Alder & Sage Book Club, presented by Bel Canto Books (Jan 2024)

Join us for the Alder & Sage Book Club, presented by Bel Canto Books. We’ll meet every third Thursday of the month to discuss a book of contemporary fiction or non-fiction handpicked by bookstore owner Jhoanna Belfer of Bel Canto Books.

January is Mentorship Month, and our book is THE WOMAN UPSTAIRS by Claire Messud. “Riveting. . . . Messud is adept at evoking complex psychological territory. . . . She is interested in the identities that women construct for themselves, and in the maddening chasm that often divides intensity of aspiration from reality of achievement.” —The New Yorker

1/8/24 LOCATION UPDATE

Book discussion on Thursday 1/18 at 6:30pm at KUBO LB (3976 Atlantic Ave, Long Beach 90807). This will be a BYO event, so please feel free to bring your own snacks/drinks . Free to attend; RSVP required.

ABOUT THE BOOK

Told with urgency, intimacy, and piercing emotion, this New York Times bestselling novel is the riveting confession of a woman awakened, transformed, and abandoned by a desire for a world beyond her own.

Nora Eldridge is a reliable, but unremarkable, friend and neighbor, always on the fringe of other people’s achievements. But the arrival of the Shahid family—dashing Skandar, a Lebanese scholar, glamorous Sirena, an Italian artist, and their son, Reza—draws her into a complex and exciting new world. Nora’s happiness pushes her beyond her boundaries, until Sirena’s careless ambition leads to a shattering betrayal.

ABOUT BEL CANTO BOOKS

Bel Canto Books is a proudly woman- and BIPOC- owned independent bookstore with three locations based in Long Beach, California, hosting author events, monthly book clubs, community events, and more. Learn more at belcantobooks.net.

THE WOMAN UPSTAIRS by Claire Messud, the January book pick for the Alder & Sage Book Club, presented by Bel Canto Books