Gothic in October: Readalong Schedule

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Are you getting prepared for going Gothic in October?  We are going to have a marvelously spooky time.  Also, if you're looking for inspiration on what to read, try taking a look at The Literary Gothic, a website entirely devoted to Gothic literature pre-1950.


“Dear creature! how much I am obliged to you; and when you have finished Udolpho, we will read The Italian together; and I have made out a list of ten or twelve more of the same kind for you.”
“Have you, indeed! How glad I am! — What are they all?”
“I will read you their names directly; here they are, in my pocket-book. Castle of Wolfenbach, Clermont, Mysterious Warnings, Necromancer of the Black Forest, Midnight Bell, Orphan of the Rhine, and Horrid Mysteries. Those will last us some time.”
“Yes, pretty well; but are they all horrid, are you sure they are all horrid?”
“Yes, quite sure; for a particular friend of mine, a Miss Andrews, a sweet girl, one of the sweetest creatures in the world, has read every one of them.”
--Northanger Abbey

The Italian Readalong

Now for our readalong schedule for Ann Radcliffe's The Italian.  This is your traditional triple-decker novel, and in my copy is about 415 pages long with very tiny print, so prepare to work at this!  I will put up a check-in post every Friday, so you'll have plenty of time on Saturday to comment and discuss.

Week 1 -- Oct 1-6: Volume I, Chapters 1-9

Week 2 -- Oct 7-13: Finish Vol. I, then Vol. II through Chapter 6

Week 3 -- Oct 14 - 20: Finish Volume II, then Vol. III through Chapter 3

Week 4 -- Oct 21 - 27: Vol. III, Chapters 4 - 10

Week 5 -- Oct 28 - 31: Finish the book and go trick-or-treating.  Extra points if you dress up as a character and send me a photo!

 
A James Story A Day

Every day from the 1st through the 31st, we will be reading a story by M. R. James.  I'll post the title for the next day every evening so nobody has to wait around.  While you wait for the 1st to get here, take a look at The Literary Gothic's bibliography on James!  You'll find links to biographical sketches, analytical essays, and online versions of the stories themselves.

  1. Canon Alberic's Scrap-book
  2. Lost Hearts
  3. The Mezzotint
  4. The Ash-Tree
  5. Number 13
  6. Count Magnus
  7. Oh Whistle and I'll Come to You, My Lad
  8. The Treasure of Abbot Thomas
  9. A School Story
  10. The Rose Garden
  11. The Tractate Middoth
  12. Casting the Runes
  13. The Stalls of Barchester Cathedral
  14. Martin's Close
  15. Mr. Humphries and His Inheritance
  16. The Residence at Whitminster
  17. The Diary of Mr. Poynter
  18. An Episode of Cathedral History
  19. The Story of a Disappearance and an Appearance
  20. Two Doctors
  21. The Haunted Dolls' House
  22. The Uncommon Prayer-book
  23. A Neighbour's Landmark
  24. A View From a Hill
  25. A Warning to the Curious
  26. An Evening's Entertainment
  27. There Was a Man Dwelt by a Churchyard
  28. After Dark in the Playing Fields
  29. Wailing Well
  30. The Malice of Inanimate Objects
  31. The Fenstanton Witch
And for extra credit:
  1. The Experiment
  2. A Vignette
  3. Rats  
  4. Twelve Medieval Ghost Stories

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