You'll love this one...!! A book club & more discussion

October next month apparently. Which means I'll be another year older as well as having a new theme for us to choose some books to read in.

So if you have an idea for a theme, go ahead and nominate it below.

Alternatively, you can second someone else's nomination instead, but that will count as your own nomination, and that theme will be entered twice in random.org - giving the theme an additional chance to make the cut.

Only 5 themes will make the cut and end up in the poll.

Nominations can be seconded multiple times by different people. If you second a nomination, please make clear that is what you are doing. E.g. If I nominate "Books whose title starts with A", you need to state "I second Books whose title starts with A".

Nominations close 10th September

Nominated Themes:
Scary Movies (seconded)
Gargoyles
Steam Trains
Mental Health (seconded)
Old Westerns (seconded)
Set in Scandinavia (seconded)

I'd like to nominate "scary movies", so that means books which have been turned in to films or vice versa, which are scary. Scariness is subjective though so it does open it up wide (ish).

I'll nominate "gargoyles".

Gargoyles? You mean a book about or with Gargoyles on the cover?
Not a very easy theme, I think...?!

Elsbeth wrote: "Gargoyles? You mean a book about or with Gargoyles on the cover?
Not a very easy theme, I think...?!"

There is a book called The Gargoyle and there are a few others with the word in the title (and series name), although they may not necessarily be about gargoyles. I just did a quick image search on google and there are a number of books with gargoyles on the front cover. It would also seem that now in Urban Fantasy, a gargoyle is now a thing - an actual species. I didn't know this. (Check out this list - https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/3...). So it would seem there are more options than you'd think on first look.

Sarah wrote: "Elsbeth wrote: "Gargoyles? You mean a book about or with Gargoyles on the cover?
Not a very easy theme, I think...?!"

There is a book called The Gargoyle and there are a few others ..."

Ah, I didn't know that!

I think I'll nominate steam trains! There is a book about the last journey of the Orient Express, which I would like to read ( Welt in Flammen by Benjamin Monferat) - I bought it during my vacation last month.

I second "scary movies". It's October after all. :)

Elsbeth wrote: "I think I'll nominate steam trains! There is a book about the last journey of the Orient Express, which I would like to read (Welt in Flammen by ..."

You made me chuckle. I think steam trains will be harder than gargoyles ;-) But there are enough books with them on the cover, or feature in the story. Might be tricky to gopher though. Trains definitely easier than steam trains.

October 10 is World Mental Health Day, (www.who.int), so I propose the theme books dealing with mental health.

There's a genre we don't seem to read much in this group, and something I've been wanting to read more of, so I'm going to nominate "Westerns".

ETA - I'm thinking "old" western, not contemporary. Lonesome Dove would be a good example.

I don't remember the last time I read a Western. I second Janice's nomination.

Lanelle wrote: "I don't remember the last time I read a Western. I second Janice's nomination."

I clarified my nomination to "old" western. That may affect your seconding my nomination, Lanelle.

Janice wrote: "Lanelle wrote: "I don't remember the last time I read a Western. I second Janice's nomination."

I clarified my nomination to "old" western. That may affect your seconding my nomination, Lanelle."

Not at all. That's what I had in mind when I considered books in that genre.

I was looking at the Genre page for Westerns and there was a whole whack of the contemporary "cowboy romance" books listed, which in my mind isn't "Western".

Here's a listopia called Best Westerns with titles that I consider Westerns. There are a few that have been added to the list that don't fit the definition.

I second "scary movies"

I can't remember ever reading a western. I would love to give that a try.
But I won't second it, since I already nominated steam trains - hey, aren't there sometimes steam trains in westerns? ;)

I second westerns. I have never read any and haven't watched many westerns either, but I have True Grit on my tbr and it seems to fit and I would like to give the genre a try.

I'll second the mental health theme

I second "scary movies"

Sorry! I've been traveling and I have very limited access to GR at the moment. I meant gargoyles in the title, on the cover, in the story...just a general theme. I thought it would be different and fitting for October. :) Thanks for the link, Sarah.

Elsbeth wrote: "I can't remember ever reading a western. I would love to give that a try.
But I won't second it, since I already nominated steam trains - hey, aren't there sometimes steam trains in westerns? ;)"

They factor pretty big because many stories deal with the building of the railroad or travelling by train. Three-Ten to Yuma and Other Stories even shows a steam train on the cover.

