Vintage Aesthetics With Our Bookstagrammer of the Week: @classic.literature.love

Any classic literature lovers out there? We have the Bookstagrammer of the Week for you! Madison of @classic.literature.love is here to satisfy your cravings!

Book Culture Bookstagram

Howdy folks! We’re back with yet another installation of our Bookstagrammer of the Week series! What’s that? You’re just as excited as I am? I don’t know if that’s the truth, but I’ll let you think that! I’m just kidding, you’re right to be excited! Our latest Bookstagrammer is Madison of @classic.literature.love and boy howdy is she a riot! Madison enjoys classic books, dark academia, and that vintage aesthetic that we all dream of, but are hardly ever able to achieve! Over just a year of being on Bookstagram, Madison has amassed a whopping 41K followers on her account! But you’re here to learn about her and her experience with her classic themed Bookstagram, so let’s get into talking with Madison!

Madison Johnson

Bookstagram | Classic Literature Love Merch | The Literary Book Club

Two images side by side. 

On the left, our Bookstagrammer of the Week, Madison, holds up a worn copy of Thomas Hardy's Far From The Maddening Crowd against a shelf full of books. 

On the right, Madison is taking a mirror selfie. Her phone is obscuring the majority of her face but her long blonde hair is visible. She has a white shelf on her wall and white curtains covering her window.

cr. Madison / @classic.literature.love
cr. Madison / @classic.literature.love

Perhaps you’ve stumbled upon this article out of pure curiosity and you have a few questions about the purpose of this endeavor of ours. Well, allow me to fill in the gaps! Every week at Bookstr, our outreach team talks with up-and-coming and flourishing Bookstagram accounts to bring you closer to your favorite creators! We talk with them about everything bookish and Bookstagram–from their bookish beginnings to their Bookstagrammer inspirations! This week, we’re talking with Madison of @classic.literature.love and as you can imagine, there’s going to be some classic literature love! Stick around to meet our latest Bookstagrammer of the Week!

Let’s just start with the elephant in the room, Madison has over 41K followers on her Bookstagram account–@classic.literature.love. This is an impressive feat, but we’ve found that Bookstagram offers a community that many people cling to and embrace with open arms.

What is one thing that your Bookstagram has taught you?

 I have learned a lot from Bookstagram over the past year. I think what it’s taught me the most is to challenge myself not only in what I am reading but understanding it as well. I never would have read Les Misérables, War and Peace, and The Brothers Karamazov without the support of this amazing community. 

Perhaps I’ve gotten ahead of myself, but I just had to ask! Many of our readers are aspiring Bookstagrammers themselves, so it’s always beneficial to hear the experiences of other successful accounts like yourself! Challenging yourself can be done in many forms, though! One way is by committing to one genre of books–personally, I’ve found home in the romance world–but you have a knack for all things classical.

If a person is wanting to read more classical literature, which novel would you recommend?

I would definitely suggest The Scarlet Pimpernel by Baroness Orczy or anything by author Agatha Christie. Both are easy to understand and read but do not sacrifice plot or creativity. The plot twists for these two are amazing and will keep you guessing till the end. 

Three pictures side by side. 

On the left, Les Misérable by Victor Hugo is on display above a shelf full of books. The spine is bright orange so it stands out against the other bland covers.

In the middle, a shelf full of classic literature fills the pictures. The colors are dark matching the vintage, dark academia vibe that our Bookstagrammer of the Week, Madison of @classic.literature.love, strives for on her page.

On the right, two different copies of Fathers and Sons by Ivan Turgenev sit above a shelf full of books.

cr. Madison / @classic.literature.love
cr. Madison / @classic.literature.love

Agathe Christie is steadily becoming more and more mainstream with the numerous adaptations of her classic mystery novels! A development that we’ve been adoring–for the most part! Those mystery movies–much like Knives Out–have the same vibe as your Bookstagram account.

What do you love about the dark academia aesthetic that your Bookstagrammer account has followed?

Dark academia makes me feel cozy. I love the darker tones and more somber feeling[s]. Books piled in every corner. Parchment and quill patiently waiting to be used. Dark oak bookcases, a cozy velvet armchair, and reading by candlelight is my dream. With a hint of something haunting lurking around. 

If you’ve taken the time to browse through Madison’s Bookstagram–@classic.literature.love–you can definitely see the dark academia influences! Currently, Madison has around 430 posts on her profile, so it’s clear to us that she has a passion for reading.

