You see: Instagram isn’t just a mindless, soul-destroying waste of your valuable time; it isn’t all clothes, make-up and other people’s enviable holidays. It can be a helpful cultural tool, too.
Where once we had to rely on our friends to tell us what to read, there are now worthwhile book recommendations all over Instagram. Look carefully, and you will find great pearls of literary wisdom lurking within.
Here, we’ve done the hard work for you and identified five of the best book clubs on Instagram.
@reesesbookclubxhellosunshine
Perhaps it is no surprise that celebrity book clubs, like this one by Reese Witherspoon, have a huge following. With 684,000 followers, Witherspoon must be doing something right. As well as brilliant book recommendations, this feed is full of cheery memes and gorgeous lifestyle shots of books arranged artfully on shelves.
@girlsnightinclub
Oooh, this one is good. Behind the feed is 28-year-old Alisha Ramos, who set it up back in 2016 as an antidote to the major burnout she was experiencing. Each month, @girlsnightinclub recommends one excellent book. The rest of the feed is a soothing stream of pretty images, self-care tips and stylishly presented mantras.
@oursharedshelf
There’s always been something endearingly bookish about the actress, Emma Watson, and her bi-monthly Instagram book club proves the point. A whopping 358,000 people follow it. With a clear emphasis on feminism, Watson selects both contemporary and classic titles (her pick for September/October is Daphne Du Maurier’s Rebecca, for instance).
@busygirlsbookclub
In spite of its slightly odd – but presumably deliberate – pink filter, this is a feed full of top-notch recommendations. Between us here at the Good Web Guide, we’ve read several of them and there isn’t a dud in the pile. Set up last January, @busygirlsbookclub has relatively few followers – but it’s so good, that won’t be the case for long.
@betweentwobooks
Singer Florence Welch’s book club feed is more kooky and a bit less stylized than other celebrity ones, but it is no less interesting. It reads a bit like a scrapbook, with photos and bits of poetry woven in with trustworthy recommendations for books you may never have heard of but will almost certainly enjoy.
September 2018