Towards Understanding

This month we are reading The Stolen Bicycle by Wu Ming-Yi: Cheng, a novelist, once wrote a book about his father’s disappearance twenty years ago. One day he receives a reader’s email asking whether his father’s bicycle disappeared as well. Perplexed and amused, Cheng decides to track down the bicycle, which was stolen years ago.

The journey takes him to a scavenger’s treasure trove, the mountain home of an aboriginal photographer, deep into the secret world of antique bicycle collectors, and ultimately to his own heart.

Our reading groups last for roughly an hour, and consists of a relaxed chat with tea/coffee/wine and nibbles. The chat focuses on the set book to begin with, but often amiably strays to include thoughts on other related books.