Ship of Fools Book Group 2020

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  • MiliMili Shipmate
    I have been to Richmond once, when I was living for a short time in London, but only to the Kew Gardens.
  • SarasaSarasa Shipmate
    edited April 2020
    Just bumping this as it is the start of the month. Any suggestions for August, or later in the year very welcome. Also does someone fancy leading on The Testaments.

    The programme so far:
    March The Changeover by Margaret Mahy led by @Tubbs (Discussion here.)
    April The Weight of Ink by Rachel Kadish led by @Trudy
    May Owls Do Cry by Janet Frame led by @Mili
    June Voss by Patrick White led by @Marama.
    July The Wych Elm by Tana French led by @Sarasa
    August?
    September The Testaments by Margaret Atwood led by

    I'm reading The Weight of Ink at the moment and enjoying it.
  • TrudyTrudy Heaven Host, 8th Day Host
    Just realized it's April 1 and I should probably start a thread for The Weight of Ink!
  • Trudy wrote: »
    Just realized it's April 1 and I should probably start a thread for The Weight of Ink!

    Just realised I should have posted my answers to my own questions on The Changeover thread. Sorry!
  • SarasaSarasa Shipmate
    Looking forward to reading them @Tubbs. I'm so glad I re-read The Changeover. Thanks for suggesting it.
  • SarasaSarasa Shipmate
    Just bumping this up as it is nearly May.

    March The Changeover by Margaret Mahy led by @Tubbs
    April The Weight of Ink by Rachel Kadish led by @Trudy
    May Owls Do Cry by Janet Frame led by @Mili
    June Voss by Patrick White led by @Marama.
    July The Wych Elm by Tana French led by @Sarasa
    August?
    September The Testaments by Margaret Atwood led by?

    March and April's threads are still open if anyone wants to add a comment or two.

    A few of us in my writing class have started an on-line Book Club during lockdown using zoom. I got to choose the first book and went for Old Baggage by Lissa Evans. Anyone fancy discussing it here for August. Some details about it here.
  • MiliMili Shipmate
    I will start a thread for 'Owls do Cry' tomorrow and 'Old Baggage' sounds like a good choice for August.
  • SarasaSarasa Shipmate
    Unless anyone is particularly adverse I'll put down Old Baggage for August. It is a very funny read and not at all heavyweight, though some of the themes potentially are.
    Thanks @Mili. I'll go and download that now. I've got a lot of reading to do in the next couple weeks, probably just as well I can't go anywhere.
  • SarasaSarasa Shipmate
    It's nearly June, so just bumping this up.

    May Owls Do Cry by Janet Frame led by @Mili
    June Voss by Patrick White led by @Marama.
    July The Wych Elm by Tana French led by @Sarasa
    August Old Baggage by Lissa Evans led by @Sarasa
    September The Testaments by Margaret Atwood led by?

    Any ideas for the last three months of the year. Something pandemic related?
  • SarasaSarasa Shipmate
    Just bumping this up as it's nearly July.

    June Voss by Patrick White led by @Marama.
    July The Wych Elm by Tana French led by @Sarasa
    August Old Baggage by Lissa Evans led by @Sarasa
    September The Testaments by Margaret Atwood led by?

    We could really do with some more suggestions. Any ideas, anyone?
  • MiliMili Shipmate
    Given the low participation, perhaps due to libraries not been so accessible, maybe we could choose classics for the end of the year that people may own or have already read. We usually do something Christmassy for December.
  • SarasaSarasa Shipmate
    Good idea Mili.
    Some classics on my bookshelves, I'm sure others will have better suggestions:
    Jane Austen - I can see Sense and Sense ability from here, but sure I've got others.
    Crime and Punishment - too long?
    Adams - The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy.
    War and Peace - Definitely too long
    Raymond Chandler - The Big Sleep or The Long Goodbye?
    Vanity Fair - again a bit long
    A Dickens of some description - I've recently enjoyed the new David Copperfield film.
    As for a Christmas one. Something shortish would be good.
  • I was directed to this thread to make suggestions for books if I have any (which I do as I love books and read lots of them!) but I'm new to the Ship and new to the book group so please forgive me if my suggestions are repeats or not considered appropriate! I'll hopefully get a better feel for things as time goes on.

    Anyway. I'm not sure what you consider to be a classic but would a Thomas Hardy be included? If so, A Pair of Blue Eyes is one of his less convoluted books and relatively short. Just another to add to the list.

