South Manchester Book Group: The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter

South Manchester Book Group

We're a friendly and open South Manchester pub-based reading group, and we share a love of books and discussing them with other people. We meet every fortnight, but you don't have to come to them all. It's dead simple; choose a book you like the sound of, read it (or even part of it) beforehand and turn up with a few ideas and money for beer / wine / flirtinis. It's very informal, and we're quite a friendly bunch. We meet at a pub in Didsbury around 8.30 pm, and can usually be found on the table with the books and flirtinis.

We've become rather popular recently so unfortunately aren't accepting new members just at the moment. But please drop us a line on the Contact Us form and we'll add you to our mailing list.

Our reading list, past, present, and future, appears here and a short version of what we’re reading next is here.

Tuesday, 1 September 2026

The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter — Carson McCullers

“How can the dead be truly dead when they still live in the souls of those who are left behind ?”

In a small town in the middle of the deep South, a disparate group of people are drawn towards John Singer, a lonely deaf-mute, and his kind, sympathetic nature. The owner of the café where Singer eats every day, a young girl desperate to grow up, an angry socialist drunkard, a frustrated black doctor: each pours their heart out to Singer, their silent confidant.

This week's book is The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter by Carson McCullers and we'll be meeting at The Didsbury on Wilmslow Road in Didsbury — contact us for details.