The Yes Fam Book Club just turned five years old. To celebrate the occasion, members gathered virtually for some bonding, filled with plenty of talking and laughing.
I got into Yes Fam a couple of years ago. The community is built on the philosophy of seeking discomfort and turning strangers into friends, believing that life’s greatest moments and deepest connections exist outside one’s comfort zone. This mindset has been the driving force behind the impressive growth of the YouTube channel, Yes Theory. It became so popular that it eventually reached me—even though I don’t think I belong to their target demographic. Still, I really enjoy their videos and have been watching since the pandemic.
From there, I discovered the Yes Fam Book Club last year. Initially named Yes Theory Bookclub by its founder, Niklas Moonsun, it was established on October 13, 2019, as a Facebook group mainly serving as a venue for sharing bookish memes and title recommendations. Two months later, Jhuma Khan joined as an administrator, bringing ideas that expanded the space in more ways than one. Soon after, Ava Francisco, Dara Reckard, Khoirun Nisa, Rana Diab, and Vassilis Ananiadis completed the team that maintains engagement among a diverse set of members across Facebook, Instagram, and Discord, which currently numbers 2,000.
Not only do the admins create and post content, and send out mailers, but they also keep conversations going, and conceptualize and implement activities. It’s a lot of work, but they deliver it professionally despite not getting paid a single cent. They’re fueled purely by passion. Believe it or not, it’s all for the love!
“My mom was a really big reader and I always saw her with a book in bed and she read to me when I was younger. I think she inspired me. Also, I grew up on an island where my world view was really small, and books gave me access to other ideas and places in the world. Books represent traveling with your mind and give you access to other cultures of the world without actually physically being there. Books represent creativity, imagination, and the investigation of what it means to be human. They’re a gateway to worlds, a source of knowledge, and an escape from daily routines and stress,” replied Dara when I asked her what books mean to her. The 28-year-old American works as an English as a Second Language Teacher.
I share her view and have really been wanting to do more reading, like I did when I was younger. While I continue to shop for books frequently, I wasn’t opening them nearly as often. I figured the Book Club could help me switch to a more worthwhile habit than scrolling through social media.
The first activity I signed up for was TBR (to be read) Buddies, where members are paired based on genre preferences. The pair then decides what title to read, sets a schedule, and arranges their own small discussion, whether by chat or audio/video call. I was matched with Priyansh from India. We exchanged recommendations and decided to go with something from his list: Educated by Tara Westover. We made the right choice—the memoir moved me deeply and resonated with me on multiple levels. Priyansh and I spent over an hour sharing the roller coaster of emotions we experienced while reading. For the next round of TBR Buddies, I was assigned to Alice, who is based in France. She has been patiently waiting for me to finish Outlander by Diana Gabaldon. Another great pick! The plot is very interesting and the story is quite exciting, but I got distracted along the way and have been stuck at 39% of the book.
I was really happy that Priyansh and Alice exposed me to titles that had never been on my radar. Ava told me that it’s one of the things she loves about Yes Fam Book Club: “It introduces me to books I would never have thought to read by myself,” said the 32-year-old grad student who hails from Canada and is half-Filipino. Twenty-six-year-old Indonesian researcher Nisa chimed in, mentioning the Yes Theory philosophy, “the Yes Fam Book Club enables you to seek discomfort in reading various book genres you’ve never heard of before or pushes you to read books you consider not your cup of tea.”
My productive call with Priyansh encouraged me to get more involved in Yes Fam Book Club. Since April of this year, I’ve participated in a couple of Book of the Month discussions. Scheduled on the last Sunday of every month, the group video call is something I’ve grown to look forward to. The admins take turns moderating. Jhuma opened up about feeling very nervous when he first started leading discussions, often believing he had done so poorly that he considered quitting a few times. “But members were always encouraging, and the admins reassured me that I didn’t do half as bad as I thought. I guess it’s always so much worse in my head than in people’s eyes,” reflects the 25-year-old from India. I never would’ve guessed, he’s always articulate and speaks with such self-assurance. It just goes to show that practice really does make perfect. Each admin has their own style of leading the group, but regardless of the approach, the discussions flow effortlessly. “Books represent a way to connect with other people and drive conversations to a more vulnerable space without asking those direct questions; the content of the book usually allows us to get there naturally,” Ava points out.
