Zombies! discussion
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The First Days
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October Group Read #2: The First Days
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Lana
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rated it 4 stars
Oct 22, 2013 07:43PM
I will be trying to get to some of the questions tomorrow. I'm dying to start reading on the next assignment but want to answer the questions first!
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They are not easy questions to answer. However they are good ones to ponder. :-)
I agree that they are not easy. I kinda didn't want them to be, but as I said, please don't feel as though you have to answer them all, or even any of them! I'm more interested in bouncing ideas off of each other and 'talking' about our favorite parts, scenes/passages that stood out to you, etc. Looking back on the questions now, I realize many of them are kind of repetitive. I'm sorry! I'm new to this lol...its more important to me to just have good discussion, and you really don't even need questions for that. Think of them as a jumping off point, and just share your feelings about the book. That's perfectly good enough for me!Tammy: How the bleep did I forget about Jack?!?! I LOVE that little booger! And I believe I agree with you about the first passage being AWESOME! Talk about reeling the reader in!!!
And no, this isn't really the place for the homosexual talk, but it kind of is relevant. I was just talking to above mentioned co-worker earlier and she said the same thing about 'Which one is the guy?' She said 'Hmmm...if I wanted to be with a man, I wouldn't be a lesbian, now would I?' ( and no, I wasn't the one that asked which was the guy ;-) ). The one that REALLY gets my goat is how men (as you said) will oftentimes make off colored remarks about 'watching,' but OH LORD!!! You let that SAME guy be around a homosexual MAN- holy canoli!!! Disaster! Why is it that most straight men are obsessed with lesbians, but are soooo damn afraid of gay men??? I have never met a gay man who decided one day to just convert a bunch of straight men. Actually, I've never even met a gay guy that would even THINK of hitting on a straight guy, but straight guys seem to be so sure that they are just SOOO perfect that EVERYONE must want a piece of them, men, women, hell, maybe even Jack the Dog included! I think some straight men are so intimidated by gay men because they are just so sure that said gay guy just HAS to be trying to take them home. Have you ever come across this? I don't know why, but god does it ever infuriate me!!! Get over yourself already, random straight guy! You are NOT that special!
Oh, and the 'unspoken bond' between Jason and Katie is at the very end of the reading...like probably the last 1-2 paragraphs of our reading. They look at each other and "Travis smiled at Kate and she smiled back. We're going to fight this war together, Kate thought. You and me, Travis. We're important, and now that we're both here, things are going to happen. Do you feel it? And by his gaze, she knew he felt it, too. (pg.121)You guys DO know that just cause I'm mod, that doesn't mean I have all the answers, right??? ;-) I was kinda baffled by this and wanted to know what you ladies thought of it...
What is good for the goose is good gander.You have to answer the questions, or at least the harder ones.
Theresa said" The one that REALLY gets my goat is how men (as you said) will oftentimes make off colored remarks about 'watching,' but OH LORD!!! You let that SAME guy be around a homosexual MAN- holy canoli!!! Disaster! "Made me laugh there:) but in truth there are quite a large number str8t housewives who are obsessed with gay male erotica that when asked about reading any lesbian or MMF menage erotica will cringing and whine about not reading about the "girlie" parts.
That also makes me laugh! :)
(At this point all the males in the group who are not participating in this BOTM are happy they didn't commit. And the group moderators are likely wondering just what I'll say next. Yes, Elizabeth I recall the PG 13 group rating requirement)
------
This brings up the cultural stigmas which most societies have imposed on both male and female "roles".
I wish I had time to ramble a bit more on my thoughts on
Societies gender stigmas but it will have to wait until I get home.
Tammy!!! What the hell is wrong with me?!?! Yes, I meant Travis, NOT Jason!!! Geez-Louise! My first time as mod, & I'm already screwing everything up! :'( Anyway, I WILL answer the questions, but I have learned the hard way that it is much easier to answer them when I'm NOT working, so that I can work on my laptop. I worked yesterday and am at work now, so no question answering for me til tomorrow! Ugh...thank GOD I have reading in my life (and knitting, but that's a whole 'nother can of worms). Otherwise these 12 hr. overtime shifts would have me pulling my hair out!!! Thank the lord for my 2 precious days off tomorrow and Friday! Then, back here all day Saturday, but thankfully, I have Sunday off, which is our next assignment date. I'll be able to answer my own questions right after posting them, then! :-P
Happy reading, everybody!
