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Location: SC, USA | Thoughts about Outside the Norm Forum In the comments to my last Outside the Norm blog, Emil proposed an Outside the Norm online class. I countered with the idea of an Outside the Norm forum/discussion group. I’ve been thinking about it for a couple of days, and I think that we could do something really cool in the WWE Forum if we all read (or re-read) and discussed the same book. This could work like a physical book club, except for the wine and the cheese on sticks. Here’s what I’m thinking: All who want to participate could nominate a book that they feel is outside the F and SF norm (see below for notes on this) and the members could vote on a dozen books or so. (Maybe Dave could set up a poll like the ones for the GMRC reviews). The person who nominated the book would be responsible for leading the discussion on that book, since we will assume that he or she has read it before. We could reserve 2 weeks to read the book and two weeks to discuss; then we could move on to the next one. We could probably work up a list of the first dozen books by the end of July and be reading book 1 by August. When I decided to do the Outside the Norm blog, I wanted to read not just female SF writers (although that was an important part of it). I was also interested in reading non-US, non-UK writers. The following writers were on my list: Nnedi Okorafor, Nalo Hopkinson, Hannu Rajaniemi, Doris Lessing, Ben Okri, Bharati Mukherjee, and Karen Lord. So far, I’ve only managed to read a couple of these authors. I started with a couple of Margaret Atwood books that I’d had for a while. That experience made me think more about the question of genre. So, I branched out a bit in my thinking and have written about novels that many readers would call capital “L” literature. I think they offer the same reading experiences as the best F and SF. These are the types of issues that I’d like to explore/discuss. So… who’s in? What do you think about the plan?
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Location: UK | It sounds interesting. I like to read outside the genre, but quite often read only just outside the genre (for instance, some of Iain Banks' non-SF is still fantastic).
Where I might struggle is with committing the time to read. There is always a lot I want to read, and I'm always going to be in the middle of something else. I'd be willing to give it a try, though.
Edited by DrNefario 2012-06-19 7:34 AM
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Location: Dallas, Texas | Rhondak101 - 2012-06-18 2:37 PM ... This could work like a physical book club, except for the wine and the cheese on sticks. Blessed are the cheese makers. (Maybe Dave could set up a poll like the ones for the GMRC reviews). I'd be very glad to help in any way I can. So… who’s in? What do you think about the plan? I don't think I'll be able to commit to taking part unfortunately. I'm way behind in my GMRC and we're trying to get a bunch of stuff done on the site for WorldCon so I'm not getting much reading done as it is. I think it's a great idea though and would love to participate if I could. Anybody else?
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Location: Grootfontein, Namibia | Yeh, I'll do it. Time is the major constraint, considering all the various reading projects at hand. A second challenge for me might be the availability of books. It might take a few weeks for a book to arrive, and often the kindle edition isn't available in my region. Nonetheless, I'm in! |
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| Rhonda, a group read sounds like a great idea if we can pull it off. Like DrNefario, I always have a big stack of stuff I'm reading, so the lead time you suggest works well for me.
There are so many, many possibilities!!
It's hard to limit my nominations, but I'll try. Two favorites of mine are Albanian literary heavyweight Ismail Kadare's Palace of Dreams (1981, 208 pages), a Kafkaesque story of a bureaucratic functionary working to sort and analyze the dreams of the citizens of a totalitarian state, and Canadian-American Rivka Galchen's (daughter of Israeli emigrants) much ballyhooed Atmospheric Disturbances (2008, 256 pages), which is about a psychiatrist who's wife has been replaced by a near-perfect doppelganger while at the same time he's been receiving coded messages from a secretive organization about weather control. Is he insane, or just what's going on here?
A couple of books that I haven't read, but would like to are Dutch author's Cees Nooteboom's (another literary heavyweight) The Following Story (1991, 115 pages), a story about a man who wakes up dislocated in time and space, while Russian Ludmilla Petrushevskaya's There Once Lived a Woman Who Tried to Kill Her Neighbor's Baby: Scary Fairy Tales (2009, 224 pages) is fairly self explanatory.
