January is always a popular time to decide on a book club’s reading selections, though every group does it differently. Some vote on the books. Others let every member have a pick. Some map out what they’re going to read for the whole year in advance. Others are more haphazard, deciding on a book only a couple weeks before the upcoming meeting.
No matter how your group decides what to read, I think these five paperback novels would appeal to a wide range of reading tastes:
The Uninvited Guests by Sadie Jones is set at a country house at the beginning of the 20th century. It’s “filled with a kind of prickly menace and biting wit.” (Read more.)
The Marriage Plot by Jeffrey Eugenides is about a love triangle on a college campus. It borrows both title and conceit from the Victorian marriage plot novel. (Read more.)
The J.M. Barrie Ladies’ Swimming Society by debut author Barbara J. Zitwer “tells a stirring story of friendship and the power of connection.” (Read more.)
The Lost Memory of Skin by Russell Banks is a “dark, sobering novel” that explores the gritty reality of America’s underclass. (Read more.)
Heaven Should Fall by Rebecca Coleman is a haunting novel about the aftermath of a family tragedy. (Read more.)
Here’s how you can win all five (!) of these paperbacks:
TO ENTER: In the comments, tell us the name of your favorite book you’ve read in a book club. If you’re not in a book club, give us the name of a book that’s led to interesting discussion in your life.
CONTEST DETAILS: One winner will be chosen by random.org from among entries received by 5 pm CST on Friday, January 4. One winner will receive copies of the five books pictured in this post. Prize must be shipped to a North American address, and Rhode Island residents are not eligible. (Full contest rules here.) Happy New Year and good luck!
—
ETA: Congratulations to our winner, Adrienne! Her favorite book she’s read in a book club is The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery.
Thanks to all who entered! Contest is now closed.
Cutting For Stone was our favorite, and best rated book last year. Looking forward to discussion on Defending Jacob next month.
This year my group read and was fascinated by two books about North Korea: The Orphan Master’s Son by Adam Johnson and Nothing to Envy
by Barbara Demick. It was interesting to read both fiction and nonfiction about the same subject which was new to all of us.
Being in a book club takes me out of my comfort zone and I’ve enjoyed many books I would not have chosen. One of my favorites this past year was Wild by Cheryl Strayed.
While I was Gone by Sue Miller was a book club favorite back in the day.
WATER FOR ELEPHANTS by Sara Gruen is the book that has led to some serious discussions.
“Maine” was the favorite book; second was “The Lincoln Letter.”
Turn of Mind by Alice LaPlante. Facinating look into the thoughts of someone having alzeheimer’s.
We also read Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen. Everyone enjoyed it!
I once hosted a book discussion at the library on Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil. We had an amazing discussion. What I remember in particular is that one of the participants brought pictures of the drag queen featured in the book. She had gone to see his performance in Savannah. She shared some of the pics with me and I still have them. To this day, it remains one of my favorite books, and Savannah one of my favorite cities.
My favorite book in book club was “Love Anthony” by Lisa Genova.
One of my favorite book club discussions was precipated by our reading “Room” by Emma Donoghue.
The best book so far that I’ve read in a book club setting is The Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett.
I’m not in a book club at this point, but feel The Light Between Oceans would be a great club selection. Lots to think about on both sides of the situation.
I (and our entire book club) enjoyed Cutting for Stone.
“The Light Between Oceans”, by M. L. Stedman…understanding the ramifications of decisions made from several perspectives. Placing yourself in another persons shoes helps one to better understand all the variables in human nature.
Fittingly enough, The End of Your Life Book Club has been a great book I’ve shared and discussed with others!
I have discussed Sarah’s Key with many friends since it is memorable.
A Discovery of Witches with the BlogHer Book Club.
The Snowman by Jo Nesbo. Really fun in book club!
The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood is my favorite book club pick. Though I read it before, I got to discuss it with my fellow Women and Gender Studies grads.
