Innovia Foundation has opened registration for a two-part Community Book Club series this spring to encourage thoughtful conversations amid polarizing times. Individuals, nonprofits, businesses and community leaders across Innovia’s 20-county service region, encompassing Eastern Washington and North Idaho, are invited to host their own club or join a local club. 

Clubs will read, discuss and gather insights from two book selections by well-respected Pacific Northwest authors. The book selections include I Never Thought of It That Way: How to Have Fearlessly Curious Conversations in Dangerously Divided Times by Mónica Guzmán and Bridges to Heal US: Stories and Strategies for Racial Healing by Erin Jones. 

Registration is free with books optionally available for purchase at a discounted rate. Gathering in small groups, clubs are encouraged to meet at least once per book. A book club guide will be provided to participants, complete with discussion questions to guide reading and spark curious conversations.  

In partnership with The Spokesman-Review Northwest Passages, book clubs will culminate in two Author Events. The events will feature Mónica Guzmán on May 2 and Erin Jones on May 31. Book club members and the wider community will be inspired by a keynote and fireside chat at the events, including an audience Q&A with the authors. Local communities will gather at in-person satellite venues for a simulcast and conversation. Registration for these events will open later this spring. 

“As a community foundation, we celebrate the common values that unite us and acknowledge the differing perspectives that sometimes divide us,” said Shelly O’Quinn, CEO of Innovia. “Through the Community Book Clubs, we invite our region to gather as neighbors in bridge-building clubs that spark meaningful conversations, insights and connections.”