Event Details:
🗓️ Date: October 17, 2026
🕓 Time: 17h (Duration is 90-120min)
📍 Location: Saldanha Residences--Food Court, Downstairs: Av. Fontes Pereira de Melo 42E · Lisboa
📚 Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead by Olga Tokarczuk
BOOK SUMMARY from The StoryGraph (https://app.thestorygraph.com/books/cea6200f-fbc6-4f22-a12b-ec96f983310d)
In a remote Polish village, Janina devotes the dark winter days to studying astrology, translating the poetry of William Blake, and taking care of the summer homes of wealthy Warsaw residents. Her reputation as a crank and a recluse is amplified by her not-so-secret preference for the company of animals over humans. Then a neighbor, Big Foot, turns up dead. Soon other bodies are discovered, in increasingly strange circumstances. As suspicions mount, Janina inserts herself into the investigation, certain that she knows whodunit. If only anyone would pay her mind...
A deeply satisfying thriller cum fairy tale, *Drive Your Plow over the Bones of the Dead* is a provocative exploration of the murky borderland between sanity and madness, justice and tradition, autonomy and fate. Whom do we deem sane? it asks. Who is worthy of a voice?
📚 Book Club Prep:
Whether you’re an ear reader (audiobooks 🎧), an eye reader (e-reader, phone, or digital copy 📱), or you love the feel of a physical book 📖—you’re welcome here!
**We encourage you to support local bookstores and libraries when possible. And don’t forget: someone in the group often has a physical copy they’re happy to lend once they’ve finished—so check in the WhatsApp group if you’re in need!*
Agenda:
🕰️ Arrive a few minutes early to grab a coffee or snack from one of the many cafes and restaurants nearby (if budget and dietary restrictions allow--please note, as of Jan. 2026 this is now a requirement of the establishment).
👥 Gather as a large group for introductions, then break into smaller discussion groups for more personal conversations about the book.
📖 Book Discussion: Share your emotions, thoughts, and reflections on the story. SPOILERS WILL OCCUR. We politely ask only those who have finished the book (or are "oh so close to the end") join the meetup to ensure a deep and full discussion.
🔄 Regroup to exchange key takeaways and insights from each group.
🍝 Optional dinner afterward at the Italian place upstairs—friends, partners, and loved ones are welcome to join! (RSVP IN WHATSAPP GROUP BY THURSDAY PRIOR)
To protect our discussion space and ensure everyone feels comfortable, we have the following "group rules":
📍 RSVP Caps: Meetup RSVPs are capped at 30 members so we can actually find seating and hear one another.
🍷 Mindful Consumption: While we enjoy the social aspect of our club, please keep any alcohol consumption mindful during the discussion. Our priority is a safe, respectful, and focused environment.
📝 Structured Discussions: We follow a gently guided prompt style format. Each book's "recommender", will bring a list of open-ended questions for the large and small groups. This ensures a collaborative discussion where everyone contributes and gives us a "north star" to return to.
🤝 Group Etiquette: Book club is a "give and take" space. We expect everyone to be both a giver and receiver of ideas…meaning no interrupting, talking over others, or multiple discussions at once.
Looking forward to a heartfelt, reflective, and enriching evening!
🫶🏼 Maggie
IG: [@maggiegetsreal](unapologeticallychildfree.com/instagram)
