March 2021 Book Club Roundup
Those celebrity and retail book club curators are at it again! Picking a fresh crop of new titles for their various reading groups. I’ve added a few more clubs to this month’s roundup, including Marie Claire’s and Stephen Curry’s. Top bookseller and library picks are now featured as well.
As of this posting, Belletrist (Emma Roberts) hasn’t announced a new title and is therefore not included. Oprah’s Book Club has shared they’ll finally be naming their next selection on March 16th, so it will be included on April’s list.
Are there any clubs I missed you’d like to see in the roundup next month? Let me know in the comments!
REESE’S BOOK CLUB
What Reese said:
“How does a family remain a family across distance, time and uncertainty? Infinite Country crafts a narrative that reveals love is the answer, the greatest motivator.”
READ WITH JENNA
What Jenna said:
"The story is epic in scope. It is about understanding the demons and the hardships that come before us and how they affect our lives."
GMA BOOK CLUB
What they said:
“Klara and the Sun is Ishiguro’s eighth novel and the first since he was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature.”
#ReadwithMC (Marie Claire)
What they said:
“In March, we're reading Leesa Cross-Smith's This Close to Okay, a story told in alternating perspectives about two strangers who spend a life-changing weekend together after one of them saves the other from a suicide attempt.”
Stephen Curry’s Underrated Book Club
What Stephen said:
“I want my daughters - and all girls - to grow up in a world where they feel powerful. And I want them to grow up knowing the stories of incredible women like Haben Girma, who turned her disabilities into resources and obstacles into doorways. Her story is amazing. Women are amazing.”
A.B.A Indie Next #1 Pick
What they said:
“Dramatic storytelling at its best, full of layers of intrigue and complex personalities set around the murder of the book’s most vulnerable character. The stoical, 13-year-old Duchess Day Radley takes center stage, and her heartbreaking life unleashes a hero within: self-proclaimed outlaw, bold and courageous, though to her peril not always wise beyond her years. Chris Whitaker has created a character for the ages and an extraordinary reading experience. By turns amusing, frightening, and exhilarating.”
LibraryReads Top Pick
What they said:
“The top book published this month that library staff across the country love. A stellar debut that balances two intriguing storylines and three wonderful characters to create one page-turning story.”
Barnes & Noble Book Club
What they said:
“Whitaker's best novel yet, We Begin at the End is a beautifully written, intense and, at times, poetic crime drama that shines a spotlight on the young, inimitable Duchess Day Radley. With superb characterization and overflowing with heart, We Begin at the End is ultimately about the importance of learning from our past, no matter how recent, to protect our future. A must-read.”
Target Club Pick
What they said:
“Written with the haunting emotional power of Elizabeth Strout and Barbara Kingsolver, an astonishing debut novel that explores the lingering effects of a brutal crime on the women of one small Texas oil town in the 1970s.”
PBS NewsHour’s Now Read This
What they said:
“The March and April selection for Now Read This, the PBS NewsHour’s book club with The New York Times, is Jessica Bruder’s Nomadland, which chronicles the growing community of transient older Americans who have taken to the road in search of seasonal work.”
And that’s a wrap on the roundup!
I’ve already read two of these, namely We Begin at the End and Valentine. I enjoyed them both, but if I had to pick one to recommend it would be Chris Whitaker’s novel. It just released to universal acclaim, and my early reviewer colleagues are praising it to no end. I’ve got my eye on We Begin at the End to become the next big breakout hit, like The Help or Where the Crawdads Sing. I’ve also seen the award-winning film adaptation of Nomadland but have not read the book. My husband and I didn’t love the movie though, so I’m not sure I’ll ever revisit the story through its source material.
What are your thoughts on these book club picks? Have you read any of them? Which would you recommend to friends or for your own book club?