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Recently over at Slate, Nathan Heller asked an intriguing question: Why do readers like book clubs?

Indeed, what do readers see in gathering, books tucked under arms, brownies balancing precariously, as they march up the driveway for an evening of edification? Heller ponders this point as he takes his audience through a concise history of reading groups and the dedication readers had to furthering their educations once they were out of school. He notes that dessert and wine are persuaders for some readers (and takes a humorous jab at unusual culinary contributions from some bookclubbers such as Oreos and KFC), but thankfully, Heller doesn’t put much stock in that theory. He does, however, reveal what he believes to be the real reason deeper into the article–connecting with others.

To me, this is the primary reason people join book groups, both “private” and “public.” They wish to make connections with other readers that offer benefits that can’t be found via online book groups. Readers want to see the expressions on someone’s face as they rant or praise. They want the opportunity to possibly change an opinion about a book. Readers want someone to see their excitement about a book and the impact the reading experience made.

Cake and wine are nice, but no one ever leaves a book group saying, “I’m really glad Hortense served a Riesling with the eclairs.” But I’ll bet we’ve all heard someone say, “I wouldn’t have picked up this book if the group hadn’t chosen it. I’m glad I read it.”

You can’t get that kind of reading experience online. The cake online is rather tasteless, too.

This entry was posted on Sunday, August 21st, 2011 at 7:09 am and is filed under In the News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.