We may never see a book club as singularly influential as the one Oprah Winfrey included as a segment on her show, particularly since the influence of nationally syndicated talk shows has diminished so drastically since Oprah put away her stickers and laid her club to rest. In subsequent years, other televised book clubs sprang up to replace the Oprah-shaped void in the […]
Ann Hood (The Red Thread, 2010, The Obituary Writer, 2013) has made a name for herself writing compelling, bestselling novels with sympathetic characters caught up in life-altering events. Her most recent work, The Book That Matters Most, is no exception: It follows a woman named Ava who, after her husband leaves her, joins a book club—an act […]
Last week, the LIT book group discussed Maybe In Another Life, a beach read that just about fits into the chick lit genre—even if it is quite a bit fluffier than most women’s fiction. This fits nicely with our summer tradition: Each year, we choose lighter books written in a genre we wouldn’t normally read. […]
Last week, the LIT book club discussed one of my most favorite books in recent memory, Black River by S. M. Hulse. This is a riveting, heartbreaking, beautifully written story of a man mourning both a wife and a way of life. Wes Carver was once a passionate musician. His work as a corrections officer paid […]
If your book group enjoys reading fiction set in New York, two recent literary novels centered in and around Brooklyn bring the borough vividly to life. Emma Straub’s Modern Lovers supplies some of the same charm I appreciated in Meg Wolitzer’s The Interestings. Set in Brooklyn—Ditmas Park, to be exact—it follows a group of friends who have known each […]
Lindy West’s debut memoir, Shrill: Notes from a Loud Woman, is getting a lot of attention for addressing topics like fat-phobia and tweeting about your abortion. In addition to being a deeply feminist memoir, it is also deeply and brilliantly funny as well. For book groups seeking titles that explore contemporary feminism, misogyny, women’s rights, body image, or online bullying, Shrill […]
Good historical fiction will remind book groups that there is more in history to amaze, shock, and stun than in George R. R. Martin’s historically-inspired fantasy. When it comes to court intrigue, jealousy, revenge, and long-game power plays, history’s annals are full of horror, heartbreak, bloodshed, subterfuge, and tyranny of epic scope. Weina Dai Randel’s duology […]
Last week, the LIT book club discussed the novel Whiskey & Charlie, an Australian book published here in the United States last year. Originally titled Whiskey Charlie Foxtrot, this is the story of twin brothers who grow apart as they grow up. Whiskey and Charlie are nearly inseparable as kids. They use walkie talkies to […]
On Monday, the darling of the Indianapolis Colts, Andrew Luck, launched an online book club. Before you start questioning Luck’s agenda, let me clarify, this is not a club to promote or sell Luck books—he is a genuine and avid reader who wants to share the joy. The Wall Street Journal recently revealed Luck to […]
The International Book Club reads books by international authors, although they occasionally throw in an American title if the book has an international theme. These lovely ladies enjoy meeting at a local wine bar in sunny Lakeland Florida, where they enjoy drinking as they discuss. All members actively contribute book recommendations. Leader: Barbara Stampfl […]