Tried and tested suggestions for how to choose books that your book club will enjoy reading

Suggestions for Choosing Books

Choosing Books for Your Book Club

There are a great many books that are very enjoyable to read but have little to discuss, and others that are hard going, but generate good discussions. The sweet spot is to find books that are enjoyable and good to discuss. One way to increase the chances of reading the latter type of book is to make it a requirement that somebody recommending a book has to have read it first. The exception to this, perhaps, being books that are already well established as book club favorites.

There are many different ways to choose books for your book club, and there is no reason to stick with the same formula all the time. Here are a few suggestions:

Each person takes it in turns to choose a book and, unless there is mass disagreement, their choice stands.

One person is responsible for bringing, say, 3 choices to the meeting and the group decides which to read.

All bring a suggestion and then the group agrees which are the top choices to read - and thus the next few months of books are decided.

Use BookBrowse! We only feature books that we wholeheartedly stand behind as best in class, and have a whole section of recommended book club reads - including our Top 10 Most Viewed Books list which is updated weekly.

Choose a theme for 2-3 books in a row. Or revisit the same theme from time to time (for example, some clubs make a point of reading a book set locally or by a local author at least once a year.) BookBrowse's book club recommendations are sorted by title, author and genre, time period, setting and theme.

Avoid getting stuck in a rut, if the last few books have been contemporary fiction, how about a non-fiction choice? If you've even reading a lot of historical fiction, how about a fantasy? Some genres produce more books suitable for discussion than others, but every genre has books that make good choices for book clubs.

Look for recommendations at your library or bookstore. Most libraries have lists of recommended titles and 'librarian picks', and many libaries will be happy to work with you and your group to find book choices that you're likely to enjoy (and some even have special book club kits to borrow - with multiple copies of the book, or will help source copies within the library's collection).

Check out lists of awards such as The Pulitzer Prize, Booker Prize and National Book Awards. Many of these books make good choices for book clubs. See our Awards lists.

It's unlikely that everybody will agree on every book choice every time. Make it clear when the group is set up, and when new members join, that a majority vote will carry - encourage members to treat new genres or authors with an open mind - after all most people join a book club to expand their reading experience.

Select your books at least two meetings ahead of time, so that you have time to buy/borrow and read the book. Some groups plan their entire year's reading at one meeting, others prefer to stay just a few books ahead (40% of groups plan at least 4 months ahead).

Be cautious of committing to books too far ahead as the mood and interests of the group will likely change over time and you could find yourselves tied into a book that is no longer of interest.

At least for the first few meetings, choose reasonably short books with a ready prepared reading guide. Avoid books that are bound to become controversial (e.g. religion and politics) until the group members have had time to get to know each other.

Initially, it's best to choose books that have a discussion guide. A discussion guide, also known as a reading guide, is simply a list of suggested topics. Not only will the discussion guide provide interesting avenues for the conversation but it also signals that the book is likely a good choice for book clubs.

Don't feel you have to follow the guide rigidly (and don't read it until you've read the book as it will likely have spoilers), it's simply a resource to get the conversation going and to turn to if the discussion is running out of steam or going off course.

BookBrowse offers many hundreds of book club recommendations sorted by title, author and genre, time period, setting and theme - all with reading guides.

Not every book has a formal reading guide - in which case check out our DIY Discussion Guides page.

See Leading a Book Club Discussion for more about discussion guides..

BookBrowse Book Club

Book Jacket — The Cover Girl
by Amy Rossi

Find them early enough, and they will always be her girls.

About Discuss

Members Recommend

The Sister's Curse
by Nicola Solvinic

Read the Reviews
The Lost Story of Eva Fuentes
by Chanel Cleeton

A mysterious book links three women across generations in this novel by New York Times bestselling author Chanel Cleeton.

Read the Reviews
The Vanishing Place
by Zoë Rankin

Read the Reviews

Who Said...

To be ignorant of what occurred before you were born is to remain always a child

Click Here to find out who said this, as well as discovering other famous literary quotes!

Book
Trivia

Can you name the title?

Test your book knowledge with our daily trivia challenge!

