New Leaf Welcome to the New Leaf Book Club

[Catlady]

Originally Posted by gmw

One book I know you know that would fit is The Alice Network by Kate Quinn. There are at least three stories being revealed here: Charlie's, Eve's and Rose's. In addition to the fictional story layers there are the real historical events and figures that Quinn has used as the framework - more than just framework, they are integral to the fiction. And there are multiple moral and ethical dimensions to this story as well.

Haven't read it yet myself, but that example does help; thanks.

The book I had in mind at the time this theme came up was The Great Wheel by Ian R. MacLeod. It's sci-fi, so isn't likely to gain your interest, Catlady, but when I got to the end of the book I could tell there had been things going on that I had missed, and I'd have loved to be able to talk it over with others who had read it. Curiously, I'm not even sure how much I liked the book, it just seemed like one I wanted to talk about. So I'm not going to complain if people decide to nominate a book on just such nebulous grounds as: this is one I want to talk about.

I looked it up at Fantastic Fiction. You're right, not my thing. I am mildly puzzled about the disconnect between the cover and the blurb.

[gmw]

Originally Posted by Catlady

[...] I looked it up at Fantastic Fiction. You're right, not my thing. I am mildly puzzled about the disconnect between the cover and the blurb.

Even after reading the book the cover makes no sense. It's a JABberwocky Literary Agency, Inc publication, and I have found them a bit iffy in their editing quality and their cover designs. On the other hand, they tend to be fairly cheap - which is convenient when you find they publish an author you like (as I do MacLeod).

[issybird]

The November nomination thread is up.

[Victoria]

Originally Posted by gmw

It's sci-fi, so isn't likely to gain your interest, Catlady, but when I got to the end of the book I could tell there had been things going on that I had missed, and I'd have loved to be able to talk it over with others who had read it. Curiously, I'm not even sure how much I liked the book, it just seemed like one I wanted to talk about. So I'm not going to complain if people decide to nominate a book on just such nebulous grounds as: this is one I want to talk about.

GmwI had to smile reading this. I found myself separating nominations into distinct categories as well: ’books I like’, vs ’books I’d like to talk about’. Surprisingly, liking a book doesn’t seem essential to whether or not I’d enjoy having the club discuss it.

[issybird]

Originally Posted by Victoria

GmwI had to smile reading this. I found myself separating nominations into distinct categories as well: ’books I like’, vs ’books I’d like to talk about’. Surprisingly, liking a book doesn’t seem essential to whether or not I’d enjoy having the club discuss it.

Oh! How I agree with this! The most important thing is a good discussion; I can read books I like on my own. In a way, it's almost the point; I'll get more out of discussing a book I would never have chosen for myself.

[Bookpossum]

Yes, I agree too. And very often a book which people don't like (or some do and some don't) gives a much better discussion than one that makes everyone feel warm and fuzzy.

[Catlady]

But the trouble is that you don't know ahead of time that a book is something you'll want to discuss.

[issybird]

All you can do is take your best shot.

[CRussel]

Originally Posted by gmw

The book I had in mind at the time this theme came up was The Great Wheel by Ian R. MacLeod. It's sci-fi, so isn't likely to gain your interest, Catlady, but when I got to the end of the book I could tell there had been things going on that I had missed, and I'd have loved to be able to talk it over with others who had read it. Curiously, I'm not even sure how much I liked the book, it just seemed like one I wanted to talk about. So I'm not going to complain if people decide to nominate a book on just such nebulous grounds as: this is one I want to talk about.

Originally Posted by Victoria

GmwI had to smile reading this. I found myself separating nominations into distinct categories as well: ’books I like’, vs ’books I’d like to talk about’. Surprisingly, liking a book doesn’t seem essential to whether or not I’d enjoy having the club discuss it.

Originally Posted by issybird

Oh! How I agree with this! The most important thing is a good discussion; I can read books I like on my own. In a way, it's almost the point; I'll get more out of discussing a book I would never have chosen for myself.

While I do try to filter my selections to books that will be good discussions, it's not the most important determinant. It really has to be a book I'm interested in reading, or that I really enjoyed reading and want to encourage other club members to give a try of it.

[gmw]

Originally Posted by Catlady

But the trouble is that you don't know ahead of time that a book is something you'll want to discuss.

Because I enjoy re-reading, I had been mostly nominating books I already knew - so I did know ahead of time. I've come away from that a bit now which does make it harder. Oh well, that only leaves issybird's advice ... and, anyway, remember that others have to vote for the book before it is selected, so the blame gets distributed.

[Bookpossum]

Originally Posted by gmw

Because I enjoy re-reading, I had been mostly nominating books I already knew - so I did know ahead of time. I've come away from that a bit now which does make it harder. Oh well, that only leaves issybird's advice ... and, anyway, remember that others have to vote for the book before it is selected, so the blame gets distributed.

Quite right: we all shoulder a part of the blame!

[Victoria]

So no more “what if they all hate it?” That’s a relief

[astrangerhere]

Originally Posted by Victoria

So no more “what if they all hate it?” That’s a relief

It's kind of amusing, actually. A few of my nominations that have won have been roundly detested by the group.

[issybird]

Originally Posted by astrangerhere

It's kind of amusing, actually. A few of my nominations that have won have been roundly detested by the group.

I'm going to quibble with the phrase "roundly detested." I don't think there's been a selection that has been either universally liked or disliked, much less detested. Of course I say that as the person who nominated The Three Musketeers! (For the record, I loved it. )

I'm going to add, though, that I'm not sure much purpose is served by trying to ascertain after the fact whether people liked a book or whether it was a good choice, or by taking ownership of a selection. If there was a good discussion, that's sufficient. If not, there could have been a lot of factors involved. And frequently, even if someone ended up not liking a book, it doesn't mean that they're not glad to have read it and didn't enjoy the discussion.

Sorry, I'll get off my soapbox now.

Somewhat along these lines, in the course of checking on my review of an earlier selection, I recently noted that in 2018, my Goodreads ratings for the NLBC selections ran the gamut, from one star* to five stars with all the stars in between as well. In 2019, on the other hand, my ratings have been uniformly three stars or four stars (three stars is a good rating from me). I should check my yearly averages, just for amusement, but to me it says that while I haven't hit the stratosphere or plumbed the depths this year, my overall level of satisfaction has been very good indeed. Ah, I see my average for this year for the NLBC is ahead of my overall average for the year, of books I picked for myself!

*This was only once and it was because of special circumstances.

[Victoria]

Originally Posted by astrangerhere

It's kind of amusing, actually. A few of my nominations that have won have been roundly detested by the group.

Originally Posted by issybird

...... If there was a good discussion, that's sufficient. If not, there could have been a lot of factors involved. And frequently, even if someone ended up not liking a book, it doesn't mean that they're not glad to have read it and didn't enjoy the discussion.

Sorry, I'll get off my soapbox now. .

Not a soapbox, and definitely true for me so far. I didn’t enjoy Soseki‘s book, but the background shared in the discussion thread and linked resources were fantastic. They opened up a world I would never have been exposed to, and broadened my empathy and appreciation for the author. Vive la différence .