Cheltenham's Post-Apocalyptic Book Club

As voted on in the September meeting, in November we will read and discuss Last One At The Party by Bethany Clift.

The expectation is that you will buy, borrow, or stream the book and read or listen ahead of the session, and then we will discuss it together. This particular book is available 'free' as an audiobook via Spotify, if you have an existing subscription.

You do not have to have finished the whole thing to attend, as long as you don't mind spoilers. :)

How to find us:
I have booked a table for us at The Swan under my name (Devon) - the bar staff will be able to direct you to it.
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Book description:

"December 2023. The human race has fought a deadly virus and lost. The only things left from the world before are burning cities and rotting corpses.
But in London, one woman is still alive.
Although she may be completely unprepared for her new existence, as someone who has spent her life trying to fit in, being alone is surprisingly liberating.
Determined to discover if she really is the last survivor on earth, she sets off on an extraordinary adventure, with only an abandoned golden retriever named Lucky for company.
Maybe she'll find a better life or maybe she'll die along the way. But whatever happens, the end of everything will be her new beginning."

As voted on in the September session, in January (for the 1 year anniversary of the book club!) we will read The Animals in That Country by Laura Jane mcKay.

As also discussed in September - there will be a nominal fee of £2 for each session from January 2025 onwards. This is to contribute to the cost of hosting the group on Meetup.com. We will transition away from using Facebook at this point.

The expectation is that you will buy, borrow, or stream the book and read or listen ahead of the session, and then we will discuss it together. This particular book is available 'free' as an audiobook via Spotify, if you have an existing subscription.

You do not have to have finished the whole thing to attend, as long as you don't mind spoilers. :)

How to find us:
I have booked a table for us at The Swan under my name (Devon) - the bar staff will be able to direct you to it.
--------------------------------------------------------------
Book description:

"Hard-drinking, foul-mouthed, and allergic to bullshit, Jean is not your usual grandma. She’s never been good at getting on with other humans, apart from her beloved granddaughter, Kimberly. Instead, she surrounds herself with animals, working as a guide in an outback wildlife park. And although Jean talks to all her charges, she has a particular soft spot for a young dingo called Sue.

As disturbing news arrives of a pandemic sweeping the country, Jean realises this is no ordinary flu: its chief symptom is that its victims begin to understand the language of animals — first mammals, then birds and insects, too. As the flu progresses, the unstoppable voices become overwhelming, and many people begin to lose their minds, including Jean’s infected son, Lee. When he takes off with Kimberly, heading south, Jean feels the pull to follow her kin.

Setting off on their trail, with Sue the dingo riding shotgun, they find themselves in a stark, strange world in which the animal apocalypse has only further isolated people from other species. Bold, exhilarating, and wholly original, The Animals in That Country asks what would happen, for better or worse, if we finally understood what animals were saying."