A handful of other names: Angela Carter, Vladimir Nabokov, Mikhail Bulgakov, Italo Calvino, Jose Saramago, Kobo Abe, Jorge Borges, Victor Pelevin, Hilary Mantel, Alfred Jarry, Raymond Queneau, Edith Wharton, Felipe Alfau, Osamu Dazai, Julio Cortazar, Naguib Mahfouz, Arturo Perez-Reverte, Stanislaw Ignacy Witkiewicz, Witold Gombrowicz, Roberto Bolano, Michal Ajvaz, Toni Morrison, Joyce Carol Oates, David Mitchell, Cormac McCarthy, Haruki Murakami, David Foster Wallace, Don DeLillo, Robert Coover, Isabel Allende, Scarlett Thomas, Wendy Walker, Junot Diaz, Brooks Hansen, Stephen Fry, Bruno Schulz, Kathy Acker, as well as more genre-centric names such as Kelly Link, Stanislaw Lem, Mark Z. Danielewski, Margo Lanagan, Catherynne M. Valente, Jean-Christophe Valtat. Well, as you can see, I could go on and on and on... 
Quality fantasy and science fiction needn't rely on swords and spaceships... |
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Location: Dallas, Texas | @Engelbrecht: That's a huge list! I was going to say that the Guardian List on the site would be a good source of books for this reading group. Many of those are certainly Outside the Norm and the list includes several of the authors you mention, If you pick from the list you can tag them as you go too. 
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Location: SC, USA | @Emil, Engelbrecht and Dave, I like the Guardian list idea for a start. There are several books on the list that I'd like to read and this could make the choosing procedure easier. The main point here is to generate conversations about books. If this goes well, then we could take a bit more time to build an International list with the authors that Engelbrecht mentioned and the Icelandic author that Charlesdee mentioned in the blog comments.
So maybe the folks that are interested could nominate a list of 5 to 10 books from the Guardian list and we could start building a list of books that most of us have not read already from there.
Here's my shortlist (modified somewhat to accommodate some books that Engelbrecht has not read!)
Auster In the Country of Last Things
Bugakov The Master and the Margarita (I think this is the only one that Engelbrecht has read)
Lessing Memoirs of a Survivor
Laski The Victorian Chaise-Longue
Walser Institute Benjamenta (Jakob von Gunten)
Warner Lolly Willowes
Okri The Famished Road
Moorcook Mother London
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Location: UK | Sorry I cant take part.I have no less 78 books in all genres on my TBR pile for challenges/group reads on Shelfari for the rest of this year.I am just starting back in SF after a 20 year break,and its going to take years to just catch up on the award books.Not too keen on the literary fiction side anyway,but I will try to follow the posts and contribute if possible.
I was wondering why you dont have a general ''what are you reading this month'' sort of thread.It always generates a bit chat,as other readers of the book can give a quick comment without feeling intimidated by erudite discussions of books they havent read.Such a thread pretty much runs itself(Dave, and the rest of his great team , do NOT need more work ! lol)
To make the site more friendly you need a sort of general thread,named ''Rantamania'' or ''The Good,the Bad,and the Ugly'' or the like,just for general comments,random thoughts,annoying things you have come across,questions,recommendations and the like.People who would hesitate on setting up a whole new thread for one trivial comment are much more likely to participate that way.This site is absolutely fantastic on the factual side,I never cease to be amazed by the sheer amount of work that has gone into it,but it could sure be more user friendly. |
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Location: Grootfontein, Namibia | @Rhondak101 I think for now I'll follow yours and @Engelbrecht's lead and adjust my reading to what you suggest. I would like to read a little more Russian sf, though.
@Dusty I don't mind the literary sf at all. In fact, these are the ones that tend to become my favorites. Your idea about a "What are you reading now" is a good one. I list what I'm reading in Booktracker, and than often think, Hell what now. Does anybody else care? Do they even take a look
I think what I'm missing from my sf foray since 2010 is a little more engagement with other readers. WWEnd has given me a lot of it, but it would be really nice if we could get this forum even more active. (Come to think of it, without WWEnd, my SF reading would probably remained in a 20 year hiatus ) |
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Location: Grootfontein, Namibia | I came across Michael Cisco. Quite a few people have mentioned him among a list of brilliant authors, but who are lesser known. At some point he won the International Horror Guild Award. Horror, but of the literary kind |
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| @Rhonda & Dave: The Guardian list sounds like a fine great place to start. Any of the books that Rhonda mentioned are fine with me - I'm easy! The Bulgakov would be fine as well, if we wanted to do a Russian book for Emil. It's a great book! A few more list that I might add from the Guardian are:
Nights at the Circus by Angela Carter
The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson
Blindness by Jose Saramago
@dustydigger: How in the world did you ever leave SF for 20 years?!  I've had my own absences here and there over the years, but nothing like that. BTW, welcome, and thanks for your "reading this month" idea - I'll be posting there soon.
