The Reading Books We Don't Think We'll Like Challenge - karenmarie and CharlesBoyd

On the "Most Abandoned Book" thread, CharlesBoyd mentioned The Rapture of Canaan by Sheri Reynolds. I said I didn't think I would like reading it, sorry, but there it was.

He wrote back saying that he'd read a book I loved that he wouldn't normally read if I'd read Rapture.

I thought that sounded like a fun idea, and we've been going back and forth on our profile pages discussing things.

The upshot is that I'm going to read The Rapture of Canaan and he's going to read Slaughterhouse Five by Kurt Vonnegut. He's always avoided Vonnegut. I love Vonnegut.

We're both very excited about this strange "challenge" and wanted to share our collaboration with you all.

We haven't discussed whether official reviews are required or not, but we will definitely discuss our books here.

Onward and upward! I've already BookMooched Rapture and it was sent yesterday, so it's on its way.

Indeed we didn't discuss writing offical reviews of the book each of us will read. I think that's a good idea and plan to do it.

I'll probably pick up Slaughterhouse Five today at a local used bookstore.

I just noticed that if you take away the "S" Slaughterhouse Five becomes laughterhouse Five. Am I the only one who's ever noticed that? Or am I just a dimwit?

Also, what Karenmarie didn't mention is that we wonder if any other LibraryThingers might want to try the same thing and post their experiences.

Okay, no more excuses. I finished my ER book and reviewed it.

Here goes. Off to read the first chapter.

Started Slaughterhouse Five yesterday. Only had time to read 20 pages. Not what I expected. I'd had the impression it would be incomprehensible, but it's pretty understandable. Not sure yet if I like it, but I certainly don't hate it like I thought I would.

Good for you, Charles!

I, too, started my book yesterday - got about 25 or pages in.

It's well written. The characters are vivid. It's just that I hate writhe-on-the-floor Christianity. Nanna is saving my sanity.

This is a cool idea - it such a great opportunity to open yourself up to reading experiences you would otherwise have turned your back to. I think it's also a great chance for an interesting discussion. Well done guys!

How do you think it could be organised for other users? One idea I had was that a user could list books (or types of books) they think are great and usually recommend, and then list the types of books they would normally never read.

To start a challenge you could partner up with someone who doesn't read the kinds of books you like, and who recommended books you don't read. You could make small groups too I guess. What do you think? If enough people are interested a new group could be created for it - the 'I would never read that' challenge (or something).

Hi inkspot - thanks for the postiive reinforcement.

We're just getting out feet wet, so to speak. Keep checking in, we don't have a formal method for discussing our books, but will be adding things as we see fit, I guess.

I'm up to page 49.

I'll be busing/light railing to my novel writing class this evening (my wife has the car at work) and probably will leave early to get a bite to eat on the way. Should be able to read 30+ pages to add to the 20 of Slaughterhouse Five I've already read.

KarenMarie: I'm not a fan of writhe-on-the-floor Christianity either, but this isn't about that, but the girl caught in that type of situation. It's basically an indictment of that cultish type of religion. Anyway, I'm glad you find something you like about it, i.e. "It's well written." The characters are vivid."

inkspot: Your comment: "This is a cool idea - it's such a great opportunity to open yourself up to reading experiences you would otherwise have turned your back to," summed up nicely what we're trying to do.
Glad you're on board.

I'll be busing/light railing to my novel writing class this evening (my wife has the car at work) and probably will leave early to get a bite to eat on the way. Should be able to read 30+ pages to add to the 20 of Slaughterhouse Five I've already read.

KarenMarie: I'm not a fan of writhe-on-the-floor Christianity either, but this isn't about that, but the girl caught in that type of situation. It's basically an indictment of that cultish type of religion. Anyway, I'm glad you find something you like about it, i.e. "It's well written. The characters are vivid."

inkspot: Your comment: "This is a cool idea - it's such a great opportunity to open yourself up to reading experiences you would otherwise have turned your back to," summed up nicely what we're trying to do.
Glad you're on board.

