Book clubs make reading social. 'Book club' as a brand makes consumption feel social. We know they aren’t the same thing but still the marketing of belonging is uniquely resonating with so many right now. As someone that runs an in-person book club, let’s talk about it.

Soft Cover’s short, curated TBR list that will be renewed seasonally.

A mix of classic and contemporary horror picks for the horror curious.

An honest guide to bookstores in the Twin Cities to plan your next visit

Running an in-person book club is more involved than it looks and more rewarding than you might expect. In this post, I walk you through a full framework for building a book club from scratch: finding venues, setting up infrastructure, selecting books, promoting events, and facilitating discussions that people actually want to come back to. Whether you are thinking about starting a small group with friends or building something open to your broader community, this is the honest, practical guide I wished existed when we started.

Is it fair to have a literary fiction critique on a fantasy novel?

This is a guide for entry points into exploring the sub-genre of social and political theory. This sub-genre has a reputation for being inaccessible, jargon filled, and dense but books in the last couple of decades (i.e. this is going to be mostly contemporary works) have produced very readable and urgent works worth reading.

Discontent is a novel about Marisa, a 32-year old mid-level ad agency creative absolutely drowning by the mediocrity of corporate and her own life. This book promises a dark comedy, sharp wit, and pointed observation about the absurdity of corporate and the existential weight of a life shaped by it (and aware of it).

As promised, this is a comprehensive guide to free or low cost literary resources in the Twin Cities. This is something that will have periodic updates and will include links when able.

The beautiful prose in the book contrasts with the brutal reality it describes. This book will leave you unsettled but is the kind of fiction that tells the truth.

I recently made a video where I picked one book and picked four similar books based purely off vibes. Now I am digging deeper into why said vibes make sense.

Long after I read the last word, I still think about this story. Even with the setting and characters taking place so far from our known reality in both time and place, even when the main characters are by no means “human”, the story and connection unfolds into something truly intimate and profound.

SOFT COVER Discussion Guide

HARD COVER Discussion Guide