BOOKS
MEETING INFORMATION
Next Meeting: July 27th
Time: 7:00-8:00 P.M.
Where: Adult Fiction, can meet in alley next to Coldwater weather permitting.
MONTHLY DISCUSSION
July
I Must Betray You
Ruta Sepetys
Romania, 1989. Communist Regimes are crumbling across Europe. Seventeen-year-old Cristian Florescu dreams of becoming a writer, but Romanians aren't free to dream; they are bound by rules and force.
Amidst the tyrannical dictatorship of Nicolae Ceausescu in a country governed by isolation and fear, Cristian is blackmailed by the secret police to become an informer. He's left with only two choices: betray everyone and everything he loves-or use his position to creatively undermine the most notoriously evil dictator in Eastern Europe.
Christian risks everything to unmask the truth behind the regime, give voice to fellow Romanians, and expose to the world what is happening in his country. He eagerly joins the revolution to fight for change when the time arrives. But what is the cost of freedom.
August
The Husbands
Holly Gramazio
When Lauren returns home to her flat in London one night, she is greeted by her husband Michael. There's only one problem-she's not married. According to her friends, her much-improved decor, and the photos on her phone, they've been together for years.\nAs Lauren tries to puzzle out how she could be married to someone she can't rememb er meeting, Michael goes to the attic to change a lightbulb adn disappears. A new man emerges, and a new, slightly altered life re-forms around her. Realizing that her attic is creating an infnite space of husbands, Lauren confronts the questions: If swapping lives is as easy as changing a lightbulb, how do you know you've taken the right path? When do you stop trying to do better and actually start living?
I Must Betray You
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
- Did you know anything about communism in Romania and the Ceaușescu dictatorship prior to reading? If not, were you compelled to further research this? Were there any specific events in the novel that affected you?
- What did you like or dislike about the book that hasn’t been discussed already? Were you glad you read this book? Would you recommend it to a friend? Do you want to read more work by this author?
- The radio is a prized possession in Cristian’s household. Bunu even went to great lengths—such as selling cartons of Kents—to fix it. The information it relays isn’t trustworthy, yet Romanians listen all the same. Why do you think that is? What does the radio symbolize to them? How does the media, in this context, serve the public?
- How did you feel about Cristian? In what ways did the author develop his character as the story progressed? What prompts him not only to use his voice, but stand up and fight against the regime? Are these actions consistent with his character?
2026 BOOK CHOICES
*Books subject to change per staff discretion.*
| Month | Books |
|---|---|
| January | Shelterwood by Lisa Wingate |
| February | The Help by Kathryn Stockett |
| March | The Lido by Libby Page |
| April | The Light Pirate by Lily Brooks-Dalton |
| May | The Authenticity Project by Clare Pooley |
| June | A Walk in the Woods by Bill Bryson |
| July | I Must Betray You by Ruta Sepetys |
| August | Husbands by Holly Gramazio |
| September | The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah |
| October | The Woman They Could Not Silence by Kate Moore |
| November | The Frozen River by Ariel Lawhon |