Into the Forest discussion

Now you're giving me way to much credit, Katie. I can't read a word of Turkish and didn't want to give that impression- a German translation there is and that I read. ;)

Oh, I love that poem! If I was asked for my favourite poet right now, I'd probably say Yeats. *goes and reads it*

Started Red Branch by Morgan Llywelyn. Trying to get some extra Irish Folklore into this month.

Went to the library today and picked up Mad Men Unzipped: Fans on Sex, Love, and the Sixties on TV, Rose Daughter, The Creation of Anne Boleyn: A New Look at England's Most Notorious Queen, A God in Ruins, and We That Are Left. Truly an embarrassment of riches!

Oooh, I LOVE Netgalley! I don't often get approved, but when I do, it's like Christmas!

I just got granted Dreams of Distant Shores by Patricia A. McKillip! Yay! I'm really looking forward to this!

It sounds like they're not *new* stories, but previously uncollected stories. But since I don't read a ton of anthologies or magazines, that amounts to the same thing for me. I'll still have to buy a physical copy to go in my collection, but, hey, now I get to read it 3 months early! j

Edited to add: I just looked at the table of contents. There's 7 short stories (4 reprints, 3 brand new), plus the novella Something Rich and Strange, which I've already read, and an essay about writing fantasy. So, it should be a pretty short read, considering about half of it will be a re-read.

In more boring news, I started The Three Musketeers the other day - which is fun but not nearly as good as The Count of Monte Cristo. I've been listening to a ton of classics lately, cause for the most part, that's what I have in my big stockpile of audiobooks.

Melanti wrote: "Oooh, I LOVE Netgalley! I don't often get approved, but when I do, it's like Christmas!

I just got granted Dreams of Distant Shores by Patricia A. McKillip! Yay! I'm really lookin..."

I did not know what Netgalley was exactly, but I just looked it up and I think I'm going to sign up now!

Melanti wrote: "I just got granted Dreams of Distant Shores by Patricia A. McKillip! Yay! I'm really looking forward to this!"

Is this a new one by her? If so, huzzah!

Melanti wrote: "In more boring news, I started The Three Musketeers the other day - which is fun but not nearly as good as The Count of Monte Cristo. "

I LOVE the Count of Monte Cristo. I never get tired of that book. It's like an epic version of The Princess Bride: "Fencing, fighting, torture, revenge, giants, monsters, chases, escapes, true love, miracles..." Everything but the monsters, and if you include human monsters then it even has that!

Margaret wrote: "I did not know what Netgalley was exactly, but I just looked it up and I think I'm going to sign up now! ..."

It doesn't hurt to give it a try as long as you have an e-reader!

I didn't think I'd ever get approved for anything, since I don't have an official blog, And it's true I get declined often, but I've gotten a few good things. I probably could get a ton more if I wanted, but with my lack of reading time lately, I've only been requesting things by authors I've already read and know I'll enjoy.

But even if all you do is read-it-now titles - a lot of them are self published or little indie publishers - but every once in awhile there's be a well-known author's book thrown in there. (Nothing wrong with self-published/indie books, but there's no preview or free sample so you can't get a feel for the writing style.)

Michele wrote: "Is this a new one by her? If so, huzzah!"

Yep! It comes out mid-June.

Well... How much of it is brand new to you will depend on what anthologies you've read and if you've already managed to find a copy of Something Rich and Strange. About half of the length is that novella - so if you've already read that, it'll only be half new to you. But there's 3 brand new stories written just for this book, and the others haven't been in McKillip specific collections yet.

Michele wrote: I LOVE the Count of Monte Cristo. I never get tired of that book. It's like an epic version of The Princess Bride..."

It was sooo good! Such great characters and plots! The Count was my favorite book from last year.

But Three Musketeers seems to be a whole lot of people getting into duels for no particular reason or for rather flimsy reason. There's a bit of court intrigue, but it's not living up to the standards of The Count.

Michele wrote: "Melanti wrote: "In more boring news, I started The Three Musketeers the other day - which is fun but not nearly as good as The Count of Monte Cristo. "

I LOVE the Count of Monte Cristo. I never ge..."