As I keep on reading I realize how much Ninah is not part of the "church".

It's just that this type of Christianity is very close to what I deal with with most of the people I work with in my department. I actually call it "writhing on the floor for Jesus". It pushes lots of buttons with me, which is why I said I didn't want to read it to begin with. In my 20s and 30s I had the face that launched a thousand conversions - people who would literally push me up against the wall and try to "convert" me - and a sister who said I was her special burden with God because I was going to hell. I didn't talk with her for 3 years and our relationship took years to get back to normal.

Lots of buttons.

However, I like Ninah, and am anxious to find out this plays out.

Chocolate chip cookies at 9 pm sometimes translates into wide-awakeness at 2 a.m.

I finished Rapture at 4 a.m. I'll do some thinking about it and post something later. Today's going to be very busy at work, so I don't know when "later" will be.

About 85 pages into Slaughterhouse Five. We will have our grandson for a couple of days starting tomorrow (Wednesday) so I won't get as much reading done as usual. Still should finish it by the end of the week. I'll do a review of it shortly after.

Interesting info about your experiences with people of that type.

Beware! There are Major Spoilers in this message. As in, the whole plot is given away.

Do not read it if you don’t want to know how this book turns out or how it gets there.

***spoilers***
***spoilers***
***spoilers***

The Rapture of Canaan was a very disturbing book for me to read. It tells the tale of Ninah, a teenage girl who lives in a separatist Pentacostal Christian community in the South, a member of The Church of Fire and Brimstone and God's Almighty Baptizing Wind. The church and the individual lives of the members are rigidly controlled by her grandfather, Grandpa Herman, the founder of the church.

She loves her Nanna, Grandpa Herman’s wife, who is much less rigid and strict. Nanna allows Ninah small rebellions, and these small rebellions eventually turn into the large rebellion of sleeping with her prayer partner James. When she turns up pregnant, James cannot cope with the fear and shame and kills himself. Ninah is left to bear the shame and live the punishment. She is cruelly punished – dunked in a cage and taken out of school; virtually kept a prisoner in her Grandpa’s house, taken care of by Nanna. She eventually has a baby boy, who has the strange birth defect of having his hands fused together, as if in prayer. The congregation takes this to be a sign from God, and that the boy, named Canaan, heralds the Rapture. He is taken away from Ninah to be raised by her brother and his wife, who are childless. The most sick part of this book was that there was no thought given to having Canaan’s hands separated, to let him be a child, not a religious symbol.

Grandpa Herman has a stroke, and the rigid control of the church starts to falter. Ninah’s punishment and loss of her child affect her father first, but also other members of the church. They start questioning why things are done as they are, why punishments are meted out the way they are. The women rebel too, by cutting their hair and hiding the fact. Ninah eventually cuts the skin between Canaan’s hands. He doesn’t cry, but runs around laughing at his new found freedom, a metaphor for Ninah’s freedom too.

I almost got sick reading the punishments and religious twaddle espoused by Grandpa Herman. People kept in cellars for 40 days for drinking, made to lie overnight in graves, dunked in cages in rivers, strapped, beaten, shunned. Mortification of the flesh with barbed wire, nettles, pecan shells. All were done to purge the sinner of sin and lead them to the loving arms of Jesus. Except that Grandpa Herman believes more in the God of the Old Testament, less in the loving Son of the New. Fear of damnation, threats of eternal hellfire and being left behind when The Rapture comes all keep the congregants in line and fearful, cowed and submissive.

I hate hearing about this kind of lifestyle. This is the reason I didn’t want to read the book. This kind of religious belief system strikes at the core of everything I hate about organized religion.

However.

I found myself compelled to read this book quickly once started, to learn what happens to Ninah and James, Cannan and Nanna. Through stories told by Nanna we learn about her life with Grandpa as a young married woman and also how Grandpa came to believe as he did and act as he did in founding such a rigid and controlling church. It explains a lot. Grandpa’s power and absolutely belief in his righteousness and rightness keep people in line until Ninah starts questioning things.

I really like the fact that by the end of the book the church could not continue as it was. Too many people enjoyed more freedoms and were genuinely happier and religious with a less rigid code. We don’t find out who becomes the preacher, who takes control, but I get the sense it is run more democratically, with more input from the women and more of the men sharing some of the power and duties formerly held by Grandpa.

The writing was beautiful, simple and powerful. I found Ninah immediately likeable for her honest and heartbreaking “voice” – her questioning of things yet firm belief that these questions would earn her a place in hell, a place left behind after everybody else was taken in The Rapture. She’s willing to take her punishments although she starts to wonder why. The writing was also vivid and evocative of a time and place not so unfamiliar to someone who lives in the South. The rhythms of nature drive the lifestyle of these people and are accurately captured in the narrative and emphasize the rigid roles of men and women, boys and girls.

Charles. I’m truly glad I read this book and thank you for the challenge. I may even read more by Reynolds.

I found this a very quick read. Slaughterhouse Five isn't a quick read, so I'll be patient and wait to hear how you're doing with it, Charles.

I've really enjoyed this thread. Thank you both for being so open and sharing your reactions with us.

Karenmarie: I'm really glad you, well not "liked" it, but appreciated it in some ways. It never occured to me that anyone could find it worth reading, but not be particularly fond of it. I'm sure I've read a few books that way myself, though at the moment I'm not remembering them. As I've said before, I felt right away when I first read it that it was destined to be a classic. Thanks for your thoughts.

jennieg: I've noticed your name in various other threads. Nice to have your input. Care to try The Rapture of Canaan?

This is great. A friend of mine, who always read books I recommended, convinced me to branch out and read one of his. Fair is fair, I thought. That is how I came to read The Road, which is not a book I can recommend, but I am glad I read it. We were able to discuss it, and it was a little payback for me sneaking books into his car at work!

I was pleased to see in Slaughterhouse Five a mention of The Execution of Private Slovik by William Bradford Huie. A facinating account of the only U.S. soldier executed by the U.S. for desertion since the civil war. I've read it several times over the years. First read it after seeing the movie staring Martin Sheen in 1974.

Charles - I've read quite a few books over the years that I didn't "enjoy" but felt worthwhile reading. Since I like to re-read books, they are the ones I never re-read. Some of them are still on my shelves. That will be Rapture's fate - probably not re-read (although not out of the realm of possibilities), but staying on my shelves.

rockinrhombus - I absolutely loved The Road and would recommend it to anybody. Why do you feel you can't recommend it?

Which brings up an interesting point. Would I recommend The Rapture of Canaan? I think I would, because even though I found parts of it disgusting from a moral and anti-organized-religion point of view, I still loved the writing and the actual story of Ninah.

The one book I can think of offhand that I would never recommend to anybody under any circumstances is The Virgin Suicides by Jeffery Eugenides.

Charles, it looks like I need to re-read Slaughterhouse Five. It's in the parlour, on shelf 33. Off I go to fetch it.

Hmm, your post reminds me of how much tastes differ karenmarie. Rockinrhombus wouldn't recommend The Road to anyone but you would. And I wouldn't hesitate to recommend The Virgin Suicides to anyone - I thought it was the most beautiful (if tragic) book, and the perfect example of how really great writing can be absorbing and easy to read. It's one of my favourites, and I enjoy re-reading it. What didn't you like about it?

I also have books I didn't enjoy but which I felt were worthwhile. One that comes to mind is Disgrace by J. M. Coetzee. Never has a book made me so angry, and I felt the same about the movie. However, after discussing it with friends, I realised how much the anger evoked by the novel blinded me to the ideas Coetzee was trying to convey, and also how much those emotions relate to the issues in the novel. I realise I didn't give the book the consideration it deserved and I'm currently re-reading it. It's a particularly important book for South Africans, I think, and for anyone who wants to understand race relations here.

