Guardian Newspaper 1000 Novels discussion

I didn't see a thread for questions, so I started one if that's okay. I just have a question about how the nominations work. Looking through the threads, it seems you pick a book from a couple lists each month. How do you choose which list to read from next? When do nominations start? I looked through the lists and only saw a couple books crossed off. Is someone keeping up with the list, or do we have to search the bookshelf before nominating? I guess that's more than one question...sorry ;)

Hi Renee - questions are good! ;o)

nominations should start at the beginning of each month - I will be starting the May thread v.soon...

categories have got a bit out of whack recently, but I'm going to choose the two (of the seven) that it's been the longest time since they were last used and over the next 3-4 months establish a strict rotation...

and yes, just check the main group bookshelf before nominating (there are 7 sub-shelves to make it a bit easier)...

I am looking for a buddy read. As it happens a Guardian blessed title. Where may I post the offer w/o treading on rules and w a chance of finding a few, a precious few, or perhaps precocious few?

Posted in good faith that this is not out of order:

https://www.theguardian.com/books/201...
The 100 best novels: No 40 – Zuleika Dobson by (1911)

I think I would prefer his selected essays. The Guardian likes the book, but I am not sure they list it.
The Prince of Minor Writers: The Selected Essays

Oh, yeah. Sign me up!
Zuleika D. is great. Phred, you like G & S so much you are bound to like Max B.

I am not in a huge hurry to start. Once the space is set the schedule can be negotiated.
How and where does one go about setting up a buddy read in this group?

I have created a Buddy Reads folder and an initial thread for organising such:
https://www.goodreads.com/topic/group...

feel free to start a thread for the Beerbohm essays under there :o)

Darren wrote: "I have created a Buddy Reads folder and an initial thread for organising such:
https://www.goodreads.com/topic/group...

feel free to start a thread for the Beerbohm essa..."

Thank you
I will follow up shortly
From what I can see, Zuleika is not among the 100+ titles on the shelf.
I am going to propose it as something of a package deal, the Guardian title and the essays as a buddy/project read.
D'accord?
As in not out of accord w the group rules?

Having tripped across the name Katherine Anne Porter, Best known for Ship of Foolsand author of a shelf load of more titles, I wondered if her Pulitzer was of sufficient note to get anything by her onto The LIST.

The link given by this group for a searchable official list has no search function in any of its 4 pages. I may have missed it my screen being squeezed between a huge ad and a choice-less choice to force cookies onto my computer. There is one if you want to search the entire Guardian Fiction list.
With that in mind may I suggest that this page. It can be searched by word search in many browsers:
https://www.theguardian.com/books/200...

There may be other major subdivisions to the Guardian list, but who knows how may thousands are now listed in The List.

I don't see her anywhere on the list.

Here is a link to a checklist of the Guardian 1000. You can search for individual titles, but not by author:

https://www.listchallenges.com/guardi...

Ship of Fools is her only novel, according to Wikipedia.

Phrodrick wrote: "Having tripped across the name Katherine Anne Porter, Best known for Ship of Fools and author of a shelf load of more titles, I wondered if her Pulitzer was of sufficient note to get a..."

I think of her as mainly an author of short stories.

I have a question - do you guys "count" a book from the list as read if you start it but abandon it before finishing? I keep flip-flopping on this issue! On one hand, I tried the book so it counts but on the other hand, I can't really say that I read it.

That would be quite the loophole, Leslie.
Call it the "dead to me" rule.

eta: what about books you've read but completely forgotten?

I could not pass a quiz on The Good Earth if it was for money.

Yeah, those books I know that I have read back in high school but don't really remember. I have counted those but I am also slowly going through the process of rereading them so that I feel less guilty about it!

Bryan wrote: "I don't see her anywhere on the list.

Here is a link to a checklist of the Guardian 1000. You can search for individual titles, but not by author:

https://www.listchallenges.com/guardi......"

Thanks, I thought I had seen that page before, but enough years ago to be unsure of its continued existence.

Now to place it somewhere I stand a chance of finding again (This is on me)

I appreciate the help.
The point is that the group page points to a link that either cannot perform as advertised or is needlessly hard to use for the purpose given

My hope was that this being in the intro side of the house it might be monitored by some one with decision making authority.

