Urban Monarch Book Club
June 11, 2007 by Greg
One of the core philosophies of Urban Monarch is to provide usable news and information. In traditional media it is common to flip through pages of movie, music, and book reviews. I’ll see half a dozen items that peak my interest, but the reality is that I rarely consume any of it. I just have a list of books in my head that I’ve “heard something about.”
We are going to change that with the Urban Monarch Book Club.
How It Works
A book is selected once a month. It can be fictional or true, though the only restriction is that it has to read through like a story. We’ll be reading books like Choke, The Game, and Ugly Americans. After the book is selected, it is divided into four chunks. The reading assignments are finished by a weekly post and open to everyone for discussion.
We’ll kick this off with Haruki Murakami’s latest offering, that I’ve wanted to read for a while but have yet to crack open. The book weighs in at a light 208 pages, so the first chunk will be an easy 52 pages. Get it from Amazon and get your reading done, because the first discussion will be Wednesday June 20th at noon.
I know someone with a Kitchen Aide Mixer… It’s real nice.
I’m glad you guys started up the book club again. Good for you.
I can’t wait, although I wish you’d mentioned “After Dark” being the first choice before I left Tattered Cover the other day. I had it in my hand in the check out line..
ok, now i’m going to need to buy 2 bookcases instead of just one…
I’m a fan. I always have a stack of 30+ books to read and this gives some focus. Nice.
I reco Palahniuk’s Fight Club since it’s a bizarre one and would benefit from the discussion, plus Fleming’s original Casino Royale.
Other recos:
Ellis’ American Psycho
The New New Thing: A Silicon Valley Story
Dyson’s Against the Odds
and definitely The Game
Raquel,
Me too…
Cash,
Yeah, I had an alternate title, but everyone wouldn’t be able to buy it for a couple weeks.
Goat,
Damn right.
Scott,
I know Cash loves Palahniuk, but I haven’t read any of his titles. Bret Ellis’ novels have definitely been on my “i should read that” list for a while. Definitely good recommendations.
Scott, crazy stuff; I had American Psycho in my hand the other day at the bookstore as well. I really liked Less than Zero and Glamorama was just out of control.
Mezrich has a new one coming out soon that I’m excited about; another non fiction called “Rigged” about some ivy league brat making millions on the oil trade in Dubai. I can’t wait.
Ivy Leaguers making millions off of oil…I’m in
I’ve never finished a Palahniuk novel, only started one. And I loved the interpretation of Ellis’ AP with Christian Bale.
OK, Cash, which Pala novel should I consume first? LtZ, Glam… or FClub?
Scott; If you’re looking for Palahniuk, look no further than “Survivor” for your first.
It’s one of the funniest, twisted, all around engrossing books I’ve read in years.
Depending on your views on religion, you’ll either laugh or cry, but either way you’ll be turning the pages. Fast.
Damn…
In these recommendations comments we could make a book list for the whole year…
recently read/suggestions:
-Perfume: The Story of a Murderer by Patrick Suskind
-Night Watch by Sergei Lukyanenko
-Day Watch by Sergei Lukyanenko
-Rant by our pal Chuck (got teh audio book version for a long road trip, wow was that a bizarre ride…)
-Another Bullshit Night in Suck City: A Memoir by Nick Flynn (only part way through, but enjoying
-Interface by Neal Stephenson (actually read last summer, but had to add to the list, scary how close that might be to reality)
Goat,
I love Neal Stephenson. I’ll have to look into Sergei Lukyanenko. Perfume was on my ‘movies to see’ list for a while, now perhaps it’ll be on my books to read list.
Omg, check out sergei’s picture:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sergey_Lukyanenko
I’m game! And I heart Palahniuk. Survivor hands down, one of the best books I have ever read!!! Didn’t get a chance to read Glam yet but I will, don’t worry Cash. Unless you decide to put it on the list then I will wait. You also need to throw in a David Sedaris book for a good laugh. Me Talk Pretty One Day or Holiday on Ice… So many good ones.
Jillian,
Yes definitely! I’ve never read David Sedaris, but that’s another author that I’m embarrased of not experiencing yet.
I love the idea. I’ve been an avid reader for some time now.
The only questions would be how are u planning on conducting the discussions?
Avid reader of UM of course