Updates on Some of Our Previous Reads

Hey there!  A lot of our previous selections are in the news and I wanted to share some it with you.  If you like this kind of post and would like to see more of them, please let me know in the comments section below!

A Song of Ice and Fire

I know it hasn't been that long since we were talking about this series, but I'm going to talk about it some more.  First, if you aren't already addicted to Sporcle, I don't recommend going there because it will suck away any and all free time you have.  They have a section dedicated to ASoIaF quizzes- including one called "Taking the Black" in which you have to figure out all of the words to the oath of the Night's Watch.  I played it for weeks before I finally got them all.  Check out all the quizzes here.

Second, although we are a book club, I would be remiss not to talk about the hit TV show that this series has spawned.  The show, Game of Thrones, has been nominated for 11 Emmy awards, including Outstanding Drama Series and Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series for Peter Dinklage (Tyrion Lannister).  E! Online ranked the episode "Blackwater" as the #1 must see before the Emmys.  It is an amazing episode.  Don't forget to watch the Emmys on September 23rd at 7pm to root for the show and the Imp!

More updates below!

A Feast for Crows Review and Discussion Questions

http://g33kgirlz.com/2012/03/the-stark-family/

Again, there is no possible way I could review A Feast for Crows and do it justice so here are a few reviews that try.  As always, beware the spoilers.

Reminder- Saturday is our Meeting!

Don't forget that our in-person meeting to discuss George R. R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire series is THIS Saturday, August 11th, from 1-3pm at the Ladysmith Branch Library!  Come in your house colors and feast with the whole realm!  There may or may not be a pie with a thousand live pigeons in it.  Hope to see you there!

A Storm of Swords Reviews and Discussion Questions

No one has complained about the way that we did the reviews last time so I'm going to stick with what worked.  Here are some good reviews I found online and the discussion questions follow.  As always, spoilers abound!

A Clash of Kings Review and Discussion Questions

Just one little tidbit of business before we get into A Clash of Kings.  I know it seems early to be talking about our book for September, but August 11th will get here sooner than you think.  Please be thinking about some titles and I'll have something posted by the end of the week.

I have been trying in vain to write a review for this book that wasn't a novel in and of itself.  So I've decided that I'm going to post links to some reviews that I think do a better job than I would ever do and then the discussion questions I've come up with.  Hopefully this works for everyone and please let me know what you think of this new format.  Some of the discussion questions and their answers may be a little bit spoilery so please continue reading after the break.

A Game of Thrones Review and Discussion Questions

Just a few things to get out of the way before we get down to the nitty gritty.  First, if you haven't already seen it, there is an awesome cooking blog devoted to A Song of Ice and Fire called The Inn at the Crossroads.  They've even come out with the official cookbook!  Some of the recipes are really complicated, but it may give you some ideas for our meeting.

Speaking of meetings, so far it seems to be the general consensus that our in-person meeting will be Saturday, August 11th and that we'll get together June 29th or 30th to see our favorite president kick some vampire booty.  Please head over to the previous post to voice your opinions on the matter if you haven't already.

Now on to the review!  Spoiler alert as always!

A Song of Ice and Fire Reading Schedule

Before we get to the reading schedule, please take a minute to comment on this post as to your availability this summer.  I think we will probably stick to only one official meeting, but let me know if anyone wants to meet and when you'd be available during the summer.  Don't forget about our trip to see Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter- the movie comes out June 22nd, so please let me know when you'd be able to go as a group to the movies!

Since we are reading four books between now and August, the format for the reviews is going to be a little different this time.  I'm going to be reviewing each book we read as a whole instead of splitting it up into parts.  With the short time frame, I think this will work best for us; they'll be three weeks apart rather than every other day.  So here is our schedule!

• A Game of Thrones- June 9th
• A Clash of Kings- June 30th
• A Storm of Swords- July 21st
• A Feast for Crows- August 11th

Happy reading!

Winter is Coming... in the Middle of Summer!

Just a real quick little post before our meeting today.  Thanks to everyone who voted in our poll.  The people of Westeros have spoken and our Summer Reading Series will be....

A Song of Ice and Fire by George R. R. Martin!

There is one thing we need decide before we get reading- how many of the books are we going to read?  Currently, there are five books in the series.  The last one, A Dance with Dragons, is excluded because it's not yet available in paperback.  That leaves us with A Game of Thrones, A Clash of Kings, A Storm of Swords, and A Feast for Crows.  Do we think that we can get through all four before we meet again?  Something to think about is that A Storm of Swords and A Feast for Crows are the same time period, just divided by points of view.  So technically, they can be thought of as one giant book.  However, if we read all four our page total will be 3,872 pages.  Let me know what your thoughts are and I'll post our decision along with the reading schedule next week after the in-person meeting.