Hobbies and Crafts

From today you can apply to be part of this month's book club. The new book will be Expo 58 by Jonathan Coe.

If you would like to be part of book club please send us a message by clicking directly on the 'Send Message' button to the left of this message which can be seen if you hover your mouse over the 'Genes Bookclub' Profile Icon.

Don't forget to include your address, so that we know where to send the book.

We have 50 books to give away - if more than 50 people apply we will select recipients at random.

Happy reading!

Book club

Looks interesting, but with mixed readers reviews

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Expo-58-Jonathan-Coe/dp/0670923710

Blurb

London, 1958: unassuming civil servant Thomas Foley is plucked from his desk at the Central Office of Information and sent on a six-month trip to Brussels. His task: to keep an eye on The Brittania, a brand new pub which will form the heart of the British presence at Expo 58 - the biggest World's Fair of the century, and the first to be held since the Second World War.

As soon as he arrives at the site, Thomas feels that he has escaped a repressed, backward-looking country and fallen headlong into an era of modernity and optimism. He is equally bewitched by the surreal, gigantic Atomium, which stands at the heart of this brave new world, and by Anneke, the lovely Flemish hostess who meets him off his plane. But Thomas's new-found sense of freedom comes at a price: the Cold War is at its height, the mischievous Belgians have placed the American and Soviet pavilions right next to each other - and why is he being followed everywhere by two mysterious emissaries of the British Secret Service? Expo 58 may represent a glittering future, both for Europe and for Thomas himself, but he will soon be forced to decide where his public and private loyaties really lie.

Have sent a PM as requested

Can somebody at Genes please put up a thread for reviewing book 3 ---- Toby's Room.

My book three arrived today..

so will be a little late with reviewing.. but will put other two books aside to read it.

Persie

Sorry to go on about it but a reading group doesn't make sense if there is no stickied review thread. I don't think anyone seems to be 'in charge' of this, it is all too wishy washy.

Still shouldn't complain if we get free books I suppose. Enjoy the book Perse.

Well, I'm still waiting for my first book from back in October so perhaps this one will be lucky, or am I posting this to the wrong place. Yes, I just read the posting guidelines and you don't want my address here. All I need to do now is find how I send it to you.

Joan

Joan - click where it says posted by GenesBookClub (star) at the top of the thread.
That will open a box to type a message where you can give your name and address.

Give the message a suitable title such as Book 4 or Expo 58 by Jonathan Coe.

From the opening post

"If you would like to be part of book club please send us a message within the next 7 days by clicking directly on the 'Send Message' button to the left of this message which can be seen if you hover your mouse over the 'Genes Bookclub' Profile Icon.

Don't forget to include your address, so that we know where to send the book."

Good luck this time! Thinking about it, successful applicants may not receive the book until into the New Year what the with Christmas volume of post and Bank Holidays

DET.. I am beginning to think that you should be employed to run the GR Book Club. ;-)

You certainly seem to be better organised.

Reviews etc are all over the place.

GR do you think you could collate the reviews and put them on the one thread for each book?

Hope that is not something for the too hard basket :-S

Persie

Tell me about it!!!

I sent the BookClub link a PM on 2 Dec asking them to monitor the threads every now an then to answer the Q's rather than rely on members. Although it took some time to open, there hasn't been any noticeable response. :-0

Today is your last chance to apply to be part of this month's Book Club!

If you would like to be part of book club please send us a message by clicking directly on the 'Send Message' button to the left of this message which can be seen if you hover your mouse over the 'Genes Bookclub' Profile Icon.

Don't forget to include your address, so that we know where to send the book.

Happy Reading!

Book Club

Joan -

Please send a PM if you are still waiting on a book and we can chase it up.

Thanks

I had a email from Shelley saying I was on the list for t hs book, on 2nd December. Still not received, and I did register for previous book too, and that never arrived, and yes I gave my address -

Has anyone received the 4th book Expo 58? Like Elizabeth I am on the list to receive it, but it has not arrived yet. Keep hoping that the postman will bring it....I have had a note from the book club telling me that this matter will be looked into. No luck as yet. And I had registered for book 3 and that did not materialise either, but as I had no confirmation that it would I assumed that maybe the demand was too great and I had not been chosen to receive it. What is happening? The first two arrived at the correct address so I haven't forgotten where I live. Lesley :-S

No, not yet.

Mind you, as the list of recipients had to be sent to Penguin and then internally to 'despatch', they were probably too busy fulfilling Christmas orders.

The PM from Genes said ETA of 20 Dec - from a personal view point, I shan't chase them until the New Year.

Hi Everyone -

We are aware that some of you have not received the December title 'Expo 58'. We have contacted Penguin to see whether there were any delays. If you haven't already, please PM us if you are waiting for a book. If you have contacted us, we have passed on your details.

Thanks,

The Book Club

PM sent to the effect that the book had not arrived as at 6 Jan.
It still hasn't as of today's date 9 Jan

If you are asking for us to PM you, please do check your GR inbox at least once a day. Mine, sent on 6 Jan, hasn't been opened - there could well be messages from other people waiting to be read.

ADDED Fri 10 Jan - The postman has just delivered the book.
As the franking is blurred, it isn't possible to say when it was posted, but it has 'First Class' stamped on the package.

Hope other successful applicants will get theirs soon if they haven't already

The postman brought the book Expo 58 today, 13th January. Thank you GR and Penguin. I do look forward to reading it. Lesley :-)

Mine arrived yesterday (14th January ) so it looks as if they are all being sent out at last. I live in France and English books are always welcome visitors.

Expo 58 by Jonathan Coe
I did enjoy the book which I took every excuse to read rather than do other things! From the start I was reminded of the hapless, innocent protagonist in Lucky Jim and Thomson and Thompson from the Tintin books, although Messrs Wayne and Radford were quite comic they are effective in their roles as secret service agents.
I enjoyed the novel’s description of the Expo 58 exhibition which took place at a time when Britain was emerging into an exciting technological era after the post war austerity. We learn that the civil service was not altogether streamline and efficient, still bungling along with the old boy network firmly in control. The naive Thomas’s dislike of the Russian Andrey is fuelled by personal motives and not by fears about national security. Thomas Foley’s experiences in Belgium were exciting, almost enough to make him reject his life back in boring old Tooting. But fate takes a hand and there is a surprise ending.
I had not read any of Coe’s previous books, but I shall definitely do so in the future.
:-)

Hi Everyone,

We apologise for the delay in receiving copies of Expo 58, most seem to have arrived now. If you are still waiting for your copy, please PM me and we will arrange for a book to be sent out.

Regards

The Book Club