Book Runoff - Group 1

[mith]

45 books received 2 nominations. There are 18 places in the 64 book bracket. The top 2 from each group will move on. Deadline for voting is one week.

Group 1:

Death on the Nile - Agatha Christie
Heir to the Empire - Timothy Zahn
On the Road - Jack Kerouac
Sideways Stories from Wayside School - Louis Sachar
The Glass Bead Game - Herman Hesse

[dethwing]

I thought you said you withdrew your nomination for Sideways Stories.

[mith]

I did. It had 3, now it has 2.

[dethwing]

Oh.

[Antrax]

I feel uncultured - I only read one book in this match, and it wasn't amazing. Abstain, I guess
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After years of disappointment with get rich quick schemes, I know I'm gonna get rich with this scheme. And quick!

[Courk]

Which did you read?

[Antrax]

Death on the Nile. When I was young I read everything by Christie.
_________________
After years of disappointment with get rich quick schemes, I know I'm gonna get rich with this scheme. And quick!

[mith]

Well, I'm not surprised that you haven't read Heir. It's a star wars book, and it takes a certain type of geek to appreciate them (though, I would certainly recommend it to anyone who likes Star Wars; that trilogy is easily my favorite in the EU).

Sideways Stories is a kids book, so I'm not surprised there either.

And those are the only two I've read myself. I guess this group just ended up being pretty obscure.

[dethwing]

Strangely enough, it's the run off I know the most about. Having read 3 of the books and being familiar enough with Keroac to know I dislike him.

Heir to the Empire is pretty good, but the rest of the Trilogy was a let down.

[Quagmire]

Grr. How is a stupid book I read all of in elementary school beating the all-time best book ever?

[Jedo the Jedi]

Yeah. I definitely think that Wayside book should not win. I mean, sure it was good, but is it really on the same plane as Heir to the Empire and Death on the Nile? My instinct says no. The same goes for those dumb dictionaries. *rolls eyes*

[extro...]

Remember, it's not about one book being better than another, but about one book being read more by a particular group of people.

[Dmi]

Then the dictionaries should win.

[Jedo the Jedi]

I don't think the dictionaries should count as "books." Rather, they are a consortium and compilation of words and their definitions for reference when writing or speaking in a specific language. They are a reference book, which I don't think is the same as a book. Just that they are bound the same way. *shrug* Someone more eloquent than I could make a good argument.

[Dread Pirate Westley]

Yeah, but someone more eloquent than you would probably be in favor of the dictionary.

[wordcross]

I dislike the dictionary entries, for while they are books in the physical sense, I think that most people, when asked what they think the best book is, or what their favorite book is, think more in terms of a story told than a construct of paper and ink.

Dictionaries usually require little in the way of creativity. Even non-fiction still requires a creative voice in the telling of the story, but a dictionary is done predominantly with research. Perhaps there is some creativity to be used in the wording of entries, but not to the degree required to convey a good story. Even if i loved the dictionary (and don't get me wrong, i think dictionaries are great) i would not have nominated it for this tournament.
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Has anyone really been far even as decided to use even go want to do look more like?

[Quagmire]

[Jedo the Jedi]

Either way, they have to be better than an elementary school book. Don't get me wrong, the book(s) are good, but not for some tourney like this. Just my opinion. I totally respect you guys who want to vote for this book, but I...just don't agree.

[Dmi]

Iy's not like they're even books. They're a bunch of short stories. They don't really have a plot throughout the stories. That could also apply to the dictionaries. Speaking of which, we should've had a thesaurus and a couple of almanacs. Maybe aan encyclopedia for good measure.

[Jedo the Jedi]

*smites Dmi with Jedi powers*

That's right, I just used the Force on you. Don't make me do it again.

[Dmi]

Ow.

[extropalopakettle]

I like those little books with a picture on each page that you flip through and see a little movie. They may not have as much depth as some of those books you read, but for a quick bit of amusement, they win.

[Courk]

Coloring books are fun. If you start with yellows, you can read them again and again, too.

[Dread Pirate Westley]

[Jedo the Jedi]

NOOO!!! I did it righteously and with good intentions!

*Sends Dmi a card, flowers, and candy in the hospital**with a bomb in the flowers and the candy laced with poison*

[Dmi]

*Reads the flowers, smells the candy, and eats the card.*

[Jedo the Jedi]

Knew I should have done something to the card.

[cloudRunner]

I win.
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Forever is such an unpleasant word

[casinopete]

Nobel Prizes in Literature are awarded for impressive bodies of work, but it's obvious that single works tend to catch committee notice, and spark the prize. Magister Ludi (a.k.a. The Glass Bead Game) won Hesse his Nobel.

Just like in Group 6, though, the Nobel Prize winner cannot stand against the mountain of disinterest in reading great literature that our world has constructed.

C0ngr4tz, 4ll, 4 r0x0r1ng th3m b00ks wh4t m4k3 u th1nk t00 much.