What we’re about
Welcome to UNREAD – the mostly utopian book club, happening virtually via Zoom. We strive to understand the complex new world around us better, through discussion and exchanging experiences. This book club is not focused on a particular genre, instead we alternate between novels and non-fiction books. We like sci-fi, eye-opening popular science and occasionally revel in the absurd, but don’t shy away from classics either.
The book club has been going strong since August 2017, with a core group of returning participants, but also new faces joining each time. Usually we end up being between four and twelve people who show up.
We discuss in English and/or German, depending on which languages are present. Don’t worry if you aren’t fluent … we’ll make it work! You definitely don’t need a literature degree to participate either! It’s important to us to listen to each other, to treat everyone with respect and to create an inclusive setting.
The book club meets digitally via Zoom – the link will be added to the event on the day it happens. It doesn’t matter if you have actually finished the book – everyone is welcome, as long as they have read at least a few pages and bring their impression.
Books we have read so far:
- “The Dispossessed” by Ursula K. LeGuin
- “Kafka on the Shore” by Haruki Murakami
- “Positioning” by Al Ries and Jack Trout
- “Borderliners” by Peter Høeg
- “Sapiens” by Yuval Noah Harari
- “Uncommon Type” by Tom Hanks
- “Homo Deus” by Yuval Noah Harari
- “Measuring the world” by Daniel Kehlmann
- “Why we sleep” by Matthew Walker
- “Song of Achilles” by Madeline Miller
- “Invisible Women” by Caroline Criado Perez
- “Shikasta” by Doris Lessing
- “How to do Nothing” by Jenny Odell
- “The Testaments” by Margaret Atwood
- “Because Internet” by Gretchen McCulloch
- “Educated” by Tara Westover
- “You Look Like a Thing and I Love You” by Janelle Shane
- “Americanah” by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
- “The Future We Choose” by C. Figueres, T. Rivett-Carnac
- “The Overstory” by Richard Powers
- “User Friendly” by Cliff Kuang
- “Klara and the Sun” by Kazuo Ishiguro
- “The New Breed” by Kate Darling
- “Dune” by Frank Herbert
- “I didn’t do the thing today” by Madeline Dore
- “The Ministry for the Future” by Kim Stanley Robinson
- “A Field Guide to Getting Lost” by Rebecca Solnit
- “The Wall” by Marlen Haushofer
- “Goodbye, Again” by Jonny Sun
- “Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow” by Gabrielle Zevin
- “The Sixth Extinction” by Elizabeth Kolbert
- “The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet” by Becky Chambers
- “Everyday Utopia” by Kristen Ghodsee
- “Julia” by Sandra Newman
- “Doppelganger” by Naomi Klein
- “Moonbound” by Robin Sloan
- “Technofeudalism” by Yanis Varoufakis
- “Piranesi” by Susanna Clarke
- “Microcosmos” / “Symbiotic Planet” by Margulis + Sagan
- “A Door Into Ocean” by Joan Slonczewski
- “The Mushroom at the End of the World” by Anna Tsing
The next book is always decided on the spot at the meeting, by the people who attend, or afterwards here on meetup – so bring suggestions! These days we gravitate towards books by authors from underrepresented groups!
Upcoming events (2)
See all- “The Word for World is Forest” by Ursula K. LeGuin – let’s read and discuss!Link visible for attendees
Welcome back, readers! For this round we’ve chosen Ursula K. LeGuin’s novella “The Word for World is Forest”, a sci-fi story first published in 1972 – more than half a century ago! Oof!
There were numerous reasons for picking it: We’re returning to our roots, since the very first book in this club was also one of Ursula’s. It’s quite short, with just ~120 pages, so we can meet sooner, in just four weeks, and more people might join. Our last book ended with a LeGuin quote, but thematically it also connects to “A Door Into Ocean”, setting up a similar conflict around occupation and resistance, but with a story that (seemingly) unfolds quite differently, so it'll be interesting to compare!
Here’s the synopsis:
> When the inhabitants of a peaceful world are conquered by the bloodthirsty yumens, their existence is irrevocably altered. Forced into servitude, the Athsheans find themselves at the mercy of their brutal masters. Desperation causes the Athsheans to retaliate against their captors, abandoning their strictures against violence. But in defending their lives, they have endangered the very foundations of their society. For every blow against the invaders is a blow to the humanity of the Athsheans. And once the killing starts, there is no turning back.
You can find more information and reviews on the book’s GoodReads page.
Curious to join us? Then order a copy at your local book shop or online:
A very affordable e-book is available (without DRM, even), as well as translations into many languages and audio versions.
Our meeting is scheduled for Sept 02, 2025 and we usually discuss in English for 1.5-2 hours. You definitely don’t need a literature degree to participate! It’s important to us to listen to each other, to treat everyone with respect and to create a safe setting.
The discussion takes place virtually in Zoom and the meeting link will be added to this event on the day it happens. Just check back here half an hour before the meetup starts!
It doesn’t matter if you have actually finished the book or whether you’ve attended before – everyone is welcome, as long as you have read at least a few pages and bring your impression.
- Book Swap in Berlin (it’s an in-person meetup!)Biergarten Jockel, Berlin
Our annual summer book swap is back and it’s happening in Berlin-Kreuzberg on Sept 19, 2025! Join us!
We meet between 6:30 and 7pm at Jockel beer garden in Berlin’s Kreuzberg district and each person brings 1-2 books they want to swap. Could be your favorite book of all time, but also something that just wasn’t for you and someone else might appreciate.
To get it all started, we will do a super quick round with everyone introducing the book(s) they brought in 1-2 sentences and then we all put our names down for the books we find interesting, using sticky notes, and talking about them. If one book gathers multiple names, those people will have to discuss who wants it the most. It worked out quite well the last time and was charmingly chaotic! Hopefully everyone leaves with a new book they are eager to read.
To make this very clear: You need to bring a book if you’re coming and it should be something another person might want to read! Don’t dump your trash books on us! 😅
Jockel beer garden has lots of tables outside, so when you arrive you’ll have to find the one with a bunch of books on it. Shouldn’t be too hard, we’ll also post instructions as a comment here in this event once we’re there on the day. We will start the swapping around 7pm, to give everyone enough time to arrive … but it’s also okay if you join later. All very casual. The beer garden serves all kinds of beverages and also food at moderate prices. We will be outside; hopefully the weather will be kind to us.🤞
This is an additional event to the regular zoom discussions. Rest assured, nothing changes about the main events, they’ll stay remote-first!
Looking forward to seeing you in person! Oh, and thanks go out to our long-time member Nelli for the illustration! 💛
