Classic Books Zurich

The Johnny Depp movie has now been turned into a book ... :)

The idea is to discuss the classic from 1865 over a nice dinner (maybe at Ziegel au Lac? It's the Rote Fabrik's uncomplicated, but good lakeside restaurant). Who's game?

Zürich - Switzerland

Thursday, August 12 at 6:30 PM

Attending: 2

Details: http://www.meetup.com/Classic-Books-Zurich/calendar/14199438/

Greensboro Classic British Lit Book Club

In preparation for our 8/14 discussion of The Cherry Orchard, we'll gather to watch a film adaptation. Please bring a snack to share with the group.

For those of you who sign-up, I'll e-mail directions a few days before the film.

The play has been adapted into several films:

1. (1962) The Cherry Orchard [BBC-TV] Starring John Gielgud, Peggy Ashcroft, Ian Holm, and Judi Dench as Anya.

2. (1981) The Cherry Orchard [British] Starring Judi Dench, again, but this time as Madame Ranevsky; Anna Massey; and Timothy Spall ("Wormtail" in the Harry Potter films). Judi Dench won a Best Actress BAFTA award in 1982 for her performance.

3. (1999) The Cherry Orchard [British/French/Greek] Starring Alan Bates and Charlotte Rampling. Some reviewers have panned this production for confusing editing. It did win four awards at the Thessaloniki Film Festival, though (but not for editing!).

I can get all three films from Netflix. We'll vote on what to watch.

NOTICE TO NEW MEMBERS: For security reasons, I request that new members attend a book discussion before signing up for additional activities, such as Movie Night. You will be very welcome to join in the "fun" events once we get to know you.

Jamestown, NC 27282 - USA

Friday, August 13 at 7:00 PM

Attending: 3

Details: http://www.meetup.com/Brit-Lit/calendar/14065292/

The Greater Boston Jane Austen Book Club Meetup Group

"For the most part, Persuasion is a comedy of manners, a genre which depicts the social relations of a particular class of people. Although the novel features main characters, it is not about how one central character becomes a success or finds herself, as in many American novels; rather, it is about how the central characters function within the society around them. Austen concentrates on the gentry and on the specific problem of marrying off eligible young ladies."
"This relatively short novel, her last, was written in the last few years of Jane Austen's life, and published only after her death in 1817 (though she described it, in a letter of March 13 1816, as "a something ready for publication", she probably would have revised it further, if she had not already been ill with her eventually fatal disease by the time she stopped working on it). It involves an older heroine than any of her other novels do (Anne Elliot is 27), and is also the only novel whose events are explicitly dated to a specific year (1814-1815). Eight years before the novel begins, Anne Elliot (whom Jane Austen described in one of her letters as a "heroine [who] is almost too good for me") had been persuaded by an older friend of the family, whom she respects, to give up her engagement to the then-poor Captain Wentworth. Like Mansfield Park, this novel has a number of characters who are in the navy (two of Jane Austen's brothers were sailors), and several warm-hearted naval families are attractively depicted; these contrast favorably with Anne's own family, in which she is overlooked by her vain and rank-proud Baronet father and her cold and selfish elder sister. In its autumnal mood, this novel is more serious in tone than most of Jane Austen's other works, and perhaps is the most conventionally "romantic" of them (and thus the one which has given rise to the most speculation about her own affairs of the heart -- for example, by Kipling); however, there is still plenty of Jane Austen irony. Persuasion also contains more description of background and natural beauty than the previous novels. In her admiration for the seaside town of Lyme and dislike of Bath, Anne Elliot reflects her creator's preferences."

If the weather does not cooperate, we will meet at Borders at 11 AM instead.

Boston, MA 02108 - USA

Saturday, August 14 at 11:00 AM

Attending: 7

Details: http://www.meetup.com/The-Greater-Boston-Jane-Austen-Book-Club-Meetup-Group/calendar/14149491/

Greensboro Classic British Lit Book Club

"What?" you say. "Since when is Chekhov British?" Well, after the group's 2-1/2 years of reading wonderful 19th British authors (with a few Americans thrown in occasionally), I thought it would be fun to experiment with contemporaneous authors from other cultures. Literature does not exist in a vacuum, and it could be enlightening to discover the viewpoint of literary giants a little further away from Victorian England. Look for the occasional French and Russian book discussion in upcoming months. Never fear, though, the group's primary focus will remain 19th century British literature.

Kathryn will lead this month's discussion. The play is on-line at: Cherry Orchard

Introduction:The Cherry Orchard is Russian playwright Anton Chekhov's last play. He finished the play in October, 1903, and sent it to the Moscow Art Theater to be directed by the now world-renowned Constantin Stanislavski. Three weeks later, Chekhov arrived at rehearsals in what would be a vain attempt to curb all the "weepiness" from the play which Stanislavski had developed. The author apparently snickered when, during rehearsals, the word "orchard" was replaced with the more practical "plantation", feeling he had perfectly and symbolically captured the impracticality of an entire way of life. Chekhov intended this play as a comedy, and it does contain some elements of farce; however, Stanislavski insisted on directing the play as a tragedy. Since this initial production, directors have had to contend with the dual nature of the play.

Although critics at the time were divided in their response to the play, the debut on January 17, 1904 (Chekhov's birthday), was a resounding theatrical success, and the play was almost immediately presented in many of the important provincial cities. This success was not confined only to Russia, as the play was soon seen abroad with great acclaim, as well. Shortly after the play's debut, Chekhov departed for Germany due to his worsening health, and by July, 1904, he had died.

Plot Summary: The play concerns an aristocratic Russian woman and her family as they return to the family's estate (which includes a large and well-known cherry orchard) just before it is auctioned to pay the mortgage. While presented with options to save the estate, the family essentially does nothing, and the play ends with the estate being sold to the son of a former serf, and the family leaving to the sound of the cherry orchard being cut down.

Films: You are encouraged to view a film adaptation prior to our meeting. Comparing our book selections to a film adaptation often facilitates the discussion. Join us for Movie Night on Friday, August 13!

Greensboro, NC 27408 - USA

Saturday, August 14 at 2:00 PM

Attending: 5

Fee: Meeting fee: USD 2.00 per person

Details: http://www.meetup.com/Brit-Lit/calendar/14065021/

Denver Jane Austen Book Club

Let's talk about Jane. Pick your favorite Jane Austen biography, read it and join us at 2 p.m. at the Belmar Library on Sunday, August 15, 2010 to discuss the life and times of one of the wittiest novelists in the English language. Please come even if you only have time to read wickipedia. Please come even if you haven't read a word about Jane Austen beforehand. I guarantee you will leave wanting to know about the author and her brilliant writings, not to mention your cool new friends from the Jane Austen Book Club.

Lakewood, CO 80226 - USA

Sunday, August 15 at 2:00 PM

Attending: 2

Details: http://www.meetup.com/Denver-Jane-Austen-Book-Club/calendar/14079244/

Classic Books Zurich

We'll talk about Pride & Prejudice (Stolz und Vorurteil) & Austen's brutal economics of love
(Jane is not as kitschy as you might think). Any restaurant suggestions?

Zürich - Switzerland

Tuesday, August 31 at 6:30 PM

Attending: 1

Details: http://www.meetup.com/Classic-Books-Zurich/calendar/14199523/