Catching up on Classics (and lots more!) discussion

MMG wrote: "I just created a discussion thread for the Buddy Read for The Magic Mountain.

To find the thread, please see: Discussion >> Book Chatter -- non-Group Reads > Buddy Read/The Magic Mountain/October..."

No problem, I've added links to the schedule list.

I think it's fine to get threads open for discussion so people that are interested can start to comment. The only hesitation I would say, is not to plan too much in advance, as there are still several group reads to be decided yet, plus the next few months of nominations. Though I know that The Magic Mountain has proved unpopular in polls and so is probably more suited to a group buddy read.

Brina wrote: "Kim, MMG, Pink, anyone I may have missed- I love how everyone here is so organized :) :)"

This is a completely new thing for me when it comes to my reading life, and it seems to be a product of my joining this group! Actually, probably about 2/3 of the books on my list for this year so far are group and buddy reads. This is really working for me. :)

Pink wrote: "I think it's fine to get threads open for discussion so people that are interested can start to comment. The only hesitation I would say, is not to plan too much in advance,..."

That's a good point, Pink, about not planning too far in advance in case the book becomes a Group Read book. I hope I wasn't too hasty in creating a Buddy Read thread. I only created one because it looked like we had several readers interested, and because I imagined that doing so might make the Buddy Read Requests thread a little less busy. If The Magic Mountain is nominated and selected as a Group Read, I'll be more than happy to read and discuss it as a Group Read instead. No worries!

Having finally caught up with this thread after a few months absence, I would certainly be up for LOTR, whether I'd start with the Hobbit, well, we will see.

Pink wrote " Also, I may as well mention now. If The Odyssey doesn't win the August Old School poll (currently 2nd place with 31 votes, behind The Professor with 36 votes) I plan on reading it anyway. So if anyone wants to join me in August...

Its only one vote behind now, but if it doesn't win I'd be up to joining in the buddy read of The Odyssey.

Kim wrote: "I have a reading schedule on my computer, and I've started adding potential reads for 2017 just recently, haha, but what I do is put question marks beside them. :p That signifies my commitment hasn..."

I've got a portion of my tbr for next year picked out. 2 new series, 1 series I sorta have here and there read, and a new release schedule. I'll probably add the rest of the Eve Dallas's I haven't read this year (my backup books when my main tbr list is all checked out), and of course the remains of this year's tbr will roll over. I need to remember to leave room for group reads, challenges, and/or read-a-longs. Currently next year's tbr is 55 books.

Midnight Breed - Adrian
Midnight Awakening (3), Midnight Rising (4), Veil of Midnight (5), Ashes of Midnight (6), Shades of Midnight (7), Taken by Midnight (8), deeper than midnight (9), Darker after Midnight (10), Edge of Dawn (11), Crave the Night (12)
HC: Bound to darkness (13), defy the dawn (14)
ILL: Marked by Midnight (11.5), tempted by midnight (12.5), stroke of midnight (13.5), midnight untamed (14.5)

Kitty Norville - Vaughn
Kitty & the midnight hour (1), Goes to Washington (2), Wolfsbane & Mistletoe (2.5?), holiday (3), silver bullet (4), dead man hand (5), raises hell (6), down these strange streets (6.5), house horrors (7), war (8), big trouble (9), show (10), rocks house (11), underworld (12), low midnight (13), saves world (14), greatest hits (1.5)
ILL: Full Moon City (4.5)

Fever - KMM
Bloodfever (2), Faefever (3), Dreamfever (4), Shadowfever (5), Iced (6), Burned (7), Feverborn (8)
HC: Fever Moon (5.5?)


2017
Jan 10: Death's Mistress - goodkind
Jan: Feversong - KMM
feb 1: Born of Vengence - kenyon
Mar: Mercy Thompson 10 - briggs
Spring: The Chosen - Ward
Apr 3: Intensity - kenyon
apr: cold reign - hunter
may 30: deadman's cross - kenyon
Aug 4: Dragonsworn - kenyon
Dec 8: Born of Trouble - kenyon
Winter: The Embraced - Sparks
Fever 10 - KMM
Grafton?

Hey guys, just letting you, Leni and I are intending to do a buddy read of a non-fiction classic - The Second Sex - toward the end of the year, e.g. around October, God willing. Feel free to join in! :)

Pink wrote: "Phil wrote: "Who'd be interested in a buddy read of A Game of Thrones? Or the whole series if you're up for it ;).
I've kind of given up hope of it ever winning the polls. This month ..."

I think the GoT buddy read idea has kinda died due to other book commitments? I'm still behind on my tbr, but I still hope to get to it (eventually).

July and most of Aug-Sept currently appear to be fairly new release free for me so I may try to squeeze it in there somewhere. Otherwise Nov-Dec may end up being the time frame.

Any one else have a GoT potential open time frame?

Nargus, I might join you and Leni with The Second Sex as I've been meaning to read it for ages, but put it off because of the size. I'll see how I feel closer to the time. Do you want it added to the schedule for October, or do you want to wait a while for more definite plans?

Myst, yeah I've quietly abandoned my plans to read GoT, with so many other books to get through, this one appeals the least to me.

