By Collection Management Librarian Dontaná McPherson-Joseph
Since Oprah’s first book club pick in 1996, we have been reading as the celebrities do, falling in love with, or hating, characters with our fellow book club readers. Book clubs offer an opportunity to be in community with others, even if we’re not together in person. Other celebrities who love to read have started book clubs, to varying degrees of success. Enjoy these January picks from well-established and new celebrity book clubs.
Read with the stars
Black Futures by Kimberly Drew and Jenna Wortham
Who is reading it: The Audacious Book Club (Roxane Gay)
Description: A curated collection of essays, photography, memes, recipes, poems, and dialogues explores what it means to be Black and alive in today’s world from the perspectives of academics, activists, and other prominent cultural and social media influencers.
Stream & download with: Media on Demand/Libby (ebook)
Find all available formats in the catalog »
What Kind of Woman: Poems by Kate Baer
Who is reading it: Goop Book Club (Gwyneth Paltrow)
Description: Beautifully written, this exemplary voice in modern poetry makes women feel seen in their own bodies, marriages, and lives.
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Black Buck by Mateo Askaripour
Who is reading it: Read with Jenna (Bush Hager)
Description: An unambitious college graduate accepts a job at Sumwun, the hottest NYC startup, and reimagines himself as “Buck” a ruthless salesman and begins to hatch a plan to help young people of color infiltrate America’s sales force.
Stream & download with: Media on Demand/Libby (ebook)
Find all available formats in the catalog »
The Push by Ashley Audrain
Who is reading it: Good Morning America Book Club
Description: A devoted mother with a painful past gradually realizes that something is very wrong with her daughter, a fear that is complicated by her husband’s dismissive views and the birth of a healthy son.
Stream & download with: Media on Demand/Libby (ebook)
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Outlawed by Anna North
Who is reading it: Reese's (Witherspoon) Book Club and Bellatrist (Karah Preiss and Emma Roberts)
Description: A riveting adventure story features a fugitive girl, a mysterious gang of robbers, and their dangerous mission to transform the Wild West.
Stream & download with: Media on Demand/Libby (ebook)
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Concrete Rose by Angie Thomas
Who is reading it: Bustle Book Club
Description: A gang leader’s son finds his effort to go straight for the sake of his child challenged by a loved one’s brutal murder, in a poignant exploration of Black coming-of-age set 17 years before the events of the award-winning The Hate U Give.
Stream & download with: Media on Demand/Libby (ebook & digital audiobook)
Find all available formats in the catalog »
You Have a Match by Emma Lord
Who is reading it: Reese's (Witherspoon) YA Book Club
Description: A new love, a secret sister, and a summer she'll never forget. When Abby signs up for a DNA service, it's mainly to give her friend and secret love interest, Leo, a nudge. After all, she knows who she is already: Avid photographer. Injury-prone tree climber. But she didn't know she's a younger sister. Part of life is showing up, leaning in, and learning to fit all your awkward pieces together. Because sometimes, the hardest things also can be the best ones.
Stream & download with: Hoopla (digital audiobook)
Find all available formats in the catalog »
More book club resources
- Our library-led book groups have gone virtual! Check out what we're reading and join us »
- Looking for digital titles to read together? Explore the Hoopla Book Club picks »
About Dontaná
Dontaná is a Collection Management Librarian who was born with an unending reading list. She is almost always reading two books simultaneously and is easily distracted by cool covers.
