Around the Year in 52 Books discussion

It's now time to get ready to vote for our first set of prompts! The thread will be open for at least 24 hours before the poll gets posted. This is a good opportunity to ask any question you may have regarding the prompts, do some research or ask for recommendations.

Voting will open in the morning of Thursday, September 24 and results will be posted in the morning of Monday, September 28 (CST time).

How it works:
- When the voting opens, follow the link to the mini-poll that will be added at the end of this post
- You have a total of 8 votes this poll to spread across your favourite and least favourite prompts (you can also use less than 8 votes) - You can find examples of acceptable voting practices on the Introduction thread.
- The prompts with the more favorable votes (comparing top votes to bottom votes, and looking at the overall number of votes it received) will be added to the final list (between 2 and 5 depending on how the votes are spread)

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1. On a few occasions in each poll, people have used more than the allotted number of votes, either because they aren’t familiar with the rules or just by mistake. When this happens our only option is to disregard the vote as we can’t identify the voter to ask them to resubmit. By asking for your profile address we’ll be able to message you and ask you to vote again if you’ve accidentally used more than the allotted number of votes.

2. Unfortunately a very small number of people have voted more than once per poll and so we are asking for this information to prevent duplicate votes.

As a reminder: You have a total of 8 votes to use among your top and bottom votes. The mods have access to each individual vote, so we can see if you use more than 8 votes. If you use more than 8 votes in the poll, your vote will have to be deleted, so please make sure to follow the directions so your voice can be heard.

Possible Prompts:
1. A book of fiction involving a real person or a non-fiction about a fictitious person or persona
2. A book set in a country on or below the Tropic of Cancer
3. An #ownvoices book featuring a story about love
4. A book set in the 19th century
5. The book you have had the longest but haven’t read
6. A book that is mostly written as a series of documents (letters, emails, blogs, epistolary etc.)
7. A classic romance (including modern classics)
8. A book with illustrations
9. A book posted in one of the ATY Best Book of the Month threads
10. A book where characters are trapped together
11. A book on a "must read" list with a cover that you're not attracted to
12. A book related to a word from a favorite recipe
13. A bestseller from the year you were born
14. A book involving illness or injury
15. A book written by an author of one of your best reads of 2020

Feel free to discuss the prompts below, but please remember to be respectful to the other group members.

VOTE HERE: https://www.surveymoz.com/s/K0BXT5/

NOTES AND IDEAS FROM THE SUGGESTIONS THREAD

1. A book of fiction involving a real person or a non-fiction about a fictitious person or persona
Kept intentionally broad to include not only biographical fiction but also books where real people make a cameo appearance or turn up as a side character (such as Agatha Christie in The House at Riverton or various monarchs in historical fiction, or Colin Firth in Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason) or fictitious accounts of their adventures (The Interpretation of Murder, The Woman on the Orient Express). A roman à clef such as Animal Farm could count as well.

For the non-fiction part, a good example would be The Secret History of Wonder Woman or The Life and Times of Hercule Poirot or perhaps a book on Jack the Ripper (= "persona", never identified).

2. A book set in a country on or below the Tropic of Cancer
The Tropic of Cancer passes through: Algeria, Niger, Libya, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, UAE (Abu Dhabi), Oman, India, Bangladesh, Myanmar, China, Taiwan, Mexico, Bahamas, Western Sahara, Mauritania, Mali. And then everything south is fair game.

Even though the equator is the true "centre" of the globe I think it's a bit limiting and on a map the tropic of cancer seems more like the middle. I suggest this as a good way to diversify reading, and it leads away from US- and Euro-centric novels — there are some excellent books set in these countries.

3. An #ownvoices book featuring a story about love
Meaning a story about love between family or love between friends counts if you’d rather not read a romance so long as
a) there’s main POV character who identifies as part of at least one marginalized group and
b) the author identifies as part of the same marginalized group or groups as that character.

6. A book that is mostly written as a series of documents (letters, emails, blogs, epistolary etc.)
I was thinking, how in our socially distanced situation, non-personal forms of communication becoming not only more important but even essential. Maybe reading in letters might inspire some of us.
https://www.bustle.com/p/7-books-writ...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Epistol...
https://www.ranker.com/list/epistolar...
https://bookriot.com/100-epistolary-n...
And a few listopias:
https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/5...
https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/1...
https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/1...
https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/3...

8. A book with illustrations
This can be something non-fiction but also children picture books, graphic novels or an illustrated classics.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Illustr...
https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/7...
https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/1191
https://www.domestika.org/en/blog/268...
https://electricliterature.com/7-illu...

