Following the Russian Revolution of 1905, restrictions on publishing and associational life loosened throughout the empire. This resulted in the birth of a thriving print culture and the foundation of numerous educational societies among the Azeris of Baku. One of the primary projects pursued by the reformist intellectuals leading these societies was the promotion of a vernacularized Azeri reading culture. In this paper I focus on aspects of associational life in Baku that promoted reading culture through the practice of public readings. I argue that this represents cultural continuity, reflecting a continuation of the Azeri tradition of literary assemblies, where members gathered to declaim poetry. It was also, however, a project of reform aimed at including the largely illiterate population into the practice of reading, encouraging them to take advantage of the educational initiatives spearheaded by Azeri societies so that they too might join the reading public. Looking at three venues where Azeris encountered public readings, I analyze how the material read and the practice of reading it tied Azeri audiences to familiar practices while introducing them to new genres, authors, and thought. The most common site of this practice was in the reading rooms founded by Azeri societies. Reading rooms were not simply a space of silent reading, but were communal spaces where patrons often read out loud, both as a social activity and for the inclusion of those who could not read themselves. In reading rooms, the literate and illiterate could read the day’s news, attend lectures, and debate the new materials they encountered. Societies also organized special events including evening soirees and jubilees celebrating the work of Azeri cultural figures. Soirees (“musamirs,”) hosted in the homes of wealthy Azeri industrialists, celebrated Azeri authors and European authors in translation by featuring readings of their works, be they prose, poetry, or plays, as part of the evening’s entertainment. Witty dialogues penned by the Azeri playwright Najaf bey Vazirov would follow scenes from Hamlet, with classical Azeri mugham music to conclude, blending both the familiar and the foreign for those in attendance. At Jubilees, Azeris celebrated their greatest writers, actors, and musicians, with their works and works about them read for the crowds. This paper will show how public readings in Baku were a key tool in the reformist project of promoting literacy, providing a known cultural tradition as an entryway into a new world of reading and literary production.