Two Years of Conversation, Connection and Books That Change Us
Last month, the Materia Book Club celebrated its second anniversary – two years of reading, sharing, exchanging ideas, and that special energy that arises when women gather around a book. Two years of conversations that go beyond pages, becoming personal, and often transformative.
For many members, the Materia Book Club is not just a gathering place, but a space that reshapes their inner landscapes.
The Book Club was born from a gentle yet powerful idea – the vision of Maja Blažević, who two years ago wanted to create a space for genuine conversations about books, but also about life between their lines. From that idea grew a circle of women who met month after month with a book in hand and gradually discovered something much deeper: connection, support, understanding, and reflection of themselves.
A Space of Connection and Feminine Energy
“Starting the Materia Book Club meant much more to me than launching a reading community – it was the realization of a long-held dream to create a place where women could connect through books, conversation, and mutual inspiration. From the very first meeting, I felt a kind of magic that formed spontaneously among us. Every woman who joined brought her own spirit, story, and warmth, and together we built a safe, strong, and encouraging circle,” says Maja Blažević, founder of the Book Club and owner of Materia.
“This Book Club is a community where we support one another, learn from each other, and grow through every book, but also through every meeting. I am proud and deeply grateful for the energy that developed from the start – honest, open, and beautifully feminine. This is a place that enriches all of us, and that’s our greatest value.”
For all its members, the Book Club has become a reminder that reading can be an act of connection, that conversation about books can open doors to personal growth, and that women’s gatherings can hold a healing, almost ritual power. In an era when communication is often reduced to speed, the Materia Book Club slows things down: it gathers, focuses attention, and invites listening. Reading – but also presence.
Every meeting feels like a small ceremony that slows and grounds us, a space where not only words but emotions are shared, and books serve as mirrors. Behind every book lies a story of life and experience, and that’s what makes this Book Club special – the sense that through reading we don’t just meet authors, but each other, and ourselves.
Over two years, the Materia Book Club has grown beyond its original idea. It has become a community – an emotional ecosystem where thoughts, experiences, and energies blend into an exchange that transcends literature. A feminine tribe where vulnerability, courage, curiosity, and strength are shared.
“Book Club gave me the kind of community I was missing – a female tribe without ego or competition, full of honesty and warmth. That’s the most beautiful gift I could receive.” – Josipa Bračanov Jo
A Community of Strong Women and Shared Energy
Looking back, it’s clear that what we now call a book club has deep roots in women’s history.
As early as the 18th and 19th centuries, when universities and intellectual circles were closed to women, they began to create their own spaces of learning and exchange. They met wherever they could – in shops, classrooms, salons, even workshops – to read and talk.
Those early reading circles weren’t merely social gatherings, but acts of subtle rebellion: women read because they wanted to understand the world and themselves.
Margaret Fuller, journalist, America’s first female war correspondent, and one of the pioneers of feminism, launched what she called “conversations” in Boston in 1839.
These weren’t polite literary talks, but gatherings of women “desirous to answer the great questions – what were we born to do, and how shall we do it?” As one participant said, Fuller “opened the book of life and taught them to read it themselves.”
Reading may be an intimate act, but in community it becomes dialogue. When we share our thoughts, they cease to be only ours - they become a shared mirror through which we recognize one another. For Petra Horvatović, the Materia Book Club is exactly that: a space of reflection, where each book opens new questions about life, and each discussion becomes a meeting with another version of oneself.
“Book Club is where reflection becomes a shared experience, and conversations inspire me to see the world from new perspectives. It changed me - I’m now more open to different opinions and inspired by thoughts I might not have encountered otherwise.” – Petra Horvatović
The Warmth of Togetherness
In today’s world, we often attend superficial gatherings where appearances matter more than presence, and rarely does anyone truly listen. Tamara Jerman describes the Book Club as a place where people relearn how to listen - attentively, with empathy and without judgment. She reminds us that true community doesn’t grow from sameness, but from acceptance.
