
What we’re about
If you have any questions, use Meetup internal communication or contact me via eugenefrominquiry@gmail.com (Preferred).
Books are made better by the conversations that happen about them.
Reading is isolating, unless you talk about the book. Then reading becomes a social experience within a community.
If you liked or did not like a book, and want to hear different thoughts on the book, this is a book club for you.
Want to create a habit of reading? The book club's community will support your drive.
Not sure about what you get out of books, or how to think about books, or how to apply the book's topics? Join the discussions and put your knowledge to the test.
This club primarily hosts non-fiction book club event, and some fiction. The value of the club comes from the discussions, and listening to everyone's views about the book. Everyone's different views. There will be agreement, but disagreement is permitted and encouraged. Everyone's diverse backgrounds will cause everyone to have different approaches to the topic which will elucidate arguments for and against the topic. What matters is how you engage with the information learned in the book and everyone's ideas. To seek out and understand the complexity of the topic.
A Note On Disagreement: Conflict is inevitable. Disagreement is inevitable. People come from different backgrounds, which causes them to interpret information differently. Sparking conflict and disagreement. Although conflict and disagreement cannot be avoided, each individual can choose how they respond to them. Everyone can choose how to fight. Can choose how to disagree. Everyone can make conflict and disagreement productive. Enabling everyone to become better. Disagreement causes a search for more information, for the reasons why others think differently. Which makes everyone more informed, better able to analyze the information. Knowing how to disagreement is a skill that can learned through practice.
There are conditions that are needed to facilitate an honest discussion about the different views everyone has, community guidelines. 1) To enable everyone be heard, everyone is able to speak. Priority goes to those who spoke less. 2) It is acceptable for everyone to err, and disagree. By finding out different information can any individual choose to error correct. For more community guidelines and the event's discussion, see Community Guidelines (Click Here).
The list of books are mostly member suggestions. Every cycle members suggest books, and then poll which books they wish to read. Books are selected for poll rank, and topic diversity. For details about How The Book List Gets Made, Click Here. Page contains the reasons why books are listed, and things to consider when suggesting books.
Club Maintenance:
The club has costs. If you appreciate the event, support the club. Contribute via:
- Zelle, PayPal, or Venmo. Contribute to eugenefrominquiry@gmail.com.
- GoFundMe: https://gofund.me/adabd41c
My blog for book reviews: https://www.inquiryreviews.com/p/about-inquiry.html
Basic Statistics:
Past Events = 140
Book Club Events = 133
Author Appearance = 7
Book Shop Visits = 6
Related Events = 1
Attendance: Average = 11, Standard Deviation = 6
Upcoming events (4+)
See all- Not the End of the World: Sustainable Planet by Hannah Ritchie | Book ClubLink visible for attendees
Full Title: Not the End of the World: How We Can Be the First Generation to Build a Sustainable Planet
Suggested by: Gautam S.
Pages to read: 246
ISBN: 9780316536752 (Originally listed edition)
ISBN: 9780316536950 (Edition Eugene is using)Eugene's review of the book (Blog Link, Click Here)
Community Guidelines (Meetup Link, Click Here)
All Upcoming event (Meetup Link, Click Here)
Forthcoming Similar Events:
1 - Use Of Data - 06/14/2025 = Fluke: Chance, Chaos, and Why Everything We Do Matters by Brian Klaas
2 - Allocation of resources - 06/19/2025 = Seeing Like a State: Schemes to Improve Have Fail by James C. Scott
3 - Effect of Ideas - 09/27/2025 = The Evolution of Everything: How New Ideas Emerge by Matt Ridley
4 - Resource - 10/11/2025 = The Sirens' Call: Attention Resource by Christopher L. Hayes
5 - Use Of Data - 11/29/2025 = Weapons of Math Destruction: Big Data by Cathy O'NeillContribute:
The club has costs. If you appreciated the event, support the club. Contribute via:- Zelle, PayPal, or Venmo. Contribute to eugenefrominquiry@gmail.com.
- GoFundMe: https://gofund.me/adabd41c
While reading the book, consider the below questions:
•What is the raison d’etre of the book? For what purpose did the author write the book? Why do people read this book?
•What are some limitations of the book?
•To whom would you suggest this book?
•How do doomsday environmental stories effect the science?