Our book club read Please Look After Mom, by Kyung-Sook Shin. It was a touching book that allowed us a great view of the Korean culture, and beautifully written.
A novel which has resounded with me and friends is The Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton.
Cider House Rules by John Irving.
The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern was my favorite 2012 read, and I’m looking forward to a discussion about Behind the Beautiful Forevers by Katherine Boo.
Bel Canto by Ann Patchett was a memorable read!
Read Super Sad True Love Story in a book club. Sparked interesting conversations about whether literature should be entertaining, serious/truthful or both.
I don’t belong to a reading group but I have many friends that I discuss my “current read” with. One of my favorites that I read in 2012 was The Last Romanov by Dora Levy Mossanen
Once We Were Brothers. Incredible read.
I recently read The House at Riverton and Beautiful Ruins. Both were excellent.
The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russell. I’d read it again!
Veil of Roses and Dreaming in English by Laura Fitzgerald were interesting stories which led to engaging discussions. Also, Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton was an amazing book with thought-provoking issues.
The most interesting discussion my book club ever had was for THE TEN YEAR NAP. I don’t know if any of us loved the book, but it generated a pretty intense discussion.
Please Understand Me always ends up in my conversation with people I want to know better. Sorry, but probably would not necessarily be the typical book club selection.
Under the Banner of Heaven by Jon Krakauer
We Need To Talk About Kevin and Defending Jacob.
Makes them more meaningful after this past months events.
Wild, by Cheryl Strayed,we all read the chosen book,meet for lunch and discuss it at a back table at our favorite place,I love memoirs anyway..good to hear all the different insights on a book,you can see something differently,that’s the great thing about listening.And sometimes we think each other are nuts,we are…but we Do have fun.
I am not in a book club but the book that was discussed most with my friends last year was Defending Jacob.
Our book club, together now – mostly intact – for over a decade, has had many amazing discussions. The Attack by Yasmina Khadra almost led to fisticuffs! The Slap by Christos Tsiolkas offeres a lot of food for thought. Fingersmith by Sarah Waters was a lot of fun to talk about, too!
I’m not in a book club, but have discussed The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks with members of the library book club. I’ve also recommended Gold to two of my sisters’ book clubs, but I don’t think they’ve selected that book.
I’ve been in two book clubs. One of the book clubs, I soon learned, never read nor discussed the books chosen (though we had great snacks and wine and conversation). My favorite book read for that book club (because I actually did read the books) was Mudbound by Hillary Jordan. For the book club that actually read and discussed books, I loved Kindred by Octavia Butler – one of my favorite books of all time.
My favorite book club pick was The Glass Castle by Jeanette Walls.
The Help by Kathryn Stockett
“Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children” fueled a lively discussion at our book club this past year. It is a book that has a mystical element about it that I really loved!
I recently led a book club meeting that sparked a lot of discussion. We read Unorthodox by Deborah Feldman.
My favorite book that I read with my book group (and again on my own) was The Book Thief by Marcus Zusak. So beautiful!
Our book group, which has been together for 17 years, has read many wonderful books. The book that really stands out in my mind is Those Who Save Us by Jenna Blum. The discussion on this powerful novel was riveting, challenging, and packed an emotional punch for all of us.
We read MARCH, by Geraldine Brooks, prior to Brooks speaking at our Savannah Book Festival. Most of us loved the book, hated the lead character!
Tom Robbins’ Skinny Legs and All led to the book group discussion that generated the most memorable, passionate arguments of any title in our book group’s life. There were ardent defenders as well as equally vituperative critics with the diversity of interpretation and opinion reaching new heights!
Man’s Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl. Amazing book. Glad someone threw it out into the club! It is about Frankl’s time he spent in the concentration camps in WWII and how he, as a psychiatrist viewed his situation and gives some insights into the characteristics of the prisoners, guards and even Frankl himself. Deeply moving book. Eternally grateful to whomever picked it for our club.
