A Tomato Nation Read-Along: Discuss
A few readers mentioned here that they’d like to do a TN read-along. I love the idea, in theory.
In practice, we might have a couple of issues, the first of which is book selection. I already own about five dozen books that I’ve never read; I can’t buy any more, I really can’t, but you guys may not want to read anything in that stack. On the other hand, you may, and it’s easy enough to put up a poll and let you choose the one that sounds the most appealing.
Another issue is pacing, and how to administer the read-along with that in mind, since 1) I read fast, and 2) I would rather have a single entry/thread for each book than one for each chapter. On the other hand, I don’t want to discourage folks who get behind in the book, but on the other other hand, I don’t want a single book to drag on for three months.
One possible set-up: we choose a book via poll, then I open a thread two weeks later; whoever’s ready to discuss it can do so, and whoever’s not can wait until they’ve finished. I want to read these books anyway, so it’s not like I’ll get offended if people drop out during the read-along, but I also want to save myself some admin time up front if it’s possible to do that.
Suggestions and thoughts welcome.
Edited to add a poll! The first 10 I grabbed off the stack appear below; you can pick as many as three.
Which book(s) would you read along with? (You can pick as many as 3.)
- Going In Circles (Pamela Ribon) / novel (25%, 273 Votes)
- Backwards in High Heels: The Impossible Art of Being Female (Tania Kindersley and Sarah Vine) / self-help/humor (18%, 197 Votes)
- Shift (Jennifer Bradbury) / YA novel (13%, 136 Votes)
- The Glass Menagerie (Tennessee Williams) / play (10%, 103 Votes)
- Blood and Honor: Inside the Scarfo Mob, the Mafia's Most Violent Family (George Anastasia) / true crime (9%, 92 Votes)
- Here's The Deal Don't Touch Me (Howie Mandel) / memoir (8%, 85 Votes)
- Mid-Life Confidential (King, Barry, Groening, Marcus, Marsh, Tan, et al.) / memoir (6%, 68 Votes)
- We3 (Grant Morrison and Frank Quitely) / graphic novel (5%, 58 Votes)
- Willie Mays: The Life, The Legend (James S. Hirsch) / authorized bio (3%, 35 Votes)
- Can't You Get Along With Anyone? (Allan C. Weisbecker) / memoir (3%, 30 Votes)
Total Voters: 488
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Tags: books
I like the idea. I’d definitely be interested in seeing the list, at the very least.
Like Pat, I would like to see the list. I can say I’d probably be interested if the book selected where anywhere on my radar/preferred genres to begin with. I also read fast, and would be frustrated by a chapter-a-week setup (or some such) and wary of accidentally divulging spoilers. I like the setup you suggest above.
I am not picky about what I read (except no chicklit trash) so I totally trust your taste, Sars. I would even read a baseball book! Maybe.
I read fast too so I will finish it right away, but I was also a teacher so I know the chunk-a-week style is a lot less intimidating for less-voracious readers who are new to a read-along type of thing.
I also wonder how a single thread would go, discussion-wise, especially if it’s a less plot-driven and more idea or character-driven book. How many different discussions can a single thread maintain before it becomes unwieldy, you know? But with multiple threads, you (Sars) might be having to do too much moderation, which is a TWOPlike PITA.
This sounds like a fantastic idea to get me out of my reading rut! I have a bad habit of reading the same books I love, over and over again. Time for something fresh!
Would also be interested!!!
I do like the suggestion of one thread 2 weeks after the book announcement. It’s easy to get too far behind (or too far ahead) otherwise.
Looking forward to seeing the list!
I like the idea of a single thread two weeks after announcement. I’m looking forward to hearing more about this idea.
I’m interested, too. I’d love to see the list!
I like the idea of picking a book, or books, via poll, and then giving people time to start it before opening up a thread. Two weeks is a good compromise; some will kill the book in a week and others will forget until the night before, but you can’t please everyone.
My own backlog is extensive enough (two and a half dozen books, heh), but I read voraciously in the summer, generally three or four books at a time. I’d prefer a little overlap between what we pick and what I have, I certainly wouldn’t be opposed to hitting the library or bookstore for an interesting readership selection.
Bitts has a valid point about how to discuss the books in the threads, especially since comment moderation makes the discussion not quite so active. (The last thing I am suggesting, mind you, is disabling comment moderation.) Setting a topic would open up its own can of worms.
If this does get off the ground, I will happily leave a spot in my rotation for a TN read-along book.
I like the two week later thread opening – the odds of me being able to get my hands on the book and read it in that time are minimal, but I’ll happily come in several years after the fact and see what other people thought.
