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Located in Chatham, Illinois
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Book Clubs

BIAGB Book Club

Bring your lunch and your love of reading to this midday book club. Each month, we discuss a different book in a welcoming and relaxed environment. From bestselling fiction to compelling non-fiction, there’s always something new to explore. For a complete list of the books we've read, click here.

For more information, please contact: reference@chathamlib.org

When: Third Wednesday of each month at 12:00 PM
Where: Library Conference Room

Shows a woman sitting on the edge of a rooftop overlooking the skyline of Paris. The Eiffel Tower is faded in the background.

  August 19

The Paris Library by Janet Skeslien Charles

A dual-timeline novel inspired by the true story of the American Library in Paris during WWII, following a young librarian, Odile, who joins the Resistance with books, and a lonely teenager, Lily, in 1983 Montana, who uncovers Odile's secrets, exploring themes of friendship, heroism, and the power of literature. The book connects the two women through a shared love of books and a dark secret from the war, making it a "love letter to Paris, the power of books, and the beauty of intergenerational friendship."

book cover of Lula Dean's Little Library of Banned Books

September 16

Lula Dean’s Little Library of Banned Books by Kirsten Miller

When Lula Dean, trying to rid public libraries of "pornographic" books, starts her own lending library in front of her home, Lindsay, the daughter of Lula's arch nemesis, sneaks in nightly, secretly filling it with banned books wrapped in "wholesome" dust jackets, changing the lives of those who borrow them in unexpected ways.

book cover of The Kelloggs: the battling brothers of Battle Creek

October 21

The Kelloggs: the battling brothers of Battle Creek by Howard Merkel

The book traces how John Harvey Kellogg and Will Kellogg transformed American food and wellness while waging a lifelong personal and professional feud that shaped the Kellogg empire.

book cover of Atmosphere by Taylor Jenkins ReidNovember 18

Atmosphere by Taylor Jenkins Reid

Taylor Jenkins Reid’s Atmosphere follows a woman whose carefully curated life unravels when a mysterious shift in her world forces her to confront the truth about herself and the people she trusts.

Hooked On Books

Whether you’re into contemporary fiction, historical drama, or page-turning mysteries, Hooked on Books is perfect for readers who enjoy a wide variety of genres. Join us for lively evening discussions that dive deep into each month’s featured title. For a complete list of the books we've read, click here.

For more information, please contact: reference@chathamlib.org

When: Second Wednesday of each month at 6:00 PM
Where: Library Conference Room

Two young girls running through a field reflected off an old window.

June 10

Necessary Lies by Diane Chamberlain

After losing her parents, teenager Ivy struggles to care for her aging grandmother, mentally ill older sister and nephew, and her own epilepsy on a tenant tobacco farm. When Jane Forrester becomes the new county social worker, she doesn't realize just how much about the dark secrets that are going on behind the scenes. 

 Ariel view of a wide green valley with a blue stream meandering in the center.July 8

The Secret Book of Flora Lea by Patti Callahan Henry

In 1939 London, 14-year-old Hazel and her sister Flora are evacuated to a small village to escape the war. Living in a small village. Hazel and Flora create a magical land they can escape to. But one day, Flora disappears while playing near a river, shattering Hazel, who blames herself. 20 years latter, Hazel receives a strange wrapped book that contains all of the adventures that she and her sister shared. Adventures that she never told anyone

Woman dressing in safari outfit sitting in camp chair overlooking the savannaAugust 12

Circling the Sun by Paula McLain

Abandoned by her mother, Beryl Markham is raised by her father and the Kipsigis tribe in Kenya. Her unconventional upbringing transforms Beryl into a bold young woman with a love of all things wild. But even the wild child must grow up, and everything Beryl knows and trusts dissolves. Beryl forges her own path as a horse trainer, and her uncommon style attracts the eye of the Denys Finch Hatton. The intensity of their love reveals Beryl’s truest self and her fate: to fly.

Outer Edge

Explore new worlds and daring adventures with Outer Edge, our book club dedicated to science fiction, fantasy, and horror lovers. From epic space operas to magical realms, we celebrate the imagination in every form. For a complete list of the books we've read, click here.

For more information, please contact: kclardy@chathamlib.org.

When: Third Thursday of each month at 6:00 PM

Where: Library Galleries B&C

Book cover of Legends & Lattes by Travis Baldree - has two women, an orc and a devil standing back to back in a coffee shop.

June 18

Legends & Lattes by Travis Baldree

After a lifetime of bounties and bloodshed, Viv is hanging up her sword for the last time. The battle-weary orc aims to start fresh, opening the first ever coffee shop in the city of Thune. But old and new rivals stand in the way of success - not to mention the fact that no one has the faintest idea what coffee actually is.

Cover of Witchcraft for Wayward Girls by Grady Hendrix shows a lava lamp with a floating hand reaching up inside of it, with moths placed outside the lamp and on the book title.

July 16

Witchcraft for Wayward Girls by Grady Hendrix

There's power in a book...They call them wayward girls. Loose girls. Girls who grew up too fast. And they're sent to the Wellwood Home in St. Augustine, Florida, where unwed mothers are hidden by their families to have their babies in secret, give them up for adoption, and most important of all, to forget any of it ever happened.

Book cover of Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel shows a campsite of tents lit by lights, and they all sit below a dark starry sky.

August 20

Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel

An audacious, darkly glittering novel set in the eerie days of civilization's collapse - the spellbinding story of a Hollywood star, his would-be savior, and a nomadic group of actors roaming the scattered outposts of the Great Lakes region, risking everything for art and humanity.