Meet the Book Club Experts: Julie Robinson

Robinson is the founder of Literary Affairs and manages a team of nine book club facilitators.

By Jennifer Lewis

Title: Founder of Literary Affairs, a lifestyle company whose nine facilitators manage 48 to 60 book clubs per month.

Location: West Los Angeles

Venues: Private homes for book clubs; libraries and other public spaces for curated author events.

The job: Though semiretired after 28 years of moderating, Robinson vets books, assesses group dynamics, and matches facilitators with established private book clubs. She also produces author events at larger venues.

Brass tacks: Book club meetings run for about two hours and are typically monthly. The standard facilitator fee is $400 per meeting, a cost that is usually split between members.

Primary clients: Highly educated women seeking richer intellectual lives after raising kids or building careers.

Past picks: Culpability, by Bruce Holsinger; James, by Percival Everett; Sacrament, by Susan Straight.

Prep: Robinson reads roughly 80 to 100 books a year. She selects titles that can sustain two hours of focused, text-centered discussion and appeal to groups with members at different life stages.

Perks: Watching members’ children grow up, marry, and have kids of their own. Robinson’s longtime clients are now in their late 80s.

Highlight: Interviewing George Saunders at a private event. Read the full profile at Alta’s web site.