Reading Circles

“With the drawing of this Love
and the voice of this Calling
We shall not cease from exploration
And the end of all our exploring
Will be to arrive where we started
And know the place for the first time.
...And all shall be well and
All manner of thing shall be well”
    ~ T.S. Elliot, Four Quartets

“The beginning of wisdom is this: Get wisdom, and whatever you get, get insight.”
    ~ Solomon, Proverbs 4:7 (RSV)

One of the purposes of this site is to help people learn together by taking a closer, more in-depth look at specific books. We’ll do this by supporting blog-empowered book-clubs — “Reading Circles” — each examining a set of titles centered around a certain theme: food, race, environmental stewardship, literacy, numeracy, history, science literacy, media literacy, civic engagement, education, parenting, character & ethics, Biblical studies & Christian discipleship and more!

Our aim is to provide reflections, connections, and questions on books that help readers draw closer to the communities of practice that constitute & advance human expertise in every field of learning. Participating in a Reading Circle should allow you to return from the world of words after reading with new ways of seeing the world around you, new ways of working in it, and a new appreciation for the people, both experts & novices, who share that world with you.

Face-to-face book clubs are great, and I’d encourage everyone to meet, read & learn together with people in the same room whenever possible. But sometimes it’s hard to get everyone in a room at the same time. Here at Reading Circle Books, you can read along as we explore a book chapter by chapter or theme by theme, commenting when & where you like! You can also join in as an author: if you are passionate about a theme and want to learn more, or if you have some expertise that you could use to help others learn, contact me! We’d love to have you as an author here at Reading Circle Books!

Here are the Reading Circle Book-Blogs we have in the works right now:

• Reading the Land about the Place We Live
• Reading the Table about the Food We Eat
• Reading Race about Our Neighbors & Ourselves

We hope you can join us in reading, exploring, and seeking a little wisdom! If you have a theme to suggest or a book to recommend, say so in the comments below. Keep your eye on this space (or subscribe to the main Reading Circle Books Blog!) for future Reading Circles!