The "Stories of Care" Reading Group is a group of people who decide to read the same literary work on the topics of care, health, and narrative medicine. They then meet to share ideas, interpretations, and personal reflections on the reading experience.

The next meeting of the "Stories of Care" Reading Group will be on Friday, March 6, 2026, from 4:00 PM to 6:00 PM at the Central Medical Library, Strada di Fiume 447 (Cardiology Center, third floor).

The meeting will be moderated by professor Sergia Adamo and will focus on the book "Age of Iron" by J. M. Coetzee.

The discovery of a dire diagnosis, loneliness, the sense of an end: in South Africa during the final, violent years of Apartheid, a woman learns to experience her illness not as a withdrawal into herself, but as an opening to others, to the world, to the many ways of being human. Nobel Prize winner J.M. Coetzee teaches us that literature does not console; it sometimes shocks and shocks, but it always makes us see every aspect of life as if we had never seen it before.

How does a reading group work?

• Read the book suggested for each meeting; even if you haven't finished it, you're welcome to join the group.
• At the beginning of each meeting, there will be a short presentation of the book to kick off the discussion.
• The group is open to everyone, subject to availability, by reservation.
• There's a welcoming atmosphere where you can share thoughts and experiences.

For several years, the Department of Medical, Surgical, and Health Sciences at the University of Trieste has been engaged, in close collaboration with the Department of Humanities, in a comprehensive and multidisciplinary educational project to address and discuss sensitive and controversial issues related to health, illness, treatment, and empathy. This project draws on contributions from experts in the humanities (literature, philosophy, pedagogy, sociology, anthropology, etc.) and health disciplines (medicine, surgery, nursing, etc.).
Literature has often explored themes related to physical, mental, and social well-being, analyzing the experience of illness, healing, treatment, and death through narrative, poetic, and nonfiction texts. Sharing the experience of reading can enhance the understanding and interpretation of texts, transforming reading into a journey of reflection, learning, and growth. The "Narrative Medicine Reading Group" was created precisely with these goals in mind.

Sign up by sending an email to the Medical Library: bibcenme@units.it