Discussing All Things Chunkster

[Sarah]

Maybe we could at least stagger the start dates? There are just too many really amazing books in this poll.

[Sarah]

Okay, I'm willing to do Dhalgren, Doctor Zhivago, and House of Leaves. I'm waiting on M&D until Ami can join me. Plus I think 3 is enough! I still have other reading to do.

[Rosemary]

I'd be interested in joining a buddy read for Mason & Dixon if/when you start that!

[Kaycie]

Rosemary, I am super interested n M&D, too, over any of the others, so I say we just say "when we start" over "if!" :-)

[Zulfiya]

I hear you, guys, loud and clear. I would not mind reading Dhalgren myself. So we might start counting people.

[Zulfiya]

As promised, I opened a thread about buddy reads for the challenging novels. I hope there will be many people willing to participate.

https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/....

[Everyman]

Sarah wrote: "Although, if people do all of these, I will probably idiotically try to do every single one."

Clearly, you're still young. [g]

[Zulfiya]

Hey, hey, hey, I am in my late thirties, and I still do the same thing. Experience is not the best helper here! :-)

[Sarah]

Ha! I'm 37. I see Everyman's comment and I'm like "Yep, I'm still young". Then I see Zulfiya's comment. Do we have different conceptions of young?

[Linda]

Sarah wrote: "Ha! I'm 37. I see Everyman's comment and I'm like "Yep, I'm still young". Then I see Zulfiya's comment. Do we have different conceptions of young?"

That's what I was thinking! I'm 41, but when I saw Zulfiya's comment I felt a bit deflated...

[Sarah]

Linda wrote: "Sarah wrote: "Ha! I'm 37. I see Everyman's comment and I'm like "Yep, I'm still young". Then I see Zulfiya's comment. Do we have different conceptions of young?"

That's what I was thinking! I..."

We'll be young together :)

[Linda]

Sarah wrote: "We'll be young together :) "

Deal! :)

[Paula]

Everyman wrote: "Sarah wrote: "Although, if people do all of these, I will probably idiotically try to do every single one."

Clearly, you're still young. [g]"

She just doesn't have anyone serenading her with a kazoo :)

[Zulfiya]

Alright! I admit - I am young again! Everyman, when I want to support you, I will be middle-aged, but when I am under severe peer pressure, I will be young :-) Deal?

[Everyman]

Zulfiya wrote: "Hey, hey, hey, I am in my late thirties, and I still do the same thing."

To me, that definitely qualifies as still young.

[Everyman]

Zulfiya wrote: " Everyman, when I want to support you, I will be middle-aged, but when I am under severe peer pressure, I will be young :-) Deal? "

Suits me! I wish I could have such a choice, but despite how I sometimes feel, I doubt anybody would allow me "middle-aged" any more.

Except in my heart. There, yes. As I like to say, I'm young in heart, somewhat older in other places. (And somewhat is being very generous!!)

[Everyman]

Might we get a bit more interest in the discussions if the home page were updated to show the books we're currently reading? It only shows The Luminaries, which ended in January.

Edit: I checked to see whether I could do the updating, but apparently only moderators can move books to different shelves and put discussion dates in the bookshelf.

[jb]

I will work on updating the page this weekend. I'm finishing up some personal things but plan to get the reads set up too. Thanks for the input!

[Everyman]

Another group (not sure whether the mods allow mention of which group) is about to read Middlemarch, which is a definite chunkster, being, in my Penguin Classics edition, 838 pages long. Is there any interest in a side read of it here?

If not, or if people might want to read in the other group, and if the Mods prefer that I not mention other groups publicly, send me a PM and I'll let you know which group.

[Dianne]

I'm interested! I heard about it from a gr pal so I will be reading it there but if there is a discussion here happy to join that too!

[Hilary]

Middlemarch! How I love that book - well, after quite a struggle at first.
Much as I want to I must stay my hand. I can't even keep up with the other books I'm reading at the moment. Enjoy!

[Linda]

I quite enjoyed Middlemarch as well. Would love to do a reread someday, but now is not that time, sadly!

Hilary - I know I'm struggling to keep up with my reading at the moment too. So many good books and I start more than I can finish on schedule!

[Hilary]

Linda, I think that we suffer from the same 'disease'! I try to turn a blind eye to all of these 'new' and interesting books. I tell myself that I must finish all the other unfinished books first. I'll soon have a library full of them! In reality the new title is more attractive than the half-read book which has sat untouched and unloved in a little dark corner gathering dust. It is dreadful really.

I do think of books as friends and half-read books as acquaintances. I would never treat a friend that way or, at least, I hope not. I am like the boy and girl in 'Toy Story' who outgrow their toys and abandon them carelessly. Oh dear, 'Toy Story' is so sad. I now feel inordinately guilty. Now, where are those books? ...

