The Atlas Series, Book 1
Olivie Blake
S.P.E.L.L.
BOOK CLUB
SOCIETY FOR THE PROMOTION
OF EROTIC LADIES IN LITERATURE
A sort of book club, mostly thought experiment celebrating female authors and sex positivity in literary works.
ABOUT S.P.E.L.L.
If you follow Olivie Blake is Not Writing, then you're probably already aware that Aurora Sinclair and I accidentally started a book club by virtue of insisting people listen to our excited bursts of rambling as we explored literary erotica, beginning with Anaïs Nin. After realizing there were a number of women interested in reading along, we decided to create a monthly book recommendation along with guided discussion questions.
The idea behind this particular thought experiment is that each book focuses on an aspect of the female experience. While not every book is necessarily erotica (some definitely are, but not all), each one has a feature of sex positivity along with a contribution to the collective understanding of womanhood in literature.
If you'd like to follow along, check in on any of my social media! We start reading on the first of the month and discuss during the final week.
Previous discussions:
March 2019: Henry and June by Anaïs Nin
April 2019: The Awakening by Kate Chopin
May 2019: The Claiming of Sleeping Beauty by A.N. Roquelaure
June 2019: Seductress by Betsy Prioleau
July 2019: Chéri by Colette
August 2019: Three Women by Lisa Taddeo
September 2019: Big Little Lies by Liane Moriarty
October 2019: Jane Eyre / Rebecca by Charlotte Brontë, Daphne du Maurier
November 2019: The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K Le Guin
December 2019: City of Girls by Elizabeth Gilbert
January 2020: Sweetbitter by Stephanie Danler
February 2020: The Lady's Guide to Celestial Mechanics by Olivia Waite
March 2020: Pride, Prejudice, and Other Flavors by Sonali Dev
April 2020: Orlando: A Biography by Virginia Woolf
May 2020: Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
June 2020: Such a Fun Age by Kiley Reid
July 2020: If I Had Your Face by Frances Cha
August 2020: You Exist Too Much by Zaina Arafat
September 2020: The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan
October 2020: Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia
November 2020: The House of Mirth by Edith Wharton
December 2020: Spinning Silver by Naomi Novik
January 2021: My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante
February 2021: The Suffragette Scandal by Courtney Milan
March 2021: Too Much by Rachel Vorona Cote
April 2021: Kindred by Octavia Butler
May 2021: In the Dream House by Carmen Maria Machado
June 2021: The Office of Historical Corrections by Danielle Evans
July 2021: Trick Mirror by Jia Tolentino
August 2021: The View Was Exhausting by Mikaella Clements & Onjuli Datta
September 2021: Salt Houses by Hala Alyan
October 2021: Affinity by Sarah Waters
November 2021: Empire of Sand by Tasha Suri
December 2021: Fault Lines by Emily Itami
S.P.E.L.L. IS CURRENTLY ON HIATUS
PREVIOUS READ: FAULT LINES
by Emily Itami
This book is my favorite 2021 release (along with NO ONE IS TALKING ABOUT THIS by Patricia Lockwood) and because I'm very tired and also very curious what other people will think about this book, I'm luring you into reading it. A funny, heartbreaking story about love and duty, this has one of the finest, most emotionally moving denouments that I can remember reading. In a style that's very Bridget Jones meets Sally Rooney, the story chronicles a neglected Japanese mother having an extramarital affair.
Check back in at the end of December for discussion questions and any suggestions for further reading. If you'd like to follow the discussion, send me an ask on Tumblr or reply to this month's S.P.E.L.L. post to be tagged!