Join the Conversation: Your Guide to Book Clubs

In 2025, the Booker Prizes put out a simple call to their followers: tell us about the book clubs you belong to. The response was an avalanche – as varied and surprising as the clubs themselves. Some met in local libraries, favourite cafés or around kitchen tables. Others gathered online around shared interests or specific genres. Among the stories were groups that had been meeting for decades, friendships that had deepened through difficult seasons of life, and clubs that had grown far beyond their original handful of readers.

People wrote about laughter, disagreement, tears, and the quiet ritual of coming together each month to talk about a book. Different formats, different people, different books – but one thing in common: the pleasure of sharing a reading experience and a love of stories.

Book clubs are enjoying a real resurgence. In our post-pandemic, digital-heavy world, many of us are craving genuine connection. When work and whānau keep life busy, a book club carves out protected time to sit down together. If you work from home, it’s a reason to step out the door. Over time, some groups become a kind of “book family” – meeting month after month, year after year.

So how do you find a book club? Ironically, their popularity can make them hard to join. Many are full. Others might not quite suit your reading tastes or schedule. Which raises another possibility: could you start your own?

Starting your own book club might sound like a big undertaking, but it doesn’t have to be. Most begin with just two or three people and a shared desire to read more – or to read differently. You don’t need a formal structure, a logo, or even a long-term plan. You just need a date, a book, and a willingness to show up.

A good book club isn’t about having the “right” answers. It’s about conversation. One person may love a novel, another may be frustrated by it – and that’s where it gets interesting. The richest discussions often come from the differences around the table.
The practicalities are simpler than you might think. Decide how often you’ll meet. Choose how you’ll pick books. Work out whether you’ll host in homes, rotate venues, or meet somewhere neutral. Some groups prefer literary fiction, others memoir, crime, romance, or non-fiction. There are no rules – only what works for your people.

And once you’ve gathered your group and chosen your direction, the next question becomes: how do you source the books in a way that’s affordable, flexible, and easy for everyone?

Here’s where we come in. Paige’s runs a Lending Library specifically for book clubs! Our shelves are full of interesting and diverse titles. Even better, we have 12 copies of the same book, perfect for clubs that like to read together.

The cost is just $6 per month, per book. If you live in Whanganui, you can pop in to browse and make your selection. For the rest of Aotearoa, we’ll happily send your set of books to you (freight at your expense). We send as many copies as you have members – just return the books on time.

Simply get in touch with our friendly, book-loving team for a list of available titles:
Email: hello@paiges.com
Phone: 06 348 9095
Text/WhatsApp: 021 292 7417