Open Book Chocolates

Handmade, Bean-to-Bar, Fair Trade Chocolate Bars | Literary-Inspired Flavors

Lewis Carroll

Literary Holidays | November 2024

G. E. Gallas

Celebrate this month’s literary holidays with Open Book Chocolates!


National Native American Heritage Month

“It is a time to celebrate the traditions, languages and stories of Native American, Alaska Native, Native Hawaiian, and affiliated Island communities and ensure their rich histories and contributions continue to thrive with each passing generation.”

Here’s a selection of books written by indigenous authors:


National Author’s Day | November 1st

“On November 1, millions of people celebrate authors and the books they write on National Author's Day.”

How to Celebrate National Author’s Day:

  • READ READ READ!

  • Share your favorite author with friends and family.

  • Send a thank you letter to your favorite author.

  • Write a blog post about your favorite book(s).

  • Buy a book from a brand-new author.

  • Buy a book from one of your favorite author’s.

  • Share your favorite author on social media with #NationalAuthorsDay.


Alice's Adventures in Wonderland Publication Date | November 26th, 1864

“In November 1864, {Lewis Carroll} presented the manuscript volume of Alice’s Adventures under Ground, complete with his own illustrations, to Alice Liddell.”

“On 26 November 1864, Carroll gave Alice the manuscript of Alice's Adventures Under Ground, with illustrations by Carroll, dedicating it as ‘A Christmas Gift to a Dear Child in Memory of a Summer's Day.’”


A Study in Scarlet Publication Date | November 1887

A Study in Scarlet by Arthur Conan Doyle, which marks the first appearance of Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson, was first published in the November 1887 issue of Beeton's Christmas Annual, a British magazine.


Bram Stoker’s Birthday | November 8th, 1847

“‘I am Dracula, and I bid you welcome, Mr. Harker, to my house. Come in, the night air is chill, and you must need to eat and rest.‘“ —Dracula by Bram Stoker

Purchase Dracula by Bram Stoker while supporting independent bookstores.


Fyodor Dostoevsky’s Birthday | November 11th, 1821

“Mere existence had always been too little for him; he had always wanted more. Perhaps it was just because of the strength of his desires that he had thought himself a man to whom more was permissible than to others.“ —Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoevsky

Purchase Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoevsky while supporting independent bookstores.


Robert Louis Stevenson’s Birthday | November 13th, 1850

Treasure Island Publication Date | November 14th, 1883

“They say cowardice is infectious; but then argument is, on the other hand, a great emboldener.“ —Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson

“[Treasure Island] was first published as a book on 14 November 1883 by Cassell & Co.“

Open Book Chocolates is celebrating Robert Louis Stevenson’s birthday and Treasure Island’s publication date with the novel and our matching chocolate bar.


I Love to Write Day | November 15th

“My goal for I Love To Write Day is to have people of all ages spend time writing. They can write a poem, a love letter, a greeting card, an essay, a short story, start a novel, finish a novel… the possibilities are endless. But I want people to take the time to put their thoughts down on paper. They will be amazed at the results.” —John Riddle, a Delaware Author and Founder of I Love to Write Day

Learn more about I Love to Write Day on John Riddle’s website.


George Eliot’s Birthday | November 22nd, 1819

George Eliot was the pen name of Mary Ann Evans.

“Our vanities differ as our noses do: all conceit is not the same conceit, but varies in correspondence with the minutiae of mental make in which one of us differs from another.“ —Middlemarch by George Eliot

Purchase Middlemarch by George Eliot while supporting independent bookstores.


Frances Hodgson Burnett’s Birthday | November 24th, 1849

“‘Whatever comes,’ she said, ‘cannot alter one thing. If I am a princess in rags and tatters, I can be a princess inside. It would be easy to be a princess if I were dressed in cloth of gold, but it is a great deal more of a triumph to be one all the time when no one knows it.’” —A Little Princess by Frances Hodgson Burnett

Open Book Chocolates is celebrating Frances Hodgson Burnett’s birthday with the novel A Little Princess and our matching chocolate bar.


C. S. Lewis’s Birthday | November 29th, 1898

“Once there were four children whose names were Peter, Susan, Edmund and Lucy. This story is about something that happened to them when they were sent away from London during the war because of the air-raids.“ —The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by C. S. Lewis

Purchase The Chronicles of Narnia by C. S. Lewis while supporting independent bookstores.


