#Leverxpeople Are Reading and also discussing books with colleagues, sharing their favorite literature works with one another, and even giving old books a new life!

Let’s talk about events dedicated to books and literature that we recently had in our company.

Secret Book Santa: Learn More about Your Colleagues’ Book Preferences

We decided to organize a book week for those who enjoy spending time reading books. The opening event of our book week was a secret book exchange, called “Secret Book Santa.”

We brought books that we wanted to share to the office, wrapped them in paper, and left them in a special box. After a random distribution between offices, the books found new owners. Thanks to the note with the name of the sender, the guys could thank each other for the new books!

Many of the participants preferred to stay anonymous and shared their books without signing them, leaving the new owners puzzled over which of their colleagues is so passionate about novels or fantasy.

Tatiana Chupina: Ever since I can remember, our home was full of books. That's why I'm always excited to get my hands on a new one. It was interesting for me to receive a book from a Secret Santa, as the book found you.

I’ve chosen “The Hobbit” because I like this story very much. I think that sometimes we all need to jump into a fairy tale. Hope my recipient did it! I got the book "You Are A Badass", which I wanted to read but didn’t have a paper book. It was an interesting and useful book, capable enough to boost yourself! :)

Yana Tsiareshchanka: I decided to take part in this event because I love reading. Moreover, literature is directly connected with my education. I am a teacher of foreign languages ​​and literature by profession.

It's great when you can share a good book with people and get something new to read. :)

I brought 3 books: “Faust” by Goethe, “The Talented Mr. Ripley” by Patricia Highsmith, and "Hot Water Music” by Charles Bukowski. I received "Flowers for Algernon" by Daniel Keyes. Even though I have already read it, I was still happy to get this book because I like it very much.

Giving a New Life to Old Books

Secret Book Santa is only the beginning of our book activities. Then, #leverxpeople took part in the “Give a book a new life” campaign.

The campaign is a charity project of “BELGIPS-ECO” and has been held in Belarus since 2015. The main goal of the event is to collect unnecessary books and transfer them to educational facilities (schools, universities, museums, and libraries).

There were 3 boxes in our company. The guys brought both fiction and scientific literature, as well as unnecessary textbooks and other printed publications. All donated books were transferred to “BELGIPS-ECO”, and then, into the right hands.

We thank everyone for their interest and participation in the campaign!

Book Club: Let’s Have a Look at Books with Other Eyes

For all book lovers in LeverX, we have launched a Book Club.

The Book Club is a great opportunity to discuss your favorite books in the company of like-minded people, listen to the thoughts of colleagues, and share experiences with one another.

Book Club Meeting 1. Why “Anxious People”?

The book for reading and discussion at the first meeting was chosen by voting. We tried to offer books of different genres so that the guys had plenty to choose from.

The first book that #leverxpeople decided to read was a short story by Fredrik Backman called “Anxious People.”

The Rustle of Pages, Hot Tea, and Lively Discussions

On an October evening, book lovers met in a cozy atmosphere to discuss the author and the first book read under the Book Club. At the end of the working day, over hot drinks and delicious pizza, the conversation proceeded warmly, and the rain outside the window only added a special comfort to our meeting.

The Guys discussed the plot and shared their emotions about the book they had read. Despite different reviews, all participants agreed that the Book Club is a unique opportunity to look at the story with other eyes, through the prism of different life experiences.

First-Hand Impressions

The first rule of the Book Club is you DO talk about the Book Club!

The Book Club interested so many of our employees. One of them even came to the first meeting from another country. We asked club members to share their impressions.

Andrei Shatilin:

Why have you decided to join the Book Club?

— I like reading books in my spare time. But sometimes. I don’t have anybody to discuss books with. That’s why I decided to join the Book Club.

Was this your first experience of participating in such an event? Have you ever visited Book Clubs?

— No, this is my first experience. At first, I did not really understand what to expect from еру умуте, but everything was well.

What did you like the most about the meeting?

— That you can hear interesting opinions from different people. Sometimes, you don’t even notice some details, and the discussion allows you to look at the story from a different angle. This is also a good opportunity to learn more about your colleagues, discuss non-work-related things, and just meet coworkers during the “online” time.

What did you like/remember most about the book you read?

— The author's style was great, especially with slight humor in everything that happens in the book. But the most memorable moment for me was (beware, spoilers!) when the main character lost almost “everything” literally in an instant.

Yesterday, he had a loving family, a good job, and plans for the future. And in one day, the hero finds himself on the street, not knowing what to do. And it was unexpected for him to receive support where he did not expect it.

Do you have any ideas about how to improve Book Club meetings?

— In general, everything was fine. There were some difficulties with hot drinks.

After work, many of us were tired, and it is not so easy for people to relax and communicate. But all these can be easily fixed.

Katsiaryna Leshchuk: 

Why have you decided to join the Book Club?

—I enjoy reading books and discussing what I read with others. But in the process of reading, you may miss something, and the discussion allows you to look at the book from a new perspective.

Was this your first experience of participating in such an event? Have you ever visited Book Clubs?

— I participated in such an event for the first time.

What did you like the most about the meeting?

— I really liked the atmosphere. The meeting turned out to be emotional.

At first, there were fears that in a large company it would be noisy and not everyone would be able to speak. However, everything was very harmonious, and everyone had the opportunity to share their opinions and impressions.

 I also liked that people prepared and even wrote out quotes and moments that hooked them in the book.

What did you like/remember most about the book you read?

— I liked the quote: “We don’t want our children to pursue their dreams or walk in our footsteps. We want to walk in their footsteps while they pursue our dreams.”

This is not the first book by Buckman that I have read. I already knew this author and I want to note that he impresses me very much. He writes in fairly simple language, and his characters are so real that you can easily find their character traits in your neighbor, friend, or relative.

Do you have any ideas about how to improve Book Club meetings?

— There were a lot of people who wanted to join the meeting online but, unfortunately, there was no such opportunity. I hope that next time the organizers will take this moment into account and provide everyone with the opportunity to join the meeting.

After all, the club will grow, new interesting people will come, bringing new interesting books.

This is just the beginning! Join our book club, because it's a great opportunity to read more and meet your colleagues more often.