Book Club for Ages 16–25 Awaits You

Which character last made you laugh? Who annoyed you? What do you think? These are the questions that Hugrún Margrét will be asking for the first book club in town for ages 16–25. The club is called Síðan.

Hugrún leads the book club in Hreiðrið in the Innovation Center by the river every other Tuesday at 17:30. The first meeting is next Tuesday, March 10. So it is no time to waste before you start reading.

The book club is a collaboration between the local library and the youth center. Hugrún says that most book clubs focus on everyone reading the same book and discussing it, but this club offers two themes to choose from at each meeting. That opens up a more personal connection, letting everyone speak from their own experience instead of getting stuck in what they think they should feel based on well‑known reviews. It becomes a more personal evaluation for each participant.

Hugrún looks forward to the discussions. We start the meetings in Hreiðrið. The first three or four sessions will be there, and then we move to the library. We also want this to be as democratic as possible, and we plan to offer workshops as well. The schedule is now posted in youth centers and upper secondary schools.

Tailored to the group

Hugrún Margrét explains that she has long wanted to create something for this age group. She feels that there is a lot available for younger children, but not much for this age. She herself is not in a book club because she reads what she wants to read. But she enjoys thinking about things and discussing them. Last year she attended the national conference of Upplýsing. There, a Tanzanian‑Zambian speaker talked about a book club for people who do not read books. This club is a spinoff of that idea. It dives into books and tells their stories, but she wanted the books to come from the participants themselves.

Hugrún Margrét is excited to see who will come. She says it will be interesting and fun to hold the club in two locations, depending on how the club develops and what the group wants. They want it to be an interactive club, like everything else at the library.

Choosing laughter over annoyance

Hugrún herself will bring the book Kokkál by Dóri DNA. I laughed out loud, she says. And which character annoyed her most recently? She says she fortunately forgets books where the characters annoy her. It might have been Bjartur in Sumarhús, who she says was just such a complainer, and laughs.

• When: Every other Tuesday at 17:30 in Hreiðrið in the Innovation Center