July /Wilde Reading Poll

Please vote for the Oscar Wilde short story/play you would like to read in July by June 30th.

The aim of the Book Club is to read and discuss new books together with other members.

Please try to avoid voting for the books you have already read and/or do not intend to (re)read with us.

All of the below listed works are available on the site here: http://www.online-literature.com/wilde/

Complete Short Stories

The Importance of Being Earnest

Lady's Windermere's Fan

A Woman of No Importance

An Ideal Husband

Salome

The Duchess of Padua

Vera, or The Nihilists

A Florentine Tragedy

La Sainte Courtisane


Book Club Procedures

I need to research before I make a decision.

Oh, that's like asking me which kind of chocolate ice cream I want - double dutch, chocolate lovers moose tracks, reece peanut butter cups....

I don't know! They're all good!

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Originally Posted by Countess

Oh, that's like asking me which kind of chocolate ice cream I want - double dutch, chocolate lovers moose tracks, reece peanut butter cups....

I don't know! They're all good!

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Have you read them all?

I might vote for short stories. I don't recall ever doing a collection of short stories. I think that might be fun and one wouldn't have to read everyone to participate. But I'll hold my vote for a while.

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Originally Posted by NickAdams

Have you read them all?

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Not front to back - some I've read completely; others I've sampled for future reading. ;)

I’m fortunate enough to own his complete works. :D
I’m going to go through it tonight and I’ll vote in the morning.

It's between An Ideal Husband and The Complete Short Stories.
I'm not a big fan of melodrama, so it came down to these two, not to say that all the rest were melodrama, but one had an interesting synopsis and the other has variety.

Nick - what's your favorite? Since you've read (and not simply perused) all I'm very interested.

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Originally Posted by Countess

Nick - what's your favorite? Since you've read (and not simply perused) all I'm very interested.

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I haven't read any. I started The Picture of Dorian Gray a few years ago, but found myself having to stop constantly to write down an interesting passage. I'm leaning towards the short stories though. I might like some and dislike others, but it shouldn't be a complete disappoinment.

Oh, I had no idea Wilde wrote enough short stories for a collection :). So far, I've read the first four plays mentioned, and I liked them very much. However, I read them one directly after the other and since the setting and constellation of characters was very similar, the last three are now merged into one in my memory :D.
I think Salomé would be intriguing, too, treating a biblical story and not primarily the antics of England's upper class society. It also has an interesting history of composition, first written in French and then translated into English by Wilde himself.

But since I've never read any short story of his, I go for that one :nod:.

I'll think about it and vote later...
I'd like to read either Salome for the same reasons Schoko mentioned or An Ideal Husband, simply because I haven't read that one before

Unanimous decision?

I have six of his plays...read three of them actually...I'd either vote for A Woman Of No Importance or the Complete Short Stories...I still have to make up my mind though..lol

I'm going to have to research on this one as I may have read Importance of Being Earnest and Salome but I 'm considering whether I want to read 'Earnest' again or which others intrigue me the most. 'An Ideal Husband' is meant to be very good. Yet I think 'complete short stories' would be interesting for most people.

I believe that even if it wasn't picked, The Importance of Being Earnest is def. worth reading. It's one of the BEST plays I've ever read actually..cracks me up everytime I read a part of it...lol

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Originally Posted by Virgil

I might vote for short stories. I don't recall ever doing a collection of short stories. I think that might be fun and one wouldn't have to read everyone to participate. But I'll hold my vote for a while.

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I'm not sure, but isn't the published collection of Wilde's short stories is called Happy Prince...or something like this? lol