Do you enjoy reading and cooking? Have you thought of combining the two into a book club focused on cookbooks?

In our latest Book Club Q&A, Marie and Sally share everything you need to know to start your own cookbook book group!

Davina: Hi Sally and Marie, I'm so excited to hear about your cookbook book clubs, so without further ado, let's dive in! Firstly, Sally, what's the name of your group, what's your role in it and how did it get started?

Sally: Our group is called Books for Cooks and we're affiliated with Martha Washington Library, which is one of the branches of Fairfax County Public Library (FCPL) in Alexandria, Virginia. I'm the volunteer organizer and facilitator; my background was as a public school reading teacher and professional literacy staff developer, and now that I'm retired, I enjoy running a number of book clubs including Books for Cooks.

Davina: I just love the idea of a cookbook book club, melding two of the most important things in so many of our lives. Where do you meet?

Sally: Pre-pandemic we met at Martha Washington Library. Previously I had attended Cook the Book! meetings at FCPL's George Mason Library, facilitated by librarian Marie Cavanagh, so as to learn how to organize a cookbook book club. Using a template developed by Marie, the Martha Washington Library group began in February 2019, meeting on the first Tuesday of the month, while Marie's already established George Mason group met on the third Monday of the month, with some folks attending both.

Davina: So now FCPL has two cookbook groups. What fun! Marie – can you share a bit about how you came to start a cookbook book club?

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