Book Clubs
If you are looking for fellow readers in Dubai, you should join the Emirates Literature Foundation book clubs! The Foundation organizes a range of book clubs catering to readers of all ages and languages. Don’t miss out on the reading fun; join our book clubs today.
Festival Book Club (English)
When: Every third Wednesday
Time: 7:30pm-8:45pm
Language: English
Age Group: 18+
* Dates and times subject to change.
Festival Book Club (Arabic)
When: Once a Month
Time: 11:00am-12:00pm
Language: Arabic
Age Group: 18+
Children’s Book Club (9-11 years)
When: Once a month
Time: 10:00am-11:00am
Language: English
Age Group: 9-11
Young Adults’ Book Club (12+)
When: Once a month
Time: 11:00am-12:00pm
Language: English
Age Group: 12+
Readers’ Majlis (English)
When: Every Second Monday
Time: 10:00am-12:00nn
Language: English
Age Group: 18+
Have an existing book club? We love connecting with people who share our love of reading. Tell us about your book club and you could be featured on our page and get free books. Learn More
Festival Book Club (English)
Next Meeting: 12 December 2018; Old Baggage by Lissa Evans
Old Baggage by Lissa Evans follows the story of Matilda Simpkin who has a thrilling past and a chafingly uneventful present. It’s a funny and bittersweet portrait of a woman who has never given up the fight. Come and enjoy the company of fellow readers and a good book at The Lounge, JW Marriot Marquis, Business Bay.
Language: English; Age Group: 18+
Register NowThe Guide
Can anyone join?
If you love books and talking about them with fellow bookworms, you’re in!
Do I need to pay anything?
There is no registration fee, the only requirements are a name, email address and contact number for our records. RSVP a week before via email or the Facebook group which you will be invited to once you officially register.
How do you choose titles?
The Festival Book Club largely focuses on works by authors attending the upcoming Emirates Airline Festival of Literature (1-10 March 2018).
This means that by the time the Festival arrives, when authors discuss their work in various events or ‘sessions’, you can really engage with the conversation and get a feel for what else in their backlist you’d like to add to your reading pile.
What is the format of discussions?
We discuss the book of the month for about an hour, looking at plot, character and language (it’s always useful to bring a few thoughts or a short passage that you’d like to read out and discuss) and at the end of the chat we have a quick recommendation round where we each recommend a book that isn’t on the book club list, because we can never have enough books.
Do you focus on one particular genre?
Nope. We cover literary fiction, historical fiction, non-fiction, works in translation, sci/fi fantasy and short story collections. This means there’s a discussion accessible to everyone at some point and it encourages regular members to break out of their comfort zones every once in a while.
Do I need to read the book before I attend?
It’s important to read the book before the discussion but we all have busy lives and sometimes they get in the way. If you haven’t finished the book but still want to join in that’s fine, but remember that Book Club is FULL OF SPOILERS, and we will ruin the ending for you. (You have been warned).
Do you still meet during the Summer months?
We do; however, we branch out for the Summer into some different titles before we move onto the new Festival Book Club year which starts in September.
Upcoming Books
12 Dec 2018
The Baghdad Clock
SHORTLISTED FOR THE INTERNATIONAL PRIZE FOR ARABIC FICTION 2018 For fans of The Kite Runner comes this remarkable debut, the number one bestselling title in Iraq, Dubai and the UAE Baghdad, 1991. In the midst of the first Gulf War, a young Iraqi girl huddles with her neighbours in an air raid shelter. There, she meets Nadia. The two girls quickly become best friends and together they imagine a world not torn apart by civil war, sharing their dreams, their hopes and their desires, and their first loves. But as they grow older and the bombs continue to fall, the international sanctions bite and friends begin to flee the country, the girls must face the fact that their lives will never be the same again. This poignant debut novel will spirit readers away to a world they know only from the television, revealing just what it is like to grow up in a city that is slowly disappearing in front of your eyes, and showing how in the toughest times, children can build up the greatest resilience.
Festival Book Club (Arabic)
More information coming soon!
Language: Arabic; Age Group: 18+
Register Now
Children’s Book Club (9-11 years)
Next Meeting: More information coming soon!
The Children’s Book Club is aimed at children between 9-11 years of age to meet monthly during term time at Costa Coffee Al Wasl (Costa Drive thru after Spinneys Umm Sequim heading to Jebel Ali) to discuss books including those by authors who will attend the 2019 Emirates Airline Festival of Literature. Click here to learn more about the location.
Register for the new season of the Children’s Book Clubs via the form below. All participants interested in attending from September 2018 must sign up using the form.
Due to space constraints, please ensure that you have confirmed attendance before arriving for the Club.
Please encourage your children to read the book in advance, so that they can join in the conversation.
Language: English; Age Group: 9-11 years
Register Below
Young Adults’ Book Club (12+ years)
Next Meeting: More Information Coming Soon!
The Young Adults’ Book Club is aimed at students over the age of 12. The book club will meet monthly during term time at Costa Coffee Al Wasl (Costa Drive thru after Spinneys Umm Sequim heading to Jebel Ali) to discuss books including those authors who will attend the 2019 Emirates Airline Festival of Literature. Click here to learn more about the location.
Register for the new season of the Young Adults’ Book Club via the form below. All participants interested in attending from September 2018 must sign up using the form.
Due to space constraints, please ensure that you have confirmed attendance before arriving for the Club.
Please encourage your children to read the book in advance, so that they can join in the conversation.
Language: English; Age Group: 12+ years
Register Below
Readers’ Majlis (English)
Next Meeting: 6 December 2018; 10:30am
Emirates Literature Foundation is delighted to invite all book lovers to the monthly Readers’ Majlis. Every second Monday of the month we sit down to discuss books on a specific theme decided on by the members. It is the perfect opportunity for you to share your experiences and passion for literature with other like-minded enthusiasts.
Each group member will choose their own book or books to read and discuss at the Majlis. Discover new books of different genres and from a number of cultures at this unique reading group.
During the next book club meeting, we’ll be discussing creativity.
Venue: Ritz Carlton Cafe (at the Lobby Lounge), JBR.
Language: English; Age Group: 18+
Register NowWhy not tell us about your book club?
The Emirates Literature Foundation is the home of book clubs. Tell us about your book club and you could be featured as our Book Club of the Month and get a free book to review with your members!
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