Guidelines

Guidelines for Book Discussion

Guide by
Ginny Moore Kruse and Kathleen T. Horning
University of Wisconsin – Madison
ALL PERSPECTIVES AND VOCABULARIES ARE CORRECT.
THERE IS NO ‘RIGHT ANSWER’ OR SINGLE CORRECT RESPONSE.
1)                  Listen openly to what is said, rather than to who says it.
2)                  Respond to the comments of others, rather than merely waiting for an opportunity to share your comments.
3)                  Talk with each other, rather than to the discussion facilitator.
4)                  Comment to the group as a whole, rather than to someone seated near you.

LOOK AT EACH BOOK FOR WHAT IT IS, RATHER THAN WHAT IT IS NOT.
1)                  Make positive comments first.
Try to express what you liked about the book and why.
2)                  Avoid recapping the story or booktalking the book.
This is not the place for a summary.
3)                  After everyone has had the opportunity to say what they liked about the book, you may talk about the difficulties you had with a particular aspect of the book. Try to express difficulties as questions, rather than declarative judgements on the book as a whole. (E.g. Would Max’s dinner still have been warm? Rather than “that would never happen.”)
4)                  Refrain from personal anecdotes.
The discussion must focus on the book at hand.

5)                  Try to compare the books with others on the discussion list, rather than other books by the same author or other books in your experience.