SciFi and Fantasy Book Club discussion
SciFi and Fantasy Book Challenge
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SciFi and Fantasy Book Club Challenge 2015
Sarah wrote: "Also, I have a hold on Neuromancer but let me know if you want me to wait to read it."Neuromancer is also on my list. I am not sure I will be able to get to it until after our current picks through March, so maybe we can shoot for a group discussion later in the year depending on interest.
The Rook was a very fun read! That made my challenge last year
I opted in for 10 books. I've just started the first one: The Lathe of Heaven. I picked it not because I am a fan but because it was on top of my stack. I have no idea what other SF/F books I'll read this year. I never plan my reading.
I decided to stick with last year's goal of 15. I would have increased to 20 but I'm about to start grad school and won't have as much pleasure reading time.
Sarah wrote: "I'm picking up The Rook and The Suicide Collectors from the library this week. I'll cross things off as I read them. Will that work okay, Michael? Also, I have a hold on Neuromancer but let me k..."It sounds like you are asking if I am keeping track of the books you read on your list. I'm not sure, I think I would still include them in the tally if you would still be part of the discussion - does it matter to people doing these group reads if someone reads the book early? I am more interested in their contributions to the discussion than whether we start/finish on the same day, although sometimes memory is a factor.
This is the kind of question that is good for the coordinating group reads thread, since it is more about the discussions and not about your individual goals (unless I misunderstood your question?)...
I was thinking I would mention what I read and do a strikethrough on the name of the book. You're right, though, I could just participate in the discussion farther on. I hadn't thought of that option.
I've signed up for 25 this year. I'll read the monthly group reads and there are a few books I didn't get to in the challenge last year. My goal might change, but really I'm looking forward to catching up on all the books I didn't read last year because I was all consumed with this challenge :)
It's hypnotizing us, I think. I'm constantly impulsively reading one of these books rather than another.
Sarah wrote: "I was thinking I would mention what I read and do a strikethrough on the name of the book. You're right, though, I could just participate in the discussion farther on. I hadn't thought of that option."That's what I'm planning to do with Ready Player One. Because I only "read" it via audiobook on my "car days", it is taking me several months to finish. But I will definitely enjoy discussing it when others read it in March! (Hmm, if I'm done by then...)
Sarah wrote: "I'm picking up The Rook and The Suicide Collectors from the library this week.I just finished The Rook and I loved it! Totally unexpected, I didn't know anything about it, first book down for 2015 and it was a 5 star, hoping you like it as much.
So much for doing just the 24 group reads, what was that about hypnotized?
Penny wrote: "I've signed up for 25 this year. I'll read the monthly group reads and there are a few books I didn't get to in the challenge last year. My goal might change, but really I'm looking forward to catc..."That was my plan as well, 5 days in, I have already failed by reading a former club read....c'est la vie. 5 star book, really good, I am not all that upset about it :)
My goal is 15. I'm not a speedy reader, and having a career as an engineer and 2 hours of commuting every day doesn't help. :-/I have no specific books planned long term, I usually play it by ear depending on the mood I'm in.
Done...
1) The Ocean at the End of the Lane - 5/5 stars
2) The Red Wing (graphic novel) - 2/5 stars
3) Earthbound - 2.5/5 stars
4) Transcendental - 4/5 stars
5) Slow River - 3/5 stars
6) Consider Phlebas - 3.5/5 stars
Possible reads...?
The Martian
Ancillary Justice
House of Suns
Ready Player One
Anathem
Neuromancer (re-read, disliked it back in the day, want to give it another shake)
2001: A Space Odyssey
Leviathan Wakes
Deliverance
The Wasp Factory
Flowers for Algernon
The Island of Doctor Moreau
The Picture of Dorian Gray
Did 60 books last year, out in for 52, always a nice round number of one a week.Of that I will meander thru fantasy and some Sci-fi. Not sure who I will tackle, but starting first on Scott Lynch.
Neal wrote: "My goal is 15. I'm not a speedy reader, and having a career as an engineer and 2 hours of commuting every day doesn't help. :-/Have you considered audio books? They aren't for everyone, but just under 1/2 of the books I "read" last year were audio. At times, with a good book going, I actually looked forward to my commute. I checked them all out from the library which eases the effect on the wallet.
The Martian and Ready Player One were particularly good as audio books.
Hank wrote: "Neal wrote: "My goal is 15. I'm not a speedy reader, and having a career as an engineer and 2 hours of commuting every day doesn't help. :-/Have you considered audio books? They aren't for ever..."
I've tried them and found they just aren't for me. I find it hard to concentrate on the story while at the same time driving. My mind begins to wander and I start thinking instead of listening. I do get some reading in during lunch from time to time.
