Freeper Reading Club?

Self | July 19, 2002 | PJ-Comix

[PJ-Comix]

Have you ever heard about reading clubs? This is where readers read a particular book at the same time. I think it would be fun to do something like that here. A book could be assigned and Freepers who wish to join in could read the book at the same time. Following the deadline date for completion, we could post our commentaries on the book.

Since it is < proprietary mode> my idea < /proprietary mode> I suggest that I be the one to make the book recommendations. Some folks have flamed me for supposedly looking down my nose at Sci-Fi books. However, this is not the case. I have read most of the books written by the major Sci-Fi writers such as Heinleain, Asimov, Vonnegut, etc.. However, I do feel way too much emphasis has been placed on Sci-Fi at the expense of other literature. Therefore I will tend to recommend books other than Sci-Fi (although I will sometimes recommend Sci-Fi books if it has socio-political implications).

Anyway, if you think my first recommendation will be From Here To Eternity, or Invisible Man (Ellison, not Wells) or Ann Coulter's current best seller, I am going to surprise you.

Here is my first book recommendation: Shane by Jack Shaefer. Although not about politics, this book has a lot to say about character. In fact, this country would be a lot better off if every schoolkid was REQUIRED to read it. Yes, the movie was very good, but the book is much better. I am leading off the Freeper Reading Club Book list with Shane because it is actually a long short story and is very easy to read. Most folks should finish it in under 4 hours of reading. However, I am setting August 12 as the due date for reading it and posting commentary. I read Shane years ago and was incredibly impressed with its message but I will be re-reading it again for this assignment. Shane is easily available at your local library or book store.

[PJ-Comix]

Call it arrogance but somebody has to make the book club assignments. This is an easy book to read but has an important message. Please reply here if you want to engage in this reading project. If things work out I'll assign another book. I promise that my list will be very eclectic and ALWAYS interesting. I'll keep it to fiction at first but later I might assign non-fiction.

[Bahbah]

Count me in.

[contessa machiaveli]

i would love to be included...but shane??? if that's what you want...that's OK with me.

[BADJOE]

PJ; If you want to read "The Mainspring of Human Progress" I will mail everyone a copy at no charge.

It is a history of liberty, since the beginning of recorded time. Delightful read 260 some pages, written by Henry Grady Weaver an ex vice president of GM.

He wrote it in 1948 because he didnt think the schools were teaching our kids about this aspect of history.

[PJ-Comix]

Have you ever read Shane? Yes, it is a "Western" but it also transcends just being a Western. I think this is a very important book. When you read it, you will find out why. You folks who are happy with this choice because you think it is a Western, will be very surprised that it is much more than just a Western. And you folks who are disappointed to find out that it is just a Western will be pleasantly surprised for the same reason. This is why I chose Shane to lead off the reading list. It isn't what you think it will be.

Oh, and if you think you know what Shane is all about because you saw the move, you are wrong. And, as I stated, I wanted to start off the assignment with an easy read but one with an important message.

[Bahbah]

LOL. I'm going to give PJ a chance on this one and read it before I pass judgement. We can always do Proust at a later time.

[PJ-Comix]

The problem with the Mainspring book is that it isn't widely available. I want to assign books that are easy to obtain.

[Mr.Clark]

I'm in.

[Betty Jane]

Add me to the list. Never read the book, but Ill trust your recomendation. BTW, I hate westerns.

[PJ-Comix]

Shane is only 85 pages in the hardcover version. I found it to be completely different than the other "Westerns" I've read (and I've read a lot of Louis L'Amour). Here is a quote about why Schaefer's book is different than the other Westerns:

He [Schaefer] attributed his success in the genre to his study of the classics as a literature major, his experience on newspapers, and his fascination with western history. His hallmark was thorough research and historical accuracy.

[PJ-Comix]

BTW, I hate westerns.

Good. Then you'll LOVE Shane. It isn't what you think a Western should be. Yes, it takes place in the West (actually at the tail end of the frontier era in 1889 which wasn't stressed in the movie) but it has an incredible message. After you read it, you will want every kid you know to read it for the message.

BTW, one purpose of this Reading Club is to get folks to read (and appreciate) books they might not ordinarily have tried. And, don't worry, it will be a long time before I recommend another Western. But, as I said, Shane IS different.

[Bahbah]

Not brown nosing here, but being familiar with your posts, I would be inclined to trust your selection.

[Orblivion]

If yer into politics. You gotta read Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand.

[PJ-Comix]

I won't be putting Atlas Shrugged on the list. It wasn't the best of Rand's book and completely lacked subtlety. It was like getting hit over the head again and again with a Randian message club. BTW, Shane has a similar message but Schaefer doesn't slam you over the head with speeches that go on for dozens of pages.

p.s. The Fountainhead was a much better book but I won't be assigning that one either. But don't worry, down the road I will be assigning a Rand book but it will surprise you, especially since the characters in this book seem REAL.

[Non-Sequitur]

"He rode into our valley in the summer of '89. I was a kid then, barely topping the backboard of father's old chuck-wagon. . . . In that clear Wyoming air I could see him plainly, though he was still several miles away. There seemed nothing remarkable about him, just another stray horseman riding up the road toward the cluster of frame buildings that was our town. Then I saw a pair of cowhands, loping past him, stop and stare after him with a curious intentness."

I first read Shane over 30 year ago, and I've read it dozens of times since. Excellent suggestion. And the boy's name is Bob. Why they changed it to Joey for the movie I'll never know.

[dixie sass]

Count me in also. Shouldn't this be under general interest though?

[PJ-Comix]

That is one interesting difference from the movie. Bob is an older man narrating his memories of his youth. This is one reason why Shane has much more depth than the movie. BTW, although I though Alan Ladd did a fine job I thought that the actor who played Chris, Ben Johnson, would have been perfect in the role of Shane. But as I said before, the book is MUCH BETTER than the movie.

And for you folks who don't like Westerns. Don't worry. This one is DIFFERENT.

[PJ-Comix]

Shouldn't this be under general interest though?

Since my books will have socio/political implications, I posted the thread in this section.

[Tourist Guy]

Indexed.

Only problem I see is that it will take a bite out of my FReeptime. Maybe I'll carry Shane around with me to read while I'm waiting in line...

QUESTION: Can we listen to it on tape? Will that qualify? I spend a lot of time driving . . .

[Non-Sequitur]

Having read the book first I confess I was underwhelmed by the movie. It's almost impossible to translate an outstanding book into an outstanding movie, IMHO. Probably because a good book will suck you in and stimulates your imagination until you can visualize what the author is writing. Shane was like that. To Kill a Mockingbird was like that, too. Killer Angels is another. How can any movie compete with your own imagination?