SciFi and Fantasy Book Club discussion

So who's going to do the challenge again next year? Who already has their number or even their books?

Next year I plan on reading 22 books for the challenge. It would have been 24 but I've already read the books for January. No list for me, it'll just be whatever books the group chooses.

I'll be trying it again this year. I fell woefully short in 2014, though there are several I still want to get to.

I will be.....though rather sillily I've been reading books off the bookshelf after I've completed my 2014 goal. Not sure how many I'll try for yet - probably 20 again.

What challenge is this?

Cheryl wrote: "What challenge is this?"

In 2014, our club did a challenge (technically still going until December 31!) to read books from the club's bookshelf. You can see the challenge by going to the group's home page - it is just below "Currently Reading" in the "Challenges" section.

The moderators have confirmed we are doing it again for 2015, so that's what this thread is discussing.

So are these book discussion titles for the year? I could probably aim for 20...

Kim wrote: "So who's going to do the challenge again next year? Who already has their number or even their books?

Next year I plan on reading 22 books for the challenge. It would have been 24 but I've alread..."

I think it's interesting now that you've read all the group's books, you can no longer challenge yourself with more than 22! One of my favorite parts of this challenge was going through the list and picking ones I was in the mood for, or my highest priorities, or ones that I could read at the same time as others in the group. I would be sad if I didn't have that freedom any more... (I guess technically you could reread some, since we allowed that for Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency last year...)

I am going for 12 again, although I was able to read 18 this year. Partly my must-read list is smaller now, and partly I enjoyed not biting off more than I could chew last year and want a repeat of that. I've only picked 5 so far; I'll add more as we pick monthly reads and as I hear about books a bunch of people would like to read together.

My list:
The Carpet Makers
Ready Player One
Neuromancer
To Say Nothing of the Dog
A Wizard of Earthsea

And I still need to try one by China Miéville!

i'm in for 12 after doing 20 this year. I mostly read just fantasy so think my selection pool will be a bit smaller next year.

I'm going to aim for 12 in 2015.My picks are:

1. The Island of Dr. Moreau
2. The Name of the Wind
3. The Day of the Triffids
4. The Time Machine
5. The Martian Chronicles
6. Dune
7. Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?
8. TBA
9. TBA
10 TBA
11 TBA
12 TBA

Michael wrote: "I think it's interesting now that you've read all the group's books, you can no longer challenge yourself with more than 22!"

I normally also do the main Goodreads challenge where I do between 60-100 books a year. Not having to read as many here will allow me to read more with my literature group who I kind of neglected this year.

Ideally, I'd like to read 14 old ones, and 6 new picks from this year. I ended up with some of my dad's old fantasy/sci-fi books when he moved, so I have some of my own new books and some of his that I (shamefully, woefully) haven't read yet (and maybe a few I'd like to re-read, since it's been so long since I read them initially).

1. Rendezvous with Rama
2. The Ocean at the End of the Lane
3. The Last Unicorn
4. The Island of Dr. Moreau
5. The Dragon's Path
6. The Day of the Triffids
7. Brave New World
8. The Princess Bride
9. The Lies of Locke Lamora
10. Frankenstein
11. Deathless
12. World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War
13. Ready Player One
14. The Handmaid's Tale

I'm definitely participating. I'm going to aim for 60 since that will put me over 100 of the groups books. And there's no way I'm picking them in advance! Like Michael, I prefer to choose what I'm in the mood for at the time. Plus I like the grab bag feel. I've already chosen specific books for my classics challenge and want this one to be much more loose. Definitely Mieville though.

We could also do one of his on the Coordinating Group Reads thread.

Kim, does your literary group ever combine sci-fi and fantasy into it? I ask because there's another Mieville book called Railsea that is a sci-fi/fantasy (hard to say which) version of Moby Dick.

I'm going to read 20 for next year. No idea which yet - probably a mix of old and new, but that's half the fun.

Sarah wrote: "Kim, does your literary group ever combine sci-fi and fantasy into it? I ask because there's another Mieville book called Railsea that is a sci-fi/fantasy (hard to say which) version of Moby Dick."

Rarely. I've read Railsea and really enjoyed it. It's been a while since this group has done a Mieville book.

I've read 25 so far this year and plan to shoot for 20 next year. Had a good time, many of them were very good.

It's fun to make a list but I pretty much ignored it, just read what looked good at the time.

China Mieville, sub-genre acid fantasy

I would live to do Railsea with the group. I had to return it to the library and didn't get to finish it.

I'm definitely going to re-read Fuzzy Nation and The Sparrow. Some of these books are absolutely amazing. I want to finally read Perdido Street Station next month since Jan tends to be a long and quiet month for me.

