For those of you that don’t know, I have two children. (A 9 year old and a 5 year old.) Which translates into…I spend an obnoxious amount of time in carpool lines. Normally, I spend this hour (yes, I said hour) sitting in my car, windows rolled down, reading a book, but not always. Sometimes I can’t focus. (That’s code for: there is someone else with their window down yelling into their phone.) So I activate my backup plan. I whip out MY phone. (What were you expecting? I can’t leave my freaking car.) See, my bookish obsession is not limited to a singular format. While yes, I’d rather read than do most things, I find that I need breaks. Unfortunately…my mind doesn’t always agree. I am constantly on the lookout for a good old fashioned drama. Last year (during one of these rather inconvenient breaks) I discovered (and by I, I mean one of my friends thrust it upon me) the A-mazing webseries “The Lizzie Bennett Diaries” (You can read my public freak-out HERE.) Pride and Prejudice is my favorite book, so obviously…I was hooked. But eventually the series ended, and I got sad. The anticipation I felt each week waiting for those episodes couldn’t be match by anything else. (Not even COFFEE!! *gasp*) Lucky for me, the creators of The LBD already had another show in the works. (I’ll talk about it below) so my despondence was quickly muffled. BUT I was already a girl on a mission. I was GOING to find other bookish webseries to watch…even if I had to make one myself. (Which I considered for a about 5 seconds until I realized you have to have free time to accomplish something like that.) Anywho (I digress) over the last year I have managed to stumble upon not 1 but 3 different bookish webseries that I LOVE! (And yes, I do mean love. Hell, I even helped financially back Classic Alice through their Kickstarter campaign.) Today, I wanted to share them with you, so you can become fans too. (Or more importantly…give me someone else to fangirl with.) So here you go…
My Bookish Obsessions That Aren’t Books At All
Start from Episode # 1 / Website / Multi-media
Much like “The Lizzie Bennett Diaries,” “Emma Approved” is a modern retelling of an Austen classic. There are new episodes uploaded twice a week, and if you find you just can’t get enough of Knightly and his girls…they are a cross platform media experience. (ie: Twitter, blog, tumblr….etc.) The first episode (I’ll admit) was a little annoying, but by #3 I was hooked!! Trust me, it’s worth the time. Take a peek.
Start from Episode #1 / Website / Multi-media
Classic Alice is only 6 episodes in, but is quickly trumping all of the other webseries I watch. Why? Because it doesn’t just follow 1 book, if follows many. (Or it will once they finally put my cashola to good use.) They have just launched their merch store, they will start filming new episodes this summer, and I DARE YOU to not watch episode 6 a gazillion times. The writing is spot on at conveying the complicated interworking of a nerd mind, AND…it has sword-fighter extraordinaire Tony Noto in it. (I guess I should have led with that huh?)
Watch from Episode # 1 / Website / Multi-media
And last but certainly not least… “The Autobiography of Jane Eyre.” If I’m being honest, I watch this series after I’ve caught up with everything else, but that doesn’t mean it’s not as good. The difference? It’s serious. While Emma and Alice have an abundance of wit and the occasional slap stick joke thrown in (though both definitely have their serious side too) Jane is straight and narrow Bronte. (Aka: dark, moody, and gothic.) It also…follows the book. (Or as much as it can with updated themes.) If you are a literary fan of Eyre, you are going to love this series. Episodes are updated regularly and they are also cross platform. Like all the cool kids these days.
