海角大神

Barb Nelson, a farmer in Red Oak, Iowa, comes from a family of eight kids, split evenly between political parties. A confirmed Democrat, she has one particularly Republican sister, and while they鈥檙e close, they don鈥檛 talk politics. That is, they didn鈥檛 until Ms. Nelson started her book club.

She and a group of friends recently launched a reading group for former special counsel Robert Mueller鈥檚 legalese-laden 448-page report. As she was reading the report, Ms. Nelson decided to reach out to her sister and share some of her thoughts. She says she realized the only way to make progress was to try to understand other viewpoints.

鈥淯ntil we listen to people and find out who they are, we鈥檙e not going to find common ground,鈥� Ms. Nelson says.聽

Her club, in fact, is part of a larger effort to make the Mueller report more accessible. Organizations across the country, from fact-checking websites to advocacy firms, are encouraging Americans to read the report by creating communities of fellow readers. For many of the book clubs, the goal is to motivate members to stay informed,聽think critically, and remain politically engaged.聽

Ms. Nelson and her friends launched the club after coming across Muellerbookclub.com, an online forum started by the progressive activist group Public Citizen in Washington, D.C. Even after spreading the word in person, online, in local newspapers, and over the radio, Ms. Nelson thought they鈥檇 be lucky if 10 showed up to the first meeting.

They got almost 25 鈥� some driving nearly 50 miles to the Red Oak coffee shop where they meet.

鈥淚t鈥檚 the community support,鈥� Ms. Nelson says, noting their club includes mostly Democrats but at least one Republican. 鈥淥ne of our members said today that 鈥� without the group, they probably couldn鈥檛 [read it]. They really value hearing the community talk about it.鈥�

Justin Hendrix, director of March for Truth, hatched the idea for Muellerbookclub.com with the nonprofit Public Citizen soon after the report was released this April. Open to everyone, the online club split the report into four sections and launched a month-long series. Beginning May 13, the group hosted Monday webinars on the week鈥檚 reading, featuring guests from House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler to journalist Gloria Steinem. It received so much support 鈥� more than 20,000 viewers some weeks 鈥� that Mr. Hendrix and his colleagues are now looking past the original end date, trying to continue their momentum.

鈥淭he thing we were surprised at was just how quickly others were willing to jump in and lend a hand,鈥� he says.

Released to the public April 18, the Mueller report became an instant bestseller 鈥� even with free versions posted online. But buying the report is one thing, and reading it is another. In May, only 3% of Americans had actually read the report, and fewer than 25% had read any of it, according to a . Even some leading members of Congress, The Washington Post reported at the end of May, hadn鈥檛 read the full report.

On air June 12, Fox News anchor Shepard Smith said the Mueller report was something 鈥渆veryone in America should read. Everyone.鈥�

Whether the report exonerates the president is left to personal opinion. What鈥檚 certain is the interest it鈥檚 generated 鈥� inspiring live readings from San Francisco to New York, free online audio versions, podcasts, and of course, book clubs.

In a public statement last month, Mr. Mueller cautioned people to let the report speak for itself, later adding that the report is his testimony.

Angie Holan, editor of PolitiFact, a nonpartisan website devoted to fact-checking politicians鈥� statements, says Mr. Mueller鈥檚 press conference felt like a direct appeal for Americans to read the report themselves. PolitiFact recently announced its own Mueller report book club. Ms. Holan says the goal is to support people who want to read it but don鈥檛 feel comfortable doing so alone.聽

鈥淭he idea is that you let people interact with the text on their own terms, but you provide some guidance to help them get started and to help them continue reading. Because it鈥檚 not easy for everybody,鈥� she says.

Politifact plans to publish materials in its newsletter as the book club progresses.聽By the end of their eight-week series, Ms. Holan says they hope to have an available template for similar clubs in the future. She has been surprised by the amount of public support they鈥檝e received so far 鈥� both from current subscribers and the 2,000 who joined soon after the club launched June 6.

Similar responses have been especially encouraging to Jonah Minkoff-Zern, co-director for Public Citizen鈥檚 Democracy Is For People Campaign and a colleague of Mr. Hendrix on the book report project.

鈥淚t鈥檚 nice validation that people really do care and want to take action on this and want to be part of a response,鈥� he says.

People around the country have been writing letters to their local newspapers and telling him about their own chapters, he adds 鈥撀爈ike Ms. Nelson.

鈥淥h my gosh, I feel like I鈥檓 back in college,鈥� says Ms. Nelson about the weekly readings.

She acts as the moderator for her group and is encouraging members to engage beyond the book club. Take it home, she recommends, tell the neighbors, talk to strangers.

鈥淩ead it and find out for yourself. Read it and discuss it with other people,鈥� she says. 鈥淯nless you start reaching out and listening to other people, this stalemate is going to continue. ... We need to reach out to everybody, of all political stripes.鈥