Falling into a good book

Published 7:01 am Sunday, September 21, 2014

While there’s still plenty of chances to get out this autumn, the season is also a great time to take in a great book. Here are a few of the local book clubs in Austin.

Mystery Book Club

Types of books: Murder mysteries.

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Upcoming reads: At 7 p.m. on Oct. 13, the group will discuss “Sweeping Up Glass” by Carolyn D. Wall at the Austin Public Library. The club on Nov. 10 will discuss “And She Was” by Alison Gaylin, and the Dec. 8 meeting will discuss “Big Wheat” by Richard A. Thompson.

Meetings: The group meets the second Monday of every month, usually at the Austin Public Library, but occasionally elsewhere, so anyone new planning to attend should contact Lisa A. Lundquist at 507-529-0272 or at llundquist6893@charter.net.

How to join: New members are welcome, and joining is easy: just show up and continue to show up. “We are very fun, and while there are discussion questions, we often get derailed and end up discussing very random and far-ranging topics,” Lundquist said in an email.

 St. Olaf Lutheran Church Study Groups

Thursday Morning Book Study Group

Group began more than 40 years ago to serve people who were still working. Now most members are retired, and it’s an informal group.

Types of books: Members select both current fiction and non-fiction books.

Recent/upcoming reads: Group always selects the Page Turners’ choice. Others: “Children’s Blizzard,” “Driftless,” “Leaving Church’ and ‘The Gold Finch.”

Meets: Weekly at 7 a.m. Thursday morning in the meeting room at St. Olaf Church. Meets year-round.

How to join: Not restricted to church members. All are welcome. Just come in or call 507-433-3553. Members often breakfast together after the discussion

 First Monday Book Study Group

Types of Books: Members select both fiction and non-fiction books.

Recent/Upcoming Reads: Members always read the Page Turners’ choice.

Others: The Round House, I Am Ma La La, Unbroken, Invention of Wings, Little Wolves

Meets: At 10 a.m on the first Monday of the month, but moves to the second Monday if the first is a holiday. Meets year round.

How to join: Open to all. Not restricted to church members. All are welcome. Just come in or call 507-433-3553. Members often breakfast together after the discussion

 Ladies Floral Book Club

The Ladies Floral Club of Austin was founded in 1869 for the purpose of developing a lending library for the city of Austin as well as developing taste and skill in floriculture. While the interest in floriculture is no longer a primary aim of the group, it still exists to support the Austin Public Library and continues to welcome new members. It is only natural that a book group is part of this organization. Books selected meet the following criteria: They are neither religious nor political in nature. They are widely available through the Austin Public Library and/or interlibrary loan so that purchasing a book is not necessary. A classic is read yearly.

Recent reads: “The Book Thief” by Markus Zusak, “The Orphan Train” by Christina Baker Kline, “The Goldfinch” by Donna Tartt, “Rebecca” by Daphne du Maurier and “Tender at the Bone” by Ruth Reichl.

Meetings: The book group meets monthly January through October — the club takes off November and December — at the Austin Country Club to discuss a book.

How to join: New members welcome. For information on this book group or about becoming a member of the Ladies Floral Club, contact Sally Baker at 507-433-2167 or Ann Hokanson at the Austin Public Library.

 Austin Page Turners

Activities: Members choose one book a year by a Minnesota author for a city-wide book read.

Upcoming events: Members are presently reading several books by Minnesota authors, and we will choose one for the April 2015 project.

Meetings: Riverland Community College Library at various times are set up by the group

How to join: Contact Bonnie Rietz at bonnie_rietz@hotmail.com.

 Genre Hoppers

Club is for teens and young adults.

Reads: The group assigns genres, not specific books. A monthly genre is selected and teens can pick any book within the genre. More details on upcoming letters can be found in the library’s online newsletter.

Upcoming reads: In October, teens can read a supernatural book and attend a discussion at the library at 7 p.m. Oct. 6.

Meetings: Monthly meetings are advertised in the library as part of library program.

How to join: No registration needed. Interested teens can simply show up.