Georgianuary discussion

This thread is dedicated to "house keeping" and any general topic of discussion.

Hello everyone, and welcome. :o)

I've been giving some thought to this group and wondering if there might be interest in having a group readalong of a play, much like the group read of Oscar Wilde's plays for Victober?

I thought I would put the idea out there now, so anyone interested would have time to acquire a copy before January.

I happened recently to stumble upon a secondhand copy of Richard Brinsley Sheridans plays from the Oxford University Press. As anyone familar with the Regency era is probably aware, his play, 'A School for Scandal' was a perennial favourite at the Drury Lane Theatre, and I suggest we read that one together.

Your thoughts?

Freya, I too was thinking that we should set some challenges, and I think yours is a great idea!

It would give me the excuse to finally read 'Evelina' by Fanny Burney.

I would like to read Evelina too. I have not read Fanny Burney before. I have recently purchased Jane Austen's Northanger Abbey, so I will probably get to it before January. I read everything I have purchased right off the bat. I do not like sitting on unread books!

Actually, I always listen b/c I have poor vision!

I cannot say I love READING or LISTENING to drama; this doesn't work for me. This doesn't matter since many others do. I think you should go ahead with the planned read.

Hi, have just joined - thanks for setting this up. I'm not a huge fan of reading plays so might give that a miss but definitely looking forward to reading some Georgian novels that have been on my TBR pile for too long!

If not enough people are interested in 'The School for Scandal', does anyone have another suggestion for what we might read together instead?

I thought of the play because it's fairly short and I know it's a comedy, so it should be fairly light.

I've not read The School for Scandal, but I have read The Rivals by him and enjoyed it, so I'd be down for it. The Beggar's Opera by John Gay is another good option that I quite enjoyed.

I highly, highly recommend Frances Burney. She's one of my absolute favorite authors. I've read every book she's written and I wrote about Evelina in my undergrad thesis. Definitely pick her up for this readathon because she's so worth it.

We should start a recommendations thread because I've got a list of books to recommend a mile long lol. I have to run to work now but I'll be thinking about this all day, I'm sure.

I'm up for a group readalong for The School for Scandal.

A recommendations thread would be great as well.

I don't see any reason why we couldn't have more than one read-along, and of course everyone can choose to participate in whichever ones interest them.

I'm pleased that a few of you are interested in reading 'The School for Scandal' with me. I have often come across references to it, and I'm very curious to know what it's like, so I was planning to read it myself, regardless of whether or not anyone cared to join me. However, I think it will be much more fun having people to discuss it with.

I agree that a recommendations thread is a good idea. Off to create it...

Freya suggested as a challenge to read a book known to have been read by Jane Austen, which I think is a fabulous idea. (BTW, we should compile a list.)

Does anyone else have any other ideas for challenges? I think we should be setting them now, so everyone has an opportunity to get the necessary books. I suppose many of them will be available from Project Gutenberg, but I personally would prefer paper copies.

A couple of ideas I have are an epistolary and/or a gothic novel.

Froggles wrote: "Freya suggested as a challenge to read a book known to have been read by Jane Austen, which I think is a fabulous idea. (BTW, we should compile a list.)

Does anyone else have any other ideas for c..."

I was literally thinking last night that a good challenge would be to read a book/author mentioned in Northanger Abbey since she talks about so many of them. So I definitely second that challenge!

I also second the epistolary and/or gothic novel challenges, as those are such fun books to read. I got into 18th century fiction through a class on gothic fiction, so that genre is always gonna hold a special place in my heart.

Personally, I like page length challenges, so that could be an option here as well.

What about a challenge to read a historical fiction? Or maybe a book set in a different country? Gothic fiction especially tends to be set long ago and far away so that readers can imagine that all those horrible things would never happen here in civilized England. Or even better, what about a book that explicitly deals with colonialism/imperialism and/or emerging ideas about racism in the 18th century? Something like The Woman of Colour, which grapples with a mixed-race woman's position in English society after her father's death forces her to leave her home in Jamaica.

I know we've mentioned using a play as the group read, but I also think a challenge to read a play or book of poetry would be good too. Maybe even a piece of nonfiction as well. I would recommend conduct literature but I'm pretty sure that literally no one but me is going to find that a genuinely enjoyable experience (what can I say, I love propriety!).

Lauren,

You've given us some interesting ideas, and there's nothing saying that we have to stick to four or five challenges, as in the other group.