Although it's not always the case, I think the getting a new perspective on a book you dislike can change your opinion of it, and help you appreciate it.

Good morning, inkspot!

The reason I hated VS is because I have a (now) 16-year old daughter and the idea of any child killing herself (or himself) gives me the shudders.

It's actually the same reason I don't like Rapture - pushes a lot of personal buttons for me but has beautiful writing. I'm going out to fetch my review of Virgin Suicides and post the link to it here - I'll be right back.

It's good afternoon from me, but I hope you have a good one when it rolls around :)

I see what you mean by VS, although I think the novel was really more about the boys' obsession with the Lisbon sisters than about the suicides. Do you have similar feelings about books that focus on, say, the suicides/death/misfurtune of other family members or friends? Or is it the fact that VS is about young girls in particular?

Ah, good afternoon then!

I had to take my daughter to school, hence the delay.

I have read books with suicides in them, but never of teenage girls. Since I have one of those myself, it just basically made me sick. Plus, I really wondered why he wrote the book. I just didn't get it.

I got rid of the book, and since I have another paid account to keep track of my BookMooch books, put my review out there. I read the book in February of 2008. One month later I added to the review to say I still was sorry I'd read it. When I put the book up for bookmooch and moved it to the Kairfa Account in September, the system picked up that date. So the dates are confusing when you look at the date of the review but have a 6-month earlier reference in it. Anyway, here it is.

The Virgin Suicides

My opinion hasn't changed. I'm still sorry I read it. It bothers me to think about it. I'd much rather not have these bad feelings. I actually created a thread about VS in the group "Somebody Explain it To Me". Here's the link:

Someone Explain it to Me: The Virgin Suicides

They said all the things you said, and intellectually I can understand how good the book is, but I just don't like it. It's irrational.

I read your review Karen. With the exception of the quality of Eugenides writing, I think our opinions of VS differ on pretty much every aspect :)
I found this book remarkably easy to read – I tore through it in a day or two, reading late into the night. Even when re-reading, when I got to the end I felt like starting over again, and sometimes went back to certain passages.

On the whole I find it tragic but not depressing. I think it’s because the way the narrative is framed – everything is seen through the boys’ eyes, and the girls and their parents are therefore as much a mystery to us as they are to them. It’s a tragedy that doesn’t overindulge its own misery. I hate books where some poor character has to endure one tragedy after another and I’ve always wondered why there are so many on the market, with things like bios on sexual abuse taking up so much shelf space. I’ve heard these books referred to as misery porn, and I think that name suits it perfectly. In VS, there aren’t happy endings, but it’s a kind of wistful, almost commonplace sadness, not the gut-wrenching tortures of misery porn, the shock value of which diminishes the real tragedy, I feel.

ITO why Eugenides wrote the book – quite simply, I think it’s a great story – the strangeness of the Lisbons and their suicides baffle the boys and the reader despite the detailed studies the boys attempt. It’s so shocking you are compelled to understand it but you just can’t. In fact, I think a concrete explanation would diminish the tragedy and turn the girls in to more ordinary, dull characters.

I also think the mystery says something about being a teenager and being a teenaged girl in particular – the intensity and difficulty of it, thrown into sharp relief. Perhaps your own daughter might identify with it, to a degree. But again, Eugenides looks at these things indirectly rather than presuming to understand a teenaged girl’s perspective. The mystery surrounding the Lisbons (which turns them into mythological figures) is, I think, the mystery that girls hold for boys (and maybe women for men) as well as the difficulty adults have in understanding teenagers. I think this is also why the authorities are so inept in the novel – they simply don’t understand the Lisbons and aren’t willing to make enough effort to. I’m too young to know much about the period in which the book is set, but I’d guess the attitude to teenagers was somewhat different at the time.

