Around the Year in 52 Books discussion
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[2023] Wild Discussion
Tracy wrote: "@Ann and @NancyAnn - glad you have so many Found books!
Nancy - I love all your interpretations!
I think the ‘theme’ of lost and found definitely opens it up to so many more ideas. Besides your..."
Tracy,
I know some groups vote on books to read but none of my other challenge groups have members vote for prompts. In a group, I use to be a mod for I ran an interactive group challenge. I picked the first 15 prompts and then when one member claimed a prompt to complete they then created a new prompt for the challenge. It was a fun challenge and we had a ton of interesting prompts through out the challenge.
Rachel wrote: "Thomas wrote: "Rachel wrote: "I originally suggested the Disney prompt last year, and I got a bit discouraged after it didn't get in several times. I wasn't intending to suggest it again, but if an..."I wouldn't see it as a freebie at all. I would be fussy about matching a theme/title/characters to a song.
@Jillian - so many interesting ways to set up a reading community. I’ve been missing out all these years.Moving from solitary reading, to my first book group (almost 18 years ago) really opened up the type of books I read. Adding a second book group made me realize how many books I was actually cable of reading in a year. But COVID lockdown (the one silver lining), and Goodreads reading groups, REALLY expanded both the number AND themes of my reading. And now my husband is much more of a reader too (1 a year was his norm, now he almost always has a book in progress).
For a double prompt idea I like the Angel/Demon idea. We had several proposals last year for books about heroic and "bad" characters, and I noticed quite a few books this year that would have fit those prompts. For a single prompt I really like the person with a disability idea. I would prefer to keep it separated from autism or other neurological differences.
[We had a health crisis this week in my family, and we are now dealing with what I hope are temporary disabilities.] It makes me want to read stories from the perspective of someone who is dealing with a disability, or a challenge to their independence. The last time I looked I didn't find much, but I think someone posted a link earlier in the week.
I've heard great things about True Biz which is partly about deaf culture. I would also like to read a book about blindness or visual impairments.
@Nancy - I’m sorry to hear that your family is dealing with a health challenge :(Earlier someone (you?) mentioned leaving out neurodiversity. If it was stated with an OR, would that be a problem? You could just choose to read about a physical disability and ignore the neurodiversity. My intent was to see how people deal with “some sort” of challenge having to do with a physical or mental difference.
Mod
Some groups have one or two prompts by members based on various games (like we have for someone in our Summer Challenge) or random draw. My understanding of Book Riot, which I did for a couple years, is that their emphasis is the "Read Harder" goal, so they deliberately choose genres/authors/perspectives that many people haven't read. This can be great for someone looking to expand their reading. But for some of us who already have huge and diverse TBR's, Book Riot is too limiting.
Also some other groups are very strict about what "counts" in fulfilling a prompt, leading to arguments about what a "micro history" really is, for instance. A great thing about ATY is that "if you say it counts, it counts", and we appreciate "creative" interpretations as long as you have some kind of rationale for it. We don't police anyone's list to verify genres or other info. And we provide the KIS (keep it simple) and BIO (bring it on) options to set your own level of difficulty. Some of our members choose to read only female or LGBTQ authors in the year while also fulfilling the prompts. So much is up to you!
Mod
The Goodreads challenge is the only one that does voting that I know of. And honestly the voting is the only reason I do the challenge and the challenge is the only reason I still am on Goodreads. I don’t super love the challenges where I don’t have a say-so about the prompts but I do really like that those challenges are on Facebook and are much more interactive than this one.
Another variation in the lost and found idea... Two books with words in their titles that are opposites... Or better wording! Could be lost and found, up and down, light and dark etc
For any newbies to the process, please don't get discouraged if your prompts aren't chosen. Last year was my first year participating in the voting, though I had done the reading challenge. I felt really disenchanted when a lot of my "bottom" votes made the list. And yet, I've had lots of fun doing the reading challenge this year--even prompts I didn't necessarily care for have been okay. You can usually find at least one book that you'll enjoy for any given prompt. And I'm reminding myself of this since two of my "bottoms" have already made the list in only 2 polls. But some of my upvotes make it, too, and I'm excited to see the list come together.
Mod
I can’t remember who started Rabbit in the first time. But am hoping he is still around to find it got there in some form this year.
Tracy wrote: "@Nancy - I’m sorry to hear that your family is dealing with a health challenge :(Earlier someone (you?) mentioned leaving out neurodiversity. If it was stated with an OR, would that be a problem?..."
