Book Club Girl - Book Group Recommendations, Reading Group Guides, Audio Book Club Podcasts

Plan Your Summer (and Fall!) Reading with the Book Club Girl Sampler!

On sale today - except that it's FREE! - is the first-ever Book Club Girl Sampler - filled with excerpts from current and upcoming summer and fall books that are great for book clubs and summer reading! Download the free Book Club Girl Sampler to your e-reader now and you'll be able to dip into books by the following authors - plus check out some great recipes for book club snacks from bestselling chef Emeril Lagasse and your favorite book club authors!

 The Book Club Sampler features excerpts from:

The Shoemaker's Wife by Adriana Trigiani
The Secrets of Mary Bowser by Lois Leveen
Into the Darkest Corner by Elizabeth Haynes
An Unmarked Grave by Charles Todd
Beautiful Ruins by Jess Walter
Porch Lights by Dorothea Benton Frank
With My Body by Nikki Gemmell
Keepsake by Kristina Riggle
The Thread by Victoria Hislop
Have Mother, Will Travel by Claire and Mia Fontaine
The Book of Tomorrow by Cecelia Ahern
Miss Me When I'm Gone by Emily Arsenault
Falling Together by Marisa de los Santos
The Orchardist by Amanda Coplin
The Roots of the Olive Tree by Courtney Miller Santo
Sharp by David Fitzpatrick
The Midwife of Hope River by Patricia Harman
The Mirrored World by Debra Dean
A Train in Winter by Caroline Moorehead
Lucky Bunny by Jill Dawson

 

 

As well as these recipes from favorite book club authors and Emeril Lagasse, including:

Brunonia Barry's Baby Portabella and Tomato Pasta Sauce
Jessica Anya Blau’s Chocolate Chip Cookies
Andrea Israel & Nancy Garfinkel’s Olive Tapenade
Katrina Kittle’s Tiramisu
Gregory Maguire’s Bleu Cheese Souffles 
Marjorie Reynolds’ Bleu Cheese Crumble
Sonya Sones’ Butterscotch Brownies 
Amy Stolls’ Cheddar Walnut Crisps
Adriana Trigiani’s Pizzelles
Emeril Lagasse’s Herbed Olives; Black Mission Figs Stuffed with Blue Cheese and Lavender Honey; and Curried Chicken Sandwiches on Pumpernickel

Download it now for your Kindle, Nook or IPad!

 

Book Club Girl's eBook Bonanza! 12 Great eBooks Just $2.99 Each for the Month of May!

For the entire month of May, the following 12 ebooks that are great for book clubs are just $2.99 each - plus you can download a free podcast of the author discussing their book on Book Club Girl on Air to listen to with your group! Click on your favorite e-retailer below to purchase and click the Book Club Girl on Air link below each book to access the author interview. And make sure to share this deal with your book club too! 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It's Top 10 Tuesday! Which Author is #1 in the Book Club Girl on Air Countdown?

I'm counting down our Top 10 Book Club Girl on Air shows every Tuesday this summer. These are the shows that have gotten the most live listens and subsequent downloads since they first aired!

We started it off at #10 with Mary Kay Andrews' show on which we discussed Deep Dish and then Thrity Umrigar came in at #9 for her show on The Space Between Us. Clocking in at #8 was Adriana Trigiani for her show on Very Valentine and at #7 was Debra Dean discussing The Madonnas of Leningrad. The 6th most popular show featured Elizabeth Noble discussing Things I Want My Daughters to Know and  #5 in the countdown was Jessica Anya Blau discussing her newest novel, Drinking Closer to Home. The 4th most popular show was Wally Lamb's on which he discussed I Know This Much is True, the 3rd was Adriana Trigiani (again!) discussing Viola in Reel Life and the second was Laura Lippman, who joined us to discuss her novella, The Girl in the Green Raincoat. Each week readers just need to give the show a listen and post a comment and they are entered to win that week's discussed book (US and Canadian entrants only please). To that end, I'm pleased to announce that the winner of Laura Lippman's The Girl in the Green Raincoat and The Most Dangerous Thing, and a totebag, is Amanda from A Library of My Own! Thanks for entering and congratulations!