When did you first get into reading?

It wasn’t until I read Harry Potter when I was ten. I read it in three days. Before this, I despised reading. I was held back in kindergarten because I couldn’t read. I remember my mom spending hours working on phonics sounds with me. I never thought I’d be a reader but J. K. Rowling changed that. Harry Potter captured my imagination and I have had a book in my hands ever since.

Three images side by side.

On the left, a shelf full of classic literature books follows the dark academia vibe that Madison has set. One of Jane Austen's books stands out among the rest.

In the middle, a stack of classic literature sites on a wooden table against a light blue background. 

On the right, a stack of books sits on a bookshelf. A collection of Jane Austen's seven novels sits in the middle of the frame and draws the viewers eyes the most.

cr. Madison / @classic.literature.love
cr. Madison / @classic.literature.love

With a Bookstagrammer name like @classic.literature.love, we’re expecting a plethora of classical literature to bleed into your feed. We have a–maybe strange–questions that you may or may not have considered before.

If you could choose any time period to live in, which would you choose, and why?

The Medieval Period. I know it’s been grossly romanticized but there is something romantic about knights in shining armor, troubadours, and fair maidens. But also how strong and resilient they had to be in order to survive. Against pageantry and chivalry you have the grittiness of life and fighting to survive. It’s such a fascinating time. Multiple families are fighting for the same crown. Countries are fighting for territory and power. Fortunes wheel was always turning and you never knew who it would land on next. Plus the Gothic architecture is beautiful. It’s mind-blowing how man was able to build those magnificent castles and cathedrals.

I will admit, the romanticized version of the Medieval Period does sound tempting! Something about that Narnia vibe that just hits right. Speaking of Narnia, out of the characters there I’d have to say that I relate the most to Lucy. She’s always looking for the good and letting her imagination lead her to what’s right.

Which fictional character do you feel most connected to, and why?

Meg March from Little Women. All she wanted in life was to be a wife and mom. She was happy serving her family. All I’ve ever wanted was to be a wife and mom and it’s been the biggest blessing. Meg is probably not the most popular choice but I appreciated her humble dreams. I think we can learn a lot from Meg. 

Two images side by side.

On the left, our Bookstagrammer of the Week, Madison, is taking a mirror selfie. Her phone obscures her face but we can see that she is wearing a dark brown sweater with light gray bottoms. Her bed is visible in the background and it is dressed with white covers and pillows. There is an ottomon at the foot of her bed with a plush looking bunch of fabric in the middle of it. 

On the right, we can see the side profile of Madison. She is completely obscured from view by her long blonde hair. She is wearing a brightly patterned cardigan. 

cr. Madison / @classic.literature.love
cr. Madison / @classic.literature.love

Now our time with Madison is unfortunately about to end, but this doesn’t have to be the end of your flirt with @classic.literature.love! You can follow her on Bookstagram, sport her merch, and even get $5 off your subscription to The Literary Book Club with code CLASSICLITERATURELOVE! Not to mention that you get all access to Madison’s glorious dark academic, vintage-vibed content that makes reading classical literature seem like a walk in the park of dreams!

Our final question for Madison is more of a recommendation request, but it’s not just for us at Bookstr! This is more of if you were an English teacher with the unbridled ability to dictate your teaching schedule and content. We’ve all imagined what books we would include on those reading lists, but this is even broader than that!

What is one book you would recommend everyone reads?

Far From the Madding Crowd by Thomas Hardy. It has everything you would want in a classic. It has a strong female protagonist, a love triangle, and an amazing plot twist.  It also has a steady and respectful man who patently waits and doesn’t pressure our protagonist, who he’s in love with. It’s tragic and beautiful and will leave you wanting to read more from Thomas Hardy.


That’s all folks! This is a wrap on our latest Bookstagrammer of the Week, Madison of @classic.literature.love! Be sure and drop a follow her page to get more Madison! Plus, you’ll have to keep an eye out on our Instagram page–@bookstrofficial–for our graphic feature of Madison! Our Bookstagrammer specialist–Karly Kolehouse–has outdone herself this go-round!

And if you’re craving more Bookstagrammer of the Week content from me, you can check out our feature from last week here!

FEATURED IMAGE VIA MADISON / @CLASSIC.LITERATURE.LOVE & KARLY KOLEHOUSE / BOOKSTR