Current ReadThe Map of Small Things
Clara Voss
Twelve linked stories about the objects people refuse to throw away.
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Remarkable books from Europe, Asia and Africa, the authors behind them, and conversations that bring literature to life.
What We're Reading
Discover the books currently capturing our attention.
Current Read
NovemberA Quiet Distance
Mateo Silva
Two siblings write letters across a border neither can cross.
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NovemberNorthern Rooms
Ida Lind
A winter portrait of a boarding house and the people it keeps.
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DecemberThe Glass Harbour
Sofia Bellini
A port city tells its history through the women who worked its docks.
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DecemberLetters From The Border
Tomasz Nowak
Field notes on language, migration and the places maps forget.
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JanuaryThe Orchard at Dusk
Elena Marin
A woman returns to the orchard her family abandoned three decades earlier.
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Featured Author
One writer each season, read closely by the whole community.
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100+Books Discussed
50+Authors
30+Events
Featured Book
Book of the Month
Northern Rooms
Across one long northern winter, the residents of a shared boarding house circle the same kitchen table and the same unfinished conversations. Lind writes cold, clear sentences that hold an unexpected amount of warmth.
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Excellence Recognition
Awards & Recognition
The Circle Awards honour authors, translators and new voices whose work deepens our shared reading life.
2026 Award · Fiction
Author Excellence Award
Mirela Dobre
In recognition of a body of work that brings moral clarity and formal daring to contemporary fiction.
Excellence in stories that stay with us
Focus: Contemporary European fiction
2026 Award · Translation
Circle Translation Medal
Nadia Mensah
In recognition of a translation whose rhythm and precision open a remarkable novel to new readers.
Excellence in voices across borders
Book: The Glass Harbour
2026 Award · Debut
Emerging Voice Award
Leila Haddad
In recognition of a debut that approaches migration, friendship and inherited memory with uncommon assurance.
A bold new voice in world literature
Book: A Quiet Distance
Meet the writers
Upcoming Author Spotlights
Live conversations centred on the books and the people who wrote them.
Author SpotlightMemory & Belonging
The Map of Small Things
Award-shortlisted storyteller Clara Voss joins the Circle to discuss her linked collection about the objects families keep. Expect an intimate conversation about memory, inheritance and the quiet architecture of home.
- Date
- 19 October 2026
- Time
- 7:00 PM BST (UTC+1)
- Author
- Clara Voss
- Location
- Virtual Live Session
Author SpotlightHome & Solitude
Northern Rooms
Acclaimed Swedish novelist Ida Lind and translator Jonas Berg explore a winter boarding house and the people it shelters. They will discuss spare prose, communal life and carrying cold light between languages.
- Date
- 2 November 2026
- Time
- 6:30 PM CET (UTC+1)
- Author
- Ida Lind
- Location
- Virtual Live Session
From the Journal
Book review
The Return Novel and Its Quiet Power
Why so many of this year's best novels send their characters home.
Read ArticleAuthor interview
Ida Lind on Writing the Long Winter
The novelist on boarding houses, cold light, and writing in short bursts.
Read Article
Literary discussion
What We Lose, and Gain, in Translation
Members argue about fidelity, rhythm, and the translator's signature.
Read ArticleWhat Members Say
I joined for one book and stayed for the arguments. It is the only place I read outside my own habits.
The Circle read my novel with more care than most reviewers did. That is rare, and I noticed.
Three continents on one reading list, and nobody pretends to have read everything. It is an honest room.
Past Literary Gatherings
DateEvent / BookDescriptionAttendance
The City in Fiction
A conversation on place, memory and urban life.
126 readersRecapNorthern Rooms
An evening with novelist Ida Lind and her translator.
94 readersRecapSummer Translation Salon
Six translators shared works in progress.
82 readersRecapWriting Across Borders
New voices on belonging and language.
148 readersRecapThe Quiet Novel
A close reading of restraint in contemporary fiction.
106 readersRecapPoetry After Dark
Readings from eight poets across five countries.
132 readersRecapMembership
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