And P.S. Tammy- I think we scared all the boys away! ;-)
I'm off to read the next section.Waiting for you all to speak up is taking too long ;P
TeresaYou're doing a great job leading. Don't beat yourself up:-)
As for getting online at work, ugh! That's been difficult lately. Yesterday I was only able to sneak two peaks :-)
Silly customers kept coming in LOL
To make matters worse, my boss showed up to cover for the girl who called in sick.
Don't get me wrong, I like my boss and all but she insists on us "working!" when we are there!!!! Can you believe that?!
I mean ...*sighs loudly for dramatic effect* .. "Working" is so much work!
Actually, I'm a pretty hard worker. We are allowed online access on breaks and if there are no customers they don't mind. We just have to get our chores done first and make things look ready for business.
But sales were low this summer and my boss is stressed.
When she's stressed you can feel it in the air.
She came early to chat with me. It was our chatting that prevented going online.
Speaking of going online at work, have you ever noticed that when you're at work you can think of all kinds of things to say online, but when your sitting at home in front of the computer nothing comes to mind? Whats up with that?!
Mod
I'm watching you, Tammy
;)
I'm watching you, watching me haha
Mod
It's really awesome. It's almost like this:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OMOGau...
Yeah. I went there.
Mod
OK, I'm going to go empty my kindle. To see if this book will fit on it. Fingers crossed.
***AHEM!!! ATTENTION, EVERYONE!!!***There has been a little back alley talk about perhaps speeding this read up...can I pwetty pwetty pwease have a show of hands on who is still participating in the BOTM read? PLEASE, DO NOT feel as though you have to answer the questions. I'm no Nazi; I am not going to smack your hand with a ruler if you don't write 5 paragraphs for each question! If that is what's stopping you ladies from posting, PLEASE, I urge you, just post ANYTHING on how you feel about the book so far, anything you like, love, or loathe about it and why. THAT will be enough to spring a good discussion from. I absolutely understand that we all have different time constraints, and if that's the case, just post here when you think you may get around to some discussion. I myself have not gotten a chance to answer the questions, so don't feel like a slacker if you haven't either. I am posting answers tomorrow A.M., but in the meantime, I've almost finished the second reading chunk. I know work schedules oftentimes conflict with reading, as do children, holidays, disasters and every other who knows what on the planet. HOWEVER, that being said, if this is something you can ONLY commit to on the weekend, be forewarned that there will be spoilers, and you may be left behind :-( I DO NOT want to exclude anyone, but this discussion is petering out too fast for such an engaging book. So, I may speed it up if Tammy and I are the only 2 participating. ONCE AGAIN, PLEASE do not take this the wrong way!!! I want very very badly to have good discussion with this book, and the failure of a lively discussion is making me depressed :-\ Please let me know if you intend to continue with the read; if you do not feel comfortable saying on this thread that you still plan on participating, my profile is open- feel free to PM me. I know 2 of you had already read the book; if you'd rather talk about the book as a whole that's fine too...we can quicken the pace and finish it up and THE discuss it. Just let me know something, PLEASE. And I cannot say this enough- you ARE, IN NO WAY SHAPE OR FORM, MADE TO ANSWER THE QUESTIONS!!! Just speak your mind, ANYTHING about the book. I want to save this book read before it's deader than 6 figure guy!!! Thanks! And happy reading, everyone!!!
And by the by, if anyone else is interested in joining it, it WILL NOT take you long to catch up! I would LOVE to have a male perspective on this one!
~Teresa~
Note:This is the private email that I was sending to Teresa, but got side tracked too many times by another group member who kept making my tablet go off with notifications of comments they kept making (Don't worry, Elizabeth, I wont mention your name directly)
So here it is posted on this tread so I do not have to toggle any more!
--
Hey Teresa,
I am not sure what to make of this second section.
It is more of the first, in that it is examining the sexuality of Katie, the sexual immaturity of Jenni and not a whole lot of other stuff.
When you take into consideration the Zombie Survival aspect of this story, it all seems a bit too convenient. They have everything including toilet paper?
I’d say the largest part of the story currently being developed is the sexuality commentary.
There is no way that I can talk about this story without bringing it back to Katie being Gay, or lesbian or bisexual or whatever.
I am totally find with discussing the topic. It is quite common in the LGBT community. BUT.. this is not a LGBT group.
Yet not talking about the gay, lesbian, bisexuality and so forth would be like not saying anything about the elephant in the room.
