# Alumni Book Club

**Source**: https://www.alumni.cam.ac.uk/benefits/alumni-book-club
**Parent**: https://www.alumni.cam.ac.uk/?ucam-ref=global-quick-links

Read and connect with your fellow alumni with our bimonthly book selection.

Join Cambridge alumni for stimulating conversations about our bimonthly book selection. Discussions will be moderated by a dedicated group leader, who will share additional content and ask questions to prompt debate.

[Join the Club](https://www.pbc.guru/cambridge)

## January - February

## **Gabriel's Moon by William Boyd**

In his most exhilarating novel yet, Britain’s greatest storyteller transports you from the vibrant streets of sixties London to the sun-soaked cobbles of Cadiz and the frosty squares of Warsaw, as an accidental spy is drawn into the shadows of espionage and obsession.

Gabriel Dax is a young man haunted by the memories of a every night, when sleep finally comes, he dreams about his childhood home in flames. His days are spent on the move as an acclaimed travel writer, capturing the changing landscapes in the grip of the Cold War. When he’s offered the chance to interview a political figure, his ambition leads him unwittingly into a web of duplicities and betrayals.

As Gabriel’s reluctant initiation takes hold, he is drawn deeper into the shadows. Falling under the spell of Faith Green, an enigmatic and ruthless MI6 handler, he becomes ‘her spy’, unable to resist her demands. But amid the peril, paranoia and passion consuming Gabriel’s new covert life, it will be the revelations closer to home that change the rest of his story.

## Suggested Reading Schedule

- On January 2nd, visit Before the Book in our forum and begin reading Gabriel’s Moon
- Section 1: by January 16th, finish reading through Part 1 - Chapter 6: The Blanco Conspiracy.
- Section 2: by January 23rd, finish reading through Part 1 - Chapter 12: Serenital.
- Section 3: by January 30th, finish reading through Part 2 - Chapter 6: Obsession.
- Section 4: by February 13th, finish reading through Part 2 - Chapter 10: Chelsea.
- By February 20th, finish reading the book and join our After the Book forum discussion

## Past reads

Hag-Seed by Margaret Atwood

Super-Infinite: The Transformations of John Donne by Katherine Rundell

Charlotte by Martina Devlin

The Sea, the Sea by Iris Maurdoch

Glorious Exploits by Ferdia Lennon

The Berry Pickers by Amanda Peters

In Memoriam by Alice Winn

Babel by R.F. Kuang

Lessons by Ian McEwan

*The Bell* by Iris Murdoch (Newnham 1947)

*A Gentleman in Moscow* by Amor Towles

*The Marriage Portrait* by Maggie O'Farrell (Murray Edwards 1990)

*The Anarchy* by William Dalrymple (Trinity College 1984)

*The Reading List:* A Novel by Sara Nisha Adams

*Honor* by Thrity Umrigar

*Great Circle* by Maggie Shipstead

*A Long Petal of the Sea* by Isabel Allende

*The Henna Artist* by Alka Joshi

*Interior Chinatown* by Charles Yu

*American Dirt* by Jeanine Cummins

*Hamnet* by Maggie O'Farrell (Murray Edwards 1990)

*Girl, Woman, Other* by Bernardine Evaristo

*The Old Way* by Robert Macfarlane (Pembroke 1994)

*The Pull of the Stars* by Emma Donoghue (Girton 1990)

*The Mercies* by Kiran Millwood Hargrave (Homerton 2008)

*Packinko* by Min Jin Lee

*Educated* by Tara Westover (Trinity 2008)

## How are books selected?

Alumni Book Club members vote during each reading period to choose the next book. The selection of books on which you vote is usually based on participants’ interests, member recommendations and Cambridge authors.

## How do I get hold of the books?

Alumni are responsible for sourcing their own books.

Participants can either buy, borrow or download a copy of the chosen book.

## Will the Book Club meet in person?

No, the Book Club will be entirely online. The advantage of this is that alumni living all over the world can participate, meaning we will get diverse perspectives on the texts we read.

## How do book discussions work?

Our Book Club will have a dedicated moderator who manages the forum where discussions occur online. The moderator will pose questions to the group, share relevant articles, and facilitate conversation about topics in the book. Members will be encouraged to post and share as well. This format allows for ongoing conversation and makes it easy for alumni to connect with each other.

## How often will books be read and what is the time commitment?

Books will be read every two months.

If you have on average 30 minutes a week to read, you should be fine. There is no required level of participation in group discussions; if don’t have time to read one of the books, that's okay. The goal of the club is to make connections with other alumni through reading.

## Is there a cost to participate?

Participation is free for Cambridge alumni.

Readers are responsible for buying, borrowing or downloading the texts we read.

## What if my question isn’t answered here?

Feel free to send an email to [contact@alumni.cam.ac.uk](mailto:contact@alumni.cam.ac.uk?subject=Enquiry%20-%20Alumni%20Book%20Club) and we'd be happy to help.