Time for a new book choice yet?????

[ChrisG]

I may have lost track of the timing here, but isn't it time for a new choice YET?

The last book was so short, and there hasn't been much input to the thread. :(

So, before we all get inundated (hopefully!) with new reads as Christmas presents, shouldn't we be looking at the next BGO choice?

Especially so we can add it to our Santa list before it's too late? :p

[megustaleer]

I have been thinking the same thing, but did not mention it as the way things get organized at work is: if you suggest that something needs doing it's tantamount to volunteering to do it!

So, do you fancy getting this going, and organizing polls and things?

[Bill]

What I would like to do is invite a discussion about the way forward for the book group part of this site. Since we have 874 members, you wouldn't think there would be a problem raising a quorum to discuss one book every six weeks, but there seems to be.

Perhaps this thread could be used to discuss this - in which members could say what has stopped them participating in the past, and what would make them more likely to in the future. This should be a discussion with those who are interested in taking part in theory but haven't in practice, or only intermittently. It's not an invitation to those uninterested in book groups to tell us that they don't like people telling them what to read.

I also thought it might be an idea for the moderators to arrange to meet in the Chat Room at a specified time and discuss the best way forward - and invite babelbel, who has been organising the book groups thus far, but whose commitments mean she can't make it onto BGO as often as she'd like. Although I see she hasn't logged on since November 5th, which might explain why there hasn't been a vote lately.

Any thoughts?

[megustaleer]

My problem is that I don't read anything like as much as I used to, but I still have the same number of reading commitments.

Much as I'd like to read the full selection of choices from all my bookgroups I really can't do it, so I will only read the bookgroup choice if it is something that I want to read anyway, or if it is something I have read and enjoyed in the past. I have managed a few of the BGO Bookgroup choices, but not all

I'm not too good in the chat room, Bill. I think and type too slowly and the conversation runs away from me, but I'll eavesdrop if you like! :)

(It may be of interest that I absolutely can NOT cope with chatroom quizzes!!) ;)

[Grammath]

I've only participated once, simply because so far most of the books up for discussion haven't caught my interest.

This is no reflection on the format of the discussions per sé, simply that I only want to participate if I feel like reading and discussing the book concerned.

I haven't tended to get involved if I don't think I'll like the book or hadn't already been intending to read it at some point before it was nominated for discussion.

I have to say I'm guilty of doing this in my real world readers' group as well, probably to the annoyance of other members. I'm not blaming anyone, and know that it probably means I don't discover some books that I'd probably really like which is, to some degree, the purpose of being in a book group in the first place.

As usual, its a case of so many books, so little time. I'm simply prioritising the ones I'd already decided I wanted to read.

[Flingo]

I have meant to take part a couple of times. However, time seems to get away from me and I realise that everyone is discussing it and I still have a lot of other "reading commitments" (as Meg so wonderfully put it) that I need to do before I can start the book. The problem is that other people moan if I haven't read the books for them, but there is no pressure to read for BGO.

I was really fired up about the Sherlock Holmes - and then had lots more books put to the top of my TBR pile by other people, and I am only just nearing the end of them.

[Jen]

My reasons are largely in line with Grammath - I'm unlikely to read a book just because it's up for discussion, I'd have to really want to read it. Some of the enthusiastic reviews on BGO have inspired me to read unusual things, so maybe individuals should 'sponsor' a book that they feel should be more widely appreciated. Which isn't to say that the individual should then be obliged to administer the discussion, should they not wish to.

[Cathy]

I didn't read the last book because of house-moving, it just wasn't going to happen, but I read The Chrysalids even though it didn't appeal at first and then found I liked it so I'd suggest to the others that its worth giving the books a go. The Magical Maze put me off because it was way out of my league intellectually! At least in the mathematical field!

Could the forum be cleared up somehow? Its quite easy not to notice when there is a vote going on and I can't figure out navigating the forum as well as the other ones. :confused: maybe its just me. Maybe there could be a bigger notice about it on the home page: 'This Month BGO is reading A Study in Scarlett' or whatever?

[Bill]

Could the forum be cleared up somehow?

Er Cathy, look around you! Even Alanis Morissette might realise it's ironic that you ask for the forum to be cleared up when there are 50% less categories here than than there were three hours ago. (The missing four are in the Book Group Archive.)

And see here (http://www.bookgrouponline.com/forum/showthread.html?t=1672)

[Adrian]

I like the idea of the book 'sponsors', but don't we kind of have that already with the nominations sessions?

I'm seeing a lot of people posting to say that they can't read join in a particular month, but I'd like to think with the membership level as it is, we could find a quorum willing to commit to reading a book every month or two. I've dropped out of a few of the previous books because it hasn't taken my fancy.

And to keep the momentum going (or to get us restarted) I just think it would be good to get a book in during December, any book you'd like to champion. It's a push, but:

22 Nov - Nominations open
27 Nov - Voting Starts
1 Dec - Reading starts with forums open for posting straightaway

would give us enough time. And if you close down the Anything But Books forum, people would have to read instead. (just kidding:D )

Bill, Any chance of another BGO push in the media?

[ChrisG]

I have to admit that I probably wouldn't have read any of the BGO choices if I hadn't joined BGO. But, so far, the only one I skipped was the Tractors in Ukrainian one and that was because I just couldn't face another 'bestselling, Richard and Judy Book of the Month' type read after the previous choices.

I did bail out on the Maze - but I've always hated maths so that was no surprise when my eyes glazed over and my brain went numb. (Although, surprisingly, when I got up the courage to do that BBC Maths quiz, I got 16 out of 20 so I must have learned something through all those painful courses).

