Take a Break
Book Club
FOR ADULTS AGES 18+
EVERY FOURTH Thursday AT 6:30 PM in the COMMUNITY ROOM
Come join your fellow community members for a lively discussion of both classic works and modern masterpieces. In addition to our discussion, we’ll have a little something extra each month, such as a craft, treat, or game that’s related to that month’s title.
Unless otherwise noted, a limited number of book club reading copies will be available for checkout from the circulation desk about a month prior to the meeting.
SCHEDULE
September 21, 2023—Sense and Sensibility
October 26, 2023—The Mist
November 16, 2023—The Maid
No book club in December
January 25, 2024—How to Be Perfect
February 22, 2024—Holes*
March 28, 2024—The Persian Pickle Club
April 25, 2024—Gloryland
May 23, 2024—Something Fresh
June 27, 2024—Ready Player One
No book club in July or August
*Our 2024 On the Same Page community reads book
Reading List
September 21, 2023
Sense and Sensibility
by Jane Austen
Marianne Dashwood wears her heart on her sleeve, and when she falls in love with the dashing but unsuitable John Willoughby she ignores her sister Elinor’s warning …
Read the full synopsis
October 26, 2023
The Mist
by Ragnar Jónasson
1987. An isolated farm house in the east of Iceland. The snowstorm should have shut everybody out. But …
Read the full synopsis
November 16, 2023
The Maid
by Nita Prose
Molly Gray is not like everyone else. She struggles with social skills and misreads the intentions of others. Her gran used to interpret the …
Learn More!
January 25, 2024
How to Be Perfect
by Michael Schur
Most people think of themselves as “good,” but it’s not always easy to determine what’s “good” or “bad”—especially in a world filled with …
Read the full synopsis
February 22, 2024
Holes
by Louis Sachar
Stanley Yelnats is under a curse. A curse that began with his no-good-dirty-rotten-pig-stealing-great-great-grandfather and has since …
Read the full synopsis
March 28, 2024
The Persian Pickle Club
by Sandra Dallas
It is the 1930s, and hard times have hit Harveyville, Kansas, where the crops are burning up, and there’s not a job to be found. For Queenie Bean, a young …
Read the full synopsis
April 25, 2024
Gloryland
by Shelton Johnson
Born on Emancipation Day, 1863, to a sharecropping family of black and Indian blood, Elijah Yancy never lived as a slave — but his self-image as a …
Read the full synopsis
May 23, 2024
Something Fresh
by P.D. Wodehouse
One thing that constantly disrupts the peace of life at Blandings is the constant incursion of impostors. Blandings has impostors like other …
Read the full synopsis
June 27, 2024
Ready Player One
by Ernest Cline
In the year 2044, reality is an ugly place. The only time teenage Wade Watts really feels alive is when he’s jacked into the …
Read the full synopsis
September 21, 2023, at 6:30 pm in the Community Room
Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen
‘The more I know of the world, the more am I convinced that I shall never see a man whom I can really love. I require so much!’
Marianne Dashwood wears her heart on her sleeve, and when she falls in love with the dashing but unsuitable John Willoughby she ignores her sister Elinor’s warning that her impulsive behaviour leaves her open to gossip and innuendo. Meanwhile Elinor, always sensitive to social convention, is struggling to conceal her own romantic disappointment, even from those closest to her. Through their parallel experience of love—and its threatened loss—the sisters learn that sense must mix with sensibility if they are to find personal happiness in a society where status and money govern the rules of love.
October 26, 2023, at 6:30 pm in the Community Room
The Mist by Ragnar Jónasson
1987. An isolated farm house in the east of Iceland.
The snowstorm should have shut everybody out. But it didn’t.
The couple should never have let him in. But they did.
An unexpected guest, a liar, a killer. Not all will survive the night. And Detective Hulda will be haunted forever.
book 3 in the Hidden Iceland series
Ratings and Reviews from the Librarians
Cathy rated it ★★★★★ and said “The perfect psychological thriller.”
Alex rated it ★★★★.
November 16, 2023, at 6:30 pm in the Community Room
The Maid by Nita Prose
Molly Gray is not like everyone else. She struggles with social skills and misreads the intentions of others. Her gran used to interpret the world for her, codifying it into simple rules that Molly could live by.
