The Seasonal Reading Challenge discussion

Do you think that novelists expect you to Google things? I feel like in some books, things are written with a wink and a nudge like they expect you to look up what they are talking about. I'm mainly thinking of what are clearly obscure pop culture references, where you can tell the author is making some kind of joke that you don't get and they never explain it. So you just move on or you have to look it up to get it. Thoughts?

I do see that once in a while but I never bother to actually look it up unless it has a big impact on the story (which if that is the case, usually the author will explain it). I understand not explaining it when the entire book is about pop culture, like Ready Player One or other nerdy sci-fi stuff, and is written for a very specific audience who should get all of the references without help.

I think sometimes it can be quite cultural or aimed at a specific audience & you need to understand it to "get it" but a good author will give notes or context. If it matters to the story it should be explained, if its irrelevant I am more likely to move on & just knock off another star from my rating!
Sometimes its setting (eg a book set in Norway might have references to Norwegian food that is "normal" for them & maybe wouldn't have an explanation) - if it matters whether the character is eating herring or salmon then the author should explain, but most of the time you just comprehend that its some local delicacy (though this is when I invariably head off down a rabbit hole whilst reading - 2 hours later I'm back in the book having learnt more than I ever wanted about that Norwegian food!)

I hate to stop reading for anything, even when I read in French, which is my 2nd language, I figure out the general idea and keep going. I might look up words later. As far as Google, that tends to be after I finish a book, for instance something set in a particular place or time or based on a historical character, I might look up later to learn more about it. My feeling is the author should be making the book stand alone, and you should be able to enjoy it with a normal amount of knowledge. For example, Tracey L mentioned Ready Player One. I loved that book even though I had no idea about the video games, I could tell enough of what was going on. I did know the movie and TV references.

I think some of it is personality. I'm not very detail-oriented, as my workmates and teachers could attest. Other people really enjoy researching info as they read a book.

I think I would be googling constantly if i read something with American slang in. I had never heard even simple terms like wifebeater when i first started more contemporary American fiction. I am sure those from the US have the same problems with British vernacular and dialect like in Scotland

i think it depends - is it something that was common when the book was published that is maybe less common now? is it some kind of pop culture reference? or some regional reference?

but then is it also sufficiently distracting to me that I'll stop and google it because its something critical to advancing the plot vs. just a random factoid

I recently read Sea of Poppies and like it so much that I am reading the sequels. But if you are someone who likes to define all the words, it isn't the book for you. There are nautical terms and terms from multiple cultures, also sailor's slang, pidgin, made-up words, and many characters have unusual ways of talking. There is a glossary in the back for some of the words. But I loved having the words just wash over me and getting the gist. I found it very creative, but I noticed one reviewer gave it 1 or 2 stars because they couldn't understand everything. I am like that with historical novels, too, I like to just be thrown into a world as if I had time traveled there, and I have to figure out enough to survive. I can research about it later.

Robin P wrote: "But I loved having the words just wash over me and getting the gist. I found it very creative, but I noticed one reviewer gave it 1 or 2 stars because they couldn't understand everything. I am like that with historical novels, too, I like to just be thrown into a world as if I had time traveled there, and I have to figure out enough to survive. I can research about it later."

I think I am sorta like that. I just read and absorb and try to figure out strange words and cultural parts from the story itself. Sometimes afterwards, I might research something that interested me, but seldom during the actual reading.