Book Drives Los Angeles

November Book Discussion: Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor E. Frankl

# **Our November Book Has Been Chosen! 📚** Thanks to everyone who voted! Our next **Books & Brew** read is: ## 📖 *Man's Search for Meaning* — Viktor E. Frankl Grab a copy, start reading, and join us for a thought-provoking conversation! ### About the Book Drawing on his experiences as a prisoner in Nazi concentration camps during World War II, psychiatrist Viktor E. Frankl explores how people find purpose and meaning even in the face of unimaginable suffering. Part memoir and part psychological exploration, *Man's Search for Meaning* introduces Frankl's approach to psychotherapy, known as logotherapy, which centers on the human search for meaning as a fundamental source of motivation. Through his reflections on suffering, resilience, freedom, and personal responsibility, Frankl challenges readers to consider what gives life meaning and how we respond to circumstances beyond our control. A powerful and deeply reflective book, *Man's Search for Meaning* offers plenty to think about—and even more to discuss together.

Evening Book Club: The Picture of Dorian Gray

Book for **November**: The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde. Club is for the girls (and the gays!) to get together and chat about the book we read this month. Age range early/mid twenties ✨ Please RSVP to join the event! Since we only have 10 spots no cancellations please. We will discuss over tea or wine at historic Cafe Mak in ktown. If you cannot finish the book on time, feel free to still come and hang out :)

Women in Big Data LA Book Club

Our next **Women in Big Data SoCal Book Club** is here! Join us for an afternoon of good conversation, coffee, and a thought-provoking discussion about how AI is changing the way we live and work. **This Quarter's Book** ***[I Am Not a Robot: My Year Using AI to Do (Almost) Everything](https://joannastern.com/)*** by **Joanna Stern** What happens when a technology journalist decides to let AI take over almost every aspect of her life? In *I Am Not a Robot*, Joanna Stern documents her year-long experiment using AI to tackle everything from work and productivity to everyday tasks and personal decisions. The book explores what happens when we move beyond simply *using* AI tools and start relying on them to do things we would normally do ourselves. Expect plenty of humor, curiosity, and questions about what AI can—and perhaps shouldn't—do for us. **About the Author** Joanna Stern is an award-winning technology journalist and video creator best known for her work covering consumer technology, AI, and the ways technology impacts everyday life. She was a senior personal technology columnist at The Wall Street Journal, where she has covered everything from smartphones and computers to emerging technologies and now has started her own tech media company, New Things. **What to Expect** This is a casual, welcoming discussion—not a formal book review! **📣 Haven't read the book yet? You're still invited!** **You** **do not need to finish—or even read—the book to join us.** If you didn't get a chance to read it, you're still welcome to come, listen to the discussion, share your thoughts and perspectives, and be part of the conversation. We'd love to have you there! **Event Details** Date: Sunday, November 15, 2026 Time: 2:00 PM Location: Sorry Not Sorry - 11520 W Pico Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90064 We’ll be reserving a space in the front patio, and as always, each guest will be responsible for their own tab. ☕ Grab an afternoon drink, bring your thoughts (and your questions!), and join us for our quarterly book club. We hope to see you there! 📚🤖 \-\-\-\-\-\- Follow us on [LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/groups/14309306/) to get the latest updates on our events. \-\-\-\-\-\- **Photo Release Notice:** By attending this event, you consent to photographs being taken and used in Women In Big Data's promotional materials. Please inform organizers upon arrival if you prefer not to be photographed.

The Tusk That Did The Damage by Tania James

Orphaned by poachers as a calf and sold into a life of labor and exhibition, the Gravedigger breaks free of his chains and begins terrorizing the countryside, earning his name from the humans he kills and then tenderly buries. Manu, the studious younger son of a rice farmer, loses his cousin to the Gravedigger’s violence and is drawn, with his wayward brother Jayan, into the sordid, alluring world of poaching. Emma is a young American working on a documentary with her college best friend, who witnesses the porous boundary between conservation and corruption and finds herself in her own moral gray a risky affair with the veterinarian who is the film’s subject. As the novel hurtles toward its climax, these three storylines fuse into a wrenching meditation on love and betrayal, duty and loyalty, and the vexed relationship between man and nature. We read this book in the early days of the book club and it has always stayed with me, therefore I want to revisit again with all the new people that have made this book club a part of their reading life.