This just seemed less intrusive than shipping out to all of the Moderators.
Besides were I wrong in my impression, it would not be the first time I missed the whereabouts of a hyperlink or search feature. A larger number of people tracking the page and someone could re direct my attention.

I've not counted books I've started but not finished, because what's the cutoff? 50%? 25%? 2 pages ?

My quandry is that I never know whether to count one book in a series as having read it or having to read the whole lot.

Books i know I've read but forgotten, I've counted but am rereading if i think I'll enjoy them a second time.

Phil wrote: "I've not counted books I've started but not finished, because what's the cutoff? 50%? 25%? 2 pages ?

My quandry is that I never know whether to count one book in a series as having read it or hav..."

On my computer list (as opposed to the List Challenge one), I don't count unfinished series but mark them as "in progress". On List Challenge, I count them if I have read more than half the books (such as the Rabbit Omnibus - I read 2 of the 3 so I marked it as read).

If I start a book but abandon it, I definitely count it. I don't consider it 'read' for goodreads (it goes on my DNF shelf), but for the sake of the list, I think it counts. I figure the purpose of the list is to introduce me to books I wouldn't normally have read, and to point out books that others have considered worthwhile. If I start it and it isn't to my taste, then I feel as though it's still satisfied the purpose of the list, and so I mark it off.

I don't count a series though unless I've read all of it. Speaking of which, are we still on for The Cat and the Racket?

Of course, I think my dnf's from the list are maybe two books, three at the most.

ETA: One. Orlando

Leslie wrote: "Phil wrote: "I've not counted books I've started but not finished, because what's the cutoff? 50%? 25%? 2 pages ?

My quandry is that I never know whether to count one book in a series as having r..."

Oh, well, that's different. I don't think you have to have read all, what, 120 tales in The Decameron if you've read "book length" selections.

I've heard the second part of Don Quixote is dull compared with the first part.

That goes double for Faust. A German told me long ago that everybody reads the first part, and nobody reads the second.

Bryan wrote: "Speaking of which, are we still on for The Cat and the Racket?..."

Yes indeed!

Quick query - do any of you have any wintery or Christmassy recommendations from the list?

I know that I'm fairly new here, but is it possible to start the nomination/poll process for the next month's group read a little earlier than it has been (like start nominating now)? By the time a book is selected it is almost the first of the month and it takes a while to track down a copy of the book. Just a thought.

Hi Megan - thanks for making this point - you are absolutely right, and I do have the best intentions to start the nominations/polls earlier, but the "groundhog day" of lockdown keeps making me lose track of how fast the month is progressing!
I will put up proper nomination threads tomorrow, but in the meantime I can announce that the categories will be:
Comedy
War & Travel
so we can start thinking as of now!

[EDIT! oops! War & Travel, not Sci-Fi & Fantasy!]

Hi, I am asking again if we could please start the nomination process earlier so it isn't a crunch at to pick a book before the first. If nominations were opened at the beginning of the month, a book could be chosen by mid-month allowing people a couple of weeks to locate a copy and plan their reading accordingly. Thus, I am suggesting that the October nominations be started ASAP.

I understand that a lot of work goes into moderating (which I'm sure we all appreciate). However, I think starting earlier will allow a more leisurely pace for selecting a book which will eliminate the stress of the mods at the end of the month when we've run out of time.

you're right Megan that the nominations have been slipping
also I notice that all 4 of the nomos for Sci-Fi & Fantasy this month are pretty long
so I propose that we:
miss out selecting more books for October
(i.e. the September books can be read up til the end of October)
then at the beginning of October we'll do November nominations/polls to finish no later than 15th
then make a determined effort to stay in that pattern going forward...

@Darren - sounds good. When will the final decision on the September/October books be?

The September polls finish at 11:59pm PDT on Saturday!

This plan sounds a really good one. Thanks for all your hard work keeping this group chugging along Daren. I know that it's not always stated often enough, but (taking the liberty to speak on everyone else's behalf) we all massively appreciate the efforts you put in

Phil wrote: "This plan sounds a really good one. Thanks for all your hard work keeping this group chugging along Daren. I know that it's not always stated often enough, but (taking the liberty to speak on every..."

