In this article I argue that women's book clubs are significant sites for learning, dialogue and the accumulation of cultural capital, and that research on North American women's book clubs should be expanded to include studies of such groups' consumption of texts by and about women living in the Middle East. Using insights from transnational feminism and reception theory, I analyze the ways in which such texts are received at a time when the renewed force of imperialism converges with an unprecedented commodification of culture. The marketing, discussion guide and reviews which shape the reception of the memoir "Reading Lolita in Tehran", a popular selection for book club readers, are considered. (Contains 1 note.)