Hi everyone!  It appears that the Feb. book will be The Moonstone by Wilkie Collins.  I am looking forward to leading this discussion! 

The book is over 500 pages long, so the sooner you can get the book, the better.  The link above will take you to the PBS page where you can order your copy. 

I realize that due to the book being so long, and this being the shortest month of the year, we may end up going into March with our discussion.  Have no fear!  Remember, this is not a homework assignment!  Please take it at your own pace and remember to have fun!  We can always move our March book to the middle of the month or later. 

I will start the discussion on Wed., Feb. 18 to allow shipping of Moonstone.  If you feel that is too soon, please post an alternative start date. 

I have ordered my copy and I will start it this weekend to figure out good breaks in the chapters for discussions. 

Any and all imput is welcome!  If you have never done this before, please join us! :)

Shamelessly stolen from Amazon.com..... Here is what the book is about.........

Stolen from the forehead of a Hindu idol, the dazzling gem known as "The Moonstone" resurfaces at a birthday party in an English country home--with an enigmatic trio of watchful Brahmins hot on its trail. Laced with superstitions, suspicion, humor, and romance, this 1868 mystery draws readers into a compelling tale with twists and turns ranging from sleepwalking to experimentation with opium. The suspense and drama is heightened as the narrative passes from one colorful character to the next. Wilkie Collins' masterpiece is particularly distinguished by the appearance of Sergeant Cuff, a prototype of the English detective hero and the harbinger of a popular tradition of sleuthing.

I'm in :) 

Somehow I didn't think this book was so long and I've found two different online versions and they don't seem that long.  I wonder what's up there?

There's one available digitized on Google (with illustrations) but it seems to be missing the first couple of pages.  I found these at TheDailyLit site which has the beginning.  They will send it free but in 238 installments and I don't think I want to drag it out that long!  I haven't checked out the one available at Project Gutenberg.

I'll likely see if I can rent it since I just have so many books sitting around but I can start it online whenever you're ready.

At DailyLit you can arrange to have more than one installment come to you in a day. and once you finish one you can opt to have them send the next one right then. It also keeps track of where you are at so you wont get duplicates :) Daily Lit is great!

thanks for leading this one Diana!

can't wait to start!

 I have the publishing by "Modern Literay Classics" at it said it had 528 pages.  Perhaps that includes the foreward?  I usually read that part, so I just naturally included it with the page number total. 

Anyway, here's a link of the book I got to read.

Thank to everyone who PM'd me to tell me they were joining.  This is going to be great!

Thanks, Hannah for being smarter about DailyLit than I was :)  It looked neat, but I couldn't see how to get it read faster, lol. 

I found places that listed the longer number of pages too so I am puzzled.  I'm sure we'll figure it out but maybe it's not as bad as it sounds.

I got my book yesterday and started it last night.  I am about 50 pages into it and so far it has intrigued me.  Hope everyone is looking forward to a great discussion group!

Got my copy today, I'll start reading it ASAP. How are we dividing this one up?

I thought :

Prologue/First Period

1st-2nd Narrative

3rd-5th Narrative

6th-8th Narrative

Oh good, I'm glad I still have a few days to get a copy, I just haven't had time yet. Looking forward to it!

Just in case anyone wants to do it on the cheap, here's one way:

Download the free Ebook from Project Gutenberg at

http://onlinebooks.library.upenn.edu/webbin/gutbook/lookup?num=155

I downloaded the Zipped HTML file.  Unzip it, and then save it as a Word document.  You can make the type larger so it's easier to read on the monitor without affecting anything.  You can use the Bookmark feature in Word to easily find your place again when you stop reading.

I'm on Chapter 11 (XI).