We know how difficult it is to choose a book for your next book group meeting, and to find enough copies for all the members of your group. We've made it easier for you by collecting donated and withdrawn copies of discussible books and putting all the copies in a canvas bag. We've included discussion questions and information about each author in a folder for each collection.
There are at least 8 copies of the book in each kit. At this time we have over 400 kits for you to choose from.
Printable lists of titles are also available, without cover art, sorted by title and by author.
How can we get a kit?
Call us at 608-266-6300 and we will help you check out a kit. The kit will be checked out on the library card of the person picking them up. The person checking out the kit may choose a due date for the kit, up to 3 months from the day they pick it up. Due to high demand, please take only one or two kits at a time. Kits can be shipped to any library in Madison as well as any public library in the South Central Library System.
What if a book is lost?
If your group happens to lose a book, we ask that you replace it with another copy of the book, new or second hand, that is clean and readable.
Search our collection of kits
Parable of the Sower
Forced to flee an America where anarchy and violence have completely taken over, empath Lauren Olamina--who can feel the pain of others and is crippled by it--becomes a prophet carrying the hope of a new world and a new faith christened "Earthseed".
How the García Girls Lost Their Accents
Interwoven stories of four Latina sisters chronicling their assimilation into the United States and their visits back to the Dominican Republic.
The Bean Trees
Young, independent Taylor heads west from Kentucky to Tucson, seeking a life change. Young, independent Taylor heads west from Kentucky to Tucson, seeking a life change.
Crossing to Safety
This deceptively simple story traces the lives and hopes of two couples who met as young parents in Madison, Wisconsin in the early part of the 20th century. This deceptively simple story traces the lives and hopes of two couples who met as young parents in Madison, Wisconsin in the early part of the 20th century.
Norwegian Wood
In Murakami’s poignant coming-of-age story, Toru, a college student in 1960s Japan, is devoted to Naoko, a thoughtful young woman who shares Toru’s sense of isolation and yearning for beauty. But while Naoko struggles with the harsh realities of life, Toru discovers that he must make a choice between his love for her and the unknown possibilities of adulthood.
Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Café
The novel on which the popular movie was based, this account of four women's lives in the Depression-era South is humorous, while also threaded with the more serious themes of racism, feminism, and domestic violence.
The Handmaid's Tale
This 1986 classic has found a new audience through a popular adaptation on Hulu. This is the story of Offred, one of the unfortunate "Handmaids" under the new social order who have only one purpose: to breed. In Gilead, where women are prohibited from holding jobs, reading, and forming friendships, Offred's persistent memories of life in the "time before" and her will to survive are acts of rebellion.
Cold Sassy Tree
A humorous and loving look at small town life at the beginning of the 20th century. Young Will Tweedy narrates the tale of his grandfather's romance with a younger woman, his purchase of the first automobile in the county, and life at the general store owned by his family.
The Woman Warrior: Memoirs of a Girlhood Among Ghosts
A memoir of the American-born daughter of Chinese immigrants who lived within the traditions and fears of the Chinese past as well as the realities of the alien modern American culture. First published in 1976, it has become a classic in its innovative portrayal of multiple and intersecting identities—immigrant, female, Chinese, American.
One Hundred Years of Solitude
This novel, first published in Latin America in 1967 and written in the style of magical realism, tells the story of the rise and fall of the mythical town of Macondo, Colombia, and the family that founded it.
My Family and Other Animals
A naturalist's account of his childhood on the exotic Greek island.
1984
Written in 1949, 1984 was George Orwell's chilling prophecy about the future, where Big Brother is always watching. And while 1984 has come and gone, his dystopian vision of a government that will do anything to control the narrative still resonates today.
The Hobbit
In this acclaimed prequel to The Lord of the Rings, hobbit Bilbo Baggins has his peaceful existence interrupted when he is persuaded to join a band of dwarfs in retrieving a famous hoard of gold far beyond the Misty Mountains. Along the way, he encounters trolls, elves and the ferocious dragon Smaug.
The Maltese Falcon
The classic hard-boiled detective novel in which Sam Spade searches for a rare statue and Hammett introduces a new style of mystery novel.
My Antonia
Written in 1918, this enduring classic tells the story of a Bohemian immigrant to Nebraska, Antonia, through the eyes of her orphaned friend Jim.
The Man Who Was Thursday
This hilarious, fast-paced tale about a club of anarchists in turn-of-the-century London is a rediscovered classic by an author best known as the creator of the "Father Brown" detective stories.
Pride and Prejudice
Austen's classic of social manners follows Elizabeth Bennet and Fitzwilliam Darcy as they try to achieve married bliss, in spite of bad first impressions and meddling families.
Malibu Rising
Set against the backdrop of the Malibu surf culture of the 1980s, this novel follows four famous siblings as they throw an epic party to celebrate the end of the summer; over the course of twenty-four hours, the family drama that ensues will change their lives forever.