    My own suggestions are of books I'd like an excuse to read again and all of them are by African heritage writers. They aren't light reads and not particularly happy ones either but they are very powerful in their different ways. I go through phases when reading. At one time I bought a succession of books by Japanese authors, for example. The books I am thinking of are:

    Song of Solomon by Toni Morrison - the experience of living as a black person in America

    Sozaboy by Ken Saro-Wiwa (written in a mix of Nigerian pidgin English and broken English which makes reading it a bit of a challenge but also an atmospheric experience) - about a young guy recruited to the Nigerian civil war.

    Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe - about a man witnessing the ruin of his people under colonial rule.

    However, if they are too traumatic for the book group then I will happily suggest some more cheerful books for you all to consider! :smile:
  • MiliMili Shipmate
    Great to have a new member of the group Chasing Shadows! Any of those books seem like they would be good picks. It's great to have some diversity and we have only read one book by an African author this year (I Do Not Come to You by Chance by Adaobi Tricia Nwaubani). I also wouldn't mind reading a Jane Austen book for December, Sarash. I like Vanity Fair as well, but it is pretty long.
  • Mili wrote: »
    Great to have a new member of the group Chasing Shadows! Any of those books seem like they would be good picks. It's great to have some diversity and we have only read one book by an African author this year (I Do Not Come to You by Chance by Adaobi Tricia Nwaubani). I also wouldn't mind reading a Jane Austen book for December, Sarash. I like Vanity Fair as well, but it is pretty long.
    Thanks Mili. I may look up I Do Not Come to You by Chance as I haven't read it.

    Jane Austin is a good read no matter what the time of year and so I'd second your idea for December.

    To suggest something completely different from the books I have only just suggested, I've just finished reading The Spy and The Traitor by Ben MacIntyre. The title says it all really! Except it is a fascinating book to read, very engrossing. It's a true story (cleverly written in the format of a novel) about a KGB general who spies for the UK. Said KGB general is still alive today and living in the UK.
  • SarasaSarasa Shipmate
    Bumping this up as it's August.
    For the rest of the year so far we have:

    August Old Baggage by Lissa Evans led by @Sarasa
    September The Testaments by Margaret Atwood led by?

    Anyone up for leading the Atwood?
    I like the idea of an Austen, but I was thinking perhaps November rather than December. I quite fancy Mansfield Park, but am willing to be persuaded to another title.

    I'll start a thread on Old Baggage shortly.
  • MiliMili Shipmate
    I haven't read or watched 'The Handmaid's Tale' (to which 'The Testaments' is the sequel), but have read a lot about it. Would I be able to lead by just reading 'The Testaments' or do you think you need to read the original book, or watch the series, to understand it? Anyone else read the first book and feels like leading?

    I'd be happy to read Mansfield Park in November.
  • CaissaCaissa Shipmate
    I have read The Testament and it stands on its own without having read The Handmaid's Tale.
  • TukaiTukai Shipmate
    Some more ideas for the group to read.

    1. Something by PG Wodehouse to cheer us up in these difficult times. Much of his work is still in print, as publishers each issue a new set of editions. There is certainly a large set on Google Play, and most public libraries have a selection, but their holdings differ. Perhaps "Aunts aren't gentlemen" or "Joy in the morning"?
    2. A crime novel, but not too gory. My first choice would be "The Dry" by Jane Harper, which is set in a drought-stricken Australian country town. It's been a best seller not only in Australia, but also in UK and USA, so should be widely available.
    3. Another would be one of the Inspector Slider series of British police procedurals by Cynthia Harrod-Eagles. All are well plotted but also have an interesting set of characters, This series of at least 10 is evidence that a series need not fall off in quality. "Star Fall" or "Body Line" would be my first choices.
    4. Or for a Christmas classic, how about the Sherlock Holmes short story "The blue carbuncle"?

    My general view about Jane Austen (suggested upthread) is that her books are in some ways like those of Wodehouse: beautiful prose but silly stories. But Mansfield Park made an engrossing film, so I'd be willing to give it a read.
  • SarasaSarasa Shipmate
    edited August 2020
    Thank you @Mili, can I take you up on leading the discussion of The Testaments? I think three months worth of me leading is at least a month too much.
    @Tuaki, those are great suggestions. Lets go for Aunts aren't Gentlemen and The Blue Carbuncle for December. We can maybe talk in general about the other stories in the collection The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes too.
    I also like the idea of a detective novel for the new year. I've not read either Harrold-Eagles or Harper so would be interested in giving them a go. My go to for lightweight crime is Patricia Wentworth's Miss Silver. Anyone got any other suggestions?
    At the moment I'm reading Girl, Woman, Other by Bernadine Evaristo and loving it. Upthread @Chasing Shadows shadows suggested we read more books by black authors and I think (so far at least) this is one a lot of us would enjoy. Maybe another one for 2021.

