Highlights from 10 years of Silent Book Club

It has been an incredible ten years of Silent Book Club! As we reflect on our celebratory month, we wanted to pause and share some highlights over the past decade of organizing this incredible community of readers.

We initially incorporated Silent Book Club in 2015, after launching a website where we listed each chapter event on a calendar. With fewer than 20 chapters, it was easy enough to manage! The first chapter started by someone we didn't personally know was Jacksonville, FL, by Erin Phillips in 2016. Jacksonville is meeting again and shares their events and recaps on Instagram.

2017 was a big year. We saw our first press in Poets/Writers online. It was very exciting to have someone we didn't know writing about us! We also created the We Will Not Be Silent artist partnership. SBC has long supported readers, libraries, free speech, and civic engagement. In 2017 we launched a campaign to encourage members of our community to engage with their elected leaders. In 2024 we focused on getting out to vote, and voting up and down ballots to support libraries and education, which is even more critical as we look forward to 2026 midterms. Support politicians who read, y'all.

Two of our biggest early press hits happened in 2019, starting the year off in January with Oprah magazine. The piece came complete with a photo shoot, whose image graced our main page and social media for a subsequent five years!

Later that summer, NPR featured Silent Book Club, including quotes from Columbus, Ohio and Johannesburg, South Africa organizers.

"What I like about Silent Book Club is you get the community of a book club but without the homework."

This was the article that brought with it a major uptick in chapters and membership. We went from the 70 chapters named in the piece to more than 100 within a number of weeks. Internally, we restructured processes to support this growth.

Less than a year later, COVID caused everything to be re-imagined, as the world suffered through a global pandemic. In response, chapters went online, as did we, hosting virtual author chats during lockdown. From April 14 2020 through Sept 3 2021, we featured more than a dozen authors online, connecting readers with writers and supporting the book community. Those authors anchor this Bookshop shelf.

Our growth out of lockdown was slow and steady, until viral moments began happening at chapters around the world. The first was in 2023, in West Seattle. Subsequently, South Africa shutting down the streets became an international sensation online. Shawn's Cape Town chapter reaching more than 25,000 people with their reel featuring readers on their neighborhood streets during an Open Sunday. More recently, MoCo New Jersey's massive beach read captured hearts and minds all over the world.

That brings us to this fall, where we celebrated 10 years throughout the month of October. We highlighted our longest running and largest chapters. Ten of our favorite authors recommended their favorite books (like we need a longer TBR!). We held special events on both coasts: a 10th anniversary party during San Francisco's Litquake and an interview with Jenna and live meetup on The Today Show! We'll continue to share stories from chapters who participated in the global readathon in coming weeks.

It has been the absolute best, spending October focused on celebrating with chapters and community members around the world. And we can't wait to see where the next ten years takes Silent Book Club!