We are a friendly group of people who love reading. We aim to encourage an appreciation of Literature but you don’t need any experience of Literature, just curiosity and an enjoyment of reading.
We have monthly meetings from September to May where different topics are discussed each month, as well as a monthly ‘I Have Been Reading’ online group meeting and also a programme of poetry reading.
Our next meeting:
20th November 2025
Celebrating the Booker Prize for Fiction
Talks by: Christine Harrington, Rosemary Hughes and Eileen Davis
It’s the Booker Prize season, and we are celebrating this prestigious award for fiction. There will be a brief history of the prize, which was first awarded in 1969. We shall then take a look at three prizewinners.
Christine Harrington will discuss Moon Tiger by Penelope Lively, the 1987 Winner. Moon Tiger is a richly layered novel that explores memory, history, and identity through the voice of Claudia Hampton, a fiercely intelligent and independent woman reflecting on her life as she lies dying in a hospital. The novel blends Claudia’s personal memories with broader historical events, particularly World War II, where she experiences a profound but tragically brief love with a British officer in Egypt. As a historian, Claudia sets out to write “a history of the world,” but ultimately recounts her own deeply personal story and the novel examines how lives are shaped not only by the events we live through but also by the stories we choose to tell about them.
Roesmary Hughes will look at The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro, the 1989 Winner. This book, which won the Booker Prize in 1989, introduced Ishiguro to many of us for the first time, though he had previously written novels set in his native Japan. He has since become one of our most highly regarded novelists. The novel is set mainly in the 1930s and reflects the history of that period in the run up to World War Two. The central character is Stevens, an English butler with a strong sense of duty, in service to Lord Darlington, the owner of a stately home. Two themes emerge- one the true nature of Darlington’s involvement with the Nazis, and the other the development of the relationship of Stevens with the housekeeper, Miss Kenton. A brilliant film starring Antony Hopkins and Emma Thompson was made in 1993.
Eileen Davis will talk about the controversial 2024 winner Orbital by Samantha Harvey. In 136 pages the book describes the work, relaxation, physical challenges, thoughts and companionship of four astronauts and two cosmonauts during sixteen orbits of the Earth in the International Space Station. Samantha Harvey watched a continuous live stream of Earth from the space station while writing the book. The result is a mix of the practical challenges the voyages live with and their relationship with the beautiful word outside the windows. You will not have read anything like this extraordinary book – do try it.
Click here for more details of our programme for 2025-2026.
We hold talks in the Lecture Room, Baptist Church, Milton Road, Wokingham RG40 1DE from 7.30pm to 9.30pm on the third Thursday of some months.
For details of how to find us click here.
New members and visitors are always welcome.
Membership begins in September and the annual subscription is £20.
If you have any queries please email us: wokinghamliterarysociety@gmail.com