My favorite book club read was Anne Tyler’s An Amateur Marriage. It was a great discussion.
Loved the Blessing Stone. The only book I read twice!
Thinking back, I think the book that generated much discussion in our group was Room by Emma Donahue.
My favorite book was Gone Girl. Many interesting discussions took place about it.
“The Paris Wife”-awesome read!
Sarah’s Key.
Our bookclub, Viva la Vino Bookclub, is a group of 12 ladies who meet once a month. We take turns hosting, and the hostess selects the group read for the month. We have been meeting almost three years. My favorite bookclub selections so far are: Little Bee by Chris Cleave (read 6/11), Stardust by Neil Gaiman (read 2/12), and Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn (read 7/12). This month’s selection is The Diviners by Libba Bray.
We read Proof of Heaven: A Neurosurgon’s Journey into the Afterlife by Eben Alexander, MD.
The best book I ever read witj my book club was The Posionwood Bible, Barbara Kingsolver
The Twelve Tribes of Hattie ~ Oprah’s new pick, wow
The People of The Book was the most liked and most hated and also sparked the most conversation.
I would also like to vote for The Light Between Oceans…I literally just finished it last night and talked about it with my husband the entire time I was reading it…there are themes in there that both he and I can relate to. I am also looking forward to talking about this with my girlfriend as soon as she is done reading it!
Son by Lois Lowry to contrast with the violence of The Hunger Games.
Straight Man by Richard Russo led to a very interesting book group discussion. I thought the book was funny, but most people hated it.
I’ve been in a couple of book clubs and these have been my favorites so far:
The Good Earth by Pearl S. Buck
The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls
The Help by Kathryn Stockett
The Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton
Garth Stein “The Art of Racing in the Rain”
Thirteen Reason Why by Jay Asher
A young adult book “Mockingbird” because I work with special needs children & had discussions about it with some teachers. The “Book Thief” which my friend just read & we talked about things we didn’t realize about that period in time.
The Paris Wife
Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein
I think the best discussion with our club this year was “Life of Pi”.
See You in a Hundred Years, by Logan Ward.
The Help
Animal Dreams by Barbara Kingsolver created lively and unique discussion. Another favorite was The Story of Edgar Sawtelle. What a beautiful book.
“One Mountain Away” by Emilie Richards. Wonderful book on forgiveness and family
The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry
Our book group reads are as varied as the members themselves. Called The Book Exchange (for exchanging ideas about books…duh), we read both fiction and nonfiction. I’d change the name of the group to Out of The Comfort Zone since so many of the books we’ve read over the past five years as done that for me, taken me out of my normal reading habits and choices. To pick a favorite is difficult, but a couple that resonated with me include the following:
Sarah’s Key by Tatiana de Rosnay
The Help by Kathleen Stockett
The Year 1000 by Robert Lacey (nonfiction)
We are preparing our reading list for the year right now…may have to note these titles.
I represent the Page Set Reading Club. Next August will mark our 20th year. I have been part of the group for 5 years. We have 12 members, eleven female and one male. A favorite book that we read last year is “Cutting For Stone” by Abraham Verghese.
I like it when we read non-typical bookclub books. The Big Sleep was a big hit as it fell outside the reading patterns of most of us, but it was pretty clear why it was a classic with superior writing.
Persepolis was also an unusual choice which introduced a slightly different medium and sparked some fascinating discussion about the definition of a novel/memoir.
THESE THINGS HIDDEN. Such a great book!
We read “The immortal life of Henrietta Lacks”. Very good and thought provoking.
So far I really loved Cutting for Stone and Before I Go to Sleep.
Our book club had an excellent discussion of THE PARTICULAR SADNESS OF LEMON CAKE this past fall.
The Life of Pi
We haven’t watched the movie yet… We will probably wait until the DVD comes out.
My favorite book to discuss was Room.
