Nashville Great Books Discussion Group

A reader's group devoted to the discussion of meaningful books.

Tuesday, December 28, 2004

When and Where We Gather

The Great Books Discussion Group meets at 6 p.m. every Monday, except for holidays and other library closings. For specific dates, please see the current reading scedule.

Meetings are held in the West Reading Room on the third floor of the Main Library, located at 615 Church Street, downtown Nashville.

Materials selected for the discussion are available for checkout. Call Ron Perry at (615) 862-5843 (Ron.Perry@nashville.gov) for more information about the Great Books Discussion Group.

A Reader's Manifesto


The Nashville Great Books Discussion Group was begun in 1987, holding its first meetings at the Green Hills Branch of the Nashville Public Library. Then, as now, the creation of the group was meant to encourage thoughtful discussion among people interested in reading quality literature. The use of the word "quality," of course, implies a belief in the idea that some works of culture are substantial and worthy of our time, whereas others are not.

Since we are, admittedly, finite beings and our time is limited, we cannot hope to converse with the literature of every culture. Therefore, we have chosen to limit our selections to what are generally perceived to be the great works of literature in western civilization. This in no way suggests that other cultures are deficient in great works of literature; but we adhere to the principle of truly learning one's own landscape before traveling to worlds in which we are relative strangers.