By Laura Peñaloza
As an international university, CIS University is made up of students with a variety of life stories. Based on a shared love of reading, the CIS University Book Club allows these students not only to explore new poetry, short stories and novels, but to do so alongside the diverse perspectives of their peers and club coordinator, Professor Mar Gámez García.
In the club, members engage in dynamic conversations about the readings every week. They read from various authors, including E. E. Cummings, Susan Glaspell, Ernest Hemingway, Ursula K. Le Guin, Alice Walker, Federico García Lorca, and many others.
“It is very fulfilling for me to see when students are passionate about a specific text, author, or book. My favorite part is when I let them speak and we listen to their readings and interpretations,” explained Professor Gámez, who has led the club for the last two academic years.
Students are also invited to several club excursions throughout the semester. In the past, CIS University Book Club has visited Miguel de Cervantes’ house and a medieval market in Alcalá de Henares, the historical Chocolatería San Ginés, theater performances such as an adaptation of Lorca’s famous Yerma, and the Retiro Park, where the weather is especially nice for reading.
This semester, the Book Club has met every Thursday at 5 p.m. In the last few weeks, they have been reading American author Susan Glaspell’s play ‘Suppressed Desires’ and plan to watch a Spanish adaptation of the play at the Teatro Español. These shared experiences allow for a new appreciation of literature in a different way than what can be found through independent reading.
This club is not only for avid readers but also for anyone with a curiosity for literature or an interest in group dialogue. CIS University Introduction to Literature professor Andrew Bennet describes the importance of literature for students, saying that “everyone should have the opportunity to have an intellectual life. That means reading challenging stuff and being willing to be absorbed by it. This develops your critical sensibility, to be rigorous, fair, and balanced. All of these skills are essential not just for the workplace but to be a better person.”
Professor Gámez adds that reading not only improves your vocabulary and writing skills, but “reading about other people’s lives or characters’ lives -if we talk about fiction- makes you a more empathetic and open-minded person. And that is a very important characteristic to have in a globalized and interconnected world like ours.”
It is not always easy for members of any club to dedicate time outside of class to this continued learning, but their efforts reap rewards far beyond the surface level. By being active participants in their learning, these students are getting the most out of their university experience.
Long-term member of the Book Club, Lorena Martin, shares her hopes for the club’s future, saying “I hope the book club will continue growing in size in the upcoming semester. It is a brilliant club to be part of. Professor Mar is lovely and always makes an effort to engage us in learning, growing, and discovering authors that we would have taken longer to find out if we were outside the club.”
As Lorena describes, “Books are a powerful tool for knowing your most authentic self more closely.” Through experiencing these stories together in the Book Club, it is hoped that students may come to know themselves and the people around them more authentically. The Book Club is a great way to meet students from outside one’s year and major and to form new friendships as life turns over the pages.