The most interesting and discussed book I read this last year was The Art of Fielding.
Glass Castle
I really enjoyed The Crimson Petal and the White, so well written, I felt like I was really there!
I’m not in a book club, but I just had a very interesting discussion about friendship with my best friend after reading Cody Name Verity.
I want to read all of these but I really want to read the swimming society.
Our book club has read some unforgettable books over the years. For me, Year of Wonders, Snow Flower and the Secret Fan, and The Distant Land of My Father are the most special.
The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russell
The best book I’ve read in a book club is Gone Girl. It was a great read.
The book Still Alice really hit home because my father has alztimers at an early age and does my friend’s mother in law. So, we had a lot to discuss via treatment, and testing. This was a great read
A recent book club favorite was The Kitchen House.
“Cutting for Stone ” has always been one of my most recommended books!
The Help by Kathryn Stockett
Two books actually come to mind:
Jose Saramago’s “Blindness”. Truly unlike any other book I’ve ever read or have yet to read, in both content and style of writing. At times, difficult, but it prompted the best discussion and to this day is still the only book that the entire book club read in its entirety, finished, and loved.
The other book was Anita Diamant’s, “The Red Tent”. My all-female book club read this as a celebration of the relationships women forge in the most intimate of times and the bond that carries throughout time–whether in Biblical or modern.
I read Little Women in fourth grade with my best friend Debbie and we would get together and talk about it. I learned from that experience that books can be more than picture stories and fairy tales and it is the moment I fell in love with reading for life.
Since joining my book club 8.5 years ago I have read many different books that I probably would not have read if I didn’t belong the club, and so many I truly enjoyed. If I had to pick a favorite book though, it would be between Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jamie Ford or The Book Thief by Markus Zusak.
Turning to One Another: Simple Conversations to Restore Hope to the Future by Margaret J. Wheatley
‘Tell the Wolves I’m Home’ I was blown away by this story and had the most fun discussing it!
The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield. Best book yet for our book club, in fact we reread it this past Halloween.
The Glass Castle, a book that my mother and I both read, led us to an interesting conversation, as did the last two books by Nora Ephron.
“The Glass Castle” was my favorite book club read.
The book that received the most discussion in our group this past year was the Help by Kathryn Stockett. The book that we all most enjoyed reading was The Independence of Miss Mary Bennett by Colleen McCullough.
Still Alice by Lisa Genova. A truly well written and researched book.
The Da Vinci Code
Three of my favorite book club books would have to be
1. Night Road by Kristin Hannah
2. Sarah’s Key by Tatiana De Rosnay
3. These is My Words by Nancy E Turner
There is just no way to narrow it down any further!!!!
Stephen King’s 11/22/63, because it sparks so much discussion on what life could and may have been like if JFK’s assassination was able to be prevented. There are so many what it’s to be answered… The impact that may have had on our lives would have been tremendous.
The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barberry.
Also, an e-book free from Kindle that sparked discussion about autism: Words Get in the Way by Nan Rossiter. It’s a sweet romance, but thought provoking.
Mr. Penumbra’s 24 Hour Bookstore by Robin Sloan. Fun for bibliophiles and internet geeks, alike. Mild fantasy element.
gone girl was a book I discussed with friends.
I’m not in a book club, but The Velveteen Rabbit which I read as a child is a book that has come up in discussions with a wide variety of people over my life. It has inspired generations of people to look at life a bit differently and reevaluate their standards of what is truly important.
B.A. Shapiro’s, The Art Forger , got a great discussion going.
It would have to be The Light Between Oceans by M.L. Stedman. It is also the only book that I find myself thinking about often because of some profound statements near the end of the story that deal with forgiveness in life.
The best book that I have read so far is The Hunger Games. My son challenged me to read it with him. We have both read all 3 books in the series and it was fun discussing the book with him.
The Secret Life of Bees was a great discussion book for our book club.
