Welcome and Introductions

[[deleted user]]

Now we've got the group up and running again it would be nice if new members could introduce themselves. Just a few words about you, your reading habits and which Nobel Laureates you are particularly fond of.

I'll kick off. I'm David and I live in Wales with my wife and horse (he lives in the paddocks at the back of our house). I used to teach in further and higher education - Entrepreneurship and business strategy but my first love has always been reading. I am drawn to the Nobel Laureates by my desire to read 'good' stuff and the rather naive assumption that they wouldn't win the Nobel Prize if they were rubbish.

I particularly like Rudyard Kipling, V S Naipaul, Henryk Sienkiewicz and T S Eliot, but in all honesty there are very few works by Nobel Laureates that I haven't enjoyed.

I'm now retired and enjoying reading more than ever, doing voluntary work in youth justice, community health, art for special needs and being a school governor. I have five grandchildren who are an endless source of amusement.

I also do a little writing - blogs, essays, stories and the occasional poem. Not very good stuff but I enjoy it.

So please post your introductions in this thread.

[Cl.]

I'm Cl, and live in Canada in a suburb of Toronto.

I started reading Nobel authors a couple of years ago and am so glad to have found this group!

'Look forward to discussing the laureates with you all.

[Carrie]

Hello, I'm Carrie, and I live in the U.S. in Arkansas. I have always loved reading classics and well-written books that perhaps will become classics in the future. When I was a child, I would attempt to read books well above my grade level with a dictionary by my side. Now, I work part-time at a local Public Library and feel as if I am a "kid in a candy shop"! My favorite Nobel Laureates at this time are John Steinbeck, Pearl Buck, and V.S. Naipaul. Will we be selecting a book each month to focus on for discussion?

[[deleted user]]

Carrie wrote: "Hello, I'm Carrie, and I live in the U.S. in Arkansas. I have always loved reading classics and well-written books that perhaps will become classics in the future. When I was a child, I would att..."

Hello Carrie and welcome to the group. The first V S Naipaul I read was The Mimic Men, followed quickly by A House for Mr Biswas and Miguel Street I found them all quite intriguing and unlike anything I'd read before. Miguel Street is a fascinating account of a childhood in Trinidad and has great charm and a wonderful lightness of touch.

[Chinook]

I'm Amanda. I'm Canadian, but I left the country over 10 years ago, fresh out of university and haven't been back a whole lot since. I've lived in Edinburgh and Seoul, and I teach English and travel as much as possible.

I've never set out to read Nobels on purpose, but aside from disliking Snow by Pamuk intensely, I've liked the ones I've stumbled across. I read widely and not terribly discriminatorily.

[[deleted user]]

Chinook wrote: "I'm Amanda. I'm Canadian, but I left the country over 10 years ago, fresh out of university and haven't been back a whole lot since. I've lived in Edinburgh and Seoul, and I teach English and tra..."

Welcome Amanda, as you can see we are slowly resurrecting this group and would welcome any ideas for improving what we do. You might find Pamuk's Other Colours collection of writings interesting if your interested in the writer's craft.

[[deleted user]]

Hi Bruce and welcome to the group. Your reviews are already building an appreciative following. We are considering selecting a book by Mario Vargas Llosa for a group read and would welcome your nomination.

[[deleted user]]

Hello Gwenyth and welcome to the group. I feel as you do about the Nobel Laureates - too many books, not enough time. We are about to nominate a Vargas Llosa for our first group read - any ideas?

[Erdi]

Hi all, I am Erdi and writing from Ottawa, Canada. It's nice to join such a group, looking forward to see different perspectives and recommendations. I should say my favorites are Gabriel Marquez and Jose Saramago. As a Turkish person, I have read Orhan Pamuk (Museum of Innocence) as well but I didn't like that much. Would love to see people's comments on Pamuk. Cheers,

[[deleted user]]

Hi Erdi, and welcome to the group. I've read a couple of Pamuk's books - Snow and My Name is Red. I really enjoyed both of them.

