
What we’re about
If you have any questions, use Meetup internal communication or contact me via eugenefrominquiry@gmail.com (Preferred).
Books are made better by the conversations that happen about them.
Reading is isolating, unless you talk about the book. Then reading becomes a social experience within a community.
If you liked or did not like a book, and want to hear different thoughts on the book, this is a book club for you.
Want to create a habit of reading? The book club's community will support your drive.
Not sure about what you get out of books, or how to think about books, or how to apply the book's topics? Join the discussions and put your knowledge to the test.
This club primarily hosts non-fiction book club event, and some fiction. The value of the club comes from the discussions, and listening to everyone's views about the book. Everyone's different views. There will be agreement, but disagreement is permitted and encouraged. Everyone's diverse backgrounds will cause everyone to have different approaches to the topic which will elucidate arguments for and against the topic. What matters is how you engage with the information learned in the book and everyone's ideas. To seek out and understand the complexity of the topic.
A Note On Disagreement: Conflict is inevitable. Disagreement is inevitable. People come from different backgrounds, which causes them to interpret information differently. Sparking conflict and disagreement. Although conflict and disagreement cannot be avoided, each individual can choose how they respond to them. Everyone can choose how to fight. Can choose how to disagree. Everyone can make conflict and disagreement productive. Enabling everyone to become better. Disagreement causes a search for more information, for the reasons why others think differently. Which makes everyone more informed, better able to analyze the information. Knowing how to disagreement is a skill that can learned through practice.
There are conditions that are needed to facilitate an honest discussion about the different views everyone has, community guidelines. 1) To enable everyone be heard, everyone is able to speak. Priority goes to those who spoke less. 2) It is acceptable for everyone to err, and disagree. By finding out different information can any individual choose to error correct. For more community guidelines and the event's discussion, see Community Guidelines (Click Here).
The list of books are mostly member suggestions. Every cycle members suggest books, and then poll which books they wish to read. Books are selected for poll rank, and topic diversity. For details about How The Book List Gets Made, Click Here. Page contains the reasons why books are listed, and things to consider when suggesting books.
Club Maintenance:
The club has costs. If you appreciate the event, support the club. Contribute via:
- Zelle, PayPal, or Venmo. Contribute to eugenefrominquiry@gmail.com.
- GoFundMe: https://gofund.me/adabd41c
My blog for book reviews: https://www.inquiryreviews.com/p/about-inquiry.html
Basic Statistics:
Past Events = 140
Book Club Events = 133
Author Appearance = 7
Book Shop Visits = 6
Related Events = 1
Attendance: Average = 11, Standard Deviation = 6
Upcoming events (4+)
See all- The End of the World Is Just the Beginning by Peter Zeihan | Book ClubLink visible for attendees
Full Title: The End of the World Is Just the Beginning: Mapping the Collapse of Globalization
Suggested by: Member
Pages to read: 439
ISBN: 9780063230477 (Originally listed edition)
ISBN: 9780063230484 (Edition Eugene is using)Eugene's review of the book (Blog Link, Click Here)
Community Guidelines (Meetup Link, Click Here)
All Upcoming event (Meetup Link, Click Here)
Forthcoming Similar Events:
1 - Foreign Policy - 05/31/2025 = Bolivar: American Liberator by Marie Arana
2 - Globalization - 06/28/2025 = Elon Musk by Walter Isaacson
3 - Improving Society - 07/19/2025 = Seeing Like a State: Schemes to Improve Have Fail by James C. Scott
4 - Foreign Policy - 08/30/2025 = How States Think by John J. Mearsheimer, Sebastian Rosato
5 - Foreign Policy - 10/04/2025 = The Land of Hope and Fear: Israel's Battle by Isabel KershnerWhile reading the book, consider the below questions:
•What is the raison d’etre of the book? For what purpose did the author write the book? Why do people read this book?
•What are some limitations of the book?
•To whom would you suggest this book?
•How did fertilizer effect food production?
•What were the initial fertilizers?
•Where did people settle during the hunter/gatherer era?
•What happened when people tried to farm?
•What is a Geography of Success?
•What can a river provide?
•What can be done with surplus food
•What was the effect of the windmill?
•How did improved infrastructure effect a people’s survival?
•What was for trade before deepwater navigation? How did deepwater navigation effect trade?
•What was the effect of the industrial revolution?
•What is the cost of industrialization?
•What Order did the Bretton Woods create?
•What happened to wanting children?
•What effect does industrialization have on the demographics of a state?
•What effect did globalization have on small communities?
•What is the effect of deglobalization?
•What is the effect of tech competition?
•What economic systems are possible in a deglobalized world?
•How much gold is there?
•What is the price of internal unification?
•How is transportation effected by deglobalization?
•How is finance effected by deglobalization?