So which author's show comes in at #1 on the countdown - which is the most popular show of ALL the Book Club Girl on Air shows? This author's newest novel is currently on the bestseller list and she recently announced that she'll be opening a bookstore in Nashville, TN...It's none other than book club favorite Ann Patchett, who joined us to discuss her novel Run! Listen in to the show now and leave a comment about something you learned or liked from the show and you'll be entered to win a copy of Run as well her new hardcover, State of Wonder, plus a totebag in which you can take them both to the beach!

Listen in to the show now and leave a comment about what you've learned or liked from it to be entered to win (US and Canada residents only). I'll pick one random winner from all comments posted by midnight, Friday September 2nd!

Listen to internet radio with Book Club Girl on Blog Talk Radio

It's Top 10 Tuesday! Which Author is #2 in the Book Club Girl on Air Countdown?

I'm counting down our Top 10 Book Club Girl on Air shows every Tuesday this summer. These are the shows that have gotten the most live listens and subsequent downloads since they first aired!

We started it off at #10 with Mary Kay Andrews' show on which we discussed Deep Dish and then Thrity Umrigar came in at #9 for her show on The Space Between Us. Clocking in at #8 was Adriana Trigiani for her show on Very Valentine and at #7 was Debra Dean discussing The Madonnas of Leningrad. The 6th most popular show featured Elizabeth Noble discussing Things I Want My Daughters to Know and  #5 in the countdown was Jessica Anya Blau discussing her newest novel, Drinking Closer to Home. The 4th most popular show was Wally Lamb's on which he discussed I Know This Much is True and the 3rd was Adriana Trigiani (again!) discussing Viola in Reel Life. Each week readers just need to give the show a listen and post a comment and they are entered to win that week's discussed book (US and Canadian entrants only please). To that end, I'm pleased to announce that the winner of Adriana Trigiani's Viola in Reel Life and Viola in the Spotlight, and a totebag is Laurel! Thanks for entering and congratulations!

So which author's show comes in at #2 on the countdown? Well, she just so happens to be one whose new book is also out today--Laura Lippman, who joined us to discuss her novella, The Girl in the Green Raincoat! Listen in to the show now and leave a comment about something you learned or liked from the show and you'll be entered to win a copy of The Girl in the Green Raincoat as well her brand-new hardcover, just out today, The Most Dangerous Thing, plus a totebag in which you can take them both to the beach!

Listen in to the show now and leave a comment about what you've learned or liked from it to be entered to win (US and Canada residents only). I'll pick one random winner from all comments posted by midnight, Friday August 26th!

Listen to internet radio with Book Club Girl on Blog Talk Radio

It's Top 10 Tuesday! Which Author is #3 in the Book Club Girl on Air Countdown?

I'm counting down our Top 10 Book Club Girl on Air shows every Tuesday this summer. These are the shows that have gotten the most live listens and subsequent downloads since they first aired!

We started it off at #10 with Mary Kay Andrews' show on which we discussed Deep Dish and then Thrity Umrigar came in at #9 for her show on The Space Between Us. Clocking in at #8 was Adriana Trigiani for her show on Very Valentine and at #7 was Debra Dean discussing The Madonnas of Leningrad. The 6th most popular show featured Elizabeth Noble discussing Things I Want My Daughters to Know and  #5 in the countdown was Jessica Anya Blau discussing her newest novel, Drinking Closer to Home. And last week we revealed that Wally Lamb's show on The Hour I First Believed was the 4th most popular show. Each week readers just need to give the show a listen and post a comment and they are entered to win that week's discussed book (US and Canadian entrants only please). To that end, I'm pleased to announce that the winner of Wally Lamb's The Hour I First Believed and I Know This Much is True, and a totebag is Kelly from My Utopia! Thanks for entering and congratulations!

So which author's show comes in at #3 on the countdown? Well, she's the only author who appears TWICE in the Top Ten - as she should given her massive popularity with book clubs. Our third most popular show featured book club maven Adriana Trigiani, who joined us to discuss her first YA novel, Viola in Reel Life! Listen in to the show now and leave a comment about something you learned or liked from the show and you'll be entered to win a copy of Viola in Reel Life as well the follow-up novel, Viola in the Spotlight, plus a totebag in which you can take them both to the beach!

Listen in to the show now and leave a comment about what you've learned or liked from it to be entered to win (US and Canada residents only). I'll pick one random winner from all comments posted by midnight, Friday August 19th.

