Class Description
Welcome to the Reader's Room, where we approach beloved books as works of art, combining the camaraderie of a book club with the rigor of a literature seminar. The Reader's Room welcomes anyone who loves books, whether or not they identify as a writer. Together, we'll discuss each book through the lenses of content, context, and craft. All that's required between sessions is to read.
Reading List: American Hagwon, Min Jin Lee; Yesteryear, Caro Claire Burke; The Disappearers, Marlon James; Lost Lambs, Madeline Cash; Kin, Tayari Jones; and The Vivisectors, Missouri Williams
Did your New Year’s Resolutions involve reading more? Are you a backlist devotee trying to read more new work, or just hoping to discuss great literature in great company? Join us for a six-month adventure through some of the buzziest contemporary literary fiction!
Through the first half of 2026, we'll meet monthly, tackling a new title each time. We’ll dive deeply into topics as wide-ranging as our source texts, including narrative perspective, voice and structure, emotional resonance and thematic layering, and the boundaries of genre. Together, we will discuss what these books can teach us about the state of the modern novel, and what literary fiction can do and be.
This group is designed for writers and readers who want to read more attentively and engage seriously with craft. Participants should expect lively discussion, close textual analysis, and the pleasure of spending time with books worth buzzing about.
Reading Schedule:
January 25th: American Hagwon, Min Jin Lee
February 22nd: Yesteryear, Caro Claire Burke
March 22nd: The Disappearers, Marlon James
April 26th: Lost Lambs, Madeline Cash
May 24th: Kin, Tayari Jones
June 28th: The Vivisectors, Missouri Williams
Writing Roadmap: We've created a simple, goal-based writing roadmap to help you find the perfect GrubStreet course for your writing needs.
Thanks to the excellent literary citizenship of our donors, scholarships are available for all GrubStreet classes. To apply, click the gray "APPLY FOR SCHOLARSHIP" button. In order to be considered for a scholarship, you must complete your application at least one week before the start date of a class. Please await our scholarship committee's decision before registering for the class. We cannot hold spots in classes, so the sooner you apply, the better. Scholarships cannot be applied retroactively.
For more detailed information about GrubStreet scholarships, including how to contribute to scholarship funds for other students, click here.
This class will take place using Zoom videoconferencing. After registering, a yellow Resources tab will appear in this section containing a link to join class. Please note that you will need to be logged into view the Resources tab.
Zoom Participation:
In our experience, the intimate nature of a writing workshop benefits from on-camera participation. Students are of course welcome to turn their camera off whenever they need to, but it is a community norm for cameras to be on most of the time. You can learn more about using Zoom here.
Zoom Accessibility:
You can enable closed captioning at any time during the meeting by clicking the CC button at the bottom of the screen. If you'd like to access the transcript after class, please make sure to let your instructor ahead of time that you'd like a copy.