The Pandemic Book Club is born!

Some of the things I miss most during the current #coronavirus shelter-in-place (among thousands) are all the random, spontaneous conversations with my colleagues in the hallways, the hugs of comfort during exhausted weeks of endless meetings and student conferences, and the quick smiles and hellos when rushing by through the doors of the university buildings we haunt (#pwrlife).

I'm not going to lie and say that I miss my thriving social life, because let's be honest - I don't have much of one as an introvert with two young children at home. But seldom as they may come, I miss those occasional meals out, game nights with friends, and date nights at the movies or sketching at coffee shops. My partner and I are the type to be "regulars" at the places we frequent, often ordering the same things at restaurants and knowing the owners of our favorite stores by name. Because of that, I miss seeing the smiles of recognition across the counters, chatting at the comic book store about new series, browsing the physical shelves of our local independent bookstore, and getting recommendations from the same children's librarians we have known for almost a decade.

But man, I miss my friends and colleagues. The ones from the hallways and offices around me, but also the ones that I already missed, who became lifelong friends in the testing-flames of graduate school and then moved with their families sometimes thousands of miles away. This "social" distancing has only emphasized the difficulty of separation from dear ones - the lonely feeling of watching their children grow up over Instagram, some of whom I haven't even met, and trying to be there for them over calls, texts, and video chats when things are hard.

So I've been Zooming with my friends and colleagues, sometimes catching up on friendship things in calls motivated by official business. In one of these calls, I geeked out with my archivist friend JC over The Kitchen Sisters and packhorse librarians, at least one of whom is the subject of a novel I have been wanting to read called The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek. Librarian heroes who adventure into hard-to-reach places in the Appalachians - what could be cooler, amirite? Well, she told me she wanted to read the book as well, and with my usual excessive ambition I decided to make a digital book club. I finally sent out invitations to some close friends this morning, and lo and behold - other people are interested, too! I know that shouldn't come as a huge shock, but see my comment about being an introvert. So that is my long-winded way of announcing my new virtual Pandemic Book Club, starting with The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek by Kim Michele Richardson. I'm so excited, you guys!

If you know me personally, you're welcome to reach out to me about joining the club. We're going to keep it pretty casual, given the stresses of the moment. If you don't know me personally (hello, world!), I would love it if you would also read the book with us and share your thoughts in the comments below. Happy reading!