Chaos Reading discussion

I was going to wait until closer to New Years, but I'm finding myself fully booked for 2012, and already thinking, I MUST read......... next year.

Here are mine........ so far:
- Read more John Ajvide Lindqvist, J.G. Ballard, César Aira, Ryū Murakami, China Miéville,
- Read my first Ursula K. Le Guin, Strugatski Arkadi & Boris, Anderson Prunty
- Finish the series: David Moody's Haters,
- Start the series: A Game of Thrones
- Read: The Twelve, The Metamorphosis, Cloud Atlas, 2666 , Threats

So what goals do other people have?

I'd like to read more Margaret Atwood, Philip K. Dick, and David Mitchell (well, he only has 2 more books that I haven't read but I'd like to get to them).

Maaaaybe I'll finish the Discworld series. I think I only have 5 or 6 left, so it's do-able, but I find it really easy to OD on Terry Pratchett so maybe not.

I agree with not being able to plan a year ahead. So I have no idea what I'll be reading besides various GR group reads.

I OD'd on Pratchett about 25 years ago, and haven't managed to pick up another since. I certainly don't plan to finish Discworld. Game of Thrones is probably a plan for 10 years from now (I still refuse to read it until he finishes).

I'd consider Cloud Atlas but my wife insists I've already read it...

Derek wrote: "I agree with not being able to plan a year ahead. So I have no idea what I'll be reading besides various GR group reads.

I OD'd on Pratchett about 25 years ago, and haven't managed to pick up ano..."

Derek, was that a subtle Cloud Atlas joke? lol

I'm not sure. I'm pretty sure I wouldn't have forgotten it. Anyway, when she read it she was retired, and easily reading a book a day (she's gone back to work, now). I've never had that much time to read (even in my 'retirement' phases), so I expect it just went back to the library before I got to it.

Cool idea Ruby!

Let me think of the most ridiculously difficult reading tasks I have set myself for 2013:
- Finish In Search of Lost Time
- Read Holy Bible: King James Version
- Read as many books and theses as obtainable about The Paraguayan War and the story of oil & gas for my next book...

I don't know how to have reading fun! I guess more Thomas Pynchon, Haruki Murakami... even so, there's minimal projected fluff 2k13!

What are you guys all up to? Maybe I can at least extract some vicarious fluff enjoyment...

Derek wrote: "I'm not sure. I'm pretty sure I wouldn't have forgotten it. Anyway, when she read it she was retired, and easily reading a book a day (she's gone back to work, now). I've never had that much time t..."

I think you would remember it. It's a pretty unique, memorable book IMHO.

Riona wrote: "I think you would remember it. It's a pretty unique, memorable book IMHO."

I agree. It's responsible for a lot of lost work time at my office this summer/fall. Not to mention a few, oops-I-forgot-to-cut-the-grass moments!

Well, here goes. In addition to all the wonderful group reads in all my groups, I thought I would start the year cleaning up my currently reading list by finishing The Mongoliad: Book One (which will inevitably lead to more fantasy in 2013) and The Stars My Destination, and Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?.

I've loved re-awakening the sci-fi in my, so I'm vowing more Peter F. Hamilton and to try some Iain M. Banks. I also want to read The Long Earth, Existence, and try to get back into 1Q84.

Peppered throughout my year will be more China Miéville, including Iron Council, Railsea, a reread of The City and the City and Un Lun Dun with my daughter.

My experiment will be to try The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet to see if Mitchell has more than one good book in him. And my guilty read, because I skipped it in high school when I shouldn't have, will be The Handmaid's Tale.

I'm sure there will be more, and I may even try to find a mainstream novel. After all, two of my favorites in the last year has been The Tiger's Wife and The Night Circus.

Hope everyone has a wonderful new reading year!

Allen wrote: "Well, here goes. In addition to all the wonderful group reads in all my groups, I thought I would start the year cleaning up my currently reading list by finishing The Mongoliad: Book One (which wi..."

The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet will not disappoint. I also really enjoyed Black Swan Green

Ben wrote: "The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet will not disappoint. I also really enjoyed Black Swan Green..."

Jacob de Zoot is on my list as well. I really liked Ghostwritten and Number9Dream as well as Cloud Atlas, so it sounds like Mitchell is batting 100 in this group.

I will say the GR synopsis of The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet is awful. For starters it needs to lose the first three paras of overblown praise for the author, including who is starring in the film version of Cloud Atlas!

My goals for 2013:

Start reading more journalism or, at least, books by journalists. I've read several books by journalists in the last few years that really impressed me with how intensively these people study a subject. If anyone has any recommendations, I'm open. I figure I'd do what I usually do: find one thing I like through sheer luck and that generally leads to at least five other books.

