QUEEN’S READING ROOM
The Royal Family aren’t known for being bookish, so Camilla broke with tradition when, during the pandemic lockdowns, she started sharing her favourite books on Instagram — beginning with Charlie Mackesy and his illustrated The Boy, The Mole, The Fox And The Horse.
That online book club grew into the literary charity The Queen’s Reading Room, which held its first festival this month, and now shares books chosen for their educative, literary or historic merit and, somewhat ominously, are ‘rigorously judged by the charity’s board of trustees’.
Her eclectic but accessible picks encompass everything from Vikram Seth’s A Suitable Boy (‘his consistently charming characters become friends’, says Camilla) to Elizabeth Gilbert’s City Of Girls (‘a world of theatre and show girls that I never wanted to leave’).
REESE’S MAGIC TOUCH
Reads chosen by Reese Witherspoon for her monthly book club race up the best-seller charts, and are often turned into films and TV series.
She’d been talking about books for years on her Instagram, before she officially launched the book club in 2017; it is now a formal part of her production company.
She loves a domestic thriller, as well as issue-based narratives that get you thinking — the key note is that a woman has to be driving the story.
Past picks included Celeste Ng’s Little Fires Everywhere (which became a TV series), Delia Owens’ Where The Crawdads Sing (now a movie) and Glennon Doyle’s hit memoir Untamed (in development for television).
KAIA’S IT LIT
After in-demand model Kaia Gerber started her book club on Instagram during the pandemic, it’s ballooned into a regular event — she tends to give a date by which followers should read the book, as she’ll then go live with the book’s author to discuss it.
The first book was Richard Powers’ climate-themed epic novel The Overstory, ‘as an entry to discussing climate activism, social justice and environmental health’.
SJP’S SERIOUS STORIES
Best known for playing writer Carrie in Sex And The City, offscreen, Sarah Jessica Parker also has a literary bent.
She has launched a book imprint, SJP Lit, with independent publisher Zando, to publish ‘sweeping, expansive, thought-provoking and big-hearted stories that are inclusive of international and underrepresented voices’.
But it’s far from the first dip into publishing from the star, who also runs an informal book club via her Instagram (@sarahjessica parker), where she shares her favourites — they lean towards the literary and serious, such as Markus Zusak’s The Book Thief (‘heart-breaking’) and Jonathan Franzen’s Crossroads (‘Mr. Franzen did it. Again.’).
Dua Lipa’s Book Club
Service95 Book Club Upon the launch of her book club in 2023, Dua confirmed, “Ever since I can remember, anywhere I go I take a book with me. Reading is an incredibly important part of my life and one of my biggest joys.” The club is part of Service95, an “editorial platform” founded by Dua which contains a newsletter, articles, and podcasts. The book club offering even includes interviews Dua conducts with the author of the month.
Oprah’s Book Club
Oprah has been at it for 2 decades, recommending books to readers since 1996. All chosen by the famous talk show host, these books spark conversation, help emerging authors and also resonate with Oprah herself.