Sorry for the long post. I suppose I feel that, in the same way the events of Disgrace prevented me from appreciating what the novel had to offer, I think the girls’ suicides in VS are preventing you from enjoying what I think is an incredible novel. It all comes down to your own tastes in the end, I know, but I thought I’d give it a shot.

Oops, posted that before you edited your post, so you've probably heard all that before. Oh well, it's still nice to add my two cents :)

Thanks for what you wrote, inkspot. I agree with everything you said intellectually. You're very perceptive and make a great case for a book you love.

It may say something about the book that I still think about it, but with distaste and resentment. I still really wish I had never read it. But I could say the same for some other books too, yet I still survive.

Onward!

> 15, Ok, Charles, you're on. I'll get Rapture from the library this weekend. How about tackling Barchester Towers? It's not emotionally challenging, but I'm a big Trollope fan and like to spread the word.

It sounds like we need a group for this now, with several people interested. What should we call the group?

Expanding Your Reading Horizons - Read a Book You Wouldn't Normally Read

I'll Read Yours if You'll Read Mine

Reading Something You Wouldn't Normally Read Challenge

...
...
something else?

I envision that people can make an agreement about what to read - like you and Charles working on your challenge right now - and setting up a thread in this group with both your names in it and whatever else you'd like.

Or, something else?

What'cha think?

I like 'I'll read yours if you read mine'. It's catchy. 'Expand your reading horizons' illustrates the idea better though.

How will the group and challenges be organised? I suggest the same as I did before - list the types of books you don't normally read and those that you love. This can go according to genre, plot, narration, character - anything that best describes your tastes. To choose someone to take up a challenge with, you find someone who hates the books you love, and loves the books you hate.

I think the guidelines should also include a suggestion that, when picking a book for the other person to read, you choose something that will help them appreciate the style/genre/story they normally wouldn't read, even if an explanation is required for them to appreciate it. For example, I like some feminist sci fi novels, but I wouldn't choose the most hard-hitting example, or the other person will probably refuse to ever read anything in that genre again. Instead I'd pick a lighter read. For beginners, you might say. Even if they end up not liking it, it should at least generate a good discussion, rather than having someone just say "That was crap." There can always be more demanding challenges later down the line.

And of course you should be able to explain why you like the books you recommend, otherwise there won't be much to discuss.

I like I'll Read Yours if You'll Read Mine the best. It emphasizes the swapping we have going.

The Road is, to put it simply, a real downer. Of course it is nowhere near that simple, and I really found it uplifting, but that's me.

I wouldn't put someone through it. I completely forgot about this thread, and was talking to someone about this book at work today who is reading it and wants to shoot himself or someone else. The vocabulary is driving him insane, and he is much smarter than I am. And once you read or see something, it is burned into your retinas forever.

As good as I think it is, and as much as it made me think, I was glad when it was over. And glad to be alive, in a world with birds and blue sky.

>26 jennieg: jennieg I've heard of Trollope of course, but never read anything by him. I always thought I'd find his novels boring. Why that is, I don't know as I can't say I know anything about him/them. I vaguely think he's an English writer, maybe from the 1800's. I guess I should do a bit of research. I'll definately give it a thought and get back to you, maybe mid-next week or so.

Since you said you'd get Rapture from the library this weekend, I'll almost certainly try Barchester Towers
If you read Rapture, I'd probably feel honor bound to read your book even though we haven't agreed to the challenge yet.

I like calling the group/thread "I'll read yours if you read mine." It's catchy and mildly/amusingly suggestive. :-)

I'll Read Yours if You'll Read Mine it is.

