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Steamboat Springs — In compiling an invitation list for the inaugural Book Club Bash, event organizer Jennie Lay found Yampa Valley book clubs for couples, book clubs for men, book clubs for women who drink wine and book clubs for spirituality.

“There are so many different themes and formats and great reading lists out there among all these book clubs that we wanted to give book clubs an opportunity and a forum to share ideas and what they’re doing and glean ideas from other book clubs,” said Lay, adult programs coordinator for Bud Werner Memorial Library.

At 7 p.m. Thursday, the Book Club Bash will offer local book clubs and interested readers a chance to share their ideas and get recommendations for the year. The free event is in Library Hall at Bud Werner Memorial Library. There will be book and book-related giveaways, cake and free tea from The Deep Steep Tea Co.

Epilogue Book Co. owner Erica Fogue said interested readers will gain “insider knowledge” along with recommendations from booksellers and librarians.

“We all know what book clubs have read, what has been successful and what has not because we get feedback all the time,” Fogue said.

Book club members will give presentations about what they’ve liked and disliked, reads that have sparked discussion and what they’re reading next. Fogue and staff from Epilogue, “super librarian” Michelle Dover and library staff will be on hand to give recommendations for book club picks in 2010.

Many book clubs choose what they’ll read for the next year in December, so Book Bash organizers hope to get as many new ideas to readers as they can before the end of the year, Fogue and Lay said.

“Hopefully, book clubs will come to this event and walk away with a bunch of great ideas for reading lists, discussion ideas and ways to grow and expand what they’re already doing and make the book club experience better for everybody,” Lay said.

Lay also plans to announce the three authors signed on for the 2010 Literary Sojourn. Scheduled for Oct. 2, Literary Sojourn typically brings five internationally recognized authors and about 500 book lovers together to discuss literary topics.

“It’s a pretty exciting ann­ouncement. There’s good reading on the horizon this year,” Lay said.