Hodder & Stoughton launches book club with Transport for London

Hodder & Stoughton is partnering with Transport for London (TfL) to launch the TfL Book Club subscription service, offering commuters three e-books a month. 

Announced at an event launch at London Bridge station on 26th July, the service will enable customers to choose one of three curated e-books each month—including new and discounted releases—alongside access to special author content, additional discounts and sneak peeks of upcoming releases. 

Kicking off the month’s titles are BBC Radio 2 presenter  Sara Cox’s Thrown, Simon Reeve’s bestseller Step by Step and Sun Damage  by Sabine Durrant, all of which are published by Hodder & Stoughton.

“Anything that promotes reading, on the way to work or anywhere, is fantastic," Durrant told The Bookseller at the launch. "And it’s fantastic to be one of the launch writers. If you’re doing the same journey over and over again it can get quite boring, and yet if you’re lost in a book, the Tube stops whizz by and you’re there before you know it. Fewer people are on the Tube now, you can sit down - you can turn something that might be a chore into something pleasurable."

Book club members will also benefit from discounts on other Hodder & Stoughton books, as well as exclusive content. 

The monthly subscription costs £4.99 each month and gives customers one credit to redeem against a library of e-books. Each e-book will represent one of three categories, falling into crime/thriller, fiction and  non-fiction.  Many of the titles will be new releases. Customers can download their selected book each month to their phone or another device using the dedicated TfL book club app or read it online using the scheme’s website. Three new titles are added to the library on the 1st of every month. Members will have a rolling monthly subscription which they will be able to cancel at any time.

TfL staff will also be involved in the book club, and will have their own separate one too. 

Vickie Boff, Hodder & Stoughton marketing director, added: “When TfL approached us [suggesting] the possibility of a book club we were really excited because as publishers we are desperate to read that reading community. We saw a really big opportunity to promote our books, our authors and create a community for people. It’s a really positive message for reading, and it’s got a really nice energy.

"In this day and age, wifi is in nearly all the stations, and e-books seemed a really nice way to include as many people as possible. What we’ve tried to do in our choice is to feature books that have performed well digitally too. It’s very exciting."

The scheme is part of a drive to encourage customers back onto the transport network after the pandemic saw numbers fall. Julie Dixon, TfL’s customer and revenue director, said:  “Since the pandemic people are obviously starting to come back to the network, travelling into the office a few days a week. We know people like to spend their time reading, so it’s about bringing a bit of pleasure and joy to their journey." She added TfL had approached a number of publishers with the idea but found Hodder & Stoughton to be the "best match". 

Readers are encouraged to share their thoughts and reading experiences with each other as part of the TfL Book Club community by using #TfLBookClub on social media.