Reading with Style discussion

This sub-challenge is extra challenging! Post your questions here.


And here are some links to help with your research:
Novels by city of setting
Books set In...
goodreads places

Oh my goodness, what a task! :)
My TBR shelf will require thorough investigation for this one!

I guess looking at your plan we need to know how much of the book has to be set in the location? - since in most books, especially longer ones, the characters will go on a trip at one time or another.

Rosemary wrote: "Oh my goodness, what a task! :)
My TBR shelf will require thorough investigation for this one!

I guess looking at your plan we need to know how much of the book has to be set in the location? - si..."

Yes, 90% of the book should be set within 150 miles of said location. So, for example, House of Mirth is set in NYC, on a country estate in NY, and Europe. The first two locations are fine, and if the Europe section is less than 10% of the book, it qualifies.

ETA: And I apparently edited the 90% guideline out of the instructions. It's back now.

Great, thanks! And for diaries written 1940-45 but not published until the 1970s, which date counts?

Rosemary wrote: "Great, thanks! And for diaries written 1940-45 but not published until the 1970s, which date counts?"

Use the later publication date. The only exception to this would be a short story collection where the stories had been published variously. Then we use the date of the latest story.

This is going to be great fun! You just keep coming up with such creative ideas. Thanks, mods!

Elizabeth,

Oh wow, I am so jealous of your Paris list! It may have to be my round two (as if I could read 20 books in three months).

I'll have to find my copy to research location/percentages, but the version of Fantomas I read a while back also takes place outside of Paris.

Liz M wrote: "I'll have to find my copy to research location/percentages, but the version of Fantomas I read a while back also takes place outside of Paris. "

Thanks, I am concerned about a couple of them. Fantomas could easily be substituted, if necessary, especially since it's the last one.

Oh - and having read Age of Innocence, I would say it qualifies. Very little, as I recall, takes place outside NYC.

Elizabeth (Alaska) wrote: "Rosemary wrote: "Great, thanks! And for diaries written 1940-45 but not published until the 1970s, which date counts?"

Use the later publication date. The only exception to this would be a short s..."

Sorry to be a pain but just to be absolutely clear, I also have this book which I want to work into my plan: The Illustrated Pepys: Extracts from the Diary Pepys wrote in the 17th century, his diaries were first published in 1825, and this particular edition (which is abridged) came out in 1978. Do I count 1825 for this, or 1978?

What a great sub-challenge. This looks like it could clear quite a few books off my to-read shelf.

Can you choose a location that is quite near you or even where you live? I have a bunch of local books that I wanted to read for quite a while but didn't really get a chance to in past challenges.

Is it allowed to repeat publication years or must each book have been published in another year?

Isabell wrote: "What a great sub-challenge. This looks like it could clear quite a few books off my to-read shelf.

Can you choose a location that is quite near you or even where you live? I have a bunch of local ..."

Yes, you can repeat publication years, but be sure to note the 50-year span. And great observation - non-fiction books definitely count!

So if we are doing the Archeologist and we have two books from the same year we would go by the month published for chronological order?

Karen GHHS wrote: "So if we are doing the Archeologist and we have two books from the same year we would go by the month published for chronological order?"

If known, yes please. Otherwise, if two books have the same publication year it doesn't matter which is read first as long as they are read one after another.

Elizabeth

My edition of Fantomas has significant action (50ish pages of 226) taking place in Corrèze &/or Souillac, France. Both are more than 300 mi. from Paris

Rosemary wrote: "The Illustrated Pepys: Extracts from the Diary Pepys wrote in the 17th century, his diaries were first published in 1825, and this particular edition (which is abridged) came out in 1978..."

Goodness, that's convoluted. I am going to say the 1825 date should be used, as it is when the diaries (which your edition abridges) were published.

Liz M wrote: "Elizabeth

My edition of Fantomas has significant action (50ish pages of 226) taking place in Corrèze &/or Souillac, France. Both are more than 300 mi. from Paris"

Oh, thanks! I'm pretty sure I have a substitution.

