The Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust's Bell Library and Knowledge Hub has launched a book club and we are called the Royal Readers.
We would like to invite anyone who is already an avid reader and those who are just curious about what book worms talk about (you may be surprised!) to join our meetings.
We could all do with the king of escapism that books can offer and we aim for these get togethers to be very relaxed and enjoyable.
The details of our next meeting are as follows:
VENUE: Via MS Teams.
DATE: Wednesday 17th April 2024
TIME: 7pm
April's book choice is The Mysterious Case of the Alperton Angels; we have loaned this set of books for you from the Public Library. The copies are at the Bell Library, Building no.11, you can collect between the hours of 8.30am and 4.30pm.
If you are interested in joining us please email the Bell Library & Knowledge Hub at rwh-tr.belllibrary@nhs.net and we will send out the MS Teams invitation.
Following on from a fun and successful live "Royal Readers Book Club" on the 5th July to celebrate the NHS 75th Anniversary, the library have purchased a number of books by our invited guests for the day Emma Purshouse, Kuli Kohli and Steve Pottinger. To access the list click on The Royal Readers Book Club 75th NHS Celebration Books.
A full list of previous reads are available at RWT Royal Readers Books.
We have also created a list of books about the NHS, including history, humour and memoirs, this can be viewed here.
The Bell Library Team at RWT is setting up a writing group for Trust staff as a sister group to their Royal Readers book club.
The team invites any colleagues to the group, regardless of prior experience, whether you’re a published author or total novice, or whether you prefer creative writing or academic writing.
The group will meet once every other month, starting March 2024, with the goal being for members to share their work with others in a supportive environment to gain constructive feedback, as well as providing suggestions or prompts if anyone is interested in writing but doesn’t know where to start.
If you would be interested in joining the group or have any questions, please email the team at rwh-tr.BellLibrary@nhs.net
We also recommend great films and television programmes we have watched - have a look at the following list:
Films
Zone of Interest
Poor Things
Series
Boy Swallows World - Netflix
True Detective - Sky
The Familiars by Sally Halls was loaned to me by a good friend. She also let me borrow The Foundling which was the second book published by the same author.
Historical books are not really my 'bag' but I thought I would give it a go as it came highly recommended and I really enjoyed it. I had obviously heard of the witch trials of years gone by but had never read a book with such a detailed account of how midwives were used. The book described one young mothers struggle with carrying her children full-term. It covered how peerage titles and land were pasted on through inheritance through families and how men often had back-up plans when women failed to produce a living heir. People who used herbs and natural remedies to treat the unwell were considered to be using witchcraft for which they were tried and hung. All in all an educational read with interesting characters and a great plot that kept you turning the pages.
I would score this book an 8 out of 10 and give it a thumbs up.
2024 dates are here . . .
17th April 2024 - A book is a gift you can open again and again - Garrison Keillor
June 12th 2024 - Books are uniquely portable magic - Stephen King
August 14th 2024 - The only important thing about a book is the meaning that is has for you - W. Somerset Maugham
October 9th 2024 - Reading gives us some place to go when we have to stay where we are - Mason Cooley
December 11th 2024 - Books are a waste of time, said no intelligent person ever - ? Some clever person :-)
These are books previously reviewed by the Royal Readers.
We would love to hear from you!
If you have any ideas or suggestions you would like to put forward about how the club is taking shape please leave your comments in the discussion box.