If you’ve just read a book you loved, it’s one of life’s pleasures to have a kindred spirit to discuss it with.
But not all of us have the sort of friends who will get behind the idea of a book club.
If you’re craving the camaraderie of a book club but your mates think it’s nerdy (it’s not you, it’s them), an online book club can fill the void.
One such virtual book club is Rare Birds Book Club, a unique online offering that sends out a surprise book each month (chosen from two available) then gathers members on a set day to get together and chat about it live.
The monthly book club is led by Rare Birds founder Rachel Wood, who first posts an in-depth review on the discussion board before taking members through a live, guided discussion and review, raising key themes, plot points and characters to dissect.
You can chat away about the book with other members, get notified when someone has answered your point and, when the discussion is done, leave your own review and rating.
‘It sits somewhere between an English Lit class and an in real life book club – in a fun way!),’ says Rachel.
What sets Rare Birds apart is the live, guided discussion element. Rachel says: ‘We’re really focused on reading and the experience of reading – it seems small but we’re the only book subscription that actually has a book club and guides your reading.
‘Most of our competitors send out books and though one or two offer a “digital book club” it is in most cases, just a Facebook group.
‘The difference with us is we select the books, introduce them at the beginning of the month and then offer insight and context along with a space to review and share.’
Rare Birds has recently made a tweak to its book subscription – for the £12 monthly subscription, instead of the one curated book choice they used to offer, now each month they will send you the blurb for two books they have selected, without giving too much away about the title, author or plot.
You pick the one that you like the sound of most and it will arrive at your door, wrapped and accompanied by a nicely designed card (if you want both, you pay £8 for the second, totalling £20).
If you’re the type that likes beautifully wrapped things dropping through your letterbox, this may be enough bang for your buck.
But once you’re a member, you get access to the book club’s members’ area, where the monthly discussions take place.
They also have author interviews and IRL events for their members.
Rare Birds book club is a refreshing take on the subscription service that is usually a one way street – you get the book, you read it, the end – and one that promotes genuine interaction and thoughtful debate with like-minded people.
Anyone who’s spent any length of time in an internet chatroom will know, thoughtful debate is not that easy to come by. In a social climate where loneliness is becoming an epidemic, a positive place to connect that has roots both and offline – and that is particularly over shared reading experience – can have huge benefits.
Reading fiction has been proven to improve empathy while being part of a book club is known to have positive effects on mental health, sense of well-being and social inclusion, dubbed ‘Book Club Therapy’.
It’s a space where difficult topics inside novels can be discussed and dissected, where readers can better understand the psyche of characters within the book and can, conversely, feel better understood themselves.
Members are civil and reviews are insightful. Having received one month’s subscription as a gift, I’ll be joining for the long haul.
See you at the next book club.
MORE ABOUT RARE BIRDS BOOK CLUB
How do they choose the books?
All the authors are female, all the books are fiction. As Rachel Wood says, that’s where the similarities end. What the reads do have in common is that they are books you will want to tell your friends about.
Rachel says: ‘To convince someone else to read something, I think you really need to stand behind the books you’re choosing, so I’m only sending out what I love.
‘Our book club picks are all fiction, all in paperback, all by female authors, and tend to focus on stories about women, so that narrows the field quite a bit. I’m reading and researching all the time, publishers keep me informed about what they have coming up and every time I read a book or a proof I love it goes on to our shortlist of great reads.
‘How we pick month-by-month is usually selecting from that shortlist, trying to offer up a good rotating variety of styles, genres and perspectives so we can get readers outside of their comfort zones and discovering books they’d never otherwise come across.
‘At the end of the day what I’m looking for is a good story, period. The litmus test is always: am I turning the page? Do I want to know what happens?
‘Our motto is read for fun – to make that happen for our readers we stay really focused on making sure every title that goes into our book club will be interesting and entertaining.’
How do the book club discussion sessions work?
Rachel leads each discussion and it starts with a deep-dive review from her, which is usually between 2,000 – 4,000 words (and starting this month also in audio format) and goes through the plot and themes of the book.
They go live on the 20th of each month (usually around lunchtime) and then stay open forever. Members are prompted with a newsletter on the same day. Rachel reports that most members log in within 24 hours of that email to join the discussion and then people filter in as and when it suits them.
Members get a notification when someone replies to their post etc so they can jump back in and keep the conversation going.
Find out more about Rare Birds Book Club here.
