Stewart
Active Member
I've never taken part, or bothered with, the Book of the Month since I prefer to just read what I want, when I want. So I left this part to the other mods to deal with. They don't come around much more. So I suppose it needs a bit of an injection to kickstart it again.
But the usual nominate, vote, and discuss process has shown that it rarely works. People participate by nominating books they want to read and, when the don't get voted in, slink off never to be seen again...until the next round of nominations, at least.
People have expressed an interest in the book club, though. So I guess it needs a rethink if it's to be successful. Having looked at other well known book clubs (Oprah's, Richard & Judy, etc.) these seem to work because the person behind them is putting the choice in front of the user. So the users aren't bickering over what's on offer, but have something to go out and get, read, and then discuss. Over on Palimpsest, another forum, their book club titles are picked six months in advance by the admin, which allows for a variety of titles to be chosen and for members to get and read a copy in plenty of time. It works. The discussion is vibrant.
Would that work here? To have a number of titles listed in advance. For six months in advance, let's say, there could be nominated six books (a prizewinner, a classic, a piece in translation, a genre piece, a 20th Century work, and a collection of short stories) and each with a designated month for discussion.
A sample charter, like:
Or a book of the month for the different categories? So there's a general book of the month, a crime book of the month, a fantasy book of the month, etc. Personally, I don't like this one.
Other ideas?
But the usual nominate, vote, and discuss process has shown that it rarely works. People participate by nominating books they want to read and, when the don't get voted in, slink off never to be seen again...until the next round of nominations, at least.
People have expressed an interest in the book club, though. So I guess it needs a rethink if it's to be successful. Having looked at other well known book clubs (Oprah's, Richard & Judy, etc.) these seem to work because the person behind them is putting the choice in front of the user. So the users aren't bickering over what's on offer, but have something to go out and get, read, and then discuss. Over on Palimpsest, another forum, their book club titles are picked six months in advance by the admin, which allows for a variety of titles to be chosen and for members to get and read a copy in plenty of time. It works. The discussion is vibrant.
Would that work here? To have a number of titles listed in advance. For six months in advance, let's say, there could be nominated six books (a prizewinner, a classic, a piece in translation, a genre piece, a 20th Century work, and a collection of short stories) and each with a designated month for discussion.
A sample charter, like:
April: Angle Of Repose, Wallace Stegner
May: North And South, Elizabeth Gaskell
June: Madame Bovary, Gustave Flaubert
July: Stand On Zanzibar, John Brunner
August: We Were The Mulvaneys, Joyce Carol Oates
September: What We Talk About When We Talk About Love, Raymond Carver
Or we could pick a different member each month and just ask them to provider a book for the month (a few months in advance) and then everyone gets their turn.May: North And South, Elizabeth Gaskell
June: Madame Bovary, Gustave Flaubert
July: Stand On Zanzibar, John Brunner
August: We Were The Mulvaneys, Joyce Carol Oates
September: What We Talk About When We Talk About Love, Raymond Carver
Or a book of the month for the different categories? So there's a general book of the month, a crime book of the month, a fantasy book of the month, etc. Personally, I don't like this one.
Other ideas?
