Libraries are dealing with a lot of changes around the way they interact with their patrons. One challenge is having to transition to online meeting spaces. How do you pick a platform? Get the word out? Make sure you include readers who are not tech-savvy? We explore these questions in our latest podcast episode. I sat down with Linda Cohen, Sales Director at Booklist, to discuss her long-time book club and how they have made time to meet via Zoom to keep the book club alive during the pandemic. We discuss best practices—both technical and emotional—and I also sit in on one of their meetings. At the end of the podcast, you can hear how the group navigates their virtual meeting as they discuss Jennifer Chiaverini's Mrs. Lincoln's Sisters.
Listen to the podcast episode below:
More about Mrs. Lincoln's Sisters (available now):
The New York Times bestselling author of Mrs. Lincoln’s Dressmaker returns to her most famous heroine, Mary Todd Lincoln, in this compelling story of love, loss, and sisterhood rich with history and suspense.
"Through meticulously researched historical detail and sympathetic portrayal of each character, including Mary herself, Chiaverini provides a fascinating glimpse into the women of an influential family on the front lines of some of the most important moments of that indelible time."
—Booklist
Rachel Kahan, the editor for this book, gave the book group a few discussion questions. You can use these in your own book club discussion!
- What was your impression of Mary Lincoln? Is she a sympathetic character?
- We see Mary’s relationships with her sisters, and with her son Robert, go from intimacy to estrangement more than once. Why do you think it was so hard for Mary to maintain her relationships with her family?
- Mary suffers many almost unimaginable traumas: losing her mother at an early age, losing three of her four children, witnessing the murder of her husband. Was her “madness” inevitable? Was institutionalizing her the best solution?
- How does the trauma and sorrow of the Todd sisters’ lives and their periodic estrangements mirror what had been happening to the nation they lived in? Were they able to patch things up and move on? Was the nation able to?
- Did the Todd sisters’ life of relative comfort and privilege influence how they behaved as adults? Did it protect them during the Civil War?
Find supplemental information about Mary Todd Lincoln in this family tree and dramatis personae from the author. Listen to an audio sample of the book here.
We also mentioned the past book club episode with Linda. You can listen to that here.
Want even more book suggestions for your book club? Take a look at our book club catalog.
Let us know how your book club is adapting to the virtual meeting space. Leave us a message on our voicemail: 212-207-7773.
A huge thank you to Linda Cohen for taking the time to share her expertise. I had such fun sitting in on this conversation.
-Lainey
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