OLD Book Club

OLD Book Club–obscure, lesser-known, and, hopefully, divine–aims to explore the diverse array of books we call “classic” and to discuss the malleable bounds of the category while also making an often intimidating genre feel both more accessible and more fun. The selection of books intentionally covers a broad range of nationalities, experiences, cultures, and time-periods to broaden the traditionally narrow parameters of classic literature. Most importantly, we’re here to have a good time. Put on your most UNpretentious (figurative) pants and come talk OLD books!

This month we are reading The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan The OLD Book club will meet at 6 PM on Thursday, May 1st.

In 1949, four Chinese women, recent immigrants to San Francisco, begin meeting to play mah jong, remember the past, and gossip into the night. United in unspeakable loss and new hope, they call themselves the Joy Luck Club.

With wit and sensitivity, Amy Tan examines the memories that display these women’s strength, worries, and determination. As each woman reveals her secrets, trying to unravel the truth about her life, the strings become more tangled, more entwined. Mothers boast or despair over daughters, and daughters roll their eyes even as they feel the inextricable tightening of the matriarchal ties that they believe have stymied their ability to face the uncertainties of the future.

Intimate and moving, The Joy Luck Club shows us how the inheritance of pain and unspoken secrets can lead to misunderstanding—and yet how love can still offer the promise of reconciliation.

Purchase a copy to read, or grab it from the library, and join us for discussion at Dog-Eared Books at 6 PM, on Thursday, May 1st. This book club is free to anyone who wishes to participate, no registration required

Also, for 20 minutes after each club meeting, you will receive 20% off all books and merchandise!

Content Warnings for OLD Books Club 2025
Content Warnings for The Joy Luck Club
Content Warnings for Orlando