My Bookclub debuts this week….

I came across this book this summer when I was tirelessly searching and reading in preparation for homeschooling.    The same author wrote “The Well-Trained Mind”  which we are using to give our kids a comprehensive classical education.    This is her answer to, “How do I give my children the classical education which I never had?”.   Besides being a great start on  ‘books every educated person should have read’ ,   this is an excellent tutorial on how to properly read a book.    Since I’m a “bookie”  of sorts,  reading this book  made  my heart flutter and gave me a renewed sense of structure and purpose to my own reading.   Of course,  I then wanted to share my new enthusiasm with everyone,  so I started a book club,  using this book as a guide for how  and what to read.    A few upcoming titles on our list are “Pride and Predjudice” , which we will discuss this week,   “Madame Bovary” ,  “Uncle Tom’s Cabin”,  “One Hundred Years of Solitude”  just to name a few.   I couldn’t be more excited;   reading with a purpose, friends and coffee,  laughing and visiting.    I am also determined that this will be a “real” bookclub where people actually read the book.    So far,  I’m encouraged.   Of the 17 people who have RSVP’d yes,   they’ve all mentioned how hard it has been to get through the 19th century language of Jane Austen.   Because I’m a C.S. Lewis buff,  I’ve had a little practice in reading the style and vocabulary of well-educated English writers.    It’s like any other exercise….very hard at first but the practice pays off.   It’s not the book I’m worried getting through at this point;  it’s trying to come up with discussion questions that don’t bore me and everyone to tears.   Any suggestions?   The first question on my list, “Are you a Jane or a Lizzie?”  and  “Are you married to a Mr. Darcy or Mr. Bingley?”