Throughout August we’ll be reading The Importance of Being Earnest by Oscar Wilde for our Read-a-Long. I’ve seen it acted out, but never read it (or any Oscar Wilde, gasp!), so I’m thrilled to be reading this one (and thrilled for an easy, short read).

Please note: I would greatly appreciate you reading through “How It Works” at the bottom of the page before signing on… it’s most helpful to me to have you do so. 

Some Facts About the Read-a-Long:

• You do not have to be a book blogger to join.
• We will be reading the book in August (first three weeks), with the first discussion happening on Friday, August 3rd / the book is 54 pages (paperback, Dover Thrift edition) so that’s roughly 3 pages a day.
• Don’t be intimidated. We will be going at a slow pace and discussing the book throughout our reading. The discussions are quite fun, and make the reading process very enjoyable!

What is The Importance of Being Earnest about?  

Oscar Wilde’s madcap farce about mistaken identities, secret engagements, and lovers entanglements still delights readers more than a century after its 1895 publication and premiere performance. The rapid-fire wit and eccentric characters of The Importance of Being Earnest have made it a mainstay of the high school curriculum for decades. (via goodreads.com)

Interesting tidbits about the author, Oscar Wilde:

Born on October 16, 1854 in Dublin, Irish writer Oscar Wilde is best known for the novel The Picture of Dorian Gray and the play The Importance of Being Earnest, as well as for his infamous arrest and imprisonment for being gay.

For more information and several videos, visit Oscar Wilde’s page on the Biography website.

Also – fun fact – his house in London has just been put up for sale! See the article in The Telegraph.

Please let me know in the comments section of this post if you are interested! Hope you’ll join us, the more the merrier! Below is a break down of  the reading schedule. Saturday, July 28th will be the official starting day for reading, so if you’re joining you’ll want to grab your books by then (as our first discussion will happen the following Friday, August 3rd). Please take care to sign up with the name you are using for the rest of the read-a-long. 

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The following is the reading and posting schedule for this read-a-long. Please note, we will be reading roughly 20 pages per week (about 3 pages a day). Because it is always easier for us to stop at Acts (rather than on page numbers, because of different editions), I’ve had to round to the nearest Act each week. Please look at the week’s page amount to best plan your reading in order to keep up.

Schedule:

Beginning Friday, August 3rd and ending Friday, August 17th.

READING SCHEDULE:

Week #/ What to Read:

Week One/ Act One
Week Two/ Act Two
Week Three/ Act Three

POSTING SCHEDULE:

Post #/ date post should be up on blog:

Start up Post/ Today!
Week One/ August 3rd
Week Two/ August 10th
Week Three/ August 17th (Final Review)

** Please don’t forget to come to this blog each week to share your thoughts in the comments section of the weekly Read-a-Long discussion (see below for more information).**

How it Works:

*** since this is SUCH a short read-a-long, please note that any instructions below that reference longer then 3 weeks don’t apply.

1. Each week, on Friday, I will post my thoughts about the week’s reading. You will have from Friday through the following Thursday to post yours. If you are stuck on what to comment about, you can respond to my post or others’ comments. Regardless, you MUST check in each week (two weeks without a response and you will be taken off of the list — see below for details on why). You may have only one “off week” (which may not be the last week of reading for obvious reasons) and still be kept on the list, but you must let me know in the comment section by saying something like, “This is my off week — I am catching up!” Please note that your offering to the discussion must be about the current weeks’ reading, not about past weeks. ***For all week’s discussions please refrain from posting ahead, even if you have read ahead, as to not spoil the book for others***
2. As these Read-a-Longs grow, so do the amount of people who participate – yay, all the more fun!!! Also, all the more keeping track of who is still reading. As you know – if you have been absent from discussion for two weeks, you will be removed from the list. However, now, in order to get back on the list, you need to a.) Have missed no more than two weeks of discussion, b.) Let me know you would like to be on the list again, and c.) Consistently be part of the discussion for the next two weeks after requesting to be put back on the list. Am I trying to be mean? Absolutely not! I LOVE having you all read a long. It is, however, a lot of work to keep track of who’s still reading, and to keep taking names off and putting them back on the list. Most importantly though,  consistency is good for the group; we tend to get to know each other through discussions and rely on the conversation to keep us reading. I don’t do these read-a-longs to gain followers; I do them because the benefit of reading certain books with a group of dedicated people is often superior to reading them alone. But reading with undedicated people is worst of all, which is why I care less about numbers and more about dedication to the book and the discussions. (Bonus, at the end of the year I tally those who have done multiple read-a-longs and they get honorable mention on the Read-a-Longs page and a chance to enter for the 2012 Read-a-Long Prize — it’s going to be GOOD!.)
3. If you are a blogger you may post a link to your blog if you are posting about each of the each week’s reading. If I, or other readers, have extra time we will gladly try to visit your blog; however, you must make sure to share your thoughts here on this blog, and be part of the main conversation or your comment will not be counted.
4. Comments from the previous week’s reading will be closing Thursday afternoon (before the next discussion takes place on Friday). If you would like to be part of the discussion, please remember to comment before then.