@Emil: I like Cisco - his The Divinity Student (1988) was excellent, but for some reason I liked his The Traitor (2007) less well. I keep meaning to read more of his work, but just haven't gotten around to it. For Russian SF, I can't recommend Victor Pelevin highly enough. Some "Russianesque" books I've recently enjoyed that you might like are Heart of Iron and The Secret History of Moscow by Ekaterina Sedia, Deathless by Catherynne M. Valente, and Yellow Blue Tibia by Adam Roberts. |
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Location: UK | I know zilch about Russian Sf,apart from Solaris,which was far too long for me,and of course the Strugatskys' Roadside Picnic.In fantasy I have read the Night Watch sequence,but that was vampires,urban fantasy.Do I see lips curling? lol
I lived in Uganda under the tyranny of Idi Amin throughout the 70's,no libraries or bookshops.On return I was like a kid in a sweetshop,all the books in the libraries were new to me.Crime novels were my favourite genre,and I would return from the library panting under a massive pile of books.It was great! However,I found it much more difficult in the SF area.I was unfamiliar with the scene,and was disconcerted by the sheer amount of fantasy on the library shelves.What little SF there was either very hard,or Piers Anthony and Star Trek! lol.Tried Stephen Donaldson,almost lost the will to live..Slowly I built up a few favourite authors,Cherryh,Bujold,,Le Guin.but all the old guard I had enjoyed,the Grand Master,had disappeared from the shelves of my little library-only six shelves of books! Then in the 90s I got into Urban Fantasy (yes Eric,lots of vampires,many of them a little bit sparkly! ) It was only this year that I decided to branch out in my reading,and I am participating in a challenge,where I have to read 12 books from each of 12 different genres,and found myself really enjoying the SF thread.By pure chance found this site,and loved it.Next year,after fulfilling all my present challenges,I will be able to read more in this genre-but must confess,not a lot of the heavy or literary stuff,I like pure fluff and riproaring adventure all the way.Got to admit ,I am starting with the earliest Hugos.Could be 5 years before I get up to todays stuff! |
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Location: SC, USA | @ Engelbrecht and Emil
Im certainly up to read some Russians. Ive wanted to read Yevgeny Zamyatins We for a while. I think that Engelbrecht has read it (therefore, I left it off the list.) Emil, you dont have it marked. Have you read it?
I suggest that we start with 6 books. (If we can start in July, that takes us to December, and we can decide if we want to continue, or formalize, maybe more readers will join after other book challenges are completed.)
So:
July: A novel by Pelevin that Engelbrect and Emil decide upon. I have not read any, so Im good with anything you both pick
August: Ben Okri, The Famished Road
September: Saramago, Blindness
October: Bulgakov, The Master and the Margarita
November: Lessing, Memoirs of a Survivor
December: Carter, Nights at the Circus
Do you want to make any substitutions? I cool with it if you do. Anyone else want to play?
Rhonda
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Location: Grootfontein, Namibia | @Engelbrecht @Rhonda I haven't read We" and always wanted to. It keeps popping up on lists. So, this could be one option, but Engelbrecht has read it already. I've never come across Pelevin, but it does look a mouthwatering proposition. Maybe we can start with his first, "Om on Ra"?
http://www.amazon.com/Om-Ra-Victor-Pelevin/dp/0374225923/ref=sr_1_3...
At least it has an English translation.
It seems I'll be able to get some of the rest locally, and the remainder simply through Amazon and/or Kindle - I'm hopeful that the dollar does not gain too much on the South African rand
6 is a good start and going until December does allow me the time to obtain and read them all. And even we don't discuss them, it's a good list to read anyways!
(Now to convince @Dave to add the chosen ones to WWEnd!) |
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Location: UK | I've been meaning to read We for a while, too. It's included in Wildside's uber-anthology Sense of Wonder, but is possibly abridged.