Pink wrote: "Nargus, I might join you and Leni with The Second Sex as I've been meaning to read it for ages, but put it off because of the size. I'll see how I feel closer to the time. Do you want..."

Awesome, no worries Pink :) Starting October would be good, and we can adjust if anything comes up or changes. Up to you if you want to add it now, but might be nice to add it in case people miss it on this thread, and your list looks nice n tidy :)

Myst wrote: "Currently next year's tbr is 55 books.

Wow, yeah, that's not happening for me. :D I've set myself a challenge that will probably cover about 18 books or so(?), am giving myself 2 years to complete it, and then on top of that I'll also be reading some group reads and anything else that interests me. Probably in the vicinity of 20-30 books a year. :)

Ok I'll add The Second Sex to the schedule for October and we can change it later if need be :)

There may be a rule preventing books this new as being buddy reads, but after the schedule clears out (December-March) I would be interested in reading 1Q84 by Haruki Murakami with a few other people. Any takers?

Warner wrote: "There may be a rule preventing books this new as being buddy reads, but after the schedule clears out (December-March) I would be interested in reading 1Q84 by Haruki Murakami with a few other peop..."

Nope, no rules about new books. We mods discussed this recently and decided there was no need to impose the classics timeframe for buddy reads. So you can read anything you like :)

Feel free to canvas interest for next year, but just a heads up that I won't start adding books for 2017 onto the schedule list until much later this year.

Warner wrote: "There may be a rule preventing books this new as being buddy reads, but after the schedule clears out (December-March) I would be interested in reading 1Q84 by Haruki Murakami with a few other people. Any takers?"

I'm not sure I'm ready to commit to this one, but I am interested. If it becomes a buddy read, I might participate! 925 pages of dystopia, though... I don't know. But I've heard good things.

Warner wrote: "There may be a rule preventing books this new as being buddy reads, but after the schedule clears out (December-March) I would be interested in reading 1Q84 by Haruki Murakami with a few other peop..."

Great idea!!! I would definitely like to read 1Q84 but I must wait until much later this year before I commit.

Bat-cat and Kim, I already plan to read Underworld and The Magic Mountain as group reads this year. Add those to the group reads and my American Literature 1 class in the fall and I'll be booked. However, 1Q84 and Infinite Jest are just sitting on my shelf and calling my name so when things calm down among buddy reads I would like to read one of the two.

I'd be game for Infinite Jest, maybe early in 2017...?

Another big read! Well, it's the same with me, the schedule has gotten pretty packed for the next few months, but after that (maybe December-January area?) I might have some time for one or the other. :)

I have Infinite Jest on my TBR list as well but I am in no condition to start planning my reading list for next year yet.

I'm fascinated by the long range planning! Personally though I can't book reads more than a couple months out since I follow a few groups and change my decisions based on their group reads, which aren't decided terribly far in advance. With that said, if there is a chance to read something I've been wanting to read very much I'd be willing to sign on. So for me in the buddy read list so far that's War and Peace in sept and I'd do Infinite Jest whenever, I understand that that is a difficult work to parse through, so a dedicated group would be great!

Bat-Cat wrote "Great idea !! I would definitely like to read 1Q84, but I must wait until much later this year before I commit"

I'd like to read it to and would be keen to join in any buddy read, but like Bat-Cat it would have to be towards the end of the year, things are already chocka ( !? ) on the reading front :-)

Lonesome Dove next month, anyone?

Anyone ever suggested The Gormenghast Novels for a buddy read? Anyone interested in this classic? I'm thinking spring. Takes time, so March-May, maybe. I don't know. Any thoughts? I'm not dead set on doing this, because it's a daunting read. But with buddies on board... who knows, could be fun.

Steve wrote: "Anyone ever suggested The Gormenghast Novels for a buddy read? Anyone interested in this classic? I'm thinking spring. Takes time, so March-May, maybe. I don't know. Any thoughts? I'm ..."

It has been on my list forever -- Ask me again when you get closer to reading it.

Kathy wrote: "It has been on my list forever -- Ask me again when you get closer to reading it."

Will do, Kathy.

Steve wrote: "Anyone ever suggested The Gormenghast Novels for a buddy read? Anyone interested in this classic? I'm thinking spring. Takes time, so March-May, maybe. I don't know. Any thoughts? I'm ..."

Treat it as 3 separate books of 300-400 pages each and it'll be a lot less daunting.
They do need to be read in order, more or less, but they are separate entities in terms of plot.

Steve wrote: "Anyone ever suggested The Gormenghast Novels for a buddy read? Anyone interested in this classic? I'm thinking spring. Takes time, so March-May, maybe. I don't know. Any thoughts? I'm ..."

Yes, yes and yes!!! Sounds great to me. I read the trilogy, plus the 4th book completed by his wife after his death, many years ago and loved it. I would be happy to read them again.

Melanti wrote: "Steve wrote: "Anyone ever suggested The Gormenghast Novels for a buddy read? Anyone interested in this classic? I'm thinking spring. Takes time, so March-May, maybe. I don't know. Any ..."

