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Today's round-up of book club news spans the country from California to New Jersey --- thoughts on Olive Kitteridge and The Help, why a thriller by Daniel Silva was selected by members of the intelligence community for a university book club, suggestions for uplifting reads, and more.


The Book Bench: Literate Lads of La-La Land
The New Yorker's blog introduces an L.A. men's reading group, started by a member who "was jealous of his wife's book club and was determined to start his own." It was "an excuse for a guys' night out," but there is serious reading going on. Selections have included Bel Canto by Ann Patchet and Junot Diaz's The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao, paired with food fitting each book's theme (Peruvian for the former and Latin American for the latter).

CentralJersey.com: This Club's Members are Hungry for More
Members of the Hungry Readers, who meet at the Manville Public Library in New Jersey, offer some food for thought about book clubs. We were pleased to note one of the resources they use: ReadingGroupGuides.com.

ChicagoNow.com: Book Club
Janet Dahl shares what she and the members of her reading group, the Bookbags, thought of Katherine Stockett's novel The Help, which "gives a voice to a group of Mississippi maids, laboring for Junior League-ish women of the early '60s."

The Daily Aztec: Book Club Promotes Conversation
San Diego State University has started an intriguing reading group, using a federal government book list from the intelligence community for their selections. The goal is to "inform the SDSU community about various global matters." One of the books on the list is Daniel Silva's Moscow Rules for its portrayal of Russian arms deals.

The Kansas City Star: Heroine in Olive Kitteridge Leaves Lasting Impression on FYI Book Club
Find out what the FYI Book Club had to say about Elizabeth Strout's Olive Kitteridge. Katie Mediatore Stover, head of reader services at the Kansas City Public Library and RGG.com guest blogger, moderated the discussion.

Sioux City Journal: Long Before Oprah, There was the Bard of Avon Club
The Bard of Avon Club in Sioux City, Iowa, recently celebrated 100 years of reading. The group reads a wide array of books, but once a year they devote a meeting to its namesake: William Shakespeare.

The Wall Street Journal: Uplifting Reading
In her "Book Lover" column, Cynthia Crossen answers a reader's request for some book club suggestions "that are uplifting and joyful to read, yet also stimulating --- something that would satisfy our intellectual needs but also make us feel good about the world."