Reading Groups

The Strange Worlds of J. G. Ballard with Zack Graham

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4 Sessions Thursdays, 6:30 pm EDT - 8:00 pm EDT April 16 to July 9, 2026

The Center for Fiction

The ‘With Books’ option includes the titles required for this group at a 10% discount from our Bookstore.

Meeting Dates:
4/16, 5/14, 6/11, 7/9
In Person at The Center for Fiction

J. G. Ballard imagined strange worlds: a saga about scientists attempting to save Earth from rising water levels. A nightmarish depiction of a residential apartment building’s descent into anarchy. A psychedelic fantasy about a plane crash in London, giving way to nature’s revenge against the human race. An account of a seemingly idyllic Spanish resort revealed to be a hotbed of criminality and sin. Capitalism. Racism. Sexism. Environmentalism. Futurism. Ballard’s 19 novels and 18 short story collections covered it all.

A visionary and radical writer, Ballard wrote work that not only defined the terrifying time in which he lived, but also interrogated the horrifying world we’ve inherited. We will explore four works that best distill the chronology of his career, and how his craft evolved, beginning with his climate-oriented novel The Drowned World. We’ll then proceed with High Rise, his treatise on capitalism; The Unlimited Dream Company, his masterpiece of psychedelia; and conclude with Cocaine Nights, which best encapsulates Ballard’s late turn to crime noir.

Reading List:

What to read in advance of the first meeting: Please read The Drowned World in advance of the first meeting.

What to expect from this reading group: I will open each class with a few remarks about the book we’ve read, focusing specifically on personal history and where the work sits in the broader spectrum of the writer’s life and career. I will then direct the group’s conversation with the questions I’ve prepared.

Upcoming Programming: Continue your exploration of speculative fiction in The Chilling Works of Paul Tremblay with Marc Abbott, starting in May.

Pricing inclusive of sales tax if applicable.

Led by

Zack Graham

Zack Graham

Zack Graham’s writing has appeared in is or forthcoming in the New York Times, the Nation, Rolling Stone, GQ, the Believer, Astra, Jewish Currents, and the Los Angeles Review of Books, among other publications. He is the editor of Lampblack, a magazine that publishes Black writers from around the world, and serves on the Advisory Council of Kismet, a literary magazine offering a fresh perspective on spirituality, religion, and mysticism. He grew up in Chicago and lives in New York City.

About this series

Reading Groups

Whether you’re looking to catch up on great novels or you’re interested in exploring a new writer or literary period, our reading groups offer high-level literary discussion led by experts in the field.

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