•How did Russia’s invasion of Ukraine effect energy supplies and greenhouse emissions?
•Has the world ever been sustainable?
•Can the world become sustainable?
•What is sustainability?
•What is the sustainability trade-off?
•What are the advantages of societies in the 21st century than any previous society?
•What ideas won’t fix sustainability problems?
•What happened to air pollution?
•What happened to Beijing’s air quality?
•What happened to Delhi’s air quality?
•How does air pollution effect a society?
•What happened to the ozone layer?
•What is the environmental Kuznets Curve?
•What happed to the costs of sustainable technologies?
•What information makes it into the news?
•What happened to pollution from energy sources?
•Which vehicle is more efficient, an electric or petrol vehicle?
•What is the energy usage of urban and rural societies?
•What is the effect of a carbon tax?
•How much oxygen does the Amazon contribute?
•What happened to French forests?
•What effect does deforestation have?
•What is the effect of palm oil?
•How much land does agriculture take?
•How many harvests are left?
•How many people can be fed by the planet?
•What happened to the food supply?
•What is the effect of eating locally?
•Is the planet going through an extinction event?
•What happens to plastics after being use?
•What effect do plastics have on wildlife?
•What happened to fish stock?Your questions are important and will take priority. If you have questions about the book's content or related ideas, either let me know what your questions are or raise them during the discussion.
- Author Appearance | Forgotten Capitals by Derek Dwight Anderson |Book ClubLink visible for attendees
Full Title: Forgotten Capitals and the Historical Lessons They Teach
Pages to read: 140
ISBN: 9798334400986 (Originally listed edition, & Edition Eugene is using)Eugene's review of the book (Blog Link, Click Here)
Community Guidelines (Meetup Link, Click Here)
All Upcoming event (Meetup Link, Click Here)
Forthcoming Similar Events:
1 - History - 05/17/2025 - The Swerve: How the World Became Modern by Stephen Greenblatt
2 - South American History - 05/31/2025 = Bolivar: American Liberator by Marie Arana
3 - Middle East History - 07/05/2025 = Saladin: The Sultan Who Vanquished the Crusaders by John Man
4 - Sovereignty - 07/19/2025 = Seeing Like a State: Schemes to Improve Have Fail by James C. Scott
5 - Sovereignty - 08/30/2025 = How States Think by John J. Mearsheimer, Sebastian RosatoContribute:
The club has costs. If you appreciated the event, support the club. Contribute via:- Zelle, PayPal, or Venmo. Contribute to eugenefrominquiry@gmail.com.
- GoFundMe: https://gofund.me/adabd41c
While reading the book, consider the below questions:
•What is the raison d’etre of the book? For what purpose did the author write the book? Why do people read this book?
•What are some limitations of the book?
•To whom would you suggest this book?
•How does culture shape experiences?
•What is the effect of the local community on behavior?
•What is the effect of loyalty on an institution?
•How generalizable are experiences?
•What is the difference between political legitimacy and political power?
•When do civil wars end?
•What happened to Jolo?
•What were the types of slaves in Jolo?
•How did Jolo’s geography shape trade?
•What lessons does Jolo teach?
•What happened to Quetzaltenango?
•How did cholera effect society?
•What Happened to Jacobo Arbenz?
•What lessons does Quetzaltenango teach?
•What happened to Fillmore City?
•Who are the Mormons?
•Why did Salt Lake City become the capital?
•What lessons does Fillmore City teach?
•What happened to Rabaul?
•How did the 1905 typhoon effects Germany’s influence over German New Guinea?
•What lessons does Rabaul teach?
•What happened to Engels?
•What lessons does Engels teach?
•What happened to Xinjing?
•What lessons does Xinjing teach?
•What happened to Enugu?
•What lessons does Enugu teach?
•What happened to Banja Luka?
•Why was there an ethnic cleansing of non-Serbs?
•What lessons does Banja Luka teach?
•What happened to Hargeisa?
•What lessons does Hargeisa teach?Your questions are important and will take priority. If you have questions about the book's content or related ideas, either let me know what your questions are or raise them during the discussion.
