The Inner Lives of Book Clubs Summary and Reviews

Media Reviews

"I have been running the Recycle Book Club for over four years and got a number of ideas from your report that I am anxious to apply. Thank you, for putting so much effort into making all book clubs better." - Lloyd Russell, The Recycle Book Club, Campbell, CA

"The report is fascinating, and got more interesting the more that I read. It is well written and informative, clearly organized and beautifully designed." - Beata Obydzinski, Branch Manager, Monterey County Free Libraries

"I've spoken with over 200 book clubs in the past fifteen years and this report is not only consistent with my experience with clubs, it told me things I never knew about them. Fascinating, detailed, and highly recommended to book clubs and anyone involved in the book trade." - Alan Brennert, author of Daughter of Moloka'i

"It's a wonderful report, so very interesting. I learned so much about how to better run a book group, and it has re-energized me to make our group better. I think it should be given to every librarian." - Terye Balogh, Milpitas Public Library, CA

" I thoroughly enjoyed The Inner Lives of Book Clubs because the content caused me to reflect on my own book club experiences. Also, I was especially impressed with the qualitative data, the defined intended audience, how well the research was conducted and how easy the report was to comprehend." - Darcus Smith, Adult Librarian, Edmond Library

"Your research is impeccable, and your conclusions well supported. It is a treat to read because there is nothing else like it available. Since we run a book group program here at Darien Library supporting over 100 book groups and growing, it is of great interest to us what is happening nation-wide. Thank you for helping to keep us on top of trends." - Patricia Sheary, Darien Library, CT

"You focused on all the things I've wondered about book clubs through the years. Thank you for such an informative study." - Lynne Zolli, book club member

"The Inner Lives of Book Clubs is fantastic. It gives a thorough, well-rounded picture of book clubs." - Seth Morris, Assistant Director, Crown Publishing Group

"This is absolutely phenomenal. Great job!" - Kena Clarke, Me Time Book Club, Tuscaloosa, AL

"Fascinating report! A must read from BookBrowse!" - NYT bestselling author, owner AuthorBuzz.com, M.J. Rose

"As a book publisher, I found The Inner Lives of Book Clubs to be objectively revelatory well beyond anything else that's out there. As a book lover, it inspired me to start my own book club - the right way." - Bruce L. Bortz, Publisher, Bancroft Press, a Top-Ten Indie Since 1992

"I just finished reading your complete report. The thing that struck me was the universality of the many desires book club members have and the issues that arise. I kept identifying with the findings. I loved how you outlined the problems that book clubs have and then how they responded. I kept nodding my head thinking: we've been there and we've done that. It was a pleasure and wonder to read." - Beth Martin, book club member

Available in Print and PDF. More information at bookbrowse.com/innerlives

This information about The Inner Lives of Book Clubs was first featured in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.

Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.

For twenty years, through our website at bookbrowse.com and our newsletters, BookBrowse has provided reading recommendations to book clubs and readers in general, so we knew that the perception that many in the general public have of book clubs--primarily social groups not engaged in serious discussion--was not accurate. But, despite having researched book clubs for fifteen years, we realized we did not have the hard data to prove it because we had been focused on the mechanics of book clubs-where they meet, how many in a group and so on. So, we set out to dig deep into the heart of the book club experience. In the process we conducted two surveys of more than 5,000 book club members, parsing over 100,000 responses. The result is The Inner Lives of Book Clubs--a data-driven guide to all things book club! The Inner Lives of Book Clubs is available in PDF and print. Visit More Author Information

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