I think the Bulgakov is out of copyright, although translations might not be.
Edited by DrNefario 2012-06-22 1:38 PM
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Location: Gunnison, Colorado | Lately I've been focusing more on "core" SF and fantasy, after not reading much of it since the '80s, when my tastes became more "literary" [square quotes!]. So I have read quite a few of the authors mentioned here pretty recently: I'm a huge Murakami fan, for example, and I went through a Lessing phase at one point. (I read Memoirs of a Survivor, but honestly can't remember it right now, so would be glad to look at it again, and I'd be curious how you all react to Shikasta.) I've also read lots of DeLillo and Lethem (who I don't think has been mentioned yet), but you're steering clear of the English-speaking white guys, I believe. It's hard to resist this discussion group, so I'd like to give it a shot. Rhonda's six selections look interesting. I'm unfamiliar with the first two (finding new things would be part of the point of doing something like this), but the other four are on my "long list" to read at some point. I'd also like to read "We" someday, and "Herland" is currently on my shortlist to read for the fantasy blog. If it works out for the long haul, I'd also be very interested in trying Calvino, Lem, Shirley Jackson, Gwyneth Jones, and Atwood. Joanna Russ, Samuel Delany, and Le Guin are all favorites (and along with Dusty, I'm a big C. J. Cherryh fan!).
@Engelbrecht: I've read most of Edith Wharton's work. I love Edith Wharton. But... Edith Wharton? |
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Location: SC, USA | @Scott. Thanks for checking in. I want to read almost everyone you mentioned including the white guys I'm also wanting to read more Auster. i loved his New York Trilogy and Leviathan has been on my TBR pile for more than a year. I have Murakami on my mental TBR list. I keep bumping into him. When I started this blog series I planned to read more of the mothers of SF: Le Guin, Tiptree, Russ, Wilhelm and then move to Butler and Delany, but I took a detour somewhere/how. I think reading books that I already owned or were available at my college library sent me in different directions. I went through a Calvino phase in the late 80s, early 90s. I think I read almost all his books translated into English. I don't think I could find a couple of them. I think Invisible Cities is one of the most beautiful texts I've ever written. I try to reread it every few years. |
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Location: SC, USA | I didn't edit enough. *read not written. |
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| Rhonda, your list sounds great! I wouldn't mind rereading We - it's been decades since I read it. Oman Ra is a terrific novel. I hope we all really enjoy it.
I've read some Calvino and liked it, and have recently decided to read more. My excellent local library has one of his books waiting for me. Stanislaw Lem is fantastic! I've read almost twenty of his books and have two of his on my very short favorites list (BTW, Lem is Polish, not Russian). I've read Lessing's Briefing for A Descent into Hell and liked it, but never got around to the Shikasta series.
@Scott Yes, Edith Wharton:The Ghost Stories of Edith Wharton @dustydigger: Uganda sounds like a terrifying experience - no wonder you're drawn to the lighter side of genre? Have you read Barbara Hambly or Spider Robinson's Callahan books? Fluffy and fun! Jo Walton's Tooth and Claw might work for you as well, as might Nina Kiriki Hoffman or Walter Moers or Martha Wells.
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Location: Grootfontein, Namibia | Thanks @Engelbrecht, I think I'll read "We" and "Oman Ra" and "The Divinity Student" anyways. I'm a little ahead on the GMRC so I'll have the time to sneak in something else. If I can let go of Darkover for a while - I'm fully entrenched in the series |
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Location: SC, USA | Okay, I like this. "Oman Ra" for July and "We" for November or December? We can add Lem to the possible for later list.
@Engelbrecht, The Ghost Stories of Edith Warton sounds very cool. I'd love to hear a review of that one. |
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| @ Rhonda, sounds good! Um, just what does "July" mean? Time flies when you're having fun, and I see that July is already just around the corner... I haven't read Wharton's ghost stories, but they're on my list... @Emil, The Divinity Student is a perfect quickie read - only 149 pages! What is it about the Darkover books that has you ensnared? I've never read any of them, having been put off by both the length of the series and the fact that I was underwhelmed by Bradley's "masterpiece", The Mists of Avalon.