I'm intrigued by your idea of the book about colonialism and racism. I have been reading recently about the history of the Caribbean and the role slavery played in Scotland's rapid industrialization, and I think that would tie in nicely with the course of reading I'm currently on. I had not heard of the book you mentioned, but will seek it out.

Jane Austen didn't mention 'Tom Jones' in Northanger Abbey, but I've read seven or eight biographies about her, and one of them mentions that her father let her have free run of his library and she read it at the age of eight. Given that the book is full of ribald debauchery, it seems a strange choice to modern sensibilities, particularly for a vicar's daughter, but then given that fifty was deemed an old age that most people never reached, the concept of childhood was a luxury people couldn't afford. (I often wonder what it would have meant for Western music if Mozart had only been exposed to the inanities of the Wiggles in his formative years.)

Inspired by the Victober Challenge "read by candlelight" and the playlist that Claudia of Spinster's library did with music in Jane Austen's time, I thought we could read a book from the Georgian period while listening to music from the same period. The composers don't have to be british, just from the same period.

Out of Georgian era wiki: "The music of John Field, Händel, Haydn, Clementi, Johann Christian Bach, William Boyce, Mozart, Beethoven and Mendelssohn was some of the most popular in England at that time."

Ophelia, I like both those ideas too. :o)

I especially like the idea of the playlist, becoming better acquainted with the music of the period, as welll as the literature.

Ophelia, I like both those ideas too. :o)

I especially like the idea of the playlist, becoming better acquainted with the music of the period, as welll as the literature.

Ophelia, I like both those ideas too. :o)

I especially like the idea of the playlist, becoming better acquainted with the music of the period, as welll as the literature.

Ophelia, I like both those ideas too. :o)

I especially like the idea of the playlist, becoming better acquainted with the music of the period, as welll as the literature.

Ophelia, I like both those ideas too. :o)

I especially like the idea of the playlist, becoming better acquainted with the music of the period, as welll as the literature.

Obviously I had difficulty posting my previos reply. :o)

Hi gang, I have not read a lot of lit from the time period of this group, other then Jane Austen. I'm looking forward to expanding my reading from beyond Victorian literature though!

Hi everyone! Happy to be in this group. Wow, there are already so many great suggestions for the challenges!

I haven't read many books from this period and I'm really looking forward to discovering some new classics.

I was not familiar with the books suggested for the group readalong, I had to look for them on Goodreads. I think it's always good to have a play for readalong, since plays are usually short and can be read in one sitting. The School for Scandal looks interesting. Evelina is quite longer since it's a novel, however, I wouldn't mind it to be a group readalong as well. Maybe we could put up a poll in December?

My suggestion for a challenge is to read a lesser-known book by a well-known author (Lady Susan or Sanditon by Jane Austen instead of Pride and Prejudice, Moll Flanders instead of Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe, Mathilda instead of Frankenstein by Mary Shelley and so on)...

Looking forward to Georgianary! :)

I have been wanting to read Moll Flanders.

Welcome, Lana and Theresa!

Lana, I think your challenge idea is a great one! (BTW, thank you for telling us about 'Matilda'. I didn't realize that Mary Shelley wrote anything besides 'Frankenstein'.)

As regards read-alongs, I don't see that it's necessary to have a vote, as there's no reason why we couldn't run as many as we like, either concurrently or consecutively, with each of us being free to choose which, if any, we'd like to participate in.

Art, I get the impression that most of us are in the same boat, and few of us have ventured into Georgian literature beyond Jane Austen's books. I actually find this exciting, as it means we'll be going on this journey of discovery together.

I'm looking forward to "Georgianary" so much, I've already picked out a few books I plan to read, and used Post-It flags to break them down into maneageable daily reading quotas. (Yes, I know I'm a nerd.) :o)

Theresa, I remember seeing an adaptation of 'Moll Flanders' and knew that it was set in the 17th century, but just went and looked it up and learned that it was written in the early years of the Georgian era.

It seems strange to me to realize that people in the past also wrote historical fiction. :o)

Froggles wrote: "Theresa, I remember seeing an adaptation of 'Moll Flanders' and knew that it was set in the 17th century, but just went and looked it up and learned that it was written in the early years of the Ge..."

Great movie with Morgan Freeman and Robin Wright. I have been wanting to read the book ever since I saw the movie.