[[deleted user]]

Hi Megan, Welcome to the group. Please feel free to contribute to our discussions when the muse dictates. We are in the process of choosing our next group read to start later this month.

[[deleted user]]

We have gained a number of new members over the last fortnight and it would be nice if they introduced themselves.

[Jan]

I've just joined, so will introduce myself immediately. I'm Jan from Perth, Western Australia. (born in Melbourne) I enjoy ice-skating, rollerblading, tap-dancing, zumba, bushwalking, movies and reading. Mostly I read biographies and classics, but I would like to familiarise myself with modern writers...if only I knew which ones were worth reading. If I see a book classed as a 'runaway best-seller' I usually run away. So maybe this will be a good place to discover some new authors of merit. This week I purchasedOther Colours Essays and a story by Orhan Pamuk.
Yesterday I borrowed Sula from the library with the intention of joining this group. I haven't had time to start reading it yet, but am looking forward to it.

[[deleted user]]

Jan wrote: "I've just joined, so will introduce myself immediately. I'm Jan from Perth, Western Australia. (born in Melbourne) I enjoy ice-skating, rollerblading, tap-dancing, zumba, bushwalking, movies and re..."

Welcome Jan, we look forward to receiving your comments on our discussions. I find Pamuk's other Colours a great book for dipping into now and then.

[Valerie]

Hello World!

I'm a undergraduate student here in Ohio [please don't attempt coming here, you'll regret it]. I'm majoring in Physics and Math with two minors in French Language and Russian Studies. Yes, you can't get any nerdier than that! However, when I'm not flaunting my intelligence I can be found reading or typing away on this site.

I decided to join this group because I never really understood what seperated Nobel from the ordinary. I mean, there are so many glorious books that hold such a strong meaning and yet they go hardly recognised or acknowledged. Maybe this group can give me some insight into the reasoning, and perhaps some intellectual insight on the group readings...picking out something that I previously overlooked.

Looking forward to hearing some of the groups comments and realizations :)

[[deleted user]]

Hello Valerie and welcome to the group. Please join us in reading Toni Morrison's 'Sula'. What seperates Nobel Prizewinners from ordinary mortals is a mystery to a lot of us, including I suspect some Swedish Academicians. Nevertheless,given only one prize can be awarded anually, those Swedes generally do a good job. We look forward to you joining our discussions.

[John]

Hello to the group. How interesting to see such diverse personalities in this group. To me the Nobel winners list is just another filtered list of writers whose works ostensibly are demonstrably better than most others. I agree with David's 'naive assumption' that Nobel winners' works wouldn't be 'rubbish'...hence reading all of their work is on my list of things to do. I've (mis)spent much of my life on earning a living at the cost of shunning what has always been wrapped closest to my heart - literature and music. Now I am adding to my library in earnest and unwrapping what has been too long hidden...one great place to start is with the Nobel list.

[[deleted user]]

Welcome John, we look forward to your contributions to our deliberations. Please feel free to give us your views on the work of Nobel Laureates.

[TD]

Hi everyone, my name is Tabea and I am originally from Germany, but I live in Iceland. My sister and I decided to read at least one nevel of everyone who has received the Nobel Prize in literature about a year ago. So far we have read only about 10 of the books, but have enjoyed it greatly. My favourite must have been Disgrace by J.M. Coetzee and I finally read Buddenbrooks by Thomas Mann, which I found surprisingly accessible, considering he has a bit of a reputation in Germany.

Right now I am just finishing off a bigger novel (Shantaram) and the Jungle Book off the Nobel list, but am looking forward to picking up a book that the group is reading and enjoying it together with everyone here!

[[deleted user]]

Welcome Tabea, I started with a similar ambition to sample every Nobel Laureate, but it gradualy becomes an obsession to read as many as possible while you still enjoy it. I'm currently reading The Fish Can Sing by Halldor Laxness and am re-immersing myself in Iceland having visited there in the early 1990s. Please contribute to our debates as and when you feel like it.