Since I don't read that much SF & Fantasy , I'm going to aim for 15. I have selected 23 books I may read.

Kim wrote: "So who's going to do the challenge again next year? Who already has their number or even their books?"

24 for me, same as last year: 1-2 per month from the monthly selections, and the rest "catch-ups" on other stuff from the bookshelf that I would like to read, of which there are quite a few.

It looks like I will get to 27 for 2014, a net gain of 3 on the ever growing SF&F bookshelf.

Kim, are you planning to set up another discussion thread for the 2015 challenge, or is this it here?

I think I'll finish at 31 for 2014. I've been having way too much fun. :)

I am going to go for 20 again...between catching up on old reads and the new ones that caught my eye that was perfect

I'm in. I've already have my shelf setup with 12 books on it. I'll commit to another 20. I committed to 20 this year and read 22. Things will probably go the same.

Edit: Make that 13. Deathless caught my eye from Jes' list. It looked good, so I added it. Thanks!

I really should read The Handmaid's Tale again. I don't think I've ever had a stronger emotional response to a book.

Edwin wrote: "Kim, are you planning to set up another discussion thread for the 2015 challenge, or is this it here? "

I'll set up a new one on New Years Day.

REVISED 12-29-2014

Planning on reading the standard 24 for the group, 12 on the list, and 12 for the main Goodreads challenge in addition. I was able to do that this year, but I am going to be really close on the 36 for the group. So, 36 for the group challenge, and 12 additional for the Goodreads as a whole group challenge. i will report those in the our group's ongoing discussion about what are we reading now. All will be short reviewed as has been my style this year. I will edit this list with the preliminary items for us and the Goodreads plans as well.

Goodreads Challenges Science Fiction / Fantasy Book Group 2015 Challenge
My Primary Lists - new Group selections
12 -- Monthly Science Fiction Book Selections
The Carpet Makers by Andreas Eschbach, trans. by Doryl Jensen

12 -- Monthly Fantasy Selections
The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien

My Secondary List - currently in work, but not completed. All on the Group's Bookshelf
12 -- From my chosen Group Bookshelf List already in work
Embassytown by China Miéville
Wool Omnibus by Hugh Howey
Promise of Blood by Brian McClellan
Warbreaker by Brandon Sanderson
The Killing Moon by N.K. Jemisin
The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss
Leviathan Wakes by James S.A. Corey

New in 2015 (never read nor started)

The Color of Magic by Sir Terry Pratchett
Neuromancer by William Gibson
Cat's Cradle by Kurt Vonnegut
The Caves of Steel by Isaac Asimov

My Tertiary List -- Michael et. al.'s reading group reads as well as any others in work not included in primary or secondary lists above but on the Group's bookshelf
18 including:

The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood
Ready Player One by Ernest Cline
The Martian Chronicles by Ray Bradbury
Altered Carbon by Richard K. Morgan
The City & the City by China Miéville
The Dispossessed by Ursula K. Le Guin
The Forever War by Joe Haldeman
American Gods by Neil Gaiman
The Gunslinger by Stephen King
Spin by Robert Charles Wilson
The Black Company by Glen Cook
Little, Big by John Crowley
Magician by Raymond E. Feist
The Warrior's Apprentice by Lois McMaster Bujold
The Martian Chronicles by Ray Bradbury
A Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin
Foundation by Isaac Asimov
A Canticle for Leibowitz by Walter M. Miller Jr.

Goodreads site 2015 Challenge -- Titles and Authors -- totally my choices from my shelves just for fun or for research...
18 including

I Am Malala: The Girl Who Stood Up for Education and Was Shot by the Taliban by Malala Yousafzai
The Nixon Tapes: 1971-1972 by Douglas G. Brinkley
Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln by Doris Kearns Goodwin
The Bully Pulpit: Theodore Roosevelt, William Howard Taft, and the Golden Age of Journalism by Doris Kearns Goodwin
Long Walk to Freedom by Nelson Mandela
I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou
Lee Child Collection: Killing Floor, Echo Burning, The Visitor, Tripwire, Die Trying, Without Fail, Persuader, One Shot, The Enemy, The Hard Way, Bad Luck And Trouble by Lee Child
The Nightmare Begins by Jerry Ahern
The Stand by Stephen King
The Strain by Guillermo del Toro
Theodore Rex by Edmund Morris
Fighter Pilot: The Memoirs Of Legendary Ace Robin Olds by Robin Olds
Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption by Laura Hillenbrand
My Rival, The Sky by Margo Kurtz
All Fall Down by Harry Turtledove
The Realm of the Nebulae by Edwin Powell Hubble
The Cosmic Landscape: String Theory and the Illusion of Intelligent Design by Leonard Susskind
Quintessence The Search For Missing Mass In The Universe by Lawrence M. Krauss

And in case that were not enough --
14 more from the group's list...

