Chester, Harlem, Havre library book clubs receive grants

Several local libraries have received awards to help fund their public book clubs, The Montana Center for the Book announced.

Liberty County Library Pathfinders Book Club Startup, Harlem Public Library Book Club and Havre-Hill County All Together Now Summer Reading Book Club each received $500 stipends from The Montana Center for the Book’s Big Sky Reads program, a press release said. The grants are part of $3,000 awarded to book clubs in six Montana communities.

The Montana Center for the Book is a program of Humanities Montana and the state affiliate of the Library of Congress Center for the Book. The Big Sky Reads initiative supports public book clubs by providing groups $500 stipends in addition to suggested reading lists and discussion questions for participants and facilitator, the release said.

“Support for book groups has been one of Humanities Montana’s longest-running commitments. We are honored to serve community groups across the state through this intimate and impactful program,” Kim Anderson, Humanities Montana interim director and the creator of the Montana Festival of the Book, said in the release.

Liberty County Library Pathfinders Book Club Startup is part of a new initiative led by the Liberty County Library and Great Falls Public Library. In the program, 15 libraries from Shelby to Harlem and Cascade to Chester, will have access to new book club kit resources.

Each participating library hosts book club meetings at their locations and all are open to the public. To learn more, contact any of the following libraries: Belt Public Library, Blaine County Library, Choteau/Teton Public Library, Chouteau County Library, Conrad Public Library, Dutton/Teton Public Library, Fairfield/Teton Public Library, Glacier County Library, Great Falls Public Library, Harlem Public Library, Havre-Hill County Library, Liberty County Library, Toole County Library, Valier Public Library, Wedsworth Memorial Library.

Harlem Public Library Book Club meets at the Harlem Public Library weekly Mondays at 4 p.m., September through April. For more information contact, people can contact Colleen Brommer at 406-353-2712.

Havre-Hill County Library’s 2023 summer book club, All Together Now Summer Reading Book Club, will examine the impacts of technology on society. It held its first meetings at the Havre-Hill County Library June 15 and June 29 and will meet July 13 and July 27 at 6:30 p.m.

The other clubs awarded stipends are in Glendive, Dillon and Bozeman.

The Glendive River City Readers Book Club has been active for more than 30 years and meets the third Monday of each month, September through May, in the afternoons.

Dillon Public Library’s I’ll Read ANYTHING Book Club “really does read anything and everything,” the release said. The club meets from 6:30-8:30 p.m. at the Dillon Public Library the second Friday of every month from June through August and the second Tuesday of every month from September through May.

The Bozeman Public Library Book Club meets twice monthly, the third Tuesday of the month from 6:30-8 p.m. in the newly created Ponderosa meeting room on the second floor of the library and the third Wednesday of the month from 3-4 p.m. at the Gallatin Valley Mall.

The Montana Center for the Book’s mission is to promote awareness of books, writing, reading, the book arts, publishing and literacy in the state, the release said.

“Literature expands our worlds and encourages values like empathy,” added Anderson. “Book groups enrich that experience by encouraging us to create community and freely discuss our feelings and thoughts about how a book made us think or feel.”

The Montana Center for the Book funds up to 10 Big Sky Reads book clubs each year. To learn more about the program, people can visit humanitiesmontana.org/big-sky-reads and see the list of book clubs supported in 2023 on the grants awarded page. Applications will open again in November 2023.  

Humanities Montana is accepting applications from eligible organizations for their Opportunity Grants of up to $1,000, Regular Grants in excess of $1,000 and Film + Video Grants of up to $10,000.

Humanities Montana employs an open application system for Opportunity Grants and awards are subject to funding availability. The next deadline for Regular Grant and Film + Video applications is August 20. For eligibility criteria and application details, people can visit https://humanitiesmontana.org . People can also watch a recording of Humanities Montana’s recent informational webinar about upcoming grant opportunities on the website.

To learn more, people can contact Humanities Montana’s grants manager via phone at 406-243-6067 or email [email protected].

Humanities Montana is Montana’s state humanities council. With a mission to serve Montana’s multicultural communities through stories and conversation, Humanities Montana offers experiences that nurture imagination and ideas by speaking to Montanans’ diverse history, literature, and philosophy. Established in 1972, Humanities Montana is one of 56 councils across the nation that the National Endowment for the Humanities created in order to better infuse the humanities directly and effectively into public life. They produce, fund, create and support humanities-based projects and programs, eye-opening cultural experiences, and meaningful conversations.