I would go for this. I have my own stack of books waiting to be read – if none of yours match mine, I can always add another one to the stack. The idea of a discussion thread two weeks later seems like a good plan; depending on what happens, this could be a new feature, or a just a short-lived experiment.
Don’t you dare propose Moby Dick. I read the entire book in high school, but I refuse to do it again.
Another idea to keep the pace up and make it less intimidating length-wise is to stick to YA books.
I’m the kid who, in elementary school, always finished the chapter book the day it was assigned and then spent four weeks pretending to “guess what happens next!”. So I feel the desire to not chapter it out forevs.
That said, I’m no longer in elementary school and the books are a bit longer now. So one “maintenance” thread halfway through the reading period (maybe designating the first half of the book as up for discussion) could be helpful to keep the reading going.
I’d like to do this! It’s always a good way to get a bit of a kick in the pants to try something new.
Don’t worry, no Melville. In fact, the likelihood of any fiction making the list is pretty slim; I just don’t really read novels.
There is, however, a cube-shaped 48-pound biography of Edith Wharton. Miiiiight have to give that one three weeks instead of two. Hee.
It’s kind of amazing that two people in one day told Sarah not to attempt “Moby-Dick.”
So very many jokes…
I agree with Bitts and Amanda…so maybe one thread a week after a fact for the fast readers, and another two weeks after for the slightly slower/on vacation crowd? Avoiding the “topics” problem and maybe avoiding quite so massive an influx for your inbox? I dunno. Anyway, I’m in!
I would be up for it. Depending on the book. If we’re thinking non-fiction, it would definitely depend on my own personal level of interest in the topic, but even if I didn’t actually read it, I’d enjoy reading what others had to say about it (as I have with Moby-Dick over on Linda’s blog). :)
Poll is up now.
Oooh. Morrison fans, represent!
(I was sure I’d be the only vote for WE3.)
@Strega: I forgot I even owned that. (Coincidentally, it was hidden behind a giant Spiegelman.)
Hey, you’re tthe boss, so you set the book and the deadline! That’s what I’d say anyway. I’m sure there will be plenty of interested readers whatever you decide on.
Glass Menagerie! I taught that! If we pick that one, I can line up vocab. lists, discussion questions, essay topics, tests and quizzes, final projects … !!! Aren’t you excited?? Let’s play high school!!
I am totally kidding. TOTALLY. KIDDING.
Wow, I feel so mainstream! The three books that I picked are the top three in the poll.
I love this idea. I’m in – though I have a few books on the go right now. (One stack of books? How does that work?) Even so, the choices in the poll make me realize how much broader your tastes are than mine. There’s even a few novels on it; that’s good for me, since I don’t read a lot of memoirs or sports books. (I just gave away my poll choices, didn’t I?)
Also, a humour/self-help books co-written by someone called Sarah Vine? If I didn’t know better…
@Sandman: Yeah, one STACK…and then four full Expedit SHELVES, piled three deep, which filled up and necessitated the stack…which I only put half of in the poll. So, we’ll have plenty of books to choose from in future, if this works out; there is also a “to RE-read” stack, which includes some lesser Louisa May Alcott, and I should have waited and forced y’all to re-read “Jack & Jill” with me. OMG, the preachiness.
Oh, Sars, it’s never not time to be reminded of Wayne’s World. “…Let alone many guns that would necessitate a rack.”
Some interesting choices on the list. Hmmm.
Oyyy, the unfortunate timing of this effort (which is what kept me from participating in Linda’s Moby-Dick readalong) – my school texts are like doorstops & case studies are kicking my ass. Between that & work, I have almost no time or leftover neurons to read non-school materials, so I’ve been tending to go with really fluffy brain candy or YA re-reads. Hopefully, I’ll catch y’all on the next round, or maybe the one after that, depending on how fast this goes.
And Linda, though I haven’t read the book, I do know the basics of the plot & characters, so I’ve totally killed myself laughing while reading your & Marc’s dialogues. Brilliant.
I’m in. I have a 6-month old baby, so it will take me longer (a lot longer) to finish than it used to, but I’ll be happy to read the whole thread and discuss if there’s any discussion left when I get there. The last book I read (biography of Eleanor of Aquitaine, random, I know) took me 2 months to finish. Unheard of!
I also thought to myself – “God, I hope she doesn’t pick something like Moby Dick or something.”
I like the last idea.
@StarHopper I thought I was the only one who did that!
