MobileRead December 2015 Special Run-Off Vote

[WT Sharpe]

December 2015 Mobile Read Book Club Special Run-Off Vote

Since this month's vote resulted in a tie, we are having a Special Run-Off Vote between the two leading candidates. I will not vote in this poll unless my vote is needed to break a tie. This poll will be open for 3 days, and all MobileRead members are invited to participate. This is a visible, multiple-choice poll.

We will start the discussion thread for this book on December 20th. Please select from the following two Choices:

• The Big Book of Christmas Mysteries edited by Otto Penzler
Amazon US / Barnes & Noble / Kobo

Spoiler:

“Anyone who cares about the best mystery writing of the past century and beyond would be lucky to receive this thick volume during the holidays. . . . One of the joys of the collection is how many are delightfully funny. . . . Note that many of these stories turn on simple theft, of diamonds or candlesticks or a lottery ticket; they hark back to simpler days before the modern thriller began to provide endless serial killers and ax murderers for our edification. To read today’s talented crime writers can be a pleasure, but it’s good to be reminded that they build on the work of others whose talents remain undimmed."
—The Washington Post

• Close Range: Wyoming Stories by Annie Proulx
Goodreads | Amazon Au / Amazon Ca / Amazon UK / Amazon US / Kobo

Spoiler:

From Goodreads:

From the Pulitzer Prize-winning and bestselling author of The Shipping News and Accordion Crimes comes one of the most celebrated short-story collections of our time.

Annie Proulx's masterful language and fierce love of Wyoming are evident in these breathtaking tales of loneliness, quick violence, and the wrong kinds of love. Each of the stunning portraits in Close Range reveals characters fiercely wrought with precision and grace.

These are stories of desperation and unlikely elation, set in a landscape both stark and magnificent -- by an author writing at the peak of her craft.


Sometimes known as "Close Range: Brokeback Mountain and Other Stories"

[WT Sharpe]

Only one vote separates the books at this point. I really don't want to see a tie, as I really don't want to have to choose between these two. I really don't mind which wins as they both look excellent. Someone needs to some campaigning here. Christmas Mysteries looks excellent and I love a good mystery, but is everyone going to have time to read 674 pages by the 20th? Annie Proulx is an unknown for me, but she has a solid core of fans, and some of the samples they have posted elsewhere of her writing makes the book seem like a sure bet, and it's only 295 pages (or 323, depending on where you buy the book). And, of course, one of the stories was made into a major motion picture.

[CRussel]

OK, I'll lobby hard for Annie Proulx. Not based on content -- both look excellent, and like Tom, I love a good mystery. But the price of the Penzler book is just way, way more than I can justify right now. And I'm also unlikely to be able to read 600+ pages. (Though with a short story book, we could easily agree to only discuss some subset of the total # of stories. And if we do select the Penzler book, I'd strongly suggest that.)

[issybird]

The Penzler will be fun as well as timely. I can see people dipping into it as sheer refreshment or pleasure during a frazzled run-up to the holidays. I doubt it takes the attention or concentration of Proulx, so if you've got a little time to kill (heh, I punned), pull out your phone or whatever and read a story. So pick the fun option, folks, and if you're willing to put on your traveling shoes there's a cheap way to get it.

And then Proulx might get picked next month but no one's gonna want to read Christmas stories in January!

[HarryT]

Originally Posted by issybird

no one's gonna want to read Christmas stories in January!

Orthodox Christians, who celebrate Christmas on 7th Jan?

[issybird]

Originally Posted by HarryT

Orthodox Christians, who celebrate Christmas on 7th Jan?

Well, the discussion thread won't start until January 20, so it's stale by then!

Nice cop.

[WT Sharpe]

I should have kept my mouth shut. Now they're tied!

[din155]

Originally Posted by WT Sharpe

I should have kept my mouth shut. Now they're tied!

You wanted this!

[peterwardgd]

helped.

[GA Russell]

I bought the Penzler Christmas book two years ago, and have enjoyed reading a number of the stories the past two Decembers. So I can vouch for the quality of the selections.

In regard to CRussel's point, I can't imagine anyone reading the entire volume in only one month! It's a Christmas gift to yourself that will last quite a few Decembers.

As an aside, a few years ago I decided that the Christmas season is too short for me, so I now celebrate it till the mid-January Feast of the Baptism of Jesus. Did you know that the Twelve Days of Christmas begin Dec. 25?

[HarryT]

Originally Posted by GA Russell

Did you know that the Twelve Days of Christmas begin Dec. 25?

Of course. When else would it begin?

In 567 the Council of Tours proclaimed that the entire period between Christmas and Epiphany should be considered part of the celebration, creating what became known as the twelve days of Christmas, or what the English called Christmastide. On the last of the twelve days, called Twelfth Night, various cultures developed a wide range of additional special festivities.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twelfth_Night_(holiday))

I would have thought that 1448 years would be a sufficient length of time to get the message across .

[Andie Luke]

New member, long-time lurker here.

Thought I'd pass on that The Big Book of Christmas Mysteries runs for about 5.3 USD / 4.9 Euro on Google Play Store (at least when accessed from Indonesia. Not sure if region has any bearing on pricing).

I personally didn't vote since I'm okay with either title, but it seems like many of you are interested in the book but find it cost prohibitive. Thought you'd like to know a source where it's cheaper

Be aware though that Google Play lists two editions of the book, one at around 14.3 USD / 13.15 Euro.

The link to the cheaper one is https://play.google.com/store/books/...AgAAQBAJ&hl=en

To the best of my knowledge, there is no difference in content between the two editions. At first I thought the cheaper edition is an abbreviated version of the anthology, but it has the complete list of titles when I opened the book.

For comparison purposes, it's 1225 pages in Google Play Book and 1212 when opened on my Kobo H2O. Maybe those who already own the book can confirm whether that sounds about right?

Regards,
-Andie

[pdurrant]

I've voted for the Christmas stories. Only £1.69 at Amazon UK, and it sounds great.

[HarryT]

Me too . Great value for money!

[WT Sharpe]

Originally Posted by Andie Luke

New member, long-time lurker here.

Thought I'd pass on that The Big Book of Christmas Mysteries runs for about 5.3 USD / 4.9 Euro on Google Play Store (at least when accessed from Indonesia. Not sure if region has any bearing on pricing).

I personally didn't vote since I'm okay with either title, but it seems like many of you are interested in the book but find it cost prohibitive. Thought you'd like to know a source where it's cheaper

Be aware though that Google Play lists two editions of the book, one at around 14.3 USD / 13.15 Euro.

The link to the cheaper one is https://play.google.com/store/books/...AgAAQBAJ&hl=en

To the best of my knowledge, there is no difference in content between the two editions. At first I thought the cheaper edition is an abbreviated version of the anthology, but it has the complete list of titles when I opened the book.

For comparison purposes, it's 1225 pages in Google Play Book and 1212 when opened on my Kobo H2O. Maybe those who already own the book can confirm whether that sounds about right?

Regards,
-Andie

Welcome aboard, Andie, and glad to see you no longer lurking!

Unfortunately the only copy I can access on Google Play is $15.99. It's probably a regional thing. The link you kindly provided only leads to an "Add to Wishlist" option here in the U.S.