•How is energy effected by deglobalization?
•How are industrial materials effected by deglobalization?
•How is agriculture effected by deglobalization?Your questions are important and will take priority. If you have questions about the book's content or related ideas, either let me know what your questions are or raise them during the discussion.
- Bolivar: American Liberator by Marie Arana | Book ClubLink visible for attendees
Suggested by: Book Shop Extra
Pages to read: 464
ISBN: 9781439110201 (Originally listed edition, & Edition Eugene is using)Eugene's review of the book (Blog Link, Click Here)
Community Guidelines (Meetup Link, Click Here)
All Upcoming event (Meetup Link, Click Here)
Forthcoming Similar Events:
1 - Doing Hard Things - 06/21/2025 = Do Hard Things: Why We Get Resilience Wrong by Steve Magness
2 - Leadership - 06/28/2025 = Elon Musk by Walter Isaacson
3 - Improving Society - 07/19/205 = Seeing Like a State: Schemes to Improve Have Fail by James C. Scott
4 - Foreign Policy - 08/30/2025 = How States Think by John J. Mearsheimer, Sebastian Rosato
5 - States - 10/04/2025 = The Land of Hope and Fear: Israel's Battle by Isabel KershnerContribute:
The club has costs. If you appreciated the event, support the club. Contribute via:- Zelle, PayPal, or Venmo. Contribute to eugenefrominquiry@gmail.com.
- GoFundMe: https://gofund.me/adabd41c
While reading the book, consider the below questions:
•What is the raison d’etre of the book? For what purpose did the author write the book? Why do people read this book?
•What are some limitations of the book?
•To whom would you suggest this book?
•What military experience did Bolívar have when beginning Bolívar’s military adventure?
•Why was Bolívar compared to George Washington?
•How much wealth did the family of Bolívar have in 1783?
•Why was Hipólita chosen to be the nursemaid to Bolívar?
•How did Hipólita effect Bolívar?
•How did Charles V effect Latin America?
•What did Simón de Bolívar do? (Simón de Bolívar, ancestor to Simón Bolívar in the 16th century.)
•What did the Spanish monarchy of the 16th century think of slavery?
•What was the psychology of superiority in race of the people?
•Why were African people brought to Latin America?
•What were the Native Indians supposed to purchase under the repartimiento laws?
•Where the family of Bolívar part of the nobility?
•Who was Don Juan Vincente?
•Who was María De La Concepción Palacios y Blanco?
•What restrictions did the Spanish Bourbon regime impose on colonies circa 1776?
•Who was José Miguel Sanz and how did Sanz effect Bolívar?
•How was Bolívar behavior as a child?
•How did the Palacios family effect Bolívar?
•How did the Spanish try to control the colonies after 1767?
•What did Spain use the money (gold and silver) obtained for the colonies on?
•Who was Simón Rodríguez and how did effect Bolívar?
•How did the British effect Spain?
•What was the King Carlos IV status in Spain?
•Who was Godoy?
•Who was María Teresa Rodríguez del Toro?
•How did Napoleon influence Bolívar?
•How did Humboldt think that Spain kept its colonies?
•What did Bolívar learn during the visit to the United States?
•How did Napoleon conquer Spain?
•Who was Miranda and how did Miranda affect Latin America?
•How did an earthquake in Caracas effect the revolution?
•Why did Miranda become a Generalísimo?
•What happened to Puerto Cabello?
•Who is Iturbe and how did Iturbe effect Bolívar?
•What happened to Bolívar’s property after the 1809 revolution?
•What did Bolívar do after arriving in Barranca?
•What did people think of liberating people from different lands.
•Why did Bolívar initiate a war to the death, and what were the consequences?
•How did Bolívar earn the titles of Dictator and Liberator?
•Who is Pepita?
•Who are the llaneros?
•What caused the fall of the second republic?
•How did Bolívar treat prisoners?
•What happened with Ribas?
•What did Boves do?
•Why did Bolívar go to Haiti?
•How did warlords control Venezuela?
•What happened to Piar?
•How did Bolívar use the press?
•What did Bolívar think of a Latin America as a Federation?
•Who was O’Leary?
•What did Bolívar think of politicians?
•How much income did Bolívar make leading the revolution?
•Who is Sucre?
•Who is Manuela Sáenz?
•What did the Peru population think of the revolution?
•Who was Santander?
•What kind of political system did Bolívar want, and how did people respond?
•What caused the fall of Bolívar?Your questions are important and will take priority. If you have questions about the book's content or related ideas, either let me know what your questions are or raise them during the discussion.
- The Call of the Wild by Jack London | Book ClubLink visible for attendees
Suggested by: Miriam K.
