Reading Together

Once a week we will gather bringing nothing but whatever book we are reading and a desire to sit with friends and read and share. We’ll follow the same format, introduce what we’re reading up front, taking an hour curling up in all of the nooks and crannies and reading, and then coming back together to talk about what lit us up in what we read. We can cultivate shared togetherness, new reading inspirations, and a desire to be together in ways beyond consumerism and oneupsmanship.

Tuesdays in March, April and May from 6-8pm

Primary Location: Rising House - 232 Martins Creek Road, Barnardsville, NC, 28709

Hosts: Scot Quaranda and TBD

Sharing in the joy of Books

All books welcome

Curling up with a good book is one of the great joys in life and yet we so rarely take the opportunity to do it with so many other distractions pulling at our valuable reserves of attention. Reading exposes us to new ideas, lets us imagine in new and vibrant ways, and is one of the finest forms of relaxation allowing us to step out of the world that feels so dissonant and incoherent. Maybe you try before bed and it puts you to sleep or you have tried a book club but find it hard to get excited about the books. So what if instead of reading alone (or not reading at all), we take the time to gather and all read the books of our own choosing.

The Inspiration for reading together

During the early days of the pandemic, I was losing my mind in isolation. I was not finding relief in movies or shows and felt alone. I decided I should get back to my oldest hobby and read. Yet, I had no one to talk to about it. So one day, I got an invitation on Goodreads to join a Virtual Silent Book Club. You grab whatever book you are reading, join a zoom room with a dozen or so people and share a little bit about what you are reading and then go off camera and read for an hour, coming back at the end to share about what you read.

I met so many amazing people and spent a year reading with retired teachers, government workers, PhD candidates, librarians, expats and more 2 or 3 times a week. I became closer to them than many IRL friends and it really filled up my spirit.