[Macros]

With Apty McAptersonface stepping down from running the book club, I'll try and step in.

One thing I think will alter is just one thread per book, and we'll operate on the spoiler tag option.
Purely because if the book club continued the OTher Lit forum will be clogged with our stuff.
Ideally this will eventually be a busy enough club that we sub forum it, but so far there's only been a few for each book.

I would say this uptake is a dual pronged problem. I (personally) find it very difficult to stick to the weekly deadlines, either having no time and dropping off behind, or having enough time to read, in which case I plough on as it's not in my nature to stop mid point in a book if I have time to carry on.

Hence my thinking of yes, we have suggested weekly reading areas and discussion breaks, just one thread so if someone reads on they can post their thoughts/questions in separate spoiler tag chunks that people can read as they catch up.
The second problem I think is some people had already read the choices and didn't want to reread or weren't engineer by the offering. Nothing we can do with that.

Anyway, I am enjoying it as it is a bit more focused than the what are you reading thread and it's nice to see other thoughts and takes on books as you have just finished them and they're fresh in your mind.

I'll open up for suggestions, for the next book, with a view to getting it picked this weekend, a week for people to get a copy then we'll start.


My suggestions:

A death in the Family - by Karl Ove Knausgard. (Lady friend just finished it and reco'd it too me as being something vastly different to what I normally read)
Sixteen ways to defend a walled city - KJ Parker (have it sitting on my TRP)
Senlin Ascends - Josiah Bancroft (same, on trp)



book, senlin Ascends, spoiler breaks, parts 1, 2 & 3. Label spoilers appropriately

This post has been edited by Macros: 31 October 2019 - 08:39 PM

[Tiste Simeon]

I have none of those books so I'm willing to try any. I'll see if my library has any of them first and most likely go with that one! 😉

[Tiste Simeon]

Oldham library has Senlin Ascends! Let's do that one!

[Aptorian]

We could also just do a monthly deadline, like the book clubs at my library. Say at the first of the month, you need to have finished book x and we discuss it in an official thread. Everything before that we can just post in the reading at the moment thread. Though that might get spammy in some cases.

I figure that if we continue to do multiple threads a kind mod can move older threads into a subforum as we finish one book and start another.

I'm up for Senlin Ascends though I can't promise anything.

Knausgaard is an interesting idea. His "My struggle" books or what ever they are called in English are a hot topic in litterature discussions.

[Macros]

Yeah it's the first book of the My struggle series.

I was just told it was.... interesting, and I am going to read it at some point, hence my suggesting it.

Regards the month thing. Yeah that's kind of what I had in mind, but we would still use the blocks system. So break the book into 4 chunks for discussion points, so people can put their thoughts in piecemeal as they come, and label it section 1 or whatever, and then other readers know what tags to open and not etc.

[Macros]

Ok,

We'll go with Senlin Ascends.

I'll update OP and tag, start date next Thursday.

[Tiste Simeon]

Sweet I'll try to get to the library in the next couple of days.

[Aptorian]

I like that seems to constantly just be us three who pick books that are on our to read list.

Now to find time to squeeze Senlin in between the launch of Outer Worlds and Death Stranding.

[Macros]

More will come with time.
They will see the joy we get

[Tiste Simeon]

My library has book 1 and 3 of this trilogy. Because why would you have the whole thing? Anyway they said they have it in another location so it's been reserved for me and they'll get it in. Can always return them if I dislike the first.

[Tiste Simeon]

Well I'm already 13 chapters in and I find this to be a delightful tale so far. The personify, Senlin is slowly beginning to unwind from his study timid beginnings and I assume the Ascension of the title refers not only to the physical act of going up the tower but also him becoming a new person in the attempt to find his wife. Jonny good so far but I'll wait till more people are reading to go into the details.

[amphibian]

How do you feel about the "constant no idea what the fuck is happening" nature of the story so far?

[Macros]

Spoiler tags spoiler tags!

I'll be starting tonught and I'll work out some kind of break blocks

[Macros]

Ok,

It's some enough, book is in 3 parts already, so that's the break points

Spoilers like so up to midpoint part 1, etc.

[Macros]

Finished Part 1

Interesting book so far.

Spoiler time

Spoilers for Part One only:

Spoiler

This is an interesting book.

As Tiste says the novel will surely be about Thomas opening up from the shell be keeps himself tightly coiled in.

I also feel that (after his aside on contempt for any.lvoe stories etc) it will be a route to him coming to terms with his love for his wife, and finally being able to open up emotionally. Hell maybe it's a Dallas story and the whole thing is a dream all along. At the very start he does a great job (author) with the chaotic market, and setting the scene that things are not going to be remotely like what Senlin expects.

What if the everyman's guide is nothing more than the traditional slavers treasure map? I kind of hope it is and Senlin meets the author at the top of this corrupt pastiche of capitalism.

We shall see.


The Parlour, that was very well done, I thought during the chase through the mansion that that possibly was part of the whole play as well, then dismissed it when the angry fat man was shot.
To have the truth popped back at me at the end of part one was wonderful.

I assume the Parlour is some kind of a Westworld for the rich and nobbly to do what the fuck they like, the poorer bastards be damned and branded if they don't toe the line.
Is the fire place thing a simple one to catch people out on or is it some kind of elaborate heating system and this is an easy way to keep the fires stoked? RaFO I assume.

This book has caught my interest well, I dont think I'll be able to sit it out slowly.

As for Senlin being unlikeable, I didn't find him so personally. Somewhat cold, but not an unrelatable stoic by any means and certainly not a mean person so far, just a dreamer.

[Tiste Simeon]

I don't find him unlikeable I'd say every page he gets better tbh. I'm now in part 2 and each ringdom is just getting more bonkers!

[Tiste Simeon]

amphibian, on 31 October 2019 - 04:14 PM, said:

How do you feel about the "constant no idea what the fuck is happening" nature of the story so far?

Love it. Spoilers for part 2...

Spoiler

Very glad that he's finally found a clue that Marya has been seen otherwise it would have been a lot of blind stumbling around which would have got tiresome. The baths are insane - I knew something was going wrong and then the executioner guy just rips a dudes head off because he refused the advances of a rich person?? I was in shock!

And now it's turned into an art heist?? It's great!

[Macros]

Will be starting part 2 this week.

Monday's always a busy day for me, so no reading tonight. Football to watch tomorrow night. But Wednesday!

[Tiste Simeon]

I'm on part 3 already and I love it more than ever. Such a richly imagined world inside this tower...

[Tiste Simeon]

Something else I'm loving here... I really like how in many ways this reads as quite a light hearted, quirky book and then every now and then you get slammed with some brutality and it shocks you with it.

Spoiler

I'm just reading the story of Adam when he explains to Senlin how he has come to work for Goll in New Babel. It's a really sad and dark tale!

This post has been edited by Tiste Simeon: 05 November 2019 - 08:56 AM