Join a virtual book club
Join a book club from home. The Classics Made Modern book group meets on Zoom and connects together in a Facebook group! If you haven't ever read a classic that wasn't assigned – we're going to make this fun. If you love reading but are looking for something a bit different – try one of these titles! Here are the basics:
We meet on Wednesday afternoons from 2-3 pm in a Zoom video chat to discuss the book "face-to-face!"- All of the books are available digitally from home -- as ebooks or audiobooks through Hoopla.
- Follow along in the library's Facebook group for this discussion as we share quotes, memes, historical context, modern takes, factoids about the author's personal life, strong opinions about the movie versions, and trivia!
- Background information on each title and author is shared in advance via email.
- For help with Hoopla, Zoom, or any questions, email classicsmodern@tscpl.org.
Upcoming Book Discussions
Read the ebook or listen to the audiobook, then join the discussion on Zoom.
Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, An American Slave by Frederick Douglass
Wed, Jun 25 | 2-3pm
Frederick Douglass's Narrative powerfully details the life of the writer, orator and abolitionist, from his birth into slavery and the circumstances of his upbringing, to his brutal treatment at the hands of slave-owners and his narrow escape from Maryland to freedom. Written in 1845, this narrative is one of the most famous works of American literature and provided fuel for the abolitionist movement that began in the early nineteenth century.
Read the ebook or listen to the audiobook on Hoopla or check availability on physical items from the library.
Read 200 pages or listen 4.5 hours
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
Wed, Jul 23 | 2-3pm
Following the events of The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, Huckleberry Finn is under the watchful stewardship of the Widow Douglas. However, when he is forced back into his drunken father's custody, Huck fakes his own death and runs off down river. In the process, he meets up with Jim, a runaway slave, and they embarking on a legendary journey. The story is set in a Southern antebellum society that had ceased to exist over 20 years before the work was published in 1885. It offers both brilliant humor and tragedy as Huck and Jim explore moral dilemmas of slavery and freedom.
Read the ebook or listen to the audiobook on Hoopla or check availability on physical items from the library.
Read 300 pages or listen 9.5 hours
Oroonoko by Aphra Behn
Wed, Aug 20 | 2-3pm
A landmark in the history of the novel, Oroonoko is among the earliest such works in the English language and its author, Aphra Behn, is often cited as the first professional woman writer. Originally published in 1688, the tale combines memoir, biography, and travelogue in the form of a narrative by an Englishwoman visiting Surinam. The storyteller's account of an African prince who is sold into slavery and becomes the leader of a rebellion represents one of the first fictional treatments of colonial and abolitionist themes, and it is unusual for its era in its sympathetic regard for black Africans
Read the ebook or listen to the audiobook on Hoopla or check availability for print books through Interlibrary Loan.
Read 80 pages or listen 3.5 hours
Emma by Jane Austen
Wed, Sep 17 | 2-3pm
Emma is a literary classic by Jane Austen first published in 1816 following the genteel women of Georgian-Regency England in their most cherished sport: matchmaking. Emma is spoiled, headstrong, and self-satisfied. After a couple she has introduced gets married, she greatly overestimates her own matchmaking abilities and, blind to the dangers of meddling in other people's lives, proceeds to forge ahead in her new interest despite objections.
Read the ebook or listen to the audiobook on Hoopla or check availability from the library.
Read 500 pages or listen to 18 hours
YOU are invited to this book group
We've got options to make this work for everyone! If you aren't sure about this whole reading classics idea – check it out to see if any of these books or stories interest you!
