The Bookend Society: Where Paper & People Meet

If you’ve ever walked into the library on the second or fourth Monday of the month between the hours of 4 and 5 p.m., you’ve probably seen a small group of teenagers and one librarian gathered around a table stacked with way too many boxes of pizza and several copies of the same book.

This is the Bookend Society.

For some people, books are an obstacle they have to deal with just to get a grade. For members of this society, books are much more. They’re a way to connect to completely different worlds for a couple hours a day while sitting in the same cramped position in their bed; they’re a way to connect to each other. They provide access to reality just as much as they do to surreality.

So far, the club has experienced the worlds of J.D. Salinger, Rainbow Rowell, Dan Josefson, David Sedaris and William Goldman. Some of these led to sobbing on the floor, while others flung the reader into fits of laughter, inspiring us to furiously turn the page to see what was next. Discussions of the texts have stemmed from melodramatic readings, strong reactions to the character Holden Caulfield, whether the pizza brought out David Sedaris’ creative voice, and more.

What bands society members together is our recognition and understanding, on a deep level, of the books we read. “Fangirl” could be an entertaining read with a cute love triangle, or it could be a statement on the importance of family and defining one’s independence. “The Princess Bride” could be a great movie, or it could be a vehicle to connect modernity with age-old story templates.

Basically, you should just join the Bookend Society. If you don’t like to read, you’ll learn to love it. If you love to read, you’ll have a whole new way to share it with people. And if you like pizza and books, then you’ll be in heaven.

Sophomore Emily Robertson contributed to this blog.