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Novel Conversations is a free statewide lending library. Indiana Humanities lends more than 370 titles, primarily fiction and biography, to reading and discussion groups all over Indiana, free of charge. Our selection includes poplular titles such as The Sun Also Rises, At Home in Mitford, A Girl Named Zippy, The Notebook and The Secret Life of Bees. View the Book List for a complete listing. We also have books available in several other genres, including nonfiction, mysteries, plays, poetry and young adult.
FAQs
Who can participate in Novel Conversations?
Indiana organizations such as public and school libraries, senior centers, churches, or formal or informal book clubs. Any Indiana resident can request a set of a books.
How much does it cost?
It's free, as long as books are either: shipped via the Indiana State Library’s INfo Express service (formerly known as Wheels), or picked up and returned at Indiana Humanities headquarters at 1500 N. Delaware St., Indianapolis.
What if I don't live in a library district?
Indiana Humanities is able to cover delivery costs to book clubs in unserved areas, courtesy of a special grant from the U.S. Institute of Museum and Library Services, administered by the Indiana State Library. You can place your reservations, or get more information, by contacting Nancy Conner (nconner@indianahumanities.org or 800.675.8897, ext. 128).
How do I order books?
All books must be reserved in advance. Call 317.638.1500 or 800.675.8897, ext. 128, or e-mail Nancy Conner at nconner@indianahumanities.org. We need the following information:
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The title of the book (see
the book list)
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Number of copies desired
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Date when you would like to receive them
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Date when we can expect them to be returned.
You should receive an email or phone call in response to let you know whether the books are available or not, for the date requested. Remember, Novel Conversations is first-come, first-served. To ensure availability, make your reservations as far in advance as you can. Reservations will be recorded in our database, and the books will be shipped at the appropriate date. If they do not arrive when expected, please let us know.
How long may we keep the books?
Negotiable, but typically six weeks. Many groups hand out books at one monthly meeting, then discuss and collect them at the following meeting. We prefer that you return as many books as possible by the due date, even if you do not have all the copies back yet. For example, if you borrowed 12 books and only have 10 back at the due date, go ahead and send us the 10 copies because that may be enough for us to fulfill another library’s request.
How are books added to the collection?
Quite a lot of our newer books have been donated by libraries. We have also received
special funding from the National Endowment for the Humanities and The Glick Fund, a fund of Central Indiana Community Foundation. If you'd like to receive news from Indiana Humanities, we will e-mail you about these acquisitions or with other news. Subscribe here.
Cautions, caveats, etc.:
The number of copies to be sent is not absolutely guaranteed. If another group loses a book or two, we may not be able to send the number requested although it should be reasonably close. IMPORTANT: INfo Express picks up our books for shipment only on Wednesday. Orders received too late (after 3 p.m. on Tuesday) cannot be shipped until the following Wednesday.
I want to support Novel Conversations. How can I help?
We are always looking for donations of new books (eight copies or more) or additional copies of books already in our collection. While we will gladly accept donations of any title suitable for book clubs, we maintain a wish list of titles that we especially need. If you would like to suggest new titles or have other feedback about the program, please contact Nancy. Finally, if you would like to provide financial support for the program, you can donate here.
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