MobileRead October 2015 Book Club Nominations

[WT Sharpe]

Originally Posted by Hamlet53

I'd like to nominate Pudd'nhead Wilson by Mark Twain (aka The Tragedy of Pudd'nhead Wilson/Those Extraordinary Twins). I recall reading this when I was probably about 16 years old. I quite enjoyed it and I think I might enjoy reading it again with it being so long since the previous read. Others here might as well I believe.

It's part a detective story, part comedy, and part social commentary.

An epub with illustrations.


A mobi with illustrations.

I'll second this one. I remember reading the old Classics Illustrated version. A fine story.

Originally Posted by issybird

I hope you don't mind that I'm going to sit on my last nomination for a bit, as I await developments. It's funny that you're nominating this, though, as it also occurred to me. It's a story that's amazingly, shockingly and sadly all too relevant today.

No problem. As it goes I wish I had not wasted one of my nominations. Might not matter anyway as The Night Life of the Gods and Kidnapped look to be the ones to beat when the vote comes. I recently reread another Robert Louis Stevenson book, The Black Arrow. Another tale of a poor orphan boy who with the help of other more powerful people (some of them real historical figures) manages to find fortune and true love in the end. I actually liked Black Arrow better, but that mainly because the setting of the War of the Roses was of more interest to me than the setting of Kidnapped.

[GA Russell]

I third Pudd'nhead Wilson.

[HomeInMyShoes]

I'm going to nominate:

The Virginian by Owen Wister. I've been wanting to read a Western or two for some time and this seems like a reasonable place to start.

Spoiler:

In the untamed West, pioneers came to test their fortunes -- and their wills. The Wyoming territory was a harsh, unforgiving land, with its own unwritten code of honor by which men lived and died. Into this rough landscape rides the Virginian, a solitary man whose unbending will is his only guide through life. The Virginian's unwavering beliefs in right and wrong are soon tested as he tries to prove his love for a woman who cannot accept his sense of justice; at the same time, a betrayal by his most trusted friend forces him to fight against the corruption that rules the land. Still as exciting and meaningful as it was when first published one hundred years ago, Owen Wister's epic tale of a man caught between his love for a woman and his quest for justice exemplifies one of the most significant and enduring themes in all of American literature. With remarkable character depth and vivid passages, "The Virginian" stands not only as the first great novel of American Western literature, but as a testament to the eternal struggle between good and evil in humanity. With an engaging new introduction by Gary Scharnhorst, professor of English at the University of New Mexico, this volume is an indispensable addition to the library of American Western literature.

[HomeInMyShoes]

Originally Posted by GA Russell

I third Pudd'nhead Wilson.

Thanks. That saves me a nomination.

[CRussel]

What a great idea, HomeInMyShoes. I haven't had an excuse to read a western, it might be fun. I'll second The Virginian, and here's a couple of links that actually work for it: ePub Mobi

But you've inspired me, and I'm also going to nominate the absolute classic of the genre: Zane Grey's very first Western: Riders of the Purple Sage.
Dr. Drib's Description:

Spoiler:

"Riders of the Purple Sage, published in 1912, was Zane Grey's first best-selling novel of the many he was eventually to pen. It has never been out of print, is a solid entry in the canon of American literature and is considered one of the best Westerns ever written, if not the best of them all."

There's only an LRF version up in the PCML, but I'm sure we can all manage to convert with Calibre, or one of us can upload a couple of conversions. I've never read this, and yet it's perhaps the best known and most read of the entire genre. Should be fun!

[Dazrin]

I will third The Virginian and The Haunted House.

[GA Russell]

Because the library is named after her, I decided to search the books Patricia posted. Quite a list! I have decided on one I have wanted to read for years.

Lord of the World by Robert Hugh Benson.

Kindle
https://www.mobileread.com/forums/showthread.php?t=18146

ePub
https://www.mobileread.com/forums/showthread.php?t=46256


From a review by Joseph Pearce:

‘[Lord of the World] is truly remarkable and deserves to stand beside Huxley's Brave New World and Orwell's Nineteen Eighty-Four as a classic of dystopian fiction. In fact, though Huxley's and Orwell's modern masterpieces may merit equal praise as works of literature, they are clearly inferior as works of prophecy. The political dictatorships that gave Orwell's novel-nightmare an ominous potency have had their day. Today, his cautionary fable serves merely as a timely reminder of what has been and what may be again if the warnings of history are not heeded. Benson's novel-nightmare, on the other hand, is coming true before our very eyes.

[issybird]

Originally Posted by CRussel

What a great idea, HomeInMyShoes. I haven't had an excuse to read a western, it might be fun. I'll second The Virginian, and here's a couple of links that actually work for it: ePub Mobi

But you've inspired me, and I'm also going to nominate the absolute classic of the genre: Zane Grey's very first Western: Riders of the Purple Sage.
Dr. Drib's Description:

Spoiler:

"Riders of the Purple Sage, published in 1912, was Zane Grey's first best-selling novel of the many he was eventually to pen. It has never been out of print, is a solid entry in the canon of American literature and is considered one of the best Westerns ever written, if not the best of them all."

There's only an LRF version up in the PCML, but I'm sure we can all manage to convert with Calibre, or one of us can upload a couple of conversions. I've never read this, and yet it's perhaps the best known and most read of the entire genre. Should be fun!

It doesn't preclude its nomination, but you might be interested in the discussion thread for a group read of Riders of the Purple Sage from a few years ago.

[issybird]

I'll second Lord of the World.

[din155]

I'll third Lord of the World.

[sun surfer]

Some great nominations already. My contribution is Cranford by Elizabeth Gaskell. I haven't read anything from her yet but I'd like to and this one is appealing because of the gently satirical glimpse into the various lives of an ordinary little 19th century country town. While checking I was surprised to learn that not only has Gaskell never won a month here, she's never even been nominated before.

From Goodreads:

'It is very pleasant dinning with a bachelor...I only hope it is not improper; so many pleasant things are!'

A portrait of the residents of an English country town in the mid nineteenth century, Cranford relates the adventures of Miss Matty and Miss Deborah, two middle-aged spinster sisters striving to live with dignity in reduced circumstances. Through a series of vignettes, Elizabeth Gaskell portrays a community governed by old-fashioned habits and dominated by friendships between women. Her wry account of rural life is undercut, however, by tragedy in its depiction of such troubling events as Matty's bankruptcy, the violent death of Captain Brown or the unwitting cruelty of Peter Jenkyns. Written with acute observation, Cranford is by turns affectionate, moving and darkly satirical.


Goodreads
Kindle version from Patricia herself
ePub version from AlexBell

[bfisher]

I'll second Cranford.

[fantasyfan]

I'll second Riders of the Purple Sage.

[JSWolf]

I'll third Riders of the Purple Sage.