Book Clubs Los Angeles

Los Angeles Rapid Dating for Young Professionals on Zoom

**Updated schedule: we have moved the start to 2:00 PM on October 4.** Private virtual meetings with residents of Los Angeles. [Register Below](https://juniper-7e665.theliveround.com/product?productId=658.0&productType=onlineSpeedDating&city=Los%20Angeles&groupurlname=level-up-your-esports-skills-together&face_v=7.0)

Los Angeles Mastering the Art of Civil Discourse

We are getting together to practice the art of civil discourse in a world that often feels like it has forgotten how to talk through disagreements. If you have ever felt frustrated by how polarized public conversations have become or want to sharpen your ability to listen and share ideas without things devolving into shouting matches, this is the place for you. We aim to create a space where we can explore complex topics with curiosity rather than a desire to win. The session will involve structured discussions where we focus on empathy, clarity, and genuine inquiry. It is not about changing minds or debating for the sake of being right; it is about learning how to stay present and respectful even when we strongly disagree. Whether you consider yourself naturally agreeable or someone who enjoys a spirited challenge, your voice would be a welcome addition to the room. If you are interested in spending an evening with others who value thoughtful exchange, please go ahead and RSVP so we can get an accurate headcount for the space. We look forward to seeing you there.

October Discussion: The Vegetarian by Han Kang

Our October Book Has Been Chosen! 📚 Thanks to everyone who voted! Our next Books & Brew read is: **The Vegetarian — Han Kang** Grab a copy, start reading, and join us for a great conversation! **About the Book:** After a series of disturbing dreams, Yeong-hye makes the seemingly simple decision to stop eating meat. But as her family reacts with increasing confusion, anger, and attempts to control her, that decision becomes the beginning of a much more profound transformation. Told through the perspectives of those around Yeong-hye, The Vegetarian explores autonomy, desire, conformity, violence, and the ways we understand—or fail to understand—the people closest to us. Originally published in Korean and translated by Deborah Smith, Han Kang’s unsettling novel won the 2016 International Booker Prize and invites plenty of questions about identity, choice, and what happens when someone refuses to live according to the expectations placed upon them.

📚 NOT OUR FIRST RODEO: BOOK CLUB

The Tusk That Did The Damage by Tania James

Orphaned by poachers as a calf and sold into a life of labor and exhibition, the Gravedigger breaks free of his chains and begins terrorizing the countryside, earning his name from the humans he kills and then tenderly buries. Manu, the studious younger son of a rice farmer, loses his cousin to the Gravedigger’s violence and is drawn, with his wayward brother Jayan, into the sordid, alluring world of poaching. Emma is a young American working on a documentary with her college best friend, who witnesses the porous boundary between conservation and corruption and finds herself in her own moral gray a risky affair with the veterinarian who is the film’s subject. As the novel hurtles toward its climax, these three storylines fuse into a wrenching meditation on love and betrayal, duty and loyalty, and the vexed relationship between man and nature. We read this book in the early days of the book club and it has always stayed with me, therefore I want to revisit again with all the new people that have made this book club a part of their reading life.

Los Angeles Global Palates: Mentors and Flavors

We are getting together for another installment of Los Angeles Global Palates, where we combine the best of local food culture with meaningful conversation. This is a chance for those of us who are passionate about international cuisine to pull up a chair, share a great meal, and connect with others who have spent years navigating the food industry. Whether you are looking for career advice or just want to hear a few stories from the kitchen, this evening is all about learning from one another in an informal, welcoming setting. This event is for anyone in our community who appreciates a good meal and the people behind it. We will be keeping the group size intimate so that everyone has a chance to participate in the conversation rather than just talking over the noise of a crowded room. If you are interested in food, mentorship, or just meeting some like-minded neighbors in the city, we would love to have you join us. We have limited space for this dinner, so please take a moment to RSVP if you think you can make it. We look forward to seeing some familiar faces and meeting a few new ones. Places are limited, so registration is required — please sign up at the link below before you come along. **[Head here to secure your place now](https://tally.so/r/A7ko0D?event=92955617641506131848)**

My Husband's Wife by Alice Feeney (and cookie exchange)

**Goodreads Summary of My Husband's Wife:** Eden Fox, an artist on the brink of her big break, sets off for a run before her first exhibition. When she returns to the home she recently moved into, Spyglass, an enchanting old house in Hope Falls, nothing is as it should be. Her key doesn’t fit. A woman, eerily similar to her, answers the door. And her husband insists that the stranger is his wife. **One house. One husband. Two women. Someone is lying.** Six months earlier, a reclusive Londoner called Birdy, reeling from a life-changing diagnosis, inherits Spyglass. This unexpected gift from a long-lost grandmother brings her to the pretty seaside village of Hope Falls. But then Birdy stumbles upon a shadowy London clinic that claims to be able to predict a person's date of death, including her own. Secrets start to unravel, and as the line between truth and lies blurs, Birdy feels compelled to right some old wrongs.