We enjoyed The Paris Wife.
Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jamie Ford or The Book Thief by Markus Zusak.
My book club has been going for about 3 yrs. We have had many lively discussions but no book that we have read has stirred so many powerful emotions as the novel “We Need to Talk About Kevin”. This book hits right between the eyes. Even almost a year later it still gets brought up during discussions of other books. I think as a fairly new group and still feeling our way it became a watershed book and ultimately a benchmark for what an impact a book can make to the reader who has never experienced anything remotely like the characters of the story. Truly the mark of good literature that it transforms your thinking about a subject and transports you to a world you will hopefully never encounter.
My favorite book we have read is The Help.
I’ve enjoyed so many of the books we’ve read over the years, but the one that first came to mind upon reading this question was Ahab’s Wife by Sena Naslund. If I thought about it further, I’m sure I’d come up with others I actually liked as well or better.
Cutting for Stone was one of the most enjoyable books we have read in our book club. It was a fascinating story that may have started out slow but soon had you reading without stopping. The story of the twins was the best.
Beneath A Marble Sky was one of my favorite reads.
I’m not in a book club, but I love to talk about books that excite me. The latest is The Snow Child, by Eowyn Ivey. It’s based on a Russian fairy tale, and I can’t wait for my Russian daughter-in-law to read it.
I don’t belong to a book club, but I’d like to. I recently read Jeanette Winterson’s memoir “Why Be Happy When You Can Be Normal?”. It inspired me to write a column about my positive experiences as an adoptee. I guess that’s a one-sided discussion.
The Language of Flowers
The discussion about The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks was one of the best discussions we had in our book club. A physician was invited to the book discussion, and a lot of information was gleaned from her input.
“The Proud Breed” by the late Celeste DeBlase has given me many opportunities to discuss the history of old Californio. I am not generally a lover of historical novels, but thisone is an acception. The love story is timeless. If you havn’t read it, give it a try. You won’t regret it!
A Dog’s Purpose by W. Bruce Cameron was the favorite read of 2012 for our book club. Everyone loved it.
Sara’s keys is a memorable read with a lot to discuss.
My favorite book is a toss up between “Rebecca” and “Wonder” which is really a Young Adult book.
My favorite book of the year was “Mr Penumbra’s 24-Hour Bookclub”, and I’d love to discuss it, but I’m afraid my book club friends wouldn’t like it…
Book club of one here…just finished reading Leon & Louise by Alex Capus. A store of enduring love over many generations, a novelty in this time and age.
We Need to Talk about Kevin by Lionel Shriver. Amazing book. Great discussions. Lingers.
Years ago we did The Shepherd of the Hills by Harold Bell Wright. It was so enjoyable that I’ll always keep the book.
Lesson Before Dying by Ernest Gaines. Great discussion on a painful topic.
The Handmaid’s Tale… lots of discussion!
MAINE by Sullivan led to a good discussion in our book club. We took a day trip to Maine, after reading it!
My favorite-The Help
Our book group is currently reading Louise Erdrich’s The Round House, and I know it will make for a great discussion next week!
Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet with a trip to Seattle’s Chinatown was very moving.
I enjoyed the Ladies Swim Society
I have read Ladies Swimming Society and really enjoyed it.
The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Sutterfield
We started a book club at work last summer – it was a huge success! Our first book was “Rush Home Road” by Lori Lansens – every one of the 18 members loved the book! It was also set in our area, so very easy to relate to the historical facts.
Roots of the Olive Tree and The Good American were two favorites….
The Paris Wife by Paula McClain was the best!
Code Name “Verity” by Elizabeth Wein. I love YA novels. Strong female protagonists with a little history thrown in.
Our club has read so many good books it’s hard to choose just one. I remember “Serena” by Ron Rash was a top book.
One of our favorites was The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein.
