Whether you personally love it or hate it, the Wuthering Heights movie is getting people who don't normally talk about books, talking about books. And in fact, it is more than just talking about books, people are debating and discussing a book (and not just the adaptation) in spaces where you don't always see book conversation.
In other words, book discussions of this book are the hot topic of the moment in a wide audience. And here's where we need to pay attention, this attention is making book discussions in general a popular topic as well.
This recent article from PW talks about this phenomenon.
Now in relation to all of us, pay attention to what I am about to say...We need to seize this moment.
Again, I do not care what you think of the movie or of the motives as to who is reading this book. What matters is that people want to read more classics because of this movie. And they want to talk about them. And once they start reading one classic, they will look to others (the PW article mentions that as well). And who has more classics....us!
Once readers start enjoying the classics, they will be drawn to retellings by today's authors. And that leads to reading books that are readalikes for said classics, and before you know it, these readers start a regular book habit.
I want to remind you of this study which I posted about here where they found that people are trying to make a habit of reading in large numbers. It is already happening. The Wuthering Heights viral moment we are in was primed to happen already. This is not surprising to me, nor should it be to you if you follow RA for All. This is something we have been building to. You can see more about this in my 2025 Year in Review program as well (see my predictions for 2026).
And when reading becomes a habit, it gets too expensive to feed it all the books they want to read, leading people to use the library to borrow the books they have pre-paid for with their taxes.
Look, not everyone who is obsessed with this viral Wuthering Heights moment will become a library user, but you don't need everyone. You need a small fraction. But you have to do something. You cannot just wait for them to come on their own.
I cannot stress enough how important it is for you to take advantage of this moment. But how?
Well, first things first, throw together a quick Wuthering Heights book discussion. Make it in person, offer a zoom option, and run a slow book club through social media. Do not let other places (social media influencers, bars, book stores, etc...) take this away from us. Promote the book discussions you already offer as well.
If this option viable for your library (I get it, especially if you are small and/or understaffed). Offer a program where people who love the movie or the book can come to gather and talk to each other. Offer food. Moderate conversations. Steer it toward readalike options. Have carts of books in the room for them to browse. And feel people out about starting a book club.
You should also throw up a quick classics book display. You can use this recent post from Goodreads to help you expand your definition of classic. Again, you get people in to read more classics and they will come back for other books. We are playing the long game at the Library. You come for 1 book, you like it, you return it and grab another. Then you come back and maybe grab 2. And every time you come, you grad another book. It becomes an affordable and enjoyable habit that becomes part of your regular routine. And before you know it, you have a regular patron. Now if they tell a friend it repeats. There is compound interest of new users to be be built off of this moment. Again, DO NOT MISS OUT.
My final advice is something I post about constantly. Use the Wuthering Heights buzz to make a conversation starter to display. What are your questions to here in order to build a useful display? I would go with a few and see which ones capture your patrons.
I would begin with the most specific. What other classics would you love to see remade into a film ala Wuthering Heights?
But you can expand it out to be about people's favorite books to movies. I would save this for post-Oscars and the release of Project Hail Mary. (March 20).
See if people reply. You should ask in the building, with a book mark in every book on the holds shelf, and in your online spaces. Click here to read more about how to make this happen.
To end this post, I know what I am saying can be a bit overwhelming to many of you. I understand. But to be clear, I do NOT want you to do all of these things. I want to offer as many examples as possible for how you can seize this moment-- when a book (and not just its movie adaptation) is being discussed across many spaces (especially ones that are not only about books). Maybe none of the things I offer work for you. And that is fine. But I hope you have been inspired to do something.
Again, Project Hail Mary is right around the corner. And that book is already a viral and critical fav. We can build from Brontë to Weir-- a statement I could not have predicted but an opportunity not to miss.
Just do something. That is all I am asking. Reel those readers in to the library, where they will become part of your reader community.
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