And March's book is... The Picture of Dorian Gray!

We'll be reading The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde this March.

Hello!

Thanks to all of you who took part in the Pride and Prejudice discussion. I hope those of you who took part found it valuable.

My apologies for my connection issues this time—rest assured I have read all of your comments, and I would add that I have really loved reading Pride and Prejudice for the first time!

Having closed the voting for the March novel selection, I wanted to let you know that you’ve voted The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde as your March 2025 pick with 57% of the vote.

We’ll be discussing this one in full on Sunday 30th March in the Substack chat.

Let me know if you need any help finding a copy. I’d always recommend buying second hand to save money!

I’ve found a PDF version here too if you’re struggling to find access anywhere.

I’ll be writing more about Oscar Wilde and the context of the novel in the coming weeks! If there is anything specific you’d like me to research and write about, please let me know in the comments.

What’s The Picture of Dorian Gray about about?

Taken from Goodreads:

Oscar Wilde’s only novel is the dreamlike story of a young man who sells his soul for eternal youth and beauty.

In this celebrated work Wilde forged a devastating portrait of the effects of evil and debauchery on a young aesthete in late-19th-century England. Combining elements of the Gothic horror novel and decadent French fiction, the book centers on a striking premise: As Dorian Gray sinks into a life of crime and gross sensuality, his body retains perfect youth and vigor while his recently painted portrait grows day by day into a hideous record of evil, which he must keep hidden from the world. For over a century, this mesmerizing tale of horror and suspense has enjoyed wide popularity. It ranks as one of Wilde's most important creations and among the classic achievements of its kind.

Who was Oscar Wilde?

Taken from biography.com:

Author, playwright and poet Oscar Wilde was a popular literary figure in late Victorian England. After graduating from Oxford University, he lectured as a poet, art critic and a leading proponent of the principles of aestheticism. In 1891, he published The Picture of Dorian Gray, his only novel which was panned as immoral by Victorian critics, but is now considered one of his most notable works.

As a dramatist, many of Wilde’s plays were well received including his satirical comedies Lady Windermere's Fan (1892), A Woman of No Importance (1893), An Ideal Husband (1895) and The Importance of Being Earnest (1895), his most famous play. Unconventional in his writing and life, Wilde’s affair with a young man led to his arrest on charges of "gross indecency" in 1895. He was imprisoned for two years and died in poverty three years after his release at the age of 46.