Meet The Thompsons: My Addiction / Book Club

I love to read. But I have this horrible problem. When I read a book I become consumed by it. Literally. I will just stay in bed for as long as it takes to finish the book. Everything else in the world becomes less important. Cleaning? Psh. Dinner? Fend for yourself. Ask my mother. I have read a book that was between 600-700 pages in two days. I did not eat, drink, sleep, or even move. I just read constantly. Because of my horrible addiction, I don’t read books too often. Usually just one or two a month and on a Sunday when I can devote a good evening to starting – and finishing – an entire book.

I bet you can tell where this blog post is going – I want to share my book addiction with you. Let me explain:

Before Mother’s Day I was in Deseret Book Store trying to find my sweet mom a present. Also, I was trying to get some inspiration for my talk, which was on mothers. I found this adorable fourteen page booklet. Seriously, everyone needs to read it. It is entitled, Are We Not All Mothers by Sheri Dew. Sheri Dew is a woman who never married or had children. It helped me understand that motherhood is not just about having babies, although that is an important part. Read it. Today.

Sorry, book tangent. Okay, I am in the store trying to find something for my mother. I literally have been in the store for over an hour racking my brain, trying to think of a personal gift idea. Then this thought came to me: What if I bought a book and highlighted it with a yellow marker and left sticky notes throughout the book about my thoughts, insights, etc. Then I send it to my mom and she will use a different color highlighter and post-it notes and mark up the same book. It would give us something to talk about and bond over. And as we read books, we could just send them back and forth to each other. It is like our own little book club? It’s fun to find sticky notes and see what she thinks about a section. We both have different insights and different statements touch us differently.

So here is my challenge for you: 1. Do this yourself with a friend or family member. It could be someone far away that you want to keep in touch with or just a neighbor. 2. JOIN ME! How fun would it be if women all over were sending inspirational or just good books to each other. Even if you are put with someone you don’t know. It’s like your spirits are connecting because you are reading and sharing your insights with a fellow sister! Interested? Keep reading!

Okay so here is my plan. First of all, the most you have to commit is two months (so just August and September - I’ll explain why later). And I am just going to try this little book club experiment until November. You will need to find a book and read it sometime in the month of August. So you have a month to find and read a book. Then, at the end of August, your partner with will send you their book and you will send your partner the book that you read. Make sense? So you will just swap books. The book you receive will be filled with sticky notes, writing, highlighting – whatever! And you will read the book and mark it up too! Then after you have finished it (which you will need to finish it sometime in September), you will send the book back to them and they will send the book you bought back to you. So you will end up with the original book you bought and highlighted. But then you can re-read it and see the notes, talks, and messages your partner left in the book. Then, you can either stop or do it one more time (for September and November). If you decide to do it again, we will swap partners so we can meet a variety of exceptional women. Does this all make sense? If you are interested you can just e-mail me and I will send more information and you then you can decide.

Folks, I am a dreamer. When I imagine this happening, I picture like a mini relief society meeting. I imagine women talking about a book and relating it to our lives, sharing stories, and strengthening one another. But it’s definitely a commitment. Your partner is expecting a book that will enlighten and encourage her. So if she doesn’t get a book – obviously it would be sad.

If you would like to know more tedious details and information – either e-mail me at duke.chelsea22@gmail.com or just leave your e-mail in the comments below! Whichever is best for you! Also, this invitation is for EVERYONE and ANYONE! So you, yes you, are completely invited if you want to! And if you don’t join this book club, do it with a friend! Honestly, you will LOVE it!