Went to a workshop about Pride & Prejudice at the Central National Library on Saturday. It was conducted in conjunction with United International Pictures and the British Council to tie in with the film of the same title, starring Keira Knightley and Matthew MacFayden.
The interactive workshop centred on the life and times of Jane Austen, and there was discussion of the book and the characters in it. It was a little bizarre that only 1/3 of the people there actually read the book, and the others seemed to have no clue whatsoever of it. Cynical me thinks that most of the people were there only for the complimentary movie pass that came in the goodie bag (oh yes, THAT’s another reason why they were there). The goodie bag had postcards which had photo stills of the film on them, and bookmarks with Keira Knightley and Matthew MacFayden in character! Plus there were also tea sachets and potpourri satchets from Crabtree & Evelyn (how very English).
I love talking with others about books that I’ve read. It’s fun to dissect the book and its characters with fellow book-lovers. But sadly, reading is still not that popular a recreational activity with Singaporeans!
I must thank monoceros for registering me as well for this workshop. I think we should do more of this. It was fun! The book holds particular meaning for the both of us as it was our Literature text back in Secondary 2 and we remember how we and our classmates enjoyed the book! Go here to read her take on the event.