Happy Birthday to The Local Sweden's Book Club

Over the first year, we've read 12 books, ranging from crime fiction to classic novels to historic non-fiction. We've discussed them in-person at events in Stockholm, and online in our Facebook group and by email.

For me, this has been an opportunity to read books and genres I might not have done otherwise, and to learn little nuggets of information about Sweden. I've loved hearing from you when you've shared your own thoughts on the books and reflected on the questions they've raised for you.

Here are just three of the comments we received from members at the end of last year:

• "I enjoyed being part of this community. It made a real difference in my life."
• "Thank you so much for doing this. Makes me feel in touch with Sweden even when I am not there."
• "I learn so many things about today’s Sweden from The Local. I love that the book club has introduced me to authors I might not find on my own."

You are always welcome to get in touch with us with suggestions for what we should read, or feedback about the book club -- or about the rest of our work at The Local, for that matter. 

We started this club because we know that sometimes keeping up with the news can feel like a chore. Given the events of the past few months, that's more true than ever, and rolling news updates make many of us anxious and upset. More and more of us are taking digital detoxes or otherwise simply switching off from news that feels depressing, hopeless, and overwhelming.

As journalists, we try to deal with this by responsible and balanced reporting, including taking time to highlight where things are going well in the world. But we can also respond by sometimes focusing on things which aren't 'news'. 

Taking time to get lost in a book and learn about Sweden this way has been valuable to me over the past year, and I hope you feel you've got something out of the book club too.

If you're new here or would just like a reminder, here's a full list of the books we've read: