All About Books discussion

Please sign up here if you would like to share any poem of your choice in May.

Please post in this thread and let me know which date you'd like if you want to sign up. We can only keep this new incarnation of the Monday Poem going if we have enough interest. So if you're interested, please do sign up!

1st May: Greg
8th May: Cleo
15th May: Laura
22nd May: Alannah
29th May: Tumbleweed Words

I am interested. I would like to read epics also, like The Divine Comedy and Paradise Lost

Nidhi wrote: "I am interested. I would like to read epics also, like The Divine Comedy and Paradise Lost"

Sure Nidhi! Book length epics would be more buddy reads though. I think maybe the Divine Comedy or Paradise Lost could be nominated under classics too.

Classics category is meant for fiction only that's why memoir by Zweig didn't qualify.

Nidhi wrote: "I am interested. I would like to read epics also, like The Divine Comedy and Paradise Lost"

I just started reading The Divine Comedy on April 1st and I'm reading one Canto per day. If you want to join me, you're welcome to. It will take 3 months to read so April=Inferno, May=Purgatorio and June=Paradiso.

Then I'm going to read Paradise Lost in July/August and you can join if you like. Just let me know.

(sorry to clutter up your thread, Greg!)

I will take 22nd

I recently finished Inferno so I will join you for Purgatorio in May Cleo. I am up for Paradise Lost also. Thanks for sharing your schedule. Others may consider reading these books as buddy reads.

Nidhi wrote: "I recently finished Inferno so I will join you for Purgatorio in May Cleo. I am up for Paradise Lost also. Thanks for sharing your schedule. Others may consider reading these books as buddy reads."

I recently finished Inferno as well and would be happy to join with Purgatorio. Nidhi or Cleo, go ahead and create a Readalong thread for May for Purgatorio.

Alannah wrote: "I will take 22nd"

Thanks Alannah! :)

Anyone else want to sign up for a slot? It would be fun if we could get this going again.

Greg wrote: "Nidhi wrote: "I recently finished Inferno so I will join you for Purgatorio in May Cleo. I am up for Paradise Lost also. Thanks for sharing your schedule. Others may consider reading these books as..."

Oh that's wonderful, Nidhi and Greg. It will be nice to have some reading buddies to read along with!

Greg, do you have any plan for categorizing poetry? Mostly Contemporary and Classic poetry or every era mixed together with brief introduction of the poet of the week?

Nidhi wrote: "Greg, do you have any plan for categorizing poetry? Mostly Contemporary and Classic poetry or every era mixed together with brief introduction of the poet of the week?"

What we did last time is just one poem a week where the person who signs up for that Monday can post any one poem they like.

A brief introduction is not required, but it would be nice for more unfamiliar poets that people might not have heard of before. And it would be nice to say just a little about why you like the poem or what you see in it. But feel free to include as much or as little as you like. With some poems, a little background can be helpful.

Poetry from any era is perfectly fine. We had some poems that were practically contemporary and others that were composed in ancient times - anything whatsoever that speaks to you is fine!

In the past, when people from the group discussed that week's poem, I feel like there were a lot of wonderful insights. And as a person who enjoys reading poetry, I liked it very much. I was introduced to more than one poet that I had never read before, even though I feel like I have read quite a lot of poetry!

poetry forever! can someone at me the sign up sheet? cannot find it on my phone :/

Are there any copyright issues?

Steve wrote: "Are there any copyright issues?"

Originally posted in 2014 so may be slightly different.
There's currently a lively debate going on in the Akhmatova thread about copyright law regarding poetry.

Technically posting a poem that isn't in the public domain yet or that you haven't been given permission to copy/post by the copyright owner could be regarded as a violation of copyright. Now our purpose is a) non-commercial and b) to raise awareness for poems/poets we love, which is quite far off of 'theft of creative property'.
All of Goodreads and many Microblogs seem to live quite happily in that zone of grey, however it is a relevant question and for those of you sharing I think you should be able to judge for yourself how cautious you would like to be. In any case: you should always name author and translator if the latter should apply.

Options:

- do as you always have done

if you'd like to be more cautious:

- check if your poem is public domain

- if not: quote a quarter of the poem and link to the rest (whereas our way of sharing is a grey area, linking apparently is a white area)

- ask the copyright holder for permission to post the poem

Alannah wrote: "Steve wrote: "Are there any copyright issues?"

Originally posted in 2014 so may be slightly different.
There's currently a lively debate going on in the Akhmatova thread about copyright law regard..."

Thanks Alannah! And thanks for the thoughtful question Steve!

I think for my part, I don't feel bad posting individual poems here with the author and translator clearly attributed because poetry itself is not given as much love as it should be, and we are posting only single poems that might spur those interested to find some new poets they can support and enjoy. A single poem is only a small excerpt of a much larger book, and I don't see how it's very different than posting poems in the review of a book.

But as Alannah says, everyone should do what they feel comfortable with. And if anyone feels uncomfortable, they can post older poetry that is in the public domain already.

Tumbleweed Words wrote: "poetry forever! can someone at me the sign up sheet? cannot find it on my phone :/"

Just say here which open date you want, and I'll add you Tumbleweed Words

1st May: Greg
8th May: Cleo
15th May:
22nd May: Alannah
29th May

I can take the 8th 👍🏻

Cleo wrote: "I can take the 8th 👍🏻"

Thanks Cleo! :)

29th may please Gregg thank you :)

Let's move general conversations and questions to the new Poetry Chat thread going forward: https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

We'll keep the sign up threads for sign ups.

We still have two open dates in May - May 15th and May 29th.

Anyone want to take either of those?

Did you add me in Greg? I will take 22nd

Alannah wrote: "Did you add me in Greg? I will take 22nd"

Yes, thanks so much Alannah, I put you in. :)

Current list:

1st May: Greg
8th May: Cleo
15th May:
22nd May: Alannah
29th May

29rh please!!!

Tumbleweed Words wrote: "29rh please!!!"

Fantastic, thanks Tumbleweed Words! :)

Only one spot in May to fill! Can anyone take it?

Thanks for the signups everyone!

1st May: Greg
8th May: Cleo
15th May:
22nd May: Alannah
29th May: Tumbleweed Words

Greg wrote: "Only one spot in May to fill! Can anyone take it?

Thanks for the signups everyone!

1st May: Greg
8th May: Cleo
15th May:
22nd May: Alannah
29th May: Tumbleweed Words"

I may take it: the 15 then!

Great - thanks Laura! And I'm happy to say that the signups for May are all filled up!

I'll generally post the sign up sheets a month before so expect June signups to be posted around May 1st everyone.

And thanks everyone for helping to get the Monday poem going again!

hurrah!

Gregg I used to live on brick lane,how you finding the book?

Greg wrote: "Great - thanks Laura! And I'm happy to say that the signups for May are all filled up!

I'll generally post the sign up sheets a month before so expect June signups to be posted around May 1st ever..."

Hi Gregg, I wrote an extensive review of Jame Baldwin and his book Giovanni's Room - will be posted on my newsletter soon, check it out when live - great writer!

Tumbleweed Words wrote: "Gregg I used to live on brick lane,how you finding the book?"

It's a great crosssection of life of what it was like for some of the immigrants who lived there back at the time it was written. I find the stories quite moving. And the flashbacks of her childhood in Bangladesh in particular are completely new to me.

That's interesting that you lived in Brick Lane yourself! Since I live in America, I have no idea of what that area must actually be like, but one of my Goodreads friends who taught in that area said that she thought Brick Lane was very accurate and authentic in describing the lives of her students.

How did you like it there?