I too preferred The Count of Monte Cristo to the first volume of The Three Musketeers. The latter does improve as it goes along, I think. (I just finished the first sequel, Twenty Years After, and liked that much more. Had difficulty following the history in the sequel at first, but the Penguin paperback has excellent notes and a detailed cast list. And a major plot line involves King Charles of England and Cromwell--about that, I will only say that Dumas knew his history and knew how to mess with it.)

Melanti wrote: "Oooh, I LOVE Netgalley! I don't often get approved, but when I do, it's like Christmas!
I just got granted Dreams of Distant Shores by Patricia A. McKillip! Yay! I'm really lookin..."

I'd never heard of Netgalley until now. So you sign up and get to read books before they come out?
How do you get approved?

Jalilah wrote: "I'd never heard of Netgalley until now. So you sign up and get to read books before they come out?
How do you get approved? ..."

Well, they're electronic copies first of all - so you need to be willing to read on a ereader/tablet/computer. (I don't want you to get too excited, cause I know you don't like reading on your tablet.)

In any case, you create a profile, describe what you like to read, give links to your blog or any social media accounts you post book reviews on (like Goodreads). Describe your audience, number of friends/followers, etc. Once you have that done, you browse books, and when you see one you like, you can request it.

Some books are read-it-now (anyone can read them) but with most, the publishers review your request, and then decide whether or not they want to give you a copy based on the info you've given them about who reads your reviews & where you post them. I think there's also a stat about what % of books you've received that you've actually reviewed, too, so they can see how likely you are to post a review. Then, they accept or decline your requests...

After that, it varies. Some books, you have a limited amount of time to read the books, others stay in your account forever. You can get around this by using the Kindle option, but I try to get things read before the publication, if I can, since that's kind of the point behind the program...

If you're denied, you get sent an email - that sometimes has a reason (you live in the wrong country, you need a blog, use more social media, post reviews more places, etc) and sometimes it's just a generic "sorry, but no thanks" message.

The whole thing is really designed for people with official book review blogs & columns, and obviously, the more well-known and popular you are, the more likely you are to get books. But I've been lucky enough to get some great stuff despite only posting reviews to Goodreads.

Have you checked out the Goodreads giveaways? Since those have physical books, they might be more to your benefit.

Jalilah wrote: "Melanti wrote: "Oooh, I LOVE Netgalley! I don't often get approved, but when I do, it's like Christmas!
I just got granted Dreams of Distant Shores by Patricia A. McKillip! Yay! I'..."

You need to set up a profile, choose the categories of books you review and I have always understood that you need to have a blog, be a librarian or be a professional reviewer for a publication in order to be a Net Galley member.

As for approval, the bigger the publisher the harder it is to get an approval unless you're requesting a book by a new author who doesn't have a following. The major publishers want bloggers who have thousands of people visiting their blogs regularly. They also want someone who'll post a link to the review on Facebook and Twitter and has a great many followers.

On the other hand, you can also get Read Now books that don't need an approval. Those are usually from small publishers or even self-published.

The books are all digital. So you'd need to be reading them on an e-reader or tablet.

I got my copy of Bitter Greens from Net Galley before it was released, but it was because I was part of a blog tour. That's a way to guarantee approvals because they want the blog tour participants to get copies.

Melanti wrote: "Jalilah wrote: "I'd never heard of Netgalley until now. So you sign up and get to read books before they come out?
How do you get approved? ..."

Well, they're electronic copies first of all - so y..."

Shomeret wrote: "Jalilah wrote: "Melanti wrote: "Oooh, I LOVE Netgalley! I don't often get approved, but when I do, it's like Christmas!
I just got granted Dreams of Distant Shores by Patricia A. M..."

In other words definitely not for me. I'll sometimes write up a review for books that make an impression on me, but in no way do I consider myself a serious reviewer. I don't have a blog but mainly as you mentioned, I despise reading electronic books on my iPad! I like physical books.

But that's great that both of you were approved and got great books from them!

Jalilah wrote: "In other words definitely not for me. I'll sometimes write up a review for books that make an impression on me, but in no way do I consider myself a serious reviewer.r..."

