Yorkville ‘roaming’ reading club stimulates bodies, friendships and minds

Flipping through pages of a book can often feel like treading new paths, with verdant adventures teeming underfoot.

Hitting the trails, the members of the Roaming Readers Walking Club take their love of literature into the woods. The Yorkville Public Library group gathers twice a month at Hoover Forest Preserve to discuss their favorite authors and the books that have been recently enlightening them.

The club meets at 9 a.m. the first and third Friday of the month at the forest preserve’s gravel parking lot closest to Fox Road, 11285 W. Fox Road, Yorkville. Registration is required to participate.

For perennial member and retired high school English teacher, Elizabeth Murphy, the meetings are an opportunity to develop friendships while soaking up the beauty of nature and expanding literary tastes.

“This is a chance to socialize and talk books, which I love to do,” Murphy said. “The camaraderie is great. We talk about things people are reading and make recommendations. We all participate. We all have certain tastes and favorite authors, and I get interested hearing about things I normally wouldn’t have read.”

Instead of a traditional book club with set reading lists, members of the roaming club are encouraged to explore and share about their own niches to help broaden the literary experiences of everyone in the group.

Murphy said Hoover Forest Preserve is an enchanting place to explore one’s curiosities about literature and the natural world.

“We walk down to the river; it’s very beautiful,” Murphy said. “Everything is accessible for people around my age. Every season has its charm. We see birds and deer among the trees. It’s peaceful when the leaves are falling and you get that crunch in them.”

Mike Curtis, the library’s director of adult services, said the roaming club has been one of the groups he has been most excited about promoting because of the uniqueness it offers for the community.

“There’s a number of books I’ve picked up that I never would have before,” Curtis said. “Literature is all about putting yourself in a different perspective, walking around in someone else’s shoes. Maybe the author is from a different time period, different culture, has a different political perspective or a different religion. When you share what you have learned from the book, it also says a lot about who you are as a person. It’s an exciting way to get to know other people.”

The library archives each recommended book the group discusses on their website, spanning from thrillers to nonfiction.

Curtis said when everyone is walking and engaged intellectually, the conversations naturally flow in a unique and stimulating way.

“There’s all the research that says being in touch with nature is a huge part of our physical and mental health,” Curtis said. “As we share about our books, we encourage different types of perspectives to broaden our community. Challenging people provides a mental stimulation that goes along with the hike as well.”

You can learn more about the group, including viewing past reading recommendations, by visiting yorkville.lib.il.us/roaming-readers-walking-book-club/ or by calling 630-553-4354.