I don’t know about you, but setting a goal for how many books to finish in the next year is a traditional new year’s activity for me. I’m of the ripe old age that I can recall the 1984 start of Pizza Hut’s BOOK IT! program, which paid whippersnappers to read. Those free, personal-sized, deep-dish pepperoni pizzas helped solidify my love of reading, and reading-
related goals, fostering a habit that continues to this day.
As is the way with many new year’s goals, by February I start to fall behind. Just to be clear, I don’t judge January me, or January any of us, for setting reading goals that may not be realistic. We were younger then. We had the whole year ahead of us. We were sweet, naive summer children, even in the dead of winter.
Maybe I’d always reach my annual reading goal if I bought myself a pizza when I hit it. Or maybe my goal required me to have dedicated reading time outside of the house, away from distractions, with access to drinks and snacks. Enter Albemarle CiderWorks’ Silent Book Club.—Kristie Smeltzer
WHAT
Reading and drinking cider (socializing optional).
WHY
Because even though there is a high correlation between being an introvert and liking to read, it’s sometimes nice to read with others in a different setting. Access to yummy cider is a bonus.
HOW IT WENT
Silent book club helped me finish a book in a day and change, so I’d say it went well.
I arrived at 12:30pm-ish to get provisions before the hour of silent reading began at 1pm. Why, yes, I did take a ride on the Pomme Mary—fizzy, fruity, and delicious. The event promised an hour of quiet reading with an optional hour of kibitzing afterward. Participants choose their own books to read, with no obligatory book club picks to endure (after all, life’s too short to read books we don’t enjoy).
I took my seat in the Orchard Room, and others trickled into the welcoming space. Peppy instrumental music from “Bridgerton” played. Many opted to take their cups of hot cider, mulled I believe, to a semi-circle of seats surrounding a crackling fire. People arrived solo, in pairs, and even one small group. Some got right to it, starting to read, while others chatted. I stole surreptitious glances at book covers as people pulled out their reading. Don’t you love how books can recommend people?
Just when I’d started to wonder how seriously we would take the “silent” part of silent book club, a staff member announced we’d begin as she closed the door. Music ceased. We went hard with the silence. You could have heard an heirloom apple leaf fall. Other than a few times when I giggled (quietly, mind you) and felt like I’d broken the code of conduct, the time and pages flew. I cannot recall the last time I had such focused reading time. So much reading was done, and I got so sucked into my book—I had arrived only a few chapters in—that I kept reading after I got home. The next day, the book was done.
After our silent reading hour ended, the most introverted among us sighed, closed their books, and left. A few stayed in the Orchard Room to finish their chapter or beyond. Several of us stepped outside into the entry room by the bar and chatted about books. We swapped recommendations and commiserated about needing to balance heavier reading with palate-cleansing beach reads. We genuinely enjoyed each other and the talk of books.