[[deleted user]]

While I've been busy at the Hay Festival of Literature, I notice we have a number of new members. Welcome to you all, and I hope you will tell us a little about yourselves in this thread, even if it's only who you are, where you originate from and what you like reading.

[[deleted user]]

Hay Festival over for 2011, I am now enjoying a much needed rest. If anyone else is lucky enough to attend a literary festival this year, please give us a report, particularly if it features Nobel Laureates.

[[deleted user]]

I've just noticed that we're now up to 40 members. That's just great, but it also means that not everyone has introduced themeselves on this thread. So if you haven't yet introduced yourself, please let us know whatever you like about you and what you like to read, apart from Nobel laureates, that is. However, if you prefer to remain mysterious, that's OK too, we just hope you're enjoying the group reads and would welcome any comments you have on any of the Nobel Prizewinners.

[[deleted user]]

Blimey! We're now up to 51 members. Welcome to everybody, please let us know who you are and what you like reading, apart from Nobel Laureates, that is. And get commenting on anything at all that is remotely relevant to the group.

[Marshall]

Hello, my name is Marshall. Just joined the group recently and am excited to participate in the next group read. I from Colorado, but am about to move to Santa Barbara, CA for college. I'll be studying literature, which excites me. I partly feel I may be one of the most ignorant people in the group since I don't know much about the nobel prize winners, however, I am so eager to learn and participate in discussion.
I love classics and books written with creative ideas. I'm currently reading Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell and it is so brilliant, but I don't have any one to discuss it with so this group will be great to get to read all the book discussions.

[MountainAshleah]

I've been an avid reader since age 4 (or so I've been told). Like most readers, I've gone through many reading stages. As far as recipients of the big prizes (Booker, Nobel), I'm not so certain of the politics behind the choices. Still, if those choices inspire new readers . . . anyway, I'm looking forward to seeing what people are reading.

[[deleted user]]

Marshall wrote: "Hello, my name is Marshall. Just joined the group recently and am excited to participate in the next group read. I from Colorado, but am about to move to Santa Barbara, CA for college. I'll be s..."

Welcome Marshall, I'm not sure we'll be discussing Cloud Atlas anytime soon but I have it on my shelf to read sometime in the future. As a group we read a wide variety of books from around the world so if variety is, indeed, the spice of life, you've joined the right group.

[[deleted user]]

MountainShelby wrote: "I've been an avid reader since age 4 (or so I've been told). Like most readers, I've gone through many reading stages. As far as recipients of the big prizes (Booker, Nobel), I'm not so certain of ..."

Welcome MountainShelby, that's an interesting nom de plume. You are right, politics inevitably influences most of the big prizes, but as long as we recognise that this happens, it shouldn't distract from our enjoyment.

[[deleted user]]

Welcome, Mana. I hope you enjoy the group and please feel free to participate in our discussions

[Mo]

Hello, all. I am Mo from Chicago. I am living in France for another month and then will be returning home. I am a forty-something wife, mother, and educator. I read all of the time and am currently on sabbatical from work, so all of a sudden I have some time to read what I want to, when I want to. If there were only a few more hours in each day! I love quality writing and am excited to find a group that shares the same interest.

[[deleted user]]

Hello Mo and welcome to the group. Please feel free to comment on whatever you like to do with the group.

[Beth]

Hi, I'm Beth, a psychologist in Philly, 47 year old mom of a 4 year old and wife of 6 years of my college sweetheart, a rabbi. I'm a bit of a book addict, so much so that while I did the Philly Half Marathon yesterday, I was listening to The Satanic Verses on audiobook! I started reading award-winners several years ago when I was working mostly as a professor (now I'm in private practice) and had little time for pleasure reading. They were my reward on plane flights/business trips. I started with Booker Prize winners and then branched out. I'm rarely disappointed. I belong to several other groups here (the Pulitzer group, the group that is doing books from 52 countries in 2012, the 1001 Books group) but the book selections tend to dovetail nicely. Looking forward to reading along with you! Is there a schedule for group reads posted somewhere?