Thanks Tracy. I love your collaborative style btw.
I agree that it's a better prompt with both options separated by "or". If we want it to be a MAIN character, then we probably need to include more options to make it doable. I haven't looked at any lists, so I'm not sure.
If you can find lists with lots of examples, that helps a great deal. Especially lists of books with a main character with a disability or neurological difference.
Rambling thoughts...
There was also a line a while back that was something like.. A main character with a physical, sensory, cognitive, or mental disability. I think neurodiversity covers a lot of the cognitive and mental conditions - autism spectrum, developmental, some psychiatric conditions, adhd, learning disabilities, etc.)
We often think of physical disabilities in terms of mobility and legs, but it also includes many medical conditions that disrupt a person's ability to perform the major activities of life. (When the Americans with Disabilities Act first came out, I was responsible for these issues in my company. My first case was an employee with diabetes, who was about to be fired for fainting on the job. It was easy to make reasonable accommodations to save her job.)
still trying for an open ended prompt. How about...read a book you feel you should read. I really want a prompt that you can't do a listopia for .
Ann, just curious why do you want a prompt that we cannot have a listopia for?
Rae wrote: "For any newbies to the process, please don't get discouraged if your prompts aren't chosen. Last year was my first year participating in the voting, though I had done the reading challenge. I felt ..."I agree. Sometimes it's a matter of finding the right words, or good examples, and sometimes it's timing. A hot new book might be out that fits a particular prompt suggested that week. Or towards the end people realize that there is a "gap" in the list that a prompt can file. (Such as a type of book or a type of prompt.)
Some ideas need to germinate a while. You can plant some seeds, give examples, redefine a term, give more examples, rewrite the prompt, etc.
I kept second guessing myself last year with a prompt idea, and I finally submitted it at the end of the very last poll. I didn't think it would fly, but I wanted to be able to use it as a rejected prompt. It was accepted! Realistically, it was probably because some of us had planted seeds all summer long.
Also...
When prompts are suggested over and over and don't get in, they start to annoy some people. I think that's when you need to find a way to reword it, overhaul the idea, or come at it from a different angle. Getting input from other people is really helpful.
Jill wrote: "I can’t remember who started Rabbit in the first time. But am hoping he is still around to find it got there in some form this year."I think it might have been Spreadsheet Steve.
Rae wrote: "... And I'm reminding myself of this since two of my "bottoms" have already made the list in only 2 polls. But some of my upvotes make it, too, and I'm excited to see the list come together. ..."I think it's human nature to focus on and remember the negatives. I used to feel like NONE of the categories I voted for EVER won, and I was just not in synch with the group. Then I started keeping track of the statistics, and just over 1/4 of my votes made it through (my yes votes were winners, my bottom votes were losers). Just over half of my votes did not register top or bottom. And just 4% of the categories I voted against made it in. (The remainder of my votes were close calls or polarizing.) A few other people who track their stats have reported about the same percentages.
It seems prompts need to fit that sweet spot between too easy or too hard. The wording is also important to allow for some individual interpretation, since we all have different tastes and sources for our reading. Also different ways of keeping track (or not). I think "a book you feel you should read" is too vague and broad. I do not have such a mental list of books I "should" read.
dalex wrote: "Jill wrote: "I can’t remember who started Rabbit in the first time. But am hoping he is still around to find it got there in some form this year."I think it might have been Spreadsheet Steve."
I think it was Ron. https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/1...
I *should* read all the books I've acquired and not read yet. So like 700 of them. 🤣
Joy D wrote: "It seems prompts need to fit that sweet spot between too easy or too hard. The wording is also important to allow for some individual interpretation, since we all have different tastes and sources ..."For me the "should" list includes books that have serious topics that interest me, or that I feel will enrich me in some way. But I don't read them right away because I perceive that they will be either depressing, challenging, or just too long. It sometimes takes a challenge (or the right prompt or tag) to get me to finally open it. I'm usually very glad when I finally read them.
Joy, I think once you decide it's a book you should (or want to) read, you just read it!
This month, the book I really want to read (for the memoir tag) but haven't yet, is Margaret Atwood's Burning Questions. I know it will be worthwhile. The only reason I jumped right into the Toni Morrison memoir is because I had it on audio, and there was a deadline - I had a feeling she wouldn't make it to the next round. I can't say I absorbed it all though.
Emily wrote: "My first thought is that most books that involve losing things also involve finding things. Detective stories, obviously, but also like... losing a parent and finding yourself after loss. Or losing..."Emily I liked the way you described this one.