Pages to read: 85
ISBN: 9781954839144 (Originally listed edition)
ISBN: 9789358569469 (Edition Eugene is using)Eugene's review of the book (Blog Link, Click Here)
Community Guidelines (Meetup Link, Click Here)
All Upcoming event (Meetup Link, Click Here)
Forthcoming Similar Events:
1 - Philosophy - 06/21/2025 = Do Hard Things: Why We Get Resilience Wrong by Steve Magness
2 - Fiction - 07/26/2025 = The Schopenhauer Cure: A Novel by Irvin Yalom
3 - Philosophy - 08/02/2025 = Tao Te Ching: Ancient Chinese Book of the Tao by Lao Tzu
4 - Fiction - 09/13/2025 = The Ultimate Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy by Douglas Adams
5 - Philosophy - 10/18/2025 = Being and Nothingness by Jean-Paul SartreWhile reading the book, consider the below questions:
•What is the raison d’etre of the book? For what purpose did the author write the book? Why do people read this book?
•What are some limitations of the book?
•To whom would you suggest this book?
•Who is Buck?
•Why did people want dogs like Buck?
•What was Buck’s life like at Judge Miller’s place?
•What happened at the Raisin Grower’s Association meeting?
•Who stole Buck and why?
•What lesson did Buck learn about the man with a club?
•Who is Spitz?
•Who is Francois?
•How did Buck learn to sleep in the cold?
•What was Buck’s experience being part of a sled dog team?
•How fast did Buck eat?
•Why did Buck steal?
•How did Buck’s behavior change by being a sled dog?
•How did Buck’s change physically?
•Which dog was the lead dog?
•Who was Mercedes?
•Who was Hal?
•Who was John Thornton?
•What was the relationship between John Thornton and Buck?
•What bet did John Thornton place on Buck?
•What happened when Buck was able to go into the woods?
•Who are the Yeehats and what happened to them?
•How does the treatment of a pet affect the pet?Your questions are important and will take priority. If you have questions about the book's content or related ideas, either let me know what your questions are or raise them during the discussion.
- Fluke: Chance, Chaos, and Why Everything We Do Matters by Brian Klaas| Book ClubLink visible for attendees
Suggested by: Gautam S.
Pages to read: 233
ISBN: 9781668006535 (Originally listed edition)
ISBN: 9781668006542 (Edition Eugene is using)Eugene's review of the book (Blog Link, Click Here)
Community Guidelines (Meetup Link, Click Here)
All Upcoming event (Meetup Link, Click Here)
Forthcoming Similar Events:
1 - Applying Math - 06/28/2025 = Elon Musk by Walter Isaacson
2 - Understanding - 07/12/2025 = Understanding Knowledge by Michael Huemer
3 - Varieties of Math - 08/16/2025 = The Signal and the Noise by Nate Silver
4 - Ideas - 09/27/2025 = The Evolution of Everything: How New Ideas Emerge by Matt Ridley
5 - Varieties of Math - 11/29/2025 = Weapons of Math Destruction: Big Data by Cathy O'NeillWhile reading the book, consider the below questions:
•What is the raison d’etre of the book? For what purpose did the author write the book? Why do people read this book?
•What are some limitations of the book?
•To whom would you suggest this book?
•What is a fluke?
•How much effect can the smallest act have?
•How does the methodology of cause and effect, affect how people think?
•What is the difference between contingency and convergence?
•What is the disconnect between how do people think of the past and the present?
•What is the delusion of individualism?
•How much control do people have? How much influence do people have?
•During WWII, why were the bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki rather than other cities?
•What is amor fati?
•What effect did the asteroid that crashed into the Yucatan Peninsula have on the planet?
•What is Laplace’s Demon?
•What is the butterfly effect?
•What is the difference between how Western and Eastern philosophy considers the individual?
•What happened to the marbled crayfish?
•What do people think they want, and what do people actually obtain? What kind of reality do people have?
•How do brain process information?
•What is the paradox of the swarm?
•What is path dependency?
•What is the effect of adaptive systems?
•What is emergence?
•What is self-organized criticality?
•What caused WWI?
•What are Heraclitus Rules?
•How have oracles changed?
•What is the difference between risk and uncertainty?
•What was and was not known about Bin Laden?
•What is rational choice theory?
•How do narratives effect information retention?
•How was Britainy created?
•What was the Pine Tree Riot?
•Would you kill baby Hitler?
•What is the Great Man Theory?
•What is the Cassandra problem?
•What was the conflict between Karl Popper and Thomas Kuhn?
•What defined the week?
•What is P-hacking?
•What is the publication bias?
•What is truthiness?
•What is mathiness?
•What was the Fragile Families Challenge?
•What effect did On the Nature of Things have?
•What is the paradox of 21st century life?Your questions are important and will take priority. If you have questions about the book's content or related ideas, either let me know what your questions are or raise them during the discussion.