Twin Cities readers find community in silent book clubs
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No assigned reading. No forced discussion. Just you, your book and a roomful of fellow book lovers quietly reading.
Why it matters: That's the idea behind "silent book clubs," gatherings popping up in cafés, restaurants, breweries and other places across the country.
State of play: The movement, started in San Francisco more than a decade ago, has grown into more than 2,000 chapters in 62 countries.
- About a half dozen of those are in the Twin Cities metro, with chapters in Minneapolis, St. Paul and Shoreview.
How it works: BYO book. Usually, there's about an hour of quiet reading. Then you can stick around to chat and swap books — or not.
Between the lines: All titles — and formats — are welcome, organizers say, with attendees toting everything from a hardcover tome to headphones to tune into an audiobook.
- "One of the big value propositions is that there's no pressure," Chelsey Smith, co-founder of Silent Book Club St. Paul, told Axios. "Read what you want."
Zoom in: Smith started the group with a friend last February to help local book lovers "build a sense of community" without having to shlep to Minneapolis.
- "I'm just a bit of a St. Paul stan and think that we deserve nice things, too," Smith, who moved back to the area three years ago, quipped.
How it's going: Eight months in, the gatherings attract 30 to 40 readers a month. About a third of the attendees are typically first-timers, she noted.
Zoom out: Silent Book Club Mpls sees similar numbers: Close to 50 bookworms showed up for its October meet-up at a local brewery, per a Facebook post.
What we're hearing: Michael Gregory-Jensen was first introduced to the concept in Nebraska, where a friend hosted small gatherings meant to "share our love of reading without all of the expectation and commitment of a traditional book club."
- While the bigger size of groups here was intimidating at first, he's enjoyed the chance to network and make new friends "with other bookish folk."
- He and his husband often walk away with ideas for more book events to attend, and "a whole pile of titles to add to our TBR [to be read] lists."
If you go: Silent Book Club Mpls' next gathering is on Tuesday at Bauhaus Brewing in Minneapolis.
- The St. Paul chapter meets on the first Wednesday of the month at The Lost Fox.
What we're watching: Smith said they're hoping to add a second standing gathering, possibly on a Sunday, next year.