The Mission
Welcome to Trent’s Book Club! Each month, we read a book and then come to this book club to (1) discuss the book and (2) to hang out with friends. All are welcome.
Attendees of the book club can generally be classified into four categories:
- The scholar has thoroughly read the book and wants to have an in-depth discussion about their opinions and analyses.
- The student has read enough of the book to understand the general idea and wants to have a broad discussion.
- The busybody couldn’t find the time to read the book, but really wanted to. They’ve read the sparknotes and want to learn more about what happened in the book.
- The homie just wants to hang out and enjoy the vibes.
We all strive to be the scholar, but sometimes we can’t quite get there. That’s ok. Consider which category you fall into before each meeting and be respectful of those in other categories. Meetings will prioritize discussion of the book, but other topics are welcome.
Book Selection
“One can never read too little of bad, or too much of good books: bad books are intellectual poison; they destroy the mind. In order to read what is good one must make it a condition never to read what is bad; for life is short, and both time and strength limited.” - Arthur Schopenhauer
There is one rule for book selection: the book must be good. As Arthur said, nobody wants to spend their time slogging through a bad book. Sometimes it’s hard to tell if a book is bad ahead of time, but we try our best. Books will be selected based on member suggestions and discussion at each meeting. Here’s what we’ve read so far:
| Date | Author | Title | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| 07/03/2023 | Van Pelt, Shelby | Remarkably Bright Creatures | 2022 |
| 08/04/2023 | Ishiguro, Kazuo | Never Let Me Go | 2005 |
| 09/08/2023 | Whitehead, Colson | The Underground Railroad | 2016 |
| 10/03/2023 | Cain, James M. | The Postman Always Rings Twice | 1934 |
| 11/03/2023 | Moshfegh, Ottessa | My Year of Rest and Relaxation | 2018 |
| 12/12/2023 | Saunders, George | Lincoln in the Bardo | 2017 |
| 02/02/2024 | Brown, Daniel J. | The Boys in the Boat | 2013 |
| 03/23/2024 | Kundera, Milan | The Unbearable Lightness of Being | 1984 |
| 06/07/2024 | El-Mohtar, Amal and Gladstone, Max | This Is How You Lose the Time War | 2020 |
| 07/10/2024 | Shafak, Elif | 10 Minutes 38 Seconds in this Strange World | 2019 |
| 08/27/2024 | Diaz, Junot | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao | 2007 |
| 10/19/2024 | Tokarczuk, Olga | Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead | 2009 |
Meeting Schedule
The group aims to meets monthly - the exact date is specified before each meeting. We meet at varying places in the Seattle area and are always looking for hosts!
Contact and Updates
Book club information is disseminated by email and text message. To join, send Trent your name, phone number, and email address via text or email.
Trent’s Personal Favorites
I like to read other books too. Here are some of my personal favorites:
| Author | Title | Year |
|---|---|---|
| Calvino, Italo | Invisible Cities | 1972 |
| Egan, Jennifer | A Visit from the Goon Squad | 2010 |
| Garcia Marquez, Gabriel | One Hundred Years of Solitude | 1967 |
| Hesse, Herman | The Glass Bead Game | 1943 |
| Murakami, Haruki | Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World | 1985 |
| Murakami, Haruki | Kafka on the Shore | 2002 |
| Nabokov, Vladimir | Pale Fire | 1962 |
| Saunders, George | CivilWarLand in Bad Decline | 1996 |