This enquiry is about what UK public libraries usually call "Reading Groups", but US public libraries and the BBC seem to call "Book Clubs". It is NOT about what the British book trade calls "Book Clubs" (as listed at the excellent http://www4bookclubs.co.uk).
We should like to promote to our customers a "Virtual Reading Group" - that is to say a group which discusses books through a website or email discussion group. We think such a group would appeal to many web users who do not necessarily wish to attend Reading Group meetings in our libraries (or perhaps because of other commitments cannot do so).
Rather than attempt to set up this facility ourselves, I would prefer to investigate the possibility of tapping into some existing national or worldwide facility. In other words, in local-government-speak I should like to outsource to an established specialist contractor.
Now Peter Gutteridge, in his "How to run a Book Club" at http://www.bbc.co.uk/arts/books/club/runningclubs/index.shtml assures us that there are "hundreds of virtual book clubs online around the world". On the other hand "Rachel" at http://www.his.com/~allegria/clubs.html, who used to run one in the US but gave up, assures us that "to the best of my knowledge there is no web-based book club" which meets her criteria, but offers a number of USENET links, and points to a number of interesting web-based experiments.
I haven't of course forgotten Yahoo Groups, but I am far from happy with Yahoo and USENET for a number of reasons.
Has anybody out there looked into this? Has anyone found a Virtual Reading Group which they can hand-on-heart recommend to customers? Has anyone any experience to offer in this area?
All contributions welcome.
Peter Marshall
Project Development Librarian
Bexley Council
Tel: 020 8320 4135 (Direct Line)
email: [log in to unmask]
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