Around the Year in 52 Books discussion
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[2023] Wild Discussion
Marta wrote: "While this sounds good, it gives a somewhat different meaning than what I was thinking of. Some religions, like buddhism or confucianism, are not based on faith ..."I didn't really I tend it to mean exactly the same. If people don't want a religion prompt, slight changes to the way you word religion isn't going to sway those people?
Edit: I mean to say if you want to submit a book about religion go for it, but you can't try and please everyone.
NancyJ wrote: "Marta, I think there are people here who would support both of those ideas. A suggestion early this summer combined art music, theater and dance. Some suggested the terms visual and performing arts..."I like book related to music, but the wording is very reminiscent of popsugar’s musician/band book from this year.
The listopia for it was all bios and literary type books. Not my jam.
If something like Studio Chizu's BELLE was placed on the list or Jem and the Holograms, Vol. 1: Showtime, it would be nice.
Thomas wrote: "Even Buddhism uses faith in that it believes in an afterlife"I suppose it does have the aim of ending the cycle of rebirth and suffering, which would require “faith” in rebirth. But it is not central to the teachings, which describe methods to discover the truth for oneself, and explicitely rejects accepting any truths that one cannot verify for themselves, including the Buddha’s own teachings. One can be a buddhist without believing in rebirth, just like one can be a Christian without believing in saints or angels. The difference is that one must believe in God to be a Christian. But one can be a Christian and a buddhist at the same time because buddhism is about practice, not about what God you believe in.
Ellie wrote: "Edit: I mean to say if you want to submit a book about religion go for it, but you can't try and please everyone."Fair enough! You are absolutely right and I think your wording is better because it lets people to interpret it more broadly.
I guess one can go more strictly on prompts that are in their usual reading and looser on those that are not.
Mandy wrote: "I like book related to music, but the wording is very reminiscent of popsugar’s musician/band book from this year. The listopia for it was all bios and literary type books. Not my jam.
If something like Studio Chizu's BELLE was placed on the list or Jem and the Holograms, Vol. 1: Showtime, it would be nice."
I saw the Popsugar list, and I agree it is a similar prompt.
I think either of the three (art, music, theater) can be a broad enough prompt, but we are not likely to get all on the list, so combining them as “visual or performance art” would cover all bases and can encompass anything from plays to biographies and all types of fiction. Even Sherlock Holmes plays the violin :)
I'm definitely thinking of submitting the translation prompt last time. What do we think would be the best wording for it? I'm leaning towards A translated book or A book that has been translated from its original language.Slight preference for the first one, as it looks a bit neater to me.
So who’s submitting a prompt for the new Goodreads list “100 Years of Popular Books”?https://www.goodreads.com/blog/show/2...
Siobhan wrote: "I'm definitely thinking of submitting the translation prompt last time. What do we think would be the best wording for it? I'm leaning towards A translated book or A book that has been translated f..."Unless there is some other way that A translated book could be understood to mean, I think this is fine.
Mod
If something like Studio Chizu's BELLE was placed on the list or Jem and the Holograms, Vol. 1: Showtime, it would be nice. ..."
You don't have to read books that are on listopias here. You can, or you can pick a book you want to read and find a prompt it fits with. And noone is going to tell you it isn't.
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https://www.goodreads.com/blog/show/2..."
Not me! I had a course in college where we read the best sellers for every decade or so in US history and popular books do not age well! Ick...Charlotte Temple still gives me convulsions!
Marta wrote: "Thomas wrote: "Even Buddhism uses faith in that it believes in an afterlife"I suppose it does have the aim of ending the cycle of rebirth and suffering, which would require “faith” in rebirth. Bu..."
I am not religious (not in the 'organized' sense anyway), although I have my own ideas about how the world works. I don't have a problem with reading a book based on a 'religion' prompt, as long as it is not worded in such a way that it is limited to books that only someone who IS religious would read — like say books you would find in a Christian Bookstore. If it were worded so that books like the following list would still fit, then I'd be fine with the prompt.
