Things that are a Bummer: my 1st Book club pick and I don't like it.

[Ginevra]

I joined a book club this year and offered to bring the book selections this month. I was keen on everyone wanting to read Where Am I Wearing?, which I read and would easily discuss. That didn't work out as the choice, though, because there is a dearth of the book at local libraries. We chose one of my other options, which I hadn't read yet. I have begun reading it and so far, I don't like this book at all. :/ the writing is stilted and uninteresting; I keep waiting to empathize with the characters but it isn't happening yet. Plus the character killed her dog in the first chapter.

 

Grrr. I think it must be better to offer choices you have read.

[MarinesWife]

What book?

[SparklyUnicorn]

I keep thinking about joining a book club, but then it seems like a lot of pressure to read at a certain pace.  And then if I ended up hating the book...oh yuck. 

 

 

[Guest]

What book?

When The Emperor Was Divine by Julie Otsuka. I am interested in the subject; it is a novel written about a Japanese family sent to interment camp during WWiI. But so far, not feeling the love.

[Guest]

I'm missing my first book club; partly because the book didn't hold me, partly because I've not been well, and partly because it's my birthday weekend :) I commiserate with you at not having a wonderful first book club. May the second be better!

 

Also, killing the dog, that's just not on. Will you slog through, do you think ?

I will slog through because this was my own selection and I am supposed to lead the discussion next month. Maybe it will get better. :/ at least it is not a terribly long book.

[ErinE]

My first selection for a book club was "The Remains of the Day" by Kazuo Ishiguro. it is my favorite book and I was ready to share my love for it with others. No one else could get through it. They found it boring. :(

 

We watched the movie and they all agreed it was great. Small comfort to say, "But the book is even better!"

[Carol in Cal.]

My first selection for a book club was "The Remains of the Day" by Kazuo Ishiguro. it is my favorite book and I was ready to share my love for it with others. No one else could get through it. They found it boring. :(

 

We watched the movie and they all agreed it was great. Small comfort to say, "But the book is even better!"

That book is fantastic but understated, very British.

[AppleGreen]

I keep thinking about joining a book club, but then it seems like a lot of pressure to read at a certain pace.  And then if I ended up hating the book...oh yuck. 

My book club is called the Lazy, half ass bookclub or something like that (I just joined in January). No one has any obligation to read any assigned book. We meet once a month, talk about the books we read that month, let other people borrow books if we want and generally keep it super low key. It is great. Obviously, no pressure to read a certain book on a deadline or anything AND it is fascinating to hear what other people read. I have a huge list of books I never would have found just from hearing others' reviews. I also have about 4 books I have borrowed from members to enjoy, with no pressure for returning them. Honestly, it's a thing of genius. 

 

Our library does offer a traditional book club and they have a couple of selections I have wanted to read coming up in the next few months, so I may check that out in the coming months.

 

edited b/c apparently I can't spell.

Edited May 1, 2016 by AppleGreen

[Carol in Cal.]

We just read Dune in our book group.

 

We had a barbell love/hate set of responses to it.

 

It was interesting to me how many of our really outstanding readers found it basically unintelligible.  It reminded me of when DH watches war movies and knows right away who is who, from the planes or ships, even if they are not labelled, because he has seen so many, but I'm totally lost.

[Annie G]

 

Grrr. I think it must be better to offer choices you have read.

 

Yeah, maybe. But then you run into the possibility that you'll love a book and they'll hate it. Kind of like when you take friends to one of your favorite restaurants and they just think it's so-so. 

 

I feel for you. I hate when I don't like a book and have to decide whether to finish it or cut my losses.  As a total introvert, I would probably REALLY hate to recommend a book to a group and worry that they won't like it. But on the bright side, maybe the other folks will love your choice. 

[Paige]

Book club picks are so much pressure! I selected the book that my book club will be reading next month. I have never felt so nervous about a book! I spent hours looking through every book club option in our library trying to find something interesting that these very widely read ladies may not have read, I preread it to make sure it was ok, and have to pass it out in a few days. Who knew it would be so much stress? I ended up loving my book but it is very different than anything else we've read and I'm nervous. I hope everyone likes it. 

 

Maybe your book will pick up soon. 

[Carol in Cal.]

I only recommend books that I have already read and that either I absolutely love and want to share or that I badly want to talk about.

[Kareni]

I suspect that your group will have a lively discussion whether or not you like the book.  Often, it's books that have fans and critics that engender the best conversations.  I hope that all will turn out well.

 

Regards,
Kareni

[Amira]

I liked that book but I wouldn't have chosen it for a book group. While I think a good group of people can have a good discussion about any book, I much prefer it when people suggest books that they have read and feel are worth reading and spending a precious hour or two discussing. Relatively few books meet that standard in my opinion. :)

[Guest]

Here's what I did and decided: I looked up book discussions for this book. I was not planning to do this until I had finished reading it, because of potential spoilers, but because I was not enjoying it, I went ahead and looked. I'm glad I did peek at this, because it is helping me see that the author's choices are intentional and not just crappy writing. ;) i was not liking that her writing style made me feel unconnected and indifferent towards the characters, but now I see that that is the point - the characters are Japanese Americans who were treated inhumanely. It is easier to treat people inhumanely if you dehumanize them in your mind first.

 

So, when book club comes up, I'm going to "sell" this book, even if it doesn't become better to me personally.