Historical Fictionistas discussion
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Becky but that is fine, I was only considering the group reads actually..... Could you explain how you get the members rating on the books that ARE in the bookshelf? Another group wanted to do this too and didn't know how.Becky, I am glad you liked my suggestion about using the "add book/author" button. Cool - more will know about this good group which I thoroughly enjoy!
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Hmm, thanks for explaining and trying. It is so weird. Somewhere I saw this here at GR. I think it was in the group Arthuriana - All Things King Arthur. I have sent a question there too, but have yet to receive a reply. I think it would be an interesting bit of info, but only if it isn't difficult to achieve by the computer. Anyhow thanks Becky!
Becky, the group members' ratings ARE there!!!! Sarah at Arthuriana searched and searched and yup she found it! I will explain: If one goes to the group's Bookshelves and then click on either "currently reading" or "read" or whatever is appropriate for the book one is interested in, you are then given a list of books. Go to the book you are interested in and follow its row way to the right where you will see the word "view". Click on view. Then you will see the discussions concerning the book and below that the ratings and reviews of those group members who have rated and reviewed the given book!!!!! It is there!!! I think this is a great facility b/c I am more interested in what members of this group think, since we all like HF and we all kind of get to know eachother from reading the comments. HURRAH, HURRAH, HURRAH!! You know I have discussed this with numerous people, nobody knew about it! Well now WE do. Lovely! I will be using it alot. It does demand that books are added to the bookshelves. In this group we only add books that are group reads. That is fine! Who adds books? Could we also perhaps add a shelf for future possible reads that even group members could add to, so there would be no extra work for you. I am just thinking...... Who adds a book, is that different for each group? There is so much that is hard to understand! I personally think it would be a poof to the group if we could see how its members view a book. What is your input?
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Thanks for the update. :)
Heather, the funny thing is that I must have done this once and then I totally forgot how I did it. I KNEW I had seen my and one other group members rating; I was 100% sure, but I didn't remember where exactly or how...... So then I started asking lots of people and nobody knew! FINALLY, Sarah at Arthuriana, where I was pretty sure I had seen it, fooled around and discovered what I had done previously and then totally forgotten. Talk about being dumb! Anyhow, isn't it cool? VERY GOOD info!
Well, it is nice knowing you Heather!
Ummmm mods...why isn't this months group read updated on the group page? It still says I, Claudius and The Girl Who blah blah.
Mod
Will update!
I only mention it because I stopped reading I, Claudius to read The Thirteenth Tale and I already feel guilty about it. I don't need to see its I, Claudius's cover posted all big on the front page giving me shame.
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It's changed now though. Thanks for reminding me. Hehe...
:D When are the August/September nominations starting?
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I am not sure where to post this, but I just got an e-mail from BN :Stop by Barnes & Noble's official Facebook page tomorrow, 7/28, at 6:30 p.m. ET for a live chat with historical fantasy author Naomi Novik.
Jennifer (jennbunny) wrote: "Stop by Barnes & Noble's official Facebook page tomorrow, 7/28, at 6:30 p.m. ET for a live chat with historical fantasy author Naomi Novik. "I don't like Naomi Novik's stuff. I see how it can appeal to others, but I found it a but 'blerk'. I won a $50 (about $60 American) book voucher for a online bookstore once with one of my reviews and I used it to buy 4 of her books in the Temeraire series.
His Majesty's Dragon
Because I used to be a massive fan of Anne MCaffery I thought I would give them a go. I didn't realise it was young adult fiction and it read very basic.
I don't criticise her for that. I appreciate that she is writing basic because it is YA, but it is not for me. YA is not for me. I'm too fussy.
I still own these four books. (A set of three in a box with a poster and book four on it's own). I only read the first book and couldn't even finish that. They are sitting on my shelves waiting to be either sold on ebay or swapped at the book exchange next time I go to town. I have not decided yet. they don't seem to sell well on ebay.
I have never read any of Naomi Novik books. I do not even know who she is, but I would have to say if she is YA, I may not like her either. I am not a big YA reader; although, most of my friends are. I just cannot get into most of it. Sometimes, I even feel like they are dumbing down the story in YA.
Jennifer (jennbunny) wrote: ". Sometimes, I even feel like they are dumbing down the story in YA."
Yes, that is exactly it, Jennifer. It does feel like they are dumbing down.
I understand people enjoy YA and I do not judge them for that, because sometimes people like to think about what they're reading and sometimes people want to relax and cruise through a book without putting too much thought into it. But I like more complexity and maturity in my books.
Mod
I don't generally say that I don't like genres or types or categories of books, because I read a wide variety, and can usually find one that I like... Even within genres, books are so very different, there are bound to be some I like and some I don't.
