How to Pick the Perfect Books for Your Book Club
Every now and then a patron will approach the Book Help Desk and give me the opportunity to do one of my favorite kinds of readers’ advisory. “I need help picking our next book club read.” In my seven years here at LPL, I’ve led multiple book discussions every month, and so I consider this area to be a specialty of mine. They might be startled and a little confused by the barrage of questions I ask them in return. What month are you needing a book for? What kind of book did you just read? Do you know what kind of book you will be reading after this one? What sorts of books does your club typically read? Do you have a comfort zone? How do you feel about stepping out of it? But a hill I will die on is that these questions are crucial to curating the perfect book club reading list.
I've narrowed down some categories that may help you decide on a few books to supplement your club's reading list this year, based on how they might make people feel, the level of mental bandwidth they take up, what they might bring to the discussion, and also my own personal opinions. In other words: Just trust me, I'm a professional.
Page Turners
Coming off a month (or perhaps a stretch of meetings) where the main complaint was that the books were too slow? Maybe these Page Turners will help. But maybe they won’t. Reading is a subjective activity, after all, where one woman’s slog ending in a DNF is another woman’s unputdownable read. I picked these based on their overall high average of page turning appeal.
This was THE book of the year in 2024 and has recently experienced a surge in popularity thanks to Taylor Swift. It's a perfect example of something I wholeheartedly believe: Sometimes books are "trendy" because they're really, really good.
I'm not sure I've ever experienced a more compulsively readable nonfiction book. Tara Westover is a born storyteller and it just so happens that telling the story of her own life among a survivalist family required, and also deserved, a delicate, masterful hand. This book is a complex journey that I'm still thinking about years after reading it.
This book was soooo compelling right out of the gate. I was immediately sucked in by the mystery of what happened to Adam Parson, and my love for this family slowly burgeoned.
Taylor Jenkins Reid needs no introduction, nor does she need me hand selling her books, but as someone who merely likes but does not love her work, I feel I can objectively state that her writing superpower is actually story structure. She writes short, digestible chapters and does very interesting things with timelines that make putting her books down nearly impossible.
Rage Baiters
Hear me out: Sometimes “bad” is actually good. Some of the liveliest book club discussions I’ve been involved in have been about books where the liked-to-disliked ratio was something like 30/70. These are often books with controversial themes, or ambitious writing styles, or polarizing protagonists, or perhaps a combination of these. Some even go for the hat trick! Not everyone would consider this a book club rut, but when my club members have smiled placidly at one another and said “It was good. The characters were nice. The writing was fine,” I’m at the head of the table going “BO-RING.” Give me the characters people love to hate, or prose that’s purple, or subject matter that makes me uncomfortable! If that’s the experience you’re looking for, try one of these Rage Baiters:
ORBITAL: A NOVEL (BOOKER PRIZE WINNER)
I still don't know if I think this book is good. It wasn't what I was expecting. It has no plot. But does that mean it's bad? The writing is incredible, with sentences that will make you stop, close the cover, stare off into space and say "wow". But does that mean it's good? Let your book club have it out like mine did.
Whew, this one is chal-len-ging. I didn't like the protagonist, Frida. In fact, no one in my book club did. This novel provides an excellent exercise in judgment-free empathy against a backdrop of a chilling, dystopian nightmare. This is definitely a "step out of your safe space" read for a time when your club is up for the provocation.
This is another genre read that I qualify as "not for everyone but definitely for me". It's bloody and outrageous but still manages to provide a very thought-provoking social commentary. It has hundreds of ratings and reviews in our BiblioCommons catalog and averages an impressive 4.5 stars. It's a difficult read at times, but a powerful, important novel with a clear message. Love it or hate it, it's sure to get your club buzzing.
Oh, Stephen Graham Jones, you unhinged genius. This horrifying historical fiction will push the limits of your human suffering and gore tolerance and has a completely bonkers ending that is sure to split your club. Some will be annoyed by it, others will think it's perfect. As for me, I actually laughed out loud.
Speaking of unlikeable protagonists. June Hayward takes the cake. I gave this book 5 stars even though I didn’t enjoy myself while I was reading it. It’s hard for me to think of a more anxiety inducing novel. I had the most pervasive sense of general unease the entire time, like oh good god, what is this lady doing and what calamitous and stupid mistake is she going to make next.