9. A book posted in one of the ATY Best Book of the Month threads
https://www.goodreads.com/topic/group...
Listopia: https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/1...

10. A book where characters are trapped together
Murder on the Orient Express, The Woman in Cabin 10, No Exit are some examples for mystery/thriller.

Here is a romance listopia: https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/3...

I'm still updating the list :) Should all be posted in a few minutes!

The Tropic of Cancer one is a great alternative to southern hemisphere, expands the possibilities of settings, I like it a lot.

I resubmitted the ATY book of the month one because I was looking at the listopia the other day and there are so many of my TBR books on there now. Surely there is something for everyone .

I am here for your epistolary science fiction recommendations, I loved the Themis Files and Illuminae Files, I'll probably vote for that one regardless but I'd love some ideas.

Is classic romance like Jane Austen or are there more modern books that the romance community consider classic?

I have to admit there are a couple double whammy no's for me on this list of possible prompts.

An own voices book featuring a story about love - I'm not a big fan of love stories and I find "own voices" difficult to research.

A bestseller from the year you were born - I don't like either of the limitations (bestseller, year born). I'd be ok with "a book published in the decade of your birth" but definitely not this.

A book on a "must read" list with a cover that you're not attracted to - I don't really like "must read" lists and I don't like the idea of choosing a book just because I dislike the cover.

I'm a bit confused about the classic romance prompt. Is it literally that? Or is it a classic book that has a love story of some sort in the storyline? Does it have to be a book that someone has labeled "classic romance" or is that open to interpretation? And what are the parameters for "classic" - pre-20th century classics, 20th century vintage lit, modern classics?

Right now, I have 1 up vote and 9 down votes. Some prompts have a 2 part requirements, I'd be fine with either or but I don't like having to find books that fit 2 requirements. I have no idea what book I have had the longest and not read. Maybe the discussion will make some of my planned down votes look better.

I'd like some more details on what a "classic romance" is. How classic is "classic"? Are we talking Elizabeth Gaskell classic, or Georgette Heyer classic, or Loretta Chase classic?

Mary Stewart or some Daphne du Maurier for classic romance works. I'm not a fan of romance in general but love both of them because there is more to it than just a love story.

I'm like you, dalex, I had a few that I ABSOLUTELY LOVE and a few that will definitely be downvotes.

For classic romance (which will probably fall on the downvotes list, as I don't really like classics or romances), my guess is that it means a classic love story. When I googled classic romance novels, most of what came up were books like Pride and Prejudice and Madame Bovary.

http://www.jacquelineabelson.com/blog...

For the own voices love story, my mind immediately went to an LGBT love story. That would be an easy one to research and find. Or any love story by a Black author featuring Black characters.

Pretty much everything dalex said. Especially about the bestseller and the cover not attracted to. I'm not sure I understand the point of prompts about things you don't like...

I too would rather have a book published the decade you were born but didn't people feel this was too broad last time? I would vote for it at least, over the one we have now.

My first reaction is 5 up and 1 down.

I enjoy romances here & there, but I am totally struggling with the classic romance. If it was just "a romance," I would upvote it. But for classics, I think of Jane Austen or Jane Eyre, and that is not what I'm interested in reading for the challenge next year. I will on the other hand, definitely be voting for the own voices love story. I think there are tons of options for that prompt that I would be interested in. I know this group doesn't tend to be enthusiastic about romance, so I'm not optimistic that either of those prompts will make it.

I agree with what someone else said about prompts with multiple requirements in them. It definitely feels like a different group of prompts this time. I have a lot that are currently down votes for me, but I think I could make a lot of them work.

I have no idea what book I've had the longest. I think the characters trapped together could be interesting, but I have no idea how to research that. I usually love any prompt that has something to do with food, but I'm unsure about the recipe one. I don't know what I would pick for a favorite recipe. Maybe anything with chocolate! So a book somehow related to chocolate.

Katie wrote: "Maybe anything with chocolate! So a book somehow related to chocolate...."

Chocolate Wars: The 150-Year Rivalry Between the World's Greatest Chocolate Makers was fascinating.

Ellie wrote: "Chocolate Wars: The 150-Year Rivalry Between the World's Greatest Chocolate Makers was fasci..."

Ooh, that sounds right up my alley. Thanks for the rec!

My first thought for own voices love story went to The Kiss Quotient because the author and main character both have Autism.

I seem to read a lot of trapped-together books so could easily add to the Listopia for that one. And I'm dying to read Anxious People, which has a really long hold list, so could easily slot that for next year.