Solenoid by Mircea Cărtărescu

WHAT WE'RE READING: Solenoid by Mircea Cărtărescu WHAT IT IS ABOUT: "Based on Cartarescu's own role as a high school teacher, Solenoid begins with the mundane details of a diarist's life and quickly spirals into a philosophical account of life, history, philosophy, and mathematics. One character asks another: when you rush into the burning building, will you save the newborn or the artwork? On a broad scale, the novel's investigations of other universes, dimensions, and timelines reconcile the realms of life and art. The novel is grounded in the reality of late 1970s/early 1980s Communist Romania, including long lines for groceries, the absurdities of the education system, and the misery of family life. The text includes sequences in a tuberculosis sanatorium, an encounter with an anti-death protest movement, a society of dream investigators, and an extended visit to the miniscule world of dust mites living on a microscope slide. Combining fiction with autobiography and history, Solenoid ruminates on the exchanges possible between the alternate dimensions of life and art, as various, monstrous dimensions erupt within the Communist present." WHERE WE'RE MEETING: 4100 Bar in Silver Lake A NOTE ON PARKING: Street parking should be more readily accessible on Sunset Blvd to the west of the meet-up location. A NOTE ON THE MEET-UP SEATING LOCATION: Meet-ups are generally held on the bar terrace, if sufficient seating is available. Please dress warmly in the event of cool evening weather! A NOTE ON RSVPING: If your name is on the attendee list for a scheduled meet-up and you no longer plan on attending the event, please remove your name from the attendee list at least a week before the scheduled event to allow individuals on the waitlist sufficient time to read the book beforehand (no worries if a cancellation has to be last-minute, though!). Happy reading! Colin

Book Club Meeting: Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

Happy Anniversary, Mocha Girls! ☕️🤎 Join the **Mocha Girls Read Los Angeles Chapter** as we celebrate another year of reading, friendship, fellowship, and community together. 📅 **Saturday, October 3, 2026** ⏰ **1:30 PM** 📍 **Lore Bookstore** Our September Monthly Book Selection is ***[Mexican Gothic](https://link.amazon/B09WaUZTJ)***[ by Silvia Moreno-Garcia.](https://link.amazon/B09WaUZTJ) ### 📖 About the Book After receiving a disturbing letter from her newlywed cousin asking for help, glamorous socialite **Noemí Taboada** travels to High Place, an isolated mansion in the Mexican countryside. When she arrives, Noemí finds her cousin frightened and unwell, surrounded by her mysterious new husband and his unsettling family. High Place itself seems to hold secrets of its own. Noemí may seem like an unlikely investigator, but she is intelligent, determined, and not easily intimidated. As she begins asking questions and uncovering the history of the house and its inhabitants, she realizes there may be something far more dangerous happening than she first imagined. Filled with Gothic horror, family secrets, mystery, history, and an unforgettable Latina main character, ***Mexican Gothic*** gives us plenty to discuss as we continue our 2026 **AROUND THE WORLD** reading journey. And remember, **you don't need to read the book to join us.** Come for the conversation, meet your fellow Mocha Girls, and enjoy an afternoon of books, friendship, and community. ### 🎉 We Are Celebrating Our 15th Anniversary! This meeting is extra special because **it is our 15th anniversary!** To celebrate and thank our Mocha Girls for being part of this community, **everyone who attends will receive a special anniversary gift.** 🎁🤎 Whether this is your first meeting or you have been part of Mocha Girls Read for years, we would love to celebrate with you. **Please RSVP so we know you are coming.**

[Book + Movie] HORROR BOOK CLUB (October): “Verity”

"I See You've Called In Dead" by John Kenney: Book TBD

**\*\*\*NOTE: We have changed the date for this event, to October 17th\*\*\*** **LOCATION:** Marla's House! Address will be emailed and posted the Friday before! (South Redondo Beach) **WHAT WE'RE READING:** *The Office meets Six Feet Under meets About a Boy in this coming-of-middle-age tale about having a second chance to write your life’s story.* Bud Stanley is an obituary writer who is afraid to live. Yes, his wife recently left him for a “far more interesting” man. Yes, he goes on a particularly awful blind date with a woman who brings her ex. And yes, he has too many glasses of Scotch one night and proceeds to pen and publish his own obituary. The newspaper wants to fire him. But now the company’s system has him listed as dead. And the company can’t fire a dead person. The ensuing fallout forces him to realize that life may be actually worth living. As Bud awaits his fate at work, his life hangs in the balance. Given another shot by his boss and encouraged by his best friend, Tim, a worldly and wise former art dealer, Bud starts to attend the wakes and funerals of strangers to learn how to live. Thurber Prize-winner and *New York Times* bestselling author John Kenney tells a funny, touching story about life and death, about the search for meaning, about finding and never letting go of the preciousness of life. **NO SHOW POLICY:** In April 2019, a new NO SHOW POLICY was put into place to help ensure people on the waitlist can get into each meeting with enough time to read the book while also weeding out flakey flakers who reserve a seat but don't use it. The new NO SHOW POLICY is in two parts: (1) If you RSVP 'Going' and cancel your RSVP within seven days of book club WITHOUT EXPLANATION, you'll be immediately removed from the group. (2) If you RSVP 'Going' and cancel your RSVP within seven days of book club with explanation, but for any reason, you'll be marked a 'No Show.' If you rack up three 'No Shows," you'll be removed from the group.

Thank You, John by Michelle Gurule IN PERSON at Aroma Cafe