GR Book Club - The Three Stigmata of Palmer Eldritch by Phillip K Dick

Last edited by Rocsteady on Mon Apr 17, 2017 1:10 pm, edited 12 times in total.

Pretty sure this has been done before but this time it shall be done better.

We have a 300 page limit to begin with, so no-one's a dick and has everyone read their super favourite book of all time, War and Peace.

This way we're actually guaranteed to get through a few works as well. Can up the limit down the line if people so desire.

We're like the film club but better and more educated and gooseberry fool.

IN:

Rocsteady
Banjo
Karl
Errkal
Frank
Irene Demova
Super Dragon 64
Corazon de Leon
<]:^D
Knoyleo
Parksey
Rex Kramer
Karl
Dual
Denster
Superking
Sawyerpip
Falsey

Thus far there are 18 of us but more are welcome to join - either post in thread or PM me.

Had a few tentative In's that I've included as once you see the quality of literature and discussion on you know you'll be in. Plus it's just nicer to share a reading experience than solely trying to pile through gooseberry fool.

The Rules:

Don't be a dick. That's the main one. Chances are no-one wants to read an in-depth analysis of space alien diplomacy or some gooseberry fool. Just try be considerate that people will have different tastes so try not to pick something super niche and, most importantly - pick something enjoyable.

300 pages is the upper limit. If you have some utterly incredible work that's 310 or something obviously that's fine. No lower limit, very short novels are totally welcome.

Please try to pick novels that are fairly easy to buy. I know only a couple of us are abroad so it's not a requirement that it's digitally available but it would be nice. Has to be available on Amazon at a very minimum. Posting links to the cheapest/best ( :shifty:

) place to acquire said work would be great. Even if the 'acquire' link has to be PM'd round by me.

PM me your books. I'll chuck each of you into a random generator and that's how we'll pick whose work we are reading each time. Deadline this time for your book to be chosen is Saturday night. Midnight-ish or something, probably I'll be drunk so the deadline isn't really set in stone, just get it in before Sunday morning.

The first book was:

The Case of the General's Thumb by Andrey Kurkov

Our second book was:

The Stars Our Destination by Alfred Bester

Our third book was:

Zazie in the Metro by Raymond Queneau

The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde

All My Friends are Superheroes by Andrew Kaufman

Our current book is:

The Three Stigmata of Palmer Eldritch by Phillip K Dick

PostRe: GR Book Club by **Banjo** » Thu Jan 26, 2017 4:01 pm

I'd actually quite like this. I need to read more and an extra push to do so would help.

PostRe: GR Book Club by **That** » Thu Jan 26, 2017 4:38 pm

In. Can't guarantee I'll read every book, but like Banjo I've been meaning to read more and it would be cool to get recommendations from you guys.

PostRe: GR Book Club by **Errkal** » Thu Jan 26, 2017 5:14 pm

Yeah I would be up for this, as with Karl I can't guarantee I'll manage everything but I'd be up for joining in.

PostRe: GR Book Club by **Frank** » Thu Jan 26, 2017 6:05 pm

I might be up for this too! I don't read that often though so I might be quite slow to get through everything

PostRe: GR Book Club by **Irene Demova** » Thu Jan 26, 2017 6:12 pm

In just so I can gooseberry fool on stuff you like

I'm more likely to keep up with this than film club tbh

PostRe: GR Book Club by **Super Dragon 64** » Thu Jan 26, 2017 6:17 pm

Karl wrote:In. Can't guarantee I'll read every book, but like Banjo I've been meaning to read more and it would be cool to get recommendations from you guys.

This

PostRe: GR Book Club by **D_C** » Thu Jan 26, 2017 6:26 pm

Ready Player One would be good one if folk haven't read it yet. Fairly relevant what with all the VR stuff, and it isn't too long a read.

Corazon de Leon · PostRe: GR Book Club by **Corazon de Leon** » Thu Jan 26, 2017 6:26 pm

Karl wrote:In. Can't guarantee I'll read every book, but like Banjo I've been meaning to read more and it would be cool to get recommendations from you guys.

In a nutshell, this.

