Nominations for the February 2010 Book Club

[Star_Anise]

For various reasons our last book has been rather reluctant in getting off the ground, so I thought I'd start the process for February in hope of making a little more progress while readers wait on the award winner:)

Might I suggest a crime and criminals theme for next month? This can be interpreted as broadly as you like, and hence could be anything from Crime and Punishment, to Agatha Christie; Smilla's Sense of Snow to Macbeth.

Any interest?

[margaine]

I absolutely love the theme idea, Star! I'll have to see if I can come up with a nomination . . . I'd be up for it, although I'm still waiting on my copy of the current book club book.

[Phantom Paragrapher]

that sounds gr8 , I love Crime type boooks mystery.thrillers etc

[Jez]

Sounds good. I have two crime books on my immediate TBR list. The first is The Tale of Hill Top Farm and it blends Beatrix Potter and a murder mystery. It's described as "cozy" and "delightful" and takes elements from both Potter's life and children's stories. The second is Thyme of Death and follows an herbalist living in a small Texas town who gets caught up in solving a local murder mystery. I think it's also supposed to be of the "lighter" variety. Both are written by Susan Wittig Albert, and both are the first book in their respective series.

I'll also be reading The Hound of the Baskervilles and A Study in Scarlet soon.

I'm not nominating these, because I can't really to commit to the book club, but I thought I'd throw them out there in case someone else is interested in them and wanted to nominate one. I'll probably be reading them within the time ***** of the club.

[neilgee]

They had this theme on another Book Club in December and The Big Sleep by Raymond Chandler won it, but basically I thought it was crap so that's put me off this idea abit.

However I wouldn't mind reading Conan=Doyle again so I will take up Jez's suggestion and nominate A study in Scarlet.

[Star_Anise]

They had this theme on another Book Club in December and The Big Sleep by Raymond Chandler won it, but basically I thought it was crap so that's put me off this idea abit.

However I wouldn't mind reading Conan=Doyle again so I will take up Jez's suggestion and nominate A study in Scarlet.

Chandler is a bit heavy going...but I think there's enough room to move within this theme that we could end up with something very different.

However, there's a collected Holmes on the bookshelf that is yet to be cracked so I would have some interest in some Conan Doyle. Although Scarlet is the only Holmes I have read!

[Jez]

I forgot, I'll also be reading The Maltese Falcon soon, if anyone is interested in a mystery of that sort.

[neilgee]

However, there's a collected Holmes on the bookshelf that is yet to be cracked so I would have some interest in some Conan Doyle. Although Scarlet is the only Holmes I have read!

Okay, not wanting to spoil it for you and not really minding which Holmes is in the poll can I change my nomination to The Hound of the Baskervilles, please:good:

[Star_Anise]

Ok, so far we have some suggestions from Jez (which will become a nomination if upheld by someone else), and a nomination for The Hound of the Baskervilles. I am tempted to cheat somewhat and nominate the book I am already reading, Peter Hoeg's The Quiet Girl, even though I am not yet sure what the level of crime/criminality within it is.

Jez, who wrote The Maltese Falcon? If there's interest in that too I'd like to see if I can get it:)

[margaine]

I'm still thinking . . . I may have a nomination yet.

[Phantom Paragrapher]

Hey Star , The Author of the Maltese Falcon is Dashiell Hammett ,

[Moony]

I'd be up for the Hound of the Baskervilles too. It's in my hardcover collection of Holmes stories, but I've never actually read it. Though I did read a children's version of the story when I was little so I know the gist of it.

How about The Poe Shadow by Matthew Pearl, or does that not count in this category? I got the book on New Year's Eve so it's a fairly recent addition to my shelves. Hmm, maybe I should aim for finishing the older stuff first... ;)

[Phantom Paragrapher]

I quite like Matthew Pearl , I havent read his Poe Shadow but I have read the One about Charles Dickens and Dante

[margaine]

I am going to nominate Franz Kafka's The Trial. For a perhaps unsurprising reason, the book club theme of this month won't stop bringing Kafka to mind for me.

[neilgee]

I am going to nominate Franz Kafka's The Trial. For a perhaps unsurprising reason, the book club theme of this month won't stop bringing Kafka to mind for me.

