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[2019] Voting for 8th Mini-Poll
Voted! This was actually a really easy vote for me, as I had some clear top choices and some clear bottom ones.
I have a clear bottom but I'm going to wait to finalize my top.
Mod
In my top, I have multi-generational saga, because I just love long-spanning books like this (even if they aren't actually long books). I read Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi this year and just loved it, so I'd like to read more.
Also in my top is the Texas Lariat list... I like the idea of having a list that is mostly contemporary, non-super-literary books to counter balance the 1001 list that is mostly classic/contemporary classic books.
The last topic that I'm for sure about my top is the immortality prompt, because I've had The Immortalists sitting on my shelf since the book came out and I haven't touched it, so I need a good reason to pick it up.
For my final top pick, I'm debating between a serial book (since I started using Serial Reader this year and love it) and a portal fiction. I liked the journey, movie prompt, and psychological thrillers, and they would all be easy for me to fill, but I'm not sure if I love any of them enough to put them in the top.
I'm excited to see what everyone else is voting for!
I wasn't certain I was going to have a Bottom Four but then that last wave of seconds came in and I had some very definite no's.My bottoms:
Beautiful spine just because there's almost no way to pre-plan for that unless you own shelves of unread books (which I don't) plus I don't know that I've ever looked at a book spine and thought, "Oh, how pretty!"
Dream job because (a) I dislike prompts about myself and (b) I don't have a dream job
Immortality and serial just because I have zero interest.
I suspect my Top Four won't be super popular so I'm very curious to hear people's opinions on the prompts and then the final results. My tops were: made into a movie, real hero/heroine, indigenous people, and climate/climate change.
Mod
My bottoms:
Beautiful spine just because there's almost no way to p..."
We are such opposites dalex! I have climate change and real hero/heroine in my bottom! Both of those prompts just don't interest me much.
I did some looking at lists for indigenous people and I didn't see a single thing on my TBR that would fit... that probably means I need to expand my horizons, so I'm not downvoting it, but it's not in my top.
These are my bottom. The first two ideas have to do with me which I don't like in prompts. In the last two prompts, the topic is too narrow for me.A book by or about a real hero/heroine of yours, A book about someone with your dream job (realistic or fantastical), Fiction or non-fiction about the climate and/or climate change, A book featuring indigenous people of a country
My top right now is A portal fiction. I think any of the other 10 prompts would be good additions to the list. So, I'm unsure which ones I want to vote for.
I voted for portal fiction, multi-generational saga, book made into a movie, and children's classic I have not read. There are a couple of others I considered, but those are the ones that jumped out.The interesting or beautiful spine one for me was a bottom, because I read a lot of kindle and audio books. And looking at the books I own in print form, most of them strike me as fairly plain. I also downvoted the dream job one, the climate change one, and the immortality one.
I only had 3 that I really have no interest in but otherwise would be ok with any of these. Even the ones I didn't like would be easy enough to fill, they just aren't interesting to me. I had about 7 I really liked though so I'm hoping at least a couple of them make it.Emily wrote: "As it stands now, I only have 3 in my top and 3 in my bottom... I'm going to give it a bit before voting and see how the discussions play out.
In my top, I have multi-generational saga, because I ..."
Off topic, but if the immortality topic makes it, I'd recommend picking a different book - besides the word in the title, The Immortalists has nothing to do with immortality and was really not that great in my opinion - it was unpolished and in need of a good edit. Granted, I had an arc copy, but I dnf'ed it.
Mod
This was pretty easy for me this time around. I had a definite top 4 and a definite bottom 4.My top picks: a multigenerational saga (one of my favorite type of books), a book about or by a real hero/heroine of yours, a book from the Texas Library Lariat List and a book involving a journey.
My bottom picks:; a book about someone with your dream job, a book featuring a Disney character, a book with a beautiful spine and a book about the climate or climate change.
I'm glad to see some early love for the multi-generational saga. It's one of my favorite types of novel and I was inspired by the fact that I have Roots: The Saga of an American Family on my list for my 50 before 50 challenge.I posted a listopia with suggestions in the voting thread but also found this Bookriot article with more ideas. https://bookriot.com/2017/06/15/100-m...