I love the idea of 'old westerns' but scary is always good too...hmmm...I think I'll go with old westerns too though. So, I second old westerns.

Peggy wrote: "I second westerns. I have never read any and haven't watched many westerns either, but I have True Grit on my tbr and it seems to fit and I would like to give the genre a try."

I think you would enjoy True Grit, Peggy, even if the theme is not selected. It is a great story, including the dialogue.

I have an old Zane Grey audio book I am waiting for from my library. I like to listen to them, when I can.

I second mental health theme.

I will try to get to it soon Cherie. I just realized I can also use it for my geocache challenge, for the task to read a book set between 1800-1900, so I might just read it anyway.

Tough call. I'll second Old Westerns.

I second the mental health theme.

I nominate "takes place somewhere in Scandinavia"

I third scary movies.

I am going to add my voice to second or third Old Westerns.

I just downloaded for my Geocache challenge and I already love the narrator's voice. I was on hold for almost two months at my library to get this one. Old Westerns, especially in audio and CD are very popular.

This is going to be a great month. I like all the themes put forward.

Cherie wrote: I just downloaded for my Geocache challenge and I already love the narrator's voice. I was on h..."

Cherie, Zane Gray is an author i've never read that came to mind for this theme along with a few others, including Louis L'Amour and J. Frank Dobie. Will be interested in what you think of The Desert of Wheat.

Janice wrote: "This is going to be a great month. I like all the themes put forward."

I agree. Many of them we've not seen before. I am curious what will win the poll when i set it up.

I really love all the themes. I bet if we tried we could find a scary old western with a crazy cowboy on a train and encompass all the themes. I can't decide what I like most. I will just not second anything because I win every way.

Renee wrote: "I really love all the themes. I bet if we tried we could find a scary old western with a crazy cowboy on a train and encompass all the themes. I can't decide what I like most. I will just not secon..."

I found this - Night Knuckles: A Two Fisted Zombie Western. I don't know if there's a train in it, though.

LOL, there's a book for everything!

Just in case Westerns rise to the top, there is a sale today on West of the Pecos by Zane Grey for Kindle--$1.99.

That's high level gophering, Janice! :)

Renee wrote: "I really love all the themes. I bet if we tried we could find a scary old western with a crazy cowboy on a train and encompass all the themes. I can't decide what I like most. I will just not secon..."

Lol, too bad it won't take place in Scandinavia! :D

Carol wrote: "I nominate "takes place somewhere in Scandinavia""

I like that, too! There are so many great Scandinavian authors!

Tejas Janet wrote: "Cherie, Zane Gray is an author i've never read that came to mind for this theme along with a few others, including Louis L'Amour and J. Frank Dobie. Will be interested in what you think of The Desert of Wheat..."

I have read L'Amour in the past, as well as Grey, but not Dobie, although I may have. I used to read westerns off and on. I was horse crazy when I was a kid. My father-in-law always had a western paperback book in his hands.

I listened to a few chapters so far. I got an ear full about the pathology of wheat smut that mostly went right over my head. The time frame is just after the US entered WWI and there is a lot of talk about IWW - a labor union (higher wages, shorter hours, etc). They seem to be all over the US strong-arming workers and trying to convince them to quit their jobs and join the union and making threats to employers and workers who oppose them. Supposedly supported by German "gold". The language is very dated, but the western drawl of the narrator is great.

Elsbeth wrote: "Sarah wrote: "Elsbeth wrote: "Gargoyles? You mean a book about or with Gargoyles on the cover?
Not a very easy theme, I think...?!"

There is a book called The Gargoyle and there are..."

I loved that book! It is a fascinating story and not what you think.

@ Cherie - I had The Gargoyle and The Accidental Alchemist in mind when I made my nomination. Both look good to me. :) I was also thinking of the time when we had the dragon theme, which was really fun. (Don't ask me how the dragon theme made me think of a gargoyle theme. lol I think maybe just the random creature idea.)

@Kristie - I've often thought about a mythical creature theme but I keep forgetting about it when it comes to nominations. One day :-)

I wonder why that second book 'includes recipes'. Seems a bit ranrom given the blurb! I really like that cover.

Peggy wrote: "I wonder why that second book 'includes recipes'. Seems a bit ranrom given the blurb! I really like that cover."

I don't know, but I cannot pass this one up!

Haha! I'm pretty sure the gargoyle likes to cook. He has a mixer in his hand on the cover. Must be his recipes?

That makes sense!

Yeah, lot of sense. :D