The Imperial Alumni Book Club is here

Try something new today: connect with fellow Imperial graduates online to read and discuss books. There is no cost to join, you just have to source a copy of the books.

How does it work?

The Club will connect through a private online forum where members can discuss the current book and network with each other. The group will spend about two months on each book, so you'll have plenty of time to read.

Why should you join?

You don't need a reason to pick up a book, but here are three advantages of choosing to read with us:

1. Take time for yourself to learn something new or discover a book you might not have chosen.
2. Connect with Imperial alumni over words and ideas, have a conversation and enjoy a good debate.
3. Benefit from professional moderators and facilitators to make sure you have a great experience and so the chat stays on track.

Our current book:

The Memory Thief by Lauren Aguirre(August - October 2023). 

Sometimes, it’s not the discovery that’s hard – it’s convincing others that you’re right. The Memory Thief chronicles an investigation into a rare and devastating amnesia first identified in a cluster of fentanyl overdose survivors. When a handful of doctors embark on a quest to find out exactly what happened to these marginalised victims, they encounter indifference and skepticism from the medical establishment.

But after many blind alleys and occasional strokes of good luck, they go on to prove that opioids can damage the hippocampus, a tiny brain region responsible for forming new memories. This discovery may have implications for millions of people around the world.

Through the prism of this fascinating story, Aguirre recounts the obstacles researchers so often confront when new ideas bump up against conventional wisdom. She explains the elegant tricks scientists use to tease out the fundamental mechanisms of memory. And finally, she reveals why researchers now believe that a treatment for Alzheimer’s is within reach.