FOFC Literature Draft - Picks Thread

[Izulde]

Nice one!

[NoMyths]

Thanks. Big fan of this draft, and I'm interested to see what everyone's final rosters look like. Was very pleased to be able to get The Divine Comedy in the second round, as I almost took it in the first.

'course, I almost took The Dark Tower series as a first-round risk (though not nearly as much of a risk on King as what came just afterwards). Glad to see The Waste Land getting early props.

[DaddyTorgo]

let me see if I can get my pick in before my workout. If not it'll be after

[Buccaneer]

Originally Posted by NoMyths

Oh, that's why?

My knowledge and depth of the History genre is probably comparable to your knowledge and expertise in Poetry. But my interest in poetry and to some extent, short stories and scifi, is about the same as QuikSand's interest in Maximum Football. Unlike the Music, Football HOF and Dates drafts, I am lacking breadth here. For some voters, it is a popularity contest, as well as those that would rather drop out of college than be forced to take Engliish Lit.

[DaddyTorgo]

1. Fiction
2. Single Short Story
3. Poem
4. Fantasy/Science Fiction
5. Series (A set of books continuing the same story and intended to be read sequentially) 1.5 The Foundation Series, Isaac Asimov
6. Sport Related
7. Children's
8. Non-Fiction
9. Biography/Autobiography 2.6 Autobiographical Notes, Albert Einstein
10. History

How can I resist taking this work by Einstein which focuses on the development of the ideas of one of, if not the single, most brilliant men who has ever lived. A window into a brilliant mind.

[Izulde]

Interesting, DT. I never would've even thought of that.

[Warhammer]

Originally Posted by NoMyths

Fiction
Single Short Story
Poem: 2.5 - The Divine Comedy, Dante Alighieri
Fantasy/Science Fiction
Series (A set of books continuing the same story and intended to be read sequentially)
Sport Related
Children's
Non-Fiction
Biography/Autobiography
History

One of the few poems with which nearly every FOFCer is familiar (if mostly in concept rather than specific attribution) -- the idea of varying circles of Hell is a common one now. Inferno is the most famous canctica from the epic poem, following Dante as he is led on a tour of Hell by the poet Virgil, a place they ultimately escape. Purgatory and Paradise then depict tours of those places as well, and Dante eventually comes face to face with God.

From Wiki:
The Divine Comedy (Italian: Commedia, later christened "Divina" by Giovanni Boccaccio), written by Dante Alighieri between 1308 and his death in 1321, is widely considered the central epic poem of Italian literature, and is seen as one of the greatest works of world literature. The poem's imaginative vision of the Christian afterlife is a culmination of the medieval world-view as it had developed in the Western Church. It helped establish the Tuscan dialect in which it is written as the Italian standard.

DAMN! I was going to pick this up in the third round, I was debating whether fiction or non-fiction would be better for it. Great, great pick.

EDIT: Now I feel far more comfortable with my pick of The Iliad in the first round.

[NoMyths]

Yep, the Iliad is a goodie, Warhammer...definite first round choice.

[Warhammer]

Originally Posted by NoMyths

Yep, the Iliad is a goodie, Warhammer...definite first round choice.

For me it wasn't so much that as it was getting off my draft strategy. I really didn't think anyone was going to take Asimov ahead of me. That threw me off because the rest of my picks were not really first rounders. Its good to see that the poems I planned on getting next round came off the board, so I feel better about getting the Iliad in the first.

[larrymcg421]

Getting ready to leave in about 15 mins. Will make my pick as soon as Warhammer makes his. If it's after that, then lordscarlet has my list.

[Warhammer]

Originally Posted by larrymcg421

Getting ready to leave in about 15 mins. Will make my pick as soon as Warhammer makes his. If it's after that, then lordscarlet has my list.

We're waiting for Maple Leafs, neither of us pick again until the 3rd round.

[Maple Leafs]

Fiction - 1.4 Hamlet, by William Shakespeare
Single Short Story
Poem
Fantasy/Science Fiction
Series
Sport Related
Children's
Non-Fiction
Biography/Autobiography
History - 2.7 The Diary of a Young Girl, by Anne Frank

[larrymcg421]

My bad. For some reason I mixed up the order and assumed I was picking 8th in this round, but that's not until next round.

[MrDNA]

"Tale of Two Cities" is historical FICTION, no? Thought LS made it clear it should be a non-fiction choice.

[NoMyths]

Originally Posted by Maple Leafs

Fiction - 1.4 Hamlet, by William Shakespeare
Single Short Story
Poem
Fantasy/Science Fiction
Series
Sport Related
Children's
Non-Fiction
Biography/Autobiography
History - 2.7 A Tale of Two Cities, by Charles Dickens

That is a surprising categorization.

[Buccaneer]

History????

Originally Posted by lordscarlet

Non-fiction. Sorry for the lack of clarity there.

[Izulde]

Originally Posted by MrDNA

"Tale of Two Cities" is historical FICTION, no? Thought LS made it clear it should be a non-fiction choice.