Clearly the author "meant" to push the envelope.
If we focus our discussion on the survival aspect, then all we have is, well they got to safety, ate, killed a couple dozen zombies, made plans for a road trip and so on.
Not much action there.
So I'm back to what to say in the group discussion.. something like, "Hey, what about those zombies!" and "Killing zombies by dropping sandbags on their heads, that's an original way to do it."
I am game for however you decide to steer the conversation.
Tammy, I absolutely, 100% agree with you. This book is clearly meant to really make the reader think, and that thinking is most certainly more about human sexuality than zombies. I also agree that this is not an LGBT group, but I feel as though there is absolutely, positively NO WAY to skirt the issue, and no reason to. That is CLEARLY what the author wants us to contemplate here, so have no worries! My next cluster of questions is already headed in that direction. As you said, we won't have much to talk about if we DON'T talk about the relationships developing. We will, most definitely discuss this, even if it is just us.I realize I may have sounded a little too impatient in my previous comment, but I am enjoying this book so thoroughly that I hate to put it down, and I'm wishing I had a time machine to zip to Sunday! I don't want to push anyone away with my, well, my pushiness, so we will keep the second chunk due on Sunday, and if we don't have more peeps by then, I'm gonna consider it abandoned and do it as a buddy read. No offense to anyone, but a group read ISN'T a group read with only 2 people! ;-)
And Elizabeth- I don't think Tammy could ever get off topic enough to lose me! I think we all know that I go WAY OFF into the hinterlands quite often! So yeah, this IS me modding! What a terrible example I set!!! ;-)
Elizabeth wrote: "I'm doing that thing where I point to my eyes and I point to you and point to me again.It's really awesome. It's almost like this:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OMOGau...
Yeah. I went there."
Talk about a flash back in time!
Goodness Elizabeth, you are old!
I was talking about the I'm watching you watching him baby commercial
www.youtube.com/watch?v=my9YlMK749g
Mod
And that is EXACTLY what I was doing. Except in sort of a cool and awesome way. Like The Fonz. But in a girlish way.
Mod
NOT SO MOD NOTE - I just deleted a billion books off my kindle. I'll just in when I remember how to get this book on my kindle. Don't spank me for being a latecomer. I cry easily.
Elizabeth,About every three months, I wipe my kindle (reset it to factory settings) to get rid of dead weight.
All my kindle books and games stored in my amazon cloud.
Any photos or music I have on it, I also have on my desktop.
I find that by doing this regularly my kindle fire works better, and I don't end up storing books or unused games.
Mod
But! I have succeeded. So I'm on chapter two.
Elizabeth wrote: "I have to admit - I'm a bit ereader stupid. I've only had one for a couple of months, and generally unless I run into a problem, I don't fiddle with it. But! I have succeeded. So I'm on chapt..."
I am on my third kindle fire.
Flame, my first kindle fire was a first generation. I got him a couple weeks after Amazon first released kindle fires. I killed him nine months later.
Amazon sent me my next kindle fire for free under the guarantee policy.
I named my second kindle fire Ember. He lasted almost a whole year!
Ember's demise was also under the guarantee time. I did not want to let him go back because I'd become attached to him, but they talked me into it. Said they'd love to have the data off him (user history not the books).
Offered me free kindle books to sweeten the deal.
So I sent Ember back, off to kindle heaven and they sent me my current kindle Coal.
Coal is second generation kindle fire. He can read out loud to me which neither Flame or Ember could do.
But he's slower than Ember when he's online and has less internal storage space than Flame.
I truly use the hell out of my e-devices!
I've other e-readers but purchasing books for them is a pain in the rear since their parent companies are not "whispered" enabled like Amazon is with the Kindle readers.
I have an Acer Tablet which I use to go online. But it's not really reader friendly.
Amazon kindle for PC (tablet) application buts heads with the Acer's operating system, causing the application to freeze upon loading if I've made many eBook purchases since the last time I've opened it. (It has to do with the syncing of my cloud to the app.)
And... My Acer is formatted to read epub and those books have to be purchased on other websites which are not whispered enabled aka wirelessly downloadable and so I have to jump hoops to get them on my device.
