Altoona library to hold teen book club

Cameron Sicola, Guest Reporter

The Altoona Public LIbrary teen book club met Jan. 21 to get organized. Miss Rachel Mabbleads the club.

Students register for the book club by calling 946-0417 ext 125 or register online at https://forms.gle/3CcdVrbhEp13hvN17

“Everyone who works with teens in an educational library setting knows it’s a struggle to compete for their time and attention,” Mabb said 

 “We’re up against schoolwork, sports, various extracurricular activities, part-time jobs, social media and technology. We want teens to spend time in our libraries and love reading, but it can be challenging to get them in the doors,” Mabb said.“Having a book club is a gift that keeps giving for years.” 

Teens make the book selections.

“One of my first goals was to start a book club and, over the past few years, it’s become one of the most successful extra-curricular activities,” Miss Rachel said. 

During book clubs, students meet in small, heterogeneous groups to discuss a book they have all read or listened to. Through sharing their thinking, they build a richer understanding than any one student could gain from independent reading alone. The book club experience is social and a great way to motivate kids to read, get them talking about books, and have them share ideas and perspectives. A Read Across America book club should focus on reading fun and diverse book choices, but everything else is up to you and your book club members. 

The teen book club is open to anyone who would like to join. If a teen can only come every two months, or three, that’s okay. We hold this year round and teens do not have to commit to coming every month. Teens can sign up,I’ll send them the topic, come if they can, and afterwards I share the books with everyone that other teens recommended.

“The book club is a great learning program and it is great to get together with people to talk about a book,” Lundyn Treese said.