Theresa, the version I saw was made for television and starred Alex Kingston and Daniel Craig. :o)

Froggles wrote: "Theresa, the version I saw was made for television and starred Alex Kingston and Daniel Craig. :o)"

I will have to check into that one.

Theresa wrote: "Froggles wrote: "Theresa, I remember seeing an adaptation of 'Moll Flanders' and knew that it was set in the 17th century, but just went and looked it up and learned that it was written in the earl..."

I had no idea there was a movie with Morgan Freeman and Robin Wright! Thanks! I watched the TV adaptation with Alex Kingston a long time ago and I remember liking it.
I just googled both versions, it turns out they were both filmed in 1996. :D

Lana, that's interesting. :o)

I had no idea there was another version made around the same time.

Oh my goodness, I had no idea everyone was over here having so much fun! I was so intent on checking the Victober threads that I didn't even think to look here, yet. Just reading all your posts has me excited and looking forward to January. (Off to check the suggestions thread and my bookshelves!)

Welcome aboard, April. :o)

Froggles wrote: "Freya, I too was thinking that we should set some challenges, and I think yours is a great idea!

It would give me the excuse to finally read 'Evelina' by Fanny Burney."

I love Evelina! Definently worth the read :)

Froggles wrote: "Lauren,

You've given us some interesting ideas, and there's nothing saying that we have to stick to four or five challenges, as in the other group.

I'm intrigued by your idea of the book about co..."

I'm liking this challenge idea about reading what Jane Austen mentioned in her novels. I've been waiting for an excuse to read Ann Radcliffe :)

I’m so excited about this! I often teach _Moll Flanders_ in my college level Early British Literature survey courses, so I’ll likely give that a pass, but I have wanted to read _Evelina_ for quite some time. I’d also like to revisit Sheridan and Gay since I haven’t read their plays since graduate school. So many possibilities! I’m heading over to the recommendations posts now :)

Welcome, Jesse. :o)

I'm happy to see another person coming aboard with some experience of novels from this era. I'm sure that any insight you can offer us newbies will be greatly appreciated.

So everybody, now that Victober is over, and before the holiday season kicks off, I'm thinking that now might be a good time to gel up our plans for a list of challenges and read-alongs.

That way anyone who wants to participate in the structured activities has time to acquire the books they'll need.

If anyone has trouble locating a copy of a book, Project Gutenberg may have it.

For the benefit of anyone who may not have heard of Project Gutenberg, it's a website that provides free electronic copies, in various formats, of books for which the copyrights have expired and are now in the public domain. In some cases, it may be your only practical means of being able to read a particular book that is long out of print. It's also a great place to find the lesser known works of some authors.

So for read-alongs, I believe we have settled on Richard Sheridan's play, 'The School for Scandal' and Fanny Burney's novel, 'Evelina'.

Please correct/remind me if I'm wrong, and also please feel welcome to make any other suggestions. There is no reason why we can't have as many going at the same time as we like, as everyone's tastes will be different, and we can each pick and choose which we like. We can also set up buddy reads if only two or three people, say, are interested in reading a particular book.

We'll also have to figure out our reading schedules.

As for challenges, we currently have the brilliantly creative suggestion of reading a book mentioned by Jane Austen in 'Northanger Abbey'. (I had suggested a gothic novel, but I think this challenge also takes care of that.)

Does anyone else have a suggestion for a challenge? (If you already mentioned one that I'm forgetting, please refresh my memory.)

This may be weird but how about having someone pick a novel or play for you. If know one likes that I am not offended. :)

Froggles wrote: "So everybody, now that Victober is over, and before the holiday season kicks off, I'm thinking that now might be a good time to gel up our plans for a list of challenges and read-alongs.

That way ..."

I don't think I've expressed my gratitude to Froggles for making this group yet. I'm looking forward to January and hope many others will join.

It may be too soon to talk about TBRs and it will probably change till January, but I think I'll try and do both readalongs (Evelina and The School for Scandal).
Reading a gothic novel or a book mentioned by Jane Austen sound like great challenges. I never read Northanger Abbey, I might get to it during, or maybe even before Georgianary officially starts.

I'm considering The Monk by Matthew Lewis for a gothic novel. Moll Flanders by Daniel Defoe is a book I've wanted to read for a long time (my suggestion for a challenge was to read a lesser-known book by a well-known author, but I hope to read it even if it didn't fit any challenges that we agree upon).

I might also read some book by Jane Austen (or any other author who's work has been adapted to movie or a series) and then watch an adaptation. If anyone has watched any good ones lately, please let me know.