Long story just to say, over time you'll be
Dag-gone you ladies! Clogging up MY thread with a bunch of superfluous information and commercials and songs! You're both headed for detention!!! :-P Seriously, thanks for all the laughs and info, honestly.I slept in until noon today, so I've only been up for an hour. Was drinking coffee and had JUST finished making the bed when BAM!!! POWER OUTAGE!!! ARRGGG....I HATE winter!!! Bad weather already :'( So, to be short...I HAVE NO INTERNET! WHICH MEANS NO LAPTOP!!! WHICH MEANS NO ANSWERS (unless I do them on this tiny phone). So, I was GOING to do questions first, THEN errands. My plans have changed. Gonna run errands now, THEN hope the power is back on when I get back home. If it isn't, I'm just going to post each answer in a separate comment (I know, I know, it clogs the thread, but there's just no way I can try and write out 8 questions in this teeny-tiny little box- plus, Elizabeth and Tammy are posting stuff left and right, so blame them for a bunch of posts you have to scroll through!!! lol) Keep your fingers crossed for me, guys!!!!
Happy reading, all!!!
~Teresa~
Mod
HmmmWhere is Randy when you need to blame him for something?
I blame Randy. He did it.
Are you reading Elizabeth?
Just to let you all know, there are a few of us working
That was supposed to say lurking.... sorry. Darn app!
Glinda wrote: "Just to let you all know, there are a few of us working"What are you lurking for? Jump in the waters warm.
Fair warning through, I've spent two hours typing up some comments about what I think about Katie 's and Jenni inappropriate behavior.
It's gonna add a little heat to the discussion.
Mod
I'm reading as fast as I can. I have to check and see what chapter I'm supposed to be up to.
I'm flashing back to high school. For serious.
Yeah ..high school.Is that common among you straight folks to flip out like that?
(Just kidding!)
GOOD LORD!!! So ends THE WORST day in recent memory with a completely crazed lunatic jumping onto the hood of my car while I was on my way home for the day! (Tammy, did you happen to take a trip to WV this evening? :-P ) Good news: POWER IS BACK ON!!!! Bad news: EVERY SINGLE POSSIBLE CRAZY THING THAT COULD POSSIBLY HAPPEN TODAY, DID!!! Oh well, its over now, and thank cthulu for that! What are we blaming people for? Oh yeah…clogging up the thread! I blame you ALL, you heathens, you!
Now, after an eternity....ANSWERS!!!
#1.For starters, who do you identify with most in this book so far and why? Katie, the 'hero'? Jenni, 'the compassionate follower'? Nerit, the 'out of place survivor'? Ralph, the 'man's man that has a plan for everything'? Or Jason, the 'innocent that got caught up in the whirlwind of it all'? (I know this is a tough one...if you feel like you are a 'combination', tell us who and why).
I hate to admit this, but I identify with Jenni (at least up to chapter 7). I have been in some truly awful, abusive relationships. I’ve been mentally, physically, emotionally, and psychologically abused by more than one man. I have FINALLY found a good one, and I’ll claw his eyes out before I’d let him go!!! I have always had a weakness for helping others too much, even to the point where it leaves me with nothing. I am kind to a fault. I totally understood Jenni’s shock and inability to figure out what to do on her own. BELIEVE ME…when you are so used to doing what your significant other tells you “OR ELSE!!!!!,” you lose yourself along the way. You get used to taking orders, and just as Jenni kept blaming herself for not doing this right, and not doing that right, I have continuously felt that my choices ’weren’t good enough,’ and that they wouldn’t ‘please anyone.’ Its something you must work VERY hard to overcome, but at times, I still find myself kind of following and wondering if the bad things that occur from time to time in my life are things I ‘deserve.’ Once you’ve been talked down to so many times, you end up blaming yourself for everything that goes wrong, everything becomes your fault, and you end up with no self-confidence. There is no doubt in my mind that Jenni would have stood there until she got mauled if it hadn’t been for Katie, and the reason I believe she went with Katie was because Katie barked orders at her, and that is how Jenni was used to being ordered around. HOWEVER, now that I have a good man, I’d like to hope that I’d be like Nerit: a survivor that has overcame extreme odds and has settled into a happy life with a good man! J
Tammy said: I’d like to believe that (Katie’s) assertiveness would kick in as my automatic response, but given my losses at the time, (Jenni’s) Shell-shock might end up being a more honest answer.
I LOVE the honesty in that answer, chick!
#2. I feel as though this is a very accurate portrayal of how things may actually unfold in the event of a zombie apocalypse. Do you feel the same depth of reality? If so, what situations and passages make this seem like such a believable situation to you?
