Popular Book Club Picks

Searching for study guides on books selected by some of the nation's top book clubs, curated by Oprah, Reese Witherspoon, the PBS NewsHour, the New York Times, and the American Library Association? Look no further. This collection covers critically-acclaimed classics like Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe and Love in the Time of Cholera by Gabriel García Márquez to contemporary, buzzworthy novels like Girl, Woman, Other. We hope this compilation of study guides provides your own book club with lively discussion topics and keen insights.

Publication year 2017

Genre Short Story Collection, Fiction

Themes Emotions/Behavior: Fear, Emotions/Behavior: Loneliness, Emotions/Behavior: Revenge, Identity: Disability, Identity: Gender, Identity: Language, Life/Time: Childhood & Youth, Life/Time: Coming of Age, Life/Time: Mortality & Death, Natural World: Appearance & Reality, Relationships: Family, Relationships: Marriage, Society: Class, Society: Economics, Values/Ideas: Justice & Injustice

Tags Horror / Thriller / Suspense Fiction, Magical Realism, Science-Fiction / Dystopian Fiction, Korean Literature


Publication year 2009

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Society: Immigration, Values/Ideas: Religion & Spirituality, Relationships: Siblings

Tags Historical Fiction, Health / Medicine, African Literature

Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese was published in 2009. Verghese, an Indian American doctor born in Ethiopia, interrupted his medical career to attend the University of Iowa’s Writing Workshop and wrote two memoirs before publishing this novel. The book is notable for its incorporation of medical knowledge and its intimate portrayal of the lives of medical doctors. The novel spans several decades, weaving a deeply personal story with the complex 20th-century history of Ethiopia... Read Cutting for Stone Summary


Publication year 2022

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Emotions/Behavior: Guilt, Relationships: Family, Values/Ideas: Justice & Injustice, Emotions/Behavior: Revenge, Emotions/Behavior: Grief, Life/Time: Mortality & Death

Tags Mystery / Crime Fiction, Horror / Thriller / Suspense Fiction, Modern Classic Fiction


Publication year 2019

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Values/Ideas: Music, Relationships: Fathers, Values/Ideas: Fame

Tags Historical Fiction, Music, Modern Classic Fiction, History: World

Taylor Jenkins Reid’s historical fiction novel Daisy Jones & The Six, published in 2019, is a contemporary work of fiction that explores the rich music culture of the 1970s in the United States. This time was known for rock ’n’ roll, partly as a cultural response to the strict rules of the 1960s and the disaster of the Vietnam War. The California dream world of hard partying, no rules, and freedom persists as a major... Read Daisy Jones & The Six Summary


Publication year 2022

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Relationships: Family, Values/Ideas: Truth & Lies, Emotions/Behavior: Love

Tags Fantasy, Mythology, Romance, Asian Literature, Asian Literature, Historical Fiction


Publication year 2020

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Society: Community, Relationships: Fathers, Identity: Race, Relationships: Daughters & Sons

Tags Race / Racism, Poverty, African American Literature, Mystery / Crime Fiction, History: World, Historical Fiction

Deacon King Kong was published in 2020 and written by American author James McBride. It is an example of near-historical fiction written about American cities and social issues. McBride’s 1995 memoir about growing up in a mixed-race family in Brooklyn, The Color of Water, was both a commercial and critical success, and his own life experience aligns with some of the narratives and issues in Deacon King Kong.McBride’s novel The Good Lord Bird won the... Read Deacon King Kong Summary


Publication year 2013

Genre Biography, Nonfiction

Themes Emotions/Behavior: Courage, Emotions/Behavior: Determination / Perseverance, Emotions/Behavior: Grief, Emotions/Behavior: Memory, Identity: Language, Life/Time: Mortality & Death, Life/Time: The Past, Natural World: Climate, Natural World: Environment, Natural World: Place, Relationships: Teams, Society: Nation, Values/Ideas: Safety & Danger, Values/Ideas: Truth & Lies

Tags Russian Literature, Mystery / Crime Fiction, History: World, Biography, History: European, Crime / Legal, Action / Adventure, Travel Literature


Publication year 2015

Genre Biography, Nonfiction

Tags Politics / Government, History: World, WWI / World War I, History: European, History: U.S., Military / War, Biography

In Dead Wake: The Last Crossing of the Lusitania, writer Erik Larson traces the Lusitania’s final journey across the Atlantic Ocean. The Lusitania is a British passenger liner owned by the Cunard Steamship Company. First sailing in 1907, the Lusitania quickly sets records for the fastest journey across the Atlantic Ocean, stealing the coveted Blue Riband away from Germany.Dead Wake follows the Lusitania’s final journey, which took place during the first week of May 1915... Read Dead Wake Summary


