I am always full of anticipation towards the end of the year as my book club nominates and then votes on what we'll be reading as a group for the next year. Our small neighborhood group was formed late 2019 and the first year, I selected all of the books - which was HARD. To be clear, the hard part wasn't coming up with the books themselves, but it was unknown who liked what genre and which style books would resonate the most with our group or have the best discussions. We got lucky and my choices were well received, but I decided I wanted this to be their choice, too.
In following years, I've asked each member (we are a small group of 10) to nominate 2-3 titles for evaluation by the group. This allows everyone to have a pretty good chance of getting one of their ideal books into our selection. I compile the list and write out the summaries of the books along with pertinent info (Goodreads rating, page count, and when the book came out). Then I create a ballot with the cover of each book next to a string of happy faces:
All members then read through the book summaries and use the happy face scale to indicate their level of interest in reading the book. I tally the scores and select the winning books based on favorable smileys (ideally the book will have everyone selecting the green happy faces or at least the neutral). This has worked very well so far! They also put an "X" through the cover of any book that they've already read (but still rate because in many situations books are sooo good, you are willing to read a second time).
When compiling the order, I try to put books in the appropriate season when I can determine that from the summary (for example, beach reads in summer and a cold, snowy mystery in winter). I've also tried to rotate the genre as much as I can so that it keeps us fresh.
Oddly enough, each year it seems that we have an author or two that is nominated multiple times. Back in 2021, Colleen Hoover had our hearts. For 2023, it looks like Elin Hilderbrand has our vote as a tried-and-true author for our group.
2023 Book List
Take a look at the following books on my 2023 Book List - five of them are rated exceptionally high with over 4 Stars on Goodreads. I'll be posting my review and recommendation for each (on Goodreads and within my IG and FB accounts) after I've completed them.
January = The Younger Wife by Sally Hepworth (Thriller - Family drama)
February = The Bodyguard by Katherine Center (General Fiction - Laughter and Romance)
March = Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus (Historical Fiction with strong female heroine)
April = A Good Girl's Guide to Murder by Holly Jackson (Young Adult - Mystery around a high school tragedy)
May = Woman Last Seen by Adele Parks (Thriller - Two missing women)
June = The Identicals by Elin Hilderbrand (General Fiction - Twin sisters)
July = Pretty Guilty Women by Gina LaManna (Thriller - Murder and confessions by 4 women)
August = The IT Girl by Ruth Ware (Thriller - Friends with secrets)
September = Hotel Nantucket by Elin Hilderbrand (General Fiction - Hotel with History)
October = The Housemaid by Freida McFadden (Psychological Thriller - Housemaid knows all)
November = The Home Wreckers by Mary Kay Andrews (General Fiction - House Renovation Reality Show)
December = Winter Street by Elin Hilderbrand (General Fiction - Holiday in Nantucket)
If you read any of these, I hope you enjoy them! I'd love to hear your thoughts, please be sure to follow and comment on my Facebook and IG page when I provide the actual reviews! :)
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