Queer Book Club- "Palaver" by Bryan Washington

Book Discussion: Fall of Giants by Ken Follett

Read as much as you can and then let's discuss our thoughts on the complete book "Fall of Giants... Ken Follett's historical epic novel follows five interconnected families through World War I, the Russian Revolution, and the fight for women's suffrage. Published in 2010, it chronicles the lives of characters from different social classes—including a Welsh miner, an American law student, and aristocratic families in England and Germany—as their fates become entangled in the major events of the early 20th century. "

[Book + Movie] HORROR BOOK CLUB (November): “Pet Sematary”

All MGR Chapters - Giving Tuesday

Hey, Mocha Girls! 💕 We've read the books, made the friends, laughed, debated fictional characters, and built an amazing community of Black women who LOVE to read! Now we need a little help keeping the magic going! ✨ **This Giving Tuesday, we're asking every Mocha Girl to make a one-time donation of just $25!** ### Wait! Mocha Girls Read has bills?! YES, GIRL! Mocha Girls Read is a **nonprofit organization**, but even nonprofits have bills to pay! Your donation helps cover the operating expenses that keep our book-loving sisterhood going strong. ### 💜 HERE'S HOW YOU CAN HELP! 💰 **Donate $25!** No monthly commitment, just a one-time gift. 👉 **[CLICK HERE TO DONATE](https://www.paypal.com/donate/?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=2F69RZ3XLXW72&ssrt=1680793486758)** 🏢 **Does your employer match donations?** Your $25 could become $50! We'll happily complete the necessary paperwork for your company's matching program. If Mocha Girls Read has introduced you to a great book, a new friend, or a community you love, please consider giving back. **No meeting to attend. No Zoom call. Just a little love for your book club!** Let's see what happens when Mocha Girls come together! 📚 **Mocha Girls Read Team**

Brown and Gay in LA by Anthony Ocampo

**See you there!**

Book Club: Klara and the Sun by Kazuo Ishiguro

In *Klara and the Sun*, Kazuo Ishiguro looks at our rapidly changing modern world through the eyes of an unforgettable narrator to explore a fundamental question: what does it mean to love? From her place in the store, Klara, an Artificial Friend with outstanding observational qualities, watches carefully the behavior of those who come in to browse, and of those who pass on the street outside. She remains hopeful that a customer will soon choose her, but when the possibility emerges that her circumstances may change forever, Klara is warned not to invest too much in the promises of humans. Looking forward to enjoying afternoon tea at the Callisto Tea House in Pasadena. The menu can be found here: [https://callistoteahouse.com/pages/menu](https://callistoteahouse.com/pages/menu) The event fee will secure your reservation and be applied to membership dues, which covers the cost of the website. The event fee is NONREFUNDABLE unless the event is canceled by the organizer. To join the waitlist comment on the event page. If you have RSVPed and can no longer attend, please contact me directly and I will contact the people on the waiting list and then move you to "not going" when I find a replacement. Thank you and happy reading!

November: "The Borrowed Life of Frederick Fife" by Anna Johnston

**LOCATION:** Ellen's House! Address will be emailed and posted the Friday before! (South Redondo Beach) **NOTE:** Bookshop.org is a website that connects readers with independent booksellers. If you select an independent bookstore prior to purchasing your physical book or e-book, revenue from that sale will directly benefit the store you've chosen. If you would like to support Angela's store, the here is a link direct link: [https://bookshop.org/shop/mirabai](https://bookshop.org/shop/mirabai) **WHAT WE'RE READING:** *‘Would you mind terribly, old boy, if I borrowed the rest of your life? I promise I’ll take excellent care of it.'* Frederick Fife was born with an extra helping of kindness in his heart. If he borrowed your car, he’d return it washed with a full tank of gas. The problem is there’s nobody left in Fred’s life to borrow from. At eighty-two, he’s desperately lonely, broke, and on the brink of homelessness. But Fred’s luck changes when, in a bizarre case of mistaken identity, he takes the place of grumpy Bernard Greer at the local nursing home. Now he has warm meals in his belly and a roof over his head—as long as his poker face is in better shape than his prostate and that his look-alike never turns up. Denise Simms is stuck breathing the same disappointing air again and again. A middle-aged mom and caregiver at Bernard's facility, her crumbling marriage and daughter's health concerns are suffocating her joy for life. Wounded by her two-faced husband, she vows never to let a man deceive her again. As Fred walks in Bernard’s shoes, he leaves a trail of kindness behind him, fueling Denise's suspicions about his true identity. When unexpected truths are revealed, Fred and Denise rediscover their sense of purpose and learn how to return a broken life to mint condition. Bittersweet and remarkably perceptive, *The Borrowed Life of Frederick Fife* is a hilarious, feel-good, clever novel about grief, forgiveness, redemption, and finding family. **NO SHOW POLICY:** In April 2019, a new NO SHOW POLICY was put into place to help ensure people on the waitlist can get into each meeting with enough time to read the book while also weeding out flakey flakers who reserve a seat but don't use it. The new NO SHOW POLICY is in two parts: (1) If you RSVP 'Going' and cancel your RSVP within seven days of book club WITHOUT EXPLANATION, you'll be immediately removed from the group. (2) If you RSVP 'Going' and cancel your RSVP within seven days of book club with explanation, but for any reason, you'll be marked a 'No Show.' If you rack up three 'No Shows," you'll be removed from the group.

Yesteryear- Caro Claire Burke