Boot Camp: New Yorker article on a camp for Dickens devotees

Read amusing Jill Lepore New Yorker article about Dickens Camp at U.C. Santa Cruz, at which hundreds of (adult) fans of Dickens, from serious scholars to amateur enthusiasts, including people ranging from one of the actors who often plays Dickens characters (wish I could place her - I think she plays the rather frumpy old barmaids) in the millions of BBC adaptations to a guy who had to get the books on tape because, as it turns out, he is illiterate - they pick one novel a year, and have lectures, smart discussions, plays, films, all sorts of activities centered on the novel of choice - this year's Great Expectations, probably the perfect choice because of its excellence, maturity, and relatively modest length - reading this article reminded me of my enthusiasm for Dickens last time I read Great Expectations, about 10 years ago, and the discussion of the 2 endings made it clear that, to our taste today, the "sad" ending is by far the better - quite stunning and beautiful and true. Started Our Mutual Friend a few years back and let it go - it was confusing and odd, I thought. What other writers could be the subject of a camp? Not many: Shakespeare, obviously, and Jane Austen, though you'd rotate through her complete works kind of quickly. Other than that? Maybe Hemingway or Faulkner? But you'd have some really weak summers mixed in with a few great ones, right? Anybody else?