Wordplay

Solve this clue:

W the C A the M W P

and be entered to win..

select a.*, b.member_account_type_name, b.member_account_type_charge, b.member_account_type_charge_frequency, b.member_account_type_months, c.member_chargetype_name, c.member_chargetype_number, a.member_classification_number, a.member_book_format from members a, member_account_types b, member_chargetype c where a.member_account_type_number = b.member_account_type_number and a.payment_method_id = c.member_chargetype_number and a.member_number = ?

select top 1 ezine_number, ezine_dt, ezine_image, ezine_brief_description, ezine_introduction from ezines where ezine_active_flag = 1 and ezine_type_number = 4 and ezine_dt < getdate() order by ezine_dt DESC

SELECT a.wordplay_number, a.wordplay_dt, a.wordplay_name, a.wordplay_intro_text, b.wordplay_puzzle_number, b.wordplay_puzzle_question FROM wordplays a INNER JOIN wordplay_puzzle_mapping c on c.wordplay_number = a.wordplay_number INNER JOIN wordplay_puzzles b on b.wordplay_puzzle_number = c.wordplay_puzzle_number WHERE a.wordplay_number = ( select top 1 a.wordplay_number from wordplays a, wordplay_puzzles b, wordplay_puzzle_mapping c where a.wordplay_number = c.wordplay_number and b.wordplay_puzzle_number = c.wordplay_puzzle_number and a.wordplay_dt < getdate() and a.wordplay_expiration_dt > dateadd(day, -1, getdate()) order by a.wordplay_dt asc )

SELECT x.competition_number, x.book_number, x.competition_teaser_title, x.competition_teaser_description, x.competition_intro_text, x.competition_expiration_dt, x.bb_briefs_flag, x.competition_full_info_flag, x.competition_type, x.competition_optin,x.competition_optin_text, a.book_title as "title", (b.author_first_name + ' ' + b.author_middle_initial + ' ' + b.author_last_name) as "author", f.edition_publish_dt AS "hardcover_publish_dt", f.edition_jacket_image as "hardcover_jacket_image", g.edition_publish_dt AS "paperback_publish_dt", g.edition_jacket_image as "paperback_jacket_image" FROM competitions x INNER JOIN books a on a.book_number = x.book_number INNER JOIN book_author_mapping c on c.book_number = x.book_number INNER JOIN authors b on c.author_number = b.author_number LEFT JOIN editions f on a.book_number = f.book_number and f.edition_paperback_flag = 0 LEFT JOIN editions g on a.book_number = g.book_number and g.edition_paperback_flag = 1 WHERE x.competition_number = ?

SELECT a.arc_number,a.arc_client_url,a.arc_active_dt, a.arc_off_ad_dt, b.ezine_preview_number, b.ezine_preview_title, b.ezine_preview_subtitle, b.ezine_preview_jacket_image, b.ezine_preview_author, b.ezine_preview_publisher, b.ezine_preview_publish_dt, b.ezine_preview_jacket_desc, b.ezine_preview_number_of_pages, b.ezine_preview_bb_comments, b.ezine_preview_isbn13, c.ezine_preview_category_name AS "ezine_preview_category", (select count(*) from arc_allocator d where d.arc_number = a.arc_number and arc_allocator_review_approved_flag = 1) as "reviews", (select (CAST(AVG(CAST(arc_allocator_review_rating AS numeric(12,0))) AS numeric(12,0)))+ (CASE WHEN right(CAST(AVG(CAST(arc_allocator_review_rating AS numeric(12,2))) AS numeric(12,2)),2) > 25 AND right(CAST(AVG(CAST(arc_allocator_review_rating AS numeric(12,2))) AS numeric(12,2)),2) < 50 THEN 0.5 WHEN right(CAST(AVG(CAST(arc_allocator_review_rating AS numeric(12,2))) AS numeric(12,2)),2) > 50 AND right(CAST(AVG(CAST(arc_allocator_review_rating AS numeric(12,2))) AS numeric(12,2)),2) < 75 THEN -0.5 ELSE 0 END) from arc_allocator where arc_number = a.arc_number and arc_allocator_review_approved_flag = 1) AS arcrating, (select (CAST(AVG(CAST(arc_allocator_review_rating AS numeric(12,1))) AS numeric(12,1)))from arc_allocator where arc_number = a.arc_number and arc_allocator_review_approved_flag = 1) AS "decrating" FROM arcs a INNER JOIN ezine_previews b ON b.ezine_preview_number = a.ezine_preview_number INNER JOIN ezine_preview_categories c ON b.ezine_preview_category_number = c.ezine_preview_category_number WHERE arc_closed_flag = 1 AND arc_obc_flag = 0 AND getdate() >= arc_on_ad_dt AND getdate() < arc_off_ad_dt ORDER BY a.arc_on_ad_dt DESC

