On any given week across Australia, thousands of people – mostly, but not always, women – gather in homes, bookshops, libraries and elsewhere, to talk about books. They go along, having read a chosen book, to share their impressions, opinions and views with their group. Usually, they won’t agree with each other.
In fact, our research shows that often, the best book club experiences happen when people have different views about the book. In a world of echo chambers, where it’s increasingly rare for people to respectfully disagree, book clubs might be one of the few safe spaces people can get together to legitimately enjoy a decent disagreement. All in the name of a good read.