Dittoes

Thanks, Darren. I think that is a good plan.

Yes definitely a huge thank you Darren :-)

Yes, thanks, Darren, for all your hard work! :)

not a question as such, and not intended as blowing my own trumpet, but more for any OCD geeks amongst us who may notice that:
our seven group bookshelves currently each contain the same number of titles (33)
this has been an ongoing quest of mine ever since I became moderator
enjoy it while it lasts!
;o)

Woohoo, we love it when numbers coincide and give an illusion of universal order

I have a question, a favor to ask. Would it be possible to add books to read (at least) the day before the last day of the month? I would like to receive an email with a reminder (information) about what the group will be reading next. To use GR settings of Group Book Reminders but in such cases, a moderator of the group has to add a book for the next month as I have written (at least the day before the last day of the month). Of course, I can always check it on the page of the group (eventually in poll results), as I am doing since I belong to the group. Still, I would really like to just get emails with this information.

PS I haven't found where I could put this message (a more apt thread), so I am putting it here.

Hi,

Just a question/suggestion:

Will we at some point allow previous reads to be group reads for members who missed out on the first reading of the book for whatever reason?

Maybe you can have a third book poll "Revisiting old friends", and just add any new discussion to the existing discussion?

I see books on the shelf that I have not yet read, and I know I won't be able to read 2 books for this group every month, because of time or availability restrains. So the list of read-but-not-by-me-books will just get longer

Angelique wrote: "...Will we at some point allow previous reads to be group reads for members who missed out on the first reading of the book for whatever reason?..."

I thought about it too. Not only about books the group read when I wasn't a member but also those I didn't read (for some reason) when I was a member.

The other solution is buddy read, here you can find someone to do buddy-read --> link here.

I've been slowly working through the books that I missed when I took a break from this group of a few years. They are all listed, under the Monthly Group Reads heading

https://www.goodreads.com/topic/group...

As this month's reads were quite short, I've just finished catching up with White Teeth and Day of the Triffids and next up will be Zeno's Conscience.

Mela - I missed your question in Message#38, but I will start sending out a notification at the start of each month to all members informing of the group reads for that month

wrt having "Re-Visit" reads of books already on our shelf, that is something I've also thought of doing
- I could add an extra nominations/poll
maybe not every month, but every quarter, or every other month?
how often do we think would be good?

I have mixed feelings about the re-visit. 3 books in a month is a lot to commit to but, as others have said, there are plenty of books I missed for one reason or another. However, I also find that there are months when I have already read one of the selected books so I can take that opportunity to catch up on another one.

Of course, my situation is different from Angelique's - I have been working on this list for ~10 years and she has just discovered it. I guess that in order to appeal to the greater number of people, having a reread makes sense. Perhaps having one every other month with the idea that most group members will read 2 of the 3 would work.

Leslie wrote: "I have mixed feelings about the re-visit. 3 books in a month is a lot to commit to..."

I like the idea of a re-visit poll. It would help generate interest and discussion, which is the lifeblood of Goodreads Groups after all. And I don't think anyone would expect everyone to commit to all three reads, unless you vote for the winners in the polls of course.

as per Mela's suggestion, I just broadcast a message to all 548 members of the group informing of our July reads - will be interesting to see if we get improved participation...

Quick question
Has anyone else run into a bunch of -Page not Available- when looking at "Compare Books With"

That is my first stop when thinking about frending. Not knowing if it will or will not "be available" is a problem.
I know GR/Amazon has been working hard to gradually mess up GR, is this a new part of the madness?

That's not a feature I've ever used (sounds really useful though). Page Not Available sounds like a temporary issue though. They'd just remove it if they didn't like it, not simply nobble it, which makes the site look bad.

Maybe try putting the question to one of the main Good Reads boards? Could be a glitch they don't know about. (I appreciate that I haven't answered your question).

it's happening for me too,
it's quite possible GR have knackered this without even knowing (I wouldn't put anything past them),
it's not in the latest "Known Issues" (last updated 10th Aug) so wouldn't hurt to report it...

It's working for me. Perhaps it was a temporary glitch.

Are we having nominations for February? It's getting pretty close to the end of the month....