ETA: Aha! The Phantom of the Opera

Liz M wrote: "Goodness, that's convoluted. I am going to say the 1825 date should be used, as it is when the diaries (which your edition abridges) were published."

Thanks Liz! I'll post my list now :)

Just a quick question. I really want to read Dickens' ' A Christmas Carol to start out my planned London adventure. The canon says Christmas Stories. Does it count on it's own (just over 100 pages) or would I need to read a collection and if I have to read a collection, what year do I use?
A Christmas Carol and Other Christmas Stories
A Christmas Carol, The Chimes & The Cricket on the Hearth, etc.

Karen GHHS wrote: "Just a quick question. I really want to read Dickens' ' A Christmas Carol to start out my planned London adventure. The canon says Christmas Stories. Does it count on it's own (just over 100 pages)..."

A Christmas Carol is published as a stand-alone novel, so it can be used (and it is YA with a Lexile of 900).

The goodreads dates for the Dicken's works you linked seem reasonable (1840s - 1850s), so the original published dates listed should be used.

Ok, this is probably obvious but this is for the Winter 2012-2013 Challenge right?
Whatever, I'm excited. For genealogy I love reading about this kind of stuff. The difficulty will be focusing on one area!

Yes, it's for the Winter 12-13 Challenge. Folder titles must be 32 characters or less, so I only had room for (W12).

Rosemary, you plan looks good. Thanks for including the alternatives so I know you have back-up if your one questionable book has too much time spent in Europe/US.

Liz M wrote: "Karen GHHS wrote: "Just a quick question. I really want to read Dickens' ' A Christmas Carol to start out my planned London adventure. The canon says Christmas Stories. Does it count on it's own (j..."

Thanks -- I kept finding re-written for children versions with 300 Lexile and I missed the 900 listing!

Is there a website that tells distances from one place to another without having to type in an address?

If the book is historical fiction, it goes by pub date not the setting date, right?

What a fun sub-challenge! Now I have to choose my city -- New York City, Paris or London. (I'm leaning towards London.)

Does anyone know if The Old Curiosity Shop is 90% London? I looked at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Old_... and I couldn't tell. Thanks!

Rebekah wrote: "Is there a website that tells distances from one place to another without having to type in an address?

If the book is historical fiction, it goes by pub date not the setting date, right?"

All of the books for this sub-challenge will use pub dates. I believe you can get distances from google.

Deedee wrote: "What a fun sub-challenge! Now I have to choose my city -- New York City, Paris or London. (I'm leaning towards London.)

Does anyone know if The Old Curiosity Shop is 90% London? I looked at htt..."

The book will qualify for London -- Nell escapes to Tong, Shropshire, which google maps places at 140 miles from London. Presumably all the events take place between the two locations.

However, you wouldn't earn any proximity bonus points if the Shropshire sections are more than 10% of the whole (and I suspect they would be, considering the main character is there).

Remember, you can choose any location that interests you. Yes, the proximity bonuses are tantalizing, but you might want to consider books on a different basis.

If we're not trying for archeologist, do we have to post the list in the order we will read them aside from the first book?

Leigh wrote: "If we're not trying for archeologist, do we have to post the list in the order we will read them aside from the first book?"

You should probably post what you know you'll want to read. It would be a shame to plan to read one and then find out it didn't qualify because of the 150 mile radius. For example, I posted one that Liz had already read and knew that it didn't qualify.

You should probably post what you know you'll want to rea..."

That is a good point. I was thinking just specifically the order... I notice the ones up there are listed out 15.1, 15.2.... I considering postings say One Good Turn which would put me in Edinburgh and then 9 more books in Edinburgh/Glasgow areas.

Edinburgh seems to be a favorite setting for bloody detective novels. I like them, but in doses. So, I want to make sure I don't declare a run of brutal scottish murders and not have something to interlace them with as needed depending on whats in the rest of the challenge. :)

I'm not certain I'm going to read all 10 of my Paris books first and then whatever 10- and 20-point books I might want to read. But then again I might. ;-)

(I don't know yet, what any of those 10- and 20-point tasks might be, by the way.)

