Pamela’s Comments (group member since Jan 02, 2016)

Pamela’s comments from the Around the Year in 52 Books group.

Dixie wrote: "I wonder how many novels about abattoir workers there are? I don't actually need to know..
"

The Jungle

Emily wrote: "I'm just going to go hide in my hole lol ignore me and my 3 brain cells that haven't been eaten by the baby in my belly."

You at least have a baby as an excuse....I'll go fix the date!

Emily wrote: "Typo! Should be Friday."

I'll change- can't read that calendar! But the calendar does say Wed,,,, three days of voting,, with results Thursday?

Dixie wrote: "Dubhease wrote: "Since Pamela threw this out, what do people think of 2027's ATY prompt as being:

A book with a character who has a job starting with A, T, or Y"

I think A and T are doable but Y ..."

Yacht broker, yacht captain, yachter.

Robin P wrote: "Hopefully the fireworks on the voting form indicate celebration of our list being complete!"

That was my inspiration. Otherwise the bats will be back if I'm doing it- cause I love those bats.

NancyJ wrote: "Pamela wrote: "Tracy wrote: "To avoid the holiday books that are too light or silly for some taste, try Guy Fawkes Day: https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/1......"

I love the Graveyard book- it's Jungle Book but in a graveyard. V sweet.

Shannon SA wrote: "3 up -
Award Winner
Social, political, environmental issue
Read by another member in 2026
1 down -
Transitioning"

You were the first person to vote- I went to close the browser before leaving for work and there was you and your vote! There's 9 now.

For perhaps the last time... go vote. Voting for poll 18 is now open: https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

Martha wrote: "There were some good prompts this poll but I'm thinking I'll probably only vote 4 up and leave it at that. I don't know if any of my votes will make the list, I tend to like book awards and lists a..."

I'm with you-- I might do only less. Only two are getting through. The ones "I'm fine" with, I won't vote for, I'm only voting for ones I love and don't want to see. I don't want to risk two things I'm just ok with getting through.

Cause my little votes mean so much.... see astronaut bottoming.

Also, go vote: https://forms.gle/r8BjtH8pcDE22FCT9

Tracy wrote: "To avoid the holiday books that are too light or silly for some taste, try Guy Fawkes Day: https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/1..."

I was thinking Guy Fawkes too- there are lots of good books that take then for some reason. There's a big scene in a Cormoran Strike book-- I think a victim is in one of the bonfire pyres or something?

I love this prompt. There's so many choices that can go in different directions and opportunities to learn things.

Tracy wrote: "Thanks Pamela! And Emily :)"

Thanks to everyone for participating!

THOUGHTS AND IDEAS FROM THE SUGGESTIONS THREAD
Also see discussion below where more information on prompts can be offered

2. A book with a character who isn’t alive
Ideas for for characters that are not alive and not vampires:

A character who is narrating from the afterlife
The Lovely Bones
https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/1...

A story that is narrated by Death
The Book Thief
GhostsAnya's Ghost
The Graveyard Book
https://www.goodreads.com/shelf/show/...

A character that can see and/or talk to the dead
The Odd Thomas Series: Odd Thomas, Forever Odd, Brother Odd, Odd Hours, Odd Interlude, Odd Apocalypse, Deeply Odd
https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/1...

Death is a character
The Death Collection
The first book in the series is: Mort
A Dirty Job
On a Pale Horse
The Sandman, Vol. 1: Preludes & Nocturnes
Keturah and Lord Death
Good Omens
Molly Molloy and the Angel of Death
Casket Case
https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/2...

Driven by a dead character’s memory
Lincoln in the Bardo
Beloved

3.. An Award Winning Book
Your choice of award, genre, year, language, country.

https://www.goodreads.com/list/tag/pr...
https://www.goodreads.com/blog/show/2...

List of awards by genre, type and country:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of...

4. A “cozy” book
Could be a cozy subgenre (cozy fantasy, cozy mystery), about an activity you consider cozy (eg crafting) or in a cozy setting.

5. A book related to performance
Performing arts - acting, music, theatre, films, Broadway musicals, concerts, movies, videos, voice acting.

Social media “performance”- a character’s online persona, social media influencers, role playing, videos, content creation, catfishing.

Performance in life - job performance, sports performance, playing different roles at home vs work, impression management, pretending, “fake it till you make it.”

6. A book connected to a Time's person of the year
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Time_Pe...

The list includes:
the personal computer, you, scientists, the endangered earth, journalists (the guardians), silence breakers, the protester, baby boomers

7. A page turner
A book you can’t put down, because the pages are almost turning themselves!

Listopias: (I tried to pick lists that had more than just a few books, but also not such a large amount that it would be impossible to scan the list!)

Non-Fiction Page Turners: https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/1...
Page Turner: https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/2...
Intensely Readable Novels:https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/1...
A General List of the Most Exciting Books:https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/3...
Books You Will Want To Read in One Sitting:https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/3...
Best Thrillers: https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/2...



I think these Lists offer a variety of genres, not just Thrillers (which is what I had though dominated this idea before I started looking around). Most likely, if this gets voted in I will pick a book that sounds exciting to me, and maybe mentions “page-turner” in the Goodreads Book Description

8. A book with a love story
This could be a romance, or any loving relationship, such as love for children, relatives, friends, found families.

