• You enjoy reading those great works of literature from the 19th century and earlier that have stood the test of time
• You find that authors such as Dickens, Hugo, Tolstoy and Melville mean much more to you now than they did when you were a callow undergraduate/adolescent
• You would like a good excuse to read or re-read some of them
• You would like to share your enthusiasms, insights and questions with other like-minded LIFE members
If so, join LIFE’s newly-formed Book Club: Novels of the 19th Century, which will be starting this month. Come to our first meeting on Saturday, September 24th from 10:00 a.m. to noon; our first book is Gustave Flaubert’s Madame Bovary.
To refresh your memory, the story focuses on a doctor's wife, Emma Bovary, who has adulterous affairs and lives beyond her means in order to escape the banalities and emptiness of provincial life. The novel was attacked for obscenity by public prosecutors, resulting in a trial that made the story notorious. After the acquittal, it became a bestseller and is now seen as one of the most influential novels ever written. (write-up freely adapted from Wikipedia!)
The book club will be meeting on the 4th Saturday of most months. You are encouraged to come to as many meetings as possible.
The coordinators of the book club are Simon Pearson, Martha Wall and Patricia Wilkes. If you’re interested in joining us or if you have any questions, please contact Simon Pearson at 416-489-1727.
