How to Have a Good Book Club Discussion: 3 Tips for Better Conversations

Oct 2

2 min read

Choosing the right book is only half the battle. Last time, I shared tips for choosing a book club book; this time, we’re talking about how to have a good book club discussion. Once everyone has read it, how do you actually have a good book club discussion? In my experience, it comes down to three things: preparation, purpose, and direction.

1. Preparation.

Assign the person who chose the book to bring book club discussion questions. Remind them a few days beforehand—life gets busy. As the head of the book club, I usually bring a few of my own questions in case the person forgets or we run out. This has also increased my engagement with the book—even if I don’t love it—because I have to generate discussion questions.

2. Purpose.

You can't figure out how to have better book club discussions until you're on the same page about what type your club wants to have. In my mind, book clubs exist to have engaging discussions about books’ themes, characters, plot points, social commentary, etc. Personally, I find book clubs less interesting when they get stuck on book recaps, book arguments, or generic questions like what readers did or didn’t like. When everyone understands the purpose of the book club discussion, they’re more willing to actively engage instead of passively wait for someone else to say something.

3. Direction.

Knowing how to lead a book club discussion is just as important as having good questions. Each discussion should have a leader—ideally the person who chose the book. Their job is to direct the discussion, using discussion questions along with the natural flow of the conversation. If the discussion gets derailed, heated, or stagnated, the leader brings it back. The leader can also ask for the thoughts of those who haven’t shared if the conversation is being dominated by a few voices.

A good book club discussion doesn’t have to be complicated. Give people something interesting to talk about, make sure someone is prepared to guide the conversation, and then let the discussion take on a life of its own. With a little preparation and direction, you can turn a group who all read the same book into a group that actually talks about it.