I can't wait to start 2020 with Georgian literature. :)

Theresa wrote: "This may be weird but how about having someone pick a novel or play for you. If know one likes that I am not offended. :)"

It's an interesting idea. The only thing is that I haven't read many books from this period, so I wouldn't really know what to recommend, other than some well-known novels. But it does sound fun!

If "read a novel referenced by Austen" is a set a challenge, I would recommend looking over this list for a pretty definitive list of literary allusions in Austen's novels and letters. There are plenty of options to choose from.

Also, this prompt has me thinking about a class I took in college called "Becoming Jane Austen." The professor paired up Austen novels with earlier novels that inspired/were in the same tradition as Austen's novel. We only read 4 of Austen's novels because of the timing but the pairings were

- Cecilia by Fanny Burney & Pride and Prejudice
- Sophia by Charlotte Lennox & Sense and Sensibility
- The Castle of Wolfenbach: A German Story by Eliza Parsons & Secresy; or The Ruin on the Rock by Eliza Fenwick & Northanger Abbey (all these books are short so we read 3 in this unit)
- Belinda by Maria Edgeworth & Persuasion

Just another set of reading suggestions I guess! I really enjoyed that class and absolutely loved seeing what kind of books influenced Austen's writing.

Lauren, that list of pairings is interesting. Thank you for posting it. :o)

So I'm going to post the list of challenges soon.

I'm thinking that I'll list four of them, and they'll be these:

- Read one of the gothic novels mentioned in 'Northanger Abbey'
- Read some Georgian poetry, whether by one author or an anthology
- Read some Englightenment philosophy or a political tract
- And borrowing on Theresa's idea, choose a book recommended by someone in the Recommendations thread

How does that sound?

Hi Lana,

Welcome! And thank you for your kind words of thanks.

I just re-read your post and saw your suggestion for a challenge. I'll add it to the list.

If you haven't yet read Jane Austen, you're in for a treat. I've read them all and have watched some of the adaptations so many times, I have most of the lines memorized. :o)

Addition to the challenge list...

Read a lesser known work by a well known author.

Lana wrote: "Froggles wrote: "So everybody, now that Victober is over, and before the holiday season kicks off, I'm thinking that now might be a good time to gel up our plans for a list of challenges and read-a..."

I also am planning on reading Moll Flanders and a book by Jane Austen even if it doesn't fit any challenges. Maybe we could do a readalong for Moll.

Froggles wrote: "Lauren, that list of pairings is interesting. Thank you for posting it. :o)

So I'm going to post the list of challenges soon.

I'm thinking that I'll list four of them, and they'll be these:

- Re..."

I think your challenges sound great.

Hi Theresa,

I think most of us have read Jane Austen already, which is probably why her books have not been suggested (or at least thus far) for a challenge or read-along.

As those of us who have who have read Austen's books would recommend them, that would fit the recommendations challenge.

Without scrolling back through the thread, I think there was someone else who said they were going to read Moll Flanders. If anyone else is interested in making it a read-along, I can certainly create a thread and schedule for it.

Would anyone else be interested in having a Moll Flanders read-along?

I would like to read Moll Flanders too. Evelina, I have already planned for. Recently I read Northanger Abbey. I will not be rereading that .

I read Northanger Abbey about a year ago but don't remember all those book references. I plan on reading Pride or Persuasion and I wasn't really wanting a group read for that I was just saying I was going to read it.

Froggles wrote: "Hi Lana,

Welcome! And thank you for your kind words of thanks.

I just re-read your post and saw your suggestion for a challenge. I'll add it to the list.

If you haven't yet read Jane Austen, you..."

Oh, it must be wonderful to know her work in detail. I read Jane Austen, but only one book, Pride and Prejudice, and I read it in my mother tongue. I also loved 1995 BBC adaptation starring Colin Firth and Jennifer Ehle.
I always wanted to read all of her books, so my goal for 2020 is to read all her works in English. Georgianary just might be the perfect time to start!

Thanks a lot for adding my challenge. :)

Theresa wrote: "Lana wrote: "Froggles wrote: "So everybody, now that Victober is over, and before the holiday season kicks off, I'm thinking that now might be a good time to gel up our plans for a list of challeng..."

Sure, we could do a readalong for Moll if enough people are interested, or read it at our own pace and discuss after. Whatever works for majority of us who decide to pick it up. :)