Try the Goodreads Giveaways. They're completely random now, so I've heard it's easier to win books. I got a Salman Rushdie ARC from there once that was really neat. Cardboard covers, hand bound with glue and tape. It was very obviously not a mass-produced item.

I enjoy writing reviews, but I admit it's sometimes intimidating to write them when there aren't any others posted. But I treat the netgalley reviews like I do my others - I just pick one or two (or three) things I most want to talk about and leave it at that. I rarely do the point-by-point analysis or plot summaries like i see in real book blogs - mostly because those aren't the reviews I most like reading. Honestly, I'm surprised I ever get approved for anything!

Melanti wrote: "Michele wrote: I LOVE the Count of Monte Cristo. I never get tired of that book. It's like an epic version of The Princess Bride..."

It was sooo good! Such great characters and plots! The Count wa..."

I absolutely love the Count of Monte Cristo, but couldn't get into the Three Musketeers at all! I should try again.
After reading that the main character in TCoMC was greatly inspired by Alexandre Dumas's own father who was a mixed race (African-Haitian and French) general in Napoleons Army in The Black Count: Glory, Revolution, Betrayal, and the Real Count of Monte Cristo I had an even greater appreciation for it.

I signed up for Net Galley yesterday, and they have a place where you mark what kind of reviewer you are--one of the options being Goodreads/Amazon reviewer. I doubt publishers will give me many books, but it's worth the try! This is my first year nominating for the Hugos, and I'm having a hard time keeping up with recent releases. My budget can only take 3 ish brand new books a year. I check some out at the library, but the new books are so popular there's a huge waiting list for most of the ones I want to read to see if I can nominate them. Net Galley would certainly help with that problem!

I've won 1 book through Goodreads, but don't have much luck with them.

I like writing reviews, but I tend to like both reading and writing moderate-size reviews--2-3 paragraphs. I don't like spoilers in reviews! I'm getting a blog and website set up, and will probably start blogging in April. I'll probably write slightly longer reviews when I review a book there, but I still don't like the idea of essay-sized reviews in most cases.

Margaret wrote: "I've won 1 book through Goodreads, but don't have much luck with them...."

It used to have some funky weighting that favored new accounts. But now it's pure random, so your odds are slightly better. The're still usually in the 1% chance range, though, cause of the sheer volume of people entering.

Margaret wrote: " I don't like spoilers in reviews!..."

Same! Though the ones that give the whole plot can be useful to refresh your memory on a book years later.

It's really hard to pad out an essay-length review without any spoilers - or only minimal spoilers... My really long ones tend to be the ones for books that I really disliked - because I enjoy ranting every now and again.

I get a lot of books from the library too and I also find that the newer/popular ones have long waiting lists. I don't know how your library works but one trick I've found with mine is that they often put up the record for a book (marked as 'on order') well before a book is released. So I check back every now and then to see if any upcoming books I'm interested in have been added. Often I can get in early and be one of the first requests that way :)

And once with the newest book in a popular sci fi series I even found that the author had donated some ARC copies to a bunch of libraries ages before the book was actually released so I ended up getting to read it about a month early!

So maybe I am just unusually lucky, but I have won over 100 books here on Goodreads and have over 150 Netgalleys -- and I haven't read all of them -- but do what I can. Of course, every now & then I'll get a free book and think, "Why would I have signed up for this one?"

And if any of you have ever read my reviews, they are in the running for "shortest reviews ever."

Melanie wrote: "I get a lot of books from the library too and I also find that the newer/popular ones have long waiting lists. I don't know how your library works but one trick I've found with mine is that they of..."

I'll have to try that!

Kathy wrote: "So maybe I am just unusually lucky, but I have won over 100 books here on Goodreads and have over 150 Netgalleys -- and I haven't read all of them -- but do what I can. Of course, every now & then ..."

That's awesome!!

Margaret wrote: "I signed up for Net Galley yesterday, and they have a place where you mark what kind of reviewer you are--one of the options being Goodreads/Amazon reviewer. I doubt publishers will give me many bo..."

