The Why To For of Book Club

I keep seeing folks starting book clubs. All the time. I’ll snoop, seeing how they’re picking their books. Its almost comical. One I just looked at is reading only books with yellow covers. Interesting. Not quite my thing, but…

I’ve been running a bookclub for a year or so now. Then there's the fact I’ve been part of one off and on for the better part of the past 10 or so years. That first group’s book choices were amazing. We all brought our ideas to the table, and then we read them. Simple as that. The variety was like no other. I’ve learned so much from reading outside my genre. So much, that when I started Book Club of the 1st I decided to keep it multi genre.

What do *I* want from books? This is a tough one. I don’t have a ton of spare time, so when I read books I want them to be AMAZING. I think that’s true for many of us. I want a great story. Or eloquent writing. Or characters so rich I feel like I know them. A plot that’s so tangled, yet followable, I’m stuck there for days if not months after I stop reading. Not too much to ask, right?

Knowing this, how do I pick books? Its equal parts asking the members for recommendations and doing a TON of research on other book club picks. I try to stick with those that have good ratings on Goodreads and Amazon. I prefer those that have been nominated, or won awards. I rely heavily on librarian’s feedback on my local libraries website, KCLS.org. I want the books to be on audio, digital, as well as in print, so we can get the most readers.

I am forever in search of books that I can get lost in, like The Girl With all the Gifts, by MR Carey. Or Paolo Bacigalupi’s The Wind up Girl. Or The Power of One, by Bryce Courtenay, or The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver. I could go on, there are so many. But I’ve read them already! So I need more, MORE I tell you.

Want to join us - in person or just on the webs for book recommendations? Let me know and I’ll hook you up. Have a fantastic book that fits all that criteria up there? Please share! My Goodreads list is about a mile long but I’d love some help narrowing down which should come first.

See you in the books!

SaveSaveSave