What Is Silent Book Club? All About the Introvert-Led Trend

This is a great time to become a reader. A few years ago the words “book club” may have conjured up images of wine-soaked and charcuterie intimate get-togethers at a friend's house. Now, book clubs take many formswith options for virtually every type of reader—in person or online, through your local library or bookstore, a celebrity-driven community, or #BookTok.

Despite this, the traditional pressures and obligations that exist in any group activity can turn book clubs into a chore for many.

Welcome to the Silent Book Club, a club based on a seemingly counterintuitive idea: reading together and reading alone. Gone are the sometimes rambling, sometimes insightful discussions of tone, prose or themes. All you have to do is show up and read the book of your choice—alone.

Open the latest Booker Prize winner, a mass market paperback, a history book, or a portal to whatever world you want to escape to. This solitary shared reading experience is becoming increasingly popular among readers as it provides a degree of accountability and the opportunity to socialize and adapt the experience without the usual pressure.

Founded in 2012 by Guinevere de la Mare and Laura Gluhanich, Silent Book Club began as a way for two busy friends to fit reading for pleasure back into their busy schedules while also keeping each other accountable. It was a small gathering of friends for about three years until, in 2016, acquaintances from afar asked de la Mare to start their own gatherings. “People we knew started what we now call chapters, and that gave us the idea to put it out there and let everyone do it,” she tells PS.

Readers from all over the world are eager to participate. According to the Silent Book Club website, There are approximately 2,000 silent book clubs worldwide.; after a lull during the pandemic, when some chapters disbanded or stopped actively meeting, there has been “explosive growth.”

In addition, the Silent Book Club receives about 20 requests a week to create new clubs, de la Mare said. She attributes this post-pandemic need for personal communication and a desire to disconnect and take a break from the constant hustle and bustle of being connected virtually.

“There is so much content and information available, and the way we consume is constantly moving around and absorbing information in small chunks, so it really takes effort to shift gears in your brain back and focus on one story at a time,” says de la Mare.

This does not mean that silent book clubs are directly opposed to meetings that involve discussion. Rather, the goal is to make reading as smooth as possible by eliminating distractions such as nervousness about socializing or the feeling of doing homework. Silent book clubs aren't necessarily the enemy of traditional book clubs—in fact, de la Mare says, many silent book club members use their time to catch up on reading for other book clubs.

According to de la Mare, a typical silent book club begins with some socializing and calming down before the organizer tells everyone it's time to read (this usually takes about an hour). But instead of this chatter continuing the entire time, it stops before everyone picks up their favorite book and immerses themselves in it.

“Putting yourself in a room with a group of people all doing the same thing is the extra peer pressure you need. [to stay focused]”, she explains. “It's a profound shift in getting off the hamster wheel, and I feel like it's easier to hang up when everyone else around you is doing it too.” When this veil of prolonged silent reading is lifted, bookworms are free to stay and talk or to leave.

One of these offices is run by Megan Sampson, a 35-year-old executive assistant from Easton, Massachusetts. Sampson looked for a book club after moving, but didn't find a suitable option. “There was no homework, but the idea of ​​coming up with something smart to say in a meeting didn’t appeal to me,” she says.

That's when she saw a TikTok about the Silent Book Club. Lack of pressure and productivity is a plus promise to find new friends – attracted her. Sampson filled out an online form to open a chapter and contacted local Shovel Town Brewery before posting about the club on social media.

She didn't expect anyone to show up for the first meeting at a local brewery in September 2023, but 37 people showed up and she was thrilled with the response and the community she's built since then. As of 2024, approximately 137 readers participated in monthly meetings at three local businesses. Since then, he has made many friends and acquaintances, as well as several job offers. The roots that litter the brewery's long tables at every meeting span a variety of genres; people read romancesthrillers, science fiction and even sheet music, in one copy.

“It’s great to have some alone time together.”

That flexibility and freedom to read anything also appealed to Ashley Mason, the 27-year-old founder of a marketing firm living in Middleboro, Massachusetts. Mason joined Sampson's chapter back in September. She had been to book clubs before, but was hesitant to attend them regularly because she was very picky about what she read and didn't feel drawn to all the assigned books. An added bonus was that Mason could trade the nightmare commute to Boston, where most local cultural events take place, for an easier 20-minute drive to Easton. “It's great to have some alone time,” says Mason, “and knowing that you're around people who love to read is really great.”

The silent book club has now become a favorite ritual for Mason. She works from home, so getting out into the world and meeting other people is another reason to visit the Silent Book Club. She has since recruited her longtime best friend and they have a monthly routine that includes visiting different restaurants for an early dinner in Easton before heading to Shovel Town together. Casual conversations between periods of silent reading make her day more interesting, and she has also found other people who run bookish Instagram accounts.

The club gives introverts the opportunity to come out of their shell in a manageable way. Lindsay Chastain, the 47-year-old founder and CEO who lives near Tulsa, Oklahoma, has been attending Silent Book Club meetings at Magic City Books for a couple of years.

Chastain enjoys the balance of independence and companionship. “I'm very much an introvert, and one of my main problems with book clubs is that people either don't read the book or the conversation isn't about the book, and that's what I came for,” she explains. “For the most part, [my chapter] it’s a group of people who don’t really want to socialize but want to be social.”

It's the combination of face-to-face meetings and silence that keeps her coming back; It's a welcome escape from the responsibilities of running her own business, raising four teenagers and running a hobby farm, and it helps her carve out precious time for herself where no one is asking her for anything. “I remove all the barriers to reading when I come to a silent book club to clear my mind of all these things,” she explains.

Communicating with other readers helped Chastain learn a lot of interesting things. reading inspiration just by looking at what others are reading and she likes that she can enjoy these books without any preconceived notions based on the opinions of others expressed in the discussions. She also likes that this format removes any barriers or differences that might make conversation difficult—say, some people read just for the plot or atmosphere, while others scrutinize the prose—so that every reader can have the experience they want without judgment or frustration.

Even though she had no intention of meeting others through a book club (she wouldn't mind, but she doesn't have much time to devote to making new friends), Chastain strengthened important relationships through her participation in the Silent Book Club: she and her 18-year-old son attended meetings together twice and read the same book. “Now it's given us some common ground, allowing us to be not just mother and son, but also literary buddies and friends,” she says.

Helen Carefoot is a freelance lifestyle, culture and entertainment journalist based in Washington, DC. She previously worked as a lifestyle writer for Well+Good magazine and worked at The Washington Post in the lifestyle section of the features section.