MobileRead Forums - View Single Post - Literary The MobileRead Literary Book Club Begins

sun surfer · 05-19-2011, 01:38 AM

I'm happy to see interest for this! It seems we may have enough to have a proper book club.

Thanks for all the ideas. Here are my thoughts and ideas on some things so far:

-Defining literature: I see that this can be tricky. My initial reaction is to err on the side of inclusion. I trust in us though to resolve any differences amicably, and to end up with a selection every month that is generally regarded as literature. I think it will be a good thing if I write a simple general definition soon that we can consider as a guideline for this book club in making our selections; i.e. something that expands slightly on "well-regarded work". Any suggestions as to what this definition will include are welcome.

-Regarding kinds of literature: I like the idea of having an encompassing schedule of different kinds of literature, similar to the general book club here, so that we can experience a variety of what literature has to offer.

What would everyone suggest as categories? Obviously modern will be popular, looking at the posts so far. We could subdivide it. We also need a definition for "modern". Post-1900. Post-1950. The last 50 years.

A possibility is to divide by century. 21st century, which would be very recent literature. 20th century, 19th century.

I see that poetry and non-fiction aren't the most popular over the course of these first posts. I'd like to hear more thoughts on this although personally I'd like for them to be included, perhaps focusing on one per month, leaving us ten months of other kinds of literature.

Other possibilities include months focusing on certain regions (Asia, Russia, Europe, The Americas, etc.), months focusing on older time periods (Medieval, Ancient, etc.) and months focusing on other particular subjects (historical, philosophical, very challenging, tragic, romantic, etc.).

The goal will be to end up with a group of twelve that is both interesting and challenging; one that is diverse in covering a range of literature yet will be enjoyable and fun for us.

For this June, our inaugural month, I think we should do a "throw caution to the wind" pick and let it be any literary work, regardless of what may be decided as June's regular category. Do the rest of you like this idea?

-Method of deciding our monthly selection: I've read the other ideas presented and they're well thought-out. I admit though that I am partial to a structure similar to the general book club. It may seem complicated but I think in the long run it will be simpler. Having one person select the book each month is a good idea, and in a small book club it could work very well. I see problems though with a varied membership, and we don't know what the membership in this book club will look like at any given time. To me a simple voting process is more inclusive. More ideas and discussion on this are welcome.

If we do go with a voting process, I suggest we do it slightly differently than the general book club. We can start with nominations, but perhaps a nomination will need four or five votes (including the original nomination) to be put in the final vote. Then, only five nominees will be put up to the final vote. The final vote will have a shorter time period, such as three days. These differences will be to have a more select yet still varied group to choose from in the final vote, as well as to make the process simpler and quicker. Similarly to the general book club, each poster will get three votes to use during nominations.

Another more altered option is to have a set period of time for nominations, such as three or four days. Each person will have only three votes to spread out (one per nomination), but a nomination can be voted for by many different people. Then, when the time period is up, the two or three nominations with the most votes will be put to a short final vote.

Really, these are all just means to the same end - to enjoy literature together. I'm looking forward to getting these options settled soon and beginning our first selection.

05-19-2011, 01:38 AM	#19
sun surfer languorous autodidact ✦ Posts: 4,235 Karma: 44637926 Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: smiling with the rising sun Device: onyx boox poke 2 colour, kindle voyage	I'm happy to see interest for this! It seems we may have enough to have a proper book club. Thanks for all the ideas. Here are my thoughts and ideas on some things so far: -Defining literature: I see that this can be tricky. My initial reaction is to err on the side of inclusion. I trust in us though to resolve any differences amicably, and to end up with a selection every month that is generally regarded as literature. I think it will be a good thing if I write a simple general definition soon that we can consider as a guideline for this book club in making our selections; i.e. something that expands slightly on "well-regarded work". Any suggestions as to what this definition will include are welcome. -Regarding kinds of literature: I like the idea of having an encompassing schedule of different kinds of literature, similar to the general book club here, so that we can experience a variety of what literature has to offer. What would everyone suggest as categories? Obviously modern will be popular, looking at the posts so far. We could subdivide it. We also need a definition for "modern". Post-1900. Post-1950. The last 50 years. A possibility is to divide by century. 21st century, which would be very recent literature. 20th century, 19th century. I see that poetry and non-fiction aren't the most popular over the course of these first posts. I'd like to hear more thoughts on this although personally I'd like for them to be included, perhaps focusing on one per month, leaving us ten months of other kinds of literature. Other possibilities include months focusing on certain regions (Asia, Russia, Europe, The Americas, etc.), months focusing on older time periods (Medieval, Ancient, etc.) and months focusing on other particular subjects (historical, philosophical, very challenging, tragic, romantic, etc.). The goal will be to end up with a group of twelve that is both interesting and challenging; one that is diverse in covering a range of literature yet will be enjoyable and fun for us. For this June, our inaugural month, I think we should do a "throw caution to the wind" pick and let it be any literary work, regardless of what may be decided as June's regular category. Do the rest of you like this idea? -Method of deciding our monthly selection: I've read the other ideas presented and they're well thought-out. I admit though that I am partial to a structure similar to the general book club. It may seem complicated but I think in the long run it will be simpler. Having one person select the book each month is a good idea, and in a small book club it could work very well. I see problems though with a varied membership, and we don't know what the membership in this book club will look like at any given time. To me a simple voting process is more inclusive. More ideas and discussion on this are welcome. If we do go with a voting process, I suggest we do it slightly differently than the general book club. We can start with nominations, but perhaps a nomination will need four or five votes (including the original nomination) to be put in the final vote. Then, only five nominees will be put up to the final vote. The final vote will have a shorter time period, such as three days. These differences will be to have a more select yet still varied group to choose from in the final vote, as well as to make the process simpler and quicker. Similarly to the general book club, each poster will get three votes to use during nominations. Another more altered option is to have a set period of time for nominations, such as three or four days. Each person will have only three votes to spread out (one per nomination), but a nomination can be voted for by many different people. Then, when the time period is up, the two or three nominations with the most votes will be put to a short final vote. Really, these are all just means to the same end - to enjoy literature together. I'm looking forward to getting these options settled soon and beginning our first selection.