The Unselected Journals of Emma M. Lion by Beth Brower with guest Jessica King

The Unselected Journals of Emma M. Lion by Beth Brower This month on Reality Raincheck, we're heading to St. Crispian's for a spoiler-filled discussion of Beth Brower's beloved series, The Unselected Journals of Emma M. Lion. We're joined by our friend Jessica, a lifelong reader, lover of Victorian literature, and independent bookseller, to talk about Volumes 1–8 and just what makes Emma's world so difficult to leave.

We explore the charm and intimacy of Emma's journal format, her wonderfully distinctive voice, and the unusual freedom she enjoys as a young woman navigating Victorian London. Is Emma essentially a modern heroine dropped into the nineteenth century, or has Beth Brower constructed a believable set of circumstances that allows her this independence within the social constraints of her time?

And then, of course, there are the men. We take a closer look at Hawkes, Pierce, Ithington, Roland, Jack, and the Reprobate Ten, Emma's growing "brotherhood" of friends, the romantic possibilities swirling around St. Crispian's, and what these very different relationships reveal about Emma herself.

We also dig into the series' abundant literary allusions, from Shakespeare, John Donne, Tennyson, and Charolotte Bronte to Walt Whitman, and consider how Brower's obvious love of classic literature enriches Emma's world. We talk about the particular pleasure of reading someone's private journals and why following Emma can evoke some of the same pleasures as Anne of Green Gables and Bridget Jones's Diary.

Finally, we look at Beth Brower's remarkable publishing story, from struggling to find a place within traditional publishing to founding her own press and building an enthusiastic readership largely through word of mouth. Jessica gives us an independent bookseller's perspective on the challenges of getting self-published books onto bookstore shelves and what happens when passionate readers begin asking for them.

If you've fallen in love with Emma M. Lion, Aunt Eugenia, St. Crispian's, and its wonderfully eccentric inhabitants, join us as we happily dissect one of our favorite literary worlds.

Warning: Our discussion contains major spoilers for The Unselected Journals of Emma M. Lion, Volumes 1–8.