Reading Clubs and Groups on BookGroup
How are the groups in my list organized on BookGroup?
The "Groups" screen has three tabs: "Active Groups", with the groups you're part of (by default, only your main groups — if you only belong to subgroups, those show up here too, so the list doesn't look empty); "Invitations & Requests", bringing together invitations you've received, pending join requests for groups you manage, and the status of requests you've sent yourself; and "Received referrals", with groups you joined through another member's referral link. On the active groups tab, you can search by group name, author, or book title, and filter by privacy, language, and tags.
What's the difference between a "Group" and a "Reading Club" on BookGroup?
A Reading Club is, in practice, a specific type of subgroup within a group — the key difference is that it's created directly (without needing a book passage or a discussion as its origin), while a regular group is the main structure (Premium owner, associated book, etc.). The "Reading Clubs" screen brings together, in one place, every club you created or are part of across all your groups, with two tabs: "Created by me" and "I'm a member". Each club shows the name of the parent group it belongs to.
How do I create a Reading Club inside a group?
Inside any group (including a subgroup), open the "Clubs" tab and tap "Create Reading Club" — any member of the group can do this, not just the owner or admins. You can also create a club from the general "Reading Clubs" screen: if you're part of more than one group, BookGroup asks "Where to create the club?" before opening the form. Unlike creating a main group, creating a reading club does not require being Premium, and you can choose to make it private with no restriction.
What is a "Discussion Subgroup" and how is it different from a Reading Club?
A Discussion Subgroup is born from an annotation, comment, or shared passage in the group's discussion, when you invite someone to debate that specific point — unlike a Reading Club, which is created directly, without depending on a source passage. When you create this type of subgroup, a debate invitation is sent to the selected person, and the subgroup only actually exists once the invitation is accepted. BookGroup notes that these debates are reserved for participants but are not 100% private: the parent group's owner has read access to all messages for moderation purposes.
How do I see a group's members on BookGroup?
Inside the group, open the "Members" tab to see the list of active participants. Tapping a member opens the relationship options for that person. If there's no one yet, BookGroup shows "No members yet".
How do I invite someone to a group on BookGroup?
Inviting someone directly is an action for the group's owner or admin: tap "Invite" inside the group and enter a username (with @) or an email — you can add several invites at once before sending. If you're a regular member (not the owner or an admin), the way to bring someone into the group is through the "Referrals" tab, copying your personal referral link and sharing it with whoever you'd like to invite.
How do I ask to join a BookGroup group I'm not part of yet?
It depends on the type of group: if it requires approval, you'll see a notice that the owner's approval is needed, an optional field to explain why you want to join, and a "Request access" button — after sending, "Request sent successfully!" appears, and while you wait, "Request sent - awaiting the group owner's approval." If the group accepts new participants automatically, you'll see a "Join group now" button that adds you right away, with no waiting.
How does a group owner on BookGroup approve or decline join requests?
On the group's access requests page, the owner or admin sees requests organized by section: direct requests to join a public group, and formal requests (with a message) typical of private groups, plus a history of approved and rejected ones. Each request has "Approve" and "Reject" (or "Decline", depending on the request type) buttons; rejecting a formal request requires writing a reason before confirming. After the decision, the requester either becomes a member (if approved) or sees the request marked as declined in their own list of sent requests.
What does it mean for a BookGroup group to be "inactive"?
An inactive group stops appearing in search and the public showcase, and new interactions are blocked — regular members simply no longer see that group in their own list. Only the group's owner or admin can activate or deactivate a group, through the management menu; for anyone else who still finds the group's page, only an "Inactive" badge shows up next to the name.
Is anti-spoiler set separately for each group on BookGroup?
No. Anti-spoiler is a single preference of yours, valid across any group or book you access — it's not something you turn on or off per individual group. The shortcut to enable or disable it appears both in the group discussion and, on smaller screens, as a quick icon near the feed, but both control the exact same preference.
How do I create a group on BookGroup, and why do I need to be Premium?
Creating a main group (not a club or subgroup) requires being a Premium user — free-plan users who try to access group creation are redirected away from that screen. In the form, you set a name (3 to 100 characters), description, privacy (private groups also require Premium), the group's language, an age rating (required), and, if the group is public, whether new participants join automatically or need manual approval. Private groups can also have paid access, with pricing options and the choice of whether to pass fees on to the buyer.
What does "administering on someone else's behalf" mean when creating a group on BookGroup?
That's delegation: a Premium user can grant another person permission to create and manage groups on their behalf. Whoever receives that permission can create a group even without being Premium, but the resulting group belongs to the person who granted the permission, not to whoever filled out the form. In this mode, BookGroup makes that explicit on screen, showing "Administering for" and "Managing groups for [name]".
How do I create a group on BookGroup already linked to a book?
Use "Create Group with Book" instead of the simple form. The first step is uploading the EPUB file (up to 50MB) — BookGroup automatically extracts the book's title, description, language, and cover to fill in the form. You're also required to declare the work's copyright status (whether it's your own, licensed, or public domain) before finishing. The remaining fields — privacy, approval, age rating, paid access — work exactly like the regular group creation form, and the same Premium (or delegation) requirement applies.
How do I leave a group on BookGroup?
The "Leave group" button is available on the "Received referrals" tab of the Groups screen, for groups you joined through a referral link. We could not confirm an equivalent, general leave button directly on a group's main page — if you joined some other way (direct invite, approved request), that tab is currently the most reliable way to leave.