lifelong learning
UW Alumni Book Club
Personal stories, timely topics, transformative fiction… Let’s dig into some amazing books together! All curious readers are welcome at the UW Alumni Book Club. Together, we read a book about every two months. Choose just one or all five — whatever works for you.
“So often we think of reading as a solo activity, but with discussion it improves and elevates the experience.”
—Marilyn Conover Watt, ’76, ’81
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The free online forum has suggested timelines and prompts for online discussion. Join us and take the conversation to the next level!
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Now Reading:
“Birding to Change the World”
by Trish O’Kane
Reading Period: Aug. 1–Oct. 3, 2025
Readers’ Choice! Trish O’Kane worked for decades as an investigative journalist, boldly visiting war zones and fighting for justice. When she evacuates from Hurricane Katrina and returns to see the devastation of her beloved New Orleans neighborhood, she is shaken to her core — and then turns into an “accidental ornithologist!” This upbeat memoir, chock full of amazing natural history facts, chronicles how birdwatching helped her find courage and community in the face of a rapidly changing world.
Trish O’Kane is an environmental educator who uses action-research to promote environmental and social justice. She teaches at the University of Vermont. This is her second book.
“O’Kane’s book provides a blueprint for how community action can result in real change, locally.”
— Vermont Public Radio
Author Talk:
Join us for a live author talk
Thurs. Sept. 18 | 2 p.m. ET | Online
Our online book club forum is hosting author Trish O’Kane for a live, one-hour author talk! Ask Trish your questions live and learn more about her birding journey. (This talk will be recorded for later viewing as well.)
Campus Connections:
Neighborhood Bird Outing: Union Bay
Sun. Sept. 28 | 9–11 a.m.
Center for Urban Horticulture
3501 NE 41st St.
The Union Bay Natural Area, managed by UW Botanic Gardens, is one of the best bird-watching sites in Seattle. Birds Connect Seattle invites us to join their free bird walk — all are welcome!
So you think you want to try birding?
Four members of the UW Retirement Association’s birding group worked together to write this handy birdwatching primer. Learn basic birding ethics and get a review of different field guides. Find in-person events and online resources. Learn the right way to focus your binoculars, and what to look for if you are shopping for a pair of your own!
Get Back to Your (Grass)roots
New to community activism? UW Impact’s Associate Director, Chris Olsen-Phillips, recommends this article on this basics of grassroots organizing. (Visit uwimpact.org to learn more about advocating for the UW and higher education.)
Be a Bird’s Buddy
Fall migration is a big deal for birdwatchers, but it can be a dangerous time for the birds themselves. Conservationist Joshua Morris, ’08, has timeless tips on ways to aid our feathered friends in this 2020 article from UW Magazine.
Reader Benefits:
Seattle Arts & Lectures
UWAA members and book club participants save 20% on tickets for all events in the Seattle Arts & Lectures 2025/26 season! This includes Stephen Graham Jones‘s talk on March 30, right as we are finishing up his new novel, “The Buffalo Hunter Hunter.” Use the code UWAA20 to save on in-person and online passes.
Up Next:
“The Four Winds” by Kristin Hannah
Reading Period: Oct. 10–Dec. 12, 2025
Readers’ Choice! Author (and UW alum) Kristin Hannah, ’83, highlights the struggles of the working poor during the Great Depression in this work of historical fiction. Our hero is a young mother who has deep roots at her husband’s family farm. As the Dust Bowl hits, she must choose between staying in Texas or moving west.
2025-2026 Reading List
Reading Period:
Aug. 1–Oct. 3
Reading Period:
Oct. 10–Dec. 12
Reading Period:
Jan. 2–March 6
Reading Period:
March 13–May 15
Reading Period:
May 22–July 24
Past UW Alumni Book Club Archives
Curious what books we have read before? Use the links below to access our book club archives, which include recorded events and resource lists.
Share Your Book Ideas!
Have suggestions for upcoming book club titles?
Submit your ideas to our Book Club Suggestion Form.
Check out the books that have already been suggested.
The UW Alumni Book Club is a collaboration between the UWAA, UW Libraries, University Book Store, Seattle Arts & Lectures — and passionate readers like you.