I agree with Peter that The Immortalists is overrated but it's worth a read and even though the title is a bit misleading, I do think it fits the spirit of the prompt. Another book that fits the immortality prompt that I loved but never hear talked about is Forever
I am almost evenly split this week between prompts I really like, those I'd be ok with and those I dislike so I think I'm going to wait a couple of days and see what the discussion brings.
I honestly have no clue what to vote for. Right now my only definite top is a portal fiction and my only bottom vote is climate change. Originally, I was gonna top vote for multigenerational saga too because I loved homegoing but looking at the list none of the choices interested me. The immortality, psychological thriller, journey, and real hero prompts do intrigue me as well but I’m not sure which I’d leave out.
Not a fan of the serial prompt but if it gets in I’ll use it as an excuse to indulge in a long fanfic 😂
Tops were hard to choose . Went for thriller, children's classics, portal, and heroBottoms were easy. Beautiful spine (don't choose books by the cover), climate change ( no interest whatsoever), dream job(don't have one) serial (didn't have any books I have)
Hoping the saga does well, and a couple of others
I went with portal, indigenous, climate and journey. The portal one particularly intrigued me. It’s quite unique, even though I do a lot of reading challenges and that’s not something that happens much any more.
I had an easy time with the bottoms this time. I don’t read paper books often, so didn’t really want the spine prompt. I know I can look at pictures of spines and choose that way, but I will feel compelled to read an actual paper book and I find that so hard these days.
Then book to movie and children’s classic I downvoted simply because I’ve done those prompts several times for challenges already.
And I’m not super into thrillers in general, much less psychological ones.
But when it comes down to it, I know it wouldn’t be hard to fill any of those prompts, so I’m content even if they do get in.
I think this was the easiest time I've ever had voting. I had a top 4 almost immediately when I first saw the suggestion thread (I came into it when we already had about 8 or 9 items on the list). Psychological thriller was an immediate yes for me since I love those and have tons on my TBR.The book-to-movie was an obvious downvote for me because even though it is not too hard to do, I've done it already so many times over the years that I'm just sick of seeing it (no offense to whoever suggested it). I'm with dalex about the pretty spine -- I'm sure I could find one from my unread books at home, but I don't necessarily find spines that pretty.
I'm not a fan of dream job or hero either, but didn't end up downvoting either of those. I can't really say that I have a dream job or a hero, and I generally don't like prompts that are about myself anyway.
The Immortalists would certainly fit the prompt for immortality, and I highly recommend it - it is my favorite read of 2018 so far. Tons of thoughts on it! I have several non-fiction recommendations for the climate prompt. The World In 2050 by Laurence Smith touches on what kind of futures are in store for us, although slightly outdated since it was published in 2011. Prisoners of Geography by Tim Marshall retells history from a spatial lens instead of political timelines - a nice intro to geopolitics.
My top are rarely chosen, but I’m not surprised. I tend to like stuff off the beaten path. My top four: spine (thought it was different and a fun thing to do while browsing at the bookstore or library - I’m probably the sole vote here); indigenous people, to learn more about people living abroad and from different cultures; immortality (‘cause it’s cool to think about living forever - or maybe not); and, one from the TLL list, as some of those books are irresistible. My bottom: Disney (I’m not a huge fan); movie/book, serial book and dream job - all were prompts that made it into the previous three years of ATY challenges. I’m looking for something new!
But really - - I really enjoy the ATY challenge no matter the prompts.
Anyone have a list of books featuring indigenous people that are not children's books? I've tried browsing, and most of what I get is The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, and children's books.
Mod
Listopia has quite a few lists (just a surface search):
Indigenous Peoples
Native American Fiction
Native American Literary Fiction
Native American Historical Fiction
Native American Biographies
Canadian Aboriginal Literature
Australian Aboriginal Literature
Outside of Listopia, there's these lists:
Essential Native American Novels
Celebrating Indigenous Peoples Day
Books by Indigenous Authors
Aboriginal Women Authors
Native American Authors
That being said, I have not a single book on these lists on my TBR, except for Absolutely True Diary, and I really don't want to read Sherman Alexie after everything that's come out about him, so... I'll find something to read if this wins, but I'm not voting for it.
EDIT:
Louise Erdrich (author of The Round House and Future Home of the Living God) is on a few lists, so that makes me feel a bit better about the prompt. I would prefer if the prompt was worded so that it was about an indigenous population or was written by an indigenous author, but I may end up just stretching the prompt to suit my needs if it comes to that.