The Dispossessed by Ursula K. Le Guin
The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K. Le Guin
The Complete Grimm's Fairy Tales by Jacob Grimm
Perdido Street Station by China Miéville
Frankenstein by Mary Shelley
The Windup Girl by Paolo Bacigalupi
Red Mars by Kim Stanley Robinson
The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch
1Q84 by Haruki Murakami

List moved from 2014 Challenge --personally desired TBR

A Canticle for Leibowitz by Walter M. Miller Jr.
Doomsday Book by Connie Willis
Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman
The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K. Le Guin
Watchmen by Alan Moore, Dave Gibbons, et. al.

Sidereads -- no sure how many of these I will try to read but the list as I understand it is as follows:

9) Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency* - (306pp) - January 27
(6) Wool Omnibus (Silo, #1)* - (539pp) - February 15
(5) Foundation - (296pp) - ???
(5) Oryx and Crake* - (374pp) - April 1
(6) Perdido Street Station - (867pp) - ???
(6) The Left Hand of Darkness* - (304pp) - May 15
(8) Embassytown - (405pp) - June 19
(5) The Color of Magic - (250pp) - July 22
(4) Mistborn: The Final Empire* - (647pp) - August?
(6) Leviathan Wakes - (561pp) - September?
(4) Doomsday Book* - (578pp) - October?
(8) The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress* - (302pp) - November?


I will be happy if I can get 36 of these read, but aiming for the stars has never been difficult for me. The landing, however, that has always been the real challenge. Not the getting down, mind you, the survival of the initial contact with the ground --- Aye, laddies and lassies, thar's the rub...

I am going to shoot for 30 group books for 2015 in a combination of current BOMs and past reads.

Right now, I am at 28 for the 2014 challenge. If I can finish Watchmen, I will end the year at 29.

I really want to read some of those books that I already own, but haven't gotten around to reading yet. Those are at the top of my "catch list."

The Blade Itself
Wizard's First Rule
The Sandman, Vol. 1: Preludes and Nocturnes
The Dragon's Path
Promise of Blood
The Martian
Dawn
Prince of Thorns

Kim wrote: "Edwin wrote: "Kim, are you planning to set up another discussion thread for the 2015 challenge, or is this it here? "

I'll set up a new one on New Years Day."

Great. It appears that already we have a ton of interest.

I also think it would be fun for those interested to continue reading some of these in groups, as we did this year. There are already a bunch of books listed above that I would also love to read.

I agree Edwin, group reads are more fun than solo ones sometimes.

Sarah wrote: "I agree Edwin, group reads are more fun than solo ones sometimes."

Yes indeed. Our overlaps so far include Fuzzy Nation, the audiobook version of which I recently got on sale, and The Handmaid's Tale which I have been itching to read for a while now.

Hopefully, we can enlist Michael again to help get us all together on these.

For those interested, here is the "group read" thread: coordinating-reading-books-in-groups

I'm reading Fuzzy Nation in Feb for another book group. If we could do it that month, or March, it would be a great overlap. It's such a fun book though. I would probably read it anytime.

I also want to read the Neal Stephenson books and Tigana.

I ended up setting up a list of ones I'm particularly interested in reading in 2015. Maybe we can all check each other's lists for anything that overlaps. As long as I don't have to reread Stranger in a Strange Land or I am Legend I'll probably be fine with whatever is chosen :)

I can't wait!

In addition to those that I already own as listed above, I would also be interested in:

Alif the Unseen
Warbreaker
The Long Earth
The Warded Man
Old Man's War
Foundation
American Gods
Tigana
Dune
His Majesty's Dragon
Altered Carbon
I Am Legend
The Windup Girl
The Martian Chronicles
Rendezvous with Rama

and probably some more.

Valerie, on your list I want to do

The Warded Man
Old Man's War
Tigana
Dune
His Majesty's Dragon
Altered Carbon

Especially those last two! And I would be willing to reread

The Long Earth
American Gods

I would maybe reread Foundation. I didn't like it the first time but then a friend explained some stuff about it and I think I should try it again.

I am also willing to reread:

The Princess Bride
Fuzzy Nation

Two of my favs.

I didn't particularly like The Princess Bride for some reason. Fuzzy Nation I plan on rereading at least twice in 2015. Probably at least twice a year for the rest of my life.

Edwin wrote: "Sarah wrote: "I agree Edwin, group reads are more fun than solo ones sometimes."

Yes indeed. Our overlaps so far include Fuzzy Nation, the audiobook version of which I recently got on sale, and The Handmaid's Tale which I have been itching to read for a while now.