I've always wanted to read it too (even have the books). Pencilling it in :0)

Steve wrote: "Anyone ever suggested The Gormenghast Novels for a buddy read? Anyone interested in this classic? I'm thinking spring. Takes time, so March-May, maybe. I don't know. Any thoughts? I'm ..."

I had never heard of it but it sounds intriguing.
I don't think I can commit for sure this far out, but I will pencil it in too! :)

I'm fairly new this buddy read process, but this seems like a decent amount of interest in a short time. Since plans can change in nine months, I'll put Gormenghast down as a definite maybe for spring 2016. :)

Can we add The Gormenghast Novels to the buddy read list for March-May 2016, or is it too early?

Steve wrote: "Can we add The Gormenghast Novels to the buddy read list for March-May 2016, or is it too early?"

Steve, Pink usually takes care of scheduling the Buddy Reads and I think it is nighttime for her right now. ;-) She is usually Johnny-on-the-Spot with this sort of thing so you can trust that it will be taken care of. The only thing is it wants to be 2017 and not 2016. ;-)

Well, Pink said she wasn't adding buddy reads for next year until much later on...
After all, there's plenty of time to get them to be selected as group reads between now and then.

Melanti wrote: "Well, Pink said she wasn't adding buddy reads for next year until much later on...
After all, there's plenty of time to get them to be selected as group reads between now and then."

Makes sense to schedule it next year. Yeah, Bat-Cat, sorry about that slip up on dates. How'd it ever get to be 2016 anyway?

Just to clarify: I'm proposing the Gormenghast novels buddy read for March-May 2017 (way too late for 2016).

Steve and Bat-Cat that is too organized even for me. Thanks to all of you I have figured which classics to read through early next year filling in with contemporary books I find interesting. I have never been this organized a reader ever.

Thanks, Melanti, for reminding us of that fact - I had forgotten.

No need for apologies Steve. I feel extremely lucky when I can figure out what month it is - time seems to flash by so quickly these days, but then it is all an illusion anyway, right? I think it may be a factor of getting older. ;-)

Steve, Bat-Cat, sorry for the delay in responding, I've been out all day and just checking in before bed. Yep, as Melanti said I'm not adding books for next year into the schedule at the moment, as we have so many planned already and several months of group reads to choose yet. There's nothing to stop you personally planning for next year, but I don't want to get too ahead on the planned schedule thread. Hope this is ok with everyone, as the list is quite unwieldy as it is! Just let me know nearer the time if you're still planning on reading it.

That works for me, Pink!

Thanks, Pink - you're the greatest!!! ;-)

Steve, I have penciled Gormenghast into my list for next spring. It should be fun!!! ;-)

Bat-Cat wrote: "Steve, I have penciled Gormenghast into my list for next spring. It should be fun!!! ;-)"

So it's back to Fuchsia's attic, huh? (I thought her enormous aerie was the coolest location in the place.) Okay. A fun buddy read is just what I need to stay focused on Gormenghast from start to finish. It's penciled in.

Steve wrote: "Bat-Cat wrote: "Steve, I have penciled Gormenghast into my list for next spring. It should be fun!!! ;-)"

So it's back to Fuchsia's attic, huh? (I thought her enormous aerie was the coolest locati..."

Steve, there were so many interesting, odd things, settings and characters going on in these books that one could spend years meandering through them all - Peake sure had an astounding imagination! It will be great to reread them with a previous knowledge of the plot. I really enjoyed reading them a lot. It was a bit strange but I distinctly remember falling in love with these books from the very first sentence. I had never read anything like it, ever, and it hooked me immediately. I'm really excited that I am finally (well next year anyway) going to get to read them again. Wahoo!!! ;-)

Bat-Cat wrote: "I'm really excited that I am finally (well next year anyway) going to get to read them again. Wahoo!!! ;-) ."

Bat-Cat, your enthusiasm is starting to rub off on me. :)

Hey LOTR fans, before we get going on our buddy read this fall, you might want to check out The Road to Middle-Earth: How J.R.R. Tolkien Created A New Mythology by Tom Shippey Great read! I'm going to give it another go before we start.

Ooh, my husband has been trying to get me to read Gormenghast for years. I was half planning to read at least the first book next year, so count me in!

Infinite Jest is also on my tbr, but it's not waiting on my bookshelf. I'll have to wait and see about that one (but definitely not this year!)

And while I'm in this thread. There was someone who wanted to buddy read The Wanderer: or, Female Difficulties with me, but I can't remember who it was! We discussed it in the long read nomination thread for the second quarter, and that thread isn't available anymore. So whoever you are, if you read this, contact me! lol

Leni wrote: "And while I'm in this thread. There was someone who wanted to buddy read The Wanderer: or, Female Difficulties with me, but I can't remember who it was! We discussed it in the long re..."

Most threads will not be deleted the are moved to the Archives folder https://www.goodreads.com/topic/group...

Here is the 2nd Quarter Nominations for this year
https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

Hope this helps

Thank you, Bob! That did indeed help. I should have known it was possible to access the old threads. Once something is on the internet it never disappears!

Wow--no kidding. Thanks, Bob--that helped me remember too why I so wanted to read The Wanderer: or, Female Difficulties!