“For me, Book Club is a space where I can share my thoughts and feelings (not only about books) while hearing different perspectives. It’s a place of belonging, where I’m accepted as I am. Participating in the Materia Book Club has opened my mind, expanded my horizons, and inspired deeper reflection on life. Book Club has made me a more attentive listener and a better conversationalist - each meeting fills me with warmth and joy.” – Tamara Jerman
A Sweet Obligation
For many, reading regularly has become a ritual. Marina Kralj Vidačak calls it a “sweet obligation” - a discipline that doesn’t confine, but enriches. Books are just the beginning; what follows are conversations that nourish both intellect and soul.
“Being part of the Book Club means I have to read regularly, and that’s a sweet obligation. I love diving deep into topics, exploring, and understanding context. Rarely do I get the chance for such focused, deep, and meaningful discussions. This commitment enriches me on many levels - knowledge, perspectives, support, and friendships.” – Marina Kralj Vidačak
Seeing Through Another’s Eyes
Daliborka Rogina reminds us how reading with others widens our horizons. When we see a book through someone else’s eyes, it transforms - and so do we.
“In two years, I’ve learned to look at books from new angles. Book Club has enriched me with books, women’s energy, and conversations that stay with me long after we close the book.” – Daliborka Rogina
A Safe Haven
For Dorin Zelenika, the Book Club became more than a space to talk about books - it became an emotional refuge. In a world that values speed and competition, she found the opposite: peace, freedom, and belonging.
“For me, Book Club is a safe and happy place, my haven and a community where I feel calm, fulfilled, and free. Every member has inspired me in these two years. I thought it would be about books - but it turned out to be so much more.” – Dorin Zelenika
The Strength of Community
Ivana Patković Čevra describes Book Club as a space where books turn into life, and conversations into friendships and collaborations.
“Celebrating two years of the Materia x Planetopija Book Club means celebrating the power of community. This is our monthly refuge where books turn into life talks, and new friendships and collaborations are born. I’m grateful for this magic and these amazing people.” – Ivana Patković Čevra
A Tribe That Embraces
Sometimes books lead us to people who become more important than the stories themselves. Željka Maras shares her experience warmly and humorously: she expected book analysis and found a community where women hug, cry, and support each other. That’s where the meaning lies - the books are just the doorway; what happens in Book Club becomes life.
“Materia Book Club brought me new insights, shared emotions, community, empowerment, and inspiration. I expected academic discussions, but found a tribe where women hug and cry more than they debate. This Book Club became the cradle of some of my dearest friendships.” – Željka Maras
A Circle of Attention
Vlasta Prohaska sees Book Club as a practice of presence - a place to read, think, listen, and speak with care. It demands consistency but offers, in return, something precious: meaning and connection.
“Book Club requires a lot - but gives even more. It asks for focus and consistency, and gives back support, purpose, and joy during and long after each gathering.” – Vlasta Prohaska
A Circle of Trust
Ana Ivančić describes the Book Club as a circle of trust that breathes in harmony - a space where women recognize one another and open their inner worlds.
“Book Club is my precious happy place where for two years we’ve been breathing together in harmony. I’ve never before experienced a group of women who support each other from the very first meeting and let each other into their inner worlds. We laugh, we cry, and we eagerly await every new gathering.” – Ana Ivančić
A Circle of Words, A Circle of Life
Zelda Bečirević closes this story with a gentle reminder that reading can be an act of tenderness - toward ourselves, others, and the world.
“Two years of Book Club reminded me of the power of togetherness - that through books and conversations, we connect not only with ideas but with each other. In this circle of shared words and thoughts, each of us becomes a little richer, softer, and more ourselves.” – Zelda Bečirević
In two years, the Materia Book Club has become much more than a place to talk about books. It’s become a space for speaking from within - a place that reminds us that literary conversations are, in essence, conversations about life - about how we feel, doubt, change, and grow.
