A Little Big About The Big Read
The Big Read — a large group reading project and book club — started in 2021 with Leo Tolstoy’s epic War and Peace. The idea was simple: go through the 360-chapter book at the pace of just one short chapter per day. It was so successful that I decided to continue with the same book in ‘22.
In January 2022, Substack interviewed me about this project, which you can read here.
In late 2022 and the entirety of 2023, we’re doing things just a little differently and going through a handful of books:
Frankenstein by Mary Shelley (Oct ‘22)
Endurance by Alfred Lansing (Nov-Dec ‘22)
Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry (January-March)
A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith (April-May)
The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas (June-September)
The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson (October, for Halloween!)
East of Eden by John Steinbeck (November-December)
Contact Me
If you have questions or comments, I’d love to hear! You can reach me at jeremy.anderberg@gmail.com.
A Few Testimonials, If You Need More Convincing
“It has been a delight to read this book as part of The Big Read. I have especially enjoyed your weekly recaps and found they added so much depth to my understanding and reading experience.” —Pam
“This book has created the experiences of self-reflection, inspiration, and frustration. I am so glad I did this and wish I had read it earlier in life. I will most certainly read this again.” —Levi
“I can say that I have loved the experience of reading the book as part of The Big Read. . . . The experience of reading one chapter a day, with Jeremy’s summaries and everyone’s insights has been an absolute delight. Without The Big Read, I likely wouldn’t have made it through the entire novel. Thankfully, I can always look back on this tremendous experience of slowly enjoying a truly magnificent work of art.” —Lucas
“These [weekly recaps] have really helped supplement the reading and make sense of everything going on in the book. I have been amazed that Tolstoy is still managing to keep my attention . . . To me, this speaks volumes about his skill as a writer. Even in the less exciting portions of the book, you can find a few lines that just pull you right back into the story.” —David
P.S. Be sure to subscribe to What to Read Next as well — it’s my free weekly newsletter about all things books.
