Merry recently hosted an excellent discussion at her blog on Patricia Wood’s book Lottery.  I hadn’t read the book till Merry pointed us that way, and I am very glad she did.  It was a good read, and a very good discussion.  The author stopped in to join the discussion, and it added a wonderful dimension to my reading/processing experience.  It was good to have her insight.

That puts pressure on me.  I’m next up to host the book discussion, and I know I can’t possibly measure up to what Merry’s done.  I’m hoping that after all the Christmas chaos, and with the turn of a New Year, that the memories will become fuzzy for those who have participated, and that my weak attempts to measure up won’t be judged so harshly.

I’m going to leave the book that we’re discussing next up for a vote. I have several that I wouldn’t mind reading together, but I thought others might like to have a little input.  Here are the 4 titles I am putting forward, and I will get feedback from all of you before deciding what to do.

Noises Off by Michael Frayn

I haven’t read this one yet, but it was recommended to me by Malcolm when I posted recently about the TV series Slings and Arrows.  With as much as I loved that series, and from what I have read about this play, I think this could be really fun to read and discuss together.  It would have loads of topics that would be interesting for discussion, I think.

It won’t, however, be an easy read.  (I think.)  From what I have looked at on the pages of the text, it does look to be something of a challenge because it is not exactly a very linear reading experience.

Great Expectations by Charles Dickens

I didn’t put this here only because I love the classics, nor only because I have a lecture about it early next year and would find the discussions here helpful to me.  It’s also because it is just a good book, and always lends itself to good discussion.

The Plato Papers by Peter Ackroyd

This novel is set in AD 3700.  It is not at all sci-fi.  Instead, it is very thoughtful and thought-provoking.  It is all about how we understand and treat the past, and our relationship to it.  It is funny.  The satire is seldom biting, but it certainly makes its point.  I think we could have a very good time with this book.  It is a fun read.  When I first read it, I laughed out loud several times.

The Man Who Walked through Time by Colin Fletcher

I haven’t read this yet either.  It is a travel book recommended to me by Pinhole in his comments on one of my earlier posts. Pinhole always makes good book recommendations, so I am sure this one will be a fun read too.  It is a travel narrative about the first trip afoot through the Grand Canyon.

I don’t know how easy any of these would be to locate in public libraries or used bookstores (except Great Expectations — that one is easy).  I know all are available on Amazon. Perhaps some of the rest of you would prefer to check availability before we decide.

I’ll watch for feedback here for the next week or 10 days before deciding, then post the decision and a date for starting the discussion.