Book Swaps Los Angeles

Holiday Potluck and Book Exchange!

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

A Wound That Will Not Heal by Eric Beetner

Book 3 of 3: A Carter McCoy novel. Author will be present. Trilogy conclusion. No LAPL hard copies but available on Hoopla and for purchase @ Bookshop.org,, Amazon, etc. inc. Kindle and paperback. Our host Erik Grady will lead discussion as Peg is out of town. Carter McCoy is on borrowed time. The only thing that could get him to hit the road is a call for help from a friend. When that call comes in, he doesn't hesitate. Loading his dog Chester and his best friend, Ivana, into his truck, they head for California to help in a way only Carter can. Bree and Katie's idyllic life is shattered when a homegrown evil begins terrorizing their new home. They need the help of the man who got them out of the worst situation of their lives before. They need Carter McCoy. Carter must face down a gang of men emboldened by a culture of hate and intolerance to rescue innocent people being snatched from the streets. When someone close to him gets caught up in their illegal and immoral mission, the man they need to fear most is the one with the least to lose. Once again, Carter McCoy stands up for the innocent and the helpless. Once again, he faces the ticking clock on his own mortality. This is his last stand for justice. His last chance at redemption. His last few miles of road. It's time for the thrilling conclusion to the Carter McCoy saga.

Brotherless Night by V. V. Ganeshananthan at Aroma Cafe

We are moving to Heylo.group

This book club was founded in November 2008 right here on Meetup. So many things have changed since then and yet we are still Adults Who Read Young Adult. One of the things that has changed is Meetup itself. It now costs over $350 a year to host this group on Meetup. To be clear: that is NOT what Panera Bread is charging us (Panera Bread doesn't charge us). That is what Meetup charges us. Because of the costs as well as the fact that we're not getting new people through Meetup, we have decided to move platforms to Heylo -- a free group platform. We will now be at [http://heylo.group/adults-who-read-young-adult](http://heylo.group/adults-who-read-young-adult) And we will be shutting down this Meetup. That will be the only thing changing. Still at Panera Bread, 12131 Ventura Blvd, still once-a-month on Sunday, etc. We hope you all join us on November 22. [Please go over to Heylo to see the details](https://www.heylo.com/events/20d2891d-046c-4748-b050-8891e8a94c26/-P2-xpCQQygcDMPc9tmA).

These Savage Shores by Ram V - Graphic Novel

Two centuries after the first European ship sailed to the Malabar Coast and made landfall at Calicut, the East India Company seeks to secure its future along the lucrative Silk Route, in the year 1766. An old evil now sails aboard a company ship, hoping to make a home in this new found land. But he will soon find that the ground along the Indus is an ancient one with daemons and legends far older than himself. Along These Savage Shores, where the days are scorched and the nights are full of teeth. This is going to be a change of pace for us, this will be the first graphic novel we have read and shared together for the book club. If you utilize Hoopla it should give you unlimited copies through the Los Angeles County Library or whatever library system you are part of just use your library card. Of course you can find it on Kindle or call you local comic book store and they should have a copy of it for purchase. If you have any troubles getting a hold of it please let me know.

Book Club Meeting: The Color Line by Igiaba Scego

**Happy November, Mocha Girls! ☕🤎** Join the **Mocha Girls Read Los Angeles Chapter** for an afternoon of reading, friendship, fellowship, and community. 📅 **Saturday, November 7, 2026** ⏰ **1:30 PM** 📍 **Lore Bookstore** Our October Monthly Book Selection is *[The Color Line](https://link.amazon/B01y48eRX)*[ by Igiaba Scego.](https://link.amazon/B01y48eRX) ### 📖 About the Book Inspired by true events, this gorgeous, haunting novel intertwines the lives of two Black female artists more than a century apart, both outsiders in Italy. It was the middle of the nineteenth century when Lafanu Brown audaciously decided to become an artist. In the wake of the American Civil War, life was especially tough for Black women, but she did not let that stop her. The daughter of a Native American woman and an African Haitian man, Lafanu had the rare opportunity to study, travel, and follow her dreams, thanks to her indomitable spirit, but not without facing intolerance and violence. In 2019, an Italian art curator of Somali origin is desperately trying to bring her sixteen-year-old cousin to Europe after she has already attempted the long, treacherous journey to Italy. While organizing an exhibition combining the paintings of Lafanu Brown with artwork created by young migrants, the curator becomes increasingly obsessed with Lafanu's life and secrets. Weaving together these two vibrant voices, Igiaba Scego offers a powerful exploration of what it means to be “other,” to be a woman, and particularly a Black woman in a foreign country, yesterday and today. As our 2026 **AROUND THE WORLD** reading journey continues, *[The Color Line](https://link.amazon/B01y48eRX)* takes us to Italy for our October theme, **IT HAPPENED IN ITALY**. 🇮🇹 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. **Please RSVP so we know you are coming.**

