Note: This Group has moved from the Tin Tabernacle to The Shed in the High Street, Hythe. Click the Venue link above for details.

The Novels 1 Group brings together people who love books and wish to discuss what makes a book a great and lasting experience. Novels can be fun, gripping, emotional and perhaps inspirational. They are a window on other lives, loves, tragedies and, indeed, the comic.

“So Matilda’s strong young mind continued to grow, nurtured by the voices of all those authors who had sent their books out into the world like ships on the sea. These books gave Matilda a hopeful and comforting message: You are not alone.” Roald Dahl

The books we will read in the 2025/26 season are:

Date	Title	Author
10th Sept	A Gentleman in Moscow	Amor Towles
8th Oct	The Big Sleep	Raymond Chandler
12th Nov	The Safekeep	Yael van der Wouden
10th Dec	Lady Susan/History of England	Jane Austen
14th Jan	Zorba the Greek	Nikos Kazantzakis
11th Feb	Thursbitch	Alan Garner
11th Mar	Gabriel’s Moon	William Boyd
8th Apr	Rivers of London	Ben Aaronovitch
13th May	The Fraud	Zadie Smith
10th Jun	Animal Dreams	Barbara Kingsolver
8th July	Special Meeting

There is a range of genres in the list including crime, literary, thriller and horror.

Discussions on each book are wide-ranging, interesting and often surprising as different aspects and interpretations emerge.

This small Group is currently full, but members can still apply to join in the usual way and their names will be added to the waiting list.

This Group is participating in the pilot trial whereby members can apply to join online - see details on the Self-Registration page.