As you’re perusing the library shelves, have you ever wondered what would be a great book to read? Well, just imagine choosing twelve different titles to be read by 15 of your friends!!!! That’s exactly what the book club selection committees are facing right now. It sometimes is quite a daunting task. But, here at Columbus Public Library, we can make your selections so much easier. We have all the latest bestsellers. Also, one of the most important items to consider: we have a wonderful collection of very “discussible” works. We also have incredible “reads” that lend themselves to that most important criterion: is it interesting enough to talk about for an hour or more??!!

The Internet makes it much easier for the book selection committees. Columbus Public Library has created a list of web page sites that help the reviewer find author biographies, professional reviews, discussion questions and many more helpful items to create a stimulating review.

The reference department also has at its disposal quite a number of book suggestions. There are many lists provided by an infinite number of qualified professionals. In fact, I’ve been working on my own suggested book list.

“The Master Butchers Singing Club” is a brilliant new book by one of America’s most acclaimed novelists, Louise Erdrich. In this work of historical fiction, Erdrich creates a fictional world filled with memorable characters who grapple with the worst and best impulses of human nature.

“Heaven’s Edge” by Romesh Gunesekera. The author’s dazzling first novel, “Reef” was short listed for the Booker Prize and the Guardian First Fiction Award. Now, with Heaven’s Edge, he delivers a spellbinding modern odyssey that The Daily Telegraph praises as “powerful—dense, cadenced, the images perfectly observed.”

“House of Women” by Lynn Freed. From one of the most admired literary novelists comes a breakout book that weaves a stunning tale of passion, love, and long-buried secrets. At the center is Thea, raised under lock and key by her overprotective mother—until one day her curiosity about the world drives her to escape.

“Wintering – a novel of Sylvia Plath and Ted Hughes” by Kate Moses. This stunning literary debut captures the haunting last months of Sylvia Plath’s life and the painful creation of her legendary Ariel poems. Wintering is a deeply felt novel about artistry, marriage, motherhood, and self-understanding.

These titles are just a few of my recommendations for book clubs to consider. If ever you or your organization need advice, please don’t hesitate contacting me at Columbus Public Library.

My future columns will let you know about new books by best selling authors, what’s happening in the literary world, what’s hot and any promotions being held at Columbus Public Library.