Can you believe 2023 has already come to a close? It feels like just yesterday that we were cracking the spine of our January Pick, The House in the Pines by Ana Reyes, and preparing to hit all our reading goals for the year with a new year of Reese’s Book Club picks. Because we’re feeling a little sentimental, let’s take a moment to look back at all that we read together, the incredible book-to-screen adaptations we watched, as well as the partnerships that allowed us to go on adventures to connect with our authors and with one another along the way. Welcome to the 2023 Book Report!
In 2023, we read 4,560 pages—that’s over 12 pages a day! For those of us who love audiobooks and having the stories narrated to you, that’s a total of 137 hours of listening. We love reviewing these stats and seeing the spread of genres represented in our monthly book picks. Did you notice any reading trends in your own reading stats?
This was the year of adaptations and it was truly remarkable seeing some of our favorite past picks adapted to the screen. Daisy Jones & the Six brought music we’d only daydreamed about to life and we’ve been listening to the Aurora album nonstop (raise your hand if they made it to your Spotify Wrapped!). Tiny Beautiful Things was the cozy, comfort watch we needed and The Last Thing He Told Me was a thrill from start to finish. What was your favorite? What book club picks are you hoping to see adapted next?
We brought our authors along with us on some incredible adventures this year. From Scratch author and co-creator Tembi Locke gave us a peek at her stunning writing retreat on Norwegian Cruise Line. From getting inspired to finding the perfect writing spot, it was a getaway for the books. Check it out here!
In March, Our LitUp mentors went on an exciting writing retreat with our LitUp fellows where our fellows learned more about the publishing process and new writing skills to further improve their excellent manuscripts. We’re happy to announce that all 5 of our LitUp fellows for Cycle 2 now have agents! Can you believe it?! A big thanks to MadCap Retreats and We Need Diverse Books for helping us execute this powerful fellowship that’ll help diversify the books we see on shelves. Interested in applying to LitUp? We’re now accepting submissions through 12/31/23. Learn more here.
In August, we teamed up with the Sonic Foundation for Book Lovers Day in the name of all the amazing teachers who ever put a book in a potential reader’s hands. Together with the Sonic Foundation, we raised $200,000 for classrooms and gifted teachers a Gift of Reading Box as a thank-you for all that they do.
Thanks to Angie’s BOOMCHICKAPOP, we were able to Pop in For a Break with some of our Alumni authors and catch up on all they’ve achieved since publication. Nancy Jooyoun Kim & Kirstin Chen shared a bit on finding inspiration, embracing breaks, and what they’ve been working on recently. What’s better than hanging out with our authors while snacking on BOOMCHICKAPOP’s delicious popcorn?
We were so happy to connect with the Reese’s Book Club community in person at our first-ever Sheraton Lobby Library pop-up! We loved celebrating the launch with authors Tia Williams and Tembi Locke as well as discussing our October Pick, Starling House, in an intimate book club with Alix E. Harrow. We’re excited to bring the Lobby Library pop-up to a new city very soon—can you guess where we’re going next?
For those of you who were able to join us in Los Angeles for Shine Away, we had such a blast connecting with you at this very special event. We loved hearing so many Reese’s Book Club authors speak on panels, sharing everything from the choices made to pivot careers to the writing process tips they have for the audience. We left this day feeling empowered, inspired, and hungry for more stories.
2023 has truly been a year for the books, and we’ll be looking back at these memories for years to come. As we look forward to 2024, we hope to have more special community moments, more fun author content, and more great reads! Thank you for spending your year with us, readers. Until next year.
