It’s Thursday, you’re counting down the hours until the workday is done, and you have book club tonight. Not only do you have book club, it’s YOUR TURN to host. You’ve got cheese dip to make, pinot to purchase, and you still don’t know what book to suggest to your group for next month. Under pressure, you google what’s big on Amazon right now and throw a metaphorical dart. (Besides, your club never seems to agree on a book, so you figure it really doesn’t really matter anyway.)

What if there were something better? Book clubs have a special place in our heart, and The Book Squad is developing a suite of services to help make being a member more fun and book clubs less stressful to run.
First, many of you may know that we offer a Book Club in a Bag service — 10 to 12 copies of a book are available for your club for six weeks. Each bag also comes with discussion questions to assist clubs that want to take the conversation deeper. You may not know we have over 175 titles to choose from, and we have KitKeeper, software that gives users a quick, easy way to see the availability of all of our bags in one place. You can place reservations by title or choose based on what’s available in the month you need it.
Another service we’re launching is a newsletter chock full of bookish news, local book clubs highlights, great reads for groups, updates on programs of interest to book club members and more. If you’re interested in receiving The Book Club Hub, sign up here and we’ll keep you up-to-date.

And lastly, if you’re interested in working with a member of our Book Squad to create and reserve picks based specifically on your clubs tastes and interests, you can contact us about a one-on-one consultation at rs@lawrencepubliclibrary.org. We’d love to help you figure out what to read next!

The Book Squad is busy planning programs that will help strengthen your book club experience. Mark your calendars for April 14 at 7:30 p.m. for our Book Club Happy Hour. Bring your book club and “speed date” multiple books, enjoy Mocktails and snacks, and leave with a list of books your club is excited to read.
If you don’t currently have a book club, never fear. The library has several to choose from and we welcome new members.

Genre Book Club: Learn more about a variety of genres and subgenres. We compile the reading list, you pick a title from it that interests you and come to discuss at the library on the fourth Sunday of the month starting in April. (February and March are a little different — check our calendar!) Contact Readers’ Services to sign up.

YA for Adults Book Club: YA books aren’t just for teens — there are great titles that adults will enjoy, too. Meetings take place out and about town on the second Thursday of the month. Contact Kimberly for details.

Lit Lunch: A brownbag discussion group (drinks on us) on the first Wednesday of the month at noon. Bring what you’re reading and gab about what everyone else if reading, too, plus get the low-down on new books from William. Contact William to sign up. Starts March 2.

Last Wednesday Book Club: Primarily reads popular and more recent titles, meets (you guessed it) on the last Wednesday of the month at the library. Contact Kate for more details.

Lit Lounge: If you like to get lit…erary, we’re starting a new book club for adults. You can raise a pint and your bookish IQ at the same time! Third Thursdays at Decade Coffee at 7 p.m., starting March 17th. Contact Kate for more details.

Coming this summer, we’re working to bring the community a book club that focuses on diverse voices through partnership with local thinkers. Stay tuned for details!

So wrap up that expense report, swing by the liquor store, and get ready to talk to your group about the new services at LPL. You’ll be a book club hero.

— Polli Kenn writes for the Lawrence Public Library.