Oh and for own voices love story, any of the books in Jasmine Guillory's Wedding Date series would work, all are inter-race or black relationships.

Lorna Doone and Tess of the D'Urbervilles immediately sprang to mind for Classic Romance :)

I'm so intrigued by the favorite recipe prompt. It's a spin on the basic "related to food" prompt. I could use words like teaspoon, stir, oil, dinner party, flavor, etc. Unfortunately, I don't think it will win since people have voiced in the past they don't like prompts that have to do with their favorite something.

The Tropic of Cancer is unique wording, but for me, it completely overlaps with the prompt about somewhere I've never visited. Another issue of squares and rectangles for me.

Avery wrote: "I'm so intrigued by the favorite recipe prompt. It's a spin on the basic "related to food" prompt. I could use words like teaspoon, stir, oil, dinner party, flavor, etc. Unfortunately, I don't thin..."

Yes, that's what I was going for! It's not just about food; it can be about the verbs and such as well! But, yes, you're right about the favorite aspect, so I'm not going to be surprised if it doesn't pass.

Avery wrote: "I'm so intrigued by the favorite recipe prompt. It's a spin on the basic "related to food" prompt. I could use words like teaspoon, stir, oil, dinner party, flavor, etc. Unfortunately, I don't thin..."

I like that it's worded "a favorite", I think I struggle with picking just one favourite something. Although I guess not everyone cooks from scratch so might not have favourite recipes at all. There's a book about cheese I want to read, so that would work for me (or any number of farming books).

I think I would ignore the favorite part and just pick a book related to food, either one that has recipes or a character that likes to cook.

I decided to move the recipe one off of my down votes list. I do like to read micro-histories and cozy mysteries so if it makes it I should have some options. I could always go back and re-listen to Salt: A World History because most recipes call for salt.

I also decided that too many bestsellers are made into movies/tv series and then they get a new cover. I don't like those covers so I have options with that prompt.

Initially, I thought I didn't like any of the prompts because they felt too narrow, but I'm starting to see some possibilities. I'll probably down vote classic romance simply because I have so many current books that I want to read, although I wouldn't hate reading another Jane Austen novel. The bestseller from the year you were born has been done before in other challenges and there aren't any that appeal to me from 1981. I agree that maybe "from the decade you were born" would be better.

At this point, I'm loving the first 4 and a book by an author from one of your best reads of 2020.

Shannon wrote: "Lorna Doone and Tess of the D'Urbervilles immediately sprang to mind for Classic Romance :)"

I read a lot of classics and I found Lorna Doone a bit of a slog. It's pretty long and takes a while to get into. For "classic romance", I right away thought of something like The Flame and the Flower, published in 1972. I haven't read that one but many of those books are problematic now as the hero's behavior looks more like stalking or assault to us. If you want a classic as in 17th - early 20th century, I wonder what classifies as romance. Les Mis has a romance in it, and it is "romantic" in the sense of the literary period where emotions are over the top. I kind of doubt this one will make it because some people will vote against any kind of romance.

If anyone is looking to research the "bestseller in the year you were born" prompt, you can click on your year from here to get an idea of some of them (not an exhaustive list...just the ones that reached #1): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lists_o...

My year (1985) isn't looking great. Maybe Cider House Rules if it wins.

Steve wrote: "If anyone is looking to research the "bestseller in the year you were born" prompt, you can click on your year from here to get an idea of some of them (not an exhaustive list...just the ones that ..."

We would need more exhaustive lists, which I'm sure we can find somewhere. On this list, here are only 4 for the year I was born. They actually are decent books though. Bestseller lists have become more predictable in the last 30 years. Certain authors are always on them and a lot of them are genres such as thriller, horror, romance, self-help.

I'm really surprised by the idea that people have favourite recipes!
I only really follow a recipe if it's a dish I've not made before or don't make often, so by definition not a favourite. For stuff I make all the time I usually just throw stuff together - I mean I guess there's a vague recipe there but it's not formal enough for me to pick a word from it and find a book related to that word. I think for me that prompt would end up being "a book related to food".

I seconded "book you've had the longest" in the suggestions thread because I have so many books on my TBR that I had every intention of reading but which got supplanted by newer, more exciting releases - I think this is exacerbated by reading challenges as I often pick the first book that comes to mind for that prompt which tends to be more of a "current trend" book.
I can't say for 100% sure what book I've owned for the longest time, but I know I have 3 or 4 that I bought before I moved to my current house and still haven't read so I will probably choose one of them.

