Black Expressions Book Club Review

My friend and I joined Black Expressions last year for a few months to get a different perspective on what we were reading. As I mentioned before, I'm an avid reader and I just hadn't explored this area of fiction. We found a lot of interesting reads (and at good prices.) Blackexpressions showed us what was popular and worthwhile at the same time.

About Black Expressions Bookclub

Black Expressions has current and classic African-American fiction plus a over 400 titles in hot topics such as heritage & culture, inspiration/religion, health and beauty, relationships, cooking and home, career and personal finance, self-help, kid's books and more. Black Expressions was voted "Book Club of the Year" at the 2004 African American Literary Awards Show held in Harlem, New York.

Types of Books

• Bargains
• Biography/Memoir
• Christian Living
• Classics Library
• Cooking & Nutrition
• Fiction
• Heritage & Culture
• Inspiration
• Kids Corner
• Living Well
• Merchandise
• Money & Finance
• Mystery
• Psychology/Self-help
• Under the Covers

African-American Books and Authors

Blackexpressions has a lot of brand-name African-American authors like Eric Jerome Dickey, Diane McKinney-Whetstone, Walter Mosley, Van Whitfield, Connie Briscoe and Maya Angelou. Club members can check out newer authors like R.M. Johnson, Rosalyn Carrington, and Helen Elaine Lee. The club aslo has "Classics": Black Expressions brings authors back such as James Baldwin, Chester Himes, Langston Hughes, and Margaret Walker. Current featured books include A Hand to Guide Me by Denzel Washington, She Ain't the One by Carl Weber and Mary B. Morrisson, and Love is Never Painless by Zane. etc.

Book Club Deals

Usually Black Expressions Bookclub offers 5 books for $2 plus a free tote bag. Add shipping and handling--$14.95! So you're getting 5 books for about $15 bucks total--$3 a book is a good deal. The tote bag was okay. We used it for grocery shopping instead of using up paper bags. You do have to buy 4 books over two years, but you can get them pretty cheap, around $8-$10 each. Get one extra one when you first sign up for $5.99, to cut down the commitment. So what you do is buy them all after you get your first shipment, so you save on the shipping, and your commitment to Black Expressions bookclub's done.

How to Join BlackExpressions Bookclub

Black Expressions Book Club website:

* http://www.blackexpressions.com/


Tags: books, book clubs, bookclubs, book+club, black expressions, blackexpressions, african american, africanamerican

Doubleday Bookclub

Doubleday Bookclub

Doubleday is the most popular book club for standard bestsellers and general interest books.

Types of Books

• Biographies
• Mysteries
• Best selling books/bestsellers
• Discount books
• Health books
• Diet books
• Craft books
• Self help books
• Romance novels

Authors

Doubleday has a lot of top-shelf authors like Stephen King, Danielle Steel, James Patterson, Dean Koontz, Mary Higgins Clark, etc. You can find your favorite top author here. There are continually new books and authors being added, like the up and coming food writer and TV personality Rachael Ray.

Book Club Deals

Usually Doubleday Bookclub offers 5 books for 99 cents plus a free book, which is basically 6 books for 99 cents. Plus shipping and handling--about $15! So you're getting 6 books for about $16 bucks total--$2.66 a book is a good deal. You do have to buy 4 books over two years, but you can get them pretty cheap, around $8-$10 each. So what you do is buy them all after you get your first shipment, so you save on the shipping, and your commitment to Doubleday bookclub's done.

How to Join Doubleday Bookclub

Doubleday Book Club website:

• http://www.doubledaybookclub.com/

Tags: books, book clubs, bookclubs, book+club, doubleday

Why Join a Bookclub?

Here's the story. My husband and I met many years back (hey, let's be honest). At the time we liked to go out and have fun, but we also liked talking about ideas and reading about ideas. We got into the habit of joining book clubs for fun and figured out it was a good way to save money too. We don't pinch every penny until it cries, buy why waste money? We also liked the convenience of catalog shopping (remember that, when book clubs weren't online? :) ). So over the years we've joined a ton of book clubs and here's a place for us to share what we learned.

You can save big money on books with a bookclub:

- When joining a book club, check the number of books in the intro offer.
- The best offers have fewer books but you get to choose from all of the club's books, instead of just the books they show you.
- With some clubs you don't get to pick books, but you get the latest books in a genre or series.
- Most book clubs let you "bill me later", so you can pick books without a credit card.
- Membership terms are key. How many books will you have to buy over how long? None for some bookclubs, but many clubs have a specific number.
- Many book clubs are related to each other and you can pick from all the book clubs in the network. Score!
- Check book club benefits: Some have free shipping, some clubs just send selections in your favorite genre, etc.

After you join a bookclub and your free books arrive in the mail, you'll get the newsletters or emails. Watch the calendar: Look out for the automatic selections that might be sent unless you tell the book club in time that you don't want the book. Most book clubs will mail books and charge you unless you say no. Note: You can actually cancel the featured monthly book selections online too (not just by mail.) The monthly newsletter may have deals like "free shipping over $20" or "buy-one-get-one-free."

You can also buy all the books you are required to quickly then cancel your book club membership. You can always join the club again later with a new introductory offer. Bookmark this site and come back when you want to join another book club!

My husband and I also sat down and calculated the cost per book for some book clubs we were considering. You add the intro books and initial shipping, then if you bought all the required books when you got enrolled, what it would cost to buy those and ship those--maybe with buy one get one free. Then divide by the total number of books, and there you go! A good price is a great answer to "Why join a bookclub" :)

Top book clubs:

- Doubleday Book Club
- Black Expressions Book Club
- Book-of-the-Month Club
- Literary Guild Book Club
- Children's Book of the Month Club


* http://www.doubledaybookclub.com/

Tags: books, book clubs, bookclubs, book+club, doubleday