There are a lot of "crossover" books that are considered YA that are fabulous as well.
The Book Thief
Cleopatra's Daughter
Little Women
A Northern Light
To Kill a Mockingbird
These are a few of my favorites - there are more that are fantasyish which can be hit or miss, but some are really great!
I generally stay away from YA. I guess I feel I have plenty of other gebres to choose from and with my limited experience with YA not being great I choose more adault books. I've never read HP or Twilight. My friends chastise me all the time for that. I did read Beastly which is YA and it was a good story.
I think that the Temeraire Series is an adult book series, as they are found in the adult section of the book store...but would be apropriate for Young Adults as there is nothing risque in them. I liked her books, and thought they had some very fun and imaginative parts, as well as some sad and tragic parts. Overall I'd say they were really good and I think I rated the first 3 in the series at 4 stars.Maybe they can be in the "crossover" list that Becky made, but they are originally Adult books.
Mod
Harry Potter though, that's different. These stories are fabulous, and while the first couple are what I would consider juvenile, with the 3rd one it starts getting darker and more mature and serious. These are just amazing books. Rowling ties in mythology and legend and history and lore and ties them into an amazing story. I really think that everyone should try them at least once. :)
The Temeraire series is like the Lawhead, Hood series. Here in Australia we find both series' in the adult section. .I didn't realise they were more a YA thing until I bought them. Once I started reading Temeraire #1 I found that it read like YA and so looked into it and that's when I discovered that it is YA that is marketed at adults as well as young adults. One of those crossovers that Becky mentioned.
I totally accept that they are marketed to adults and that adults enjoy and love them. That is cool.
And I am sorry, Kristi if this sounds like I am arguing with you. Please accept my apology if that is how it seems. I wanted only to express that here in Australia Temeraire is more of a YA series.
This is the Barners and Noble description;
"Broad general YA appeal;Junior High, defined as grades 7 to 9; Senior High, defined as grades 10 to 12; Adult-marketed book recommended for Young Adults). 2006, Del Rey, 384p., pb. Ages 12 to Adult."
no worries Terri...I don't feel like you are arguing with me, I just thought I'd stick my 2 cents in. I was confused because when I bought our books they were in the Adult part of the store. When I first read His Magesty's Dragon I had just finished Eragon (ugh) and the comparison was amazing. I felt, that compared to Eragon, which is a YA book no doubt, the Temeraire books were much more sophisticated (sp?). So maybe that is why they seemed to be adult to me...I really had a hard tome getting through Eragon, and didn't even try to read the others in the series...
I have heard that about Eragon, Kristi. I went so close to getting it once when I found it online on special. I read the reviews on GR first before buying it, and thank goodness I did that.GR is my go-to-guy before I buy a book by an author I don't know or a book I don't know. This website has saved me from many potentially catastrophic book moments.
My second go-to-guy is Amazon where you can click on the book and opt to read the first pages or a chapter/pages at random. I only discovered this feature on Amazon.com this year and it has saved me from buying some poorly written books. {:-O
Oh, and thankyou for understanding that I was not trying to argue or be confrontational. Some people are too sensitive and you don't know that until you've unintentionally pressed their code red button.
lol...I love "Code red button"...I'm pretty laid back, I figure that we are all here to discuss books, which I love, and I know everyone here loves, so I always try to give the benefit of the doubt. I haven't met many people that try to argue with others here, it's so fun! How do you read the first chapter of a book on Amazon?? I have a Nook, so I can read a sample of a book before buying it if it's available as an ebook on Barnes & Noble, but I haven't seen the option at Amazon! This would be awesome to know!
Go to the book page you want on Amazon. say for an example.. Temraire book #1http://www.amazon.com/His-Majestys-Dr...
See the book cover image in the left hand side. Above it or near it, or when you waiver over it, you see "CLICK TO LOOK INSIDE"
IN the box that comes up when you waiver over the book you'll see options 'Front cover, first pages, surprise me'. Select one of these. Or you just click on the 'Click to look inside' and then select one of those three options from inside the pop up box. See below link for the reader box that shows the first pages of Temeraire.
http://www.amazon.com/His-Majestys-Dr...
It is a very nifty feature and I wouldn't buy a book anywhere (within reason) without first giving it the once over on Amazon. Would save you using up download on your Nooks wouldn't it, to read it on Amazon instead? (Mind you, I don't know how the nook/kindle things work).
Occasionally, I find a book that doesn't have the click inside feature, but that is rare.
