How to Discuss Books (No Literary Degree Required)
The next book club meeting comes around, everyone sits down with their tea (or wine), and then… silence. Where do you even start?
There is no right or wrong way to discuss a book. And you also don’t need a literary degree to have a genuinely good conversation. But there are some tips I’d love to share, as someone who has been hosting book club discussions for quite some time now.
Start with how the book made you feel
Ease into the discussion. We don’t want to dive deep immediately and wonder what the author was trying to say. Start with: How did you feel reading it?
Bored in the middle? Gripped from page one? Furious at the ending? Weirdly emotional in a chapter you didn't expect?
Feelings are also the fastest way to get a real conversation going, because everyone has them and nobody can tell you yours are wrong.
Come with one thing that surprised you
Think of that one moment that caught you off guard: a plot twist, a character decision you didn't see coming, a sentence that stopped you mid-page.
Ask questions instead of making declarations
The most confident-sounding people in book discussions aren't the ones with the most opinions, but the ones asking the best questions.
Try:
"Did anyone else find themselves rooting for the wrong person?"
"What do you think they were actually trying to escape?"
"If this ended differently, would it have worked?"
Questions invite everyone in and move the conversation forward.
You're allowed to not have liked it
In fact, "I didn't love this one" often leads to the most interesting discussions. Why didn't it land? What would have made it better? Did it improve by the end, or did it lose you completely?
Remember: disagreement is not disrespect. In my experience, inside Busy with Books club, our most memorable conversations have been the ones where people HATED a book with a passion.
You don't need to have finished it
Controversial, some might say. Half-read perspectives are still perspectives. "I only got to chapter eight, but from what I read…" is a completely legitimate way to join a conversation.
Just watch out: you might spoil the ending for yourself in the process.
Listen as much as you talk
Good book discussions are less about performance and more about actually hearing what someone else took from the same pages you read. Someone else's interpretation might completely change how you feel about the book and it’s one of the best things a book club can do.
Use the book as a jumping-off point
Last but certainly not least: the best conversations use the book as a door into bigger questions. Think about the wider topics, relationships, choices, the kind of person you'd be in that situation…
Discussing books well is a skill you build by doing it, ideally with people who aren't going to make you feel silly for having the wrong opinion (because there isn't one).
If you're looking for a book club where the conversation flows freely and nobody is grading your literary analysis, Busy with Books might be exactly what you're after.