Six days ago, I attended — for the second time — a monthly book reading session hosted by a club formed a year ago.
What made this book reading club unique is how it only selects books for reading that centred on men and masculinity themes. In hopes of building some understanding about what it means to be a man in this modern age.
I love that the men behind this club saw the gap in the local reading scene (dominated by women) and wanted to plug it.
So I decided, why not give it a try?
After all, I’m a man, a son, a husband, a dad, and an uncle. I also run a community of mostly stay-at-home dads. And I have often been invited by news platforms and various agencies to talk about fathering issues. So I definitely belong in such a reading club, right?
Plus I love to read, and have recently rejuvenated my reading habit, after a period of unbridled screen indulgence.
So of course I must attend!
My “Maiden Voyage” — The Odyssey!
My first foray took place last month, when I attended their session on the Western classic The Odyssey (the club picked the Emily Wilson translation, though I read the E.V Rieu version).
Talk about knowing how to pick the opportune book club moment to set sail on my maiden voyage into communal reading!
Wasn’t surprising that this was the book selected this period, given that the film version by renowned film auteur Christopher Nolan had dropped upon the world just a couple of months before. And since I had watched and thoroughly enjoyed it, I felt there was no better reason than this to pick up the classic, read it, then join a bunch of other people to talk about it!
Speaking of people, the session turnout was the highest the club had ever seen. More than 30 bookworms showed up! Good thing the club founders had gotten the National Library Board (NLB) to host so they could run their book club sessions in one of the many NLB venues at least once every three months. Only the library would have both the conducive environment and the necessary space to hold so many avid readers.
Due to the large turnout that day, we were divided into two groups to dissect this classic literature. We talked about overall impressions, and of course, the protagonist Odysseus himself. Why he was, in Wilson’s rendering, a “complicated man.” We discussed his vulnerabilities and how they challenged conventional notions of a ‘masculine’ hero. Also, we explored other characters like Odysseus’ wife Penelope and his son Telemachus.
Sadly, the two hours sailed by all too quickly.
Still, it was all the motivation I needed to sign up for their next session.
My Second Visit — The Things We Never Say
The second session I attended last week was on a book I had heard about but not thought to read.
Shortlisted for this year’s prestigious annual Booker Prize award (winner will be officially announced in nine days!), Elizabeth Strout‘s insightful examination of the struggles of a man were masterfully unwrapped in The Things We Never Say.
With themes like diverse perspectives on relationships. Parenthood. Gendered dynamics in friendships. Male loneliness. And more. This was a book ripe for any book club. So I was really glad to be introduced to it.
Though it was a slightly smaller turnout than the previous one, I thought the discussion over this book was a whole lot more in-depth and fascinatingly layered.
For me in particular, this book touched many aspects of my life that felt at times too close for comfort!
That’s because the main character, Artie Dam, was in his mid-50s (as am I), an educator to 11th graders (very close in age to those I teach), a husband, a boy dad, and a man with relationship struggles and secrets that threatened to be his undoing.
Woah!
It was no wonder I was very invested in that session, speaking up often about my thoughts and struggles with the themes the book took us all through.
In turn, several attendees shared their insights that made me see even more layers I would otherwise have glossed over. How the little moments of our lives often shape us more than we think. How personality changes, both subtle and not, occur when secrets are revealed. And how non-linearity in a story’s narrative can often jar us into deeper interior self-reflections than we realise.
There’s Still Hope For Reading & The World Of Books
Looking back, I was grateful to witness firsthand how book reading isn’t quite as ‘dead’ as I had previously feared.
The number of people who showed up these past two sessions, eager to discuss what they read, renewed my faith that people still appreciate a good book. And the mostly younger demographic I sat amongst offers hope that reading as a pleasurable hobby still has a decent future ahead of it.
Despite the seductive allure of the ubiquitous screens we see everywhere.
This is good news indeed. And in this day and age, we could certainly do with more good news!
So here’s to my next book club meeting! With yet another 2026 Booker Prize shortlisted read, The Black Bag by Luke Kennard.
And another chance to feed my inner bookworm and nourish my soul!
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