I also struggle with audio. Lately I have been trying but it's difficult to pay strict attention.
Yep, it works for some and not others, I get some odd looks from co-workers when they get to work and see me sitting in my car, seemingly doing nothing, because there is an extra riviting part to the book I am listening to.I suspect it works for me because I don't pay attention to the outside (outside my own head) world as much as I probably should :)
Hank wrote: "Yep, it works for some and not others, I get some odd looks from co-workers when they get to work and see me sitting in my car, seemingly doing nothing, because there is an extra riveting part to to the book I am listening to."That's me exactly!
I tend to talk to my audiobooks. And then I feel like a total dork.
I only put six books in my challenge this year, which is half of my last years goal (12 books, which I exceeded by reading 14). If it seems that I'm going to exceed the amount of six books, I will increase the number, but now it seems good enough. I already started with The Final Empire and also The Ocean at the End of the Lane, which was left hanging from last year (I only read about 70 pages then). Other books I choose in a whim, mostly from my own shelf at home, which I've been negleting a bit.Reason for the small number is simply because I have commited to read 12 books to an other challenge and few of those books are 800+ pages long, so they will consume most of my reading time when started.
Maarit wrote: "I only put six books in my challenge this year, which is half of my last years goal (12 books, which I exceeded by reading 14). If it seems that I'm going to exceed the amount of six books, I will ..."Glad to have you back again, Maarit. I thought 12 was the minimum number for the challenge, which is why I set 12 as my goal, but I see there is nothing that prevents me from making it lower on the challenge page. Interesting...
And I fully support sober time management! There are enough of us already obsessed with biting off more than we can chew!
Sarah wrote: "I tend to talk to my audiobooks. And then I feel like a total dork.":)
Michael wrote: "There are enough of us already obsessed with biting off more than we can chew!"But the food is just so good here.........
Edwin wrote: "Michael wrote: "There are enough of us already obsessed with biting off more than we can chew!"But the food is just so good here........."
LOL...agreed.
I also indulge in the audio book habit to get me though my commute.
I set my goal for 25. I haven't been reading much lately, but I really want to get back into reading. I hope that I can get at least two in each month with an extra somewhere over the summer or something. I don't have any particular books yet, but I plan to read mainly fantasy books.
I am going for 24 this year from the bookshelf. I am going for 110 overall, but there are quite a few from past monthly reads that I want to get to.
I am new to the club. In for 20-25. So far I've read The Sparrow, Annihilation, and The Wool Omnibus. Next up The Killing Moon, and A Mote in God's Eye. Riding my manic reading wave! I am really enjoying having an electronic community to make suggestions.
I'm in for 12, but I only have 10 on the shelf right now. The other two will be determined. I just finished Dawn 4/5 stars. Looking forward to the sequels.Projected books:
The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress, Ready Player One, Anansi Boys, Anathem, The Dispossessed, Fuzzy Nation, Ancillary Justice, Leviathan Wakes, and The Lathe of Heaven.
I reserve the right to alter this plan as needed. ;-)
OK, thanks. I thought it was on the SF bookshelf. Wishful thinking...
Sarah wrote: "I tend to talk to my audiobooks. And then I feel like a total dork.""Then"?
Monica wrote: "OK, thanks. I thought it was on the SF bookshelf. Wishful thinking..."We've read 3 Neal Stephenson books so far. I might slip him in to another poll this year.
I still haven't read any of them! I definitely intend to fix that this year. Reading Anathem would be great with this group.
Sarah wrote: "I still haven't read any of them! I definitely intend to fix that this year. Reading Anathem would be great with this group."
He's a great writer, I've just been hesitant to put in some of his larger books.
Hi there! I set my goal for 12 this year, to be made up of current books of the month from this group. I've already read the Hobbit, but might revisit the audiobook if I feel like it. But I'm definitely interested in The Carpet Makers - about to go find it from the library. I had a very general goal to read more sci-fi and fantasy in 2014, and I definitely got back into both genres. I'm looking forward to this year!
Trike wrote: "Sarah wrote: "I tend to talk to my audiobooks. And then I feel like a total dork.""Then"?"
"Then" I'm really glad that I'm alone :)
So I keep getting recommendations for The Warrior's Apprentice, but as I understand it, Shards of Honour is actually the first book in the series. Am I right in thinking it will be an easier learning curve if I start at the beginning? Anyone who has read this series care to comment?Thanks,
Michael wrote: "So I keep getting recommendations for The Warrior's Apprentice, but as I understand it, Shards of Honour is actually the first book in the series. Am I right in thinking ..."Wow, okay I found the suggestions from the author here: https://www.goodreads.com/story/show/.... Pretty complicated. Seems publication order can work, though she likes chronological order, with a few tweaks, and she also mentions that "The Warrior’s Apprentice makes another good place to jump into the series for readers who prefer a young male protagonist.". Hmph.
