The Queen of book clubs, Reese Witherspoon began sharing monthly recommendations in 2017. In the years since, the club has not only helped tomes like Daisy Jones and The Six and Little Fires Everywhere achieve viral success, but started a trend for celebrity book clubs (see Dua Lipa and Kaia Gerber).
But Reese’s remains the most popular. Introducing her millions of loyal subscribers online and her Instagram followers to new authors and stories, her only criteria for picking a tome is that a woman must be front and centre.
This hasn’t just impacted the global bestseller lists (Reese Book Club picks regularly secure spots in The New York Times), but also Hollywood. From Where the Crawdads Sing to the upcoming Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine movie, many of the books are adapted for the screen through Witherspoon’s production company, Hello Sunshine.
Reese’s Book Club’s final pick of the year, the December title is City of Night Birds by Juhea Kim. Here’s everything you need to know to read or listen along this month.
‘City of Night Birds’ by Juhea Kim: $24, Amazon.com
Drawing comparisons to Black Swan, City of Night Birds a dark and glamorous story set in the world of ballet. Natalia Leonova is a much-celebrated ballerina who performs on stages from St Petersberg to New York. But when an accident forces her into sudden retirement, she turns to pills and alcohol to numb the pain. In grief for her career and still haunted by her relationships with two gifted dancers, she gets a tantalising offer and must decide whether she wants to return to ballet or walk away for good.
Announcing this month’s book club pick, Reese said: “This story left me thinking about the ways we overcome setbacks and redefine what truly matters.”