Hopefully, we can enlist Michael again to help get us all together on these."

I'm keeping an eye on these threads, don't worry! My 2015 schedule can handle it... barring unforeseen disasters...

I love Dune, though I'm not sure I'd be ready to re-read it again yet. Maybe if I can get the audiobook. Hmmm.

Speaking of, I do have the Fuzzy Nation audio, and I have Old Man's War in paperback. Definitely want to get to those.

Can you believe, I've never read Foundation? Might have to rectify that. As well as The Martian Chronicles, which I skimmed in high school.

I read Foundation for the first time just a couple of months ago. I also just read The Martian Chronicles even though I've been dying to read it for at least 25 years.

Sarah wrote: "I'm reading Fuzzy Nation in Feb for another book group. If we could do it that month, or March, it would be a great overlap. It's such a fun book though. I would probably read it anytime."

February would work for me if we want to try to overlap. I should by then be finally done with The Dark Tower, marking the end of a rather long audio journey through that series.

Sarah wrote: "I didn't particularly like The Princess Bride for some reason. Fuzzy Nation I plan on rereading at least twice in 2015. Probably at least twice a year for the rest of ..."

Is this series at all related to the Little Fuzzy books of H. Beam Piper?

I think I am just going to have to shoot for the 24 regular club books next year and only add extras if I have already read the selections. This year has been a blast but I really want to finish (or read a couple more books) the series this monsterous (fantastic) list has forced me to start.

Just this year I will have read 59 off the large list including 17/24 from this year giving me a total of 118/175

The series that made the "must read next" list are below in my order from best to slightly less best

Mistborn: The Final Empire
Ancillary Justice
Storm Front
Hounded
Altered Carbon
Midnight Riot
Annihilation
Cursor's Fury

You see my problem, if I only read 2 each from those plus the montly selections....

This year I have doubled the number of books that I usually read which is great, but I don't think another doubling is in the cards. I will cheer loudly from the sidelines.

Yes, Marc. It was inspired by the series or something like that.

I'm also interested in Ancillary Justice.

We seem to have a few that have pretty good interest.

Edwin, how was The Dark Tower? What you've read of it. I'm not a King fan but I've been eyeing that one for a very long time.

Oh, I think I misunderstood how the challenge works when I signed up for it this year. Hmm.
I have to overthink this.

Oh and while we're at it: 'The Princess Bride' is SciFi/Fantasy? It's on the groups bookshelf. Also, 'Watership Down'. While I admit that animalcentric books are quite fantastic, I wouldn't say they're fantasy.

Sarah wrote: "Edwin, how was The Dark Tower? What you've read of it. I'm not a King fan but I've been eyeing that one for a very long time."

Sarah, the The Dark Tower Series Collection: The Gunslinger, The Drawing of the Three, The Waste Lands, Wizard and Glass, Wolves of the Calla, Song of Susannah, The Dark Tower is complex, and often brilliant and compelling, but at the same time frustratingly over-long and needlessly wordy. I took on the audiobook versions of the series two years ago. In total, it is almost 140 hours of listening, and I have about 3 hours left in the last book. It has been a long journey. I am not sure I would recommend it unless you are a real fan.

If my 2014 challenge is any indication, what I wind up reading won't bear much resemblance to what I planned at the beginning of the year, but here are a few that would be at the top of my list:

Hyperion
The Player of Games
The Sandman, Vol. 1: Preludes and Nocturnes
The Left Hand of Darkness
The Graveyard Book
Tigana
The Lions of Al-Rassan
Assassin's Apprentice
The Handmaid's Tale
A Fire Upon the Deep
Storm Front
Gardens of the Moon

Hell, that would cover all 12 that I plan to read for the challenge right there. I'm sure I'll want to read books that the group selects during the year though and I'll probably make a few other choices that diverge from that list, so this is very tentative.

Marc wrote: "Is this series at all related to the Little Fuzzy books of H. Beam Piper?"

Yes, it's inspired by it and is considered a "reboot" of that series.

Hank wrote: "I think I am just going to have to shoot for the 24 regular club books next year and only add extras if I have already read the selections. This year has been a blast but I really want to finish (o..."

I like your realistic approach. I recently calculated that I am in the middle of 27 different series. It's overwhelming isn't it? I've realized it's just not in the cards for me to finish all of them...

Overwhelming! A tad depressing just because it isn't possible to finish all of them even if they are fantastic but at least we are filled with books we know are good, rather than the alternative.

It makes me appreciate recommendations from group even more. I would have never started Mistborn: The Final Empire without the many glowing reviews. Thank goodness I did, I would have hated to miss that series.

And let me add a second or third (or more) thanks for your side read discussion organization last year, I really enjoyed the few I took part in.