Springville Road Library's Book Club for Men

The phenomenon of Oprah’s book club has led to a resurgence in books clubs around the country and librarians as well as other literary types have been taking full advantage of this increase in interest in book clubs.

The above statement is not likely breaking news for any readers of a library blog; however, the fact that there has been a small (but growing) surge in book clubs for men may be news to some of the readers of this blog.

Of course book clubs for men are not a new phenomenon, but they have seen a major decline in their numbers since the heydays of 17th century salons in Europe and the upper crust gentlemen’s clubs of the 19th century. Book clubs populated by women (or populated by mostly women) make up the vast majority of the book clubs that currently exist across America.

Some of these new book clubs for men have given themselves tough, biker gang style names like the Scorpions and some of these book clubs require their members to bring a covered dish to each meeting. I am certain that most the book clubs for men exist on a scale somewhere between the two examples listed above.

The Springville Road Branch of the Birmingham Public Library has created its own book club for men. We are calling it the Book Club for Men. Our inaugural meeting will be held on Tuesday, October 30, 2012, at 6:30 p.m. at the Springville Road Library. The first book selection is Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley’s Frankenstein and the selection for November is Bill Bryson’s A Walk in the Woods.

Although our first book was written by a woman, we do intend to read much more manly books in the future. Including works by authors such as Ernest Hemingway, Cormac McCarthy, and Jack London.

For questions about the Springville Road Library’s Book Club for Men, please contact Brandon Smith at 205-226-4081.

Brandon Smith
Springville Road Library

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