I'm actually just about to start The Bad Girl by Mario Vargas Llosa and have Palace Walk by Naguib Mahfouz on my shelf to read before the end of the year. In the past I've read books by Harold Pinter, John M. Coetzee, Günter Grass, José Saramago,
Toni Morrison, Gabriel García Márquez, Saul Bellow, Samuel Beckett, Jean-Paul Sartre, John Steinbeck, Albert Camus, Ernest Miller Hemingway, Hermann Hesse, Eugene Gladstone O'Neill, George Bernard Shaw, William Butler Yeats, and Rudyard Kipling (yes, I just did a big ol' cut and paste from the official list...)

[[deleted user]]

Hello Beth and welcome to the group. It seems you are well versed in Nobel laureates and clearly enjoy good writing. Not sure about racing and listening at the same time, but them I'm not really in to multi-tasking. feel free to give us a jolt now and then as we seem to be a little uncertain of how to deal with our new laureate, Tomas Transtromer.

[Haaze]

The intention of traversing the works of Nobel Prize winners is an enticing one. I am a hybrid of the life sciences and humanities living on the Pacific coast in California. My tendency is to digress into many tangents as I read a specific author (i.e. quickly into a biography or some work covering the times and culture etc). Hopefully I can avoid that here in the Nobel Prize quest. The Holy Grail of the western canon is my ultimate goal in my readings, but I am not in a hurry.

[Angus]

Hello everyone, I am Angus from the Philippines. I am in my late twenties. I haven't read all the introductions here (will do some backtracking later), seeing that most of them were posted months ago.

Anyway, I joined this group because I have always been drawn to the works of prize winners, particularly the Nobel Prize in Literature laureates. My reason? There are so many books out there, and reading takes a lot of your time. I want to make sure that the books that I read are good books, and I think being a Nobel laureate is a guarantee.

After reading a handful of works from Nobel laureates, I realized that not all of them are great. Let me rephrase that: not everything fits my taste. Still, there is something about their works. So I still read them.

In fact, I decided to undergo a project to read at least one work from every Nobel laureate. More details of that here.

My favorite Nobel laureates are José Saramago and Knut Hamsun. I also discovered Halldór Laxness last year, and I might go into him as well. Other laureates that I've read are J. M. Coetzee, Toni Morrison, William Golding, Gabriel García Márquez, John Steinbeck, Albert Camus, Ernest Hemingway, William Faulkner, Hermann Hesse, and Pearl S. Buck.

This year, my reading plan includes books from George Bernard Shaw, Samuel Beckett, Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, Saul Bellow, Günter Grass, Orhan Pamuk, and Herta Müller. I hope to have a nice stay here. Thanks!

[[deleted user]]

Hi Angus and welcome to the group. Feel free to join in as the mood takes you. Your reasons for joining the group are very similar to mine, the idea that if an author has won the Nobel. her/his works are going to be interesting at least. If they also turn out to be both enjoyable and well-written, then that's a bonus.

[Angus]

Thanks David. I'll see you around!

[guiltlessreader]

Hi everyone, I don't know why I didn't join this group earlier. I've shifted from Shelfari to Goodreads. Lisa of ANZLitLovers gave me the heads up. We're both part of readnobels.blogspot.com - which sadly is quite the silent group (if anyone is interested in cross posting their reviews there, please let me know!)

Connecting with as many Nobel readers can only be good thing! I am trying to include more Nobel laureates into my 2012 reading list, and challenging myself to get away from my usual "comfort" reads. William Golding was the first laureate I'd ever read but Gabriel Garcia Marquez got me interested in looking up other laureates. I have also enjoyed Jose Saramago, J.M. Coetzee, Toni Morrison, Nadine Gordimer and Orhan Pamuk. The list for Nobels is long, diverse, and exciting! Definitely no shortage of good reading material!