[Alana]

I quite enjoyed Middlemarch! :)

[Everyman]

Alana wrote: "I quite enjoyed Middlemarch! :)"

If you read it a while ago, it might be time to re-read it. I think it's one of those books that you really can't read effectively for the first time. There is so much in it that gets missed the first reading, that it takes several readings to get the full benefit of it. (I had family friends, a couple who were professors at Willamette University, who read Middlemarch to each other every summer for all the time we knew them, which was over thirty years. And they said they found new insights in it on every reading.)

[Alana]

I think I read it about a year and a half ago or so, and would love to re-read it, but with the holiday season coming up, I just don't know that I'll have the time. The group discussion does sound fun, though, so I may make the effort :)

[Hilary]

Everyman, you're right about Middlemarch. I read about two thirds of the way through on a first read. I picked it up after several months, finishing it with great pleasure. On my first attempt I didn't really understand it, but the last third made the whole thing worthwhile. I was certainly glad that I had picked it up again. :-)

[Everyman]

Officially, the "A Little Life" discussion schedule ended at the end of September, and the "And Ladies of the Club" ends in about three weeks.

There hasn't been much action in either recently, though.

Is it time to start looking for a next book? Or are people tuckered out with chunksters for awhile and don't want to pick one whose reading schedule would presumably extend well into, if not through, the holidays?

[Hilary]

Everyman, unfortunately, I initially wanted to read both chunksters. I started 'And ladies ...' and was quite taken with it. Having procured both books I was looking forward to finishing both, but I had bitten off more than I
could chew as is my wont. I never learn! I did, however, resume the reading of the chunkster 'Of Human Bondage' which I fully intend to finish on this occasion. :-)

[Dianne]

Is anyone else game to read a chunkster? Ami and I were planning to proceed with And Ladies but there doesn't seem to be a ton of interest. Would others be interested in a new book? I'm game if others are!

Meanwhile I'll try to get back into posting on And Ladies at some point!

[Jen]

I'm game. I unfortunately missed the start up discussions on the two currently underway and I didn't think I could catch up, but heading into the fall and winter reading months I'm certainly game.

[Johanna]

I have Underworld, A Fine Balance, Europe Central and The Idiot on my To Read list & would love reading any of them with company... Is anyone interested?

[Dianne]

I would read any of those!

[Johanna]

Cool! Let's see if anyone else is interested and then we can discuss which one to read.

Dianne wrote: "I would read any of those!"

[Joy]

I'm new here. I joined bc I have some Big Books I want to read next year, but I need to compare my list to what you've already read before I make suggestions. I'm actively trying to clear out a bunch of short stuff from my tbr before the end of the year.

[Alana]

Everyman wrote: "Officially, the "A Little Life" discussion schedule ended at the end of September, and the "And Ladies of the Club" ends in about three weeks.

There hasn't been much action in either recently, th..."

I'm still plugging away at A Little Life but had several of my own "life" events going on recently that have taken me away from it. If I had an audio copy I might be getting through it faster, but alas...

I will keep at it, but it just doesn't draw me in, although I find it interesting when I'm actually reading it...

[Dianne]

Alana do you want to switch to a different book?

[Alana]

I'm going to continue plugging away at it and will comment when I get to the threads, but don't hold up anything for me! I'll probably join in the discussion for something else if it's engaging my attention more :)

Did we already do 11/22/63 for this group?

[Dianne]

I don't see it on the bookshelf

[Alana]

Cool, that would be my nomination then, if we're doing that. But The Idiot would be fine, too :)

[Dianne]

I have no idea what we are doing! I think anything that would revive the group would be good :)

[Alana]

Time for a nominations thread?

[Dianne]

Sounds good to me! Do we need a mod to do that?

[Alana]

I don't think so, I think anyone can open threads in this group. Do we want to go with a theme or anything or just a wide open nomination?

[Johanna]

I like the idea of drawing up a list and having people vote! I also just realized I have two more TBR chunksters I'd like to add to the list: The Magus and The Savage Detectives

[Dianne]

Maybe let's just do wide open? Hopefully we can get more participants that way. Alana do you want to set that up?

[Alana]

I added a thread under the "Nominations Ideas" folder, so nominate away!

[Dianne]

Thanks!!

[Everyman]

Hilary wrote: "Everyman, unfortunately, I initially wanted to read both chunksters. I started 'And ladies ...' and was quite taken with it. Having procured both books I was looking forward to finishing both, but ..."

I suspect that you are far from alone.

[Everyman]

Alana wrote: "
I will keep at it, but it just doesn't draw me in, although I find it interesting when I'm actually reading it..."

I had the same experience. I had it on my reading table until about a week or two ago, would dip into it from time to time and enjoyed it when I did, but when I had to decide between it and some other book, the other book usually won out.