Book Clubs & Reading Series
APIDA Book of the Quarter
Are you interested in talking about Asian Pacific Islander Desi American (APIDA) books and issues? Join the Asian American Studies Program and MSA for a casual book club discussion on important works of APIDA literature. Sign-ups will open at the beginning of each quarter. Contact Christine at cmunteanu@northwestern.edu for details.
Fall 2021
- Crying in H-Mart, by Michelle Zauner
From the indie rockstar of Japanese Breakfast fame, and author of the viral 2018 New Yorker essay that shares the title of this book, an unflinching, powerful memoir about growing up Korean American, losing her mother, and forging her own identity.
- Discussion Date: Tuesday, November 2 from 5 - 6:30 PM (Hybrid)
Winter 2022
- Afterparties, by Anthony Veasna So
A vibrant story collection about Cambodian-American life—immersive and comic, yet unsparing—that offers profound insight into the intimacy of queer and immigrant communities.
- Discussion Date: Tuesday, February 8 from 5:30 - 7:00 PM (in-person)
Spring 2022
- Iep Jāltok: Poems from a Marshallese Daughter, by Kathy Jetn̄il-Kijiner
Marshallese poet and activist Jetnil-Kijiner’s writing highlights the traumas of colonialism, racism, forced migration, the legacy of American nuclear testing, and the impending threats of climate change. Bearing witness at the front lines of various activist movements inspires her work and has propelled her poetry onto international stages.
- Discussion Date: Thursday, April 21 from 5:30 - 7:00 PM
- Sign ups open at 9 AM on Monday, March 21
Past Picks
- The Namesake, by Jhumpa Lahiri (Fall 2017)
- The Best We Could Do, by Thi Bui (Winter 2018)
- Monstress, by Lysley Tenorio (Spring 2018)
- Citizen 13660, by Mine Okubo (Fall 2018)
- Exit West, by Mohsin Hamid (Winter 2019)
- The Displaced: Refugee Writers on Refugee Lives, edited by Viet Thanh Nguyen (Spring 2019)
- On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous, by Ocean Vuong (Fall 2019)
- A Place for Us, by Fatima Mirza (Winter 2020)
- water/tongue, by mai c. doan (Spring 2020)
- Good Talk, by Mira Jacob (Fall 2020)
- Know My Name, by Chanel Miller (Winter 2021)
- Island of Shattered Dreams, by Chantal Spitz (Spring 2021)
Queer Book Club
Are you interested in talking about LGBTQIA+ books and issues? Join the Gender and Sexuality Studies Program and MSA for a casual book club discussion on important works of LGBTQIA+ literature. Sign-ups will open at the the end of fall and winter quarter for the book club in the following quarter. Queer Book Club is only held in Winter Quarter and Spring Quarter. Contact Matt at matthew.abtahi@northwestern.edu for details or questions.
Winter 2023
Spring 2023
Join us for the Spring Queer Book Club Book! Sign-up to join us for the discussion and receive a free copy of the book if you need one! Move information coming soon!
Book Selection Form: Coming Mid-Winter Quarter
Discussion Date: TBD
Discussion Location: Hybrid (TBD on Evanston Campus OR Zoom)
Sign-up to attend here: Coming Late Winter Quarter
Past Picks
- Little Blue Encyclopedia (for Vivian) By Hazel Jane Plante (Winter 2020)
- Freshwater By Akwaeke Emezi (Spring 2020)
- The Subtweet By Vivek Shraya (Winter 2021)
- The Thirty Names of Night by Zeyn Joukhadar (Spring 2021)
Indigenous Reading Series
The Indigenous Reading Series is an MSA program that centers Indigenous thinking and perspectives through reading and discussion. Each quarter, we will examine writings that will help us build and expand a shared understanding of Indigeneity. Join us as we engage in collective reflection and meaning-making in order to find our places in decolonial movements.
Fall 2021
Virtual Meeting Dates and Readings
- Monday, 10/18/21, 4:30 - 6:00 PM CDT
- "The Blackfoot Origins of Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs" by Teju Ravilochan
- "The Emergence of the Breath of Life Theory" by Cindy Blackstock
- Monday, 11/8/21, 4:30 - 6:00 PM CDT
Winter 2022
Spring 2022
Latinx Book Club
Are you interested in talking about Latinx books and issues? Join the Latina and Latino Studies Program and MSA for a casual book club discussion on important works of Latinx literature. Sign-ups will open at the beginning of each quarter. Contact Colton at colton.bernasol@northwestern.edu for details.
Winter 2021
- The Undocumented Americans by Karla Cornejo Villavicencio
- One of the first undocumented immigrants to graduate from Harvard, Karla Cornejo Villavicencio illuminates and honors the hidden lives of her fellow undocumented Americans in this deeply personal and groundbreaking portrait of a nation. Villavicencio amplifies the stories of day laborers, housekeepers, construction workers, and delivery workers, among many others, who have "paid a steep price for the so-called American Dream" while shaping culture and life in The United States in immeasurable ways.
- Virtual Book Discussion: Wednesday, March 3 from 5 to 6:30 PM CST
- Registration is now closed. Sign up here to receive updates for the Spring Latinx Book Club or to suggest a book title for future book discussions.
Spring 2021
- The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo
- Winner of the National Book Award for Young People's Literature, the novel follows the story of Xiomara Batista, a young Afro-Latina from Harlem who discovers poetry as an outlet to explore her mother's religion and her own place in the world, finding her voice, strength, and love in the process. Acevedo's masterfully crafted poems reflect universal themes of "adolescence, family, gender, race, religion, [and] sexuality."
- Virtual Book Discussion: Tuesday, May 4 from 5 to 6:30 PM CDT
- Registration is now open.
Spring 2022
- Sabrina and Corina by Kali Fajardo-Anstine
- Book Description: “Kali Fajardo-Anstine’s magnetic story collection breathes life into her Latina characters of indigenous ancestry and the land they inhabit in the American West. Against the remarkable backdrop of Denver, Colorado—a place that is as fierce as it is exquisite—these women navigate the land the way they navigate their lives: with caution, grace, and quiet force.”
- Book Discussion: Tuesday, April 26th from 3:30 - 5:00 PM
- Register Here