I have four months of free kindle-unlimited, and I just noticed a Barbara Davis book that specifically mentioned "... hope, lost and found" in a short quote.
I really like the "lost and found" concept. I think it works for either a one week or two week prompt, and it fits different genres. This is the kind of prompt that can allow us to be creative in our interpretation without feeling like it's too easy.
Mod
As far as books I "should" read, it reminds me of when I used to go to the video store (back when those existed) and think I "should" watch Schindler's List but I would leave with a comedy instead. I did finally watch in sometime and of course it's excellent, but I had to be in the right mood. A recent book like that was Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teachings of Plants, which lots of people praised. I thought it would be preaching or boring, but when it fit into a challenge game, I read it and it was terrific.
Ann wrote: "still trying for an open ended prompt. How about...read a book you feel you should read. I really want a prompt that you can't do a listopia for ."Ann, this made me think of a possible prompt, that at least I feel is open ended. What about something like "A book that taught you something"?
It could be non-fiction, but just as easily fiction. You could have learned some historical fact, some random trivia, about the life of someone with a completely different life experience, something that made you think in a new way, or about some aspect of science, etc..
NancyJ wrote: "Tracy wrote: "@Nancy - I’m sorry to hear that your family is dealing with a health challenge :(Earlier someone (you?) mentioned leaving out neurodiversity. If it was stated with an OR, would that..."
Thank YOU Nancy. I try to be collaborative, so I'm glad that came across.
And thank you for sharing your experience with implementing the ADA. I hadn't immediately considered that something like diabetes would be considered a disability in the way I was thinking of it, but you are absolutely right, it could be anything that keeps you from doing things (or doing things in the same way) that you would normally do. Because of a random video I saw this morning I was introduced that that concept re: prostate issues. The constant need to use the bathroom, and the interrupted sleep that is caused by this, can really alter a person's life — only doing activities where a restroom is readily available, lack of energy/focus caused by lack of sleep, etc.
This really opens up the possibilities, especially if you are creative with it. I think this prompt, especially with this expanded way of thinking about it, could really increase the empathy we might feel for a lot of people who are affected by issues that we ourselves are not.
Tracy wrote: "Ann wrote: "still trying for an open ended prompt. How about...read a book you feel you should read. I really want a prompt that you can't do a listopia for ."Ann, this made me think of a possibl..."
If you had learnt something from then you would have to have read it first. I wouldn't count that as a prompt, but a reread
Jill wrote: "Tracy wrote: "Ann wrote: "still trying for an open ended prompt. How about...read a book you feel you should read. I really want a prompt that you can't do a listopia for ."Ann, this made me thin..."
I can see that. I suppose you might believe you would learn something based on a preview or summary?
Jillian wrote: "Ann, just curious why do you want a prompt that we cannot have a listopia for?"It was fun in the past because everyone used their brain and curiosity and practically no one read the same thing.
Ann wrote: "still trying for an open ended prompt. How about...read a book you feel you should read. I really want a prompt that you can't do a listopia for ."I think your impulse is interesting, Ann! We all have titles that we've been meaning to get to, but haven't quite made it to the top of our list. My concern with the wording is that "should" can be a loaded term for folks, and I never enjoy feeling guilted into reading anything.
How about wording it like "A book that you've been looking for a reason to read." or "A book that you need a reason to read." ?
ladymurmur wrote: "Ann wrote: "still trying for an open ended prompt. How about...read a book you feel you should read. I really want a prompt that you can't do a listopia for ."I think your impulse is interesting,..."
I definitely think your examples are better, as the "should" made me think of all those lists that tell you you should read certain books before you die
https://www.goodreads.com/shelf/show/...
https://medium.com/world-literature/c...
and that will put off the people who don't like lists
Ann wrote: "Jillian wrote: "Ann, just curious why do you want a prompt that we cannot have a listopia for?"It was fun in the past because everyone used their brain and curiosity and practically no one read th..."
I think this group makes Listopia lists for every single prompt, don't we? A listopia is just a list of other group members' recommendations about a book that will fit. The prompt is still open ended, and you can read whatever you want. It's not like a top 100 list that limits you to 100 specific books.
You're free to ignore the lists completely, but many people will want them. I like the lists because there are always some wonderful surprises, even on topics I think I know well.
For instance if the prompt is:
"Read a book that will teach you something new" - This is great if you have a specific topic you want to learn about. Others might want to see which books other people found edifying and interesting, so they look at lists to get ideas.