I've won three books from Goodreads Giveaways. The most recent was Excellent Daughters: The Secret Lives of Young Women Who Are Transforming the Arab World which was intermittently interesting, but I really wanted to know what has happened to the women she spoke to in Syria in 2006. Are they alive? Are they refugees?

Melanie wrote: "I don't know how your library works but one trick I've found with mine is that they often put up the record for a book (marked as 'on order') well before a book is released."

I do the same thing! About once a week I'll visit websites that list upcoming releases and I make a list of what I'd like to read. (I use my Can't Wait Books list on Goodreads to keep track.) Then I go to my library's website about once a month and search what's available to request. Our library will place books "on order" as far out as four to five months prior to release date.

Using this trick o' the trade I've been within the first 20 requests for most of the "hot" new releases over the last two years. ;)

Side note: At our library at least, I've found requesting DVDs to have much longer queues than books. For example, on 10/22/15 I requested Game of Thrones Season 5. I'm number 232 of 935 in the request queue for that one. The only book I've requested in recent memory that had a queue that long was a Stephen King book.

Currently reading A Good Man Is Hard to Find And Other Stories, for the Literary Darkness group read. So far I am...ambivalent.

Michele wrote: "Currently reading A Good Man Is Hard to Find And Other Stories, for the Literary Darkness group read. So far I am...ambivalent."

Even about "A Good Man Is Hard to Find"? Usually that's a pretty popular story.

I read A Good Man is Hard to Find and Other Stories, well three of the stories including the title story last month.

Wow. Popular? No. Awful, violent, twisted. It's certainly literary and dark, but it's in no way fun.

Leah wrote: "Even about "A Good Man Is Hard to Find"? Usually that's a pretty popular story. "

Popular in the sense of well-known and often-assigned, or popular in the sense of well-liked? It seems definitely to be the former, but the latter...I dunno. I found it deeply disturbing. I had to go watch videos of kittens on youtube to recover.

Her writing technically is excellent -- she does a great job evoking place, emotions, etc. But her characters are unlikable, unpleasant, and just plain not nice; the situations are drab and/or grim; and a lot of the stories seem to have little point other than "People are kinda awful and life sucks."

Julia wrote: "It's certainly literary and dark, but it's in no way fun."

Exactly :)

The last story "The Displaced Persons" I found filmed on Netflix, or was it Amazon, for free, with a very, very young Samuel L. Jackson in the cast. PBS filmed classic short stories and this was one of them.

As for "People are awful and life sucks," I think that is O'Connor's Southern Catholic motto to a t, based on the three stories I've read and the one I saw adapted into a short movie/ teleplay.

O'Connor featured heavily in the literature class I took about "the grotesque."

I recently purchased O'Connor meaning meaning to read more of her stuff, but I just endlessly put it off... It can be interesting, but I agree, she's not really a "fun" author.

In Net Galley news, a publisher approved my first book! I'll be reading Dreams of Distant Shores by Patricia A. McKillip soon!

Margaret wrote: "In Net Galley news, a publisher approved my first book! I'll be reading Dreams of Distant Shores by Patricia A. McKillip soon!"

The publisher, Tachyon Publications, is a small specialized press that tends to produce chapbooks and short story anthologies by science fiction and fantasy writers. This is the type of publisher where you have better chances for approval.

Shomeret wrote: "Margaret wrote: "In Net Galley news, a publisher approved my first book! I'll be reading Dreams of Distant Shores by Patricia A. McKillip soon!"

The publisher, Tachyon ..."

The Nalo Hopkinson book I got from Netgalley a few months ago was also from Tachyon I think.

Congrats, Margaret!

Shomeret wrote: "Margaret wrote: "In Net Galley news, a publisher approved my first book! I'll be reading Dreams of Distant Shores by Patricia A. McKillip soon!"

The publisher, Tachyon ..."

Yes, I thought so. I also asked for Roses and Rot published by Saga, a bigger press, and did not get it.

Kathy wrote: "So maybe I am just unusually lucky, but I have won over 100 books here on Goodreads and have over 150 Netgalleys -- and I haven't read all of them -- but do what I can. Of course, every now & then ..."

