Before COVID-19 hit, the book club, hosted by Jessica Younghouse, was going to be a space where students could meet like-minded people that share a common love of reading. However, before the club could get off its feet for the 2019-2020 school year, COVID-19 hit. At that time, most people thought it was just going to be a two-week vacation. However, the rest of the year was online. Consequently, due to COVID-19, the book club did not happen.

Nevertheless, it has been a long journey, but the book club has come back for the 2022-2023 school year hosted by Eli Jones.

Jones is a new teacher to NFHS. He teaches Biology, but when he is not teaching students, he’s hosting monthly book club meetings. When asked what his goal for the book club is, he says “Sometimes it’s stressful for high school students to read. So if they can have an outlet that’s fun and low key, then that’s what I’m looking for.”  

What makes Carpe Librum Book Club special? Well, it’s a student driven club, meaning students are the deciding factor when picking a book for the month. Jones says “We all sit around, and we look through the genre that we’re interested in, and then we think about reading reviews, and look at what people have read and what people want to read, and then we all vote on it.”

Book Club name, (Carpe Librum Book Club) was not chosen by Jones. The credit instead goes to Younghouse. Jones said “I know that it’s been established for a little while, like the name” but admits “I probably would have just called it Book Club.”

Jones ultimately is “excited to watch [Book Club] grow and change throughout the year as more and more people hopefully hear about it, and I’m eager to establish a good consistent group that likes to talk about books because I love to talk about books. Even though I teach Biology.” 

Senior, Shelby Jones, a book club member, said “Students should join the book club because there are snacks, and we’re gonna have a really great discussion about books. And we’re gonna have snacks.”

If Book Club sounds appealing, don’t worry, there is still time to join! The club had its first meeting Sept. 7 and decided on the dystopian Sci Fi book “Project Hail Mary” by Andy Weir. The next meeting will be held Oct. 12. For more information, see Jones in Room 218.