After researching for Popsugar's bestseller for the year I graduated high school I'd say it is really hard to find non-US historic bestseller lists. I had to use Amazon's lists in the end, but they don't go back as far as my birth year. I know the prompt doesn't require you to use your own country but the NYT lists really weren't appealing for the year I was looking at.

THIS is a great resource for finding bestselling books by year.

Aimee wrote: "I'm really surprised by the idea that people have favourite recipes!..."

I am more interpreting recipe as a set of instructions to cook something, like I could write it down if I needed to but it doesn't necessarily need to be out of a book.

It's fascinating to me how different the non-fiction bestsellers are today vs the year I was born (1973). Half of them are cookbooks or cooking-related, including dieting, and the rest are self-help or art. And Sybil, which I believe was later found to be more fiction than non.

No politics, memoirs, or social commentary, all of which make up the current non-fiction bestseller list.

Oh thanks for that, dalex. I'd go with The Remains of the Day for mine, I guess, if this gets in! It's not a best seller, but it's "historically or culturally significant" so I'd count it.

EDIT: One of the nonfiction bestsellers for my year is All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten, which was a book that we actually had to copy lines out of in elementary school when we were misbehaving lol. Seeing that title gave me flashbacks (and I can still almost quote the passage we had to copy, even though I was not a bad kid!)

I don't think this group of prompts is as bad as people are making out. There at least 4 I would consider voting for.

I will automatically downvote a couple though: book you have owned the longest (I'm living abroad currently so don't have access to my physical bookshelf) and the bestseller. The options for my birth year are really not appealing and I don't want to read one just for the sake of it when I have so many great books waiting on my TBR.

I would also like some clarity on the 'classic romance'- I won't downvote as I have some options either way. Also think I will need to do some research on the own voices prompt as nothing immediately springs to mind.

I'm going to go four up, four down.

My up votes are Best Book of the Month (I love the lists we put together and I feel like there really is something for everyone on them), book written as a series of documents (I love epistolary novels, and I've also been looking for an excuse to read Illuminae), fic about a real person (I love historical fiction and I'm slowly working my way through Philippa Gregory's series), and author of one of your best reads of 2020 (because I loved that prompt this year and wanted to do it again).

I had a few more I really liked, like illustrations, Tropic of Cancer, and trapped together, but they didn't outweigh my downvotes lol

Nancy wrote: "It's fascinating to me how different the non-fiction bestsellers are today vs the year I was born (1973). Half of them are cookbooks or cooking-related, including dieting, and the rest are self-hel..."


LOL in my year, one of the top ten non-fic best-sellers was Phyllis Diller's Marriage Manual! I don't even know if I'd be able to find that now!! Also, Better Homes and Gardens: Favorite Ways With Chicken, Turkey, Duck, and Game Birds. yeah I'm not reading that.

Yeah my year had Better Homes and Gardens Home Canning Cookbook. Fascinating.

I actually would read Miss Piggy's Guide to Life but it doesn't look like it's still in print.

At first glance nothing seems to jump out so I'll get busy with some research.

The lists for my birth year seem to be the exact opposite of my reading tastes- Stephen King, Dean Koontz, John Grisham and Tom Clancy. It was a very white male dominated year which would make it difficult when trying to read more under represented communities.

Just a few thoughts:

A book of fiction involving a real person or a non-fiction about a fictitious person or persona: at first glance I didn't care for this prompt, but if I had trouble finding something, I might just use a roman a clef (sp?)

An #ownvoices book featuring a story about love: probably a down vote since I just don't care much for own voices.

The book you have had the longest but haven’t read: I have several that have been on my Kindle since the day I bought it and this might encourage me to read them.

A classic romance novel: I need a little more clarification or else it will be a downvote. An interpretation might be a classic romance novel trope - marriage of convienence, etc -to make it a KIS option

A book on a "must read" list with a cover that you're not attracted to: I like the idea of choosing a book in spite of its cover. Its not getting a lot of love, but I am intrigued

A bestseller from the year you were born: definitely a downvote as I was born in 1970, a decade I just don't relate to. There is a Roald Dahl book that I could possibly read.

A book involving illness or injury: Seriously??? after 2020 - another downvote

A book written by an author of one of your best reads of 2020 - this one is a freebie for me as I have a couple of authors that are still publishing annually and I can fit those books in among the more difficult prompts

I look forward to reading the discussion in the coming days. I'm still pretty undecided.

