A New Kind of Book Club for Adults

As a recently published children's author, one of the interesting discoveries I made in the last few years is that grown-ups like to read children's books. It's true! It's no surprise that as a children's writer, I've been reading them for years. My children's writing friends are doing the same, and we shoptalk about our favorite children's books. But it never occurred to me how children's novels can truly resonate with the greater grown-up public as well.

Which is why I decided to create the "Not Your Kids Book Club" at the Scarsdale Library – a book club exclusively for adults that focuses on contemporary children's literature. What does that mean? It means that as a group of adults, we will get to read and discuss once a month, some of the absolutely terrific children's novels that are being published now. Whether you're a parent, an educator, a writer, or a person who loves to read, children's novels are a great way to think about how life has changed since we were young, to familiarize ourselves with the issues concerning our children today, but also, and maybe most important of all, to encounter great writing.

Nowhere else will you find an audience that is impatient for a good story – and fast. Which means an electrifying beginning, page-turning chapters, characters to root for, high stakes decision-making, and an ending that will leave you wanting more. Not just that, but in the best children's novels today, you will find this superb writing, complex social issues, and heightened drama in smaller, ready-to-read packages, that will evoke that wonderful sense of possibility and potential we felt so much when we were young readers.

October's Book Club Pick: UNGIFTED

This month at the Not Your Kids Book Club, we will be reading UNGIFTED, by best-selling author, Gordon Korman: Middle school prankster and underachiever Donovan Curtis accidentally gets sent to a gifted program after a paperwork error. How long will Donovan survive in the gifted program? And how will the other gifted students survive without him?
Gordan Korman is the author of popular books for young people, and is a frequent visitor at the Scarsdale Middle School.
The book club will meet at the Scarsdale Library, Wednesday, October 16, 1:00 – 2:00 pm. The book club is free and open to all Westchester County residents. To register, click here, or call the library's Reference Desk at 914-722-1304.

Sheela Chari is a member Scarsdale Library Writers Center. She is also the author of VANISHED (Disney Hyperion), a 2012 APALA Children's Literature honor book, an Edgar Award nominee for best juvenile mystery, and featured on the Today Show with Al's Book Club for Kids. You can visit her online at www.sheelachari.com.