The reason I feel this is soooo accurate is because I know there would be mass confusion at first, and that panic would quickly ensue, UNLESS, and this is a big unless, the ‘outbreak’ happened in an incredibly desolate area in which it may be tamped down. I think the fact that the gas station clerks thought they were being robbed was spot on. If someone came in to my work, hullabaloo-ing about zombies whilst holding a gun, I’d react the same way. The initial confusion is very, very accurate, in my opinion.
#3. How do you feel Jenni and Katie's lifestyles prepare them for what's happening? (i.e., Jenni being the submissive, battered wife & Katie being a homosexual who is used to having the deck stacked against her)
I touched on this in question one (what am I talking about? I ANSWERED this in question 1!). But I feel as though Jenni NEEDS a strong leader like Katie. I think Katie has gained a lot of her strength from being a ‘minority’ (I.e., homosexual) that probably faced prejudices and ignorance every day. This adversity gives Katie strength in trying times, and her strength and forcefulness is EXACTLY what Jenni needs after having been ordered around her whole marriage. The only thing I DO find tough is that Jenni mourns immediately, while Katie keeps her feelings under control much better (til later, anyway, but that is beyond this chunk). Also, after Jenni’s initial shock, she actually seems happy that she never has to see Lloyd again, and that she’s free for the first time in years. Its sad that a zom-pocalypse has to give her that freedom…
Tammy says: “they are both survivors, doing the best that they can.” I concur.
#4. Do you think the fact that this book was written by a woman makes a difference to how fully fleshed out the women are? Why?
I DO feel as though having a female author makes a difference. I think, as Tammy says, ‘you write what you know.’ YES, there are male authors that can develop absolutely wonderful female characters, but this, to me, is a ‘chick lit’ book. At least up to chapter 7, I should say. Frater is developing these women so well, and I don’t think most men could do that. I simply don’t think most men know the nuances of, say, an abusive relationship, as well as Frater seems to.
Tammy says: On some level reader and author alike are looking for the "comfort of familiarity" that will reinforce their core beliefs through the books/characters they read/create.
I agree, and this makes me wonder if perhaps Frater has been abused in a same sex relationship before, or if she had been abused by a man and found true love and solace in the arms of a woman. I know I understand Jenni on a level that is almost too close for comfort, leading me to believe Frater herself has been abused or knows someone very well that has been abused…
#5. On page 28, there is a passage: "That easy. That simple. The tiny difference between life and death." How much do you think simple luck would play into the zombie apocalypse? Why & How? Then, on page 94, there is a passage that says "Now it would be keeping their wits about them in situations...that would dictate if they survived or not." Why the change?I DO think that initially, at least, pure and simple luck will have EVERYTHING to do with an NEE. Right place, right time makes all the difference. For instance, if you happen to be stuck in a traffic jam, you are SCREWED. But if it just so happens to be your day off, or if you had just so happened to be on a cabin retreat for the weekend, then you stand a chance. Yes, slipping out of your coat ISN’T a hard task, but what if that zom had come at her from the FRONT? See what I mean? Luck is going to be a MAJOR factor at first, then, once you get a handle on exactly what is happening, your smarts and decisions will decide whether you survive or whether you become lunch. The change is simply due to the initial panic; once your brain catches up with the chaos, you gotta get smart, or get dead!
Tammy says: I think that "luck" (being at the right time and place) is not random. I think it is often a matter of habit, and conditioning that brings about opportunities that are often fated as "luck" Jenni sleeping upstairs while her husband slept on the couch was, according to Jenni, normal (habitual). Jenni’s son getting bitten because he was protecting Jenni,. Again likely normal for the son to step in, but if not normal than certainly predictable.
I kind of disagree here, although I DO see what you mean. But what about all the ‘happily married’ couples that sleep in the same bed? I am in NO WAY saying Jenni is lucky, because Lloyd was a dick, BUT, if he hadn’t been, she wouldn’t be in the story. So, as I said above, I think luck will make all the difference in the world during the very beginning of the zom-pocalypse.
#6. We are shown a several VERY strong women. Nerit, holocaust survivor; Katie, 'stereotyped' lesbian (on pg. 88, Jenni thinks her mistake was in "thinking that just because Katie was a lesbian, she was merely a man in a woman's skin" WTF????); and Jenni, abused and used housewife struggling to please everyone. Do you feel as though the psychological development of these women adds or detracts from the story? How and why?