Listen to internet radio with Book Club Girl on Blog Talk Radio

It's Top 10 Tuesday! Which Author is #4 in the Book Club Girl on Air Countdown?

I'm counting down our Top 10 Book Club Girl on Air shows every Tuesday this summer. These are the shows that have gotten the most live listens and subsequent downloads since they first aired!

We started it off at #10 with Mary Kay Andrews' show on which we discussed Deep Dish and then Thrity Umrigar came in at #9 for her show on The Space Between Us. Clocking in at #8 was Adriana Trigiani for her show on Very Valentine and at #7 was Debra Dean discussing The Madonnas of Leningrad. The 6th most popular show featured Elizabeth Noble discussing Things I Want My Daughters to Know and last week we announced that #5 in the countdown was Jessica Anya Blau discussing her newest novel, Drinking Closer to Home. Each week readers just need to give the show a listen and post a comment and they are entered to win that week's discussed book (US and Canadian entrants only please). To that end, I'm pleased to announce that the winner of Jessica's books, Drinking Closer to Home and The Summer of Naked Swim Parties, and a totebag is Diane! Thanks for entering and congratulations!

So which author's show comes in at #4 on the countdown? It's bestselling author Wally Lamb, who joined us to discuss The Hour I First Believed! Listen in to the show now and leave a comment about something you learned or liked from the show and you'll be entered to win a copy of The Hour I First Believed as well as his other book club favorite, I Know This Much is True, plus a totebag in which you can take them both to the beach!

Listen in to the show now and leave a comment about what you've learned or liked from it to be entered to win (US and Canada residents only). I'll pick one random winner from all comments posted by midnight, Friday August 12th.

Listen to internet radio with Book Club Girl on Blog Talk Radio

It's Top Ten Tuesday! Which Author Comes in at #5 on the Book Club Girl on Air Countdown?

I'm counting down our Top 10 Book Club Girl on Air shows every Tuesday this summer. These are the shows that have gotten the most live listens and subsequent downloads since they first aired!

We started it off at #10 with Mary Kay Andrews' show on which we discussed Deep Dish and then Thrity Umrigar came in at #9 for her show on The Space Between Us. Clocking in at #8 was Adriana Trigiani for her show on Very Valentine and at #7 was Debra Dean discussing The Madonnas of Leningrad. Last week we announced the 6th most popular show featuring Elizabeth Noble discussing Things I Want My Daughters to Know. Each week readers can give the show a listen and post a comment and they are entered to win that week's discussed book (US and Canadian entrants only please). To that end, I'm pleased to announce that the winner of Things I Want My Daughters to Know, The Reading Group and a totebag is Melissa C! Thanks for entering and congratulations!

So which author's show comes in at #5 on the countdown? It's an author who has published two successful paperback originals with Harper Perennial - Jessica Anya Blau who joined us to discuss her second novel, Drinking Closer to Home! Listen in to the show now and leave a comment about something you learned or liked from the show and you'll be entered to win a copy of Drinking Closer to Home as well as Jessica's first book, The Summer of Naked Swim Parties, plus a totebag in which you can take them both to the beach!

Listen in to the show now and leave a comment about what you've learned or liked from it to be entered to win (US and Canada residents only) (I'll pick one random winner from all comments posted by midnight, Friday August 5th), and be sure to check out Jessica Anya Blau's website. Jessica is also one of the authors in attendance at the Club Read weekend getaway for book clubs this October in Virginia - check out that site and perhaps you can meet her, and many others, there! 

Listen to internet radio with Book Club Girl on Blog Talk Radio

It's Top 10 Tuesday! Which Author is #6 in the Book Club Girl on Air Countdown?

I'm counting down our Top 10 Book Club Girl on Air shows every Tuesday this summer. These are the show that have gotten the most live listens and subsequent downloads since they first aired!

We started it off at #10 with Mary Kay Andrews' show on which we discussed Deep Dish and then Thrity Umrigar came in at #9 for her show on The Space Between Us. Clocking in at #8 was Adriana Trigiani for her show on Very Valentine and at #7 was Debra Dean discussing The Madonnas of Leningrad. Each week readers can give the show a listen and post a comment and they are entered to win that week's discussed book (US and Canadian entrants only please). To that end, I'm pleased to announce that the winner of The Madonnas of Leningrad, Confessions of a Falling Woman, and a totebag is Laura from the blog Book Snob! Thanks for entering and congratulations!

