A free session of the "Middlemarch" book club

What are FrizzLit book clubs like? Who goes to them? What do we talk about?

The actor and comedian Julia Sweeney cracking me up with her story about Saint Teresa on the first day of the Middlemarch book club.

Now that the Middlemarch book club is underway — really it’s a literature class, over Zoom, with people from all over the world, and it lasts till the end of May — I have been getting emails from people who didn’t sign up, asking what it’s like.

Because these book clubs are impossible to describe, I thought I’d offer all subscribers a free look. Each meeting of the book club is recorded and automatically sent out to everyone who has a ticket — so even if you miss the live meetings, you don’t miss anything.

Here is the recording of our first class on January 27, with some introductory comments about George Eliot, and a group reading of the book’s Prelude.

Gallery view

Speaker view

To see our second meeting on February 3 — discussing the first three chapters — you will need to join the club. The recording will come automatically with your receipt and confirmation.

How to join the book club

If you’d like to join the club, all you need is:

• A ticket (the ticket on the top of the page gets you access to the whole 4-month class, which costs $20 per person per session; or you can sign up for part 1 here if you want to try out the club before committing to the whole four months)

• A copy of the book (this is the recommended edition but any edition will work fine)

Is there a schedule of which chapters to read by which meeting?

Yes, there is, and it will come with your receipt and confirmation. Along with recordings of the first two weeks of meetings.

When are the live meetings?

Saturdays from 10 am -11:30 am Pacific (or 1 pm - 2:30 pm Eastern). But you don’t have to attend the live meetings if they don’t work for your schedule.

How many pages do you read per week?

No more than 50 pages per week. Usually more like 30 or 40.

If I join now, what are we reading by this Saturday?

This Saturday we are discussing chapters 4-8, so read to the end of chapter 8 before this Saturday’s meeting. Ticket-holders will get the Zoom link 30 minutes before we start.

What if I have already read Middlemarch?

Then you will be in good company!

Julia Sweeney

and I have already read it, as have about a dozen other people enrolled in this club — yes, we’re all re-reading it¹ —  including the illustrator Kathryn Rathke, who created this portrait of George Eliot just for us:

George Eliot, aka Mary Anne Evans, aka Mary Ann Evans, aka Marian Evans. Splendidly illustrated by Kathryn Rathke

1. Re-readers are not allowed to spoil any plot surprises, as a courtesy to everyone in the club who has never read it before.