I need to think about how to phrase the group description because I don't want to put to many rules or restrictions in place. It could be two people who've never had a discussion before, like Charles and me, or two people who "talk" on LT all the time and find the idea of a challenge interesting. It could be people who do hate the books the other person likes or people who have mostly books in common but want to try something new, one with one book, one with another. The basic premise is always that you really think you'll hate/dislike the genre or book description or author, like Charles and I did - me with the book's back description and Charles with the idea of Kurt Vonnegut.

I'll come up with something, post it here, and we can see if it makes sense or it needs changes.

Hi karen and Charles,

I was intrigued when I first read of your challenge as Slaughterhouse-5 is one of my favorite books and I really don't think I would be interested in The Rapture of Canaan for reasons similar to karen's. I just wanted to congratulate you both for stepping out of your comfort zones and am anxiously waiting to see how Charles liked Vonnegut!

I'm also posting to say that I've been enjoying reading this thread.

I've also been following this thread with interest. I'm eagerly waiting to hear what Charles thinks of Slaughterhouse-5.

great idea! where's the group? make sure to post a link to it here once you've created it! :)

"I'll Read Your if You Read Mine" is a great title for a group - I also like sth like the title of this thread "Books You Don't Think You'll Like" or something along those lines.

Okay, gang, here's what I've come up with. I'm going to create the group (I've never created one before - exciting!) and use what's below.

It's really important to me that there not be too many rules, so tell me what you think! Especially you, Charles - I know the grandson's there and you're busy, but at least the group will get created with the basic premise. We can wordsmith later.

*clears throat, so to speak"

The I'll Read Yours if You'll Read Mine Group description.

"On the BookTalk:Most Abandoned Book thread, CharlesBoyd mentioned that he thought The Rapture of Canaan would be an instant classic or masterpiece.

karenmarie read the description of it “and can never imagine myself reading it. Sorry, but there it is.” Charles said he'd read a book he thought he'd hate if karenmarie would read Rapture.

Charles has hesitated to read Kurt Vonnegut for years “because I’ve suspected his novels are pretty weird.”

So what did we do? We each agreed to read a book we suspected we would hate.

Here’s the thread that we created to track our experiment.
The Reading Books We Don't Think We'll Like Challenge - karenmarie and CharlesBoyd

Now it’s your turn to get out of your comfort zone.

Post a thread in this group with your username and something like “looking for a challenge”. You can include a genre or author or style of book that you hate (or at least dislike or avoid) or just leave it that you’re looking for a challenge. Invite someone to take you up on your challenge or let someone pick you. Use this thread to figure out what book each of you will read. Or discuss books with someone “offline” – we used comments on our profile page.

Then post your Challenge thread here. Include both your names and the word Challenge somewhere in it, since we’ll probably have two types of threads. The challenge threads should have something about why you each agreed to read a book you think you’ll hate.

Then, it’s up to you! You can make as many personal rules as you want or let the thread develop on the fly. It would be nice for the rest of us if you post some progress and thoughts about your book and then either a review or discussion of why you hated or (surprisingly) liked the book.

We’ve posted our Challenge thread, with a link to the actual thread.

Have fun! Be challenged! "

Sounds good :) I'm looking forward to it.

Thanks, inkspot!

Here's hoping it will take off. I've had a blast with it so far and anxious to hear how Charles likes Slaughterhouse Five.

Haha, Charles has an audience eagerly awaiting his opinion. I wonder if it'll make him nervous?

Karenmarie >38 karenmarie: Your thoughts on how to start a new group and your "group description" are well-thought-out and perceptive as your comments on LibraryThing always are. Perhaps take another look at it and see if you can condense it a bit.

inkspot > 41 Re your comment: "Haha, Charles has an audience eagerly awaiting his opinion. I wonder if it'll make him nervous?" Sort of. So many people seem to love Slaughterhouse Five that I'm leery of hurting anyone's feelings. I'm about 1/2 way through it and will say that there are things I like about the novel and some things I have a bit of a problem with, but there is nothing I hate about it. It will also be a bit intimidating not totally praising a novel some have placed in the 100 greatest novels of the last century. I'll try to be both kind and brave.