So the published dates of the book has to have at least a 50 year span? can you elaborate on that more? Also would it be okay if all the books were set in the same location or do they have to be in the within the 10 mile to 75 mile range?

Jayme(the ghost reader) wrote: "So the published dates of the book has to have at least a 50 year span? can you elaborate on that more? Also would it be okay if all the books were set in the same location or do they have to be in..."

The books have to be within 150 miles of the location of the first book. A bonus applies if the location is within 10, 25, or 75 miles of the first location. A book set in exactly the same location is within 10 miles. You do not need to have an address, we're being a little more general than that.

Publication dates should cover, at a minimum, any 50 year period of time. You could have publications dates extend over a greater time period than that.

Yes, all of the books are worth 15 points plus whatever bonus might apply. Thus, your second book might worth 40 points, but the 6th book (or whatever) only 20 points and not negatively impact your archeologist finishers award. If the location is outside of the 75 mile radius and within the 150 mile radius you still get the minimum 15 points.

Christine wrote: "Do you mean that each subsequent book gets the 15 points PLUS possible bonus points?..."

Yes.

Tasks are ALWAYS worth the basic 10-15-20 points (the integer part of the task number). Additional "extra credit points" are referred to as either style points or bonus points.

I'm really having fun planning for this. I chose London because I own quite a few books that I haven't read and want to that are set in London. Does any area of the city count as long as it's considered part of London or do we have to go by the specific areas of London for the 10 mile bonus?

I was going to do London but I decided to stick to my local city and do Chicago. Now do the books published within a 50 year span, I am guessing we can't have all the books published in the 2000s :)

Jayme(the ghost reader) wrote: "I was going to do London but I decided to stick to my local city and do Chicago. Now do the books published within a 50 year span, I am guessing we can't have all the books published in the 2000s :)"

No. ;-) If you have a book published in, say, 2010, you would need to have a book published in 1961 or earlier.

Chicago should be interesting - I look forward to your selections.

Karen & Liz,

I am going to say no to Neverwhere. While the book starts in a realistic London, the majority of it takes place in an alternate reality that is not quite London.

Liz M wrote: "Karen & Liz,

I am going to say no to Neverwhere. While the book starts in a realistic London, the majority of it takes place in an alternate reality that is not quite London."

really??? That makes me sad.
I'll replace it with High Fidelity by Nick Hornby

Liz M wrote: "Karen & Liz,

I am going to say no to Neverwhere. While the book starts in a realistic London, the majority of it takes place in an alternate reality that is not quite London."

Ok, I fixed mine with one of my reserves. The new book is #10.

I also replaced my 2nd book (The Man Who Was Thursday) after reading the back cover when I got to school and asking Elizabeth about it since she had read it.

Karen GHHS wrote: "I also replaced my 2nd book (The Man Who Was Thursday) after reading the back cover when I got to school and asking Elizabeth about it since she had read it."

Thanks for letting me know.

For New York City, does it include all five boroughs? Or do I need to differentiate between settings in Manhattan from those in the Bronx or Brooklyn?

Jayme, I've read An Abundance of Katherines and a lot of it (over half I think) is set in Tennessee. They set off on a road trip pretty early in the book.

Joanna wrote: "For New York City, does it include all five boroughs? Or do I need to differentiate between settings in Manhattan from those in the Bronx or Brooklyn?"

NYC is all five boroughs. Brooklyn is not a separate city, as much as Manhattanites would like it to be.

Rosemary wrote: "Jayme, I've read An Abundance of Katherines and a lot of it (over half I think) is set in Tennessee. They set off on a road trip pretty early in the book."

Okay, I will change it out.

Just to clarify:

The intent of this task is to gain an in-depth knowledge of the past and present of a location. Future-fiction or alternate realities that change the PHYSICAL location (are not real places and could never be real places) do not fit this sub-challenge. Fantastical creatures in a real setting (such as Dracula) will work.