By Madison Rohn, Lead Editor
Photography from Dr. DeWall
Cover photo: LIS members at the Chicago Shakespeare Theater
Over spring break, members of McKendree’s Literary Interest Society visited Chicago for their annual Shakespeare trip.
Literary Interest Society (LIS) is McKendree’s club for book-lovers. Co-President Scarlett Catanzaro described LIS by saying, “I would say the purpose of LIS is to share a common love and passion for literature among students of various backgrounds and fields. LIS offers book lovers the opportunity to read, discuss, and share novels outside of an academic setting, and gives members the chance to make new friends.”
One way in which LIS bonds its members is through their annual Shakespeare trip to Chicago. Each spring, English professor and faculty sponsor Dr. DeWall takes a group of LIS members to Chicago for a weekend to see a Shakespeare play. This year, Dr. DeWall and the LIS members on the trip saw a production of Romeo and Juliet set in the 1980’s.
Dr. DeWall said the Shakespeare productions are her favorite part of the trip every year. “Because I believe that Shakespeare is most engaging when seen on stage, I love to take my students to off-campus productions. It is my hope that by introducing my students to these sorts of experiences during college, they will be more likely to attend plays, readings, and other cultural events throughout their lifetimes.”
During the trip, LIS members also have free time to explore the city. Since this year’s trip was during St. Patrick’s Day weekend, LIS members watched the Chicago River get dyed green. They also went to see a production of My Fair Lady.
Junior Felicity Crowell is one of the LIS members who went on the trip. In addition to Romeo and Juliet, she said her favorite part of that weekend was “going to the local bookstore called After Words.”
Felicity said she originally joined LIS because of the community. “I decided to join LIS to make friends and to connect with others who have the same interests in literature.”
Along with the Chicago trip, LIS also does book readings. Almost every semester, LIS members decide on a book to read and discuss it together over the course of a few weeks. The club chooses books from a variety of genres, such as the fantasy novel The Princess Bride and the horror novel The Shining. Last semester, LIS read The Perks of Being a Wallflower, a coming-of-age novel by Stephen Chbosky.
When asked which book has been her favorite so far, Scarlett said, “The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo because it’s a book I wouldn’t have picked up to read otherwise. I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed the book and am appreciative of LIS for showing me that it’s okay to branch out of my favorite genre and explore others. This book in particular also uncovers the ins and outs of Hollywood and celebrity through the eyes of a woman, which I found very intriguing.”
With the semester halfway over, Scarlett gave some insight into LIS’s spring plans: “There are no real set plans for the semester. We were discussing meeting up to do a [movie] showing for the last book we read, Perks of Being a Wallflower. We may also set a meeting just to see what everyone has been up to and gather some book recommendations for future LIS members!”
Literary Interest Society is always open to new members. For more information about LIS, reach out to Dr. DeWall (nbdewall@mckendree.edu).
