Read the Classics

Lectures & book discussions at the library

This is the archive for past discussions for the Read the Classics program. It is here for those who want to see the resources and information provided by the professors from Reed College for those discussions. In 2010-2011 there were five series covering five literary eras.

Greece and Rome

Hillsdale Library
Saturdays
2–4 p.m.

11/13The Iliad, Homer
1/15The Odyssey, Homer
3/19The Aeneid, Virgil
5/21The Satyricon, Petronius

Middle Ages

Gresham Library
Sundays
2–4 p.m. (except 11/14)

11/14Beowulf
1/9The Inferno, Dante
3/13Sir Gawain and the Green Knight
5/8Le Morte D'Arthur, Malory

1600s & 1700s

Hollywood Library
Sundays
2–4 p.m.

10/24King Lear, Shakespeare
12/19The Tempest, Shakespeare
2/20Robinson Crusoe, Defoe
4/17Candide, Voltaire

1800s Novels

Belmont Library
Sundays
2–4 p.m.

10/3Frankenstein, Shelley
12/5Madame Bovary, Flaubert
2/6Anna Karenina, Tolstoy
4/3The Portrait of a Lady, James

1900s Novels

Woodstock Library
Sundays
2–4 p.m.

10/10Secret Agent, Conrad
12/12A Passage to India, Forster
2/13Mrs. Dalloway, Woolf
4/10The Sound and the Fury, Faulkner

Printable Read the Classics flyer (pdf)

Printable Read the Classics program calendar (pdf)

How can I participate?

Sign up — Registration is required and participation is free! You can register and find more information by selecting one of the five program series links above.
Pick up a bring-em-back copy of the book(s) at the participating library — limited supplies are available.
Read the selected title, look at the preparatory materials under each series link above and browse the suggestions for further readings.
Come to the discussion with your book(s) and have fun discussing and learning!
Return the book(s) at the discussion.

Call Reference Line for more information at 503.988.5234.

Read the Classics is cosponsored by Reed College and Multnomah County Library.