Rachel wrote: "Anyone have a list of books featuring indigenous people that are not children's books?"Maybe trying searching "anthropology." Probably not everything would fit the prompt, but anthropologists often encounter indigenous people in their studies.
Native Americans are a popular subject in books. There's this list of Native Americans In Fiction and this list of Popular Native American Fiction Books.
Rachel wrote: "Anyone have a list of books featuring indigenous people that are not children's books? I've tried browsing, and most of what I get is The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, ..."I think these lists look good and most if not all are written by an indiginous person too. The Marrow Thieves has been on my radar for a while and will likely be my pick for this if it gets chosen.
https://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2018/03...
http://www.cbc.ca/news/indigenous/10-...
https://www.cbc.ca/books/indigenous-w...
https://www.booklistreader.com/2017/1...
https://bookriot.com/2017/07/01/books...
Edit ninja'd by Emily. At least some of her links are the same as mine I think, lol
I'm taking a rather broad approach to the prompt "A book by or about a real hero/heroine of yours." I wouldn't say that there is one specific person that I would call my hero/heroine. But there is a whole group of people who I consider with at least a little bit of awe - basically all women who lived before the era of Women's Lib, especially those who fought against the constraints and expectations of their time. So, just about any biographical fiction about a strong woman would fit this prompt for me (and that gives me a rather vast array of books to choose from). Just thought I'd share that in case it inspires someone else in their thinking about that particular prompt.
I really like the immortality prompt (vampires!) and the cool spine prompt, but my top four faves are portal fiction, a book made into a movie, a book about someone with your dream job, and journey. If the dream job prompt comes through, I'd be excited to read a cool thief/assassin/knight fantasy book! Also, for people looking for other multi-generational ideas, the sci-fi graphic novel series Saga is a great one! Saga, Vol. 1
Mod
dalex, that is definitely what I was thinking about for that prompt if it wins... less about a specific person I find heroic and more about a character who does heroic things that I wish I could do haha. I'd love to see the list of books you're considering for this one!
Emily wrote: "dalex, that is definitely what I was thinking about for that prompt if it wins... less about a specific person I find heroic and more about a character who does heroic things that I wish I could do haha. I'd love to see the list of books you're considering for this one! "I have quite a few options in my book catalog but have also been looking up some lists for additional ideas.
12 Historical Novels Inspired By Real-Life Bad-Ass Women
14 Historical Fiction Books About Real-Life Women
10 Upcoming Historical Fiction Books Inspired by Real-Life Women
Novels About Real-Life Women Are Saving Forgotten History
13 Wonderful Novels Based on Real People
dalex wrote: "Emily wrote: "dalex, that is definitely what I was thinking about for that prompt if it wins... less about a specific person I find heroic and more about a character who does heroic things that I w..."I was going to make a comment about this prompt as well since it seems a lot of people are downvoting it. I haven't voted yet but this is in contention for my top. I looked at it as "a person I admire" and my first thought was about women who paved the way as well. I'm currently reading a book about how women's suffrage was finally passed so Susan B. Anthony and some others who fought that fight came to mind but also Eleanor Roosevelt and Michelle Obama, who has a book coming out later this year.
Those links are great and the Vanity Fair list includes a book that I added to the AtY lesser known books list, Saint Mazie.
Mod
I thought I was ready to vote, but after staring at the survey, I had a hard time committing to a top & bottom 4. I would be happy with so many of these, especially as I start expanding my view about what the prompt can entail. I need to wait & read the voting discussion a bit longer. It's very possible I won't even vote for my own (that's what happened last time).
I didn’t vote for the hero prompt but I considered it. I’d probably read a book by Jane Goodall because I’ve long been fascinated by Leakey’s Girls and I admire her conservation work. For the indigenous prompts, Canada has a ton of amazing options for this one. I highly recommend Indian Horse. Such a tremendous book. I’d probably read The Marrow Thieves or The Break.
Here’s a list of Canadian authors who would fit the Indigenous prompt:https://m.huffingtonpost.ca/2016/05/2...
And if you’re into comics and graphic novels, I discovered https://www.nativerealities.com at Denver Comic Con and they’ve got some really interesting titles.
