The Kelvinside Allotment Book Group blossomed into life in April 2019. Deciding that we wanted the company of fellow plot holders, on our own allotment, we turned down the offer of a room in our local library where the group was registered, in preference for gathering in our communal shed. Meeting every six weeks or so, on a Sunday between 5 and 6pm, we’d settle into a circle of chairs, scoffing home baking and hot drinks, and have an hour of conversation about a book with some connection to growing. That was fine in the summer months, but once Greenwich Mean Time meant our meetings were after sunset, we had a decision to make. Our stalwart readers didn’t want to give up their own venue, so we brought torches, blankets and mulled wine to keep it a real Allotment Book Group.
Inclusivity is one of our main aims, so we choose books from a wide range of genres in the hope that at some time, there will be something for everyone. We’ve had historical novels, classic literature, modern fiction, autobiography, children’s classics and ecology. Whenever possible, we get multiple copies of books from Glasgow Libraries, so that the cost of buying books doesn’t exclude potential readers. All plot holders are encouraged to make suggestions for future reads, and once we’ve decided on a book, we email the title and date for the next meeting to all, inviting along anyone that wants to come. Different books chime with different people – some come along to discuss a book they know and love; others are regular attenders, irrespective of the title. Each meeting will have roughly six to eight participants, there’s no expectation that folk attend every meeting, or even that they’ve read the book!
After a year of comfort in our shed, with ever more varied books and victuals, the pandemic swept in. We quickly moved our sessions to Zoom, and after some trepidation about how it would work, we’ve actually had more frequent meetings! Once the Covid restrictions eased, we returned to meeting on on the allotment, trialling different arrangements to suit the weather as we realised that a return to the shed wasn’t an option given its poor ventilation and limited space. We’ve had a gazebo when it rained; a chiminea, blankets and hot water bottles when there was frost on the ground and stars in the sky; and a circle of chairs under a blue sky. Only once have we had to resort to someone’s house.
Details of forth coming book group meetings will be posted on the News Page of the web site as soon as the book and date of the next meeting are decided.
Some previous titles read by the KAA Book Group
- The History of Bees by Maja Lunde
- The Story of My Childhood and Youth by John Muir
- Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants by Robin Wall Kimmerer.
- Tom’s Midnight Garden by Philippa Pearce
- The Man Who Planted Trees by Jean Giono
- Life in the Garden by Penelope Lively
- Plot 29 by Allan Jenkins
- Entangled Life by Merlin Sheldrake
- The Garden of Evening Mists by Tan Twan Eng
- Prodigal Summer by Barbara Kingsolver
Kelvinside Allotments 