Silent Book Club St. Paul celebrates successful first year

St. Paul’s silent book club celebrates successful first year
By Jake Spitzack | Staff Writer | February 2026

Safe from sharp winter winds and rowdy crowds, nearly 300 bookworms and causal readers alike have found sanctuary and community at one of the city’s newest groups: a silent book club. It launched last year as a chapter of the global Silent Book Club organization and will celebrate its first anniversary on February 4.

The concept differs from traditional book clubs where people read and discuss the same title. Here, readers meet 7-9 p.m., the first Wednesday of each month at Lost Fox, 213 4th St., and read any book they wish amongst other readers during the first hour, followed by an optional social hour. The club has become a hotbed for fostering friendships and good conversation, especially among new downtowners. The Lost Fox is a coffee shop, restaurant and bar that won the “New Kid on the Block” business award from the City of St. Paul in November.

“I’m going to do a birthday cake for us in February,” said Chelsey Smith, co-founder of the St. Paul club. “We’re really appreciative of the folks who have supported and participated and made it a great gathering. I was happy with any turnout, but it’s been a pleasant surprise [the high numbers]…. We’re adding a second meetup each month since we know there’s interest. We’ll be meeting the third Sunday of every month at Dogwood Coffee Cafe on University Avenue.”

Smith organized the club as a way to meet new people after moving back to Minnesota from Washington where she lived for 15 years. She was familiar with other silent book clubs around the country and said it took only a few weeks to charter the St. Paul club after applying to the global organization. Membership is free, but donations are encouraged to help cover costs for snacks and branded swag items for regular attendees.

The book club is a global movement that’s been around for more than 10 years, Smith said.

“I looked up Minnesota chapters and saw that Minneapolis had a location but there was nothing in St. Paul. I live in St. Paul, and I’m very keen on saying we deserve nice things… I was looking for outlets [to connect with people] and thought if it’s something that I want, then I can bring that to the community.”

A few members read the same title each month but the genres of works found on any given club night vary greatly. To see what people are reading lately, view the tapestry of books posted each month on the club’s social media pages. There’s a core group of about 30 members, and others filter in and out as their schedules allow.

“About a third of the group is usually new folks so it’s really important that we greet them and try to get them into a seat, because we do fill up the Lost Fox pretty quickly,” said Smith. “We’re happy to have people, whether it’s every month or whenever they can make it…. I think our record was someone had moved to Minnesota three days [before], and they found us and joined, and someone had come for 10 out of 11 months, so that was a pretty good run.”

Smith founded the group with longtime friend Robin Jakubowski, and they recently brought on a third host, Laura Knobel. Smith works full-time and is a parent, so the extra help ensures a host is always present at meetings. The club hosted a book exchange in December, and recently wrapped up a survey on what members want to see in 2026. Most wanted more options to socialize with the broader group.

Smith said they will experiment with programming, and direct those seeking more socialization to other events, such as Books and Bars at Urban Growler and Lit and Libations at King Coil Spirits. To her, it’s important that the club’s integrity be preserved by keeping reading as the main focus, and she doesn’t want to force people to be more sociable than they care to be.

The club may explore partnerships with local bookstores and collaborative events with the Minneapolis chapter, and will participate in the Twin Cities Book Festival. Pop-up club meetings may also be held in local parks in the summertime.
To join the club, or for more information, visit bookclubs.com/join-a-book-club and search “St. Paul.” Electronic reading devices and audiobooks are welcome.