Corazon de Leon · PostRe: GR Book Club by **Corazon de Leon** » Thu Jan 26, 2017 6:27 pm

D_C wrote:Ready Player One would be good one if folk haven't read it yet. Fairly relevant what with all the VR stuff, and it isn't too long a read.

Probably worth doing if you want to see the Spielberg adaptation that's on its way as well.

PostRe: GR Book Club by **<]:^D** » Thu Jan 26, 2017 6:44 pm

in!

even though i havent watched either of the Film Club suggestions yet :shifty:

PostRe: GR Book Club by **Knoyleo** » Thu Jan 26, 2017 6:57 pm

In.

PostRe: GR Book Club by **Parksey** » Fri Jan 27, 2017 6:11 am

Yeah, go on then, I'm tentatively in. Can't buy many physical books here without venturing a by further afield, so I might be restricted to what is on the kindle store.

Also no books for dweebz. Not a massive fan of sci-fi or fantasy.

PostRe: GR Book Club by **Knoyleo** » Fri Jan 27, 2017 7:28 am

Parksey wrote:Also no books for dweebz. Not a massive fan of sci-fi or fantasy.

I was about to post "this" before I remembered there's plenty of good sci-fi out there. Do Androids Dream Of Electric Sheep, Brave New World, Dune, and so on. Seems a genre I wouldn't want to write off completely.

That being said, I can't think of a fantasy novel I've tried t reading that hasn't bored me half to tears, with the exception of Harry Potter, if that even counts as fantasy.

PostRe: GR Book Club by **Parksey** » Fri Jan 27, 2017 7:37 am

Yeah, I would read stuff generally held up to be the best of the genre or an outstanding read. Not bothered about the more throwaway, run of the mill stuff. What I would call the holiday paperbacks of the genre.

And please please please no videogame novels. I don't want to read about Mass Effect or Halo.

PostRe: GR Book Club by **Errkal** » Fri Jan 27, 2017 7:56 am

Sorry you can come into it saying yeah but not or that or the other.

Surely the point is people sharing something we enjoy to see if others like it not have a list of but not these genres. The page limit is fair but otherwise is seems a bit daft to discount whole genres because one person doesn't like it when something this about discovering books and genres you don't know about or may not like yet.

PostRe: GR Book Club by **Rex Kramer** » Fri Jan 27, 2017 8:25 am

It'd be tentatively interested, I could do with having the range of books I'd consider widening a bit. As long as I don't end up looking like Jez. And as long as I don't have to read Ready Player One again.

PostRe: GR Book Club by **Parksey** » Fri Jan 27, 2017 8:26 am

I'm not saying there should be rules about what people can and can't nominate; was just saying my personal preferences are not in those particular gentes, so I hope we get a bit of variation.

Though you wouldn't join a reading club and nominate a Mills and Boon would you? You've got to have some consideration about what you're recommended. Videogame novels are a that same sort of level in my eyes, though. We'd all have been much better off with an extra few trees in the world.

PostRe: GR Book Club by **That** » Fri Jan 27, 2017 8:30 am

I'm happy with any genre but my preference is for books that are both high-quality and of an accessible length. This means most 'franchise tie-in' novels are out for me, and so are most epic fantasy tomes.

Not that I'd want to stop people from recommending them, I just probably wouldn't personally be able to read those.

PostRe: GR Book Club by **Rocsteady** » Fri Jan 27, 2017 9:45 am

Definitely books like epic fantasy novels are out simply for the reason they'll be too long.

There won't be any specific restrictions on genre but as others have said please do be considerate - just because you enjoy reading about a short history of 17th century Outer Mongolia doesn't mean that others will. I'd suggest trying to pick novels folk might actually like and are reasonably accessible rather than some extreme avant garde works but obviously within reason it's all good. I'll try get this all set up and ready to go before Sunday since Sunday's the best day for chilling with a book.

I'm actually in the same boat as Parksey where if it's not available online it might be really hard for me to get ahold of but can cross that bridge when we reach it. Mixed metaphors yeahh.

GR Book Club - The Three Stigmata of Palmer Eldritch by Phillip K Dick

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