Okay so...I've never joined a book club. I've honestly just never had any interest in the idea. I'm also fairly certain I'd be a bad book club member. I love discussing books with people, don't get me wrong. But discussing just ONE book? Nah, can't do it. If I had a book club it'd probably be less, book of the month stuff and more, "okay what's everyone read? You first! Don't be shy!" Because I love knowing what everyone reads and get some of my best book recommendations by just spying on everyone's currently reading lists. But from what I hear, mostly book clubs do one book per month and just discuss that. Which, if that's your thing. Great. Me...I wouldn't be very helpful because I'd want to go from that one book to this other book that's kind of related, to that author's whole backlist. I'd be a derailing of the discussion kind of member for sure. So it's in everyone's best interest that I just don't join.
So this is less focused on a specific kind of book. I'm just putting books on here that would probably generate lots of discussion which I hear is what book clubs want.
Why: I literally just finished this one yesterday (I'm slow like that, another reason I'd not be a good book club member, I want to read books on my own terms and not based on when the club decides to get to it). It's tailor made for discussion. It goes into: racism, class privilege, the disadvantages of living on reservations, white savior mentality, bullying, and just so much more.
Why: First, I'd advise to just go ahead and do the whole trilogy. It is absolutely possible to read these three in a month. Things you can talk about: lack of empathy in the entertainment industry, class privileges, tyranny, propaganda during a wartime.
Why: Can generate discussions about the 1960s Nigerian civil war, can talk about colonization, racism, how you can be racist without even meaning to be, how war effects all, how revolutions are not always black and white.
Why: Can generate discussions about talk of WWII, found families, how things weren't exactly black and white in Germany regarding the Nazis, book censorship, love of reading and how it brings people together.
Also when you run out of things to talk about, you just pop in the movie and watch it together and do the time honored tradition of book versus movie.
Why: This could generate SO much discussion about feminism. You can go from what it means to be feminist (and hopefully correct any wrong assumptions people have about it in your group, because I guarantee that there is at least ONE person thinks feminism is about hating men), to how to enjoy problematic entertainment but not be blind to its faults.
Why: Honestly, just any Margeret Atwood book will do well for book club. Heck, be ambitious and just tell people to pick at least two Atwood books and you can have a discussion about ALL of them.
Why: Like Atwood, I would just do any Maya Angelou book.
Why: It's just good damn it. Like Hunger Games, I would just do the whole trilogy at once.
Why: Again, any Neil Gaiman book is interesting and going to generate lots of discussion. This one is probably your best bet though.
Why: He's just one of those authors who puts a lot of topics in his books.
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