Easy-busy book club

Short stories and an easy atmosphere to practise speaking and expand your vocabulary

Let’s put the kettle on and let’s have a relaxed chat about a nice story. This is the idea at the basis of our book club for busy people. 

1. The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, F. Scott Fitzgerald

F. Scott Fitzgerald was an American writer. Both his life and his novels and short stories depict the spirit of the so-called Jazz Age of the 1920s. It was a period of economic growth and cultural dynamism, in which jazz music flourished. He said he belonged to “a generation grown up to find all Gods dead, all wars fought, all faiths in man shaken”.

He led a glamorous life full of parties and alcohol, spending lot of money and accumulating debts.

In his literary production he presented the contradictions of his age. On the one hand, the optimism of the American Dream, the belief that each person can succeed in life. On the other hand, the sense of loss and emptiness behind the cult of money and materialism.

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (1922) is the incredible story of a child born old and returning to infancy as time passes. The story was also adapted into an Oscar-winning film starring Brad Pitt as Benjamin. The plot of the film is not exactly the same, so you have to read the book…no cheating! 😉

Before reading, DOWNLOAD THE WORKSHEET of the story HERE: https://drive.google.com/file/d/12fIXVRL4QKBv_bHe6GASOg19winPUKf4/view?usp=sharing

Here you can find the short story: https://freeditorial.com/en/books/the-curious-case-of-benjamin-button

Here’s the audiobook: https://archive.org/details/benjamin_button_mv_0812_librivox

If you want, here you can find the book with the whole collection of Fitzgerald’s short stories: https://amzn.to/40l7n7G

2) The Fall of the House of Usher, E. A. Poe

Before reading - find out:

1) What problems characterised Poe's personal life?

2) What led to his premature death?

3) What contributions did he make to literature?

Here you can download a PDF version of an abridged text: https://americanenglish.state.gov/files/ae/resource_files/the_fall_of_the_house_of_usher.pdf

Here's the original version: https://shortstoryproject.com/stories/the-fall-of-the-house-of-usher/