Also, as an aspiring writer I tend to read slightly differently than readers who aren't writers. I started a writing blog in January--listed on my profile page--and here's a link to a short story I had published online awhile ago:

http://webdelsol.com/InPosse/23_a_index.htm
You're looking for (I hope) the story titled "A Little Piece of Another Life." It's a quick read.

I'd be happy for any comments good or bad from anyone reading the blog or story.

>31 CharlesBoyd: So you did not intend to throw down the gauntlet in post 15?

#42 Charles - in addition to being kind and brave, be totally truthful. I was about Rapture. Even if you said "this is the stupidest book I've ever read in my life and Vonnegut's a nut case" that would be fine with me. That's the whole purpose of this exercise.

I have read your story - I read it a couple of days ago - and liked it and have some questions. I've gotten real busy with my daughter (doctor to see if her wrist has healed - it has - yeah! - and Band boosters, and etc. etc.) but I'll try to organize my thoughts in the next day or so.

Everybody - I cut some stuff out of the group description and took a photo of our two books and put it in the group page too!

Anybody else have thoughts/suggestions?

jennieg > 43 I was more just asking if you were interested in reading The Rapture of Canaan than throwing down the gauntlet, however I did a bit of research on Trollope and Barchester Towers and am willing to throw down the challenge now. I'll read it after Slaughterhouse Five. It seems to be the second of several novels with the same people. Should I read it or the first one?

I checked Netflix and they have a two disk BBC version. I'll probably try that after reading the book. My wife and I watch a fair amount of BBC stuff.

Karenmarie >44 karenmarie:
Sounds like you've done some good things with the new group.

Glad you liked the story. I'll be happy to answer any questions you have.

I probably still have a couple of pages about it that I e-mailed to a friend in Madison Wisconsin who was interested in how the story came about and my thoughts writing it. I could send that along too when I answer your questions.

#43 jennieg - I had the same question Charles did about Barchester Towers - The Warden appears to be written first and BT is sort of a sequel. But does it stand alone? I've been collecting Trollope for a while but haven't read anything by him yet. Unfortunately I want to read him, so it couldn't be a IRYIYRM challenge.

#46 Charles - I'll put my questions and my e-mail address in a private message so you can send me the stuff you sent your friend.

>45 CharlesBoyd:, 47 Yes The Warden is the first of Trollope's Chronicles of Barsetshire. And if you would rather read that one, it's fine with me. The Warden is the first in the series, and much shorter than Barchester Towers, but I think modern readers will like Barchester Towers better. The fact that it's my favorite may be skewing my opinion.

I came across a post from karenmarie when I went to one of my LT friend's profile's to post a message. (you had just prior posted one to him mentioning this thread).
>#32:
"I like calling the group/thread "I'll read yours if you read mine." It's catchy and mildly/amusingly suggestive. :-)"
This same thought went through my brain and is actually what brought me over here.

So okay, I want to join in. The above thread is very interesting and I want to play too.

I love any and all things John Steinbeck (he is my favorite author and I love anything written by Alice Hoffman.
I read mainly books by and about women. I love historical fiction, historical nonfiction, biographies, books on WWII, WWI, the Civil War, homefront type stories, (both fiction and nonfiction), Wartime diaries, some types of the Classics, Viragos, and Persephones.
You would never catch me reading SciFi, certain war stories, most YA, most of the difficult Classics, any Greek or Roman Classics, westerns, mythology (though I have attempted it), and you can look at my library and see what else is not there.
I joined the 999 challenge for the first time in May of this year and it definitely challenged my reading goals. I plan to do the 101010 this coming year to further challenge myself.
This sounds like a good and fun challenge, given that time is not an issue as I am in the ARC/ER program and like to get those out there as soon as possible and I like to have a couple of group reads going as well.
So...........................anybody out there got anything for me? I will be checking back over the next few days.
It was nice meeting you karenmarie and you CharlesBoyd and congratulations on setting this up. I think, given enough time, this group could grow to be a very large group. People love a good and fun challenge. Also the more people chatting it up, the more people will turn up and we probably all talk to different people on LT as I am not familiar with any of you excepting for girlundrglass, chrine and coppers.
So good luck and thank you for letting me play too.
belva

touchstones are apparently not working at the moment.