I’m glad to see Pamie’s book atop the list currently. I’ve already blogged my review, but there were a couple of points in the novel where I REALLY wished I had someone to discuss it with. It’s a great idea for one of these group discussions. Pamie takes some interesting risks, and I’d love to hear how others react to those risks.
Oh, sad, I loved “Moby-Dick” and found it fascinating, and my first thought was “Oooh, it would be interesting to do some Byatt.” Big, dense, epic Romantic fiction, or mysteries – yum.
I am clearly not the right target audience. My nonfiction reading tends to be natural science, music history, literary criticism, and pop culture history, although pretty much any kind of history will do in a pinch. Oh, well. I have some new Martha Grimes and “Ontology and Phylogeny” to tide me over for a while – and I’ll read the threads even if I haven’t read the books.
I personally own very few books due to both lack of funds and lack of storage space, and so I get all my reading material from the library. If the book is not available at my local branch, it will be ordered in from any library in the citywide system when it becomes available. This is a wonderful system, but sometimes when I place myself on the reserve list for a book, the library system owns 27 copies, and one is available within 2-3 days, and sometimes the library owns few copies of the book and/or there is a lot of interest in it, and it can take several weeks for my name to come up on the list. So if we were to decide tomorrow to tackle a given book, I might not be able to participate because the book might not be available for me for another five weeks, and then add in a few more weeks to actually read it, and I’d have missed out on most of the discussion. My point is that I am wondering if it would be possible to pick a schedule of books, so that people who make use of a library reserve system could put their name down on the reserve list in advance in the hopes that the book would be available in time for them to still participate in the discussion. I don’t know how practical that would be, but I think it would be helpful for those who would like to participate but don’t want to buy each of the books.
Feeling the Alcott love and word on the Jack & Jill preachiness… One good thing about choosing something older like Alcott is the availability on sites like Project Gutenberg – free!
We3 is a fast read. Warning: it made my husband cry. Me too, but that’s easy to do.
Whaaat? Look at those votes! I am so flattered, you guys. Thank you.
Suck it, Mandel!
(If you do end up with my book, Sarah can decide whether or not to have me be a part of the discussion, either during or maybe some scheduled chat after. Author interactive!)
I’m a super fast reader, and have no problem with a two week time frame. I’m not a huge fan of the chapter way of reading books, as I always read ahead, and am usually finished when most people are only halfway through.
(I also voted for Pamie’s book, but I confess, I didn’t know it was Pamie’s book until y’all mentioned it. I just thought it looked entertaining.)
Pamie, don’t you visit the bookclubs? We’ll set up a schedule and you can drop by each of our houses. We will serve snacks!
Awww, bitts, you got me so excited! It’d be so great to revisit my overpriced theater degree! But seriously, I’d love another crack at Tennessee, he’s so overheated and ripe, with the emotion just quietly simmering away at the bottom.
And Liz, shout out! Did you read The Children’s Book yet? Awesome and disturbing, a pretty typical Byatt.
I think the two threads idea is a good one, not only for different speeds of reader, but so that if you happen to finish early and write a big, feverish post on all the ideas jitterbugging in your brain, the second thread can be there for focusing and such for when things have calmed down a bit. Not to be hoggy on the threads, or anything.
Like everyone else, I have a Huge stack of unread books waiting. But, I’ve been looking for a reason to buy Pamie’s book for a while, and this read-along might just be the excuse I need.
Count me in!
Oh, well, a stack from a bulging shelf on top of a pile next to another pile, I can understand.
I only hope that the Great TN Read-Along does not run concurrently with the forthcoming NC Double-on-the Rocks Cocktail bracket, because, trust me, nobody wants to see the weepy, imperfectly articulated posts about “‘sup with Louisa May Alc!hott an’ her dam’ mass glenagerie” that would thereat ensue from me. (Even, er, more imperfectly than usual, that is.)
@Jen S: I’m having a bit of trouble imagining anything in Tennessee Williams “just quietly simmering away.” But I’m in, if the vote goes that way, and even if Bitts were to assign homework.
Ooh, speaking of YA and Eleanor of Aquitaine, does anyone else remember E. L. Konigsberg’s A Proud Taste for Scarlet and Miniver?
I only hope that the Great TN Read-Along does not run concurrently with the forthcoming NC Double-on-the Rocks Cocktail bracket, because, trust me, nobody wants to see the weepy, imperfectly articulated posts about “‘sup with Louisa May Alc!hott an’ her dam’ mass glenagerie” that would thereat ensue from me.
Nobody except this brother. And…everyone else.
Jen S. – not yet. I got too depressed reading “Babel Tower” and took a break from her for a while. Man, it’s been years and years – I need to get back on the literary horse that threw me.