Read more Margaret Atwood and William T. Vollman.

Try more contemporary authors who write fiction. It seems like I only know of a handful that are not dead!

Mickey wrote: "I've read several books by journalists in the last few years that really impressed me with how intensively these people study a subject. If anyone has any recommendations, I'm open. ..."

Mickey, which ones would you recommend? Although I probably shouldn't be too eager to get into a new genre; as you said one book always leads to an exponentially increasing number of them.

A. wrote: "Have you read The Lost Executioner: A Journey to the Heart of the Killing Fields by Irish journalist Nic Dunlop? If you haven't, I strongly recommend it..."

Looks good, thanks. I read a lot about the Khmer Rouge several years ago. Another I would recommend in Cambodia: Year Zero (although by a missionary, not a journalist), and Sideshow: Kissinger, Nixon & the Destruction of Cambodia, which is more about US policy towards Cambodia and how it lead to the takeover by the Khmer Rouge.

This probably belongs in its own discussion thread. Maybe we should start one on historical / political books, especially those written by journalists?

Whitney wrote: "Mickey, which ones would you recommend? Although I probably shouldn't be too eager to get into a new genre; as you said one book always leads to an exponentially increasing number of them."

Columbine by Dave Cullen is a very good overview of the Colorado shooting spree of two teenagers. American Ground: Unbuilding the World Trade Center by William Langewiesche is about the clean up efforts and general aftermath of the 9/11 attacks in New York City. Confederates in the Attic: Dispatches from the Unfinished Civil War by Tony Horwitz is about the American South's ongoing obsession with the American Civil War. From Beirut to Jerusalem by Thomas L. Friedman is a book about the Middle East (slightly dated now, I think it's from the '90's). All of these books are very detail-orientated but also look at the "bigger picture".

A. wrote: "Mickey wrote: "My goals for 2013:

Start reading more journalism or, at least, books by journalists. I've read several books by journalists in the last few years that really impressed me with how i..."

Thank you, A.! I'll try those out.

Mickey wrote: "My goals for 2013:

Start reading more journalism or, at least, books by journalists....

Try more contemporary authors who write fiction. "

Kill two birds with one book (oh... the mess!): The Bishop's Man. Linden MacIntyre, is a journalist, but won the 2009 Giller Prize - Canada's top fiction award - for this novel.

Or for strict journalism, try Bitter Chocolate: Investigating The Dark Side Of The World's Most Seductive Sweet. Extra credit for knowing how the two books are connected :-)

Just joined, new to book club thang, when are next books selected? Looks like the current 4 started Nov and ended Dec 10th.
How do I tell what's next? And how do I make recommendations in the future?
Thanks

Just joined and liking the recomendations.
My goal is finish Cloud Atlas and read more Paulo Coelho.
And finding gems :-)

Hi Malakeo. Just go to the Chaos Reading Book Club folder and look for the open nominations thread. There are still a couple of a days left to nominate books for the next Group Read. The thread is here:
http://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/1...
The topic for this one is: Books released in 2012 that you didn't get around to reading.

Back on topic, I've got a few more resolutions to add to my list:

- Read some more Nordic literature (starting with Karl Ove Knausgård and Tor Ulven)
- Read some Machado de Assis (when my copies of O Alienista and Memórias Póstumas de Brás Cubas eventually turn up)

Lukasz, I'm with you BTW. Find some gems!

I don't have specific authors that I want to read this year. My goals are to;

A) get my tbr list down to manageable size.
B) read more of the classics/history of my chosen genre (spec fic)
C) I am taking part in the Australian women writing challenge again this year. (attempting to read and review 10 books by Australian women writers)

Victoria (vikz writes) wrote: "I don't have specific authors that I want to read this year. My goals are to;

A) get my tbr list down to manageable size.
..."

You've come to the wrong place for that!

LOL. Too true! Waaaay too true.

I am determined to at least read 35 books this year. This is quite achievable for me and if I go over that mark then I will feel even better.

Some of those 35 will inlcude:
Final Book (#3) of the Maze Runner
The Tiger Saga: Book #3 Tiger's Voyage & Book #4 Tiger's Destiny.
Final Book (#3) of the Night Creatures, Shine Light.
All Souls Trilogy: Book #2 Shadow of Night.
Start the Lissamore series. 1. The Kinsella Sisters. 2. The O'Hara Affair

Okay, so I read alot of YA sci-fi/fantasy (fluff enjoyment). What can I say they are entertaining (when you do not put much thought into it) and quick to get through.
I have added the Lissamore books for some chick lit/drama because I generally do not read that kind of genre & I thought I should expand a little.

