We read books to find out who we are. What other people, real or imaginary, do and think and feel is an essential guide to our understanding of what we ourselves are and may become.
- Ursula K. Le Guin (USA, born 1929)
The region that will be covered in this year's Creative Reading Group is Western Europe. Nicola has selected fiction books by both men and women writers from the chosen region. When you join the book club, you will receive the group's reading list. To give you a taste of what's in store, we can already tell you the authors of the books:
At the moment, meetings for this group only take place in Brussels. They will be held on the third or fourth week of each month starting in October on a Thursday evening from 19:30-21:30 (near Place Flagey)
The final extended deadline for enrolling is 15th September 2010.

Members of Nicola's Book Club who would like to enroll in the Creative Reading Group, please contact us here.
Non-members who would like to join the book club to attend Year 5 of the Creative Reading Group, please click here.
Due to the success of the Book Club and the Summer Reading Group, another reading group was started at the end of 2006. The Creative Reading Group runs annually from October to June and focuses on a region of the world. Nicola selects mostly fiction books and includes both men and women writers from the chosen region.
The regions covered so far have been:
For the reading lists simply click on the corresponding Year. The current year’s reading list will be available next year.
During each meeting held once a month, we discuss the different elements of the book (characters, point of view, plot, dialogue, setting, theme, writing style, tone, length, emotional impact), focusing on passages that have captured our imagination and also expressing our own ideas in relation to the author’s.
This group requires a slightly larger personal investment on the part of the reader than the Book Club. However, no previous literary experience is required. What is required is a clear and open mind, and plenty of enthusiasm.
For some general book discussion questions to guide you as you read fiction, click here.
What is Creative Reading?
It may seem unusual to think of reading as a creative process, since we usually approach reading as a way to take in an author’s ideas and to interpret, reproduce or reflect on them. Although this is an important literary exercise, reading can also be a creative process, whereby we develop and express our own ideas in relation to what the author is saying. We can imagine how what we are reading relates to life, either at a personal level or in a wider context, and we can create connections between the story and our own experiences. In this way, reading becomes a creative process that guides us towards new ways of thinking about and understanding the world.
"One must be an inventor to read well … Then there is creative reading as well as creative writing." - Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882)
"Being part of the Creative Reading Group was a special kind of reading experience. Through this group, I read books I would have never experienced and learned about places I knew nothing about. I was always amazed at how much my opinion about a book or an author changed throughout the discussion. This book club proved that reading could truly be a group exercise full of intense participation and meaningful exchange." - Laurie Hardman
"The Creative Reading Group was a very positive experience for me. Excellent selection of books and all participants given an opportunity to voice their opinions. To me these are key to the success of a reading group. I also like the way Nicola begins with everyone’s ‘first impressions’ as one can often change their mind after discussion with other’s ideas." - Nancy Koeppel
"Always interesting and inspiring, the Creative Reading Group has introduced me to many new authors and given me insights into other continents if not other worlds. The discussions are always stimulating and the participants genial. Nicola is welcoming and good at kick-starting discussions. She also brings a depth of knowledge about a wide variety of literature to the group." - Sue Davies
"Through the Creating Reading Group I got to know authors I would have probably never discovered by myself. I saw Africa through a variety of different perspectives (an Indian immigrant, a white Mozambican, young authors like Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie) that all opened up a new world and at the same time often wrote in a way that I could easily relate to. Even books I found harder to get into won my interest after talking to the group about them and I felt inspired to read them again. It was a really wonderful experience." - Helge Zeitler