In the modern day world of smartphones and social media, books are now more accessible than they've ever been. Yet the culture of reading for pleasure is on the decline, readers are quite literally a dying breed. If you read at least a book a month last year, then globally you rank among prolific readers. Above average in some countries, a unicorn in others.
Once upon a time finding a reading community as a reader was as easy as visiting your local library, but a huge part of the world has moved away from the brick and mortar. Libraries quite simply no longer exist. Filling this gap has been the concept of book clubs. Once a month meetings that see people come together to reflect on a chosen book of the month, which are propelled by a collective reinforcement of the reading practice.
The Silent Book Club puts a spin on this concept. Anchored by an "introvert happy hour," Silent Book Club is a BYOB (Bring Your Own Book) event that sees people come together to read in silence and then network. It has grown into a global community of readers with 2,200 chapters in 60+ countries, it now boasts of a million members that gather in person at destinations around the world. In 2025 the concept found its way to Harare, Zimbabwe.
Thuthukani Ndlovu the founder of the Harare chapter says he fell in love with "the simplicity and uniqueness of it."
"I discovered the Cape Town one via their Instagram posts, and figured why not give it a shot, since I work mostly in the literature space," shared Thuthukani in an interview.
The aim of the platform is to unite a global community of book lovers through the shared joy of reading together. The Silent Book Club removed the usual pressure of traditional book clubs, there is no assigned reading or homework, and it created spaces where people can connect in person over their love of books, whatever they're reading.
"I feel that the Silent Book Club Harare has revealed is that the interest in reading is there, it just needs the right environment to flourish. It's basically one way of making reading look or feel cool I guess," reflected Thuthukani on the event's reception.
"I've noticed that readers genuinely love the concept, however authors are still skeptical. It's a space that prioritizes the reading community, and can provide great insights to authors or those who want to become authors as to what the reading community reads the most, and perhaps spending habits."
The Harare chapter started with 20 members at its first meetup in March last year, but now has over 700 registered members. The event has so far partnered with over 10 venues in the city, and one festival, Litfest Harare in 2025.
"We've received a lot of positive feedback from different age groups; some parents have been able to bring their kids with them to read, most of the youth are always looking for a social activity that's not centered on nightlife music and alcohol - so this has been a great addition to their things to do in Harare list," shared Thuthukani.
The Silent Book Club Harare meets every month at a different venue, you can follow them on social media to stay updated with upcoming events.