Palm Desert Reads Book Club

The Palm Desert Reads Book Club is dedicated to fostering a welcoming and intellectually stimulating environment for adults and older adults. Our book club provides a space for lifelong learners to come together, share their love of literature, and engage in meaningful discussions. Through the exploration of diverse genres and authors, we aim to spark curiosity, build connections, and enrich the lives of our members, encouraging both personal growth and social interaction.  

The Library will have a limited number of copies available for the book club to check out. The books are on a first-come, first-served basis. For more information, talk to a staff member.

If there are no copies left and you would like to put this item on hold with the library, check our catalog here: 

Physical book: The Bullet Swallower by Elizabeth Gonzalez James

Our January pick is: The Bullet Sallower by Elizabeth Gonzalez James

In 1895, Antonio Sonoro is the latest in a long line of ruthless men. He’s good with his gun and is drawn to trouble but he’s also out of money and out of options. A drought has ravaged the town of Dorado, Mexico, where he lives with his wife and children, and so when he hears about a train laden with gold and other treasures, he sets off for Houston to rob it—with his younger brother Hugo in tow. But when the heist goes awry and Hugo is killed by the Texas Rangers, Antonio finds himself launched into a quest for revenge that endangers not only his life and his family, but his eternal soul.

In 1964, Jaime Sonoro is Mexico’s most renowned actor and singer. But his comfortable life is disrupted when he discovers a book that purports to tell the entire history of his family beginning with Cain and Abel. In its ancient pages, Jaime learns about the multitude of horrific crimes committed by his ancestors. And when the same mysterious figure from Antonio’s timeline shows up in Mexico City, Jaime realizes that he may be the one who has to pay for his ancestors’ crimes, unless he can discover the true story of his grandfather Antonio, the legendary bandido El Tragabalas, The Bullet Swallower.

A family saga that’s epic in scope and magical in its blood, and based loosely on the author’s own great-grandfather, The Bullet Swallower tackles border politics, intergenerational trauma, and the legacies of racism and colonialism in a lush setting and stunning prose that asks who pays for the sins of our ancestors, and whether it is possible to be better than our forebears.