Debbie Harpham
The SI Beagle Book Club is comprised of a group of retired teachers who love to read, especially historical fiction. The group’s book club manager, Joan, arranged for a group study of acclaimed author Susan Meissner‘s work, and scheduled three separate visits from the author over a period of three months, for discussion of three of the author’s books.
Round one was a smashing success! The book of discussion, THE NATURE OF FRAGILE THINGS, was very well received, and the group had a LOT to say about its author:
“I loved that Susan spoke at the end of the discussion. She was very down to earth and made the book come alive. I enjoyed the discussion immensely. I loved the book.”
“Hi Joan, I want to congratulate you on a job well done. Today’s session on “The Nature of Fragile Things” was the best ever. Thanks for going the extra mile and getting Susan Meissner to participate in our sessions. Today’s author visit gave more depth to the book. Hearing Susan speak on the background technical details of her process was very interesting and informative. Her explanation of why she used historically true events (San Francisco Earthquake) in her novel to then create her fictional characters was fascinating.I also enjoyed her explanation of how a book title and book cover are decided. Susan Meissner’s lovely and friendly personality greatly added to our session. Looking forward to October 18 and A Fall of Marigolds. Thank you.” Marie
“Much appreciation to Susan Meissner for participating in our book club session. We all enjoyed reading The Nature of Fragile Things, and she augmented our discussion by giving us background, her methods of coming up with the final product, and her goals in writing the story. She was very open, approachable, and generous with her time.” Sue
“Thank you Joan for providing this unique experience. I thought the rapport was excellent between our group and Susan Meissner. Her talk was enjoyable, interesting and informative; a great addition to our book club discussion.”
“I really enjoyed talking to the author during our zoom bookclub. Susan Meissner was very personable and made reading and discussing The Nature of Fragile Things more meaningful. It was so interesting to learn how she researched the history of the San Francisco earthquake and how it affected each person differently. Then she rewrote the characters and their stories to enhance the tension and interaction between them. The author’s question and answer session was enlightening and made the bookclub worthwhile. Thanks Joan for arranging it.” Dorothy
“I so enjoyed the presentation by Susan Meissner at our UFT Bookclub Meeting. It was so interesting to learn how she wrote the book, The Nature Of Fragile Things, two different ways before finally deciding on the final manuscript. She also gave us a preview of her next book and I can’t wait to read it. Please thank her from me for adding so much to our bookclub discussion.” Brenda
If your book club is still weighing in on whether or not to invite an author to join your discussion, this post should tip the scales!