1) The World's Religions by Huston Smith (to learn about unfamiliar religions for understanding)
2) The Book of Longings by Sue Monk Kidd (to see what the life of Jesus's wife might have been like — the author was raised Baptist, but explains in the book why she thinks it is not unreasonable to assume that Jesus had a wife.)
3) Angels & Demons by Dan Brown (a mystery/thriller that uses religion in the plot)
Mod
https://www.goodreads.com/blog/show/2..."
I just counted and I have read 65 of them and have no desire to read most of the rest (Stephen King, for instance). However, these aren't the "bestsellers" of each year which would be way worse - that would include lots of thrillers, "50 shades" books, books from early in the century that are now problematic for numerous reasons. Or something like Harry Potter which we may like but have already read.
Robin P wrote: "dalex wrote: "So who’s submitting a prompt for the new Goodreads list “100 Years of Popular Books”?https://www.goodreads.com/blog/show/2..."
I just counte..."
I read 48 and 6 are on my tbr. It can be restrictive for someone who has read most on the list already - these are popular books, after all.
Robin P wrote: "dalex wrote: "So who’s submitting a prompt for the new Goodreads list “100 Years of Popular Books”?https://www.goodreads.com/blog/show/2..."
I just counte..."
I have read 32 of these and another 10 or so are on my TBR list. I understand many in the group are not into "lists", but I am somewhat surprised that so many people feel they can't even find 1 book on a list.. a book that they may have missed or an author they would like to try. Perhaps because my TBR list is so large (660+) my challenge with lists like this is to narrow my choice down to A book.
I’ve read about a third of the books on the GR “100 years of popular books.” There are quite a few books on the list I’d like to read. Depending on the other prompts in a poll, I might up vote this list. It is not one I’d downvote.
Pamela wrote: "Mandy wrote: he listopia for it was all bios and literary type books. Not my jam.If something like Studio Chizu's BELLE was placed on the list or Jem and the Holograms, Vol. 1: Showtime, it would ..."
I know I don’t, but I don’t have massive amounts of time to search for a book that fits a prompt and sounds interesting either. The listopias are helpful to see a list already curated and find a ‘want to read’ posted there. 90% of the time it takes me 5 minutes to find a book. The music list wasn’t varied.
I have only read 9 books on that Goodreads List, so I guess I would have some things to choose from if I needed to.
Oh, man, a list AND from Goodreads? That seems like a double whammy against it!I would vote for it though, while I have read a good number on the list there are many I haven't and want to.
I would most likely downvote the 100 years list. I have already read 27 of the books, and I have another 16 that I technically have marked as "want to read" but have very little actual interest in reading right now. I would also downvote translated book on principle since in my opinion, it is an extremely overdone prompt. It has come up every single year for me on reading challenges, and often more than once per year since I do multiple challenges, so I'm burnt out on it.
Re: the 100 years list I have read 3 of the books and 0 are on my TBR. I would not vote for this.
Mod
I've read A LOT of the 100 years books. The ones I haven't are not super high priority for me. I would probably not vote this either way. I could find something if it got in. I read multiple translated books every year so I'm ok with that one. Not sure if I'd upvote it. Depends on what the other options are.
Not a fan of religion but I'm sure I read plenty of books where religion shows up so I'm kind of neutral on that one too.
Edie wrote: " I am somewhat surprised that so many people feel they can't even find 1 book on a list.. a book that they may have missed or an author they would like to try..."It's more like "Am I excited to read these books?" rather than "Is there one book I could read?" when it comes to voting for me. It's like every year I have a challenge prompt to read something from this ever dwindling selection of great and popular older books, and it's becoming a chore.
Some of my TBR books I have because they were 99p ebooks and I think, oh I might need that for a challenge one day. So I'm fine if a prompt like 100 years gets in, but I'm not going to vote for it.
