A challenge of relative ease and merriment discussion

Do you have any questions?

About banned books. Does it mean books banned right now or books that have been banned but are now available?

It can be either. Books can be banned in one single country, by some part of the church, by schools in another country, etc etc. It's all up to you!

Ok, thanks!

I have a question! Would you consider this a microhistory?
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...

If not, I have another in mind that is definitely a microhistory, but I wasn't sure if the beanie baby one counted!

"a visit to a man who lives with his 40,000 Ty products and an in-prison interview with a guy who killed a coworker over a Beanie Baby debt"
Are you kidding me?! xD
It looks like a micro-history to me, or possibly a ... micro journalism? Seems fascinating either way!

Hahaha, right?? I have to read it, regardless of if it fits into that category! I saw an interview with the author on the news--I am so very amused by the subject. XD

I mean... wikipedia says "Microhistory is the intensive historical investigation of a well defined smaller unit of research (most often a single event, the community of a village, a family or a person)."

I think for the most famous microhistory books are about the history of a thing - like a specific foodstuff, a specific disease, a specific concept (I once started a book on virginity for example, but was distracted. I'll probably go back to it as some point though) etc. Cause wouldn't the history of a person be a biography?

Aaanyways, I think the history of beanie babies and the economic cray bubble in which they existed would count as microhistory for sure! It is very specific after all. And like I said somewhere: you can always change your mind later if you feel like counting something else. For microhistories there's always the overlap with non-fiction (since it's a sub genre of non-fiction) after all.

Thanks! I thought it sounded like it would fit the bill, but for some reason, I've never heard of that term before, so I wanted to make sure it wasn't obviously a misfit. ^_^ If nothing else, it can fit into another category, or it can just be a book I read outside the challenge!

Yeah it's quite a new genre for me too, but I really like the sound of it, which is why I included it in the challenge. I'm almost done with my first microhistory of the year, which is this:

I saw that you were reading that in my feed! I hope it's good; it looks interesting. (So many microhistories look interesting to me that I have to narrow them down a little! Do I really need to know the microhistory of eels or potatoes, for instance? Haha.)

I know right? I want to read ALL the microhistories. I found this seed one as an audiobook kind of by accident and thought why not. It is very uh, nerdy. Seeds is a very particular subject. Lots of natural science stuff going on. But it is quite nice to listen to I must say. I only have about half an hour left I think so I'll finish it tonight or tomorrow.

Okay, I need to make an addition regarding microhistories!
In another topic I linked this list: https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/1... and I just went back to see if I have read any of them already (not to count for the challenge as it's for 2016, but just out of curiosity) and I read the comments. It seems like "microhistory" as a term is a very narrow historical study (as the word suggests) when applied to research and such. But the last few years people seem to have start to use it as a literary category that is more akin to "a social history of just one thing" which kinda works against the narrow spatiality and time frame of proper microhistory. And tbh, these literary microhistories can often be MACROhistories. I'll just add "the social history of just one thing" to the list as they did to the title of the Listopia list. I think the mistake the Listopia user made a few years ago might've generated a change of the meaning of the word when used as a literary sub genre! Cause I've seen microhistories used in this way on other sites too.

I get in touch with my inner nerd when I'm reading a microhistory, too. . . it always gets into such nitty-gritty, but I rarely feel like it's too much information, because, well, it's mirco. They are really such good education, for me at least, because one small topic is the perfect level for me to retain the most important parts. Sometimes, some of the very specific knowledge that you never knew before the microhistory can be haunting! (Or, I tend toward haunting ones.)

Maybe someday, someone will write a microhistory on the term "microhistory"! ^_^ Thanks for the clarity. Now that I think of it, I'm not sure why I never sought a genre name for microhistories, aka, the type of book Mary Roach writes and such!

So even if a book meets several of the categories, we list each book in only one category, right? So if I read a book that is written by a woman and is fantastical/SF, I have to choose which category I want to add it to?

Pernilla wrote: "So even if a book meets several of the categories, we list each book in only one category, right? So if I read a book that is written by a woman and is fantastical/SF, I have to choose which catego..."

Yes, that is the thought :) Only one category per book, but several books per category is okay!

@Laura: Exactly! I just look at it as another aspect of "micro". It's about one single thing, rather than a snapshot or whatever. My next book will be Stiff actually. I started reading it a few years back but never got past two chapters for some reason. School most likely (and when your focus is on dead things already... yeah), but I have the audiobook now too so I'll make that my transport/dishes/crafting book of choice for a little while.

@Pernilla: Exactly! But you can change it around later if you suddenly find yourself stuck for one category but used a suitable book for an easier on already.

Pocki wrote: "Okay, I need to make an addition regarding microhistories!
In another topic I linked this list: https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/1... and I just w..."

Well, I just added a ton of those to my 'to be read' list! :D