Here’s a list of all the events and publications that we can link you to in the coming weeks–including into June!

Events

May 16 at 7:00 PM

Fairy Tale Salon – Brought to you by the enthusiasm of Sara and the resentful necessity of Brittany, for this salon, we’re asking you to give us your best tips for summer magic. What brings a bit of joy into your life when the days get long and hot? What’s something you’re especially looking forward to this summer? What’s something you hope to carve out time for? Bring us your best summer enchantments to delight Sara (and convince Brittany she will survive.)

If you’d like to participate, just make sure that you’re on the Salonnières tier or higher for the month of May!

May 23 at 7:00 PM

Book Club – Our book club pick for May is Sarah Penner’s The Lost Apothecary! Get ready for some murderous ladies, y’all. Here’s the description:

“Hidden in the depths of eighteenth-century London, a secret apothecary shop caters to an unusual kind of clientele. Women across the city whisper of a mysterious figure named Nella who sells well-disguised poisons to use against the oppressive men in their lives. But the apothecary’s fate is jeopardized when her newest patron, a precocious twelve-year-old, makes a fatal mistake, sparking a string of consequences that echo through the centuries.

Meanwhile in present-day London, aspiring historian Caroline Parcewell spends her tenth wedding anniversary alone, running from her own demons. When she stumbles upon a clue to the unsolved apothecary murders that haunted London two hundred years ago, her life collides with the apothecary’s in a stunning twist of fate—and not everyone will survive.”

And here’s what people are saying about it:

“The Lost Apothecary is a poisonously good read… An enthralling work of mystery, murder, trust, and betrayal. Set in an atmospheric London, Penner’s immersive story flows skillfully from past to present, revealing the heartaches and lost dreams of three captivating main characters in a page-turningly tense drama that surprises right up until the final paragraph.” — NPR

“Spellbinding… Like in a well-brewed potion, all the ingredients have been given exactly the right level of care and time, and the result is a novel that simply overwhelms with its delicate spell.” — Bookpage

“Enthralling… Musical prose… A completely absorbing story of the power of secrets and finding one’s way.” — Historical Novel Review, A Best Book of the Month Pick

If you would like to join us on May 23rd at 7PM ET, make sure you’re on the $7+ tier on our Patreon for the month of May!

June 1 at 4:00 pm ET

Romancing the Gothic: ‘O Wander Not So Far Away’ – Adapting the Brontës’ Juvenilia Through the Supernatural

We’re doing a lecture on one of our favorite topics for the FREE online series, Romancing the Gothic! Click here to register to come and listen to our presentation “‘O Wander Not So Far Away’: Adapting the Brontës’ Juvenilia Through the Supernatural” on June 1st, 2024 at 4PM ET.

In their youth, the Brontë siblings created several paracosms – complex imaginary worlds they could escape to through writing. Together, they constructed elaborate visions of the Glass Town Confederacy, Gondal, and Angria, lands that provided endless opportunities for worldbuilding, collaboration, and intrigue. Within these worlds, the children themselves were almost gods, self-aware creators who could raise kingdoms, design personas and personalities, and try on different modes of storytelling. Imagined worlds allowed the Brontë siblings freedoms unattainable in their real lives. Many scholars speculate that these early works of juvenilia were profoundly influential to the masterpieces they would later create, including the quintessential Gothic novels Jane Eyre and Wuthering Heights.

In recent contemporary literature, the Brontës’ juvenilia has proved a generative foundation for the creation of new supernatural portal fantasies. In these texts, the Glass Towns, Gondal, and Angria are, like Narnia, actual places to visit, and the Brontës themselves are drawn into complicated plots they thought were only of their own making, characters themselves inside their worlds. These texts frequently posit a magical origin for the Brontës’ genius, and thereby create an explanation for the powerful sense of enchantment that permeates their adult work. In this talk, we’ll give an overview of the Brontës’ juvenilia and then explore some contemporary texts that remix it, including Lena Coakley’s Worlds of Ink and Shadow (2016), Catherynne M. Valente’s The Glass Town Game (2017), and Isabel Greenberg’s graphic novel Glass Town (2020). From there, we’ll discuss why this practice has become so popular and ask what it is about the Glass Towns and the Brontës that proves so irresistible to writers and readers alike.

Click here to grab your tickets!

June 17 at 6:45 pm ET

Smithsonian Associates: Beauty and the Beast – A Tale as Old as Time

Few stories capture the imagination like “Beauty and the Beast,” the romantic tale of a beautiful girl who sees past appearances to fall in love with a hideous monster. The story has been used to question marriages of convenience or opportunity and to champion the radical idea of marrying someone you actually like. It has also been sold as a story that promotes ideas like “if you love him, you can change him and make him a better person,” when “he” might be abusive, violent, and truly monstrous. “Beauty and the Beast” is one of the oldest fairy tales and has existed in countless forms. The beast has been everything from a snake to a god to a “small-toothed dog,” and, sometimes, “Beauty” isn’t even beautiful.

On June 17th at 6:45PM, folklorists Sara Cleto and Brittany Warman explore “Beauty and the Beast,” discussing what the tale looks like around the world, how the story has been retold in contemporary times, and what kinds of reactionary, rebellious, and revolutionary points it has allowed tellers and authors to make. They explain why it has had such staying power and why so many people count it as their favorite fairy tale. The lecture also includes a few prompts for audience interaction.

Click here to grab your tickets!

June 27 at 7:00 PM

Book Club – We’re announcing our book club pick for June early this year, because it’s a bit of a long read (but totally worth it!) On June 27th, we’ll meet to discuss Katherine Addison’s The Angel of the Crows, an alternate-history fantasy inspired by Sherlock Holmes!

Here’s the description:

“This is not the story you think it is. These are not the characters you think they are. This is not the book you are expecting.

In an alternate 1880s London, angels inhabit every public building, and vampires and werewolves walk the streets with human beings in a well-regulated truce. A fantastic utopia, except for a few things: Angels can Fall, and that Fall is like a nuclear bomb in both the physical and metaphysical worlds. And human beings remain human, with all their kindness and greed and passions and murderous intent.

Jack the Ripper stalks the streets of this London too. But this London has an Angel. The Angel of the Crows.”

Here are some reviews:

“A Sherlock Holmes–esque novel that truly breaks the mold […] what really makes this title stand out […] is its straightforward criticism of gender roles and the gender binary itself.” – Kirkus Reviews

“… a charming and tender character study and a masterclass in worldbuilding. If you like carefully constructed and thoughtful urban fantasy, this is the book for you. If you like Holmes’ stories and want a fresh perspective […] this is the book for you. If you enjoy complex, wounded characters and superb writing, this is the book for you.” – Fantasy Faction

If you would like to join us, make sure you’re on the $7+ tier on our Patreon for the month of June!