Most definitely, it adds. It makes you REALLY care about these characters, and makes you root like hell for their survival. If we had cookie cutter characters, I wouldn’t give two bleeps who lived and who didn’t. But the way these characters are so well developed makes you love them all in a different way. It makes you feel as though you actually know them. Some of the more recent BOTMs have had characters that I didn’t really care about. The world Frater is creating is mesmerizing, and most importantly, its BELIEVABLE! That, in and of itself, makes me care deeply for these women; it makes me feel their pain; share in their fear; and laugh with them. I think Frater’s flawless writing and character development is why I care so much about this world. I am absolutely hypnotized by this book. it’s the best one I’ve read in a while!
Tammy says: No two people are the same in life and so should not be in fiction.
Each of the characters that you have named, have their own (well-defined) identity.
Jennis motivation for doing or not doing something is not the same as Katies or Nerit.
As you have commented, each of the women have different marriages and roles within those marriages.
As I have said before, I prefer my characters to be unique, original, flawed but growing. So far so good.
Couldn’t have said it better myself, dear. TOTALLY agree!!!
#7. At the very end of our first assignment, there seems to be a little unspoken bonding between Katie and Jason. Anyone want to hazard any guesses as to what this means?
I meant to say ‘Travis,’ NOT Jason. This is the one single aspect I wanted someone else’s opinion on. I don’t understand WHY they bonded so quick, but I’ve read further on and don’t want to spoil anything, so I’m zipping my lips on this one…
#8. Overall, are you enjoying the book so far? Why? What are some of your favorite passages? Any favorite scenes? Anything you think very important that I missed that you want to touch on?
You better believe I’m enjoying it!!! I think the fact that this book is so detailed, has such wonderfully relatable characters, and has that ’can’t put it down’ aspect is perfect. I have too damn many highlighted ’favorite’ passages…I’ll post some of them tomorrow. Not enough room here! ;-) I DEFINITELY think the first scene is one of the best, as Tammy already stated. I also think Jack is perfectly awesome. I know my two ’fur babies’ will be right there with me, although when it comes down to you or them, your heart will ache. My boyfriend was in hurricane Katrina, and swam as long as he possibly could with his American Bulldog, Lady, but had to make the heart wrenching decision to leave her behind when it came down to him or her. He still gets VERY emotional over that, but he said it was sooooo hard to swin with her paws over his shoulders, and he had to cut her loose. He still says “She was a tough girl…she swam to safety, and someone rescued her.” And although I’d love to believe that, I’m sorry to say, I don’t think that’s the case… And as for favorite scenes, well, I have highlighted a ga-jillion of those, too. I’ll post some tomorrow.
Tammy says: I felt most comfortable with Jenni and Katie at Ralph and Nerit's shop, because they could have their emotional break downs and we the reader finally got to see inside Katie's head/heart.
At the end of the assignment, I found the community of Ashley Oaks to be interesting.
I agree about Raplph and Nerit’s shop. It was necessary for the two protagonists to have their little breakdowns before continuing on with the narrative. And I also agree about Ashley Oaks…hard to say too much, having read farther, but as of the end of chapter 7, I think it was the most interesting place we’d come across…
WOW!!!!THAT WAS LOOOONNNNGGGG!!!! Now you see why I don’t try and answer them at work, eh? And to be perfectly honest, I’m going to TRY and relax a little after this HELLATIOUS DISASTER of a day. Some TV sounds good right about now, but I just know your comments are gonna draw me back in like zombies to braaaiiinnnssss…
****TAMMY: I don't want you to think I was singling you out, but you are the only one I have questions to respond to, and that's why I put the 'Tammy says:...' at the end of each question...
I wrote that out on my word processor, and I KNEW the formatting wouldn't 'translate' through the copying and pasting, but I had NO CLUE that I rambled on TWICE the length of a 'suitable' 12000 character response!!! Good god, you can see the English major coming out it me! ;-)
Glinda wrote: "That was supposed to say lurking.... sorry. Darn app!"Yeah, hop in with ANY comments! I'd appreciate it! And, your accidental auto-correct is still accurate, too! I couldn't answer my own questions til today because of work! :-(
Tammy K. wrote: "Fair warning through, I've spent two hours typing up some comments about what I think about Katie 's and Jenni inappropriate behavior.
It's gonna add a little heat to the discussion."
You add heat to EVERY discussion!!! That's why we love ya so much!!!
