From Julie:
I fully admit that I am a book nerd. Anna Karenina is one of my favorite all time books. I dream of taking the Rory Gilmore book challenge (thus combining my love of books and Gilmore Girls).
The last couple of years I’ve been lucky enough to take some wonderful literature classes as part of my degree plan to finish my bachelors degree. I’ve taken children’s literature classes, contemporary literature, and British literature just to name a few. While my to-read list of books only ever gets longer, through those classes I’ve read lots of books that I probably wouldn’t have ordinarily picked up. And I loved the discussions that come from reading great books.
My sister Kara (who guest blogs here fairly regularly) is an avid reader as well and is one of my favorite people to discuss books with. Recently this all led up to the idea of us hosting a book club together. And instead of just doing a local thing we wanted to invite our friends who live anywhere to come and join us!
From Kara:
A nerd to the core, I started a book club in 5th grade with my friends to avoid recess.
For years now, ever since The Jane Austin Book Club came out (helloooo Hugh Dancy), I’ve wanted to have a book club where I get to share my favorite books with my friends.
I’ve tried several book clubs over the years, but none have satiated my craving for digging into good literature and savoring its goodness with others who want the same thing. I want to read great works that inspire and leave you breathless, and I want to discuss them with strong women who also love good books.
Instead of just inviting friends nearby to join us, we wanted the chance to connect with book connoisseurs from all over! Consider this your formal invitation to the brand new Coco and Cocoa Book Club.
We are sure to cover a multitude of genres and time frames with our book choices. Our only real book club rule is that the choice has to be ‘good’ literature. (Yes, that is a little subjective.) With all of that said, our first book choice is Edith Wharton’s House of Mirth
From Goodreads
First published in 1905, The House of Mirth shocked the New York society it so deftly chronicles, portraying the moral, social, and economic restraints on a woman who dared to claim the privileges of marriage without assuming the responsibilities. Lily Bart, beautiful, witty, and sophisticated, is accepted by “old money” and courted by the growing tribe of nouveaux riches. But as she nears 30, her foothold becomes precarious; a poor girl with expensive tastes, she needs a husband to preserve her social standing and to maintain her life in the luxury she has come to expect. While many have sought her, something—fastidiousness or integrity—prevents her from making a “suitable” match.
Read the book, and then join me and Kara for an online hangout to discuss it. We’ll be getting together Tuesday September 29th at 7pm (Central Time).
RSVP to cocoandcocoa@gmail.com for the Google Hangout!
You can read the book for free at Project Gutenberg or get the free Kindle download.
Can’t wait to see you at book club!
So excited!! I <3 Wharton!
Love book clubs! Good luck with yours! It’s so nice to discuss literature with like-minded book nerds like myself!
Thank you! That is what I’m most excited about – I haven’t been able to really discuss a great book with other bright & devouring minds since college & I’m looking forward to hearing insights from others!
I love book clubs, I’m currently in 2! Have fun and enjoy! Thanks for sharing!
That is awesome!
How FUN! I read The House of Mirth in high school, and couldn’t remember much of it so I started to read it again a few years ago but never finished it up. This might be a good excuse to pick it up again!
I hope you do!
That’s such a great idea! My book club hasn’t met in months. By the time we all clear up our schedules, we’ll need to reread the book!
Scheduling can be a real headache! To overcome that, we may be trying a few different ways to get people involved in case they can’t make it to our online hangout.
I love the idea of a virtual book club! Someday soon I hope to have the time to read something with a little more substance that Goodnight Moon.
Aw! Yeah, I’ve been thinking about a virtual book club for a while because a lot of my good friends are far away.
Also, we made a goal to select books under 300 pages which those of us with busy schedules can hopefully still chew thoroughly in a month. That might still be a little daunting compared to Goodnight Moon, but I hope you’re able to join us!
This is such a great idea for a book club! (And what an excellent selection to start with!) <3
Thank you! I’ve always been addicted to British Lit, but Wharton though… she made me seriously love American fiction.
This is a nice idea – I’ve often wondered about joining a book club. And I can totally relate about the book list getting longer and longer!
My book list is insane! Thank goodness for kindle so I can read at every opportunity.
We’re really excited about our book selections; I hope you join us!
I love a good book club! This book sounds fantastic!
We are so excited to discuss it with everyone! Edith Wharton is seriously great.
I have always wanted to be in a book club. I love reading classics too.
There’s a reason they’re classics, right? We do have a few contemporary books we’re considering, but definitely lots of classics! We can’t wait to discuss great content with new friends!
house of Mirth sounds like a good book. Never tried an on line book club before but will try to be there!
Yay! Can’t wait!
Ooohhhh Adding this one to the MUST READ list! Thanks for the recommendation!
Enjoy! Hope you can join in for our discussion on 9/29. Edith Wharton writes so beautifully!
Oooh adding to my list! It never stops growing!
Same here, friend!
I love books and would love to join a book club someday!
We hope to read with you on that “someday”!
I love the idea of a virtual book club! I’ve been looking for book ideas! Might have to add this to my reading list!
Do it! It’s so good!
Like so many here – I love to read! I am part of a book club and am having trouble keeping up already. Keep me posted about future reads – I would love to join in on the virtual club when my time permits.
Definitely! We have some ideas up our sleeves for future reads & as I mentioned in another comment, we plan on keeping our choices under 300 pages to try to ensure we don’t overload anyone. And bonus insight: we’ll choose some slimmer volumes for over the holidays to keep the season merry & light!
I’ll have to look for that book!
It’s FREE on Kindle!!
I downloaded the complete works of Edith Wharton because she is seriously amazing. I’m addicted.
This is interesting, Im gonna review this to.find out more.
Please do! We’re excited to see how our first discussion goes!
Inviting online readers to join in the book club fun is a really good idea. Wish I had the time to participate, but my plate is full.
Thank you! We are pretty excited about the idea.
We completely understand full plates – there is a season for all things. If the season changes, I hope you’ll join us!
Such a fun idea and the book sounds intriguing! I’ll have to check it out and add it to my list!
I so hope you do! I first read Edith Wharton’s “Ethan Frome” for a class, and I irrevocably fell in love.
I honestly don’t have time to site and read a whole book, but I always love enjoy short stories every week! Some of my favorite authors have blogs where they share short stories, and I’d love to see if there is a club for those kinds of readers, too!
That’s an interesting idea! I suggest Wharton’s “Ethan Frome” at a nice 73 pages. You get all the same Wharton themes.
I’m so behind on reading this Summer! I wish I’d gotten a chance to read and relax a little bit more. This book sounds interesting, adding it to my list!