How to start a book club people will actually want to join

So you want to start a book club … 

Congratulations! Books are a great way to create community and build relationships. Talking about stories prompts people to share their own experiences and reflections. 

But how do you keep your book club a book club, and not a wine club or a gossip club or a venting club? Here are a few suggestions: 

Invite readers

Find the people in your life who read and gather them. Maybe that means it’s just two of you discussing a book over coffee. Maybe it’s a dozen of you meeting every month. Either is fine, and one might transform into the other over time. The point is connecting over a shared interest. 

Check out: USA TODAY's weekly Best-selling Booklist

Set ground rules

How often will you meet? What kind of books do you want to read? Best-sellers or classics? Fiction or nonfiction? Let your shared interests guide you. The only thing we suggest setting in stone is this: We will talk about the book.  

Choose multiple books in advance

People can plan and actually read the book, not to mention getting the date on their calendar. 

Check your library for book club collections

You might be able to get extra copies, making it easy for everyone to read the book. 

Allow for community

If part of your goal is connection, make space and time for side conversations. Encourage people to come even if they haven’t finished the book — just be prepared for spoilers! 

Be consistent

A regular meeting helps. So do regular questions. Starting each conversation with a standard set of questions mean readers come prepared to the conversation. Some questions we find useful: What was your overall feeling about this? What surprised you? What did you learn? Who was your favorite character? Who did you not like? Would you recommend this?

Hillary Copsey is the book advisor at The Mercantile Library in Cincinnati, Ohio.