I used to think our book club should only pick new books, but our 'classics only' month changed my mind

For years, I pushed for our group to only read stuff published in the last five years. I thought older books were boring and not worth our time. Then, in January, we did a whole month where we could only pick books from before 1950. I chose 'The Age of Innocence' by Edith Wharton, mostly because it was short. Reading it, I was shocked at how much the arguments about society and rules felt like stuff we talk about now. The big debate we had was about whether the main character made the right choice, and it got way more heated than any talk we've had about a modern book. It made me see that good stories and tough questions don't have an expiration date. I'm actually voting for 'Middlemarch' next month. Has your club ever done a theme month that totally flipped your opinion on a genre?

3 comments

3 Comments

brown.reese3d ago

My old college lit professor used to say the only real test for a book is if it makes you argue with it. He was right. We did a month on sci-fi from the 60s and 70s, and I picked up one just to fill the slot. The way it handled tech and loneliness hit harder than any new release that year. It’s easy to assume old means out of touch, but sometimes they just had more time to get to the point.

ward.piper10d ago

Sounds a bit dramatic for a book club.

james9210d ago

You ever been to a book club meeting where someone didn't like the ending? It's like a courtroom drama but with more cheap wine and passive aggressive post-it notes.