Adult Book Discussion: Theft

About

In November the Cupertino Library Adult Book Discussion Group will talk about the 2022 novel Theft by Nobel Prize winning author, Abdulrazak Gurnah. Karim and Badar are two young men living on the East African Island of Zanzibar. Karim’s mother Raya leaves her abusive older husband when Karim is three, taking her son with her. However when she finds a happy marriage with her new husband Haji Othman, Raya allows her parents to raise her son, instead. Years later when Karim is a University student living with his mother and stepfather for convenience, he meets and befriends the orphaned teenaged boy Badar, whose neglectful relatives force him to become a domestic servant in Haji Othmann’s household. There Badar is treated as a servant although he is actually Othman’s nephew. Fauzia, Karim’s beautiful studious girlfriend teaches Badar the cooking and housekeeping skills he needs to become a successful domestic servant. Badar’s fragile new security is abruptly destroyed when he is accused of theft and dismissed. Even though Karim helps him get a new job at a local hotel, things are never the same between them. The Adult Book Discussion Group meets twice a month, on the third Thursday morning at 11 am, and on the third Thursday evening at 7pm. Both meetings are held in Room 201B. All meetings are sponsored by The Friends of the Cupertino Library For accessibility accommodations (ex. ASL), please fill out the online form at sccld.org/accessibility 7+days prior to the event. If you need assistance with the form, speak with a staff member at your local library, call (408) 540-3945, or email us at ask@sccl.org .