Regional Reads Book Club
Regional Reads Book Club Events
Please let us know if you’ll be joining us as space is limited.
These events are Free.
Wednesday, June 3, 2026
VANISHED ARIZONA: RECOLLECTIONS OF THE ARMY LIFE OF A NEW ENGLAND WOMAN by Martha Summerhayes
6:00 pm – 7:30 pm
13912 W. Camelback Road
This memoir tells the story of Martha, a young wife married to an officer in the US 8th Infantry, as she lived in Arizona during the 1870s. Written in 1908, her account offers a woman’s viewpoint on military life, tracing her transformation from a refined New Englander to a strong and adaptable army spouse. Martha shares her initial culture shock, the difficulties she faced as an upper-class woman adjusting to life in the Southwest, and how she eventually grew to appreciate the area. She covers topics such as travel, hygiene, food, and medical care, making her narrative an important resource on the experience of women in the military West.
Wednesday, July 1, 2026 ATOMIC SUNSET by JD MacDonald MYSTERY
6:00 pm – 7:30 pm
13912 W. Camelback Road
Atomic Sunset
Set in Radio Springs, Arizona, a quirky, offbeat mystery unfolds for down and out wedding photographer, Jane Daugherty when her car breaks down just outside this tourist trap along a forgotten stretch of Route 66. While waiting for repairs, she finds herself immersed in a series of bizarre small-town occurrences from possible alien episodes to a strange murder. Jane begins to piece together a trail that winds from the community library to the local diner to abandoned canyon mines. Atomic Sunset is a cozy mystery that is filled with sharp humor, local themes, and eccentric residents.
Wednesday, August 5, 2026 EPITAPH: A NOVEL OF THE O.K. CORRAL by Mary Doria Russell FICTION
6:00 pm – 7:30 pm
13912 W. Camelback Road
Epitaph: A Novel of the O.K. Corral
This deeply researched historical novel provides a voice to the men and women whose lives were changed by those 30 seconds in Tombstone. Exploring the personal and political pressures leading up to the 1881 shootout, it dismantles the mythology surrounding Wyatt Earp and Doc Holliday to uncover nuanced circumstances and complex individuals. The narrative is told through the perspective of a wide cast of characters, including Josie Marcus, Earp’s common law wife who helped craft his heroic legend after his death. It also examines the consequences of the gunfight and the aftermath of the feud.
Wednesday, September 2, 2026 THE LINE BECOMES A RIVER, DISPATCHES FROM THE BORDER by Francisco Cantu NONFICTION
6:00 pm – 7:30 pm
13912 W. Camelback Road
The Line Becomes a River, Dispatches From The Border
This memoir by a former U.S. Border Patrol agent who chronicles his four years (2008-2012) working in the Southwest borderlands, intersperses personal stories of working the border with the history of the border itself. Taking the job fresh out of college, Cantu portrays the emotional toll and personal conflict of policing, the dehumanization of migrants, and the brutality of the border line. Cantu’s book combines memoir with history, anthropology, sociology, and psychology to paint a full portrait of what the US-Mexico border means as place and concept. It also explores a personal perspective on a divisive issue.
Wednesday, October 7, 2026 KISS HER GOODBYE by Lisa Gardner FICTION
6:00 pm – 7:30 pm
13912 W. Camelback Road
Kiss Her Goodbye
Frankie Elkin, a specialist in finding missing people, searches for a recently arrived Afghan refugee who vanishes in Tucson. Sabera Ahmadi has been missing for three weeks, leaving behind her three-year-old daughter. With an unconcerned husband and indifferent police, the case becomes more complicated when a video surfaces of Sabera that appears to show her walking away from a double murder scene. In her investigation, Frankie must navigate the complexities of international trauma, the Afghan community, and a dangerous criminal. The novel also explores the immigrant experience, deep family secrets, and the lengths a person will go to protect a child.