I suggested the hero prompt because I really want to read a book by General Romeo Dallaire, someone I consider a real hero in many ways. He was the commander of the UN peacekeeping force in Rwanda. He tried to stop the genocide and succeeded in saving some lives, but nowhere near as many as he wanted.He returned to Canada with PTSD and became a strong advocate for veterans’ mental health. He now is working to end the use of child soldiers.
He has written several books, Shake hands with the Devil (on the Rwandan genocide, which became a movie), Waiting for first light (on his struggle PTSD), and They fight like soldies, they die like children (on ending the use of child soldiers). Others have written books about him.
If the promp wins, I’m likely going to choose “Waiting for first light”. Although the other books are arguably more traditionally about his heroic work, his book on his own battle with PTSD and his attempted suicide make it clear that even heros struggle and simply telling his story may help others. Sometimes telling one’s story turns one into a real hero.
To me, a hero is someone who has obstacles in their way, because of these obstacles, they struggle to get ahead. Nonetheless they choose to push their way through, and come out better on the other side.
Sophie - I went to hear him speak when his first book came out and he really is an amazing man.
Chinook wrote: "Sophie - I went to hear him speak when his first book came out and he really is an amazing man."Chinook, I know. He is doing his Child soldier work at the same university I teach at. I’ve met him at a couple of events/meetings and I’ve been to a few of his talks. He is an amazing speaker.
Every time I run into him in the coffee line, I want to ask for his autograph. I think he’d laugh if I did.
I may be in the minority but I’m having a really difficult time picking any I want in my top 4 and narrowing it down to just 4 for the bottom! I’ll wait to see how the posts here sway me but right now I think I’ve got the Texas Lariat on my list because there are a few on their lists I already wanted to read. And that’s about it. Maybe a serial book because that’ll be easy. I could live with the journey prompt because you can argue that everything contains a journey if you subscribe to the monomyth theory.
I wouldn’t vote for the prompts because I’m “excited” but more because I can tolerate it and find books I want to read for it.
If the hero prompt wins, which I’m starting to hope it does after this discussion, I may use Tan France’s memoir which is to be released next year. He’s the fashion expert on the new queer eye and i really admire him
Sabrina wrote: "If the hero prompt wins, which I’m starting to hope it does after this discussion, I may use Tan France’s memoir which is to be released next year. He’s the fashion expert on the new queer eye and ..."Aww, that's nice! He's really cool.
For the prompt "Fiction or non-fiction about the climate and/or climate change" you could expand that idea a bit and read a book that has to do with the environment or a weather phenomena, since both of those things (sort of) are impacted by or have an influence on climate.For some ideas about environment focused books there is this list and this one.
For weather, some options include:
Their Eyes Were Watching God (hurricane)
Salvage the Bones (hurricane)
The Promise (hurricane)
One Breath Away (blizzard)
Bellweather Rhapsody (blizzard)
The Grapes of Wrath (drought)
I Will Send Rain (drought)
The Stormchasers (tornado)
And there is this list of Natural Disaster Fiction.
I am most excited about the multigenerational saga. I've read just a handful, but I often seem to love them, and every time I finish one, I think, I should read more of these.
I sooooooo want character-driven plots. I voted for Disney and immortality for that reason. I also picked climate change and portal fiction. I enjoy some cli-fi and magic is always good.The only topic I really don't want to get through is the Lariat list. I have an extreme disdain for lists and between ATY and Popsugar this year, there are so many lists.
I wasn't that enthused about the immortality prompt just because I have nothing on my TBR that fits and nothing I found via searching looked interesting. But this morning I was browsing the new books shelf at the library and I picked up a book that caught my attention and learned that it is about an immortal dog. It sounds like it could be quite delightful so I may just add it to next year's reading list.
I wish the survey was public so we could see how the prompts are looking as the week goes on!
I had a fairly easy time picking my top & bottom four this week. There were a couple that were tied for my last top spot & a couple tied for my last bottom spot, but I worked it out & am happy with my decision.Top choices: children's classic, hero/heroine, Texas Library Lariat list, immortality
Bottom choices: spine, climate, indigenous, serial
It sounds like some of my choices for both lists could be polarizing, due to what I'm seeing in the discussion, but since so many people vote who don't participate in the discussion, it's always a surprise in the end.
