Jul 2023: Everything Calls for Salvation by Daniele Mencarelli

July 2023
Title: Everything Calls for Salvation
Author: Daniele Mencarelli

Twenty-year-old Daniele wakes up in a hospital room, confused and surrounded by strangers. Slowly, memories of the previous night return to a spiral of anxiety and anger, an explosion of violence so intense that it almost inflicted irreparable damage to him and his family. To his horror, Daniele learns from the doctors that he’s been sentenced to a week of mandatory treatment in a psychiatric ward.

Writing with lucid realism and stunning emotional force, and drawing from the author's own personal experience of mental illness, Mencarelli chronicles Daniele’s seven days in the hospital as he struggles to find a way out of the darkness. Daniele finds unexpected companions in his fellow patients—men who, like him, have felt the full brunt of life’s pain. Together they will realize the hidden strength and value of their common fragility and of the boundless empathy they feel towards others.
By focusing on some of the most marginalized people in our society, Mencarelli has written a heartbreaking and unforgettable novel that challenges our notion of normality and celebrates the salvific power of solidarity and vulnerability.

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General Attendance Policy:

• We encourage you to have read the book (or most of it), but if you didn't get a chance to, don't let that stop you from attending. Some members find it beneficial to read the book after discussing it. 3 no-shows and you will be removed from the group. You have 48 hours prior to the event to withdraw.
• It is your responsibility to purchase/borrow the month's book. If you are struggling to locate a copy, please let us know and we will endeavour to locate a copy.
• Please respect everyone's opinions and ideas and use common courtesy when participating.
• Members take turns hosting the book affairs. The host for the month is responsible for leading the discussion but anyone in the group can ask questions.

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First time attending an ink affair meetup? On the day, you will be asked the following questions as a way of introduction:

1. Name
2. A little bit about you (i.e. resides in Tauranga, visiting)
3. What are your current reading habits?
4. What are you hoping to get out of being part of a book club?