Reading doesn’t have to be a solitary endeavor. In the Hamptons and on Shelter Island, there are volumes worth of great monthly gatherings to get in on to discuss and debate fiction and nonfiction tomes. From the hottest new novels to revisiting timeless classics from a modern point of view, these book groups add a little social pizazz and discussion to your page-turning.
The Retreat
This new quarterly book club from East Hampton’s venerable The Retreat, the safe haven for victims of abuse, takes on difficult topics with an eye toward readers gaining a deeper understanding of domestic violence and human trafficking. First up: The Names by Florence Knapp, a novel of what-ifs, depicting a trio of scenarios in the life of a mother and the potential outcomes of the name she gives her child. Led by board members Markie Hancock, Irma Negron and Renee Turner, you can reserve your spot for the Tuesday, October 14 discussion (which will be at noon on Zoom) here. Free.
Finley’s Fiction
Leave it to Shelter Island’s tiny-but-might book shop, Finley’s Fiction, to not only launch a book club, but also bring in the authors to monthly Zoom sessions for the lively discussions. “Over the years, I have been asked repeatedly if my store had a book club, or if I would consider starting one,” says owner Finley Shaw. She obliged. A mix of fiction, memoir and non-fiction, Shaw’s club caps out at 25 people per club night, which typically are on Tuesdays or Wednesdays at the end of the month, and last about an hour. This month, there’s still time to get in on the September 30 6 p.m. meet-up for the historical fiction, “The Girl from Greenwich Street,” which will be lead by the author herself, Lauren Willig. The fee to join Finley’s Book Club ranges from a three-month stint for $150 to a year for $600, and includes a signed copy of the book when available. Sign up here.
East Hampton Library
Leave it to the founders of Author’s Night to have not one, not two but three book clubs: The Saturday Book Discussion Group, where the page-turner at hand (with occasional surprise author visits) could be anything from a classic to a biography (Bonus: bagels and coffee and served at this 10:30 a.m. meet-up the last Saturday of each month); the International Mystery Book Discussion Group, where foreign authors of the mystery genre are the order of the day; and the Sci-Fi Book Discussion Group where out of the world tomes by authors like Ben Bova, Larry Niven and Greg Bear are explored. All three are free (yay libraries!). Head to the East Hampton Library’s book club page to learn more.
BookHampton
This great little local meet up took a summer hiatus, but fall brings the page-flipping book club back to BookHampton. The next club will dig into Wild Thing: A Life of Paul Gauguin by Sue Prideaux, in which she myth-busts on the artist’s scandalous rep. Rated one of the New York Times “Best Books of the Year So Far” and shortlisted for the 2024 Baillie Gifford Prize, the next meeting will be Tuesday, Oct. at 6pm at the LongHouse Reserve. Check BookHampton’s site for the upcoming RSVP page, coming soon — but you can get started on the book now (with book club members getting a sweet little 15% discount).
Shelter Island Public Library
Don’t let the current construction fool you. While Shelter Island’s library gets a multi-million dollar overhaul (complete with a café), they’re still doing all the good things they always do for the community, including hosting three ongoing book clubs: a monthly meet-up for the Shelter Island Library Book Club to read well-regarded fiction and nonfiction; the Mystery Book Club which also meets online monthly to discuss mysteries, thrillers and espionage fiction; and finally, the Classics Book club, which also meets online, but for nine months of the year, focusing on one classic author typically (this year it’s Toni Morrison). You don’t even need to be a library card holder to join. Click here for more information.