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Location: Grootfontein, Namibia | @Engelbrecht I can't really place it. It's just fun, in a non-literary way. Adventurous. It may be the psychological elements that captured me, or just the fact that I'm reading outside the scope of my usual preference, hard-sf, and come to enjoy the escape science-fantasy provides. The Darkover world is technology poor but rich in its ability to harness the psi powers of the human brain, such as telepathy and telekinesis. Bradley's re-imagination of gender roles and ignorance of gender stereotypes is also quite appealing. All these are interesting subjects to a Jung(ian) 
Of course, such a vast canon cannot consistently deliver quality, so I do experience moments of horrid romantic melodrama, but this is generally overshadowed by the depth of the Darkover culture, typically medieval, and the physic powers are really well-described and defined. It's a planetary romance, so it may not be to everyone's taste.
I believe a television series is in the making, or sanctioned.
All in all just fun and I take it at face-value. (I won't read the books not written by MZB, or those written "with xyz." |
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| @Emil, How far have you gotten in the series? For some reason, when you described Darkover, Norton's Witch Worlds books came to mind, even though it doesn't sound like there are too many parallels. I won't read the books not written by MZB, or those written "with xyz." I hate those kind of books! They're right up there with the "In the tradition of xyz" books. Usually horrible, LCD fare, at least from what little I've read!
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Location: UK | Its not so common in SF,but its rife in other genresThere was a romance writer,Virginia Andrews,who started writing collaborations with Andrew Niederman as V.C.Andrews.She died in 1988,but books are still being churned out under the V C Andrews name! About 60 altogether.Talk about cynical ripoff-and tacky,very tacky.
In the crime genre James Patterson is notorious for his ''collaberations''Apparently he does a plot outline,and his ''collaborator'' does the actual writing.And the books,with James Patterson written in huge letters sell millions of copies. |
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Location: Grootfontein, Namibia | @Engelbrecht I'm ashamed to say I'm not far into the series yet. I've finished "The Planet Saver" and "The Sword of Albones." I'm now reading "The Bloody Sun" but a 40-th birthday celebration interfered with finishing it last night. I've planned to read one a day, perhaps over two days. Some of the books are very short, 50 and 100 pages, and does read relatively quickly. Some of the books are merely a collection of short stories, often not even written by MZB, so those I'm probably not going to read. Knowing this does significantly shorten the list for a completest *phew
Who knows, after a few more I might very well lose interest, but so far, it's a blast. I may decide to jump ahead and read the two or three that are sequels in a specific storyline, but generally the novels are predominantly stand-alone. They do jump between Darkover's historical landscape. Many commentators, like Jo Walton, do suggest one reads it according to publication date as there is marked improvement and maturing development in MZB writing style.
I do understand and relate to the Darkover fandom's assertion that MZB is a much underrated SF/F narrator. |
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| @dustydigger, Yikes! - zombie author!! I can't think of much in the way of SF house names, except for Victor Appleton, the Tom Swift "author". Interestingly, in looking at Wikipedia, I noticed that the name of the taser was was an homage to a Tom Swift device!!! BTW, did you notice my belated "fluffy" recommendations above - I hope they're of some interest. @Emil! Congrats on the big 40!!!! I've been somewhat interested in reading Darkover, but I'm a series purist, so reading through to the apparent highlights - Sword of Aldones (#2, Hugo Nom), The Heritage of Hastur (#9, Nebula Nom), and The Forbidden Tower (#11, Hugo Nom) has always felt like a bit much. Maybe someday...
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Location: Grootfontein, Namibia | @Engelbrecht, ooh, the 40 wasn't me. That was 5 years ago. This time round it was my sister-in-law's.
