Guide
How can a book club agree on the next book?
Put a short list of books in a poll, have everyone answer yes or no to each one privately, then rank only the books everyone said yes to. A ranked-choice count turns that into one winner. If nobody agrees on anything, give the most liked books a second look before anyone argues. SortBridge does each of these steps for you.
Most book clubs pick the next book one of three ways: the host decides, the keenest member decides, or a group chat decides by exhaustion. All three leave someone reading a book they did not want. A fair process is not complicated. It just needs everyone to answer before they see what the others said.
How do you build a shortlist?
Keep it to five to eight books. Pull them from what members have been recommending; in SortBridge that is your books list, built from the BookTok videos, Bookstagram reels and threads you saved (see turning BookTok into a reading list). You can also search the catalogue to add a book nobody has saved. Then set when voting closes, so the poll does not drift into next month.
How does the vote work?
- Swipe. Every member goes through the books one at a time and says yes or no. Each card has the book's description.
- Shortlist. The books every voter said yes to go through. If there is exactly one, that is your next book.
- Rank. If several go through, everyone puts them in order and ranked choice picks the winner, with a runner-up for next time.
Why vote privately?
Because people change their answer once they know the room. If the organiser's favourite is clearly winning, the quieter members go along with it and then do not finish the book. In a SortBridge poll, nobody sees anybody's answers while swiping, only how far each person has got. Afterwards the app shows totals like "3 of 5 liked this", never who voted for what.
What happens when nobody agrees?
With five readers and seven books, it is common for no book to get a yes from everyone. SortBridge then runs a second chance: the most liked books go round again, and each member sees only the ones they said no to, with a line like "4 of 5 liked this. Would you go along with it?"
That is usually enough. A book you would not have picked is often one you are happy to read when you can see most of the club wants it. If one book is now common, it wins; if several are, you rank them. If still nothing is, the most liked book wins as "the closest you got", and the organiser can turn that down and add more books instead. Earlier answers stand, so only the new books need answering.
What about ties?
The count first drops whichever tied book was ranked lower overall. If two are still exactly level, the poll tosses a coin that comes out the same for everyone, and tells you that is what happened.
Does it work for films too?
Yes. The same poll works for a film night or a series to start together: see swiping to pick a movie together, or how group choice works.
Questions
How many books should go on the shortlist?
Fewer than you think. Five to eight is plenty for one meeting: enough that most people will like something, few enough that everyone finishes swiping. A poll needs at least two.
Does the person who made the poll get extra say?
No. Their swipes and their ranking count the same as everyone else's. What they can do is move the poll on if someone has stopped answering, and add more books if nothing was common.
Can members see who voted against their suggestion?
No. SortBridge shows how far each person has got and, once swiping ends, counts such as "3 of 5 liked this". It never shows who said yes or no to a particular book.
What if someone joins after everyone has swiped?
They can see the poll, but they have no answers, so they do not count as a voter for that round.
Try it on your own list.
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