I have used the sample on my nook a few times. I like Amazons search inside the book feature. It does help me avoid disasterous purchases. I download a lot of free stuff for me nook. I'm just getting the hang of it. I mostly take pictures of books while instore and look them up later on goodreads. I like to read others take on the book, but mostly goodreads has good descriptors which helps me a lot.
Some YA books are some of my all-time favorites - Anne of Green Gables, To Kill a Mockingbird, A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, the Harry Potter Series, the Hunger Games series. Books of that caliber are great for any and all ages.
I don't mean to be a nag, but are October/November nominations beginning soon? :)
Mod
When will we begin noms for the Jan/Feb read? Did I miss them? :)
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On the HF Group Rules thread, it asks that we use the "Add Books" link when discussing a book. QUESTION: Can someone please tell me how to do this? thanks
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You can change it between book links like this Katherine or book covers like this
if you choose. I personally prefer links, because it's easier to see at a glance what the book is. Or if you use the cover, I would suggest to also add the title. Often the book cover view is too small to see the title in the image.
Oh there it is, right in front of me! Thanks. I am currently reading The Killer Angels. I think I did it! Thx Becky
Are we reading March this month? The book disappeared from the reading selection, and only last month's book is showing.
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You guys should put the upcoming books until the last weeks or two before the end of the month. That way there can be more focused discussions...:)
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I need to vent a frustration please...I get so aggravated when I look at various book lists such as best sellers, "can't wait for 2011," or other such popular book lists and the vast majority of titles are either series books, YA, vampire related, or mass produced, over-read writers. I feel like a lemming trying to avoid to inevitable drowning! I want to read something at least somewhat original and hopefully learn something in the process. This is why I am drawn to HF. Is it just me or is it becoming increasingly difficult to find unique, intelligent fiction that challenges the mind in some way? Is anyone else feeling this way?
Ellen wrote: "I need to vent a frustration please...I get so aggravated when I look at various book lists such as best sellers, "can't wait for 2011," or other such popular book lists and the vast majority of ..."
I'm not really into anything contemporary either Ellen. I've been reading all kinds of classics that I've never read before, more Dickens, Trollope, and some other authors that I found on the 1001 books site. At least then I know I'll find some originality and some really great writing which is not always true with bestselling fiction recently. I have been reading some historical fiction however, because even though it's fiction, I find myself learning from the books. I recently read I, Claudius: From the Autobiography of Tiberius Claudius, Born 10 B.C., Murdered and Deified A.D. 54 and found myself on other sites, like Wikipedia, learning about the Roman Empire.
Bernadette wrote: "Ellen wrote: "I need to vent a frustration please...I get so aggravated when I look at various book lists such as best sellers, "can't wait for 2011," or other such popular book lists and the v..."
Thanks for sharing. I agree with you about the 1001 list; it is good. I also like to read some of the actual history when I'm reading a HF.
You are so right Ellen! I lead a historical fiction in person group and it is getting harder and harder to find HF that isn't a mass produced series or a 900 page PHD thesis.
Ellen wrote: "I need to vent a frustration please...I get so aggravated when I look at various book lists such as best sellers, "can't wait for 2011," or other such popular book lists and the vast majority of ..."
someone told me recently that a book being on the best seller list doesn't necessarily mean the book is good only that a ton of suckers bought it
Best seller lists are total popularity contests. I usually look at award nominee lists when I'm looking for something different.
Debbie, I totally agree about it being a sucker list. I can think of a few particular authors, which no matter what they write always ends up on the best-seller list. And one of those has written the same particular story 100 times. Just different settings. Its not easy in these days to find books with depth to them. It seems like alot of authors just throw something on paper and dont even research them.
Ellen wrote: "I need to vent a frustration please...I get so aggravated when I look at various book lists such as best sellers, "can't wait for 2011," or other such popular book lists and the vast majority of ..."
Ellen, there's also a lot of great African/ South American/ Asian etc. literature. Reading stories from all over the world expands my horizon and deepens my feeling of unity with the rest of the world. I enjoy it immensly, maybe you would, too?
Historical Fictionistas
Books mentioned in this topic
The Tokaido Road: A Novel of Feudal Japan (other topics)The Women (other topics)
Homegoing (other topics)
The Violinist of Venice (other topics)
Dark Fire (other topics)
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Authors mentioned in this topic
Elizabeth Freemantle (other topics)Katherine Longshore (other topics)
Jean Plaidy (other topics)
Kate Emmerson (other topics)
Alison Weir (other topics)
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As far as user rankings on a book, to my knowledge there is no way to do this other than to add the books to the group bookshelf, and at this time, we use the group bookshelf only for group read books.
Thanks for the suggestions! :D