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I have a confession to make. I didn't read George Eliot's classic MILL ON THE FLOSS for Mrs. Roeber's high school English class back in the 60's... It was over 700 pages. And it was Christmas vacation! I did write a fake book report, And I did receive extra credit for reading it. Sorry, Mrs. Roeber. I deceived you. I'm a book criminal! But please don't tell anyone. I certainly don't want the Book Police banging on my door. Could they haul me away to Book Jail? Does the Statute of Limitations count with books?
To make up for my wicked dishonesty I've chosen five classic novels for you this month. And yes, I've read them all.
Happy Reading!
Ken
kenbksco@gmail.com
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THE GREAT GATSBY
by F. Scott Fitzgerald
Fitzgerald's third book set during the Jazz Age was first published in 1925. This is the story of the mysteriously wealthy Jay Gatsby and his love for the beautiful Daisy Buchanan. This is the story of lavish parties on Long Island at a time when The New York Times noted "gin was the national drink and sex the national obsession." As author Jesmyn Ward says in the introduction to the authorized edition, "This is a book that endures, generation after generation, because every time a reader returns to THE GREAT GATSBY, we discover new revelations, new insights, new burning bits of language. Read and bear witness to the story's permanence, its robust heart. Read and bear witness to Jay Gatsby, who burned bright and bold and doomed as his creator. Read." A musical version is currently running on Broadway.
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GREAT EXPECTATIONS
by Charles Dickens
Pip, Miss Havisham, Estella, Joe Gargery, Magwitch. Only Dickens could have created these great characters and provided such a fascinating plot. Pip tells us the story of his education and development as a young man. Pip's life is changed by a series of events--a terrifying encounter with an escaped convict in a graveyard on the wild Kent marshes; a summons to meet the bitter, decaying Miss Havisham and her beautiful cold-hearted ward, Estella; the sudden generosity of a mysterious benefactor---and Pip discovers the true nature of his "great expectations". The novel explores the consequences of ambition, the complexities of identity and the importance of personal integrity. The original novel was published in three volumes after appearing weekly in the magazine ALL YEAR ROUND (1860-61).
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JANE EYRE
by Charlotte Bronte
First published in 1847, Charlotte Bronte's masterpiece dazzled and shocked readers with the passionate depiction of a woman's search for equality and freedom on her own terms. Its heroine Jane endures loneliness and cruelty in the home of her heartless aunt and the cold charity of Lowood School. Her natural independence and spirit prove necessary when she takes a position as governess at Thornfield Hall. But when she falls in love with her brusk employer, Mr. Rochester, the discovery of a shameful secret forces her to make a terrible choice. Charlotte Bronte used the pseudonym Currer Bell when the novel was published because she knew that the book would be taken more seriously if the public thought it was written by a man. JANE EYRE has seen many film and stage adaptations. A musical version premiered on Broadway in 2000.
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THE TURN OF THE SCREW
by Henry James
I've always loved gothic thrillers. This is one of James' most popular works originally serialized in twelve segments for Collier's Magazine in 1898. Later that year it was published in separate American and English editions. It's been made into several movies and an opera. A governess is hired to take charge of two orphan children at a country estate. It doesn't take long for her to realize a dark foreboding force is stalking the children. Is the threat really the ghostly presence of Miss Jessel and Peter Quint,or is it something quite different? Themes of the novella include madness, innocence and the corrupting influence of evil. Oscar Wilde called the book "A most wonderful, lurid, poisonous little tale."
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THE SONG OF THE LARK
By Willa Cather
I've read several Willa Cather novels and this might be my favorite. This is considered her most autobiographical work. Thea Kronberg, a minister's daughter in a small Colorado town, is destined for a place in the wider world. Her musical talent takes her to New York's Metropolitan Opera House. She learns her own capacity for the rigorous demands of artistic excellence and how few of her colleagues are willing to sacrifice ordinary vanities for exacting professional standards. Exhausted and depressed, she finds comfort in the southwestern desert, where she has a moment that will transform her vision and her art. Although Cather was 42 when THE SONG OF THE LARK was published in 1915, it was only the third of her 12 novels.
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BOOKS & COMPANY BOOK GROUPS
Open to the Public
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Wednesday, August 28th
1:00 p.m.
in person at Books & Co.
Brooklyn
by Colm Toibin
Registration required-
limited seating
CLICK HERE TO REGISTER
Wednesday, September 25th
1:00 p.m.
in person at Books & Co.
Lady Tan's Circle of Women
by Lisa See
Registration required-
limited seating available
link to come
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Wednesday, August 21st
6:30 p.m.
in person at Books & Co.
I Kissed Shara Wheeler
by Casey McQuiston
No registration required for PRADAS book group meetings.
Wednesday, September 18th
6:30 p.m.
in person at Books & Co.
The Davenports
by Krystal Marquis
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Tuesday, August 20th
6:00 p.m.
in person at Books & Co.
How to Walk on Water and Other Stories
by Rachel Swearingen
No registration required for Reading Wisconsin book group meetings.
Meetings are every other month.
Tuesday, October 15th
6:00 p.m.
in person at Books & Co.
Bone Broth
by Lyndsey Ellis
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Tuesday, August 27th
4:00 p.m.
in person at Books & Co.
Crook Manifesto
by Colson Whitehead
No registration required for Mystery book group meetings.
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We support over 50 private book groups with their monthly selection available on the Book Group shelf in store. If your book group is registered with us, we offer 15% off of the book group title each month. To register your book group, just let us know what your book group name is and what you're reading, as well as a contact name for the group. As long as we have an updated list of your books, we will have them on the book group shelf in the store and listed on our website. |
Books & Company
1039 Summit Ave Oconomowoc, WI
262-567-0106
HOURS
Mon-Fri 9:00-7:00
Sat-Sun 9:00-5:00
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