I'm getting ready to deliver a remote lecture to a group of History students, so I don't have time to comment properly right now, but my gut reactions are:

* I have no idea what book I've had the longest... I have hundreds of books.

* I initially turned my nose up at Classic Romance, since I didn't want to wind up reading Jane Austen or the Brontes. But I've decided to adopt the Modern Classic definition of classic. I will read The Accidental Tourist if the prompt goes through.

* The books that were best sellers the year I was born are not my cup of tea. I think I have one realistic option.

* Definitely see some immediate upvotes.

I'll comment later, after I've finished with my class and had time to process.

I read a lot of books where someone gets injured at some point, I don't think the illness/injury one is inherently related to books about disease. Think of all those detectives that go somewhere without backup and get walloped on the head...

I never really know how I'm going to vote until the last minute! I do know the following are big NOs for me, for the same reasons others listed - Own voices, book you've had the longest (which if taken literally would be my 4th grade Sunday School Bible), bestseller of your birth year, "must read" list with a cover that you're not attracted to, and illness or injury. If bestseller gets in, I will read Profiles in Courage by JFK (but apparently ghost written), which I always thought was about JKF but actually is not and was written while he was a senator not President!

The ones I like are illustrations, ATY Best Book of the Month threads, and word from a favorite recipe.

@Ellie, or all the fantasy books where the characters are injured.

I seconded the "book from a list with an unattractive cover", so I feel like I should explain why.

For the list, I know a lot of us do read off the 1001 Books list, or something catches your eye from, say Bookriot's anticipated reads for 2021 or B&N's releases to read lists, or even a list like" ten books to read before visiting iceland". It could be any list, not the same old 100 classics.

Also, I have noticed that i tend to gravitate towards pretty covers, expecially new books, and often I'm disappointed by what's inside them. On the other hand, I've taken a chance on book blurbs that sounded interesting despite an ugly cover and enjoyed them a lot. I really like the idea of getting past aesthetic appeal, because it often doesn't reflect a book's content accurately. Still, I could use a bit of a push in that direction.

Johanne wrote: "@Ellie, or all the fantasy books where the characters are injured."

Yup, my current two fantasy reads have had an ear bitten off and several ghostly assaults.

Wendy wrote: "I seconded the "book from a list with an unattractive cover", so I feel like I should explain why.

For the list, I know a lot of us do read off the 1001 Books list, or something catches your eye f..."

Agreed, I've put off reading books because I hate the cover (even though they sounded interesting) and ended up loving them years later!

First reaction, I have 10 prompts I want to either vote up or down. I like this conundrum, because lately I've had 4-6 and have struggled to figure out how I wanted to vote for the remaining 2-4 slots.

Current Possible upvotes: fiction/nonfiction book/character, set on or below Tropic of Cancer (getting more countries read!), #ownvoices story about love (first thought was no, but reading comments here, might vote for it), mostly written as a series of documents, ATY Best Book of the Month threads, "must read" list with a cover that you're not attracted to (don't love the "must read list" part), written by an author of one of your best reads of 2020 (was thinking of suggesting this since I really like the prompt this year).

Hi all, I suggested the #ownvoices prompt and I wanted to clarify that in my original suggestion I explicitly interpreted love as including books that’s about family or friend relationships, not just romantic, which I hope broadens the number of books possible in people’s eyes.

For example, if Joy Luck Club has always been on your TBR, it could fit there just as well as any Jasmine Guillory books as someone suggested above. I’d also argue that Khaled Hosseini’s The Kite Runner is ultimately about love. The point of the prompt is to explore universal themes of love and connection through the eyes of authors who historically haven’t received a lot of attention and I personally don’t think it’s difficult to do that kind of research.

Traci wrote: "(don't love the "must read list" part)

I hope that when people see "must read list" they aren't thinking they are stuck with the same 100 classics that get mentioned ad nauseum. A wider interpretation would be any book list (because whoever made the list probably thinks you should read it): bookseller suggestions, lists centered around a theme, maybe even doubling up from that "are you well-read in world literature" list in an earlier prompt...

I suggested the prompt bestseller from the year you were born and after going through this thread I do see the shortcomings of this prompt. Sorry for that.

But I would also like to clarify that when I said bestseller it doesn't really have to be a bestseller in that particular year. It can also be a book that was published in the year you were born and went on to become a bestseller. For example, I was born in 1988 and I could read books such as Matilda by Roald Dahl, The Silence of the Lambs by Thomas Harris, Cat's Eye by Margaret Atwood, Dance Dance Dance by Haruki Murakami etc.

But I do understand why this prompt will be a down vote for most though.