SELECT a.arc_forumidfk, a.discourse_flag, a.arc_promo_text, arc_on_ad_dt, b.ezine_preview_number, b.ezine_preview_title, b.ezine_preview_subtitle, b.ezine_preview_jacket_image, b.ezine_preview_author, b.ezine_preview_jacket_desc, b.ezine_preview_publisher, ezine_preview_publish_dt, ezine_preview_number_of_pages, ezine_preview_isbn, ezine_preview_short_summary, b.ezine_preview_bb_author_link, ezine_preview_bb_link FROM arcs a INNER JOIN ezine_previews b ON b.ezine_preview_number = a.ezine_preview_number WHERE arc_obc_flag = 1 AND getdate() < arc_on_ad_dt ORDER BY NEWID()

SELECT a.arc_forumidfk, a.discourse_flag, a.arc_promo_text, b.ezine_preview_number, b.ezine_preview_title, b.ezine_preview_subtitle, b.ezine_preview_jacket_image, b.ezine_preview_author, b.ezine_preview_jacket_desc, b.ezine_preview_publisher, ezine_preview_publish_dt, ezine_preview_number_of_pages, ezine_preview_isbn, ezine_preview_short_summary, b.ezine_preview_bb_author_link, ezine_preview_bb_link, c.book_reading_guide FROM arcs a INNER JOIN ezine_previews b ON b.ezine_preview_number = a.ezine_preview_number LEFT JOIN books c on c.book_number = b.ezine_preview_bb_link WHERE a.arc_obc_flag = 1 AND a.arc_active_flag = 0 AND arc_closed_flag = 1 AND getdate() >= arc_on_ad_dt AND getdate() < arc_off_ad_dt ORDER BY NEWID()

SELECT a.arc_forumidfk, a.discourse_flag, a.arc_promo_text, b.ezine_preview_number, b.ezine_preview_title, b.ezine_preview_subtitle, b.ezine_preview_jacket_image, b.ezine_preview_author, b.ezine_preview_jacket_desc, b.ezine_preview_publisher, ezine_preview_publish_dt, ezine_preview_number_of_pages, ezine_preview_isbn, ezine_preview_short_summary, b.ezine_preview_bb_author_link, ezine_preview_bb_link, c.book_reading_guide FROM arcs a INNER JOIN ezine_previews b ON b.ezine_preview_number = a.ezine_preview_number LEFT JOIN books c on c.book_number = b.ezine_preview_bb_link WHERE a.arc_number IN (select top 4 arc_number from arcs WHERE arc_obc_flag = 1 AND arc_active_flag = 0 AND arc_closed_flag = 1 AND getdate() > arc_off_ad_dt ORDER BY arc_on_ad_dt DESC) ORDER BY NEWID()

SELECT top 10 a.arc_number,arc_promo_text, b.ezine_preview_number, b.ezine_preview_title, b.ezine_preview_subtitle, b.ezine_preview_jacket_image, b.ezine_preview_author, b.ezine_preview_publish_dt, (select (CAST(AVG(CAST(arc_allocator_review_rating AS numeric(12,0))) AS numeric(12,0)))+ (CASE WHEN right(CAST(AVG(CAST(arc_allocator_review_rating AS numeric(12,2))) AS numeric(12,2)),2) > 25 AND right(CAST(AVG(CAST(arc_allocator_review_rating AS numeric(12,2))) AS numeric(12,2)),2) < 50 THEN 0.5 WHEN right(CAST(AVG(CAST(arc_allocator_review_rating AS numeric(12,2))) AS numeric(12,2)),2) > 50 AND right(CAST(AVG(CAST(arc_allocator_review_rating AS numeric(12,2))) AS numeric(12,2)),2) < 75 THEN -0.5 ELSE 0 END) from arc_allocator where arc_number = a.arc_number and arc_allocator_review_approved_flag = 1) AS arcrating FROM arcs a INNER JOIN ezine_previews b ON b.ezine_preview_number = a.ezine_preview_number WHERE arc_closed_flag = 1 AND arc_obc_flag = 0 AND getdate() >= arc_on_ad_dt AND (select count(*) from arc_allocator d where d.arc_number = a.arc_number and arc_allocator_review_approved_flag = 1) > 1 and getdate() <= dateadd(day,1,a.arc_off_ad_dt) ORDER BY NEWID()