I'll be crunching in a few Darkovers for the next week or so and then jump into reading for "Outside the Norm." Are we in agreement that @Rhonda's proposed list is a start? |
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Location: SC, USA | Engelbrect and Emil, What did I mean by July? Do you think we could all find a copy of Oman Ra (I've seen various spellings), read it, and have a discussion by the end of July? That seems doable for me, but I'm still on summer break! |
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Location: UK | @ Engelbrecht.Good old Victor Appleton! That house name went on for years,didnt it? I see there are some Tom Swift tales on Project Gutenberg.I promised a member of one of my groups that I would read some of his ''golden oldies'',including Tom Swift.He has the most amazing collection of old 30s and 40s junior books,westerns,and science fiction.All the Barsoom series in the wonderful 30s covers.Tom Swift, Hardy boys,almost every Max Brand he ever wrote etc.I love surfing his shelf looking at all these cute,nostalgic covers.I promised I would read some of that old stuff,and havent got round to it.Thats all I need,developing an interest in 30s pulp.You know,just in case I am at a loose end,with nothing to read.After all,I only have 123 books on my TBR for the rest of this year ...... |
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Location: Gunnison, Colorado | I ordered a copy of Oman Ra from Amazon with not trouble (in the U.S.). According to the description, it's 160 pages, so not too time consuming... I can do it in July, but would be happy to wait if not everyone can join in that soon...
@Engelbrecht. I read Wharton's complete stories around the late '80s or early '90s. For some reason I don't remember ghost stories, but that was a long time ago! I would think, as with most of her work, they're along the lines of Henry James, whose ambiguous supernatural/psychological stories are among my favorites... |
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Location: Gunnison, Colorado | Oh, and on the subject of mutltiple-author series, I've been reading up on Jack Vance lately, and apparently he wrote a few novels as "Ellery Queen." |
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Location: SC, USA | Omon Ra and The Master and the Margarita came in today. Omon Ra is 154 pages with large print, so I should be able to read it fairly quickly. The Master and the Margarita looks really interesting. It looks like a scholarly edition with commentary notes and an afterword. I'm looking forward to this project.
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Location: Florida | Oh good god. I overlooked this thread until just now. Has a schedule for this group read actually been solidified? It sounds like Omon Ra is short enough that I can catch up pretty quickly if need be. Let me know and you can count me in too! |
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Location: SC, USA | Jeremy, No worries. I just got Omon Ra yesterday and Emil will not have his copy for a while. We have this planned so far:
uly: A novel by Pelevin that Engelbrect and Emil decide upon. I have not read any, so Im good with anything you both pick
August: Ben Okri, The Famished Road
September: Saramago, Blindness
October: Bulgakov, The Master and the Margarita
We originally had Lessing, Memoirs of a Survivor for November and Carter, Nights at the Circus for December, but I think we are going to read Zamyatin's We instead. So please voice your opinion on that one and propose any others that you might want to add in the new year.
Welcome!
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Location: Grootfontein, Namibia | It's going to take about 15-25 days to get the books delivered to me, so I will also need to catch up. I just can't see my way clear to pay double the books total for postage to South Africa, so they are taking the long, slow route via the waves. In the meantime, as I fall behind, I'll catch the discussions, which I'm sure will add a delightful dimension to my reading when I am able to start.
@Dave, if you can and want to and should really because it will be  to add Oman Ra to the database, please would you? |
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Location: Dallas, Texas | Emil - 2012-07-10 10:06 AM @Dave, if you can and want to and should really because it will be to add Oman Ra to the database, please would you? I will gladly add all the books you guys pick for this discussion to the database. No worries.
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Location: Florida | Okay, so it sounds like Omon Ra was the choice for July. I'll grab that on amazon tonight. As for suggestions for further reading... I'll give that some thought first...There are a few on the Guardian list that I'd be interested in. |
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Location: Grootfontein, Namibia | Hey everyone, I'm very happy to go with @Rhonda's suggestions.
I've ordered: Oman Ra, The Famished Road, Blindness, The Master and Margarita, Memoirs of a Survivor, Nights at the Circus and We. Even if we don't get to all of them, it's still an impressive Outside the Norm collection for my ... err ... collection
And if we decide on reading something else because of other suggestions, well, I'll just go ahead and order those as well!!
Nuts! My therapist says so
I may only be able to contribute fully in August as it will take the remainder of July for delivery.
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Location: Gunnison, Colorado | Is it time to set a date to begin? |
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Location: Grootfontein, Namibia | @Scott, yes. Now?
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Location: SC, USA | Scott, now-ish is fine. I will start reading soon probably by the end of the week. Emil said that he will catch-up with the rest of us when he can.
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Location: Gunnison, Colorado | Okay. I was thinking that for something like this to work, the date needing to be set is when we should be finished with each book. The end of the month? Or the beginning of the last week of the month, to allow a week for discussion before beginning to read the next one? I've never tried to do something like this online before, but that seems like a logical way to organize it... |
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Location: Florida | I'll be getting this month's book in the mail this week and I don't think I'll have any problem finishing by the end of the month.
