Our Shared Shelf

      In the following posts, I’m going to highlight a few examples of successful virtual book clubs for adult readers. To begin with, one of the more recent book clubs launched in January of 2016 is Our Shared Shelf. Our Shared Shelf was founded by actress and Goodwill Ambassador Emma Watson as a part of her work with UN Women. Watson introduces the book clubs by stating,

“As part of my work with UN Women, I have started reading as many books and essays about equality as I can get my hands on. There is so much amazing stuff out there! Funny, inspiring, sad, thought-provoking, empowering! I’ve been discovering so much that, at times, I’ve felt like my head was about to explode… I decided to start a Feminist book club, as I want to share what I’m learning and hear your thoughts too” (Watson, 2016, p.1). 

Photo courtesy of goodreads

      The book club’s main objective is to examine and discuss feminist literature, particularly the interplay of gender and identity in classic and modern works of feminist literature. The group has its own site on goodreads and communicates through a discussion board. The site also features book suggestions and scholarly feminist articles on topics ranging from multicultural feminism, intersectionality, and LGBT issues (Watson, 2016). So far, the club has read ten books, including:

    Mom & Me & Mom -Maya Angelou           
    Half the Sky-    Nicholas D. Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn
    Hunger Makes Me A Modern Girl- Carrie Brownstein
    Persepolis- Marjane Satrapi
    The Argonauts - Maggie Nelson
    How to be a Woman- Caitlin Moran
    All about Love: New Visions- bell hooks
    The Color Purple - Alice Walker
    My Life on the Road - Gloria Steinem

      Furthermore, the club has quite a substantial worldwide following with 158,313 members so far. This may be due in part to its celebrity presence. Members can be as involved as they choose by actively creating threads and comments within the group discussion board. Typically, one book is chosen by Emma Watson every other month. Discussions questions are posted by Emma or a fellow club moderator. Content such as author Q&A and interviews are also available (Watson, 2016). Our Shared Self can be accessed by clicking here.  

 Photo courtesy of goodreads

 
Bibliography:

Watson, E. (2016). Our shared shelf. Goodreads. Retrieved from https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/179584-emma-s-book-club---our-shared-shelf

Picture links:

https://www.goodreads.com/photo/group/179584-our-shared-shelf

https://www.goodreads.com/photo/group/179584-our-shared-shelf?page=1&photo=1370662