The Handmaid's Tale Margaret Atwood
White Rose Rebel Janet Paisley
The Twelve Justin Cronin
Sarah's Key Tatiana de Rosnay
A Clockwork Orange Anthony Burgess
The Girl Who Fell from the Sky Heidi W. Durrow
Addition Toni Jordan

This is it so far, I decided not to create too large of a list. I am sure group reads & challengers will keep me busy!

I used to read a lot more fiction than I have in recent years. It fell off when I went to vet school and my pleasure reading dropped from around fifty to around five books a year. In an effort to get back up to speed I decided to go ahead and set a book goal of 25, which is hopefully few enough that I can still work in a few doorstops but enough to encourage me to get back in the game.

Some of my intended reads include:

The Passage
Gone Girl
Berlin Alexanderplatz
No Orchids For Miss Blandish
An Artist of the Floating World
A Buyer's Market
Zone One
The Spire
The City & the City
The Book of Skulls
The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian
and Rashomon and Seventeen Other Stories and J R, both of which I started but haven't finished.

Plus assorted reads for this group and another. Plus the books that catch my attention and I feel I need to read them RIGHT NOW. Sigh.

Just went to the shops and while BF and I were drinking our coffees, I suggested we browse the bookshop. Since we did that less than a week ago, I fgured we should be safe from shopping sprees. But now there are things on sale. So.. I was wrong.

Anyway, long story short, I now have another new goal for 2013: Complete this project- Wreck This Journal

Wow. In the 8 months since I wrote that list, I've not read a single on them! Bad Ruby. :(

LOL. I'm right up on my commitment not to plan ahead! I'm well ahead on total numbers of both my 2013 reading challenge and the Chaos Treasure Hunt, but I still haven't committed to reading any particular books except the two currently in the for-review queue

Ruby wrote: "Wow. In the 8 months since I wrote that list, I've not read a single on them! Bad Ruby. :("

But isn't that the trick--somehow trying to get to what you want/think-you-should read while also reading what serendipitously comes your way? I grabbed about 30 books I thought were the best/most desireable books I wanted to read (of those I already owned) and put them all next to my bed almost a year ago. I think I've read 2 or 3 of them. Maybe.

I've found that the bedside pile is practically useless — it's more like a place where books go to die. I manage to get through almost all of the books that people recommend to me, but the ones I put on my "to-read" list, unless I immediately buy them or put them on-hold at the library, pretty much aren't getting any closer to being read!

Derek wrote: "I've found that the bedside pile is practically useless — it's more like a place where books go to die. I manage to get through almost all of the books that people recommend to me, but the ones I p..."

They seemed so desirable and relevant at the time I acquired them : (
(Actually, many of them still are, just not right at this moment. I can't do more than one non-fiction book at a time either.)

Riona wrote: "I'd like to read more Margaret Atwood, Philip K. Dick, and David Mitchell (well, he only has 2 more books that I haven't read but I'd like to get to them).

Maaaaybe I'll finish the Discworld series..."

Okay, I haven't done that great either. I only have 2 discworld books left to read (out of how many? seriously?), so it looks like that will happen. But I've only read one more Margaret Atwood book and none of the other two authors...

I should make a refreshed effort, since these all still seem like worthwhile goals to me!

Marc wrote: "They seemed so desirable and relevant at the time I acquired them : (
(Actually, many of them still are, just not right at this moment. I can't do more than one non-fiction book at a time either.) ..."

And THAT is why I have 500 unread books, yet spent most of today moaning, "There's nothing to read.."

Ruby wrote: "And THAT is why I have 500 unread books, yet spent most of today moaning, "There's nothing to read..."

My 2013 goal is actually to reduce the number of books I own but haven't read down to 100 or less. Because I take in slightly more than I'm able to read, the number seems to hover right around 130 or 140 unread books without changing much. Eight months into the year I started with ~137 unread books and I think I'm at 133 or so. But I acquire so many used or free or as gifts... They're just too yummy.

I've never had many unread books. Before the Kobo, I had, I think, five; most of which I'd inherited from my brother. Two poetry collections (I'll likely never read the complete Robert Frost, but I'm planning Near False Creek Mouth for the Chaos Treasure Hunt); two histories (both of which I plan to get to); and Paradise, which I don't intend to ever read. Now I have 202 unread epubs.…

Marc wrote: "Because I take in slightly more than I'm able to read, the number seems to hover right around 130 or 140 unread books without changing much. ..."

I like that you "take them in". It's like adoption. :)