Look, I would love it if there were no list prompts but it seems they’re inevitable so this seems a decent list
Mod
I agree with Thomas. I dislike list prompts on the whole (another challenge I do has a lot of them, and I always find them a bit of a trial), but the "Century of Beloved Books" list at least has a few that I'd be willing to read/reread!
Thanks for the feedback on the “100 Years of Popular Books” list. Opinions seem to be divided but I might suggest it in a future poll. I don't super love the list myself but we don't have any list prompts yet and this is a good tie-in to Goodreads.
I’m really hoping to see Tookie’s List make it in. It’s a great list, and it will satisfy some member’s need for a list.
Thomas wrote: "Look, I would love it if there were no list prompts but it seems they’re inevitable so this seems a decent list"I always think list prompts are the laziest prompts. Rather than think up something original ourselves let's try to find something to read on a random list some random person or website strung together. I never vote for them, but can usually scape up a book to read.
The best list (if we need even need a list) is the ATY best books of the month one. At least it's ours and not some random person, web site, or awards jury.
Thomas wrote: "Look, I would love it if there were no list prompts but it seems they’re inevitable so this seems a decent list"It's fine as far a list prompts go I guess but I won't vote for it just because it's the best of the bad options. At best I will not vote either way on it but most likely it'll be a down vote for me.
Current prompt countTitle 4
Cover 2
Theme 5
Setting 3
Character 1
Author 2
Goodreads and Recommendations 0
Awards, Challenges, and Lists 0
Other 1
Mod
We had two list suggestions in the last vote so it will be interesting to see if either one gets in. I am not a huge fan of lists, but I can usually find something. I didn't care much for the YA list prompt we had this year, so for me, if the list includes a lot of different types of books, it has a better chance of getting my vote.
I generally won't vote for them but might vote against them.
Of the GR top 100 I have read 65 of them and 7 on my TBR. I usually prefer to have more choices than 7 books for a prompt, (since I am reading books I already own) but it is doable.
I actually would prefer the ATY Best Books list, since as Dubhease points out, it is a list we have created.
The ATY best books is like having a new list to choose from every month and I loved the book I used this year. I would be very happy to see that prompt again.
I find the GR top 100 *very* American/British - and its always pretty much the same authors/titles that recirculate these lists, and I find it lazy that so many authors have several titles and so many others are left out - I've pretty much read the ones I find interesting long ago, and I don't re-read. So if I vote for a list it has to be less "run of the mill". With the ATY lists there are several interesting options I probably wouldn't have come across on my own, and that aren't already featured in every *XXX books you have to read before you XXX* volume
I had two or three tbr books on the gr list. A lot of them I’m not interested in reading. How about a book related to the elements -- earth, air, fire, water, akasha (space, emptiness, quintessence, ether, spirit), metal, wood
Earth - dwarves, construction,
Air - planes, sky diving
Fire - ifrit, fire fighters
Water - Poseidon, submarines
Akasha - ghosts, angels, outer space
Metal - blacksmithing, mechas,
Wood - lumberjack, forestry, elves
Looking to Poll 8 suggestions coming up, we're light on the following categories (3 or fewer prompts):Cover - 2
Character -1
Setting - 3
Author and Publishing - 2
Goodreads and Recommendations - 0
Awards, Challenges, Lists - 0
Other - 1
I'm trying to think of some "original" suggestions LOL!
I imagine this will be unpopular for people who already do multiple challenges, but thinking of the "awards, challenges, lists" grouping, what about something like:A prompt from a different(/non-ATY) 2023 reading challenge
(e.g. Popsugar, Read Harder, Pick Your Poison, Beat the Backlist, etc.)
I don't know if this is of interest to anyone else, or if "different" is better than "non-ATY" wording-wise (both are in the above suggestion), but figured I'd throw it out there.
Edited to add: Just found this "master" list of 2022 challenges that hopefully will be updated with a 2023 version as well, if there is any interest in a prompt like this: https://www.girlxoxo.com/the-2022-mas...