Elizabeth wrote: "Ahhhhh heat. I can hardly wait. It's freaking cold up here in Canuckia.
I'm reading as fast as I can. I have to check and see what chapter I'm supposed to be up to.
I'm flashing back to high s..."
We are discussing up through chapter 7 now; on Sunday, I'll post questions for chapters 7-15...get snapping on the reading, girlie! ;-)
Tammy K. wrote: "Yeah ..high school.
Is that common among you straight folks to flip out like that?
(Just kidding!)"
You ain't joking, and you know it, you snark! :-P
Thank you for answering all of the questions!
Most people either love my blunt honesty or they flat out hate it. More often than not people struggle a while before catching on to my humor (I note no one commented on my how to loan a kindle book joke) but regardless, I make myself laugh and that's what counts, huh?!
Tammy K. wrote: "Most people either love my blunt honesty or they flat out hate it. More often than not people struggle a while before catching on to my humor (I note no one commented on my how to loan a kindle bo..."
Absolutely!!! And, I'm not a tip-toer either...i'm blunt as they come, and I know that's why we butted heads at first. But now, I just love ya! And as for the Kindle book joke...I DID laugh...OUT LOUD...and I also laughed at your comment about Elizabeth getting indoctrinated into an internment camp of e-book etiquette...genius!!!
And one other thing...I TOLD ya I was gonna answer them! How DARE you not believe me! You think I made up a power outage, a crazed lunatic (and lemme tell you...that was NOT fun...like seriously...the police were involved and everything), and a billion errands???? We're gonna have to have a talk after class! :-P
Well I can't say I love ya (see my up coming rant on Katie's highly affectionate contact with Jenni, in spite of calling her just a "war-buddy") but I like you enough to add you to my limited friend list (I am rather picky about my goodreads friends, if they are not actively reviewing books or if they are collecting friends not books than I drop them. Originally I had decided no more than 50, but I've kinda upped that as there are some interesting authors who I like to read their updates.)OK I lost my train of thought in my ramble....what was I saying?
Oh I was gonna tell you about my morning. Its a long story but let's say it started off with the new fourplex manager showing up for me to sign the new lease (I forgot she was coming and I was literally just stepping out of the shower when she arrived)
While she was still here, two US marshals showed up showed me a photo and asked if I'd seen the guy.
I had.
It turns out he is one of my neighbors brother, and they have 5 warrants out on him and he's a current suspect in a recent robbery.
YIKES!
Then my son and I went on a two mile walk which ended with us stopping by Subway for lunch. (Hey I burned calories I had to replace them! Won't want my jeans not to fit, right?)
When I got home we put out some more Halloween decorations and then went into our own rooms to hide out for the evenings.
Note at no time did I mention traveling to west Virginia.
I'm afraid of East coaster's. I watch the News, you're all nutters over there!
Teresa, regarding Travis and KatieWithout using spoilers... Do you believe in spiritual soul mates be they lovers or friends?
Love at first sight?
deja vu?
Also how old does everyone think the characters are?
Jason is around 15 (See chapter 3 )
Jenni about 30 (married Lloyd at 18, her oldest biological son Mikey was 12)
Katie?
Travis?
Mod
No, no. I wasn't really talking about the Stepford ereader club. Where you follow lines slogan "I love my Kindle. Sure I may have problems now and then but that's because Amazon knows what's best for me. I love Amazon."
I was saying, "Kindles have a tendency to frack up! It's not you! It's Amazon's formatting (especially their browser, Silk)."
Relax and give into the fact that over time, you too will have to reset your kindle to factory settings. Plan for it!
Please note that I'm not at all Scared that Amazon will see me talking smack and fry Coal's circuits, forcing me to purchase a new Kindle.
I'm on my Acer.
Mod
#1.For starters, who do you identify with most in this book so far and why? Katie, the 'hero'? Jenni, 'the compassionate follower'? Nerit, the 'out of place survivor'? Ralph, the 'man's man that has a plan for everything'? Or Jason, the 'innocent that got caught up in the whirlwind of it all'? (I know this is a tough one...if you feel like you are a 'combination', tell us who and why).
I think I'm more of a Katie at this point. I tend to be the "git'er'dun" chick. I'll take charge if no one steps up. I have some of the people pleasing that Jenni does, but certainly not as much as I used to. As Tammy pointed out, I'm ooooollllld, so I don't have as much tolerance for that kind of thing any more.
