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Lauren Z.
Editor: Deanna M.
If someone were to peek through the window of the library Innovation Lab during a Thursday lunchtime, they would find a close-knit group of book lovers passionately discussing their previous read. This is the GCVI Book Club, newly founded by Avery C, Areen A, and Helen Y.
During each meeting, which occur every other Thursday, the executives present two books. The members choose one to read in the next two weeks, though of course, reading both is more than welcome. These books were chosen based on requests received at their booth during the fall Club Fair, but the executives are open to suggestions - they won’t hesitate to kick a book off the list and replace it with a better one!
This may remind some students of White Pine, a long-running book club at GCVI. Versions of the club can be found all over the country, as the books read by its members are chosen by the Forest of Reading, Canada’s largest reading program. However, White Pine only runs from January to April, and avid readers were at a loss for a book-loving community during the rest of the school year. In addition, “as much as the books were amazing, some of them were not the ones we would choose to read,” Avery C admits.
Hence the book club! So far, each meeting has filled the Innovation Lab with animated discussions, strong bookish opinions, and a dash of chaos. “I love how energetic everyone is,” says Palak D, a grade-nine member of the club. Grade ten student Avery S, another Avery in the club, agrees that her favorite part is “being able to freely express our own opinions on…a book.” And “if we don’t agree, there will be some teasing,” but it’s all in good fun.
The unbridled humor and energy of the club has never been more evident than in one of their current projects: the execution block. The motto of the club is “spoilers get boilers”, and as Areen gleefully elaborated, “The execution block is for people who spoil books!” Of course, no real heads will be rolling in GCVI’s library, but a little ceremony will certainly be arranged for any of those who spoil a plot twist or untimely demise of a character.
The book bingo is a less morbid but equally exciting project. This bingo will be based on book genres, with “prizes that do not involve execution,” according to Areen. The club members will race to complete the bingo sheet by reading a book from each genre listed. “I’m excited for the book bingo, because I’m a fast reader,” Palak says.
Avery S rivals Palak’s enthusiasm. “I’m going to take two books home, read them both in a day, and [say], I’m back!”
The club aims to unite the reading community at GCVI, which seemed a little fragmented and scattered outside the duration of White Pine. “I felt like… I didn’t meet that many readers often... so I just want[ed] to meet more people I could talk with about books,” Areen explains.
Avery C has one last message for all book lovers of GCVI: “You can yell freely about the characters you hate, tease others, and maybe execute somebody while getting a little bit of chocolate here and there. It’s a pretty cool place.” To all the passionate book-lovers of GCVI, they hope to see you there.