FYI Book Club
Kansas City Public Library, Mo.
Innovation Synopsis
FYI Book Club is a special event book club for current books, particularly books with issues or ties to Kansas City. There’s no regular membership, meeting date or location. Readers come from the Kansas City metro area and meet in venues connected to the books, fostering conversation about local issues.
Challenge/Opportunity
The FYI Book Club is dedicated to tying reading to Kansas City’s many services, agencies, organizations and institutions. Readers are drawn from the Kansas City metro area to different venues with direct connections to the books. FYI Book Club reaches new audiences with expertise in subject areas connected to the book; readers experience conversation with a personal and local flavor and also connect with civic groups increasing awareness of issues and challenges facing Kansas City.
Key Elements of Innovation
KCPL’s FYI Book Club’s use of innovative settings (a mortuary, police station, Kansas City Water Department, radio station, Gay and Lesbian Archives of Mid-America, rock climbing gym, American Jazz Museum, lingerie shop) helps readers better understand how what they read is tied to where they live and the services they experience daily in their hometown. By partnering with experts at these venues, conversation is enhanced for readers and creates more informed citizens of the community.
Achieved Outcomes
The FYI Book Club has drawn a diverse range of readers from across the Kansas City metro area to discuss issues such as public safety, policing procedures, water quality, racial cleansing and reparations, capital punishment, gay marriage, technology’s influence on analog items, sports injuries, musicianship and art forgeries. The library is fostering civic dialogue on difficult topics using books and neutral locations to gather Kansas City’s diverse community members to start a conversation.