The Estill Book Club

There are clubs of all kinds—some focused, some aimless, some benevolent, some socially elite and “clubby.” In Estill, SC, is a club after my own heart. The Estill Book Club, meeting twice a month from September to April, is finishing its 93rd year. It isn’t just a worthy organization; it’s priceless, in my estimation. Here are people who avidly read books—a dying breed—and gather to discuss their selections. Moreover, they share a close common friendship that makes the Book Club one of the most important activities in each member’s life. Besides the books and current events they discuss, they look forward to a lunch-time feast at each meeting. When they return thanks to the Lord before indulging at table, they understand they have a lot more to be thankful for than a fine southern meal.

A dozen women in 1913 started the club because, although they lived in a remote small town near the Savannah River, they were interested in worldwide literature. Why 12 members? Because the typical southern dining table seated exactly that number. As the original members passed on, each was succeeded in turn, typically by a relative. Thus, the Estill Book Club possesses an unique genealogical as well as literary tradition.

In an era when more and more people are taking most—in many situations all—of their education and entertainment from broadcast and online media, the Estill Book Club is carrying on the vital promotion of the printed word.

The club has made for front-page feature material in several daily newspapers. Sandlapper, The Magazine of South Carolina, is featuring the group in its Spring 2006 issue. You can read the article online in April after the issue goes public at the SC-ETV Web site, www.knowitall.org.