nannybebette 49> I'm currently doing a new challenge reading Barchester Towers by Anthony Trollope which may take awhile, but I'd be happy to do a challenge with you as I notice you say you'd never read a western. I know of a couple of novels by a western writer that are excellent that I'd love to see if one of them would convince you that a western can be good writing and a story you'd like. The writer's name is Elmer Kelton and he is well regarded, has won numerous awards. He died a couple of weeks ago in his 80's.

Hi nannybebette

You're also welcome to take up a challenge with me if you like, as I almost never read the types of books you listed. I avoid most kinds of realist fiction, I seldom read classics and when I read non-fiction (not often) it's usually about philosophy, language or literature.

On the other hand I love sci fi, and since you like stories about women, I think I could recommend something you'd enjoy.

For anything you'd recommend for me though, I'd prefer if it were something I could easily find secondhand, for free on the web, or via bookmooch, as I only buy new books for favourites and trusted authors. I'll do the same for you, unless of course you're happy to buy any book I suggest :)

Hi guys

I've just posted the specs for my challenge in the I'll Read Yours If You Read Mine group (yay, I'm the first!).

Check it out and let me know if you're interested in a challenge, especially if you're a Jodi Picoult fan ( I wouldn't normally read her, but I happen to have Tenth Circle and Salem Falls, which I'm planning to give away on BM).

Hola Belva

I so would have challenged you. I hated Steinbeck in high school. But I just read a book of his with some girls in my book club and liked it. =)

Hola inkspot

Don't read Tenth Circle. Not not ever, just not first. I like Picoult and didn't like that one. It's different from what I've read of her other works.

Hmm, ok chrine. Unless someone challenges me to read it I will give it away anyway. Although, perhaps since she's not the kind of author I'd normally read, I might like the novel that differs from her others?

#49 nannybebette - welcome! I see your posts on St Richard's threads.

Post all the stuff you put in your post in a new thread on the I'll Read Yours if You'll Read Mine group.

Glad to see so much interest, guys!

Should I delete my post here?
I made my own thread so my challenges would go there, I presume? Sorry I misunderstood and goofed up your thread here. Just let me know.
thank you k/m.
belva

Nah, don't delete your post - I just wanted it in the group so that anybody just looking there would see it.

Thanks.

hi all, i am currently reading Slaughter House 5, and love it. i dislike classics, anyone read one that they thought they would dislike and end up not only liking it, but recommending it to others?

Luxx challenged me to read Carmilla: a Vampyre Tale by Sheridan Le Fanu and I challenged her to read Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck. She had an unread copy in her library and I was able to read mine online. We have since completed our challenge and I don't think either one of us was the sorrier for it.

inkspot challenged me to read a sci-fi entitled The Player of the Games by Iain M Banks and I challenged her to a book by and about women called Dancing Naked at the edge of Dawn by Kris Radish. We were both pretty "Ewwwww". I think we both had to order the books for this one, which I will try not to make my "opponent" do in the future.
I was very pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoyed my read. inkspot chose very well for me. I didn't get it all, but I really liked the story. I believe she is still awaiting the copy of her book.

belva

I'm glad you're having fun with the challenges, nannybebette.

I'm getting swamped with Marching Band Season - my daughter is a junior and plays trombone - and I'm treasurer of Band Boosters to boot! - but I think I'll stick something on the I'll Read Yours if You'll Read Mine after a while to find another challenge.

My challenge with Charles was so much fun.