Upcoming Book Discussions

New members are welcome to join any book group without registering. For assistance or to get a copy of a book, please visit the Customer Service Desk or call (812) 944-8464.

Dusting Off the Classics

Tuesday, May 5, 2026
6:00 PM – 7:00 PM
New Albany Central Library Auditorium or online via Zoom

Been meaning to read more of the classics? Want to revisit books you haven’t read since you were in school? What is a “classic” anyway? Join us to read and discuss a different classic book each month. This event is hosted with a hybrid model– come to the library Auditorium if you prefer in person events, but we’ll email you a link to join the discussion on Zoom. Print copies of the books are available at the Upper Customer Service desk.

This month: 

The Heart is a Lonely Hunter by Carson McCullers.

Carson McCullers’ prodigious first novel was published to instant acclaim when she was just twenty-three. Set in a small town in the middle of the deep South, it is the story of John Singer, a lonely deaf-mute, and a disparate group of people who are drawn towards his kind, sympathetic nature. The owner of the café where Singer eats every day, a young girl desperate to grow up, an angry drunkard, a frustrated black doctor: each pours their heart out to Singer, their silent confidant, and he in turn changes their disenchanted lives in ways they could never imagine.

Pick up a copy at the library in the month preceding the discussion, or check it out on Hoopla or Libby.

Register Now

Monday Mystery Book Club

Monday, April 20, 2026
6:00 – 7:00 PM
New Albany Central Library Applegate Meeting Room

Do you love a good mystery? Join us for a lively discussion of a different mystery book each month. From cozy mysteries to detective novels to thrillers, chat about your prime suspects, the crime, characters, and more. You do not have to finish the book before you come, but be warned: spoilers lie ahead. Print copies of the books are available at the Upper Customer Service desk or available to listen or read on Libby

This month: 

The God of the Woods by Liz Moore

“Early morning, August 1975: a camp counselor discovers an empty bunk. Its occupant, Barbara Van Laar, has gone missing. Barbara isn’t just any thirteen-year-old: she’s the daughter of the family that owns the summer camp and employs most of the region’s residents. And this isn’t the first time a Van Laar child has disappeared. Barbara’s older brother similarly vanished fourteen years ago, never to be found.

As a panicked search begins, a thrilling drama unfolds. Chasing down the layered secrets of the Van Laar family and the blue-collar community working in its shadow, Moore’s multi-threaded story invites readers into a rich and gripping dynasty of secrets and second chances. It is Liz Moore’s most ambitious and wide-reaching novel yet.”

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Read Between the Spines Book Group

Tuesday, April 21, 2026
5:30 – 6:45 PM
Galena Digital Branch
6954 Hwy 150

Read great books and make new friends at this new book discussion at the Galena Digital Branch. Print copies of the book will be available at the Galena Digital Branch.

This month: 

Family Lore by Elizabeth Acevedo

Family Lore is a novel by Elizabeth Acevedo about a Dominican-American family of women, each with a unique magical gift, who gather for a “living wake” hosted by the matriarch, Flor, who can predict the day of death. Told through the voices of the sisters and cousins, the story spans three days as they confront secrets, desires, and their shared history, exploring themes of love, loss, and family bonds through a blend of magical realism and cultural tradition.

The book is available to listen or read on OverDrive.

Register Now

Reading the Rainbow

Wednesday, April 15, 2025
6:00 – 7:00 PM
IUS Southeast Library or via Zoom
4201 Grant Line Rd, New Albany, IN 47150

Join us to discuss an LGBTQ+ themed book each month. This discussion is open to all adults; members of the LGBTQ+ community and allies are welcome. Print copies of the books are available at the Floyd County Library Upper Customer Service Desk and at the IU Southeast Library. If you’d like to attend online via Zoom, register at the link below to receive the Zoom link.

This month:
Hijab Butch Blues by Lamya H
When fourteen-year-old Lamya H realizes she has a crush on her teacher—her female teacher—she covers up her attraction, an attraction she can’t yet name, by playing up her roles as overachiever and class clown. Born in South Asia, she moved to the Middle East at a young age and has spent years feeling out of place, like her own desires and dreams don’t matter, and it’s easier to hide in plain sight. To disappear. But one day in Quran class, she reads a passage about Maryam that changes everything: when Maryam learned that she was pregnant, she insisted no man had touched her. Could Maryam, uninterested in men, be . . . like Lamya?
From that moment on, Lamya makes sense of her struggles and triumphs by comparing her experiences with some of the most famous stories in the Quran. She juxtaposes her coming out with Musa liberating his people from the pharoah; asks if Allah, who is neither male nor female, might instead be nonbinary; and, drawing on the faith and hope Nuh needed to construct his ark, begins to build a life of her own—ultimately finding that the answer to her lifelong quest for community and belonging lies in owning her identity as a queer, devout Muslim immigrant.
Register Now

#BookTalk

Thursday, May 7, 2026
6:00 – 7:00 PM
New Albany Central Library
Indiana Room

Do you love reading and talking about books? Join us to discuss a recently popular title each month! We meet in person at the Central Branch of the Floyd County Library (180 W. Spring Street.) You can pick up a print copy of the book at the Upper Customer Service Desk, or download an eBook from the Indiana Digital Library. Don’t miss this opportunity to share your thoughts and insights with other readers.

This month: 

The Lion Women of Tehran by Marjan Kamali

In 1950s Tehran, seven-year-old Ellie lives in grand comfort until the untimely death of her father, forcing Ellie and her mother to move to a tiny home downtown. Lonely and bearing the brunt of her mother’s endless grievances, Ellie dreams of a friend to alleviate her isolation.

Luckily, on the first day of school, she meets Homa, a kind, passionate girl with a brave and irrepressible spirit. Together, the two girls play games, learn to cook in the stone kitchen of Homa’s warm home, wander through the colorful stalls of the Grand Bazaar, and share their ambitions for becoming “lion women.”

But their happiness is disrupted when Ellie and her mother are afforded the opportunity to return to their previous bourgeois life. Now a popular student at the best girls’ high school in Iran, Ellie’s memories of Homa begin to fade. Years later, however, her sudden reappearance in Ellie’s privileged world alters the course of both of their lives.

Together, the two young women come of age and pursue their own goals for meaningful futures. But as the political turmoil in Iran builds to a breaking point, one earth-shattering betrayal will have enormous consequences.

Available on Libby

Register Now

A More Perfect Union

Currently on hiatus - stay tuned for more information!

After the April 28 meeting, More Perfect Union will be taking a hiatus. Please stay tuned for more information about this book group. 

Book group description: In this book club for adults, we dive into different civic topics as we strive to be part of a "more perfect union". Topics will vary, but we aim for a neighborly discussion as we unpack some of the issues facing us as a society today. Print copies of the book are available at the Upper Customer Service Desk. This book group offers a free copy of the book to keep, while supplies last.