I write essay type reviews dealing with issues raised by the book. In order to do that I need to have spoilers, but I try to make them general rather than specific. Also, people have different definitions of spoilers. Some people don't want to know any information at all about a book in advance. They must be choosing their books based on recommendations. I can't do that. I'll look at a book due to recommendations, but I need to know a great deal about the book in order to select it for reading. I need to know if there are unusual characters, interesting themes or a setting that fascinates me. So I write the sort of review that I appreciate.

Shomeret wrote: "I write essay type reviews dealing with issues raised by the book. In order to do that I need to have spoilers, but I try to make them general rather than specific. Also, people have different definitions of spoilers. Some people don't want to know any information at all about a book in advance. They must be choosing their books based on recommendations. I can't do that."

I tend to stick to basic plot and characters, and the main things that were intriguing--whether that be theme, plot, language, or characters. These are the reviews I like the most because I get a general feel about whether I'm going to enjoy it or not. However, I often like the more in-depth reviews that look at issues. Fellow group member Zanna has in-depth reviews like that, and I have added a few books to my TBR list based on her reviews.

I also meant to add that I'm reading a really fun book I think group members will enjoy--Sorcerer to the Crown by Zen Cho. It's similar in basic concept to Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell; however, it's much more engaging, to me. The main character is a black wizard in England during the Napoleonic wars, who is discriminated against because of his color. The other main character is a girl who is also magical, but women aren't allowed to use magic because it's not proper. Just like in Strange, magic has been lessening in England because fairyland has not been allowing the magic to cross their border.

I love this because the characters are a lot of fun, and the plot is so fast-paced. It doesn't have some of the problems I had with Strange. Also, there may be a unicorn. I don't know how much it's going to play a part; I'm only 40% in. I don't think it will qualify for our group read, but I wanted to throw that out there!

Shomeret wrote: "Some people don't want to know any information at all about a book in advance. They must be choosing their books based on recommendations. I can't do that. ..."

If it's a author I know I like and I plan on reading it right away, I often don't even read the cover blurb. I want to be completely surprised! "Ooooh, look at the pretty cover!" is the extent of my pre-reading examination for my very favorite authors.

Other than that, it depends on who is making the recommendation...

I try to only accept recs from people here on GR that seem to be a pretty good match when I compare books. So if I scroll down through the friends section here and see a ton of 4 star reviews - that's a promising sign!

Now, a random person on the internet, or even some of my cowokers - those I do more research on. Mild spoilers- like those found on many cover blurbs - don't annoy me too much. I just don't like the ones that give away major plot details.

If I end up hearing too many spoilers about a book, I just put it away on my bookshelf for a couple of years until I've forgotten everything other than a really vague idea of what it's about. I have a large enough backlog, that tends to be what happens anyway!

Julia wrote: "The last story "The Displaced Persons" I found filmed on Netflix, or was it Amazon, for free, with a very, very young Samuel L. Jackson in the cast. PBS filmed classic short stories and this was on..."

No way! Wow. I will definitely share that in our discussion!!

Margaret wrote: "I also meant to add that I'm reading a really fun book I think group members will enjoy--Sorcerer to the Crown by Zen Cho. It's similar in basic concept to [book:Jo..."

Sorcerer To The Crown does sound interesting. I just requested it from the library.

Shomeret wrote: "Margaret wrote: "I also meant to add that I'm reading a really fun book I think group members will enjoy--Sorcerer to the Crown by Zen Cho. It's similar in basic co..."

I'm really enjoying it. Wish I could read it in one sitting, but I only have small increments of time right now.

I saw your earlier comment too--I can see how black wizard could be misconstrued! I'll make sure it's clearer when I write a review!

Melanti wrote: " So if I scroll down through the friends section here and see a ton of 4 star reviews - that's a promising sign!."

Same here! There are a few exceptions, I just never seem to appreciate straight fantasy or sword and sorcery type fantasy, but for the most part I have similar taste to many of my friends here.

Margaret wrote: "

What I like so much about Zanna's reviews is that rather than just summarizing the story she often describes what the book does to her, how it makes her feel.

