10. August 2026: «The Little Prince» and «The Giving Tree»
Details
Hello book lovers!
This month should prove to be an interesting experiment in comparative literature. We will compare two separate short books: «The Little Prince» by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, and «The Giving Tree» by Shel Silverstein. Both of these books are deceptively simple! But both deeply address love, sacrifice, innocence and adulthood. Is being needed the same as being loved? Does growing up lead inevitably to corruption?
Please read both The Little Prince and The Giving Tree, and come to our Monday 10. August 2026 meeting prepared to discuss them.
You are welcome to use any edition / language you would like. For Silverstein, his illustrations give so much depth to the text, and my parents read to me as a little boy from this exact edition, so I will splurge on the classic hard-cover edition. Here and here are free PDF versions; the book's copyright has expired and so it is in the public domain. I will opt for this German & English dual-language edition of The Little Prince.
As always I will try to bring something fun to eat / drink! You are welcome to bring something to eat for yourself, or even to share if you would like; there are plates and glasses we can use. The Bibliothek requests no smelly food.
Please RSVP here on Meetup if you plan to show up, so I have a head count. If you can't make it, please remove your RSVP.
We will review and discuss the selected book of the month, in English! This will be a group discussion, which I will gently moderate to keep participants engaged and focused.
As the discussion winds down, time is allotted for participants to recommend future books, and to provide feedback to help shape the direction of subsequent meetings.
If you would like to receive a discount ordering this book, give me your first and last name if you haven't done so already, and I will gladly add you to the list at the Schuler Bücher bookstore at Bahnhofstrasse 22 in Chur; remind them that you are in the English Book Club (or for online orders, type this in the notes field), and you will get a 10% discount when you pay at the register.