SciFi and Fantasy Book Club discussion
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SciFi and Fantasy Book Challenge
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2018 Group Bookshelf Reading Calendar
Jan-June 2018 Schedule
The Handmaid's Tale (311) - Jan 15
Armada (349) - Jan 15
Neverwhere (370) - Feb 15
The City & the City (312) - Feb 15
Fahrenheit 451 (238) - March 15
Good Omens: The Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch (430) - March 15
The Man in the High Castle (259) - April 15
The Fifth Season (468) - April 15
Ender's Game (324) - May 15
The Last Unicorn (294) - May 15
Brave New World (268) - June 15
Old Man's War (362) - June 15
July-December 2018 Schedule
1Q84 (925) - July 15
Annihilation (195) - July 15
The Name of the Wind (662) - Aug 15
The Moon is a Harsh Mistress (382) - Aug 15
The Eye of the World (814) - Sept 15
Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency (306) - Sept 15
Children of Time (600) - Oct 15
The Eyre Affair (374) - Oct 15
The Lies of Locke Lamora (722) - Nov 15
The Neverending Story (396) - Nov 15
Consider Phlebas (471) - Dec 15
Broken Monsters (464) - Dec 15
The Handmaid's Tale"The Handmaid's Tale" First Impressions *No Spoilers*
"The Handmaid's Tale" Final Thoughts *Spoilers*
Armada
"Armada" First Thoughts *No Spoilers*
"Armada" Final Thoughts *Spoilers*
The City & the City
"The City & the City" First Impressions *No Spoilers*
"The City & the City" Final Thoughts *Spoilers*
Neverwhere
"Neverwhere" First Impressions *No Spoilers*
"Neverwhere" Final Thoughts *Spoilers*
Fahrenheit 451
"Fahrenheit 451" First Impressions *No Spoilers*
"Fahrenheit 451" Final Thoughts *Spoilers*
"Fahrenheit 451" A World Without Words *Spoilers*
Good Omens
"Good Omens" First Impressions *No Spoilers*
"Good Omens" Final Thoughts *Spoilers*
"Good Omens" Favorite Scene *Spoilers*
The Man in the High Castle
"Man in the High..." Gut Reaction *No Spoilers*
"Man in the High..." The Ending *Spoilers*
The Fifth Season
"The Fifth Season" First Thoughts *No Spoilers*
"The Fifth Season" Full Discussion *Spoilers*
Ender's Game
"Ender's Game" First Impressions - Pages 1-100
"Ender's Game" Final Thoughts - Pages 200-End
The Last Unicorn
"The Last Unicorn" First Impressions *No Spoilers*
"The Last Unicorn" Final Thoughts *Spoilers*
Brave New World
"Brave New World "First Impressions *No Spoilers*
"Brave New World"Final Thoughts *Spoilers*
The Matrix vs Brave New World *Possible Spoilers*
Old Man's War
"Old Man's War" First Impressions *No Spoilers*
"Old Man's War" Finished Reading *Spoilers*
"Old Man's War" Would You Join? *Possible Spoilers*
Mod
Mod
Voted, I’m looking forward to participating next year in as much as I can.
Maxine wrote: "Voted, I’m looking forward to participating next year in as much as I can."you and me both it will be my first time
The results do jump around a lot. Dont they
Silvana wrote: "Only 41 responses so far?"I sure hope more folks vote
I remember last year or kept moving steadily up. I can put it in the broadcast on the first if you guys would like. I'm not sure what effect that would have on participation.
Sarah Anne wrote: "I remember last year or kept moving steadily up. I can put it in the broadcast on the first if you guys would like. I'm not sure what effect that would have on participation."Maybe it will allow folks an easier time to find it and vote.
I’ve had fun watching this process over the last few years, and I’ve even participated in some reads, but I’ve never voted until now. I like to fly free and read what I want on my own schedule, but I do read a lot of standalone books from the group shelf in-between series reads.So I decided to vote this year. I figure, if any of my selections win, I ought to be able to fit them in relatively close to the selected time frame. I only voted for books I consider to be standalones and that I’m interested in reading in the near future, which amounted to 32 books. Only one appears to be in the top 12 so far, though. :)
32, eh? I voted for, iirc, 3 or 4 titles. I, too, have so many books that I really really want to read that I prefer to set my own pace....
