Official Survivor's Book of the Month Club Selection Poll v.August/September

**Osiris** · May 11th, 2012, 06:07 PM

Link to the group: http://www.zombiepodcast.com/forum/group.php?groupid=43

PLEASE CHOOSE TWO BOOKS FROM THE LIST ABOVE

All right, because I'm annoyed at the idea of someone arbitrarily determining what book I should read, I'm going to give us choices. I've put together a list of 6 novels to choose from and we'll do it like this:

The book with the most votes will be August's book, the book with the second most votes will be September's. You're more than welcome to choose the audiobook version of the books to 'read' if you don't have enough time in the day to sit down for two hours and immerse yourself into a novel. We'll keep the books to a maximum page count of 500 (so chances are we won't be reading Pillars of the Eart or War and Peace), and see how things go.

If you do opt to 'read' the audiobook versions of the novels, please ensure that you're listening to an unabridged recording so you don't feel lost during discussions. So let's get to the choices for this year. If you've read the book chosen, please feel free to either re-read it or read something else (not on the list) while others catch up with you. Please feel free to recommend books for the list as well!

The idea here is to expand your library and discover new writers and genres that you may never have exposed yourself to otherwise. If you're only into one genre and you're annoyed that it isn't being represented, please recommend a novel or two for consideration. Like I said before, I'm not a fan of someone telling me what I should be reading, which is why I'm not simply giving us a list of books to read, but letting us all have a say in the materials. I've picked these books at random, based on their scores on Goodreads.com as well as Amazon.com and Heather's Picks at Chapters.indigo.ca. Most of these titles do not fall within my usual genre, but I'm excited at the prospect of expanding my horizons through the club.

Let's have a look at the books, shall we?

Genre: Fiction/Literature
Rum Punch
by Elmore Leonard
*New York Times Bestseller

Synopsis:

Ordell "Whitebread" Robbie makes a fine living selling illegal high-powered weaponry to the wrong people. Jackie Burke couriers Ordell's profits from Freeport to Miami. But the feds are on to Jackie--and now the aging, but still hot, flight attendant will have to do prison time or play ball, which makes her a prime "loose end" that Ordell needs to tie up permanently. Jackie, however, has other options. And with the help of Max Cherry--an honest but disgruntled bail bondsman looking to get out--she could even end up with a serious nest egg in the process.

Ablutions
by Patrick deWitt
*Award Winning Author of the Sisters Brothers

Synopsis:

In a famous but declining Hollywood bar works A Barman. Morbidly amused by the decadent decay of his surroundings, he watches the patrons fall into their nightly oblivion, making notes for his novel. In the hope of uncovering their secrets and motives, he establishes tentative friendships with the cast of variously pathological regulars.

But as his tenure at the bar continues, he begins to serve himself more often than his customers, and the moments he lives outside the bar become more and more painful: he loses his wife, his way, himself. Trapped by his habits and his loneliness, he realizes he will not survive if he doesn't break free. And so he hatches a terrible, necessary plan of escape and his only chance for redemption.

Step into Ablutions and step behind the bar, below rock bottom, and beyond the everyday take on storytelling for a brilliant, new twist on the classic tale of addiction and its consequences.

Genre: Mystery/Thriller
Clean Cut
by Lynda LaPlante
*International Best Selling Author of Above Suspicion and The Red Dahlia

Synopsis:

Dedicated, intuitive and utterly obsessive, Langton is ruthless in his pursuit of a gang of illegal immigrants, killers of a young prostitute. When he is almost fatally injured by one of them, it falls upon Anna to put her own life on hold as she nurses him through his intense frustration and desperation to bring his would-be murderer to justice.

Then Anna is assigned to a different murder inquiry, the brutal killing of a quiet, studious woman whose body was discovered by her daughter returning home from school. A senseless attack with no obvious motive or immediate suspect. Until, chillingly, this case becomes unexpectedly linked with Langton’s and Anna finds herself under similar threat from the gang who almost destroyed his career and his life.

Private and professional demands collide as Anna and Langton, her boss and lover, embark on a terrifying journey, threatening violent consequences for both of them.

Genre: Young Adult (YA)
Paper Towns
by John Green
*Printz-Award Winning Author of Looking For Alaska

Synopsis:

When Margo Roth Spiegelman beckons Quentin Jacobsen in the middle of the night - dressed like a ninja and plotting an ingenious campaign of revenge - he follows her. Margo's always planned extravagantly, and, until now, she's always planned solo. After a lifetime of loving Margo from afar, things are finally looking up for Q . . . until day breaks and she has vanished. Always an enigma, Margo has now become a mystery. But there are clues. And they're for Q. Printz Medalist John Green returns with the trademark brilliant wit and heart-stopping emotional honesty that have inspired a new generation of readers.

Genre: Horror
Dead of Night: A Zombie Novel
by Jonathan Maberry
*New York Times Bestsetlling Author of Patient Zero

Synopsis:

A prison doctor injects a condemned serial killer with a formula designed to keep his consciousness awake while his body rots in the grave. But all drugs have unforeseen side-effects. Before he could be buried, the killer wakes up. Hungry. Infected. Contagious. This is the way the world ends. Not with a bang…but a bite.

Genre: Non-Fiction/Psychology/Sociology
You Are Not So Smart: Why You Have Too Many Friends On Facebook, Why Your Memory Is Mostly Fiction, And 46 Other Ways You're Deluding Yourself
by David McRaney

Synopsis:

You believe you are a rational, logical being who sees the world as it really is, but journalist David McRaney is here to tell you that you're as deluded as the rest of us. But that's OK- delusions keep us sane. You Are Not So Smart is a celebration of self-delusion. It's like a psychology class, with all the boring parts taken out, and with no homework.
Based on the popular blog of the same name, You Are Not So Smart collects more than 46 of the lies we tell ourselves everyday, including:

Dunbar's Number - Humans evolved to live in bands of roughly 150 individuals, the brain cannot handle more than that number. If you have more than 150 Facebook friends, they are surely not all real friends. Hindsight bias - When we learn something new, we reassure ourselves that we knew it all along. Confirmation bias - Our brains resist new ideas, instead paying attention only to findings that reinforce our preconceived notions. Brand loyalty - We reach for the same brand not because we trust its quality but because we want to reassure ourselves that we made a smart choice the last time we bought it. Packed with interesting sidebars and quick guides on cognition and common fallacies, You Are Not So Smart is a fascinating synthesis of cutting-edge psychology research to turn our minds inside out.

I have to say, I'm excited about the choices here! I'm planning on reading everything, regardless of what is chosen. I'm particularly excited to read both Rum Punch and Ablutions. Patrick deWitt's The Sisters Brothers was absolutely fantastic, and I would recommend it to anyone and everyone. If you haven't already picked up a copy, do so now! Go on... I'll wait. Rum Punch was turned into one of my favourite movies--and my favourite Tarantino film--Jackie Brown. That's all I've got for you right now... vote away, peoples.