Book Club

A monthly salon for internationally-minded readers

While the mainstream stays within the cosy familiarity of what is safe, predictable and manageable, the BookBlast® Book Club takes you towards new perspectives, challenging your perceptions and expanding your world view. We create a space for the intellectually restless and the culturally curious to engage with powerful world literature in English translation, bringing the best of the global zeitgeist to London’s oldest bookshop.

The Venue & The Vision

The BookBlast® Book Club explores bold international literature in translation through curated reads which sparks lively conversations, accompanied by wine and occasional special guest appearances. It is held on the second Monday of each month at Hatchards 187 Piccadilly W1J 9ES. The hostess, Georgia de Chamberet, in collaboration with Hatchards booksellers, showcases contemporary fiction by award-winning and emerging voices in English translation from around the world.

Why Does World Literature Matter?

The most compelling stories don’t stop at the border. Accessing world literature in translation isn’t just about discovery; it is about accessing the full spectrum of human brilliance. Why only read in your native tongue and settle for a fraction of the world’s best ideas?

Our book club selections spotlight international writers who define their own cultures, offering readers an unfiltered look at the aesthetics and intellects shaping the global zeitgeist. The publishers are more often than not those independent presses that value singular, transformative storytelling over formulaic output.

Featuring some of the best translated books from the past decade, inspiring reading for pleasure, members’ discussions travel across the sharpest European prose to the most evocative voices from Asia, Africa, and South America. Our selection of well-written, engaging storytelling resonates with every reader — whether you’re a committed bibliophile, a curious global nomad, or on the hunt for distinctive book reader gifts.

Come for the books, stay for the ideas. Join a community where cultural exchange sharpens the pleasure of storytelling.

The BookBlast® World Series: Featured Writers

Launched in April 2024 by Donald Rayfield OBE and Dennis Duncan discussing translation in the 21st century, the writers featured so far include: Andrey Kurkov (Ukraine), Naguib Mahfouz (Egypt), Annie Ernaux (France), Dubravka Ugrešić (Croatia), Olga Tokarczuk (Poland), Ismail Kadare (Albania), Stéphane Carlier (France), Hiromi Kawakami (Japan), S.J. Naudé (South Africa), Faïza Guène (France), Karim Kattan (Palestine), Dorothy Tse (China), Véronique Tadjo (Ivory Coast), Olivier Norek (France), Roque Larraquy (Argentina), Vincent Delecroix (France), Burhan Sönmez (Kurdish-Turkish), Rosa Ribas (Spain), Cecilia Sala (Italy), Yuliia Iliukha (Ukraine), Geetanjali Shree (India).

Upcoming authors include: Sayaka Murata (Japan), Carlos María Domínguez (Argentina), Daša Drndić (Croatia), Olivier Norek (France).

A truly modern library is a borderless one. Start building yours today!

Book Club Picks

Get a Flavour of Our Book Club Discussions

YouTube Soundcloud

tickets for each event are available via Eventbrite

Purchase one of the specified forthcoming book club titles in person at the bookshop Hatchards, Piccadilly, and get £3 off the retail price.

Or purchase the books online via our bookshop at bookshop.org and support independent publishing.

What Book Club Members Are Saying

Irene B. — “I mean to compliment you on the book choices — the translations are fantastic and I’ve realised that I had lost my love of literature reading the ‘McDonald’s burger’ type blockbusters (which I tired of halfway) and have rediscovered this love — especially of translations . . . certainly the levels of bilingualism/tri/and quadri- stimulate me no end. So thank you for this exquisite group, setting, promotion of delightful literature and of course, your exquisite self, guiding the conversation skilfully and sharing your passion”

Kristina R. — “You have a good eye for extraordinary pieces of literature”

April E. — “I look forward to the next treat!”

Christopher M. — “A fruitful discussion”

Past Promotions with Waterstones

The BookBlast® 10×10 Tour

The BookBlast® Waterstones 10×10 Tour showcased the work of entrepreneurial independent trade publishers around the regions of England.

Some of the books featured in the 10×10 Tour went on to be longlisted for the 2019 EBRD International literary prize (No. 3 Shatila Stories translated by Nashwa Gowanlock, Peirene Press) and the Republic of Consciousness Prize for Small Presses 2019 (Lucia by Alex Pheby, Galley Beggar Press; and Doppelgänger by Daša Drndić, translated by Celia Hawkesworth & S. D. Curtis, Istros Books).

The Bookseller news team announced a new prize category, “Small Press of the Year” at the 2019 British Book Awards (The Nibbies). Natasha Onwuemezi’s interview about the tour was published in The Bookseller on 19 September 2018. She announced the shortlist on 22 February 2019 and it included 6 of the 10 publishers on the inaugural 10×10 Tour.

BookBlast® 10×10 Tour catalogue

A Few Testimonials

Ra Page, Comma Press — “The enthusiasm and social media posting were good. BookBlast’s dedication to supporting and platforming indies and bringing us all together nationally in this way was a good idea”

Sam Jordison, Galley Beggar Press — “The tour got our authors into a shop we’ve never been able to do an event in. It got our books in the window of the shop. There was some great publicity beforehand (being on the local BBC was excellent for us). The event itself went really well, was enjoyable for our authors and brought a big crowd to our books”

Michael Schmidt, Carcanet Press — “The tour fostered a real sense of community and involvement between independent publishing and the public. We had increased sales: event stock and further online sales in response to the marketing”