Between the covers of a well-furnished mind

If you've ever wanted to join a book club, but haven't had time to go to meetings, consider joining the new Boston Globe Book Club.

For those who do not remember the origins of the club, here's a recap:

Several months ago, state education chairman John Silber asked one of his associates to develop a reading list for students composed of books that all well-informed US citizens should read.

We invited Globe readers to submit their own suggestions for such a list, and based on the hundreds of letters and e-mail messages we received, we developed our own list of Top 10 books - and launched our book club.

Book choices for club members will be from the Globe Top 10 list, and from suggestions by readers.

Most frequently cited works 1. The Bible 2. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain 3. Hamlet by Shakespeare 4. US Constitution (tie) Moby Dick by Herman Melvlle (tie) 6. Declaration of Independence 7. The Odyssey by Homer 8. The Federalist Papers (tie) Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoyevsky 10. A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens

Most frequently cited authors 1. Shakespeare 2. The Bible 3. Mark Twain 4. Homer 5. Fyodor Dostoyevsky 6. Charles Dickens (tie) Herman Melville (tie) 8. John Steinbeck 9. Leo Tolstoy 10.Plato

Click here to see what other literary scholars think are essential works citizens should have to read