SELECT top 3 a.arc_number,arc_promo_text, b.ezine_preview_number, b.ezine_preview_title, b.ezine_preview_subtitle, b.ezine_preview_jacket_image, b.ezine_preview_author, b.ezine_preview_publish_dt, (select (CAST(AVG(CAST(arc_allocator_review_rating AS numeric(12,0))) AS numeric(12,0)))+ (CASE WHEN right(CAST(AVG(CAST(arc_allocator_review_rating AS numeric(12,2))) AS numeric(12,2)),2) > 25 AND right(CAST(AVG(CAST(arc_allocator_review_rating AS numeric(12,2))) AS numeric(12,2)),2) < 50 THEN 0.5 WHEN right(CAST(AVG(CAST(arc_allocator_review_rating AS numeric(12,2))) AS numeric(12,2)),2) > 50 AND right(CAST(AVG(CAST(arc_allocator_review_rating AS numeric(12,2))) AS numeric(12,2)),2) < 75 THEN -0.5 ELSE 0 END) from arc_allocator where arc_number = a.arc_number and arc_allocator_review_approved_flag = 1) AS arcrating FROM arcs a INNER JOIN ezine_previews b ON b.ezine_preview_number = a.ezine_preview_number WHERE arc_closed_flag = 1 AND arc_obc_flag = 0 AND getdate() >= arc_on_ad_dt AND (select count(*) from arc_allocator d where d.arc_number = a.arc_number and arc_allocator_review_approved_flag = 1) > 1 ORDER BY a.arc_off_ad_dt DESC

SELECT a.adid, adweight FROM adsystem a INNER JOIN ad_category_mapping b ON b.adid = a.adid WHERE a.section = ? AND a.active = 1 AND a.start_date <= GETDATE() AND (a.viewby LIKE '%n%' OR a.viewby = 'all') AND (b.category_number IN ( SELECT category_number FROM category_book_mapping WHERE book_number = ?) OR b.category_number = ?)

SELECT a.adid, adweight FROM adsystem a WHERE a.section = ? AND a.active = 1 AND a.start_date <= GETDATE() AND (a.viewby LIKE '%n%' OR a.viewby = 'all') AND (select count(*) from ad_category_mapping where datalength(category_number) >= 1 and adid = a.adid) = 0

SELECT a.adid, adweight FROM adsystem a INNER JOIN ad_category_mapping b ON b.adid = a.adid WHERE a.section = ? AND a.active = 1 AND a.start_date <= GETDATE() AND a.adid NOT IN (?) AND (a.viewby LIKE '%n%' OR a.viewby = 'all') AND (b.category_number IN ( SELECT category_number FROM category_book_mapping WHERE book_number = ?) OR b.category_number = ?)

SELECT a.adid, adweight FROM adsystem a WHERE a.section = ? AND a.active = 1 AND a.start_date <= GETDATE() AND a.adid NOT IN (?) AND (a.viewby LIKE '%n%' OR a.viewby = 'all') AND (select count(*) from ad_category_mapping where datalength(category_number) >= 1 and adid = a.adid) = 0

