MobileRead March 2015 Special Run-Off Vote

[WT Sharpe]

Since this month's vote resulted in a tree two-way tie, we are having a Special Run-Off Vote between the two leading candidates. I will not vote in this poll unless my vote is needed to break a tie. Since this is going into the weekend, the poll will be open for 4 days rather than the regular 3 normally assigned to a runoff vote. All MobileRead members are invited to participate. This is a visible poll. It is not multiple choice.

We will start the discussion thread for this book on January March 20th. Please select from the following Two Choices:

• West with the Night by Beryl Markham
Amazon US / Audible / Kobo

Spoiler:

[I]From Amazon:

Beryl Markham’s classic, engrossing memoir—a triumph of the pioneer spirit and an adventure-charged chronicle of a life lived to the fullest.

Beryl Markham’s life was a true epic, complete with shattered societal expectations, torrid love affairs, and desperate crash landings. A rebel from a young age, the British-born Markham was raised in Kenya’s unforgiving farmlands. She learned to be a bush pilot at a time when most Africans had never seen a plane. In 1936, she accepted the ultimate challenge: to fly solo across the Atlantic from east to west, a feat that fellow female aviator Amelia Earhart had completed in reverse just a few years before. Her successes and her failures—and her deep, lifelong love of the “soul of Africa”—are all chronicled here with wrenching honesty and agile wit. Hailed by National Geographic as one of the greatest adventure books of all time, West with the Night is the sweeping account of a fearless and dedicated woman.

• Lost Horizon by James Hilton
Goodreads | Amazon Au / Amazon Ca / Amazon US / Kobo

Spoiler:

From Goodreads:

While attempting to escape a civil war, four people are kidnapped and transported to the Tibetan mountains. After their plane crashes, they are found by a mysterious Chinese man. He leads them to a monastery hidden in "the valley of the blue moon" -- a land of mystery and matchless beauty where life is lived in tranquil wonder, beyond the grasp of a doomed world.

It is here, in Shangri-La, where destinies will be discovered and the meaning of paradise will be unveiled.

[crich70]

January 20th? Isn't that a bit of a wait WTSharpe? Don't you mean some time sooner?

[WT Sharpe]

Originally Posted by crich70

January 20th? Isn't that a bit of a wait WTSharpe? Don't you mean some time sooner?

Hey! You try setting these things up on an iPad! You folks are lucky I got the year right! (Actually, I didn't get that much right in the original of the nomination thread this month!)

[WT Sharpe]

All is right with the world, now. Actually, I had the post right before I posted it, but cutting and pasting—one of the simplest operations imaginable on a PC—can be a nightmare on an iPad. Want to listen to music? watch a movie? play video games? Get an iPad. Want to get some real work done? Get a PC. My next iPad will be a Surface Pro.

[Moe The Cat]

Also, Mr. Sharpe, what is a "tree two-way tie"? I blame the iPad!

[CRussel]

Originally Posted by Moe The Cat

Also, Mr. Sharpe, what is a "tree two-way tie"? I blame the iPad!

I certainly wasn't going to mention that! Tom does quite well enough, given the limitations of that iPad. (And Tom -- if you want to listen to music, play video games, watch a movie, read a book, or do pretty much anything except real work -- get a Kindle Fire. But you're right about real work - for that, the Surface Pro is a nice choice.)

[crich70]

Originally Posted by WT Sharpe

All is right with the world, now. Actually, I had the post right before I posted it, but cutting and pasting—one of the simplest operations imaginable on a PC—can be a nightmare on an iPad. Want to listen to music? watch a movie? play video games? Get an iPad. Want to get some real work done? Get a PC. My next iPad will be a Surface Pro.

Ah. That I can understand certainly. I'm still learning what can and can't be easily done (even with my new bluetooth keyboard) on my Kindle Fire tablet. I figured there was a typo somewhere.

[GA Russell]

Still tied!

[WT Sharpe]

I hope I don't have to end up being the tie-breaker. I'd be bound to make some people mad. For what it's worth, these are my two favorites of the month, and I'm not sure at this point which way I'll vote if my vote is needed. Both look to be fine choices.

[CRussel]

I think the telling difference for me is that one is fictional, and the other not. Neither, of course, is about any place that exists today, but certainly there are still aspects of Africa that are very much like Beryl's Africa.

[crich70]

i Think Shangri-la would be anice place to live. No worries about violence, no illness, and an extended lifespan. Plenty of time to read a lot of good books, etc.

[Dazrin]

I can't make up my mind. I would rather read one of them but the other one is still interesting and would be much easier to get. Right now I am leaning towards not voting and hoping my vote becomes moot.

[sun surfer]

Originally Posted by WT Sharpe

...cutting and pasting—one of the simplest operations imaginable on a PC—can be a nightmare on an iPad. Want to listen to music? watch a movie? play video games? Get an iPad. Want to get some real work done? Get a PC. My next iPad will be a Surface Pro.

I couldn't imagine trying to format nomination or poll OPs on my iPad Mini - you're a better iPad user than I!

Originally Posted by Moe The Cat

Also, Mr. Sharpe, what is a "tree two-way tie"? I blame the iPad!

I thought maybe he was giving a clue where to find the big W to dig for the buried cash.

[WT Sharpe]

Originally Posted by Moe The Cat

Also, Mr. Sharpe, what is a "tree two-way tie"? I blame the iPad!

Oh, that's funny! Another one that slipped past my internal editor. I think I can blame Skype at least partially for that one!

[GA Russell]

At this point, with the vote being so close, I think that whoever hasn't voted yet should first look at the vote, and then vote for the one that is trailing - ideally, resulting in a tie, and forcing Tom to vote.

You're welcome, Tom!