I have also read all the free books offered on here and wouldn't have chosen any of them for myself, either. So BGO is broadening my reading horizons! :D I must admit that there have been only two that I have really enjoyed: Cloud Atlas, which was understandable because I like sci-fi and that was a bit sci-fi in some of its stories, and Educating Peter, which I really enjoyed and was something I would never have picked up myself.

I hope others will make an effort to read the BGO choices and join the discussions so it can be more involving for all the members. Things have slackened off quite a bit with the last couple of books. :(

[Lizzy Siddal]

Like others I find that real-world reading group committments are prioritised over BGO book choices ... and, as I'm the group leader, I have to put these first. As a result, I have not yet started on a Study in Scarlet, but I will do so.

I'm afraid I can't commit to reading every BGO book choice - as others have said, so many books, so little time. But I will join in, when I can.

One suggestion, if I may. Rather than choose a book and open the thread immediately, why not set a date for discussion and then open the thread. That way people can time their reading and the discussion will have a semblance of interaction.

[Bill]

I don't think anyone is or should feel under any pressure to read every book group choice, particularly if it's happens not to be a book that they want to read.

Thinking about it, I think Cathy has a very good point about the need to highlight the book group for those who might not easily find their way to this part of the board. So from now on, I - or a moderator - will post a sticky in Central Libary to inform them of the vote taking place, and then another sticky to announce the result of the vote. These will also contain direct links.

Bill, Any chance of another BGO push in the media?

The media are only really interested in a board like this if it's new, or there's a particular angle they can latch on to. I can't think of anything at the moment, but if you can, please let me know. (Are you in Wellington permanently now, btw? How about the headline "Book Group Online Member Emigrates"?)

Your timetable is very sensible, and I will PM babelbel to see if she still wants to organise it, and if not, perhaps someone could take over. chrisqqgx4...?

One suggestion, if I may. Rather than choose a book and open the thread immediately, why not set a date for discussion and then open the thread. That way people can time their reading and the discussion will have a semblance of interaction.

Lizzy, that is more or less what we do at the moment. We give everyone at least a week to get hold of and read the book, but everyone reads at different speeds, so they don't all have to finish to order. It doesn't really matter of someone joins in the discussion a bit late - which gives us an advantage over the deadlines in real-life book groups.

[Tess]

I've either not read the book or read it and then not really joined in with the discussion. The reason for the latter is that I feel the discussion is open too early, I would personally prefer an allotted time to read the book and then open the board for discussion. Of course having it open from the start allows discussion throughout but I've found that once I've got to the end of the book I just read the posts and then don't contribute anything more, mostly because everything has already been said. Perhaps a pre-arranged chat would work, providing enough time is given to read the book first!

Highlighting the book club in the Central Library is a great idea and will definitely help things start moving again.

[Claire]

The media are only really interested in a board like this if it's new, or there's a particular angle they can latch on to. I can't think of anything at the moment, but if you can, please let me know.


Not quite an angle for targetting the media, but a related thought.....

I've had a lot of success in the past with newsletters for websites. Write something entertaining and up to date about what's been going on here, and how exciting it all is (and what a lot of free books have been sent out and discussed :D ) - and send it out to all your existing members. Most forums have some sort of "Mail All Members" button you can push, behind the scenes.

You won't attract new members, of course, but it usually works wonders at rounding up some of those members who joined in a fit of enthusiasm, posted a couple of times, or not at all, and then somehow forgot about the site, or couldn't find it again. At least a few should stick around for a bit longer and get more involved, especially now the site is busier than a few months ago.

Is it the BGOs first birthday around about now?? That would be a fab excuse to mail people - and tell them to get their Christmas gift ideas here, too!!


=================

HEY - you've got a pretty avatar - where do the rest of us get one from????

[Claire]

Ignore that final comment :rolleyes: - I just read the other thread about avatars

[Adrian]

The media are only really interested in a board like this if it's new, or there's a particular angle they can latch on to. I can't think of anything at the moment, but if you can, please let me know. (Are you in Wellington permanently now, btw? How about the headline "Book Group Online Member Emigrates"?)

Your timetable is very sensible, and I will PM babelbel to see if she still wants to organise it, and if not, perhaps someone could take over. chrisqqgx4...?
I'd be happy to take over, certainly for a December one and even into next year.

I'll see what I can push over here. The beauty of an online book group is that you can be anywhere and still feel like you're in the same room.

[Bill]

OK. Chris, I haven't heard back from babelbel, so why don't you set up a vote? Do we need a theme?

[ChrisG]

I don't think anyone is or should feel under any pressure to read every book group choice, particularly if it's happens not to be a book that they want to read.


Well that's me outta here, then. :D

[Bill]

Well that's me outta here, then. :D

You don't know what the next choice is yet! We haven't even had the nominations. :rolleyes:

[ChrisG]

So, if I don't fancy the Editor's Choice this month, I just ignore the whole thing and wait 'til next time, right? :rolleyes:

Damn! That's been the problem - I've been labouring under the delusion that Book Group membership was different than Book Club membership. :eek:

[Opal]

I really would like to join in on this, I need motivation to read - suffering from overworkedness and reader's block at the same time does not help my TBR pile to reduce in size!!! (I can't decide if that sentence even makes sense but you get the picture...) I can't think of a suggestion to add to the suggestion thread right now, but if it's a book I have or can get from the library quickly I think I'll try to get in on it this time!!! :)