So far the top ten has three of my votes....including the top two.Like YouKneek, I've always enjoyed watching the process :)
I think last year I managed to get two books in the reading calendar, including this month's pick.
I just voted for 8, though like last year only 1 appears in the top... Like many others I do like to set my own pace and my mood (and sparetime) has a big influence, but so far I managed to squeeze these "little" commitments in.
Cheryl wrote: "32, eh? I voted for, iirc, 3 or 4 titles. I, too, have so many books that I really really want to read that I prefer to set my own pace...."The group shelf is my main source of reading selections; I’d like to read most of them eventually. My problem is that I binge-read series books fairly close together, assuming I like the series enough to keep reading it. I schedule my reading around the series I want to read, breaking away for the occasional standalone.
Standalones are more interchangeable, as long as it’s one I wanted to read in the first place, but I could never commit to reading a series book from our shelf during a particular time frame. That's why I only voted for standalones, but there are plenty to choose from.
Interesting to see how others schedule their reading, and other perspectives. Thank you all for sharing.
Mod
I don't see anything about re-reads except by the odd chance or a special search. I would be glad of more visibility/ promotion.
Allison wrote: "Does everyone see/keep track of the mid-month re-reads we pick? There was some discussion around maybe trying to have a "more guided" discussion for the later reads, and I wonder if that would at l..."I keep track of schedules for the books I voted and I followed announcements from the monthly news-mail in case I want to spontaneously read along.
Sarah has been mentioning the bookshelf reads in the monthly newsletter. The calendar thread gets bumped at least once a month. Old discussion threads get bumped. It's just that participating in any discussion is something that only a tiny percentage of the members do. (Which is a good thing to some extent because 19,000 posting members would be chaos.)
Allison wrote: "Does everyone see/keep track of the mid-month re-reads we pick?"I didn't this year (my first year with the group) but I will next year. I have a private group where I add all the different group reads and readathon books, etc. if I have something scheduled. This is the first year I've done something other than just pick whatever fancies me, so I needed to have something reminding me. I did look at the mid-month schedule monthly, but because they weren't in my private group schedule, I didn't read any of them at that time.
I only keep track on the ones I voted. I did comment on one or two I already read but not voted.
Allison wrote: "Does everyone see/keep track of the mid-month re-reads we pick?"The info is publicized pretty well, I think, but I pay possibly a surprising amount of attention to both the regular and side read process considering how little I actually participate. And of course I faithfully read the monthly newsletter! I also keep a spreadsheet with the group books on it, along with various other info I consider useful -- page count, publication date, series status, my reading status. On that spreadsheet, I also mark the scheduled side-read month for those books which are chosen. I like to take it into account when planning my upcoming reads.
I didn’t read any of this year’s books because I’d read most of them already, or else they were the start of a series I didn’t want to jump into. However, I did read a few of the selections in previous years. If somebody else posted in the threads first, then I usually posted too. There were some books where nobody else posted, so I didn’t either. It’s not terribly logical, but I feel uncomfortable being the first person to post in an old thread. Thread necromancy is at the beginning of a very dark road. ;)
Plus I was never sure if I’d just be talking to myself. I always have opinions, and I’m already in the habit of reviewing every book I read, so I can always come up with something to say about a book. Maybe there are a few other people out there who are as neurotic as I am and would find it helpful if somebody kick-started things with a quick post, even if it’s just a “So this is one of our side read books for the month. Who read it, and what did you think?”
Mod
The info is publicized pretty well, I think, but I pay possibly a surprising amount of attention to both the regula..."
Really good feedback, YouKneeK, thank you! We're working on something that I think might help with all that...I hope! I am not nearly as organized as you, and I envy you.