Jalilah wrote: "What I like so much about Zanna's reviews is that rather than just summarizing the story she often describes what the book does to her, how it makes her feel. "

Yes!

Julia wrote: "I read A Good Man is Hard to Find and Other Stories, well three of the stories including the title story last month.

Wow. Popular? No. Awful, violent, twisted. It's certainly literary and dark, but it's in no way fun.

I didn't intend "popular" to be interpreted as "fun" - although, exploring dark stories and characters is fun, for me. However, I'm one of the few members in our group here at Into the Forest who enjoys horror or "literary darkness". It fascinates me - the human's ability to be/do "good" and "evil".

Michele wrote: "Popular in the sense of well-known and often-assigned, or popular in the sense of well-liked? It seems definitely to be the former, but the latter...I dunno. I found it deeply disturbing. I had to go watch videos of kittens on youtube to recover."

Yes, the former. And I have to do the same once I'm finished with "heavy" material of any genre -- from dark fiction to fantasy to non-fiction. Though, I usually watch pure silliness like sitcoms or stand up comedy. A manual reset always helps restore my propensity for optimism and idealism after being smacked in the face with the twisted side of humanity.

Speaking of light and fluffy, I read My Diary from the Edge of the World on Sunday and it was quite a good middle grade read. I loved the scary mermaids best!

Am currently reading The Dreams of Cardinal Vittorini by Reggie Oliver, which is atmospheric, almost hypnotic, in a way that reminds me of Thomas Ligotti, minus Ligotti's Lovecraft fixation.
I've also finished, for the group challenge, The Bloody Chamber and Other Stories by Angela Carter, which I enjoyed, but I do tend to walk on the horror side of the street.

I didn't feel like reading my current classic this afternoon so I started in on Dreams of Distant Shores.

The second one is reminding me of a fairy tale - but I can't remember it's name!

What's that tale about the girl who just loved sleeping? She'd sleep for weeks and weeks on purpose, and when you woke her up she'd complain that she'd just gotten started so why did you wake her so soon?

Melanti wrote: "The second one is reminding me of a fairy tale - but I can't remember it's..at's that tale about the girl who just loved sleeping? She'd sleep for weeks and weeks on purpose, and when you woke her "

Sound vaugly familiar, but I can't remember! Could be a one if the lesser known Grimm's tales?


I am reading the third novel Juliet Marillier's Sevenwaters series, Child of the Prophecy and loving every page! This series is amazing and just gets better! I highly recommend it!

I'm reading Hyperbole and a Half: Unfortunate Situations, Flawed Coping Mechanisms, Mayhem, and Other Things That Happened by Allie Brosh and loving it!

The sleeping girl rings a bell, but I can't place it either, sorry. Something pulls me towards Impossible Saints when I think about it, but I don't quite believe it and can't find my copy (which is sad on a whole different level, but I haven't searched very thoroughly yet).

I've just finished an interesting graphic novel (memoir, rather) about bipolar disorder: Marbles: Mania, Depression, Michelangelo, and Me. There are a lot of graphic novels/memoirs about mental illness these days, and really good ones, too. --We DID talk about the handling of mental illness in fiction, didn't we?? Can't find that either... Anyway, I've read one about Alzheimers recently, Tangles: A Story About Alzheimer's, My Mother, and Me and I've got one more from the library that's dealing with Asperger's: Schattenspringer: Wie es ist, anders zu sein.

Jalilah wrote: "Sound vaugly familiar, but I can't remember! Could be a one if the lesser known Grimm's tales?..."

Margaret said it sounded familiar too. So if Wolf, you, her and I have all read it, it's got to be in some relatively common book/collection that we've all read or it's been collected multiple times or there's several variants.

I've tried looking for keywords in my electronic copies of several books, but nothing... I also skimmed the endings of the stories in Sleeping Beauties: Sleeping Beauty and Snow White Tales from Around the World and didn't see it there either. I'll try flipping through my physical copies of Grimms as soon as I get a chance.

Jalilah - you didn't read much of Italian Folktales, right? That would eliminate that collection.

Maybe it was nonfiction? I didn't know about Kleine-Levin syndrome, but maybe I only forgot?

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