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Originally Posted by JSWolf
I've advocated for the nominations and voting to be a month ahead just so we can nominate large books and have the time to read. Also, it can give us time to get the books from Overdrive since the wait list can be too long for a regular month.
There is another option. Just do all the nominating/voting in January and there you go for the year.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by issybird
I think overall people would prefer books that weren't a huge time commitment in any case, especially if we'd like to entice people out of their comfort zone. I take your point about OverDrive; I'm usually pretty lucky when it comes to getting a book when the alternatives are pricey, but this month while I'm on a few waiting lists for Sapiens, I won't get it in time for the discussion.
I think your alternative option is a non-starter. Too much work for Tom in particular and everyone in general, for one thing. I think it would cut down on participation, also. By year-end, early voters might have moved on while people who joined the club after the vote are disenfranchised.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by JSWolf
OK, we can scrap my second suggestion. But I do think my first suggestion (nominations/voting one month ahead) would work and it would still give people the ability to participate. Also, I do think price can be an issue and given that a lot of libraries have gone to 3-week borrow with auto checkout, the chances of getting a book before the discussion can be slim to none. I liked it better when it was 2-weeks with no auto-checkout. That meant less time for the borrow and if the person missed borrowing, it moved on to the next person instead of being borrowed. Also, I don't like the fact that accounts are set to the maximum borrow period automatically. And I think most people don't return when they finish. They just leave it and let it expire.
I think my first suggestion would mean that large books could be nominated without getting dissed for being too long.
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Good to scrap that second suggestion. All sorts of problems with it.
As far as trying to put the nominations and vote a month early I'm not sure that would accomplish much. Are there many people who would need two months to read a book and are willing to devote that entire period to reading just that one book? Better that consideration of book length be given in nominating and voting for a book. I read The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich many years ago, sometime in the period of junior high to high school. That's so long ago that I could not really hope to participate with any serious analysis of that particular book without reading it again. Not really inclined to do that since it is on a subject that is so well known, unlike most of the other potential selections mentioned so far. It would not get my vote for sure.
As far and price and availability issues raised. Well for one thing I would mention that even when an ebook is very pricey or is difficult to get almost any book is still available in paper. And likely available though ones library system. Or at a used book store. For over 400 years printed books served people well. However, if one must have the book as an ebook, and that at a reasonable price, than both considerations should be considered in ones voting.
As far as observations about Overdrive .. . . I agree with much of what you said. I disliked the switch to auto- checkout, though that can be disabled at the time of placing a hold. I like to be informed by email when the book becomes available. I will check it out right away. Sometimes I put books on hold on speculation. For example the books nominated for October. I placed holds on all those that were available to me through Overdrive on first nomination. As soon as the final book was selected I just canceled all those other holds. With the automatic checkout option if I had forgotten to do that I might have needlessly tied up a book for the standard checkout period at some later point.