Three or four times a month, a group of literature lovers gathers together somewhere in Atlanta for a happy hour where the BYOB is “Bring Your Own Book.”
They’re all part of Silent Book Club Atlanta, an event that might be the introverted extrovert’s dream.
The most recent gathering happened at Peoples Town Coffee Bar on Milton Avenue. Sophia Griesenauer acted as the event’s greeter, crowd control, and organizer.
“I love that so many people want to come out and read and just have the community together,” Griesenauer said. “It’s so exciting that we’ve been able to do this for almost two years now.”
She started the Atlanta chapter in December 2023 with a few dozen people.
“We ended up getting some promotion on social media and went from that 20-25 to 85 in January, which blew me away,” she said.
Here’s how it works: Everyone brings their own book, reads for an hour in silence, and then talks about what’s in their pages.
“I just wanted to find some like-minded people who also love literature, and so far I’ve lucked out,” reader Robert Williamson said.
Silent Book Club Atlanta organizer Sophia Griesenauer welcomes readers to Peoples Town Coffee Bar.
The Silent Book Club movement started in San Francisco in 2012 but exploded in popularity following the COVID-19 pandemic. Now there are more than 2,000 chapters in 60 countries.
Businesses are enjoying hosting the gatherings. Peoples Town Coffee Bar added a bookshelf for its readers.
Across town in Brookhaven, you can see more people bonding over books at another chapter.
“I’m about to start another book. It’s the ‘Fourth Wing’ romantasy book that everyone has been talking about. It’s actually Christina’s book,” said Julie Harrelson. She and Christina Jackson met through a Silent Book Club in Buckhead and started their own in their city.
“I really wanted Atlanta to have its own space to have that community for ready and have that investment back into the community, which is why we go to so many different spaces around the city,” Griesenauer said.
It’s an investment that brings together a shared love of the written word and, for these readers, an hour of comfort with strangers.
You can learn more about the Silent Book Club Atlanta on their Instagram. Their next event is Tuesday, Sept. 23, at 6 p.m. Three Taverns Imaginarium on Memorial Drive.
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