Many people enjoy books. Books are places to travel, people to meet, and things to try; someone could go skydiving without leaving their room. Fargo North High School has a variety of clubs: ESports, JCL, Eco club, and many others. They seemingly have a club to suit everyone. Everyone, except bookworms. Enjoying books isn’t new by any means, but there are a lot of new ways to do so. Having a book club would entice more readers, engage previous readers, and provide a club for more people at North.
While many clubs go unnoticed, they are still dear to people’s hearts. For example, no one has an assembly for our ESports club winning anything, nor for anything other than athletics. However, the people in ESports love the club, and it might be the only thing they have to look forward to. Having these clubs makes people feel seen in a place where invisibility is common. Reading a book and discussing it in a group can feel amazingly unifying for people. I personally have a lot of thoughts about books that I would love to share with others who have read the book as well. It can also be a way to extend readers’ interests and introduce them to new books that they would love.
Community is one of the things many people remember from high school. The people who graduated don’t talk about their grades or how they won the Kahoot, but the football games they went to and the club activities they were a part of. However, some people may not be able to enjoy these games. Anxiety is a very common thing in high schoolers, and packed stands and loud noises might not be the best thing for that. Having seasonal book club activities and bake sales and drinking hot apple cider while talking about our most recent book sounds much more fun than screaming at sweaty boys to run.
Clubs are a big factor in making people feel like they belong. Most questionnaires from colleges and schools will ask you what clubs you were in, and when you walk the stage it might feel bad to have no clubs on your repertoire. Having more clubs increases the likelihood of people having a club into which they feel they fit.
High school is a tough time. Work and school rarely coincide, and friendships fall apart. Having a place to fit in impacts so many factors. Clubs are an important part of feeling included, and reading is a great hobby to take up, no matter who you are. So if there’s soon a poster announcing a book club, don’t be surprised if it was me.