme. Open to anyone who likes discussing interesting books – genealogy experience is not required.

 

If you’d like to participate in this group, email Desirée at with “Genealogy Book Group” in the subject line.

Discussion Titles:

2024

  • Mar 2: The Last Slave Ship: The True Story of How Clotilda Was Found, Her Descendants, and an Extraordinary Reckoning by Ben Raines (*Ellingson)
  • Apr 13: Last Rites: The Evolution of the American Funeral by Todd Harra
  • May 11: The Forever Witness: How DNA and Genealogy Solved A Cold Case Double Murder by Edward Humes
  • Jun 8: The Lost Family: How DNA Testing is Upending Who We Are by Libby Copeland
  • Jul 6: Mutinous Women: How French Convicts Became Founding Mothers of the Gulf Coast by Joan Dejean (*Ellingson)
  • Aug 3: Over My Dead Body: Unearthing the Hidden History of America’s Cemeteries by Greg Melville
  • Sep 14: Wandering in Strange Lands: A Daughter of the Great Migration Reclaims Her Roots by Morgan Jenkins
Genealogy Book Group
2nd Wednesday Book Group

2nd Wednesday Book Group

  • 2nd Wednesday, 6:30pm
  • Blackfoot Room & Virtual Event

This group reads a variety of fiction and nonfiction titles selected by participants every spring. Discussions facilitated by members.

 

To join online, email Christine at with “2nd Wednesday Book Group” in the subject line (please send email prior to day of discussion).

Discussion Titles:

2023

  • December 13 – The Sentence: A Novel, by Louise Erdrich

2024

  • January 10 – Libertie: A Novel, by Kaitlyn Greenidge

  • February 14 – Empire of Pain: The Secret History of the Sackler Dynasty, by Patrick Radden Keefe

  • March 13 – The Maid: A Novel, by Nita Prose

  • April 10 – Housekeeping, by Marilynne Robinson

  • May 8 – Memphis: A Novel, by Tara Stringfellow

  • June 12 – Night of the Living Rez, by Morgan Talty

  • July 10 – Women Talking: A Novel, by Miriam Toews

  • August 14 – Harlem Shuffle, by Colson Whitehead

  • September 11 – To the Lighthouse, by Virginia Woolf

3rd Wednesday Book Group

  • 3rd Wednesday, 6:30 pm
  • Blackfoot Room

We read a wide variety of fiction and nonfiction titles, primarily from the Book Chat Bag collections of MPL and its Partner Libraries. This lively book discussion group is facilitated by a librarian. New members are always welcome! See calendar for upcoming titles. 

 

If you are interested in participating in this discussion, email Pam at with the “3rd Wednesday Book Group” in the subject line.

Discussion Titles:

  • February – Washington Black by Esi Edugyan

  • March – Paradise by Abduzazal Gurnah

  • April – When Paris Sizzled by Mary Auliffe

  • May – In the Garden of Beasts by Erik Larson

  • June – The Guncle: a novel by Steven Rowley

  • July – Dinosaurs by Lydia Millet

  • August – Small Things Like These by Claire Keegan

  • September – Small Mercies by Dennis Lahane

  • October – The Personal Librarian by Marie Benedict

  • November – Shrines of Gaiety by Kate Atkinson

  • December- The Sympathizer by Nguyen Viet Thanh

  • January 2025 – Gender Queer, A Memoir by Marie Kobabe
3rd Wednesday Book Group

Book Group Resources:

Novelist Plus: your one-stop shop for book club resources. Choose Quick Links/Book Club Resources.
Book Kits: make organizing your next book discussion easy.

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