Palate Cleansers
Widely loved books, on the other hand, have a time and a place. Sometimes that time and place is with your book club. These books, commonly “cozy” reads, or perhaps low stakes literary fiction, fantasy, or sci-fi, make great palate cleansers after your club has just read something extra challenging that caused a fair bit of existential dread, anger, and/or heartbreak. These are also great for busy months, such as around the holidays or perhaps in the summer when several of your members might be taking vacations, end of semesters for our clubs with teachers, etc.
A monk and a robot team up for an adventure, in an effort to end the robots' estrangement from the human race, as well as answer a number of existential questions. This was a quick, delightful read for me. It's wholesome, uplifting, humorous...perfect if you're looking for something light but thoughtful.
This book has been so hyped among my bookish friends, I just had to see what all the fuss was about and I'm so glad I did. It's the epitome of a feel good beach read (as long as you don't mind a few leaky eyed moments), and I'll be recommending it to anyone asking for a good story that will charm your socks off. The movie, starring Sally Field (!), arrives on Netflix on May 8.
Sweet, cozy fantasy about starting over and finding your people. I haven't wanted to visit a place as much as Thune since the Shire! Beware of intense craving for coffee and pastries.
Brain Burners
These books are for jumping back into something challenging, and all will flex the ole noodle to the max, but in different ways. Science, philosophy, politics, social issues, health, it's all on the docket in one form or another in these Brain Burners. These are for clubs who welcome a bit of controversy, who don't mind wading into muddy waters and seeking clarity together.
Andy Weir is known for his overall humorous but also science heavy sci-fi and Project Hail Mary definitely fits that bill. Also, the major motion picture starring Ryan Gosling is just weeks away from being in theaters as of this writing. I'm not sure yet how the movie will adapt the many and varied problems teacher turned astronaut Ryland Grace has to solve in order to save the world from certain destruction, but reading about it definitely knotted my brain.
This book is so full of mind boggling information that I don't even know where to start pulling my thoughts together. Although, that could also be the overwork, lack of sleep, polluted air, processed foods, surveillance capitalism, etc. talking. I can say that this very comprehensive breakdown of what forces have been harming our attention, some for generations and others only for the last few decades, moved me in a profound way and provided a very robust book club discussion.
Ursula K. Le Guin is an undisputed master of the sci-fi genre and this 1974 modern classic is living, immortal proof. Every page gives you something to think about, twists your mind into knots that you're able to slowly unravel as you follow Shevek across planets and through time.
Caste argues that America is composed of a staunch, hidden, and generational caste system that is primarily based on white supremacy. Wilkerson has a gift for presenting the evidence and anecdotes of this in a way that makes you think, "Yes, of course" as you're reading, but by the time you finish you realize you've learned so much.
This is one of those books that will sort of accidentally teach you a lot if you're paying close attention. It's the story of a boy and a nation who come of age together and "examines a whole people's capacity for carrying inherited myths and inventing new ones."
Heart Hurters
There are people who like to be upset when they read. It's a strange realization to come to, but I count myself among them. Perhaps upset is the wrong word. I like to be moved by books I read, and this often comes at the expense of crying real tears for made up people. There are tears of outrage, and grief, and even joy. These are some books I've read with my clubs that made me, unashamedly, weep.
The Storied Life of A. J. Fikry
This book was on my TBR forever and I’m so glad I finally got around to it. Very realistic and touching story of all that people can be for each other.
I've read a good chunk of Hannah's catalog and I don't think she writes things that are not tear jerkers. It's just what she does, and very effectively. This story of a mother navigating the Dust Bowl made me feel all of the things and also taught me a lot about this pivotal moment in US history.
A modern classic of WWII novels, this story of a blind French girl and her relationships with a German boy as they both fight to survive the ravages of this time is described as a "book that ruined all other books for me, in the best way" by my boss, Polli. And I agree. I read this over a decade ago and it's never left me.
This harrowing story of the Gwangju Uprising told from the points of view of multiple participants who all became victims of a tyrannical government was vividly but compassionately rendered and will haunt me forever.
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