Everyone’s Talking About Celebrity Book Clubs — Here’s Why

Only a few things are better than reading a great book, and the art of discussing a great book is one of them. It’s even better when the other people in the discussion have great taste and insight. It’s a no-brainer that the fastest way to find such a group is through book clubs.

One of the earliest known book clubs was created in the 17th century, and through the hundreds of years that followed, great discussions and mindset shifts have happened. The same can be said for the rising trend of celebrity book clubs, where popular individuals interested in books leverage their fame to bring like-minded individuals together to read.

Where It All Began

There’s no need for a broad search to know that the trend of celebrity book clubs all began with Oprah Winfrey. The year is 1996, and Oprah’s talk show is where everyone’s gathered. Then, she introduced a monthly segment where she chose books, both old and new, for viewers and readers to explore. Many times, she interviewed the authors of those books, and soon enough, her picks began to reflect in the sales of the lucky authors and publishing houses. 

Through the years, Oprah’s Book Club has grown in popularity, with a couple of transformations in its modalities from the TV days to the podcast and eventually to its presence across several digital platforms. 

All through its metamorphosis, Oprah’s selection of books has made the number of copies sold for a book jump through multiples. For instance, Toni Morrison’s book, The Bluest Eye, was stuck at a couple of thousand in sales before Oprah recommended it. The figures rose through the ranks to about 800,000 paperback copies sold after the feature. That is “The Oprah Effect.” Now, several more celebrity colors are painting the book club landscape. 

The Rise of New Legends

Oprah is a legend; everyone knows that. She has single-handedly changed the lives of many authors, thanks to her influence. But the thing is, influence is universal, and it’s so heartwarming to see many more celebrities using theirs to help readers find great books. 

One of such is Reese Witherspoon, who started her book club in 2017 as part of a media company launch, Hello Sunshine. With a slightly different mission than Oprah’s Book Club, which focused on community connection, story discovery, self-discovery, meaningful conversations, and support for authors, Reese’s book club is all about highlighting books with women at the center of the story.

Despite the unique mission identity, Reese’s Book Club has also fostered deeper connections with books and authors, driven unbelievable sales figures, and served as a springboard for books to be adapted to movies and TV shows. 

More recently, beyond the Today Talk Show experience with Jenna Bush Hager, one more thing fans get to do is Read With Jenna. So far, about 70 books have been chosen by the talk show host, most of which have gone on to become bestsellers. Thanks to her popularity, it’s understandable that book submissions come from an unending source.

While this means so much hard work goes into picking book recommendations per month, it also opens doors to a variety of genres being featured. This ranges from romance to mystery, historical fiction, and many other genres. Once the story is great, and the title is compelling, there’s a high chance the book will come up in the weekly meeting of Jenna’s team to discuss potential picks. 

It’s Not a Bubble, It’s a Movement

Several other book clubs have launched in recent years, all with their respective missions and visions that culminate in helping readers find great books. Notable ones are: GMA Book Club, Belletrist, TeaTime Book Club, Natalie’s Book Club, Library Science, Fallon Book Club, Mulaney Reads, SJP Lit, Laufey Book Club, Between Two Books, The Queen’s Reading Room, and Service95 Book Club. Together, they’ve turned reading into a shared journey of discovery and connection.

For readers, what’s more beautiful is that there’s no restriction on which of these celebrity book clubs you can lean into. The books are there to be read!