Both publication and chronological have Shards of Honour first, so I think I will stick to my original plan and read that before The Warrior's Apprentice...
That series is incredibly confusing in terms of reading order. We debated a lot on whether The Warrior's Apprentice met our criteria but in the end it works perfectly well as a standalone or starting book.
Neal wrote: "Hank wrote: "Neal wrote: "My goal is 15. I'm not a speedy reader, and having a career as an engineer and 2 hours of commuting every day doesn't help. :-/Have you considered audio books? They ar..."
I would definitely recommend The Martian on audiobook if you struggle with them but want to persevere. I listened to it a couple of months ago and found it to be very, very absorbing.
I just got into audiobooks this year, as I was spending a lot of time commuting on the bus and walking. I was skeptical at first, because I tend to have trouble absorbing information through audio. I started with some simple nonfiction, and then moved on to fiction. I've definitely found that I'm getting better at following the thread of the story the more that I practice. I also have to really enjoy the narrator, otherwise I tune out constantly. So I try to choose very carefully.
Not sure how many but I have:Foundation
Lawyers in Hell
High Couch of Silistra
Kitsum Strategy (I think that's the name)
The Martian Chronicles
Plus there are at least 3 which will be out in the next six months.
Kim wrote: "That series is incredibly confusing in terms of reading order. We debated a lot on whether The Warrior's Apprentice met our criteria but in the end it works perfectly well as a standal..."Thanks for the info!
A.L. wrote: "Not sure how many but I have:Foundation
Lawyers in Hell
High Couch of Silistra
Kitsum Strategy (I think that's the name)
[book:The Martian Chronicles|767..."
A.L., I'm not sure what this list is but our 2015 reading challenge has to come from the Group's bookshelf, which is here: https://www.goodreads.com/group/books.... I think only Foundation and The Martian Chronicles match that criteria.
Apologies, I was sneaking on from work and didn't read the thread properly. I'll go look.
OK let me amendFoundation
Martian Chronicles
Island of Dr Moreau
Mort (re-read)
Farenheit 451
I Robot
Kim wrote: "Sarah wrote: "I still haven't read any of them! I definitely intend to fix that this year. Reading Anathem would be great with this group."
He's a great writer, I've just been hesitant to put in..."
All of Stephenson's books are big, dense, crazy. =) I remember starting Cryptonomicon years ago, thinking "What have I gotten myself into?!" but it was a great read.
Edwin wrote: "Love this. I am, as last year, in for 24, with at least 12 of them from the monthly choices. A goal of 24 keeps me from losing ground, so to speak. And who knows, maybe I will get in some bonus ..."i have only jsut joined goodread, and fully understand what you mean. I thought i would get a few suggestions of books to read, my list so far is 4 typed pages. plus the ones i have here already
never enough time and too many good books. but i will enjoy it
For this year's challenge, I plan on reading at least 30 books, hopefully letting me make up some ground on the ever-growing list. In the past, I had read 66 of the these books. When I joined Goodreads last year, I thought that I would simply use it keep track of the books I owned and find a few recommendations; now 10 months and almost 200 new books later, I am falling further and further behind my goal of re-reading my library. I just keep adding new authors to my must-read list and buying way too many series books upon which this challenge has gotten me hooked. Books I intend to read for this year's challenge:
1) The Hobbit (*****)
2) The Fellowship of the Ring(*****)
3) The Carpet Makers(*****)
4) Alif the Unseen (***)
---
5) The Lies of Locke Lamora
6) Dawn
7) Weaveworld
8) The Word for World is Forest
9) Good Omens: The Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch (which I have read long ago in the past)
10) Brave New World (ditto)
11) The Long Earth
12) 2001: A Space Odyssey <-- correction Rendezvous with Rama
13) Night Watch
14) ----------that's enough planning for now.
As far as the Warrior's Apprentice, you cannot go wrong with either books as the jumping-in point.
SciFi and Fantasy Book Club
Books mentioned in this topic
Armada (other topics)The Three-Body Problem (other topics)
Ready Player One (other topics)
The Lathe of Heaven (other topics)
The Dispossessed: An Ambiguous Utopia (other topics)
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Authors mentioned in this topic
Emily St. John Mandel (other topics)Sarah Wiley (other topics)
Jane Green (other topics)
John Scalzi (other topics)
Rhett C. Bruno (other topics)
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I will re-read Charmed Life, I will try again to read and finish American Gods and I will read from a pre-selected shelf of 24 books.