As for the discussions, I seem to recall that at one time there was an idea floated for the discussions to be "lead" by someone who had previously read the book, though I think the books that were chosen were all new to everyone? If we end up opting for a less structured discussion with everyone just adding to the thread, I would think a week will be enough time and there is nothing about using the forum that would keep straggling discussions from continuing if necessary. I'm sure this would be easy enough for everyone.
My thought is that this discussion thread will get long/messy real quick. I know that everyone participating is more than capable of lengthy, complex discussion so we could easily end up with some ridiculously long posts and the entire thread might become difficult to navigate. I did come into this discussion late, so maybe you all had a more clear conception of the logistics of this discussion than I picked up on.
All that being said, I am open to however it works out :-) |
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| Well, I read the book a few years ago, but the discussion group is Rhonda's baby, so I assume that she'll be leading it - after all, she's the Professor! As for timing, I'm perfectly willing to be flexible, especially since Emil is the one who picked the title.
@ Rhonda: I hope that the fact that this discussion group has been started doesn't mean that you'll be derailed from your Outside the Norm blog series - I'm really enjoying it. No pressure though! 
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Location: Grootfontein, Namibia | Perhaps we can start a new thread per bookas we go along? Jeremy's concerns are valid. I know, I often struggle to follow some duscussions and navigate the forum.
I think reading one book by the last day of every monthcan work, with ensuing discussion starting immediately thereafter. It is a good idea that someone leads the discussion, but I'm not averse to the idea that we just jump and fire off our impressions. Perhaps a more effective approach will be to discuss the books according to some template, i.e. along the lines of: 1. Initial impression of the book 2. Themes 3. Particular theme that impressed 4. Favorite scene/moment etc.
I'm now really excited about these readings. |
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Location: Florida | I'll second the motion to start a new thread for each book if that's possible and organizing our initial posts as suggested or with modifications sounds great too. When we are actually reading them we might come up with other suggestions for topics too.
Can't wait to start! |
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Location: SC, USA | Okay, I had a lot to read and catch up on here. Even though I'm a professor (although Scott is too), my classes can be very democratic with everyone doing the heavy lifting sometimes . But seriously, I don't mind starting off the threads, but I do like the 4 points of discussion that Emil listed.
I certainly think there should be a new thread for each book. I hope that we draw in more people. The best way to do that is advertise what we are reading (via new threads) and let folks drop in and out according to the book. Some people might be itching to read Blindness and want to read it with us but have no desire to read We.
How's that? Did I miss anything?
Oh and @Engelbrecht I do plan to continue the series.
I was originally thinking that we could read and discuss in the same month, but it is probably better to allot a month for reading and then the first week of the next month for discussing (with some carry over, of course). |
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Location: Dallas, Texas | 
Now that the book is in the database Emil can read it |
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Location: Grootfontein, Namibia | ROFL - that will help a lot |
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Location: UK | I'm planning to start Omon Ra tonight, now I've got most of my time-critical stuff out of the way. (I still need to read most of the short Hugo works, but I think I can fit them around everything else.) |
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| I saw the announcement on main page, and this looks like a really fun book group! I want to join you guys, but I think it's a little too late for me this month. Unfortunately, "outside the norm" often also means "not available as ePub", and it takes me a while to get physical books shipped in. I'm going to miss Omon Ra, but hopefully I can join up starting with "The Famished Road"! |
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Location: Florida | Glad you're joining! Note that Omon Ra is pretty short and the discussions will be designed so that anyone can join in the discussion at any time, so if you change your mind it will be fine. |
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Location: SC, USA | Yes, Allie, what Jeremy said. |
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| message deleted
Edited by justifiedsinner 2012-07-19 6:02 AM
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| I think it'd be easier for me to not start off behind, though I'm sure discussing Omon Ra will be a lot of fun. At any rate, my copy of The Famished Road is ordered and on its way, so I should be all set up for joining the August discussion! |
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Location: Grootfontein, Namibia | @Allie I'll also start off behind, and sadly with the book I think I may have suggested, Oman Ra. By the look of things, I'll probably also only join in at the end of August. Still, it does not stop me from reading them, and even contribute some notes to the discussions. I think we will be starting a new thread per book, so there may be ample opportunity to add our views, even if retrospectively. |
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Location: Grootfontein, Namibia | So friends, I still haven't received my order for this reading group. Still making their slow and wavy way to me. In the meantime, I've managed to track down a decent second hand copy of Lessing's The Memoirs of a Survivor. If everyone is in agreement, can we read this next so I can at least join properly in ensuing discussions end of August?