Left Neglected by Lisa Genova
I have found over the years it’s hard to guess what book will generate a good discussion, a lot of times it’s the book no one liked, in our case Freedom by J.Franzen. We still laugh about how we all hated it, but we did have a great time discussing. For this past year The Dovekeepers was a good read and discussion.
The Spiral Staircase by Karen Armstrong
We had a really good discussion about The Help by Kathryn Stockett.
Right now, we are reading The Big Burn by Timothy Egan. There have been so many good books read at our book club discussions that it is hard to pick a favorite.
I absolutely LOVED Cutting for Stone!
Our book club has been meeting for 12 years, so I have a lot of books to choose from. Some of my all time favorites are: “Prince of Tides” , “Kite Runner”, “People of the Book” and “The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society”.
‘The Molasses Flood’, by Stephen Puleo, about the Molasses Flood in Boston, which resulted in the first successful class action lawsuit against a company, was the best Community Read book we’ve done – lots of participation, local history (several had relatives who were either in the flood or witnessed it), and great writing.
My book club had a great discussion after reading Perfume: The Story of a Murderer by Patrick Süskind and also We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson.
I love when I can introduce new books to my Book club through a contest win!
Although I am not a book club member, I would recommend anything by Annie Proulx! My personal favorite is Accordion Crimes. The woman is magical.
This is a really hard question. I think my favorite book that Between The Covers read in 2012 was a toss up between Steinbeck’s “East Of Eden” or John Grisham’s “The Confession”. 2012 was a really weird year for my book club but these garnered great discussion.
Faith by Jennifer Haigh
*Snow Falling on Cedars* by David Guterson. The book-club conversation for this story was fierce and went on long into the night … Good thing it was a Friday!
My favorite bookclub pick has been When She Woke by Hillary Jordan.
We had great discussions about “One Thousadnd White Women” and “Canada”.
I don’t belong to a book club but do discuss books that I have read with my friends. I would recommend The Light between Oceans by M. L. Stedman. How one decision in your life changes your life forever. It makes you ask yourself if faced with the same dilemma, what would I have done.
I’m in two local book clubs and the most discussed (and enjoyed) in one was Defending Jacob and Gone Girl in the second. My personal favorite book club read is Defending Jacob.
Our book group loved “Under the Warmth of Other Suns”–long, long non-fiction work, but every one read it and loved it. Lots to talk about.
The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery
Great discussions
One of our most interesting discussions was Truman Capote’s “In Cold Blood…this read prompted us to reorganize the subsequent month’s selection and read another of his titles. But I agree with so many others’ choices…Cutting for Stone, The Help, East of Eden, The Paris Wife and State of Wonder also generated lengthy and scintillating discussions. And Frantzen’s Freedom was a huge dislike by just about everyone!
Our Afternoon Lit group has been meeting for MANY years and we have enjoyed many great discussions: Cutting for Stone,The Help, Guernsey Potato Peal Pie Society and others.
We began this year with “The Invisible Bridge” and had an excellent discussion about the war and things we didn’t know about the holocaust.
“Dreams of Joy” by Lisa See continued our excellent discussion of “Shanghai Girls which we discussed with Lisa when she was in St Louis for a speaking engagement. Molokai is a book about leprosy which provoked many comments and thoughts. We love to read and would be AWED if we could win these titles!!! Many thanks!
The Language of Flowers was a great book from the perspective of a child in the foster care system.
Defending Jacob was a great read and brought up interesting discussions at the book club meeting. The discussion even returned at the following meeting!!
One of my favorite book club reads has been The Snow Child by Eowyn Ivey.
My favorite book club selection was 11/22/63. We could have talked about that one for hours! My least favorite? Dare Me.
The Book Thief.
We enjoyed ” Confessions of a Shoe Addict”
“Unbroken” was an amazing read and sparked great conversation in my family.
The Help is a book that I shared and discussed with many people. Great read!
Our book group really enjoyed discussing The Double Bind by Chris Bohjalian.