Lakeland’s own Lit Lounge Book Club will start its second year of meetings with the discussion of Daniel James Brown’s “The Boys in the Boat” during the Sept. 28 meeting.

The book club, started by Gina Covelli, community relations manager, began at the start of the last school year and anyone is free to join.

“We have a great mix of faculty and staff, but would love to see more students get involved,” said Covelli.

For students worried about taking on the extra reading, Covelli said, “that’s why we align our reading selections to author visits to campus,” like with this school year’s annual Community Book Read author Lauren Groff and her book “Fates and Furies,” to be discussed in Feb. and March.

Covelli added, “Many times, faculty will include the works of visiting authors in their courses, so students may already be reading the books.”

Another author visiting campus that the club will be reading is Joe Wilkins. His book, “The Mountain and the Fathers: Growing Up in the Big Dry,” will be discussed in Oct. and he will be visiting campus in Nov. as part of the Great Lakes Writers Festival.

Even if students want to join but fear the commitment, they need not.

“It’s not one of those clubs where you have to go to every meeting to be a part of,” said Covelli. “We have a great core group of people who attend our meetings, and the group is so flexible that anyone can pop in for a meeting about books that interest them.”

The book club is also a casual group. “There’s no stress or pressure if you don’t finish a book,” said Covelli. “I have to admit there are many times when I can’t get through the entire book, but I still enjoy participating and listening to the conversations.”

Covelli is particularly excited for “Fates and Furies,” which was a finalist for the 2015 National Book of the Year award.

Groff will be visiting Lakeland on April 11. While on campus she will meet with student writers, speak with the community and discuss her book that evening. “I am thrilled she will be on campus because I think our students will greatly benefit from hearing her story as a writer,” said Covelli.

The Lit Lounge Book Club is scheduled to meet and discuss the following books in the 1862 Lounge at 5 p.m. on the following days:

Sept. 28 – discussing “The Boys in the Boat” by Daniel James Brown
Oct. 26 – discussing “The Mountain and the Fathers” by Joe Wilkins
Nov. 30 – discussing a book drawn by random selection
Jan. 25 – discussing a book drawn by random selection
Feb. 22 – discussing “Fates and Furies” by Lauren Groff (Part 1)
March 29 – discussing “Fates and Furies” by Lauren Groff (Part 2)
April 26 – discussing a book drawn by random selection

For more information about the books being discussed or about joining the Lit Lounge Book Club, contact Covelli at [email protected].