2010 Topic List

Month Topic and Question

Jan
Romantic Poetry
Are these poems about romantic love or the romance of ideas?

Feb
Ancient Roman Literature
Was the story more accessible than you expected? Did anything surprise you?

March

Fan Fiction (novels based on other novels)
Was the writer trying to copy the writing of the original, or do something else entirely?

April
Irish Plays
Did the dialect get in the way of the story? What did you learn about Ireland and the Irish?

May
Mothers Rights and Mothers in Fiction
How realistic is the portrayal of the mother in fiction? In the media?

June
J D Salinger
Does he deserve his cult status? Do you think his more recent works (unpublished) will continue in the 50s New York style?

July
Russian Classics
What makes them classics? Are their themes still relevant?

August
Revisiting books of your youth
Do they read the same? Has your impression of the books changed with time? What do you think now of your younger self?

Sept
creative non-fiction
How firmly is the writer in the story? Does this add or detract from the reading?

Oct
Short Story Collections
Are the stories long enough to be satisfying? Does the collection as a whole say something overall?

Nov
Magic Realism
Is the magic realistic?

Jan 2011
Rewriting Fairytales
Is this just having fun with fairytales or is something else going on?