    If we go for that the rest of the year would look like

    August: Old Baggage by Lissa Evans led by @Sarasa
    September: The Testaments by Margaret Atwood led by @Mili
    October: Aunts Aren't Gentlemen by P.G. Wodehouse led by ?
    November: Mansfield Park by Jane Austen led by ?
    December: The Blue Carbuncle (from The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes by Arthur Conan Doyle led by ?
    @Tukai , would you like to lead on one of your suggestions (or even two).
  • MiliMili Shipmate
    edited August 2020
    I can lead The Testaments discussion. I did a bit of research on books by non white authors. Two books that sound interesting are Everything is Beautiful Here by Mira T. Lee https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/548173/everything-here-is-beautiful-by-mira-t-lee/ and Secrets we Kept by Krystal A. Sital https://wwnorton.com/books/Secrets-We-Kept/
  • TukaiTukai Shipmate
    I am happy to lead on The Blue Carbuncle and open to wider discussion about the Holmes works and what they may tell us about society in Victorian England.

    I'm probably OK to lead also on Aunts aren't Gentlemen . It's one Wodehouse story that I haven't actually read myself yet!) , so I need to check I can get a copy ! Will confirm that in a the next day or so.

  • SarasaSarasa Shipmate
    Thanks @Tukai. I'll pencil you in and if there is a problem we can sort it out later. I'll lead the Austen unless anyone else fancies. If you've not lead before it's pretty straightforward. Just start a thread at the start of the month and then post some questions on about the 20th. If you have any interesting links or observations you can post them too but that isn't essential.

    August: Old Baggage by Lissa Evans led by @Sarasa
    September: The Testaments by Margaret Atwood led by @Mili
    October: Aunts Aren't Gentlemen by P.G. Wodehouse led by @Tukai
    November: Mansfield Park by Jane Austen led by @Sarasa
    December: The Blue Carbuncle (from The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes by Arthur Conan Doyle led by @Tukai

    @Mili , I haven't had a look at your links yet. Off to do that now. Due to a hangover I spent most of the day in bed reading Girl, Woman, Other. I haven't enjoyed a book so much in ages so I definitely think that's one for next year.
  • TukaiTukai Shipmate
    @Sarasa: Having got my hands on a copy of Aunts aren't gentlemen, I can now confirm that I will lead that study. No wonder I had not read it before, as it is Wodehouse's last published book of some 90 works , written not long before he died . I cannot yet say if it is one of his best ones, but we'll find out in October. .
  • I am going to make sure I have a copy of The Testaments in time for September so that I can finally join in the discussion of a book!
  • Sarasa - Michael Connolly is a good detective novel read, especially his Detective Bosch series. It's possible to read any of the series as a stand alone novel. They're substantial enough to draw you in without being too heavy (and they aren't gory). Another suggestion in the detective genre would be Faye Kellerman. Her novels have more substance than her husband's (Jonathan Kellerman) and aren't gory (unlike her husband's!) but again, they aren't heavy either. They have a Jewish twist as her central character is an orthodox Jew, which is quite interesting in itself. Or at least I think so!
  • CaissaCaissa Shipmate
    edited August 2020
    I read The Testaments when it first came out. Still trying to decide if I want to read it again next month. I second anything by Faye Kellerman. The first book of hers I rea was The Ritual Bath.
  • SarasaSarasa Shipmate
    I like Faye Kellerman too, though I haven't read one in an age. Maybe we could do a couple of detective novels next year and do one of hers.
  • TukaiTukai Shipmate
    As the person who first suggested the group try a detective (crime) novel, I'm open to new authors beyond those I originally suggested. I have never read anything by Faye Kellerman, but am willing to try if others want to.
  • SarasaSarasa Shipmate
    edited September 2020
    Just bumping this up with the picks for the rest of the year. I'll start a new thread for next year next month. In the meant time any suggestions for next year very welcome.

    September: The Testaments by Margaret Atwood led by @Mili
    October: Aunts Aren't Gentlemen by P.G. Wodehouse led by @Tukai
    November: Mansfield Park by Jane Austen led by @Sarasa
    December: The Blue Carbuncle (from The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes by Arthur Conan Doyle) led by @Tukai
  • SarasaSarasa Shipmate
    I'll be starting a new thread for suggestions for next year shortly I've already got several in mind. In the meantime the thread for September's book The Testaments by Margaret Atwood is still open, and the thread for October's book Aunts Aren't Gentlemen by P.G. Wodehouse will be opening shortly.
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