Lit Book Group - "You Dreamed of Empires"

Name: Lit Book Group - "You Dreamed of Empires"
Start: 2025-09-14T17:00:00-07:00
End: 2025-09-14T19:00:00-07:00
Location: 503 Main St, Oregon City, OR, United States, Oregon 97045

Schedule

Sun Sep 14 2025 at 05:00 pm to 07:00 pm

UTC-07:00

Location

503 Main St, Oregon City, OR, United States, Oregon 97045 | Oregon City, OR

This book group will be meeting on the second Saturday of most months at 6pm.
Great conversations and super nice people! We hope you join us! Come to this one, come to all of them or come every now and then--you are always welcome and wanted here.
We typically meet for around 1.5-2 hours with a short break in the middle. If you haven't read the book, but would like to enjoy nice humans, listen to the discussion and maybe ask some questions...absolutely, come 🙂
Book is not included, but White Rabbit would love for you to use the public library or purchase from an indie! Water and bathrooms are available, and Black Ink will be open for treats or drinks if you so desire--thank you for not bringing in outside food or drink.
It is so helpful if you are able to purchase your ticket in advance--thank you if you are able! If the participation cost ($4.99) is not in your budget, please message us for a link to participate for free, no questions asked. Thanks for checking here or our website for cancellations, it will be posted at least 24 hours in advance.
Book Group Title:
You Dreamed of Empires by Álvaro Enrigue
One morning in 1519, conquistador Hernán Cortés enters the city of Tenochtitlan – today’s Mexico City. Later that day, he will meet the emperor Moctezuma in a collision of two worlds, two empires, two languages, two possible futures.
Cortés is accompanied by his captains, his troops, his prized horses, and his two translators: Friar Aguilar, a taciturn friar, and Malinalli, an enslaved, strategic Nahua princess. After nearly bungling their entrance to the city, the Spaniards are greeted at a ceremonial welcome meal by the steely Aztec princess Atotoxtli, sister and wife of Moctezuma. As they await their meeting with the emperor – who is at a political and spiritual crossroads, and relies on hallucinogens to get by – Cortés and his entourage are ensconced in the labyrinthine palace. Soon, one of Cortés’s captains, Jazmín Caldera, overwhelmed by the grandeur of the place, begins to question the ease with which they were welcomed into the city, and wonders at the chances of getting out alive, much less conquering the empire. And what if… they don’t?
You Dreamed of Empires brings Tenochtitlan to life at its height, and reimagines its destiny. The incomparably original Álvaro Enrigue sets afire the moment of conquest and turns it into a moment of revolution, a restitutive, fantastical counterattack, in a novel so electric and so unique that it feels like a dream.