Joining a book club is a great way to connect with your neighbors and find a community of fellow readers. Gunnison County Libraries facilitates book clubs in both Gunnison and Crested Butte locations. They are free and open to anyone to join.
How it works: Book clubs meet on a recurring basis, every month, to discuss a title the group has all read, often over light snacks. Copies of books are placed on hold for book club participants and are available to check out at the library. Titles for the next month’s meeting are announced a month before. They will also be available in e-edition, audiobook, large print, etc.
Crested Butte
Books-N-Bars
For those who like to imbibe in books, beverages or both! This group meets the second Tuesday of every month from 5:30-7 pm at local watering holes. They read mainly contemporary fiction, with a few non-fiction titles every once in a while.
May 10: The Great Circle by Maggie Shipstead @ TBA
Summer titles TBA. Take our book selection survey here.
Novel-Tea – winter only
This group is for those who enjoy curling up with a novel (or a classic) and sipping a cup of hot tea. Meetings are the third Thursday of every month from 2-3 pm at the 2nd floor of the Crested Butte Library during winter months.
May 12: Midnight Library by Matt Haig (2nd week)
Winter 22-23 titles TBA.
Gunnison
Gunny GoodReads
This is a traditional book club that meets once a month to discuss books over light snacks. They read contemporary fiction, with a taste for the suspense or thriller genre and meet on the fourth Wednesday of every month at 5:30 pm.
May 26: A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman (Thursday)
June 22: America for Beginners by Leah Franqui
Gunnison & Crested Butte
Tales & Trails Hiking Book Club – A summer & fall offering
This group reads a non-fiction book, mostly nature related and discusses it over a hike on trails throughout the valley. This is a summer & fall club only that meets on the second Thursday of the month from 2-4 pm. Copies of books are available to pick up at either library. Supplemental titles for the topic also provided.
2022 schedule:
“Mountaineering May” | May 23 @ Gunnison Library & virtual
- Kickoff & Discussion with author, Johanna Garton “Edge of the Map: the mountain life of Christine Boskoff” | Event details here
“Journeys June” | June 9 @ Snodgrass; meet at Crested Butte Library
- Main title: “Braving it: A father, a daughter, and an unforgettable journey into the Alaskan wild” by James Campbell
- Supplemental titles: “To Shake the Sleeping Self: A journey from Oregon to Patagonia, and a quest for a life with no regret” by Jedidiah Jenkins; “Wild by Nature: From Siberia to Australia, three years alone in the wilderness on foot” by Sarah Marquis
“Joyful July” | July 7 @ Mill Creek; meet at Gunnison Library
- “Alone in Wonderland” by Christine Reed, hike with the author
“Environmentalism August” | August 11 @ Copper Lake; meet at Crested Butte Library
- Main title: “Erosion: Essays of Undoing” by Terry Tempest Williams
- Supplemental titles: “The Best of Edward Abbey“; “What kind of ancestor do you want to be?” by John Hausdoerffer
“Sacred Parks September” | September 8 @ Beaver Ponds; meet at Gunnison Library
- Main title: “Leave Only Footprints: My Acadia-to-Zion Journey through every National Park” by Conor Kinghton
- Supplemental titles: “That Wild Country: An epic journey through the past, present, and future of America’s public lands“; “America’s Public Lands: From Yellowstone to Smokey Bear and beyond” by Randall K. Wilson
If you’re interested in receiving email communications or additional information about these book clubs, please reach out to adult programming coordinator, Taylor Worsham (taylor-at-gunnisoncountylibraries.org).