They're not what you'd expect to find on a typical Monday night at a pub.
People cheers-ing over sports games? Yes. But a group of readers, silently pouring over books in tandem? That's thanks to Malcolm Johnstone, who started B.C.'s first Silent Book Club in Victoria in 2019. In months recent, the West Shore has followed suit with one of their own.
The phenomenon – which spans 57 countries – started in San Francisco in 2012 when friends Guinevere de la Mare and Laura Gluhanich read together at their neighbourhood wine bar. When their previous book clubs had fizzled out, they asked themselves: what about a book club where you could enjoy books, friends and drinks without the homework?
It's an idea Johnstone latched onto: all readers welcome, BYOBook. Just a group of people settling in for an hour of sustained silent reading, followed by a period of socializing and sharing about what they're reading.
"It's like all my favourite parts of college literature classes," explains co-admin, Kirsten Loran, a mom who loves reading but who struggles to find dedicated time to do it (hence, the club).
Since the Victoria chapter's first official meet in October 2019 at Bard and Banker, its grown to over 700 members and has an average turnout of 8-12 members. The group has met at pubs, restaurants, coffee shops, the local library and in Beacon Hill Park and is mainly organized through Facebook.
The West Shore chapter is organized by Libris and Victoria Wan, regular attendees of the Victoria chapter for a year and a half.
"Many of our members were aware of the Victoria chapter but not willing or able to commute, so we're happy to create a space for them with the West Shore chapter," they said. "It's a great event for introverts like us!"
After reading time, the group does a round-table style conversation so everyone gets a chance to talk about their book – and even introverts get excited as they're surrounded by people who are genuinely interested, said Loran.
A fair question: is the reading portion actually quiet?
"It is usually fairly quiet," she confirmed. "I enjoy hearing people giggling about funny passages quietly to themselves."
"Having the sound of a couple of glasses clink while I nibble on another yam fry and finish a chapter of a book I've been meaning to get around to is rewarding enough for me," Johnstone added.
For information on the West Shore and Victoria meet ups, visit the Silent Book Club Victoria Chapter Facebook group.