#2. I feel as though this is a very accurate portrayal of how things may actually unfold in the event of a zombie apocalypse. Do you feel the same depth of reality? If so, what situations and passages make this seem like such a believable situation to you?
For the most part, I'd say there are lots of believable [i]bits[/]. There are also quite a few coincidences that I find less believable, but I'm overlooking them.
#3. How do you feel Jenni and Katie's lifestyles prepare them for what's happening? (i.e., Jenni being the submissive, battered wife & Katie being a homosexual who is used to having the deck stacked against her)
Well, probably not as well as the lifestyles of the Israeli sniper and the gun shop owner...
I tend to think it's more of a leader/follower kind of thing. Katie is forced into a leadership role, something she's naturally good at, and Jenni falls into the follower role, which she's used to. So they don't have that power conflict.
#4. Do you think the fact that this book was written by a woman makes a difference to how fully fleshed out the women are? Why?
I guess I don't. I've read lots of books where the opposite gender does a great job. I think their development is more due to this being a character driven book. I'm also not sure they're actually all that well fleshed out. I think we're getting a lot of their emotions, but not a good overall picture of who these women are.
#5. On page 28, there is a passage: "That easy. That simple. The tiny difference between life and death." How much do you think simple luck would play into the zombie apocalypse? Why & How? Then, on page 94, there is a passage that says "Now it would be keeping their wits about them in situations...that would dictate if they survived or not." Why the change?
I think it'll play into it as much as any other life event, to some extent. Aside from extremes - like happening to be in a gun store, or being trapped on an elevator with the ravenous dead - I think more of it will come down to wisdom, planning and skill. Luck might get you through the first few minutes, or even days, but it won't hold out forever.
#6. We are shown a several VERY strong women. Nerit, holocaust survivor; Katie, 'stereotyped' lesbian (on pg. 88, Jenni thinks her mistake was in "thinking that just because Katie was a lesbian, she was merely a man in a woman's skin" WTF????); and Jenni, abused and used housewife struggling to please everyone. Do you feel as though the psychological development of these women adds or detracts from the story? How and why?
Are they really strong? Or just themselves? I think a few arguments could be made that Jenni is not, in fact, a "strong" woman. I think it's more that they play a prominent role in the story.
#7. At the very end of our first assignment, there seems to be a little unspoken bonding between Katie and Jason. Anyone want to hazard any guesses as to what this means?
I've read it. So ssshhhhh.
#8. Overall, are you enjoying the book so far? Why? What are some of your favorite passages? Any favorite scenes? Anything you think very important that I missed that you want to touch on?
It's a really strong start, and it's quite compelling. I love Jake <3
Now that my kids are a little older, I'm really disturbed that Jenni would go into such detail about the deaths of Lloyd, Ben and Mikey when she's talking to Mikey. There's no reason for it. She's already vented earlier to the adults, she doesn't need to be laying this stuff (tiny fingers) on her kid, step or not.
Mod
Good call. Because not only am I watching you - THEY ARE TOO.
Good answers Elizabeth!Again I'm gonna state I haven't read but just to the end of the second assignment.
I won't spoil it for the others who are still reading, but I agree that the characters are still evolving.
There are a lot of things to consider
Like
What does it mean to be STRONG In the face of a catastrophe?
What does it mean to be a good parent in the face of a catastrophe?
How soon is too soon to look for love or a new family when your in the extreme end of life?
Is it possible to judge these characters given that they are in situations that we might never experience?
Would this story have played out differently if you were to substituent the character of Katie with a male character named Kevin?
These are the things I've been pondering this evening.
My I'm starting to freak out a bit.Let me see if I've got this straight.
You're watching me.
I'm watching you, watch me.
Amazon is watch me (you too)
Lurkers are watching us all.
Goodreads is watching the lurkers and you
Amazon is watching Goodreads.
Who is watching Randy?
Mod
Elizabeth wrote: "Netanella?"Oh! Yeah she's a Goodreads hybrid, right? Goodreads librarian.
Whew! As long as some has him covered that works for me.
And Teresa admitted that she's watching Netanella last night
All the bases are covered.
Now I can sleep better.
Wait, who's watching Teresa? Omg!This is so why I'm not the leader.
Books mentioned in this topic
Sunrise (other topics)As the World Dies: Untold Tales Volume 1 (other topics)
Surviving the Zombie Outbreak: The Official Zombie Survival Field Manual (other topics)
