Silent book clubs provide ‘distinct sense of community’

In preparation for Flyleaf Books' second silent book club meeting, Ashley-Nicole Smith, the club leader and a bookseller, turned on soft instrumental music, put out mugs for tea and hot chocolate and fluffed pillows in armchairs before book lovers filed in for the evening.

Smith said the silent book club, which held its first meeting in February, is for anyone who needs an hour of quiet reading time.

During meetings, attendees of diverse ages and genders are spread throughout the bookstore to read silently for an hour. Toward the end of the meeting, Smith calls everyone into the events room to discuss what they are reading. 

“We love to talk with our customers about what they’re reading and why,” she said. “And so I just love that we have this dedicated space to be able to not only talk about what you’re reading but talk about it while it’s fresh in their mind.”

The club is Chapel Hill’s only chapter of the Silent Book Club, a global community of readers that began in 2012 and has more than 500 chapters in 50 countries. Anyone can join or organize a chapter, and unlike other book clubs, members read their book of choice. 

Smith said the differences in people’s reading tastes have sparked conversations about varied topics.

“We’ve had people come and talk about the border crisis or Palestine — just whatever they’re reading kind of opens the floor to these new perspectives that you might not get if you’re all reading the same romance novel or you’re all reading the same sci-fi novel,” she said.

Flyleaf Books' next silent book club meeting is on April 8 at 6 p.m. and attendees are encouraged to bring a pillow or cushion for comfortable seating. 

In addition to bookstores, silent book clubs gather in public settings like cafes and bars.

Silent Book Club Durham meets on the third Monday of each month at 6:30 p.m. at DSSOLVR Durham. 

Becka Fortune, now the club’s organizer, first became a member when it started in 2017 after learning about it on Facebook. 

“I was like, that sounds really interesting and like an easy way to get in some kind of socialization without there being any expectations or pressure,” she said. 

The Durham club averages 15 to 20 people a month from a wide spectrum of ages. Meetings begin with members introducing themselves and sharing what they plan to read, ranging from textbooks to comic books. 

After reading for an hour, members can socialize with one another. Fortune said she has made lifelong friends from the book club and that it has a distinct sense of community. 

If Fortune needs to step away for a meeting, she said she has a group of regular members she can rely on to fill in.

“The chapter doesn’t belong to me; it belongs to the community,” she said. 

UNC English professor and author Daniel Wallace said that, as an introvert, it is awesome to discuss books in a setting with no obligation to talk. 

“When I see a movie that I loved, I just rave about it to somebody and encourage them to go see it, and I do the same with a book,” he said. “And that to me is what’s interesting about talking about art, is sharing how you feel about it with someone else to see if you can energize and interest them.”

Lisa Lindsay joined Silent Book Club Durham in 2018. Lindsay is also an introvert and, as a mom, she said she doesn’t go out often, but the club is one of her social opportunities. 

She reads books across various genres, including nonfiction, and said her "To Be Read" list is a little bit longer after every meeting.  

“I love books, and I love reading,” she said. “And there aren’t too many people in my immediate circle who can listen to me talk about books without their eyes glazing over after a couple of minutes. So this was just a really fun opportunity to connect with people who also love reading.”

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