Korean-English Language Exchange

Let's Chat In Spanish and English!

This is a conversational meeting for both English speakers and Spanish speakers. We'll be conversing in Spanish half of the time, and English for the other half. All levels welcome! We will meet on the second floor of the Farmers Market. After you park in the open parking lot, look for the OLD GAS STATION STAND (yellow and red). It's not too far from the big clock. Go INTO the market area - behind the gas stand, and immediately turn left. There will be stairs to the second floor on your left. If you get lost, ask someone how you can get to the second floor near the Brazilian food stand. PARKING: The outside parking lot is free for ninety minutes if you get your ticket validated by purchasing anything at the Farmer's Market, including The Coffee Bean and World Market. \*If you park in the building near the market, you can NOT get your ticket validated. And don't park in the Whole Foods' lot because you could get towed. \*Parking is free for 90 minutes. It's $3.00 for the first fifteen minutes after that, plus another $1.00 for every 15 minutes afterwards.

Wild Dark Shore by Charlotte McConaghy

LWS November Book Club: 'EXIT PARTY' by Emily St. John Mandel

It's time for November Book Club and in preparation for holiday gatherings our theme for November is DINNER PARTY! **'Exit Party' by Emily St. John Mandel** Los Angeles, 2031: The first spring after the collapse of the United States, peacekeeping troops withdraw from the city, the Jacaranda trees blossom, and the curfew is finally lifted. Ari Waker and her roommate pass the gauntlet of bomb-sniffing dogs, the shanty towns, and the Red Cross tents as they walk across Silverlake to a party. The mood is ecstatic inside the apartment, people drink and dance, a woman wears a silver dress, pleated like tinfoil. And then: A shift. A bewildered twin, an uncanny doppelganger stumbles through the crowd and out into the night, and Kareem, the party’s host, vanishes into thin air. As Ari Waker unravels the mystery of this inexplicable night, Emily St. John Mandel unfurls a story that takes us from a future America splintered by civil war to the seaside cliffs of Greece where weapons dealers hide in an elegant resort, and from the domed city of Paris to a colony on the moon. A novel about the price of safety, the perils of the surveillance state, a requiem for a world not unlike our own, and a breathtaking story of resilience in the face of cataclysmic change. **[Amazon Link](https://www.amazon.com/Exit-Party-Emily-John-Mandel/dp/0593321464/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&dib_tag=se&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.g46OqYGzrwN9s2UhY802ZGHZzGgyX4yK7GwG_6c6-xe6Bl98zGn45IcSak7i59fjgQML_q14SUkBCoWn2qGy1GbLYhOjF6fdwcvKMqGos9EJEcS_uQpX9mJ_XHojM6NPL7OXOwa5SJQo-DM_9p16-39TLdokvVTEmxCU_Ya_3bMAj-EkljNTyLXgo5MrFWSdZ7Kl1PaiOQYJHuiEWLKuow.J8Hw1EqYahzNsEjId7bUMm9L3Va8TbItuGmuZQdRW3Q&qid=1789159983&sr=1-1)** **Location:** Augustinei Wine Bar. Check out their **[MENU!!](https://www.augustinewinebar.com/menu)**[ ](https://www.augustinewinebar.com/menu)

PLACEHOLDER: CicLAvia Pasadena

Placeholder so we don't schedule a meetup on this day.