Why book clubs are having a moment in Singapore and how joining one can be good for you

As a lifelong book lover, I never believed in the “reclusive bookworm” stereotype. Whenever I read a novel, a memoir, a book series or even manga, I always felt the urge to discuss them with someone – anyone – willing to hear me out.

Yes, as an extrovert, I enjoy talking to people in general, but there’s a strong pull among bookworms, extroverted and otherwise, to talk about their reads.

And from the looks of it, I’m not alone. Book clubs, it seems, are having a moment in Singapore.

Thanks in part to the National Library Board (NLB)’s National Reading Movement, there are roughly over 50 book clubs run in English, Malay, Tamil and Chinese in various libraries across the country. NLB’s LearnX Communities, a set of interest groups supported by NLB that bring reading culture beyond the library walls, has 70 programmes focused on reading with 15 to 60 participants each.

Beyond the library, Book Bar, a bookstore cafe at Duxton Road with a focus on local and regional literature, holds regular book events with around 30 to 60 attendees. 

And these numbers don’t even include ground-up book clubs.

Associate Professor Loh Chin Ee, the deputy head of research in the English language and literature department at the National Institute of Education, whose research interests include reading cultures and the role of libraries, noted that in previous decades, book clubs in public were primarily run by libraries or bookstores.

But these days, you’ll find book clubs initiated by your passionate everyday bookworm.