YouKneeK wrote: "If somebody else posted in the threads first, then I usually posted too. There were some books where nobody else posted, so I didn’t either. It’s not terribly logical, but I feel uncomfortable being the first person to post in an old thread. Thread necromancy is at the beginning of a very dark road. ;) I couldn't have said this any better, but this mirrors exactly my feelings.
Also, I'm shy and though I follow a lot of threads, I do not always contribute.
Mod
Awesome, thank you Allison! :)
Mod
Glad to do it! Also, I think the new folder is our prettiest folder yet. Perhaps even our chef d'oeuvre. It says "we're so organized and invested in reading too many things. You wish your bookshelves looked like our bookshelves and guess what we're willing to lend you our labelmaker."
The horse race so far, with 63 people voting:The City and the City - 14
The Old Man's War - 13
Ender's Game - 12
Fahrenheit 451 - 12
Flowers for Algernon - 12
Armada - 12
Perdido Street Station - 12
Furies of Calderon - 11
The Man in the High Castle - 11
The Golem and the Jinni - 11
Neverwhere - 11
Brave New World - 11
Ubik - 11
The Fifth Season - 11
The Handmaid's Tale - 11
____________________________________________
Wool - 10
Prince of Thorns - 10
The Black Prism - 10
Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency - 10
The Ocean at the End of the Lane - 10
Kushiel's Dart - 10
Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell - 10
Kindred - 10
Nine Princes in Amber - 10
Thank you, Chris. I'm discombobulated this year :)
I don't usually reread books I've read in the last 2 years. I will substitute with another book from the group shelf. I'll never read all the books from the shelf if I keep reading the same ones over again . I've read 7 of the top 15 in the voting so far.
I’m with you - there are so many interesting new books I’m not into re-reading at all these days. I’ve read 8 of the top . Only one is on my tbr. I guess others are not as interested in the classics (wah wah for me).
I've read The City & the City the last three years and I'm still tempted to reread it this time around :)
Chris wrote: "Sarah has been mentioning the bookshelf reads in the monthly newsletter."So... is there a link to this mythical monthly newsletter? I'm pretty sure I don't get it and haven't seen it before.
Mod
So... is there a link to this mythical monthly newsletter? I'm pretty sure I don't get it and haven't seen i..."
You should get a message every month. One went out just today with all the links. Did you get that?
Nope. I got a general goodreads newsletter this morning, but I don't ever get a group-specific newsletter. Weird.Ever since Chris mentioned it, I've been looking up, down, and all around to see if I'm missing something obvious. As far as I can tell, I should be receiving everything group-related.
Mod
Ever since Chris mentioned it, I've been looking up, down, and all around to see i..."
Weird! Is it being sent to your spam? I'll forward this month's to you.
Thanks! I am going to contact goodreads support, as I just noticed another email I should be receiving but haven't been. I'll stop clogging up the group discussion with my IT problems. Carry on!
Jen, have you checked your account settings? Look at "Who can send me private messages." If you picked "just my friends," you won't get group messages (except, maybe, if you're GR friends with the sender).
Ohhhhh.... that's probably it. Thanks Chris!
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SciFi and Fantasy Book Club
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For the past few years we've gone through a process of voting for and scheduling past reads from the group bookshelf and reading them as a side group. This is intended to work in conjunction with the group Read All the Books! challenge. It is not necessary to join the challenge to participate in this process.
This year we decided to split the scheduling up, and rather than do the full 2018 year at a time, we'll be voting and scheduling for six months at a time. At this time, we will be voting for the books we will be reading July-Aug 2018. We will scheduling two reads per month based on member votes.
So, here's the plan:
1.Voting will begin on March 1st and end on March 31st.
2. Schedule will be posted by April 15th.
3.Future polls will take place in March for July-Dec scheduling, and September for Jan-June.
4.Books that have been read by the group, either the main group read or the bookshelf group, in the 24 months prior to the schedule period will not be eligible. These reads say "ineligible" next to the title on the voting form,
The only thing that you'll actually need is a gmail login. You'll be able to change and update your votes at any point during the nomination process. Books will be listed as title, author, page count, with words like "A" or "The" removed if they are at the beginning of the title.