Book lovers strengthen community through in-person events and activities.
PROVIDENCE — At Symposium Books in downtown Providence, owner Scott McCullough sees packed crowds attend the store’s Silent Book Clubs where guests sit for an hour or so and read independently, then connect with one another.
“It’s nice that we can provide a space like that,” McCullough said. “People want to meet up. They want to get off their devices for a while and we’re happy to create a place for them.”
Symposium’s Silent Book Club can attract anywhere from fifteen to sixty attendees. And McCullough has expanded beyond his store by holding the events at venues that can handle the volume, like Ellie’s Bakery and Cafe, Bolt Coffee and the Knight Library. The businesses welcome the chance to serve new and returning customers.
McCullough adds, “the clubs are gradually growing, building community by connecting people and their interests.”
Independent book clubs are thriving as well but they, too, draw larger and larger crowds and are moving from private living rooms to public meeting spaces, according to club leaders.
“Our gatherings create a welcoming environment where book lovers can connect, learn, and grow together,” explains Caitlin Bernard, who coordinates the Pawtuxet Village Book Club.
The group gathers monthly at Cork and Brew, a local liquor store that provides the meeting space. She adds, “It’s a fantastic way to connect with others who share a love for books, building a community.”
The idea of seeking community and connection is a theme that runs consistently through all of these experiences, organizers say.
Kate Lentz, Executive Director of the Rhode Island Center for the Book, a nonprofit organization that advocates for and promotes increased literacy, underscores this idea:
“The shared experience of reading the same book builds a sense of connection and belonging, turning reading into a communal activity. Our programs encourage a sense of collective engagement with literature, transforming reading from a solitary activity into a community experience.”
Boosting the Book Business
At Ink Fish Books in Warren, owner Lisa Valentino agrees that building a sense of community is important and that it’s critical to the success of businesses like hers.
“Part of my plan is to cultivate unique events that would give the community the opportunity to hear, see, taste, and engage in a way they hadn’t before.”
Valentino offers a calendar full of activities including book groups, author events and collaborations with other local organizations like schools and libraries. Recently she hosted a book drive for the George Hail Free Library located right down the street from her shop.
“It is so gratifying to bring everyone together and celebrate our uniqueness and share that with a community that embraces that spirit and lifts us all up. It gives me, as a bookstore owner, something I have never experienced in my life and it’s incredibly rewarding.”
Offering more than just book sales benefits the bottom line, too, as event participants head to the cash register with their autographed book or other purchases. It builds customer loyalty as well.
“The community knows how important the support of their bookstore is,” Valentino says, “and they appreciate connecting with other like-minded people in the community. It’s engaging with purpose.”
Cork and Brew, home of the Pawtuxet Village Book Club, recognizes the benefits of hosting a monthly book group, even though they don’t sell books.
Caitlin Bernard says the club “leads to increased foot traffic. Hosting the monthly meetings attracts participants, bringing more customers to not only the store but to other local shops and restaurants, which can lead to additional sales.”
Before and after book club, readers visit nearby restaurants and shops, expanding their economic impact throughout the village of Pawtuxet, according to Bernard.
At the Center for the Book, Lentz is committed to having a positive influence on neighborhood shops.
“Our board chose to support our local economies by purchasing all books for our programs, thousands of books, exclusively from local independent bookstores in Rhode Island.”
It may be easier to order from an anonymous entity online, but purchasing from independent sellers boosts local businesses.
Authors Join the Club
Book events are not only for readers; authors enjoy them, too, and not simply because they sell books, they say. It’s all about making a connection.
“Getting together with readers to discuss a book I’ve written is one of the highlights of being an author,” says Christa Carmen, Westerly-based writer of two horror novels The Daughters of Block Island and Beneath the Poet’s House, with a third on the way.
She enjoys meeting with fans as well as audience members unfamiliar with her work, recognizing these opportunities as part of the process of developing a following.
“Readers who are engaged with book clubs and other literary communities are always so insightful and enthusiastic, and there’s nothing better than getting to answer questions or talk inspiration with those individuals who’ve connected with one of my novels.”
Carmen’s audiences have grown and become much more invested in her work now that she has earned some exceptional credentials as a winner of a Bram Stoker Award and a finalist for a Shirley Jackson Award.
“Book club posts on Instagram have generated additional interest for those titles. It’s hard to quantify how book club memberships translate to sales, but I do know that when any sort of group gets together and collectively reads an author’s work, it can absolutely make a difference.”
Debut author Philip Eil has spent the past year promoting his book Prescription for Pain: How a Once-Promising Doctor Became the “Pill Mill Killer.” The experience of appearing as the featured author at events is new to him but he has found it exhilarating.
“In-person book events have been one of the highlights of the experience. I have drawn so much joy and fulfillment from them. They charge up my emotional batteries, and give me energy to get back to writing the next book!”
According to Eil, writing can be very solitary so authors often welcome engaging readers around their published work plus they get valuable feedback and exchange ideas about the process.
“It’s quite moving to meet people who really care about and appreciate this project that you have devoted so much time and energy to; who have been moved by, or interested in, the story that you tell. It feels like the completion of the writing process.”
Much like with readers, the reward for everyone is connecting with one another in-person, especially in our digital age, authors say.
Of gathering with her audience, Carmen says “it’s incredibly important, and I’m so grateful for those readers who take their interest in a book to the next level with their desire to attend dedicated events.”
Eil emphasizes “it’s so easy to stay home, scroll on your phone or watch something on TV. And we’re still only a few years removed from a pandemic where we were forced to stay home. Human connection is precious
Another local literary institution, Reading with Robin, has been bringing together readers and writers since 2002. Founded by Robin Kall, who along with her daughter, Emily Homonoff, launched the Cardigan Connection author series (formerly the Point Street Reading Series).
Like the others, Homonoff cites the need for community as a reason for their success, “Connection is at the heart of every single thing we do. Over the years we’ve heard that our events are just what people needed, that they made new friendships, learned about books they otherwise wouldn’t have, and that they’re really fun!”
Guaranteeing Access for All
Some gatherings bring readers and book lovers together for a common purpose, from advancing literacy to preventing the current trend of banning books. Organizations like the Rhode Island Center for the Book, which coordinates the annual Reading Across Rhode Island campaign, promote access to a diverse selection of reading choices for all.
‘We are prioritizing access to life-changing books,” explains Lentz, the Center’s director, “by offering brand new, free books, connecting readers with authors, and fostering connections among generations through shared reading.”
The books and experiences delivered through the Center are free, thanks to an effective fundraising strategy powered by generous donors as well as an ambitious corps of volunteers.
Each year, the Center launches Reading Across Rhode Island, selecting one book that participants will read so they can share the experience together, amplified by virtual and in-person events. The campaign emphasizes the joy of reading and the benefits of connectedness.
A Passion for Reading
Audiences and crowds at book-related events continue to grow, organizers declare. The ultimate goal of bringing book lovers together is to cultivate a passion for reading, one book at a time and, in the process, create a rich sense of community that benefits everyone. In a time when we feel alone and disconnected, it’s fascinating that a timeless tradition like reading – often considered a reclusive activity – may be what brings us all together.
