The book club renaissance

Book clubs were supposed to be quiet, polite affairs: a few friends, a bottle of wine and a novel that half of them had not finished. In the past few years, they have become something bigger. There are book clubs in bars, cafés, libraries and bookshops, online clubs with thousands of members, and clubs devoted to single genres, single authors or books that are more than 800 pages long.

Why now

People who run book clubs give similar answers. After years of screens, many readers wanted something slower. Reading alone is private; reading together turns a book into a shared experience, with the anticipation of talking about it afterwards.

Social media played a part. Online communities around books grew fast, and many people who found them wanted to meet in person. Bookshops noticed and started hosting clubs, which bring customers through the door on quiet evenings.

The new shapes

Modern book clubs come in many forms. Silent reading clubs, where people meet to read quietly together for an hour and then chat. Clubs that read one classic slowly over a year. Clubs that pair each book with a meal or a walk. Clubs for people who only read science fiction, poetry, or books in translation.

We're not there to agree. We're there to find out what other people saw.

Maya Lindqvist

What makes a good club

Successful clubs have a few things in common. A regular time and place. A way of choosing books that everyone accepts. A host who keeps the conversation moving without taking it over. And a relaxed attitude to people who have not finished the book.

Starting your own

• Keep it small at first: four to eight people is enough.
• Agree how books are chosen, and take turns.
• Pick a regular day and stick to it.
• Prepare two or three open questions for each meeting.
• Welcome people who did not finish; they often have the best questions.

Bookshops and libraries at the centre

For bookshops and libraries, clubs have become an important part of their work. A regular club brings people in on quiet evenings, creates a loyal community and gives booksellers a chance to recommend books they love. Some shops run several clubs a month for different interests, and libraries often lend multiple copies of the chosen book so members do not have to buy it.

What people get from it

Ask members why they come and the answers are rarely about books alone. They talk about meeting people they would never otherwise have met, hearing views very different from their own and having a reason to finish a book. Many say the club has changed what they read: they try genres and authors they would never have picked up alone.

The online side

Not every book club meets in a room. Online clubs connect readers across countries and time zones, often around a single author or genre. Some meet by video call; others discuss in forums or group chats, with deadlines for each section of the book. For readers in small towns or with busy lives, they are often the only option.

Many readers now belong to both: a local club for the company and conversation, and an online one for the books they cannot find anyone nearby to talk about.

Questions