The Armchair Travelers Book Group meets the 2nd Wednesday of each month at 11:00 a.m. at the Walteria Library ~ 3815 W. 242nd St. Torrance, CA 90505 ~ 310-375-8418

From Scratch: A  Memoir of Love, Siciliy, and Finding Home by Tembi Locke
Wednesday, February 11,  2026, at 11:00 a.m.

From Scratch chronicles three summers Tembi spends in Sicily with her daughter, Zoela, as she begins to piece together a life without her husband in his tiny hometown hamlet of farmers. Where once Tembi was estranged from Saro’s family, now she finds solace and nourishment—literally and spiritually—at her mother-in-law’s table. In the Sicilian countryside, she discovers the healing gifts of simple fresh food, the embrace of a close knit community, and timeless traditions and wisdom that light a path forward. All along the way she reflects on her and Saro’s romance—an incredible love story that leaps off the pages.

The Bookseller of Kabul by Asne Seierstad 
Wednesday, March 11,  2026, at 11:00 a.m.

In spring 2002, following the fall of the Taliban, Åsne Seierstad spent four months living with a bookseller and his family in Kabul. For more than twenty years Sultan Khan defied the authorities—be they communist or Taliban—to supply books to the people of Kabul. He was arrested, interrogated and imprisoned by the communists, and watched illiterate Taliban soldiers burn piles of his books in the street. But while Khan is passionate in his love of books and his hatred of censorship, he also has strict views on family life and the role of women. As an outsider, Åsne Seierstad found herself in a unique position, able to move freely between the private, restricted sphere of the women—including Khan’s two wives—and the freer, more public lives of the men.

State of Wonder by Ann Patchett
Wednesday, April 8,  2026, at 11:00 a.m.

In a narrative replete with poison arrows, devouring snakes, scientific miracles, and spiritual transformations, State of Wonder presents a world of stunning surprise and danger, rich in emotional resonance and moral complexity. As Dr. Marina Singh embarks upon an uncertain odyssey into the insect-infested Amazon, she will be forced to surrender herself to the lush but forbidding world that awaits within the jungle and confront her own memories of tragedy and sacrifice as she journeys into the unforgiving heart of darkness. Stirring and luminous, State of Wonder is a world unto itself, where unlikely beauty stands beside unimaginable loss beneath the rain forest's jeweled canopy. 

The Mountains Sing by Nguyen Phan Que Mai
Wednesday, May 13,  2026, at 11:00 a.m.

With the epic sweep of Min Jin Lee’s Pachinko or Yaa Gyasi’s Homegoing and the lyrical beauty of Vaddey Ratner’s In the Shadow of the Banyan, The Mountains Sing tells an enveloping, multigenerational tale of the Trần family, set against the backdrop of the Việt Nam War. Trần Diệu Lan, who was born in 1920, was forced to flee her family farm with her six children during the Land Reform as the Communist government rose in the North. Years later in Hà Nội, her young granddaughter, Hương, comes of age as her parents and uncles head off down the Hồ Chí Minh Trail to fight in a conflict that tore apart not just her beloved country, but also her family.

Coronation by Jennifer Robson 
Wednesday, June 10,  2026, at 11:00 a.m.

It’s 1953, and as London celebrates Coronation Year, Edie Howard hopes to save her struggling Blue Lion hotel with prime views of the queen’s procession. Stella Donati, a young Holocaust survivor and photographer, finds purpose and healing while staying at the hotel. James Geddes, a war hero and artist facing prejudice, begins to feel at home—until he senses something is wrong. When threats against the hotel and the queen surface, Edie and her allies must uncover the truth. Together, they fight to protect their future and the joy of Coronation Day.