Chinook wrote: "And if you’re into comics and graphic novels, I discovered https://www.nativerealities.com at Denver Comic Con and they’ve got some really interesting titles."That's an awesome resource, thanks for sharing!
My top:1. A psychological thriller: This one can be very flexible depending on how broadly you define "thriller." A lot of noir or gothic novels could work.
2. A multi-generational saga: I used to think I didn't like these, but I read two great ones this year: Song of Solomon and The Bridge of Beyond. I voted for this to push myself to discover more good ones.
3. A book with the theme of immortality. This can include anything from vampires or gods to anti-aging treatments in SF to digital constructs of consciousness in cyberpunk (like in Neuromancer or Altered Carbon) or even achieving figurative immortality through fame.
4. A book that includes a journey (physical, health, or spiritual). I like this because it works for any genre and allows for a good range of KIS/BIO interpretation.
My bottom:
1. A children’s classic you’ve never read. I don't read children's literature, not even classics.
2. A book featuring a Disney character. I dislike Disney, and I also wouldn't want to read a fairytale or retelling.
3. A book with a interesting or beautiful spine. I read almost entirely from my Kindle, and unlike covers, I can't see spines online.
4. A book from the Texas Library Lariat List. There are two or three listed here that are on my TBR, but none of them are high priority. I'm generally not interested in popular new releases.
I recommend The Library at Mount Char for the immortality prompt. It’s so weird but I really liked it.
I found this week tough. Nothing really jumped out at me for either top or bottom. In the end I went with:Top
A psychological thriller - I always enjoy a good thriller, portal fiction, texas library lariat list as there seemed to be some I would like to read and theme with immorality for vampires.
Bottom
a book about a real hero/heroine of yours - I generally don't have heros, book about someone with your dream job - again, I don't have a dream job, climate change and serial book.
Mod
Katie wrote: "I am most excited about the multigenerational saga. I've read just a handful, but I often seem to love them, and every time I finish one, I think, I should read more of these."That's my favorite type of book. There are so many good ones!
Around the Year in 52 Books
Books mentioned in this topic
Song of Solomon (other topics)The Shining (other topics)
Their Eyes Were Watching God (other topics)
Weaveworld (other topics)
Kindred (other topics)
More...
Authors mentioned in this topic
Louise Erdrich (other topics)Clive Barker (other topics)
Octavia E. Butler (other topics)
Eva Mozes Kor (other topics)
Daphne du Maurier (other topics)
More...
The entire Around the Year challenge list is generated by the group members. We enjoyed the process so much in the past three years that we are creating another list for 2019.
The Process:
The topics for the 2019 RC list will be determined through around 13 mini-polls. Each user will vote for their favorite 4 topics in each mini-poll, which will then add up to the 52 topics (13 polls x 4 topics/poll=52 weekly topics). Suggestions for each poll will be opened until 15-20 suggestions are received+seconded. Then a poll will be opened for voting for one week so you can select your 4 favorite suggestions. This timeframe allows for a completed list in October-November.
The Rules:
- Vote for your TOP 4 and BOTTOM 4 - You are allowed to vote for less than 4
- Voting ends August 19
- One vote per poll per user
- see the suggestions thread for more details on some entries.
Helpful Links:
Psychological thriller; https://www.goodreads.com/genres/psyc...
Children's Classic: https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/9...
Hero-Related Lists; https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...
Multi-generational saga: https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/1...
Serial books: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Serial_...
Portal Fiction: https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...
Texas library Lariat: http://www.txla.org/lariat
Immortality theme: https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...
Beautiful spines: https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...
Poll Entries:
1. A psychological thriller
2. A multi-generational saga
3. A children’s classic you’ve never read
4. A portal fiction (i.e. a book that has a magical/technological doorway or portal)
5. A book that has been made into a movie
6. A book by or about a real hero/heroine of yours
7. A book about someone with your dream job (realistic or fantastical)
8. A book featuring a Disney character
9. A book with a interesting or beautiful spine
10. Fiction or non-fiction about the climate and/or climate change
11. A book featuring indigenous people of a country
12. A book from the Texas Library Lariat List
13. A serial book (either a book you have read as a serial or was originally published as a serial)
14. A book with the theme of immortality
15. A book that includes a journey (physical, health, or spiritual)
Survey Link