First book of the book club!

Hi all,

Welcome to the first poll for AE's new book club.  .

This is how things will work.  There will be three types of books to choose from.  One nonfiction, one historical fiction and one 'classic.'  We will vote on a book and go with the most popular book . 

I ask that only members interested in participating vote. 

Naturally my PM inbox will be open to any suggestions, however if you wish to suggest a book i would like you to keep in mind a few things; things such as length, availability, price and so on. 

Alright, first an overview of the books we have for this month! 

April 2007.
This months nonfiction,
Guns, Germs and Steel:  The Fate of Human Societies. 

Guns, Germs and Steel has become quite the controversially piece of literature.  Diamond attempts to explain why the Eurasian civilizations managed overcome other civilizations due to geography, demographics and ecological events instead of natural superiority.  Jared Diamond is a professor of geography at UCLA.   See the wiki article here -> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guns%2C_Germs%2C_and_Steel  for more information

This months classic,
Survival in Auschwitz. 

Survival in Auschwitz is written by holocaust survivor Primo Levi, a Jewish Chemist living in Poland before he was deported in 1943 to the concentration camp, Auschwitz.  The book is his memoir and account of all of the experiences and horrors he had to face on a day-to-day basis.  This book has become one of the chief primary sources for the time. 

This months historical fiction is,
The Last King.

The Last King is a novel revolving around the historical figure Mithridates VI of Pontus and his life and struggle against the Roman Republic, set in the first century BCE.  Mithridates brought Rome to war three times over the course of 40 years and even massacred nearly 80,000 Romans in Greece at one point.  Ford depicts Mithridates as Rome's most feared enemy, even more feared than the ancient boogie man Hannibal. 

All of the books mentioned above are paperbacks. 


Edited by kilroy - 29-Mar-2007 at 19:56

there you go everyone should be able to vote now.

If guns, germs and steel win I'll actually participate in the book club I think.

Just a notice, this poll will end on Monday the 26th, this will give the members a week to acquire the book and than on April the book club begins!

-kilroy

Hmm, I'd have to choose "The Last King". Something lighter would be much easier right now, I have a lot to read for college.

Ok everybody.  Due to the uniqueness of you situation, we have decided that there will be two discussions.  One on Guns, Germs and Steel and one on The Last King. 

Dawn will be heading up the discussion on The Last King, and i will be heading up the discussion on Guns, Germs and Steel.  But of course if you wish to read both books and participate in both discussions that would be great as well . 

Happy reading everyone!  The discussion will begin on April 30th.  

No more voting. 


Edited by kilroy - 28-Mar-2007 at 11:27