While looking through my TBR for the new listopias, I had an idea but I’m not sure of the wording. Something like:“A book about/involving language, linguistics, or the spoken word.”
Prompts about books and the written word are common, but I don’t think I’ve ever seen this idea in a challenge. I’d need to find examples and lists… space sci fi often involves linguistics. Project Hail Mary is a recent popular example.
Mod
A prompt from a different(/non-..."
Wow, I had no idea there were so many challenges out there. If you just leave it open to any of them, that is too broad, but looking at some of them, they are rather restricted and remind me why I stopped doing those other challenges.
On the science prompt - Science figures in lots of historical novels , horror, climate change fiction, and more. As someone who takes a "creative" approach to prompts, I would be fine counting engineering, psychology, medicine, and many other fields.
I'm really struggling to be creative this year. This is my fourth year voting and I do multiple challenges so its starting to feel like I've done everything before. I don't mind a list prompt as long as it's nice and varied. 100 always seems a bit restrictive, especially if you've already read a lot of the options.
The site we used for our random word prompt the other year has a generator for writing prompts. I'm not sure all of them really work beyond writing a scene but maybe they might spark some ideas?https://randomwordgenerator.com/writi...
Ellie wrote: "The site we used for our random word prompt the other year has a generator for writing prompts. I'm not sure all of them really work beyond writing a scene but maybe they might spark some ideas?ht..."
I kind of like it Ellie! I generated 5 prompts and this is what I got:
Slip Knot: What is getting tied up and why?
Fairy Tales: Faries have invaded the world.
Eavesdropper: Write about the last thing you accidentally overheard.
People Watching: Tell the story of a random person who passes by.
Unrequited Love: Someone you love does not love you back.
It's the kind of prompt that allows for a lot of freedom of interpretation. If you just go with the main category and not necessarily the more specific writing prompt, I think it would be a very creative reading prompt.
Meg wrote: "How about this phrasing for the Woman behind the man concept... a book about a woman who was overlooked by history or literature"@Meg, last night when I couldn't sleep I came across this Listopia with essentially your wording: https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/1...
Some of the books (there's 760 on the list) are full books about one women, but a lot of the ones I scanned were books about many women in a category. If that's not your thing, then maybe those kind of books might at least give you a name of a particular women research to see if there is a book just about her.
I still think this is an interesting idea, if it can be worded correctly. I think Overlooked Woman (in History, or not) is good, or at least close.
NEW IDEA:"A book connected to color."
WAYS TO GO WITH THIS:
Authors with a color in their name: https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/1...
(434 books currently on this list)
Books about color: https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/2...
(43 books currently on this list)
Books with a color in the title (I know, some people think we have too many title prompts, but you don't have to go that direction with this prompt, it's just an option): https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/1...
(757 books currently on this list)
NOT intended to include covers of a particular color.
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Is this too broad? It seems we sometimes have trouble finding a balance between too broad and too narrow.
Mod
That's a great list- although the anti-non-fictioners would boycott it. Not sure if adding "in fiction or non-fiction" would help?
(eta- although it seems repetitive if you just say "A book about an overlooked woman")
Pamela wrote: "Tracy wrote: "@Meg, last night when I couldn't sleep I came across this Listopia with essentially your wording: https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/1....."That's a great list- although the anti-n..."
I wasn't thinking that you'd have to read a book FROM this list, but maybe just use it as a resource to find the names of some women who were overlooked, and then find fiction/non-fiction, to your liking, about that person.
Another idea:"A book involving at least one of the 5 senses"
Since this is not intended to be a title prompt, these words are not necessary for the title, just idea triggers for considering the senses:
Sight: eyes, vision, see, view
Hearing: ears, sound, heard, listen
Smell: nose, scent, odor, perfume
Taste: mouth, flavor, bitter, sweet, salty, acidic
Touch: skin, feel, caress, massage
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I agree. I like the theater idea, too."
Me too. If looking at it internationally, Japan has a lot of musical theater based off of manga. So that could be an option as well.