Ah, a very good choice, margaine. I'm torn now between voting for mine and voting for yours. This is turning out much better than I thought it was going to do when it was first suggested.:good:

[margaine]

How about The Poe Shadow by Matthew Pearl, or does that not count in this category? I got the book on New Year's Eve so it's a fairly recent addition to my shelves. Hmm, maybe I should aim for finishing the older stuff first... ;)

I looked up The Poe Shadow and it sounds like it is about a mystery although not necessarily a crime. It does look interesting though! I guess it just depends on how strict we want to be about the theme. Star?? Any thoughts?

[Star_Anise]

I looked up The Poe Shadow and it sounds like it is about a mystery although not necessarily a crime. It does look interesting though! I guess it just depends on how strict we want to be about the theme. Star?? Any thoughts?

Even though it's a pretty broad them I'd prefer to stick with - but are we sure the mystery doesn't involve some sort of crime?

[margaine]

Even though it's a pretty broad them I'd prefer to stick with - but are we sure the mystery doesn't involve some sort of crime?

I'm not sure . . . does anyone else know?

Actually, I think it fits. At first I knew it had to do with Poe's death, which is what I meant that it was about a mystery and not a crime. But looking at the first sentence of this description, I think the premise of the book would make it count:


Pearl's second historical thriller involving literary figures (after 2003's The Dante Club) is set in 1849, when young lawyer Quentin Clark's desire to burnish the tarnished reputation of his favorite author-poet, the recently deceased Edgar Allan Poe, drives him to such extremes he eventually winds up on trial for insanity and murder. His defense forms the novel.

[Star_Anise]

Actually, I think it fits. At first I knew it had to do with Poe's death, which is what I meant that it was about a mystery and not a crime. But looking at the first sentence of this description, I think the premise of the book would make it count:

Sounds like it qualifies to me. So, that puts our nominations at four:

The Hound of the Baskervilles, AC Doyle
The Maltese Falcon, Dashiell Hammett
The Trial, Franz Kafka
The Poe Shadow, Matthew Pearl

Time to vote, methinks:)

[Jez]

Hey Star , The Author of the Maltese Falcon is Dashiell Hammett ,

Yup, thank you!

[Phantom Paragrapher]

Im up for any of these three ,
The Hound of the Baskervilles, AC Doyle
The Maltese Falcon, Dashiell Hammett
The Poe Shadow, Matthew Pearl

The reason is we don't have this one in our library :
The Trial, Franz Kafka

[musi]

The reason is we don't have this one in our library :
The Trial, Franz Kafka
Wow, really? Wow. It probably makes sense, since you are not in Europe. Here it is part of obligatory school literature, but New Zealand for sure has its own programme. Still, am surprised :)

[Star_Anise]

Wow, really? Wow. It probably makes sense, since you are not in Europe. Here it is part of obligatory school literature, but New Zealand for sure has its own programme. Still, am surprised :)

It is surprising.

[Phantom Paragrapher]

When It comes to reading lists for College and Schools in NZ they are pretty laidback - We read contemporary novels at school , I think the earliest book written that I read at school was Maya Angelou's I know why the Caged Bird Sings , Alice Walker's The Color Purple and Margaret Atwood's The Handmaids Tale. Reading , though it is a good thing English mainly focuses on reading between the lines - A Basic Structure of an English Programme is - A Short Text which can either be short stories or poetry , A Speech presentation , A Long text-Novel , A Film Study , Creative Reading which was when you were given a piece of writing and had to answer questions about it , no-one knew what piece they were given till the day of the assignment and an essay of Formal/Transactional Writing . I guess the reason Im well-read is because I discovered a love of books and libraries when I was younger . At 4 I was reading the Little Golden Books by myself. Reading isn't really a big thing in New Zealand, Its more an outdoorsy place.

[Jez]

The Trial is in the public domain, if you don't mind reading it on a computer, PP.

I'm rooting for either Kafka, Doyle, or Hammett because those are all my "goal" books. I'm curious about The Poe Shadow though, since I liked his first book very much.

Our small library doesn't have The Trial either. We actually don't have any Kafka. The main branch does, though.

[margaine]

My library has them all, but the issue is whether or not they are out of the library when I want them. I'm hoping that whatever gets picked will be in or shortly returned. I'm going to try to avoid the 50 cent hold/ILL fee this time.