Book of the Month
Book of the Month (founded 1926) is a United States subscription-based e-commerce service that offers a selection of five new hardcover books each month to its members. Books are selected and endorsed by a panel of judges, and members choose which book they would like to receive, similar to how the club originally operated when it began in 1926. Members can also discuss the books with fellow members in an online forum. In late 2015, in concert with the club's 90th year, the club announced a relaunch into its current iteration. Within two  years, the club had grown its membership to more than 100,000 members, primarily millennial women, and the club's presence on social media grew to over 1.2 million instagram followers. Approximately 75% of the club's titles are by up-and-coming authors, and 80% of titles are fiction. The club has also worked with a series of celebrity guest judges who bring broader awareness to new titles, and continues producing its own versions of books that feature special endpapers and casings. In 2016, the club launched a Book of the Year award. In 2017, the club debuted its first  ever television advertisement called "Monthly". The club has a tradition of focusing on debut and emerging writers, and is known for having helped launch the careers of some of the most acclaimed authors in American literary history. In 1926 (its first year in operation), the Club featured Ernest Hemingway's "The Sun Also Rises". In 1936 (its tenth year), the Club selected "Gone with the Wind" by unknown author Margaret Mitchell. Mitchell wrote: "I wanted to thank [Book of the Month] from the bottom of my heart for selecting my book. It was quite the most exciting and unexpected thing  that ever happened to me." In 1951 (its 25th year), the club distributed its 100 millionth book and selected J.D. Salinger's "The Catcher in the Rye", which became both the most-censored and the most-taught book in America. In 1978, the Club selected "By the Rivers of Babylon", the first book by Nelson DeMille, who later wrote: "I will be forever grateful to Book of the Month for ensuring that my first book, "By the Rivers of Babylon", was not my last. When the Club selected "Babylon" in 1978, it reached hundreds of thousands of additional readers and  became an instant best-seller." History. Harry Scherman was a copywriter for the J. Walter Thompson advertising agency in 1916 when he set out to create the "Little Leather Library". With his partners Max Sackheim, and Charles and Albert Boni, Scherman began a mail order service that offered "30 Great Books For $2.98" (miniature reprints "bound in limp Redcroft") and sold 40 million copies in its first five years. Sackheim and Scherman then founded their own ad agency devoted entirely to marketing books. The problems of building interest in a new book led Scherman to create, along with Sackheim  and Robert Haas (son of Kalman Haas), the Book-of-the-Month Club in 1926. As Scherman explained it, the club itself would be a "standard brand". "It establishes itself as a sound selector of good books and sells by means of its own prestige. Thus, the prestige of each new title need not be built up before becoming acceptable," he explained later. After starting with 4,000 subscribers, the club had more than 550,000 within twenty years. The size of the club did in fact create the Book of the Month Club as a brand. Being a "Book of the  Month Club" selection was used to promote books to the general public. Book of the Month Club was acquired by Time Inc. in 1977; Time Inc. merged with Warner Communications in 1989. The original judges panel was eliminated in 1994. In 2000, the Book-of-the-Month Club, Inc. merged with Doubleday Direct, Inc. The resulting company, Bookspan, was a joint venture between Time Warner and Bertelsmann until 2007 when Bertelsmann took over complete ownership. In 2008, Bertelsmann sold its US subscription business to the private equity firm Najafi Companies. In 2013, Najafi sold Bookspan to current parent company Pride  Tree Holdings, Inc. Membership terms. The club operates a subscription program, similar to other box subscription services, where customers select a membership plan for a set period of time (3-months, 6-months or 12-months) and books are shipped to all members during the first seven days of the month. Historically, when the club operated through mail-order catalogs, membership involved a "negative response" system whereby a member was shipped the monthly selection on a particular date if the selection was not declined before that date. Members had the option to respond by declining the selection or opting to  order another book or merchandise instead. No response was deemed acceptance of the selection. Book of the Year Award. In late 2016, the club announced its first annual Book of the Year Award, the finalists for which are chosen by the club's members. The award is called the "Lolly", in tribute to "Lolly Willowes", the first book selected by the club back in 1926. "Lolly Willowes" was written by Sylvia Townsend Warner, who later went on to become a prolific writer and even wrote short stories for "The New Yorker". In 2017, the award added a $10,000 prize , and the winner was The Heart's Invisible Furies by Irish author John Boyne. In 2018, the members voted "Circe" by Madeline Miller as best book of the year. In 2019, the members voted "Daisy Jones & The Six" by Taylor Jenkins Reid as best book of the year. In 2020, the members voted "The Vanishing Half" by Brit Bennett as best book of the year. Winners by Year. 2016: Bryn Greenwood - "All the Ugly and Wonderful Things" 2017: John Boyne - "The Heart's Invisible Furies" 2018: Madeline Miller - "Circe" 2019: Taylor Jenkins Reid - "Daisy Jones & The Six" 2020: Brit Bennett  - "The Vanishing Half" 2021: Kristin Hannah - "The Four Winds"