Since Gran died a few months ago, twenty-five-year-old Molly has been navigating life’s complexities all by herself. No matter—she throws herself with gusto into her work as a hotel maid. Her unique character, along with her obsessive love of cleaning and proper etiquette, make her an ideal fit for the job. She delights in donning her crisp uniform each morning, stocking her cart with miniature soaps and bottles, and returning guest rooms at the Regency Grand Hotel to a state of perfection.
But Molly’s orderly life is upended the day she enters the suite of the infamous and wealthy Charles Black, only to find it in a state of disarray and Mr. Black himself dead in his bed. Before she knows what’s happening, Molly’s unusual demeanor has the police targeting her as their lead suspect. She quickly finds herself caught in a web of deception, one she has no idea how to untangle. Fortunately for Molly, friends she never knew she had unite with her in a search for clues to what really happened to Mr. Black—but will they be able to find the real killer before it’s too late?
Ratings and Reviews from the Librarians
Cathy rated it ★★★★ and said “Wow! Compulsively neat Molly is capable, responsible, eager to please, but not socially perceptive. She has trouble understanding facial expressions, takes comments literally, and generally has a hard time making sense of many people’s communications. Now that her beloved Gran has passed away and left her on her own, the world is becoming increasingly confusing especially when she discovers the body of a regular hotel guest.”
January 25, 2024, at 6:30 pm in the Community Room
How to Be Perfect:
The Correct Answer to Every Moral Question
by Michael Schur
Most people think of themselves as “good,” but it’s not always easy to determine what’s “good” or “bad”—especially in a world filled with complicated choices and pitfalls and booby traps and bad advice. Fortunately, many smart philosophers have been pondering this conundrum for millennia and they have guidance for us. With bright wit and deep insight, How to Be Perfect explains concepts like deontology, utilitarianism, existentialism, ubuntu, and more so we can sound cool at parties and become better people.
Schur starts off with easy ethical questions like “Should I punch my friend in the face for no reason?” (No.) and works his way up to the most complex moral issues we all face. Such as: Can I still enjoy great art if it was created by terrible people? How much money should I give to charity? Why bother being good at all when there are no consequences for being bad? And much more. By the time the book is done, we’ll know exactly how to act in every conceivable situation, so as to produce a verifiably maximal amount of moral good. We will be perfect, and all our friends will be jealous. OK, not quite. Instead, we’ll gain fresh, funny, inspiring wisdom on the toughest issues we face every day.
Ratings and Reviews from the Librarians
Cathy rated it ★★★★ and said “If you want an accessible introduction to moral philosophy, one written by the creator of “The Good Place” is the obvious choice! Schur will walk you from the simple, “Should I punch my friend in the face for no reason?” through more complex questions such as, “This sandwich is morally problematic, but delicious. Should I eat it?” He’ll sort out a host of historical philosophers along the way and entertain with illuminating anecdotes. If you’re lucky enough to pick up the audio, his reading is delightful and there’s the bonus of added narrative by members of “The Good Place” cast. Definitely a recommended read. The acknowledgements are even worth sticking around for. Hope I get an invitation to one of those moose birthday parties!”
February 22, 2024, at 6:30 pm in the Community Room
Holes by Louis Sachar
This is our selection for this year’s community reading event On the Same Page.
Free copies will be given away starting in mid-January.
Stanley Yelnats is under a curse. A curse that began with his no-good-dirty-rotten-pig-stealing-great-great-grandfather and has since followed generations of Yelnatses. Now Stanley has been unjustly sent to a boys’ detention center, Camp Green Lake, where the boys build character by spending all day, every day digging holes exactly five feet wide and five feet deep. There is no lake at Camp Green Lake. But there are an awful lot of holes,
It doesn’t take long for Stanley to realize that Camp Green Lake isn’t what it seems. Are the boys digging holes because the warden is looking for something? But what could be buried under a dried-up lake? It’s up to Stanley to dig up the truth.
book 1 in the Holes series
Ratings and Reviews from the Librarians
Lorna rated it ★★★★★ and said “I loved it.”
Cathy rated it ★★★★★.
Susan rated it ★★★★.
Lark rated it ★★★★.
March 28, 2024, at 6:30 pm in the Community Room
The Persian Pickle Club by Sandra Dallas
It is the 1930s, and hard times have hit Harveyville, Kansas, where the crops are burning up, and there’s not a job to be found. For Queenie Bean, a young farm wife, a highlight of each week is the gathering of the Persian Pickle Club, a group of local ladies dedicated to improving their minds, exchanging gossip, and putting their quilting skills to good use. When a new member of the club stirs up a dark secret, the women must band together to support and protect one another. In her magical, memorable novel, Sandra Dallas explores the ties that unite women through good times and bad.
