The fun of reading becomes a journey

Teen book club meets on the second Monday at the Lovell Library

The Lovell Library recently hosted the teen book club, which takes place on the second Monday of each month. Local teens read a different book after every club meeting, and the teens talk about the

chapters they have read and have a group discussion about the plot of the story. The teen book club started with the help of Lovell Recreation District and Board of Cooperative Educational Services (BOCES).

“The teen book club started about a year and half ago,” said Lovell Library assistant manger Linda Mangus. “The Lovell BOCES and Rec Department came to our library and asked us if we would run the teen book club and they would provide the funding if the library accepted. Our staff told them we would love to be a part of the teen book club.”

Mangus said BOCES provides books for the kids. She said the kids can keep the book that is given to them at no charge. 

“BOCES buys books for each one of the kids who participate in the teen book club,” Mangus said. “BOCES also funds us with refreshments and snacks, which is nice of them. At the beginning of every August, the library does a survey of the kids who are involved in the book club, and the kids write one or two recommendations on what they like to read or authors and genres the book club has an interest in. This helps the library to pick the books for the entire year.”

One of the books the teen book club has been reading is “The Dark Deep,” a horror fiction novel written by Ally Condie and Brendan Reichs.

“What I like about our group is we get to answer questions from the book we are reading together,” said Rocky Mountain Middle School seventh grader Jasper Tippetts. “The most interesting part of the story I am reading is when the Dark Deep got out of its cage and created creatures. The Dark Deep would destroy the town and take over the entire world. Once the Dark Deep was free
from its chains, it would never be captured again.”

Many of the members of the teen book club are dedicated readers who spend a lot of time reading a book that is interesting to them.  

“What I like about reading the Dark Deep is the atmosphere and the town festival that was going on,” said Hayden Peterson, who is an 11th grade homeschool student. “I like the background of the story but not the plot itself.”

Hayden said the next book he will be reading is the “Titanic.” He said he loves reading science fiction and adventure novels.

“The ‘Titanic’ looks like an interesting book to read, and I will find out if the book is historically accurate,” Hayden said. “I have never seen the movie ‘Titanic’ before, but when I read the book, I want to find out the historical facts in the story.”

Peterson said the favorite science fiction book he has read is “Sphere” written by author Michael Crichton. Hayden said he reads nonstop and can never get enough reading books.

“I like pretty much everything I have read in ‘Sphere,’” Hayden said. “I read about 50 books a month, and I can’t get enough of reading.”

For more information on the teen book club, visit the Lovell BOCES website at https://lovellrecandboces.com/product/get-literary-tween-teen-book-club/.