Alas, the Notting Hill Napoleons, our unique and highly esteemed book club which enjoyed 30 years of reading classic works of fiction is no more. With changes in schedules, priorities, energy levels, and resident locations — one of our founding members lives in Florida now with two others living in heaven — we disbanded the Napoleons two years ago. But Claire and I miss those monthly book fellowships very much as well as the autumn weekend retreat we enjoyed together when we “took over” a bed and breakfast inn to discuss our annual Charles Dickens novel and to enjoy each other’s company amid very pleasant surroundings.
The Napoleons provided several important blessings for us: extremely valuable stimulation and accountability to read quality literature, an improvement in our literary criticism skills, the special inspiration that comes from reading and discussing books with ministry colleagues, and an increased understanding of the world and our principled response to it.
We remain close friends, of course, with all the former Napoleons. And we still deeply appreciate the “ripple effects” of those 30 years. However, we are all dealing with what is almost inevitable when a book club ends; that is, a serious decline not only in the number of books a person reads, but also in the quality of the books which do get read. And the absence of our monthly discussions means that those stretching, sharpening conversations over books are not happening.
So, what to do? If we believe that reading noble literature remains of great relevance to our intellectual and spiritual growth, how are we pursuing that goal in the post-Napoleon era? Here are the things Claire and I are doing.
1) We remind each other of how easily it is to pass by the bookshelves on our way to social media, You Tube surfing, or streaming television. Just as one knows that a green salad topped with salmon is a healthier choice than biscuits and gravy, one knows that reading Robert Louis Stevenson or William Shakespeare or a commentary on John’s gospel are healthier choices than scrolling through Facebook for humorous memes or playing solitaire on your smartphone. But, let’s face it; despite our knowing what’s best for us, the lure of the easier, more comfortable, lazier options is often oh-so-strong. An effort is required to make the best choices…and helping each other to exercise discernment and diligence is invaluable.
2) In order to keep the “need to read” before us, Claire and I have for many, many years included Reading among our categories of New Year Resolutions. That also means not only the initial resolve, but purposeful prayer, mutual encouragement and accountability, and making quarterly evaluations of how well (or weak) we are doing.
3) We find it is helpful to keep lists of what we read. And in my case, I also assign ratings to those books. This is especially helpful in considering future reading choices because the lion’s share of my reading is re-reading. We also bring planning to our reading discipline. For instance, I try to keep some degree of a balance regarding reading genres — so much classic literature, so much theology and Christian living, so much politics and culture, and so much recreational reading. There are also several favorites that I make sure I read every other year (or every 3rd or 7th year or whatever.)
And finally, 4) It is probable that Claire and I will never again find a book club of any comparison to the Notting Hill Napoleons. (Though, I admit to still cherishing hopes!) But that doesn’t mean that we stop trying to utilize whatever “book partnerships” we can come up with to help keep us reading “good stuff” and being able to interact with friends about what we’re reading. Claire sometimes persuades friends to join her in reading Jan Karon novels; I occasionally have close friends agree to reading the same books with a view to exchanging views; and there remains the quarterly Book Brunch discussions that Vital Signs Ministries offers. Indeed, we have one coming up on —- dealing with a provocative treatment of spiritual warfare as we talk about our responses to Randy Alcorn’s classic Lord Foulgrin’s Letters. (Details on that are right here.)
In summary, reading quality literature is very important to us. Therefore, whatever help we can get in our pursuit of this intention is very important to us also. And so, if you perhaps feel the same, consider checking in with us (or with other friends of yours) and see if we can’t make a better job of staying with it.