Barrington Books will host the inaugural meeting of its new “I Heart Reading” book club for tweens, this Sunday, October 28th, at 11 am! This month’s book selection is “The Land of Stories,” a middle-grade adventure written by Chris Colfer of the hit television show Glee.
READ LOCAL chatted with Olivia Massotti and Sofia Denise, two avid “tween” readers about the book, and the all-new book club.
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Olivia, age 10
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Sofia, age 10
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RL: First, an important question: Do you consider yourselves “tweens?”
Olivia: “Yes, because I am two-digits now!”
Sofia: “Yes.”
RL: Ok, glad we cleared that up. So, are you excited about Barrington Books “I Heart Reading” book club meeting on Sunday?
Sofia: “Yeah, it sounds fun!”
Olivia: Yes!!! I can’t wait!
RL: “Cool” or “goofy” when grow-ups use the word “heart” instead of “love?”
Sofia: “Um, goofy.”
Olivia: “Goofy.”
RL: Have you ever been in a book club before?
Olivia: “Yes, it was my own.”
RL: Wow, Olivia, you started your own book club?
Olivia: “Yes, I started it last year in fourth grade with some of my best friends. We took the summer off and now we’re all going to come to the one at Barrington Books!”
RL: What a great idea! How about you, Sofia, ever been in a book club before?
Sofia: “Yes, at my school.”
RL: Did you like talking about the books you read?
Sofia: “Yeah, talking about books was definitely fun. I didn’t really like filling out the worksheets, though.”
RL: We promise, no worksheets. But we will be talking lots about the book. Speaking of… What is Chris Colfer’s “The Land of Stories” about? (No, spoilers, please.)
Olivia: “Two kids that visit their grandma’s house once a year and read a fairy tale book together. Soon they are IN the fairy tale world!”
Sofia: “What’s a spoiler?”
RL: It’s when you tell people a little too much about the book, like an interesting plot twist, or how it ends, and then you spoil the fun of reading it for them.
Sofia: “Oh, ok. It’s about these two kids Conner and Alex who go inside the book to a fairytale land: The Land of Stories. Then they hear about a “Wishing Spell” that might be the only way to get them back home, and to activate the wishing spell they have to find all these items that are hidden around the land of stories. It’s kind of like a scavenger hunt. But the evil Queen who is, like, from all those fairytales with an evil queen, also wants it. Did I spoil anything?”
RL: No, I think you’re good. So, what do you “heart” most about the book so far? Sorry… goofy alert.
Olivia: “It’s a fantasy, but has real background.”
Sofia: “I kind of like how Conner and Alex are always helping each other because a bunch of dangerous stuff happens to them.”
RL: Wow, good answers. Would you recommend this book to other kids?
Olivia: “Yes!!! It’s amazing and is well written.”
Sofia: “Yes!”
RL: Have you ever seen the show Glee?
Olivia: “No.” <sad face>
Sofia: “No.”
RL: Good, because it’s on past your bedtime. What’s your favorite color?
Sofia: “Wait, what does that have to do with the book?”
RL: Nothing… just making sure you’re paying attention.
Olivia: “Orange and pink.”
Sofia : “Yellow.”
RL: What book would you like “I Heart Reading” to pick next?
Olivia: “‘A Wrinkle in Time’ because it was Bianca Turetsky’s favorite book when she was our age. She’s my favorite author, I love her books and have met her twice at Barrington Books!”
RL: Very cool. Barrington Books ROCKS! Sorry, just trying to speak “tween.” Moving on… how about you, Sofia?
Sofia: “Maybe ‘The Third Wheel,’ the next book in ‘The Diary of Wimpy Kid’ series.
RL: Great suggestions! I guess we’ll find out what book is up next at the meeting tomorrow. And maybe you’ll come back and we’ll talk about the next one?
Olivia: “Sure!”
Sofia: “Sure!”
RL: Thanks, ladies!
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“I Heart Reading” is open to both boys and girls and is free of charge. The book club will meet monthly, beginning Sunday, October 28th at 11 a.m. in the children’s section of the bookstore. Refreshments will be served and parent participation is welcome!