Introverts welcome at this audiobook walking club in L.A.

It’s a cloudy, grey greeting successful Hermosa Beach. Surfers look retired toward the pale, sparkling horizon. Pearly clouds stitchery implicit the water successful the distance, a presumption that evokes the moody landscapes of Virginia Woolf’s novels.

A fewer blocks inland, the vibes are little pensive, much effusive astatine the Fleuria — Los Angeles’ archetypal romance publication truck. Crowded astir the mobile bookstore, Alaina Lester is proclaiming her passionateness for romance novels to chap publication enthusiasts. She’s praising “Love And Other Conspiracies” by Mallory Marlowe. Her income transportation hinges connected the heartthrob protagonist: “He’s similar a blistery conspiracy theorist. If determination adjacent is specified a thing.”

This Sunday morning, a radical of publication lovers — astir 90 of them — assembled successful a parking batch for the Fleuria Audiobook Walking Club, a monthly lawsuit organized by proprietor Stephanie Pao. The lawsuit is akin to a soundless disco for readers. Audiobook enthusiasts convene for java and speech earlier walking alongside the beach, listening to their audiobooks, and sharing endorsements arsenic they go. They don’t each work the aforesaid books, but it doesn’t matter.

On this Sunday successful September, astir 90 radical showed up to locomotion on the formation and perceive to audiobooks together, mostly romance titles.

(Carlin Stiehl / Los Angeles Times)

Suddenly, the clouds thin. After an hour-long soundless beachside walk, the assemblage peels disconnected their noise-cancelling headphones and breaks into lively chatter. Sweatshirts and hats show slogans similar “Hot Girls Read” and “Banned Books Lover.” One attendee, Kaley Robinson, was listening to “The Briar Club” by Kate Quinn. She describes it arsenic “about McCarthyism and the Red Scare. It’s a small spot of a execution enigma too.”

Over the past 2 decades, audiobooks person experienced a surge successful popularity, which has been heightened successful caller years by the pandemic and audio streaming services. In tandem, audiobook walking clubs person popped up crossed the state from Washington, D.C., to Tennessee. Pao initiated the L.A.-area gathering aft stumbling upon audiobook walks connected TikTok. “I saw different bookstore doing thing akin successful Florida.”

Kaley Robinson holds a hard transcript of “The Briar Club” by Kate Quinn portion listening to the rubric connected her phone.

(Carlin Stiehl / Los Angeles Times)

Pao had debased expectations erstwhile starting the event, but lone 3 months in, it has go wildly fashionable — attendance astir doubling each month. “I genuinely thought it would beryllium maine and 5 people. I was amazed by however galore radical privation assemblage wrong the publication space,” says Pao.

Pao explains that the entreaty of the audiobook walking nine lies successful the operation of socializing and exercise, particularly against the picturesque backdrop of Hermosa Beach. “We’re getting exercise, but besides being capable to chitchat afterwards and conscionable much publication lovers.”

Because Fleuria is simply a romance publication truck, attendees of the lawsuit are mostly voracious romance readers, a genre that has received renewed involvement successful caller years, Pao says. “It has been the best-selling genre for galore decades. Now, what’s antithetic is radical are much actively speaking astir it.”

Stephanie Pao sits wrong her romance publication truck, the Fleuria.

(Carlin Stiehl / Los Angeles Times)

Romance books are adjacent much fashionable aft the pandemic, says Fleuria proprietor Stephanie Pao.

(Carlin Stiehl / Los Angeles Times)

“A halfway tenet of romance is that determination is simply a happily ever after,” argues Pao. Precarious and uncertain times marque emotion stories adjacent much seductive. “During the pandemic years, it was bully to cognize what you’re speechmaking would person a happily ever after. It’s an flight for radical present too.”

While the pandemic prompted a renewed involvement successful literature, readers person turned to in-person literate events to physique assemblage successful the years since. “Social media has helped propulsion radical backmost into reading,” explains Pao. “I emotion that, due to the fact that I’ve been a lifelong reader, truthful I’m excited to assistance get radical speechmaking more.”

Shyness is invited astatine the audiobook walking club, Pao notes. There’s nary unit to marque pithy and profound comments. “You tin beryllium much introverted. It’s not needfully conscionable discussing a publication oregon having thoughts connected a book; it’s much astir being unfastened to talking to different publication lovers,” adds Pao.

In a civilization wherever Amazon dominates the publishing industry, Pao hopes her audiobook walking nine volition marque literate conversations much personal. “When you’re astatine Target oregon connected Amazon, you’re not interacting with anybody and chitchatting astir books oregon getting recommendations. I deliberation radical are craving that a lot.”

Andrea Hernandez listens to “Scythe & Sparrow” by Brynne Weaver. She’s decorated her headphones with a Fleuria Audiobook Walking Club sticker.

(Carlin Stiehl / Los Angeles Times)

One of the attendees, Kelly Hernandez, is simply a caller instrumentality of audiobooks. “I personally emotion them. It’s a large mode to get your speechmaking successful adjacent if you’re busy,” explains Hernandez. The audiobook walks person allowed her to enslaved with the speechmaking community. “It’s honestly truly relaxing. It’s a mode to conscionable different like-minded radical who stock the aforesaid passionateness for books.”

While women chiefly be the walks, Pao jokes that the occasional antheral appears. On this Sunday, a babe successful a stroller and a canine joined the outing.

Stephanie Pao takes a photograph of her ecstatic publication nine members connected foot.

(Carlin Stiehl / Los Angeles Times)

Walking alongside the beach, Brittany Brown and Tatiana Espy, 2 champion friends, explicate that they are connected a wellness and fittingness journey, which led them to the audiobook walking club. “It’s a bully collaboration of bringing like-minded folks who privation to instrumentality vantage of the wellness aspect, moving your caput and your assemblage astatine the aforesaid time,” says Espy.

Brown and Espy accidental the assemblage element, trading publication titles, is what keeps them returning. “The archetypal happening we noticed was however benignant and inviting everybody was. I consciousness similar that’s a reflection of Stephanie. That’s the vigor that she brings,” says Brown.

As the audiobook walks proceed to summation popularity, Pao looks guardant to connecting the literate assemblage successful caller ways. In October, Hermosa Beach section and debut novelist Lauren Okie volition beryllium joining the audiobook walking club. Her debut novel, “The Best Worst Thing,” is acceptable successful Hermosa Beach, and the radical volition hike the tree-lined trails elaborate successful the book.

“I’m genuinely conscionable amazed by however galore radical privation to bash this together. People thrust from Lake Arrowhead conscionable to bash this. That makes maine truthful excited,” says Pao.

The adjacent Fleuria Audiobook Walking Club will instrumentality spot connected Oct. 19 astatine 9:30 a.m. astatine the Yellow Jersey Pattisserie successful Hermosa Beach.