I enjoyed a challenge this year to read books tagged "Thought-provoking." I had a couple books in mind that I thought would fit, and I looked at the tag list to see which books other people tagged as "thought-provoking. (There are 22000 books with the tag, 1984 had the most tags.) I also got recommendations from other people in the group. It was a fantastic month, I read 7 books that were extremely thought-provoking to me, and a few others that were less so.
In the super long NPR list, you can narrow it down to a list of books that reviewers described as "eye opening." Those books are almost guaranteed to teach you something about the world that you didn't already know. Better yet, they are things you didn't even know you didn't know. Many other members, reviews, blogs and articles can give you relevant suggestions if you need them.
I would love prompts to read Eye-opening or Thought provoking books.
Rember evryone the next poll is the multi week so if you have any suggestions that comprise more than one pormpt this is the time.
dalex wrote: "Jill wrote: "I can’t remember who started Rabbit in the first time. But am hoping he is still around to find it got there in some form this year."I think it might have been Spreadsheet Steve."
Wait, is that my nickname now? LOL Love it. But nope. It wasn't me. I've actually always been trying to figure out the appeal of that one and downvoted it every time I could!
Mod
Although I am currently reading a book that talks about the history of laws governing dress and thus covers every century since basically 1300, I think finding a book to cover 3 centuries would be tough unless you're doing nonfiction. I did do each book to cover 3 continents for this year's challenge cause otherwise it was just a gimme prompt IMHO. I would need some way to make 3 centuries tougher than just 3 centuries as it is also a gimme prompt, but that would be a challenge I would make, not part of the voting prompt.
Mod
..."
While I realize it's a lot of work and probably headaches for you mods (I'm sure you all get some nasty DMs, people can be horrid), I think our way of voting is quite fun and results in well-thought out prompts.
Mod
My old IRL book group was called The We Shoulda Book Club and we reads only books over 20 years old and we read so many books I never heard of or had always thought about reading and so many were wonderful discoveries (and also realized why some books I had never gotten to). I moved away and miss that group so would totally support such a prompt.
Mod
The main reason I want to do a prompt inspired by Tookie's list of suggestions from The Sentence is to read Braiding Sweetgrass! It's a thick book!
Steve wrote: "Wait, is that my nickname now? LOL Love it. But nope. It wasn't me. I've actually always been trying to figure out the appeal of that one and downvoted it every time I could!"Haha! I didn't know if there was more than one Steve in the group so I wanted to differentiate which one I meant and you're the spreadsheet guru so ... Spreadsheet Steve.
Pamela wrote: " I think finding a book to cover 3 centuries would be tough unless you're doing nonfiction."If you read a goodly bit of historical fiction it's super easy. At least, it would be for me.
ETA: Is it three centuries in one book or is it three books each set in a different century? I thought it was three books, thus my comment about it being easy.
Mod
I meant 3 centuries in one book. I read a whole lot of historical fiction which is why 3 books set in 3 different centuries is so easy for me! I would need to BIO it somehow
For a multi-week prompt, what about two books with homophones in the title?I also liked the idea someone brought up before about a fiction and non-fiction book on the same subject, but I think there was an issue with the wording. Is "same subject" too specific? Should it just be "the same topic" instead?
It really is hard to gauge what people will think. Too specific it will put some people off too broad and other people dismiss it as a freebie. I actually think topic and subject are quite similar
Lindsey wrote: "I also liked the idea someone brought up before about a fiction and non-fiction book on the same subject, but I think there was an issue with the wording. Is "same subject" too specific? Should it just be "the same topic" instead?"I would prefer it was the word theme - two books connected by a common theme. Subject has to do with plot, characters, and setting whereas theme is the main idea or message.
dalex wrote: "Lindsey wrote: "I also liked the idea someone brought up before about a fiction and non-fiction book on the same subject, but I think there was an issue with the wording. Is "same subject" too spec..."Theme is good!
And I agree, Thomas. It's probably an exercise in futility trying to predict what the group will do. (I certainly haven't been very successful so far this go round!)
Mod
That's my theory since people vote who never even look in this thread (this is my first year looking at the thread but my 4th year voting). My rule is do what I want and see what happens!
Also voting almost always goes opposite to what I want.
I prefer matching on subject matter if it's a non-fiction/fiction pairing.
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Around the Year in 52 Books
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-Classics fans could read books that were published in earlier time periods if they wanted to. Historical fiction, time travel, and sci-fi opens it up to many more centuries, past and future.
I would definitely upvote this one.