Louisa May Alcott’s Birthday | November 29th, 1832

“She had a womanly instinct that clothes possess an influence more powerful over many than the worth of character or the magic of manners.“ —Little Women by Louisa May Alcott

Purchase Little Women by Louisa May Alcott while supporting independent bookstores.


Mark Twain’s Birthday | November 30th, 1834

“The mock King's cheeks were flushed with excitement, his eyes were flashing, his senses swam in a delirium of pleasure. At this point, just as he was raising his hand to fling another rich largess, he caught sight of a pale, astounded face, which was strained forward out of the second rank of the crowd, its intense eyes riveted upon him.“ —The Prince and the Pauper by Mark Twain

Purchase The Prince and the Pauper by Mark Twain while supporting independent bookstores.


Check out Open Book Chocolates’s profile on Bookshop.org!

Literary Holidays | July 2024

G. E. Gallas

Celebrate this month’s literary holidays with Open Book Chocolates!


French American Heritage Month

“Somewhere along the line I knew there'd be girls, visions, everything; somewhere along the line the pearl would be handed to me.“ —On the Road by Jack Kerouac

Jack Kerouac was born in Massachusetts to parents of French-Canadian ancestry and was raised in a French-speaking home.

Purchase On the Road by Jack Kerouac while supporting independent bookstores.


Franz Kafka’s Birthday | July 3rd, 1883

“How about if I sleep a little bit longer and forget all this nonsense.“ —The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka

Purchase The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka while supporting independent bookstores.


Alice in Wonderland Day | July 4th

“The chief difficulty Alice found at first was in managing her flamingo: she succeeded in getting its body tucked away, comfortably enough, under her arm, with its legs hanging down, but generally, just as she had got its neck nicely straightened out, and was going to give the hedgehog a blow with its head, it would twist itself round and look up in her face, with such a puzzled expression that she could not help bursting out laughing: and when she had got its head down, and was going to begin again, it was very provoking to find that the hedgehog had unrolled itself, and was in the act of crawling away: besides all this, there was generally a ridge or furrow in the way wherever she wanted to send the hedgehog to, and, as the doubled-up soldiers were always getting up and walking off to other parts of the ground, Alice soon came to the conclusion that it was a very difficult game indeed.”

Open Book Chocolates is celebrating Alice in Wonderland Day with Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll and our corresponding chocolate bar.


Nathaniel Hawthorne’s Birthday | July 4th, 1804

“Love, whether newly born, or aroused from a deathlike slumber, must always create sunshine, filling the heart so full of radiance, that it overflows upon the outward world.“ —The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne

Purchase The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne while supporting independent bookstores.


To Kill a Mockingbird Publication Day | July 11th, 1960

“‘The one place where a man ought to get a square deal is in a courtroom, be he any color of the rainbow, but people have a way of carrying their resentments right into a jury box.’“ —To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

Purchase To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee while supporting independent bookstores.


William Makepeace Thackeray’s Birthday | July 18th, 1811

“The world is a looking-glass, and gives back to every man the reflection of his own face. Frown at it, and it will in turn look sourly upon you; laugh at it and with it, and it is a jolly kind companion; and so let all young persons take their choice.“ —Vanity Fair by William Makepeace Thackeray

Purchase Vanity Fair by William Makepeace Thackeray while supporting independent bookstores.


Ernest Hemingway’s Birthday | July 21st, 1899

“Every day is a new day. It is better to be lucky. But I would rather be exact. Then when luck comes you are ready.“ —The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway

Purchase The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway while supporting independent bookstores.


Alexandre Dumas’s Birthday | July 24th, 1802

“‘The sum of all human wisdom will be contained in these two words: Wait and hope.’“ —The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas

Open Book Chocolates is celebrating Alexandre Dumas’s Birthday with The Count of Monte Cristo and our matching chocolate bar.


Emily Brontë’s Birthday | July 30th, 1818

“‘I am now quite cured of seeking pleasure in society, be it country or town. A sensible man ought to find sufficient company in himself.’“ —Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë

Purchase Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë while supporting independent bookstores.


Paperback Book Day | July 30th

“Paperback Book Day is observed as the anniversary of the date that the first Penguin paperbacks were published in England back in 1935.”

Open Book Chocolates is celebrating Paperback Book Day with one of our favorite novels, Armadale by Wilkie Collins!


Check out Open Book Chocolates’s profile on Bookshop.org!