[[deleted user]]

aloi (guiltlessreader) wrote: "Hi everyone, I don't know why I didn't join this group earlier! I've shifted from Shelfari to Goodreads! Lisa of ANZLitLovers gave me the heads up! We're both part of readnobels.blogspot.com - whic..."

Welcome aloi, glad you've found us - eventually. As you say the list for Nobels is long, diverse and exciting, very exciting. Look forward to reading your posts to the group.

[Angus]

Hi Aloi! Yay! It's good to find you here. Hurray to all the Nobel bloggers! :)

[guiltlessreader]

thanks guys! looking forward to hunkering down to some good Nobels with you!

[Abby]

Ni hao from Chongqing, China. I am Abby, originally from the States, teaching middle and high school math and science here with my husband. I have two girls who take much of my time but thankfully, go to bed early!

I am an obnoxiously avid reader with a goal to read 75 books this year. I joined because this group appears to be a place to get suggestions for great books, discover new-to-me authors, and have a place to discuss it all. Looking forward to your January read!

[Angus]

Hello Abby, I'm also new here. Yes, even though we are familiar with the names of Nobel laureates, reading their respective works is always a revelation.

[Aloha]

Hi, everyone. I've always enjoyed literature but moved on to different genres. I recently read 1Q84, which blew me away with it's multi-layered dimensions. Haruki Murakami is not a Nobel winner but was a strong contender. I started reading literature again after that, most recently Gabriel Garcia Marquez. Since I'm following authors who have a strong body of work, I thought this would be a good place to get more suggestions for the type of books I'm into.

[[deleted user]]

Welcome Aloha, is that a double greeting? Not that I know anything about Hawaii. IQ84 is on my to buy list when funds become available. Look forward to your contributions to the group.

[Aloha]

Yep. I'm always extra friendly. LOL I used to live in Hawaii, and vacationed a lot in Hawaii afterwards when I was in the San Francisco Bay area. But now, I'm in the northeast near NYC. I like it here, too, even if it's not tropical.

Thank you, David.

[LisaZen]

Hi everybody! I'm Lisa from Finland and actually not a very active fiction reader, but I enjoy the Nobel tradition very much and follow the Nobel dinner buzz closely every December. The Swedish television broadcast of it is fantastic. Watch it every time I can.
My favorite nobelists are Mario Vargas-Llosa, Tomas Tranströmer (äntligen! At last!) and V.S. Naipaul. Oh yeah, and Juan Ramón Jimenez who has written one of the very rare books in world literature with a donkey as the central character - Platero y yo. Hurray for donkeys!!!

[[deleted user]]

Welcome Lisa, we look forward to your comments on topics covered by the group. I'm slowly making my way through a fairly old translation of the Kalevala. I became interested after visiting a gallery in Helsinki with an exhibition of paintings inspired by it, I guess three or possibly four years ago.

[Elise]

I've had a list for several years, and finding this group is exciting. Here's the authors I've read so far:
Llosa, Lessing, Pamuk, Kertész, Morrison, Golding, Gabriel García Márquez, Bellow, Sartre, Steinbeck, Camus, Hemingway, Faulkner, Hesse, Buck, Galsworthy and so on back, when I was a kid. My taste has changed - I used to like Lessing, but was disappointed in her after The Golden Notebook. I'd say my favorites so far are Pamuk, Morrison and Faulkner - tough but rewarding! Guess I like to work at it.

[[deleted user]]

Hi Elise, looking at your list I guess you really are a lover of good literature and you certainly seem to like the Nobel Laureates. Like you, my tastes seem to change over the years and sometimes I come full circle e.g. having been a real fan of Hemingway in my teenage years, I have come back to him recently and find him excellent, but in vastly different ways.

Anyway, welcome to the group, although I'm ashamed to say we've not been terribly active in the past couple of months.