MobileRead June 2009 Book Club Nominations

[JSWolf]

June is a MobileRead Classic

So lets get to nominating before it gets to be too late.

Nominations will end on June 1st and voting to begin on June 2nd and end June 5th.

I am going to try to get 10 eBooks for voting if possible. So I'll pick from the thirded and seconded and if need be, the nominated ones. In order to be fair, if I have to pick from the nominated ones, I will pick in order nominated.

Nominated eBooks
Ramona by Helen Hunt Jackson
The Four Just Men by Edgar Wallace
Tirant Lo Blanc by Joanot Martorell

Seconded eBooks
Woman in White by Wilkie Collins
From the Earth to the Moon by Jules Verne
Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë

Thirded eBooks
The Moonstone by Wilkie Collins
King Solomon's Mines by Sir Henry Rider Haggard
War of the Worlds by H.G. Wells
Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

[Tattncat]

I would like to nominate Ramona by Helen Hunt Jackson.

[HarryT]

Please give a reason for your nominations!

[HarryT]

I would like to nominate Sir Henry Rider Haggard's "King Solomon's Mines". One of the greatest adventure stories ever written, and easily on a par with any of today's "thrillers". A truly timeless classic.

[JSWolf]

If anyone is nominating a book in a series, please make it book #1.

Also, if it's possible to give a full description of the nominated eBook, please do so even if it's taken from the post where the eBook was uploaded.

[JSWolf]

I am going to nominated War of the Worlds by H.G. Wells. I'll let the description tell you all about it.

This is the granddaddy of all alien invasion stories, first published by H.G. Wells in 1898. The novel begins ominously, as the lone voice of a narrator tells readers that "No one would have believed in the last years of the nineteenth century that this world was being watched keenly and closely by intelligences greater than man's..."

Things then progress from a series of seemingly mundane reports about odd atmospheric disturbances taking place on Mars to the arrival of Martians just outside of London. At first the Martians seem laughable, hardly able to move in Earth's comparatively heavy gravity even enough to raise themselves out of the pit created when their spaceship landed. But soon the Martians reveal their true nature as death machines 100-feet tall rise up from the pit and begin laying waste to the surrounding land. Wells quickly moves the story from the countryside to the evacuation of London itself and the loss of all hope as England's military suffers defeat after defeat. With horror his narrator describes how the Martians suck the blood from living humans for sustenance, and how it's clear that man is not being conquered so much a corralled

[ruth1304]

I'd like to nominate "The Moonstone" by Wilkie Collins - a classic detective story with a clever plot and lots to think about.

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by ruth1304

I'd like to nominate "The Moonstone" by Wilkie Collins - a classic detective story with a clever plot and lots to think about.

I'll second The Moonstone

The Moonstone, published in 1868, is widely regarded as the precursor of the modern mystery and suspense novels. T. S. Eliot called it "the first, the longest, and the best of modern English detective novels". The story concerns the theft of a large Indian diamond; it contains a number of ideas which became common tropes of the genre: a large number of suspects, red herrings, a crime being investigated by talented amateurs who happen to be present when it is committed, and two police officers who exemplify respectively the "local bungler" and the skilled, professional, Scotland Yard detective. The story is told through a series of first person narratives by the various people involved - before, during, and after the theft.

[Dr. Drib]

Originally Posted by ruth1304

I'd like to nominate "The Moonstone" by Wilkie Collins - a classic detective story with a clever plot and lots to think about.

I'd like to second this nominattion.

This is a wonderfully atmospheric and somehow very modern novel in its presentation.

P.S.: I'd like to THIRD this nomination, as I see it has already been seconded.

Don

[ghazali]

I would like to nominate 'Replay' by Ken Grimwood, an outstanding fantasy grounded in reality with a story that is both riveting as well as haunting. Here is a synopsis:

In this intriguing fantasy adventure, Jeff Winston, a failing 43-year-old radio journalist, dies and wakes up in his 18-year-old body in 1963 with his memories of the next 25 years intact. But Grimwood has transcended genre with this carefully observed, literate and original story. Jeff's knowledge soon becomes as much a curse as a blessing. After recovering from the shock (is the future a dream, or is it real life?), he plays out missed choices. In one life, for example, he falls in love with Pamela, a housewife who died nine minutes after Jeff; they try to warn the world of the disasters it faces, coming in conflict with the government and history. A third replayer turns out to be a serial killer, murdering the same people over and over. Jeff and Pamela are still searching for some missing part of their lives when they notice they are returning closer and closer to the time of their deaths, and realize that the replays and their times together may be coming to an end."

[HarryT]

Originally Posted by ghazali

I would like to nominate 'Replay' by Ken Grimwood, an outstanding fantasy grounded in reality with a story that is both riveting as well as haunting. Here is a synopsis:

This month's category is "classics" that are available as free downloads on MobileRead. Is this book available for free download on MobileRead? Can it honestly be described as a "classic"?

[JSWolf]

Replay by Ken Grimwood is not appropriate for June's eBook.

The eBooks that have been accepted for nomination, seconded, and thirded are in the firts post of this thread.

[queentess]

I'll second King Solomon's Mines by Sir Henry Rider Haggard. I've always wanted to read this one, now I could have the chance!

[ShortNCuddlyAm]

Originally Posted by HarryT

I would like to nominate Sir Henry Rider Haggard's "King Solomon's Mines". One of the greatest adventure stories ever written, and easily on a par with any of today's "thrillers". A truly timeless classic.

Seconded

Originally Posted by JSWolf

I am going to nominated War of the Worlds by H.G. Wells. I'll let the description tell you all about it.

Also seconded

[ErwinOtten]

Not completely on topic but I like to thank you for the nomination of King Solomon's Mines and The Moonstone. I'll download both books and put them on my to read list.

To make it a relevant post I like to nominate Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen.
The only reason for nominating it being that it is a clasic I truly enjoyed reading a month ago.
For the two people here on the forum who have never heard of it :

Pride and Prejudice has delighted generations of readers with its unforgettable cast of characters, carefully choreographed plot, and a hugely entertaining view of the world and its absurdities. With the arrival of eligible young men in their neighbourhood, the lives of Mr and Mrs Bennet and their five daughters are turned inside out and upside down. Pride encounters prejudice, upward-mobility confronts social disdain, and quick-wittedness challenges sagacity, as misconceptions and hasty judgements lead to heartache and scandal, but eventually to true understanding, self-knowledge, and love. In this supremely satisfying story, Jane Austen balances comedy with seriousness, and witty observation with profound insight. If Elizabeth Bennet returns again and again to her letter from Mr Darcy, readers of the novel are drawn even more irresistibly by its captivating wisdom.