The discourse is always vibrant and inclusive, with all thoughts welcome. The range of opinions can be quite extreme, one person might be raving while another could be hating. But it’s all good, there are never any judgments or arguments. The atmosphere remains respectful and friendly. With members from all over the world, I can never predict what accent I’ll hear once someone unmutes and starts talking. I get a kick out of how we all sound different.
It can be daunting for non-native English speakers, though. Once, a member expressed anxiety after being called on, and everyone rushed to make her feel at ease. For Nisa, who is from Indonesia, the opportunity to let her voice be heard helps boost her confidence in public speaking, and she credits the Book Club for improving her grasp of the English language. But there’s really no pressure to talk—you can always use the chat box to introduce yourself and share your rating of the book if that feels more comfortable.
Throughout our conversations, we also get the opportunity to reveal tidbits about our cultures, which makes things even more interesting. Dara shares, “The book club has given me friends from all over the world, which gives me a sense of cultural enrichment. Discussions often lead to exploring cultural and historical contexts that expand my understanding of different people and places in the world.” The five most represented countries in the Book Club are the USA, UK, India, Canada, and Germany. So far, I’ve encountered three Filipinos.”
From time to time, the discussions level up with a special guest. In May, our book of the month was the #1 New York Times bestseller The Art Thief, and we were joined by its author, Michael Finkel. For July, we all read the internationally bestselling South Korean therapy memoir, I Want to Die But I Want to Eat Tteokbokki, and its English translator, Anton Hur, graced us with his presence. Hearing about a writer’s process never gets old for me, so it’s a treat to have these talented individuals share their backstories.
There are other Yes Fam Book Club activities that I have yet to experience. Reading Sprints are one-hour sessions where members read together in silence then share their progress. Buddy Reads discussions are a simpler variation of the Book of the Month discussion held on Discord and moderated by members instead of the admins. Every so often, there are one-off events, like the Booklympics, obviously inspired by the recent Paris games.
Last month, they held “Cook the Book,” where members cooked together virtually. I’m guessing the idea for this came about after Jhuma shared a photo of a dish he prepared in the group chat. Guess what it was? The Filipino Tortang Talong! He said he saw a video calling it the best egg dish, so he gave it a shot to find out for himself. Other members got curious and experimented in the kitchen too. Spicky from the UK, Maartje from the Netherlands, and Erica from Italy all said their tortang talong turned out yummy. Yay!
The group chat is rarely silent. I only started being active there relatively recently, when I finally decided that it doesn’t matter even if my age is higher than the combined ages of any two randomly chosen members. I have never encountered anyone who ever made an issue about age, race, or gender, so why should I be so concerned? What matters is that I am enjoying. Besides, Jhuma assured me that there are members as old as 64.
“Our motto is to bring strangers together through books, any stranger is welcome. Now we are having a lot of people who are not Yes Fam members joining our club,” revealed Jhuma. “It makes me happy knowing all the book people who are having a good time, who are connecting with the books, who are coming to the discussions and chatting, I feel like I had to do with that so it feels nice. It feels very gratifying that I am a part of something that affects a lot of people,” he continued.
I’m sure the Yes Fam Book Club will touch so many more in the coming years. “I hope the book club continues to be a welcoming and open community that creates a safe space. We all feel able to talk about our feelings and opinions using books as the start of that conversation,” expressed Ava. “People should join Yes Fam Book Club because they can find community and connection. It’s fun to share your interests and passions with others and feel like you have people to talk with about subjects. It also keeps you accountable for reaching your reading goals and motive you to finish. It’s a great way to blend intellectual engagement and social interactions. And honestly, it’s just plain fun,” encouraged Dara.
All images are from Yes Fam Book Club unless specified otherwise.
Featured image art is by Netherlands-based illustrator, Mary Sue. Look up @marysue.art on Instagram for more of her creations.