Publication year 2020

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Life/Time: Birth, Relationships: Family

Tags Realistic Fiction, Modern Classic Fiction

Dear Edward by Ann Napolitano was published in 2020. It is the story of a 12-year-old boy who is the lone survivor of a plane crash that kills 191 others, including his family. As Edward struggles to cope with the tragedy, letters from others affected by the crash spark a journey of healing and self-discovery. Although the novel is fiction, it was inspired by true events. Ann Napolitano is a resident of New York City... Read Dear Edward Summary


Publication year 2012

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Natural World: Nurture v. Nature

Tags Mystery / Crime Fiction, Horror / Thriller / Suspense Fiction

Defending Jacob is a 2012 crime novel by William Landay. The main character is Andy Barber, a Massachusetts assistant district attorney, who finds his personal and professional life thrown into turmoil when his son, Jacob Barber, is accused of murdering his classmate Ben Rifkin. Andy, a resident of Newton, Massachusetts, narrates the events of the 2007 murder and trial alongside the transcripts of a 2008 grand jury investigation whose subject remains unstated until the final... Read Defending Jacob Summary


Publication year 2023

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Emotions/Behavior: Fear, Life/Time: Birth, Values/Ideas: Truth & Lies

Tags Mystery / Crime Fiction, Horror / Thriller / Suspense Fiction, Psychological Fiction, Modern Classic Fiction


Publication year 2022

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Society: Class, Life/Time: Childhood & Youth, Emotions/Behavior: Determination / Perseverance, Life/Time: Coming of Age

Tags Historical Fiction, Coming of Age / Bildungsroman, Modern Classic Fiction


Publication year 2021

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Identity: Femininity, Relationships: Family, Identity: Gender

Tags LGBTQ, Gender / Feminism, Modern Classic Fiction


Publication year 2023

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Relationships: Family, Values/Ideas: Fame, Identity: Race, Emotions/Behavior: Shame & Pride, Values/Ideas: Equality, Identity: Gender

Tags Historical Fiction, Race / Racism, Mystery / Crime Fiction, Modern Classic Fiction, History: World


Publication year 2022

Genre Autobiography / Memoir, Nonfiction

Themes Relationships: Friendship, Identity: Gender, Values/Ideas: Equality, Society: Politics & Government

Tags Leadership/Organization/Management, Crime / Legal, Women's Studies (Nonfiction), Gender / Feminism, History: World, Politics / Government, Biography


Publication year 2001

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Emotions/Behavior: Grief, Relationships: Family, Natural World: Environment, Emotions/Behavior: Loneliness, Emotions/Behavior: Love, Life/Time: Midlife, Values/Ideas: Music

Tags Romance, Drama / Tragedy, Modern Classic Fiction, History: World


Publication year 2019

Genre Novel, Fiction

Tags Horror / Thriller / Suspense Fiction, Russian Literature, Mystery / Crime Fiction, Modern Classic Fiction

Disappearing Earth (2019) is a debut novel by Julia Phillips published by Alfred A. Knopf, New York, a division of Penguin Random House. This cross-genre novel combines elements of Mystery, Thriller, Women’s Fiction, and Literary Fiction. In 2019, it was a National Book Award finalist for fiction, a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle John Leonard Prize, and a finalist for the Center for Fiction First Novel Prize. New York Times Book Review named... Read Disappearing Earth Summary


Publication year 1999

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Emotions/Behavior: Forgiveness, Self Discovery, Society: Colonialism, Values/Ideas: New Age

Tags African Literature, Trauma / Abuse / Violence, Race / Racism, Modern Classic Fiction, History: World, Classic Fiction

Disgrace (1999) is a novel by South African author J. M. Coetzee. It follows a white South African professor of English as he navigates the changing world of post-apartheid South Africa. Disgrace won the Booker Prize after its publication in 1999 and, four years later, Coetzee was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature. In 2008, the novel was adapted into a movie starring John Malkovich and Jessica Haines. This guide uses the 1999 Secker &... Read Disgrace Summary


Publication year 1996

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Emotions/Behavior: Love, Life/Time: The Past, Relationships: Friendship, Relationships: Mothers

Tags Southern Literature, Modern Classic Fiction, Historical Fiction, Humor


Publication year 2019

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Identity: Femininity, Life/Time: Coming of Age, Relationships: Family

Tags Historical Fiction, Coming of Age / Bildungsroman, Modern Classic Fiction, History: World