It’s that time of year again!
No, I’m not talking about the holidays. Actually, I’m too exhausted to even contemplate December right now. This fall kicked my butt, and I’m not sure I’ll ever get enough sleep to recover. Can you relate?
Instead, I’m talking about my favorite form of escape- books! Specifically, choosing book club books for 2016. Goodreads can help me, and you, too, if you share my predicament. My book club meets next week, and I need ideas.
Help from the Goodreads Choice Awards
Every November, Goodreads hosts the Choice Awards. Goodreads members vote for their favorite books of the year in a broad range of categories, including children’s, YA, YA Fantasy, Mystery and Thriller, Historical Fiction, Humor, and Horror. There are three rounds, with the final stage of voting set this year for November 17-23.
Usually, I’ve read only a smattering of the books that make the list, and although I vote sometimes, I primarily use the Choice Awards to help me find books to read, both for me and my kids. I didn’t know Rebecca Stead had a new book out. Now I do. I haven’t heard of most of the YA fiction titles. New books for the TBR list.
One title from the nominees I’d like to tackle in 2016 is Go Set a Watchman, the sequel to To Kill a Mockingbird. There was a lot of chatter about it in the literary world this summer, and since Mockingbird is one of my favorites, I feel compelled to read Watchman. Other books I’ll suggest to my book club:
- Mr. Owita’s Guide to Gardening by Carol Wall, a non-fiction piece about finding happiness
- I Am Malala by Malala Yousafzai, a non-fiction about a Pakistani girl who stood up for her right to an education
That’s a lot of non-fiction for me! Better add some YA fiction to the list, like:
- Saint Anything, by Sarah Dessen Lately, daughter and I have been reading quite a bit from Ms. Dessen
- Mosquitoland by David Arnold, is a modern American Odyssey, told in a “kaleidoscope voice”.
Word Nerd Workout
Help me and my book club out, please. What books are you planning to read in 2016? Has anyone read Go Set a Watchman? What did you think?
Thanks for adding to the discussion.
Hi Julia,
My book club read Go Set a Watchman and we thoroughly enjoyed it. I am ashamed to say I have not read To Kill a Mockingbird but now having read Go Set a Watchman, I can say with confidence Harper Lee writes beautifully. I found myself procrastinating because I did not want the book to end. Our other members that have read To Kill a Mockingbird mentioned that Go Set a Watchman was written first and the characters were not yet fully developed so if you go into in with that in mind, it will not disappoint. One member asked if we felt Scout was Harper Lee, which I think is a great question. Another thought was that in a world where so much has changed, how in some cases, things haven’t changed much at all. All in all I thought it was thought provoking and entertaining. Read it. You will enjoy it. : )
Thank you for this input, Carol. I’m excited!
Julia, I’m curious — have you read Go Set a Watchman yet? What did you think?
I haven’t yet. My book club chose it to read this year, so it’s definitely “in the queue”. I’ll definitely write a review. Have you read it? What did you think?
Hi Julia, I was apprehensive about reading Go Set A Watchman because of all the hype. But I am glad I read it. I listened to the audio book narrated by Reese Witherspoon and the performance was fantastic. I’m glad I “read” it. Many people were concerned that it would ruin their experience of To Kill A Mockingbird but I think that isn’t a problem if you go into it understanding a few things about Go Set A Watchman. First, it was written before To Kill A Mockingbird and it really was more of a draft than a full story. There wasn’t much of a plot and the characters were not fully developed. Second, though the characters have the same names, they are NOT the same people that we know in To Kill a Mockingbird. Third, Harper Lee never intended for it to be published.
I enjoyed it because Harper Lee writes beautifully and you can truly see the growth of her talent between the these two books. If you decide to read it, go into it knowing it is it’s own story that does not build upon or compare with To Kill A Mockingbird. I’m sure you’ll be glad you read it, too.
Thank you Carol, these are all good things to know. When I read it, I’ll touch base with you! Thanks for sharing your thoughts on this controversial book.
I just checked out Go Set a Watchman from my library! I’m also a little afraid of reading it, in case I mess up cherished memories of TKAM.
I know how you feel, Jennifer, but another reader just left an enthusiastic review of Watchman on the post, so I’m now looking forward to it.
Haven’t read Go Set a Watchman…just can’t go there even though it’s in my library 🙂
Piled high on my bedside table:
Mindset
Make it Stick
Big Magic (almost done!)
The Husband’s Secret
Writing Irresistible Kidlit 🙂
Rising Strong
The Boys in a Boat
The Road to Character
And in my Amazon cart…
Better Than Before: Mastering the Habits of Our Everyday Lives
Disrupt Yourself
Simple Green Smoothies
Two Hours: The Quest to Run the Impossible Marathon
The Anchor Book of New American Short Stories
Mothers, Tell Your Daughters: Stories
The Art of Memoir
sigh. so many good books!
Oh – and the new Vanessa Diffenbaugh books and the new Judy Blume one…!
LOVE Vanessa Diffenbaugh!
These are all great suggestions, Amy. Am I wrong, or is there a lot of non-fiction here? I’m interested in the Mothers/Daughters/Stories one. I think my daughter and I should write a collection of essays this summer, like Lisa Scottolini and Francesca Serritella. Thanks for the ideas!
Just read about Mothers, Tell Your Daughters on Goodreads. Not exactly humor, huh? Let me know what you think of it.
Definitely read Mosquitoland! I use the Goodreads Choice awards as a resource, too. I’ve read some on the list – Inside the O’Briens by Lisa Genova was great, and a good book to discuss. Red Queen is in the YA Fantasy category, and I enjoyed that too.
I did not read Go Set a Watchman, but I am one of the rare few who didn’t love To Kill a Mockingbird. My daughter LOVES it, but she is afraid to read Watchman for fear of “ruining” the classic. If you review it, I will be sure to share it with her!
I didn’t know Genova had a new books out – I MUST read!
Thanks for the suggestions. I first learned about Mosquitoland from you! Can’t wait. I just checked out Lisa Genova and am afraid her books will make me sad, so I might wait on Inside the O’Briens.