So which author's show comes in at #6 on the countdown? It's none other than the author of The Reading Group herself, Elizabeth Noble, who joined us to discuss her wonderful and heartfelt novel Things I Want My Daughters to Know. Listen in to the show now and leave a comment about something you learned or liked from the show and you'll be entered to win a copy of Things I Want My Daughters to Know as well as Noble's classic bestseller, The Reading Group, and a totebag in which you can take them both to the beach!

Listen in to the show now and leave a comment about what you've learned or liked from it to be entered to win (US and Canada residents only), and be sure to check out Elizabeth Noble's website as well.

Listen to internet radio with Book Club Girl on Blog Talk Radio

It's Top Ten Tuesday - Which Author is #7 in the Book Club Girl on Air Countdown?

I'm counting down our Top 10 Book Club Girl on Air shows every Tuesday this summer. These are the show that have gotten the most live listens and subsequent downloads.

We started it off at #10 two weeks ago with Mary Kay Andrews' show on which we discussed Deep Dish and then last week Thrity Umrigar came in at #9 for her show on The Space Between Us. Clocking in at #8 was Adriana Trigiani for her show on Very Valentine. Each week readers can give the show a listen and post a comment and they are entered to win that week's discussed book (US and Canada entrants only please). To that end, I'm pleased to announce that the winner of the Very Valentine, Brava Valentine, and a totebag is Katie from the blog Cakes, Tea and Dreams! Thanks for entering and congratulations!

So which show comes in at #7 on the countdown? It's one for a book that my book club enjoyed discussing very much -- The Madonnas of Leningrad by Debra Dean! Listen in to the show now and leave a comment about something you learned or liked from the show and you'll be entered to win a copy of The Madonnas of Leningrad, as well as Debra Dean's collection of stories, Confessions of a Falling Woman, and a totebag in which you can take them both to the beach!

Listen to internet radio with Book Club Girl on Blog Talk Radio

Be sure to visit Debra Dean's website as well as listen to the show. I'll pick 1 random comment from all those received by midnight Friday, July 22nd to be entered to win (US and Canada only please). Good luck!

Ann Patchett is the Next Guest Author on Book Club Girl on Air!

I'm so pleased to announce that my next Book Club on Air online radio show will feature New York Times bestselling and award-winning author Ann Patchett! I first came to know Patchett's works with the wonderful The Magician's Assistant and later with her PEN/Faulkner award-winning novel Bel Canto. Join me and Ann as we discuss her newest novel, Run, just out in paperback.

In Run, Patchett tells the story of the Doyle family. Since their mother's death, Tip and Teddy Doyle have been raised by their loving, possessive, and ambitious father. As the former mayor of Boston, Bernard Doyle wants to see his sons in politics, a dream the boys have never shared. But when an argument in a blinding New England snowstorm inadvertently causes an accident that involves a stranger and her child, all Bernard cares about is his ability to keep his children—all his children—safe. Browse inside Run here and the P.S. section exclusive to the paperback edition, in which Ann talks about writing a book about race and politics while the Obama campaign was just beginning. Check out the reading group guide here.

The first 15 people to comment that they'd like to participate in the discussion on September 24th at 7 pm EST, will receive a complimentary copy of Run. Set a reminder for the show here. And listen to my most recent reading group discussion with Debra Dean, about her novel The Madonnas of Leningrad, along with many other conversations with authors, on Authors on Air.

Listen to the Book Club Show with Debra Dean Now!

Thanks so much to everyone who sent in questions during tonight's conversation with Debra Dean about her novel The Madonnas of Leningrad. It was so interesting to hear about her inspiration for the book as well as the research that went into writing it. For those of you who listened and who want to see some of the paintings as well as the Hermitage museum itself, go here, click on Fun Stuff and scroll down to view her photo albums. And don't miss Debra's most recent book, Confessions of a Falling Woman--you can browse inside it here.

Click on the player below to hear the show now!

See Debra Dean Talk about the Hermitage and Her Novel Before Tonight's Discussion!

