Each winter, the San Francisco Great Books Council hosts a one-day mini-retreat in San Francisco (or on Zoom). The event usually features two discussions of short works, one in the morning and one in the afternoon.

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Fugitives...Flights...Freedom

 

Climb aboard on February 28 to join the San Francisco Mini-Retreat's two exciting journeys fueled by our Shared Inquiry discussions via Zoom. 

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Both adventures result from split-second decisions with vast impact.  Both protagonists come into circumstances where they are stripped of a shared language.  What remains?  The bare bones of human reactions and one's character.

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Percival Everett's Telephone begins in the comfortable environs of a university campus. Circumstances change as do the locations, the challenges, and the tempos.  His ingenious writing will engage us in solving puzzles and examining values throughout our discussion.

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In the afternoon we soon board the Siberian Express on a trip that few tourists could imagine.  We meet a young man who is "no beggar, no victim, he's just like her, he's running away, that's all."  Or is it?  Maylis de Kerangal's prose in Eastbound is "like music:  lyrical, urgent, cinematic and granular."  Again, a quick decision and the train itself take us on an amazing journey. 

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Here's an event flyer with some additional details. Mark your calendar, immerse yourself in Telephone and Eastbound, and register to attend the 2026 SFMR discussions! 

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REGISTER

 

For further information about this event, please send questions to: ​greatbooksncal.webmaster@gmail.com.​​

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