April 25, 2024, at 6:30 pm in the Community Room
Gloryland by Shelton Johnson
Born on Emancipation Day, 1863, to a sharecropping family of black and Indian blood, Elijah Yancy never lived as a slave — but his self-image as a free person is at war with his surroundings: Spartanburg, South Carolina, in the Reconstructed South. Exiled for his own survival as a teenager, Elijah walks west to the Nebraska plains — and, like other rootless young African-American men of that era, joins up with the U.S. cavalry.
The trajectory of Elijah’s army career parallels the nation’s imperial adventures in the late 19th century: subduing Native Americans in the West, quelling rebellion in the Philippines. Haunted by the terrors endured by black Americans and by his part in persecuting other people of color, Elijah is sustained only by visions, memories, prayers, and his questing spirit — which ultimately finds a home when his troop is posted to the newly created Yosemite National Park in 1903. Here, living with little beyond mountain light, running water, campfires, and stars, he becomes a man who owns himself completely, while knowing he’s left pieces of himself scattered along his life’s path like pebbles on a creek bed.
Ratings and Reviews from the Librarians
Cathy rated it ★★★★★ and said “Third time through was a good as the first. A stunning historical novel that really takes you to the time and place. You see. You feel. You smell. You taste. This is a book that must be read slowly and savored. Buy it. You’ll want to highlight and reread sections over and over.”
May 23, 2024, at 6:30 pm in the Community Room
Something Fresh by P.D. Wodehouse
(Alternate title: Something New)
One thing that constantly disrupts the peace of life at Blandings is the constant incursion of impostors. Blandings has impostors like other houses have mice.
Now there are two of them – both intent on a dangerous enterprise. Lord Emsworth’s secretary, the efficient Baxter, is on the alert and determined to discover what is afoot – despite the distractions caused by the Honorable Freddie Threepwood’s hapless affair of the heart.
Ratings and Reviews from the Librarians
Cathy rated it ★★★★★.
June 27, 2024, at 6:30 pm in the Community Room
Ready Player One by Ernest Cline
In the year 2044, reality is an ugly place. The only time teenage Wade Watts really feels alive is when he’s jacked into the virtual utopia known as the OASIS. Wade’s devoted his life to studying the puzzles hidden within this world’s digital confines, puzzles that are based on their creator’s obsession with the pop culture of decades past and that promise massive power and fortune to whoever can unlock them.
But when Wade stumbles upon the first clue, he finds himself beset by players willing to kill to take this ultimate prize. The race is on, and if Wade’s going to survive, he’ll have to win—and confront the real world he’s always been so desperate to escape.
book 1 in the Ready Player One series
Ratings and Reviews from the Librarians
Bekka rated it ★★★★ and said “Really fun! I thoroughly enjoyed the immersion into 80s culture, which was a return for me to my high school days. I missed some of the video game references, as I’ve never really been much of a gamer, but it didn’t detract from the story at all. The romance was quite sweet, and I vary much liked the message at the end. One great adventure ride!“
Regular Hours of Operation
- Monday: 9:00 am – 6:00 pm
- Tuesday - Wednesday: 9:00 am – 8:00 pm
- Thursday: 11:00 am – 8:00 pm
- Friday: 10:00 am – 6:00 pm
- Saturday: 10:00 am – 2:00 pm
- Sunday: CLOSED
Closures in 2023
- January 2 – New Year’s
- January 16 – Martin Luther King, Jr., Day
- February 20 – Presidents Day
- March 24 – Staff Development Day
- April 1 – Building Maintenance
- May 27-29 – Memorial Day
- June 19 – Juneteenth
- July 4 – Independence Day
- September 2-4 – Labor Day
- September 28 – Library Conference (LCEI)
- September 29-30 – Building Maintenance
- November 10-11 – Veterans Day
- November 22 – Closing at 5:00 pm
- November 23-25 – Thanksgiving
- December 23-26 – Christmas
- December 30-31, 2023 – New Year’s
- January 1, 2024 – New Year’s Day
Address
73 North Center
Rexburg, Idaho 83440
We are located on Center Street, just north of Main Street, by the Historic Rexburg Tabernacle.
Contact Us
(208) 356-3461
24 Hour Phone Renewal: (208) 356-6658
askmadisonlibrary@madisonlib.org