In preparation for tonight's book club chat with Debra about her novel The Madonnas of Leningrad, I encourage you to watch this wonderful video of her talking about the Hermitage museum and her inspiration for the novel, complete with video of several of the paintings and the museum as she describes it in the book. To watch the video, go here, and click on "See Debra Dean." And after that, go here, and scroll down to "photo albums" to view more art. Listen and participate in tonight's book club discussion here.

Reminder! Our Book Club Chat with Debra Dean is this Thursday 8/21 at 7 pm EST!

Just a reminder that this Thursday, August 21st at 7pm EST we are talking with Debra Dean about her novel The Madonnas of Leningrad on my online radio show, Book Club Girl on Air. I hope that you've all been enjoying the book, I've already heard from some of you who are looking forward to the talk. Check out the great review that Darlene has already posted on her blog Peeking Between the Pages!

The night of the show, you can listen live on your computer here at 7 pm EST. (You can also listen at that same link after the show). You can call in to the show to ask ask a question at this number: (347) 945-6149. As people call in, I'll identify them by the last four digits of their phone number. If I say your phone number, remember to turn down the volume on your computer when you ask your question. If you can't call in, but have questions for Debra, please put them in the comments to this post (before midday Thursday), or you can send in questions while you're listening to the show via the Chat function on the show's page. But if you plan to do this, I recommend you register on the site beforehand. Make sure you enter your questions via "Chat" and not "Comments" so that I'll see them during the live show.

If you're not sure what to ask, but want to participate, learn more about Debra Dean here, and check out the reading group guide, as well as the P.S. section in the back of the book. I hope to hear from some of you on Thursday night!

My Book Group Met the Other Night to Discuss Jhumpa Lahiri's Unaccustomed Earth

As many of you know, from your fabulous response to my hosting stress-out, I hosted my book group this week. Thank you all for the food and drink suggestions you sent in, they inspired me to serve the following: a large punch bowl of lemonade (Country Time, but tricked out with lemon slices and spearmint leaves so it looked like I'd been slaving all day squeezing lemons); Prosecco, naan bread with hummus; olives and cheese sticks, cheese and crackers; a fruit salad of blueberries, raspberries, strawberries and blackberries; ginger cookies and lemon cake. I believe everyone was pleased with the nosh.

We had a great discussion of Jhumpa Lahiri's Unaccustomed Earth, which all of us really liked and the fact that it was stories didn't slow us down as I had feared.(For more on how to discuss short stories, read this thoughtful piece from short story author Christopher Meeks over on the blog SheisTooFondofBooks). We remarked on how Lahiri's stories and depictions of human interaction reflect such universal feelings and relationships. While she's writing specifically about Indians and their immigration experience, when it comes down to each story, all of us found so much to identify with. We have some members who are not native to the US and it's always so interesting to hear their reaction to stories like Lahiri's about people who move to America and keep so much of their cultural identity and traditions intact.

We voted for our next selection and I offered up 6 choices rather than our usual 5. We had to go through a few rounds of voting to finally narrow it down to our winner. The contestants were (and forgive me, I know they're all from one particular house, but work was crazy this week and my husband was out of town and it was all I could do to remember to have books on hand):
Marisa de los Santos' Belong to Me
Delaune Michel's The Safety of Secrets
Debra Dean's The Madonnas of Leningrad
Barbara Kingsolver's Animal, Vegetable, Miracle
Dalia Sofer's The Septembers of Shiraz
Masha Hamilton's The Camel Bookmobile

The winner was The Septembers of Shiraz and I'm so excited to read Sofer's debut novel set in Iran after the revolution. You may recall that there's an online discussion of Shiraz going on right now at EverydayIWritetheBook so we'll be sure to check out those comments as well before we meet in August.

Here are resources for The Septembers of Shiraz:
The PS section in which Sofer talks about writing Shiraz
Browse inside the book
Reading Group Guide

Win a Year's Worth of Books for Your Book Club!

Here's a pretty amazing contest -- enter to win a whole year's worth of books for your entire book group! That's books for every month of the year for every member of your book group -- with book club favorites from Barbara Kingsolver, Ann Patchett, Gregory Maguire, Paulo Coelho, Michael Chabon, Lionel Shriver, Joyce Carol Oates, Debra Dean, Thrity Umrigar, Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Louise Erdrich and Zora Neale Hurston! Enter here and encourage all the members in your reading group to do the same!