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Reading clubs don't always go by the book - books N clubs - Brief Article - Directory
Black Issues Book Review, Jan-Feb, 2002 by Pat Houser
With fierce competition from book retailers and the prospect of an economic slowdown at hand, many black bookstores are struggling just to survive. One way that black bookstores are marketing themselves is by working with local book clubs to develop interest in not just books, but community issues as well. Many already played a vital role in educating and preserving black heritage, but some booksellers are expanding their audience by hosting impromptu discussions on various issues, especially in light of the September 11th attack.
"In the major press, people don't hear what the average black American is talking about," says O.B. Hill manager of Portland, Oregon's Reflections Coffee and Bookstore. "We bring people together to get the views and opinions of what's really going on in the black community." Bringing together its book club members, study-group participants and local residents, Reflections recently hosted a forum on war and slavery reparations.
"Book clubs that prepay for books and are faithful repeat customers can play a vital role in sustaining a local bookstore" says Carrie Cole of Dygnyti Books in Hamden, Connecticut. "We carry hard to find titles that aren't available in the chain stores. It is important that black bookstores are supported by reading groups and the community."
The following is an abbreviated list of book clubs affiliated with black bookstores. Become a member of the dub and purchase books from your local black bookseller.
ALABAMA Black Classics 2206-D Airport Blvd. Westwood Square Mobile, AL 36606; (251) 476-1060 CLUB NAME: Black Classics Book Club (20 members); every 1st Thursday RECENT READING: A Day Late and a Dollar Short by Terry McMillan CALIFORNIA Education 2000+ 309 Pine Avenue Long Beach, CA 90802; (562) 435-1199 CLUB NAME: Men's Reading Group; every 2nd Thursday RECENT READING: Race, Religion & Racism by Frederick K. Price CLUB NAME: Shar's Women's Reading Group; every 2nd Wednesday RECENT READING: Cane River by Lalita Tademy CLUB NAME: Our People Book Club (co-ed club); every 2nd Sunday. RECENT READING: The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison Marcus Books 3900 Martin Luther King Jr. Way Oakland, CA 94609; (510) 652-2344 CLUB NAME: Marcus Book Club; every 3rd Wednesday RECENT READING: The Prisoner's Wife by asha bandele FLORIDA Heritage Bookstore and More 2219 Fort Myers, FL 33901; (941) 337-1558 CLUB NAME: It's About Time; every 1st Wednesday RECENT READING: Ain't No River by Sharon Ewell Foster CLUB NAME: Mind, Body and Soul; every 1st Thursday RECENT READING: When All Hell Breaks Loose by Camika Spencer CLUB NAME: The Young Sista; every 2nd Monday RECENT READING: The Coldest Winter Ever by Sista Souljah MARYLAND Sibayne 4031 Rogers Avenue Baltimore, MD 21215; (410) 466-8924; SIBANYEINC@AOL.COM CLUB NAME: The Co-Ed Book Club (approx. 18 members); every 3rd Saturday RECENT READING: If He Hollers Let Him Go by Chester Himes NEW JERSEY Kujichgulia 150-154 Ellison St.; Patterson, NJ 07505; (973) 278-0919 CLUB NAME: Shades of Soul (for women only); every last Thursday RECENT READING: Rhythms by Donna Hill Serengeti Plains 615 Bloomfield Avenue Montclair, NJ 07042; (973) 783-2828 CLUB NAME: Serengeti Book Club ($66 membership fee) every six weeks Sunday RECENT READING: Black White and Jewish by Rebecca Walker NEW YORK Brownstone Books 409 Lewis Avenue Brooklyn, NY 11233; (718) 953-7328 CLUB NAME: Adult Book Club; every 3rd Wednesday RECENT READING: The Edge of Heaven by Marita Golden CLUB NAME: Teenage Book Club (14-18 yrs.); every 3rd Sunday RECENT READING: Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe CLUB NAME: Boys Book Club (8-12 yrs.) 3rd Saturday RECENT READING: Bad Boy by Walter Dean Myers CLUB NAME: Girls Book Club (8-12 yrs.) 2nd Saturday RECENT READING: The Magical Adventures of Pretty Pearl by Virginia Hamilton Sisters Uptown Bookstore 1942 Amsterdam Avenue New York, NY 10032; 212-862-3680 CLUB NAME: Sisters Uptown Bookstore Book Club; every last Saturday. RECENT READING: The Flip Side of Sin by Rosalyn McMillan That Old Black Magic 163 Mamaroneck Avenue White Plains, NY 10601; (914) 328-7212 CLUB NAME: The Reading Group; every 2nd Thursday RECENT READING: The Justus Girls by Slim Lambright OREGON Reflections Coffee & Bookstore Walnut Park Retail Center 446 NE Killingsworth Street; Portland, OR 97211 CLUB NAME: Reflections Book Club; meets monthly on Saturday RECENT READING: What You Owe Me by Bebe Moore Campbell CLUB NAME: Study Group; meets monthly (call for details) RECENT READING: Powernomics by Claude Anderson TEXAS The Black Bookworm 605 E. Berry St. Fort Worth, TX 76014; (817) 923-9661 CLUB NAME: The Book Bookworm Book Club; every 3rd Sunday RECENT READING: The Red Tent by Anita Diamant Cush City 13559 Bammel N. Houston Rd. Houston, TX 77066; (281) 444-4265 CLUB NAME: Cush City Reading Group; every 2nd Sunday RECENT READING: Guys In Suits by Van Whitfield WASHINGTON Sisterspace and Books 1354 U Street, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20009; (202) 332-3433 CLUB NAME: Women of the African Diaspora Literary Book Club; every 1st Saturday RECENT READING: The Red Moon by Kuwana Haulsey
COPYRIGHT 2002 Cox, Matthews & Associates
COPYRIGHT 2002 Gale Group
