How to Start a Book Club That’s a Joy, Not a Drag
Step one: Make sure everyone who’s there actually wants to talk about the book
“My wine club has a book problem” is a joke that, judging by the number of Etsy products upon which it’s emblazoned, absolutely kills among a certain subset of the population. You can buy versions of the line (“My book club only reads wine labels” or “My book club can read between the wines”) on totes, candles, socks, tea towels, and, of course, wineglasses.
And look, no one’s here to judge: Having a gathering to unwind with friends over a drink is a wonderful, necessary thing. If doing it under the guise of a book club is the only way to make sure it gets regularly scheduled, by all means, carry on.
But if you joined a book club with the goal of having a space to discuss books, it can be frustrating to find yourself in a room of people gossiping over wine. (Though a good snack spread never made anything worse.)
Having a book club that’s all about the books, though, can also come with problems. People get busy, get lazy, or forget to read the book, and suddenly, schlepping to meetings feels like a drag. Or dueling schedules make it impossible to nail down a time to meet, and the club stagnates into nonexistence.
