DAPHNE, Ala. — The Daphne Public Library’s teen book club has teens talking to their peers and experiencing real situations through fiction.

This month’s book was “For One More Day” by Mitch Albom; teens discussed the relationship between Chick — the main character — to his parents.

The first line hooked readers, members agreed.

“Let me guess, you want to know why I tried to kill myself,” it reads.

Teens could relate to Chick’s undeserved admiration of his father and his unwarranted disdain for his mother when his parents separated, they said.

“It related to me; I was going through a lot at that time (while reading the book),” Kaitlyn Haase said. “It makes you think about it when you scowl at your parents.”

“He regretted taking her (his mother) for granted,” April Ward said.

Chick’s father in the book pays attention to him only if he played baseball; the father ultimately makes Chick choose between him and Chick’s mother.

“That just makes you feel rejected, like you’re not good enough,” Kaitlyn said.

Louise Youngblood, young-adult librarian, agreed.

“He was very vulnerable,” she said. “This is what can happen if that authority figure is a little warped.”

She asked the teens if they believed that Chick felt responsible for his parents’ actions.

“He felt that maybe it was because of him that his dad was leaving; they were fighting over him,” Brooke Bailey said.

Chick in the story chooses to play baseball — as opposed to continuing his education — to remain close to his father; this sparked concerns for the future in the teens.

“It’s a good idea to go to college and get something stable if you want to be an actress or something like that,” Bailey said.

Youngblood was glad to see the teens involved, she said.

“Group discussion helps this age group by allowing the young reader to gain ownership with the text; from there they gain a feeling of empowerment and gradually build confidence as a serious reader,” she said.

“That can go beyond the basic facts of the story line.”

Next month’s book will be “Peak” by Roland Smith. The teen book club meets at 4 p.m. every third Wednesday at the Daphne Public Library on U.S. 98 at Whispering Pines Road.

For more, call 621-2818.