CGI Variables: AUTH_PASSWORD= AUTH_TYPE= AUTH_USER= CERT_COOKIE= CERT_FLAGS= CERT_ISSUER= CERT_KEYSIZE= CERT_SECRETKEYSIZE= CERT_SERIALNUMBER= CERT_SERVER_ISSUER= CERT_SERVER_SUBJECT= CERT_SUBJECT= CF_TEMPLATE_PATH=/root/website/bookclubs/advice/index.cfm CONTENT_LENGTH= CONTENT_TYPE= CONTEXT_PATH= GATEWAY_INTERFACE= HTTPS= HTTPS_KEYSIZE= HTTPS_SECRETKEYSIZE= HTTPS_SERVER_ISSUER= HTTPS_SERVER_SUBJECT= HTTP_ACCEPT=*/* HTTP_ACCEPT_ENCODING=gzip, br, zstd, deflate HTTP_ACCEPT_LANGUAGE= HTTP_CONNECTION=upgrade HTTP_COOKIE=CFID=4074576; CFCLIENT_BOOKBROWSE=order%3Dp%23member%5Fnumber%3D0%23member%5Factive%5Fflag%3D0%23member%5Flogged%5Fin%5Fflag%3D0%23library%5Fuser%5Fflag%3D0%23view%3Dbooks%23; CFGLOBALS=urltoken%3DCFID%23%3D4074576%26CFTOKEN%23%3D1024f77488bbec73%2DFF2E01D9%2DFE53%2D37AD%2D0331A0610126A001%23lastvisit%3D%7Bts%20%272026%2D05%2D31%2021%3A23%3A03%27%7D%23hitcount%3D102%23timecreated%3D%7Bts%20%272026%2D05%2D31%2021%3A22%3A48%27%7D%23cftoken%3D4ff4f9a886d5493f%2DFF2E0F18%2DF4BD%2DEF4F%2D9B430EA91C6AAC77%23cfid%3D4074578%23; CFTOKEN=1024f77488bbec73-FF2E01D9-FE53-37AD-0331A0610126A001; FREEACCESSCOUNT=0 HTTP_HOST=dev.bookbrowse.com HTTP_REFERER= HTTP_URL= HTTP_USER_AGENT=Mozilla/5.0 AppleWebKit/537.36 (KHTML, like Gecko; compatible; ClaudeBot/1.0; +claudebot@anthropic.com) LOCAL_ADDR=127.0.0.1 PATH_INFO=/fuseaction/choosing_books PATH_TRANSLATED=/root/website/bookclubs/advice/index.cfm QUERY_STRING= REMOTE_ADDR=127.0.0.1 REMOTE_HOST=127.0.0.1 REMOTE_USER= REQUEST_METHOD=GET SCRIPT_NAME=/bookclubs/advice/index.cfm SERVER_NAME=dev.bookbrowse.com SERVER_PORT=8500 SERVER_PORT_SECURE=0 SERVER_PROTOCOL=HTTP/1.1 SERVER_SOFTWARE= WEB_SERVER_API=

Client Variables: cfid=4074578 cftoken=4ff4f9a886d5493f-FF2E0F18-F4BD-EF4F-9B430EA91C6AAC77 hitcount=105 lastvisit={ts '2026-05-31 21:23:04'} library_user_flag=0 member_active_flag=0 member_logged_in_flag=0 member_number=0 order=p timecreated={ts '2026-05-31 21:22:48'} urltoken=CFID=4074576&CFTOKEN=1024f77488bbec73-FF2E01D9-FE53-37AD-0331A0610126A001 view=books

Cookie Variables: CFCLIENT_BOOKBROWSE=order=p#member_number=0#member_active_flag=0#member_logged_in_flag=0#library_user_flag=0#view=books# CFGLOBALS=urltoken=CFID#=4074576&CFTOKEN#=1024f77488bbec73-FF2E01D9-FE53-37AD-0331A0610126A001#lastvisit={ts '2026-05-31 21:23:03'}#hitcount=102#timecreated={ts '2026-05-31 21:22:48'}#cftoken=4ff4f9a886d5493f-FF2E0F18-F4BD-EF4F-9B430EA91C6AAC77#cfid=4074578# CFID=4074576 CFTOKEN=1024f77488bbec73-FF2E01D9-FE53-37AD-0331A0610126A001 FREEACCESSCOUNT=0

Session Variables: cfid=4074576 cftoken=1024f77488bbec73-FF2E01D9-FE53-37AD-0331A0610126A001 sessionid=BOOKBROWSE_4074576_1024f77488bbec73-FF2E01D9-FE53-37AD-0331A0610126A001 urltoken=CFID=4074576&CFTOKEN=1024f77488bbec73-FF2E01D9-FE53-37AD-0331A0610126A001