For now, I guess someone will have to lead/start the discussion on Oman Ra. What ye think?
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Location: SC, USA | Dear Emil and everyone else,
I have not ordered the book for August yet, so it is okay with me if we switch Lessing and Okri. Does anyone else have a problem with that? I'm about 50 pages from the end of Omon Ra and plan to make a post this weekend. I'm just a little slow because I'm getting behind on my school reading. |
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| I'm already partway through the Okri one, so I might be a little late for August if we switch. If it's better for others, though, I don't mind. |
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Location: Grootfontein, Namibia | Okay, don't worry. Let's stick the original sequence. I'll catch up. |
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Location: Florida | I am also a little behind and hope to finish Omon Ra this weekend. Too many things going on...glad I'm not the only one though. |
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Location: Gunnison, Colorado | For those who haven't noticed, a new thread was started to discuss Omon Ra in the SF/F/H Chat section... |
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Location: Florida | Just wanted to let everyone know that I only just picked up The Famished Road this past weekend and I probably won't get around to my contribution to this month's conversation right away. I'm sure the group will do fine without me though. |
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Location: SC, USA | Jeremy and everyone else,
The Famished Road is not reading as quickly as I would like it to. I'm plugging on, but I don't seem to be making much progress. I might be late, too. I hope not....
Rhonda |
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| Yeah, "The Famished Road" was slow going for me, too. I'm ready for discussing whenever everyone else is, though . |
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Location: Grootfontein, Namibia | I'm also meandering on with The Famished Road. Have one or two favorite moments thus far, but still some way off finishing it. Maybe this weekend, I hope. With it I also saddled Blue Mars, which is no Speedy Gonzales either.
@Allie, perhaps you can start the discussion? |
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| Sure, I could do that. I'll plan to start the discussion thread this weekend, then, and everyone can join in throughout the next month? |
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Location: SC, USA | Allie,
Sounds great. We all decided to start each discussion as a new thread so that they will be easier to find. I'll be catching up--promise. |
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| Sorry, this weekend ended up being wildly busy! Hopefully, I'll be able to start up a thread today. The kick-off post is a work-in-progress at the moment, but I'll try and get it together as soon as I can. |
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Location: SC, USA | Allie, no worries. I think we are all a bit behind on this one. |
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| I started a thread for discussion of "The Famished Road"! |
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Location: Florida | I'm not sure if anyone is interested in this but I figured I'd announce this here anyway. Audible has a special offer through September of 2 books for the price of 1 on some select "masterpiece" titles. I wouldn't normally advertise this but one of the books that qualifies is "The Master and Margherita". I thought this might be beneficial if there is anyone who still needs to pick this title up and also if you don't mind going for the audiobook on that title. I think Audible offers a trial month for free so you might be able to actually get this one, plus another of their select titles for free.
Again, sorry for the advert. |
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Location: Grootfontein, Namibia | After The Famished Road I'm finding Blindness a most compelling read. |
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| Is Blindness next month's book? I need to get on that! |
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Location: Grootfontein, Namibia | I think so, Allie. Well, I hope so, anyway. It's a good read. |
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Location: UK | I guess we lost our way on this. It was a bit of a step too far for me, with my other commitments, but I do now have We and The Master and Margarita waiting to be read, when I can fit them in. (I don't know why it seems to be just the Russians, for me.)
Maybe we can roll this into next year's GMRC replacement? |
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Location: Florida | I was just thinking about this the other day. I also have The Master and Margarita waiting for me, but I am nowhere near being able to fit it in. Still I hope this group can come back together eventually.... |
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Location: Grootfontein, Namibia | Yeh, reading the books are fine, but actually working writing some notes are challenging. I've kept going with Blindness, then Master and am now reading Memoirs of a Survivor. |
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Outside the Norm Reading Forum