The Morristown, Summit, and Everywhere Else Book Club

This is a read-aloud session, with all text shared on-screen, and discussions of what we just read between rounds – like a small-group seminar. There are no prerequisites; you do not need to purchase the book for yourself, although we encourage you to do so, as it is well worth it! The starting point for the current session will generally be given in a pinned comment on the event page.

Temporary, by Hilary Leichter. In Temporary, a young woman’s workplace is the size of the world. She fills increasingly bizarre placements in search of steadiness, connection, and something, at last, to call her own. Whether it’s shining an endless closet of shoes, swabbing the deck of a pirate ship, assisting an assassin, or filling in for the Chairman of the Board, for the mythical Temporary, “there is nothing more personal than doing your job."

This riveting quest, at once hilarious and profound, will resonate with anyone who has ever done their best at work, even when the work is only temporary.

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Latecomers (unless we know you) will generally NOT BE ADMITTED once the reading starts. If this is your first time with us, consider joining five minutes early, so we can work out any technical issues you may be having.)

Group Read-aloud (text will be displayed onscreen during the meetup).
Today our yellow brick road detours from the Ovid text so we can view the roadside attractions of Greco-Roman Egyptian cult worship. Isis, Osiris, Anubis, oh my! Mark will be the Man Behind the Curtain for screenshares of readings and images. This cohort of ancient gods - Isis et alia ;) - appears next week in Ovid*s Book 9 story, Iphis.
Welcome to the Ovid*s Metamorphoses reading group! Please feel free to log in five or ten minutes early to work out any technical issues or just to say hello. We try to start on time. The meeting host puts David Raeburn*s English translation up on screen, and we take turns reading aloud from that. Then we have a structured discussion, followed by a more free-form one. (You do not need your own copy of the book.)
We do not record or transcribe these meetings. Please do NOT click Yes on Zoom AI Assistance when entering Zoom. If you have enabled any form of AI, recording, or transcribing before entering the session, please exit the meeting, disable it, and log back in.
You*re welcome to join in at any time in the series. No special knowledge or preparation is necessary; all you have to do is show up. We read aloud a brief summary of previous events in the Book at the start of each session. Since we don*t record this, please keep your camera on for friendliness if you feel comfortable doing so.
Ovid*s long and astonishing poem Metamorphoses is a compendium of ancient Greek and Roman myths and legends that has resounded through Western civilization for over two thousand years. Exuberant, sophisticated, witty, harrowing, deeply ambiguous, and sublimely beautiful, it is one of the foundational works of Western culture. Its complexity, lyric beauty and wealth of stories are unsurpassed in world literature, and its tales and themes have inspired artists ever since. (Dante, Chaucer, and Shakespeare all drew upon it as a source.)
We pause to savor felicitous phrases and share our responses to the stories, and to spotlight recurring images and explore the connections. Along the way we*re learning about the morals, customs, and beliefs of Greco-Roman antiquity, some of which were very different from our own. We stay close to the text, mentally putting ourselves in the place of the original audience, while inevitably of course comparing their worldviews with ours, thereby sliding through a continuous doublemindedness that is itself a series of metamorphoses.

Caution: The book*s contents may be triggering for some trauma survivors. Please consult a reputable mainstream summary or review source to assess whether this is a suitable text for you.
Our reading group consists of people from a variety of walks of life, and we enjoy learning and sharing together. No matter our backgrounds we try to conduct ourselves with sensitivity and respect. We do not discuss contemporary politics.

This is a read-aloud session, with all text shared on-screen, and discussions of what we just read between rounds – like a small-group seminar. There are no prerequisites; you do not need to purchase the book for yourself, although we encourage you to do so, as it is well worth it!

The starting point for the current session will generally be given in a pinned comment on the event page. This being a non-fiction book, you do not need to have been with us from the beginning to enjoy the session.

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[Amazon]: What accounts for Shakespeare’s transformation from talented poet and playwright to one of the greatest writers who ever lived? In this gripping account, James Shapiro sets out to answer this question, "succeed[ing] where others have fallen short." (Boston Globe)

1599 was an epochal year for Shakespeare and England. During that year, Shakespeare wrote four of his most famous plays: Henry the Fifth, Julius Caesar, As You Like It, and, most remarkably, Hamlet; Elizabethans sent off an army to crush an Irish rebellion, weathered an Armada threat from Spain, gambled on a fledgling East India Company, and waited to see who would succeed their aging and childless queen.

James Shapiro illuminates both Shakespeare’s staggering achievement and what Elizabethans experienced in the course of 1599, bringing together the news and the intrigue of the times with a wonderful evocation of how Shakespeare worked as an actor, businessman, and playwright. The result is an exceptionally immediate and gripping account of an inspiring moment in history.

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Late-comers, unless we know you, will generally not be admitted, as it disrupts the reading. However, it's fine for attendees to drop off at any time they want.