Reading has caught on with Bangaloreans like never before. Libraries figure high among the popular destinations of the young and old alike. They read as much as they party and work. The result: Book clubs have mushroomed across the City.
Raji Radhakrishnan has been running her Book Club on Wood Street since 1991. She has over 4,000 members and a collection of over 16,000 books and periodicals. “People from around the vicinity and as far as Whitefield frequent the club. Housewives love my collection of Mills and Boons. Indian authors like Chitra Devakarni and Chetan Bhagat are popular. Not many children come and the few who come are usually interested in comics or the Harry Potter series,” she says.
Rohin Dharmakumar started a Book club five years ago when he was an MBA student and called it The BREAD Club (Book Reading And Discussion). They would meet in coffee houses in town and discuss various authors and books. Stimulating conversation flowed and friendships were forged but the attendance started dwindling and now their meetings are few. “We have over 100 members but only ten would show up for the meetings that were held once in a fortnight on Sundays. You need a minimum critical body mass to keep it active,” he says. Rohin has not given up on his club and plans for a revival are on the cards.
Susan and her friends too have a club for mothers and children on Sarjapur Road. They started it to inculcate the habit of reading among the young. “We buy waterproof books that kids can handle without spoiling and we each take turns in telling stories and reading out loud from authors like Dr Seuss which the children love. Each storytelling session is followed by games and pizza so the kids associate books with playtime and fun. It’s never too early to teach children the pleasures of reading,” she says.
N Prema (name changed) has around 25 members who joined her club, by invitation and they meet every fortnight. Books are discussed and exchanged, eminent people are invited to speak and sometimes films on special topics are screened.
Oprah Winfrey, founder of the most famous book club in the world said, “Books were my pass to personal freedom. I learned to read at three and soon discovered that there was a whole world to conquer that went beyond our farm in Mississippi.” That’s one success story that would never have happened without books.
