graphic of chalice

Book Discussion Group – Reading List

First Church Book Discussion Group
Reading List 2019–2020

The Book Discussion Group meets on the following Sundays at 1:00 p.m. at First Unitarian Society of Milwaukee.

September 8, 2019: The Perfect Weapon by David Sanger.
The author, an expert on cybersecurity, describes how cyber attacks have become the weapon of choice for democracies, dictators and terrorists alike. (Mary, Facilitator)

October 13, 2019: The Color of Law by Richard Rothstein.
This history of American cities is a forceful argument describing how federal, state and local governments created and reinforced neighborhood segregation. (Joann, Facilitator)

November 10, 2019:  A Rising Man by Abir Mukherjee.
In 1919 Calcutta a former Scotland Yard detective, newly recruited to lead the police, seeks a fresh start  after his experiences in the Great War. (Susan, Facilitator)

December 8, 2019: Unsheltered by Barbara Kingsolver.
This time-shifting story of social change follows two families living in the same New Jersey house in the 21th and 19th centuries. (Nancy, Facilitator)

January 12, 2020: Ordinary Grace by William Kent Krueger.
In 1961 Minnesota the 13-year-old protagonist experiences a grim summer in which frequent deaths assumed many forms: accident, suicide, nature, and murder. (Cheryl, Facilitator)

February 9, 2020:  Educated by Tara Westover.
This is an autobiography of a girl who escaped her survivalist, anti-school, family and obtained a Ph.D from Cambridge while continuing a complicated relationship with her family and its values. (Chris, Facilitator)

March 8, 2020: Borkman’s Point by Hakan Nesser.
The internationally acclaimed author creates a suspenseful tale about a Swedish detective called to a sleepy coastal town to help solve two murders. (Bill, Facilitator)

April 12, 2020: The Souls of Black Folk by W.E.B. Du Bois.
This landmark 1903 collection of essays about black people in America affirms their inherent worth and dignity and sets the stage for protest in the 20th century. (Barbra, Facilitator)

May 10, 2020: Winners Take All by Anand Giridharadas.
This is an investigation of the “global elite,” who try to change the world while preserving the status quo and obscuring their role in creating the problems they then try to solve. (Facilitator needed.)