- The Swerve: How the World Became Modern by Stephen Greenblatt | Book ClubLink visible for attendees
Suggested by: Lily
Pages to read: 232
ISBN: 9780393343403 (Originally listed edition)
ISBN: 9780393083385 (Edition Eugene is using)Eugene's review of the book (Blog Link, Click Here)
Community Guidelines (Meetup Link, Click Here)
All Upcoming event (Meetup Link, Click Here)
Forthcoming Similar Events:
1 - Improving Society - 05/31/2025 = Bolivar: American Liberator by Marie Arana
2 - Methods of Improvement - 06/14/2025 = Fluke: Chance, Chaos, and Why Everything We Do Matters by Brian Klaas
3 - Improving Society - 06/28/2025 = Elon Musk by Walter Isaacson
4 - How States Improve Society - 07/19/2025 = Seeing Like a State: Schemes to Improve Have Fail by James C. Scott
5 - Foreign Policy - 08/30/2025 = How States Think by John J. Mearsheimer, Sebastian RosatoWhile reading the book, consider the below questions:
•What is the raison d’etre of the book? For what purpose did the author write the book? Why do people read this book?
•What are some limitations of the book?
•To whom would you suggest this book?
•What is a Swerve?
•What is On The Nature of Things?
•How as On The Nature of Things received?
•What effect did the Greco-Roman mythology have on society?
•What made a person’s identity?
•Who was Poggio?
•What did the Church think of curiosity?
•What happened to the pope that Poggio served?
•Why was Poggio interested in books?
•What happed in the Roman Empire was falling apart?
•Why should there a rule of complete silence? What was the consequence for not being silent?
•How did the Goths effect books?
•How to access a book protected by a Benedict librarian monk?
•Why did people become monks?
•What is a scriptorium?
•What kind of books were part of the ancient world? How did the form of the book change?
•How did monks copy books?
•How durable were the parchments used by the monks?
•Who was Epicurus?
•What threatened a book?
•What did authors earn from their books?
•What is the purpose of the Museum?
•What happened to Hypatia?
•What influence did the pope have?
•What was the Bugiale?Your questions are important and will take priority. If you have questions about the book's content or related ideas, either let me know what your questions are or raise them during the discussion.
- The Elephant in the Brain: Hidden Motives by Robin Hanson | Book ClubLink visible for attendees
Full Title: The Elephant in the Brain: Hidden Motives in Everyday Life
Suggested by: Jeff G.
Pages to read: 300
ISBN: 9780197551950 (Originally listed edition)
ISBN: 9780190496012 (Edition Eugene is using)Eugene's review of the book (Blog Link, Click Here)
Community Guidelines (Meetup Link, Click Here)
All Upcoming event (Meetup Link, Click Here)
Forthcoming Similar Events:
1 - Self-Help - 06/21/2025 = Do Hard Things: Why We Get Resilience Wrong by Steve Magness
2 - Psychology / Fiction - 07/26/2025 = The Schopenhauer Cure: A Novel by Irvin Yalom
3 - Self-Help - 08/02/2025 = Tao Te Ching: Ancient Chinese Book of the Tao by Lao Tzu
4 - Self-Help - 08/09/2025 = Why? The Purpose of the Universe by Philip Goff
5 - Self-Help - 10/18/2025 = Being and Nothingness by Jean-Paul SartreWhile reading the book, consider the below questions:
•What is the raison d’etre of the book? For what purpose did the author write the book? Why do people read this book?
•What are some limitations of the book?
•To whom would you suggest this book?
•What is the elephant in the brain?
•Why do people self-deceive themselves?
•What is the effect of the elephant in the brain on the allocation of resources?
•What is the effect of intra-group competitive signaling?
•Why do people consume healthcare?
•What is conspicuous consumption?
•How is social status obtained?
•What is social grooming in baboons for?
•How do babblers compete?
•Why do redwoods grow to be tall?
•What is the social brain hypothesis?
•What is the difference between dominance and prestige?
•What makes for an effective signal?
•What is culture/norms?
•What is collective enforcement?
•What is gossip?
•Who cheats?
•What is common knowledge?
•How to tell who is loyal?
•What is modularity in psychology?
•Why rationalize behavior?
•What is the purpose of a press secretary?
•What signals are sent through body language?
•Why do people laugh?
•Why do people join conversations?
•Why do people consume art?
•Why do people give to charity?
•What is the purpose of school?
•Why are people religious?
•Who are the apparatchiks?Your questions are important and will take priority. If you have questions about the book's content or related ideas, either let me know what your questions are or raise them during the discussion.