9. A book from any widely recognised list of your choice
Examples include the Booker, the Hugo, New York Times, Sunday Times (other newspapers are available), Rory Gilmore, PEN translation prize, banned books list, Diverse Books award and yes, the ATY list.

10. A book where the main character is experiencing a transition
This could be a new job or leaving an old one. Starting at a new school. Getting married or divorced. A trans person who is coming out, or undergoing gender-affirming surgery. Et cetera

11. A book that features a chef or baker
This could include a fiction book with a character who is a chef or baker, or a nonfiction book by or about a professional chef or baker.

Chef book lists
https://www.goodreads.com/list/tag?ut...

Baker book lists
https://www.goodreads.com/list/tag?ut...

13. A book featuring a holiday that you don't celebrate

Sample list of holidays
Jan-Feb
 Western New Year
◦ Burns Supper
◦ Australia Day
◦ Chinese New Year
◦ Lantern Festival
◦ Saint Valentine’s Day

Mar-Apr
◦ Ramadan
◦ Holi
◦ Saint Patrick’s Day
◦ Spring Equinox aka. Ostara
◦ Eid al- Fitr
◦ April Fool’s Day
◦ Ram Navami
◦ Easter
◦ Australian Heritage Festival

May-Jun
◦ Cinco de Mayo
◦ Mother's Day
◦ Africa Day
◦ Father’s Day
◦ Eid al-Adha
◦ Polynesian New Year aka. Matariki
◦ Summer Solstice
◦ St. John’s Day

Jul-Aug
◦ Canada Day
◦ Yulefest/Midwinter Christmas
◦ U.S. Independence Day

Sep-Oct
◦ Fall Equinox
◦ Rosh Hashanah
◦ Yom Kippur
◦ Día de la Raza (Day of the Races) aka. Columbus Day
◦ Diwali
◦ Halloween

Nov-Dec
◦ Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead)
◦ Bonfire Night
◦ Armistice Day
◦ Thanksgiving Day
◦ Winter Solstice
◦ Christmas Day
◦ Hanukkah
◦ Kwanzaa

https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/1...

t's now time to get ready to vote for our next set of prompts! The thread will be open for at least 24 hours before the poll gets posted. This is a good opportunity to ask any question you may have regarding the prompts, do some research, or ask for recommendations.

Voting will open in the morning of October 12 and results will be posted in the morning of October 16 (CST time).

As a reminder, there are 50 prompts already, so only the top 2 prompts will get through this time.

How it works:
- When the voting opens, follow the link to the mini-poll that will be added at the end of this post
- You have a total of 8 votes this poll to spread across your favorite and least favorite prompts (you can also use less than 8 votes)
- You can find examples of acceptable voting practices on the Introduction Thread
- The prompts with the more favorable votes (comparing top votes to bottom votes, and looking at the overall number of votes it received) will be added to the final list

We are asking people to include their Goodreads profile address when they vote. To find this, just go to your own profile and then copy the URL/web address. If for some reason you can't link to your Goodreads profile, please post your full Goodreads name with enough identifiable information that we'll be able to access your profile.

Poll Prompts:
1. A book with this, that, these or those in the title
2. A book with a character who isn’t alive
3. An Award Winning Book
4. A "cozy" book
5. A book related to performance
6. A book connected to a Time's person of the year
7. A page turner
8. A book with a love story
9. A book from any widely recognised list of your choice
10. A book where the main character is experiencing a transition
11. A book that features a chef or baker
12. A book about a social, political, or environmental issue you care about.
13. A book featuring a holiday that you don't celebrate
14. A book read by another ATY member in 2026
15. A book with a challenge or competition, such as a marathon, contest, or campaign


Feel free to discuss the prompts below, but please remember to be respectful to the other group members.

Vote here: https://forms.gle/r8BjtH8pcDE22FCT9

Tracy wrote: "Just need one more second in Suggestions!

https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/..."

And we got it! Hopefully suggestions are done for the year, although we'll also miss them

Tracy wrote: "Dubhease wrote: "If you like mysteries.

https://cozy-mystery.com/holiday-myst..."

Surprising list Dubhease - Yom Kippur Mysteries?

Passover Mysteries made me immediately think o..."

Not surprised there's a Yom Kippur murder... all that fasting and people getting hangry.

AND WE ARE DONE!!!

Hopefully for the year. Round of applause everyone. Now I need to get showered to take SIL out for her birthday!

Dubhease wrote: "This listopia is frustrating as no one put what holiday is in the book

https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/1..."

People don't even write the holidays in their nomination!

Probably the better option is lists of books on holidays, like Bonfire Night for non-Brits

https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/1...

Dubhease wrote: "This listopia is frustrating as no one put what holiday is in the book

https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/1..."

Check your messages- just sent you one about your list

Tracy wrote: "Pamela wrote: "ONE MORE TO GO

Who wants to make history?"

Haha... are you a motivational speaker IRL? 😆"

Development Director- same thing :) Although I'm normally begging money, not words. So come on people. this is easy!

ONE MORE TO GO

Who wants to make history?