Correct, which is precisely why I asked the question, because I had something lined up for History in the 3rd round if Historical Fiction was permissible.

Since it's not, I have to do some re-thinking.

[DaddyTorgo]

Originally Posted by Izulde

Interesting, DT. I never would've even thought of that.

thanks. I figured there was a value-add in selecting an autobiography by such a great thinker versus a traditional biography (however well-written) of someone famous. Or an autobiography by someone semi-famous.

[DaddyTorgo]

Originally Posted by DaddyTorgo

thanks. I figured there was a value-add in selecting an autobiography by such a great thinker versus a traditional biography (however well-written) of someone famous. Or an autobiography by someone semi-famous.

dola

and it was pretty much my top-pick. Figured i'd get the two areas where there may be less depth out of the way first. I'm confident I can add value in the other rounds and explain my choices to the voters.

[Maple Leafs]

Originally Posted by MrDNA

"Tale of Two Cities" is historical FICTION, no? Thought LS made it clear it should be a non-fiction choice.

I must have missed this. Where was it?

Edit: OK, I see it on page five of this thread. I checked the various rules threads but missed the clarification post. I had assumed the category would include historical novels, since to be honest I'm not sure how it ends up being distinct from the non-fiction category otherwise. In any case, I guess I'm stuck with it.

[larrymcg421]

My reading of the rules is that you can still make another pick, but you can't pick something that someone else has picked after you. I certainly wouldn't object to you making another pick and I hope no one else would.

[DaddyTorgo]

I agree. He can make another pick (don't think anyone else has gone since then), or if he wants, can re-categorize for sure.

[Izulde]

Yeah, I'd say he can make another pick or re-categorize it.

[Super Ugly]

Originally Posted by NoMyths

Poem: 2.5 - The Divine Comedy, Dante Alighieri

Nice pick! I'm currently re-reading this for the first time since my undergrad days, although I'm about halfway through 'Purgatory' and starting to feel the Divine Exhaustion.

[Lathum]

As a casual observer I think people are making way to many obscure picks that could be had in much later rounds.

[lordscarlet]

MapleLeafs:

Scifi, poem, series, etc can all be fiction as well, but there is a fiction category. I just made 2 generic fiction/non-fiction categories in addition to history. Darwin, for instance, is non-fiction without being history. I apologize again if the rules were unclear on the history category, it was a bad assumption by me that it would be assumed to be non-fiction history (particularly as it is grouped with non-fiction and biography in the list).

You are more than to change or recategorized the selection because the category was not clear.

[Maple Leafs]

OK, pick edited. Took Anne Frank in the History category instead. Dickens is back in play.

[Warhammer]

Originally Posted by Super Ugly

Nice pick! I'm currently re-reading this for the first time since my undergrad days, although I'm about halfway through 'Purgatory' and starting to feel the Divine Exhaustion.

Purgario (sp?) is actually a separate work as is the Paradisio.

[Izulde]

Nice pick, though if it were me, I'd have slotted it in the Autobio/Bio section.

[Buccaneer]

Originally Posted by lordscarlet

You are more than to change or recategorized the selection because the category was not clear.

That was not allowed in previous contests, esp. when categorization was one of those things that had to be worked through as best as possible.

[lordscarlet]

Originally Posted by Buccaneer

That was not allowed in previous contests, esp. when categorization was one of those things that had to be worked through as best as possible.

To me it is a bit different when someone thought the category was fiction and non-fiction but it was only for non-fiction. That was a poor statement of the rules, not a poor placement of categories based on his own reasonings.

[DaddyTorgo]

Originally Posted by Buccaneer

That was not allowed in previous contests, esp. when categorization was one of those things that had to be worked through as best as possible.

i'm thinking this was a one-time only thing b/c maple leafs didn't see the earlier ruling. I mean really it's essentially just re-picking but picking a different category and the same work.

[lordscarlet]

st.cronin sent me a list.. give me a few moments

[lordscarlet]

st.cronin's 2.8 pick is: 1984, George Orwell, sci-fi/fantasy

cartman is on the clock!

[Buccaneer]

I understand. My reaction is based on a fair amount of people that could not separate fiction from non-fiction in regards to history. How many people do you think believe that Dickens or Shakespeare or Homer was actually historical works?

[Lathum]

amazing that Dickens and Orwell fell to round 2

[cartman]

My pick at 2.9 will go into the Fantasy/Sci-Fi category. This book is considered by many to be one of the most influential fantasy titles of all time. My pick is:

Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll

cartman's list:

1. Fiction
2. Single Short Story
3. Poem
4. Fantasy/Science Fiction - 2.9 Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, Lewis Carroll
5. Series (A set of books continuing the same story and intended to be read sequentially) - 1.2: The Lord of The Rings Trilogy (Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers, The Return of the King), J.R.R. Tolkein
6. Sport Related
7. Children's
8. Non-Fiction
9. Biography/Autobiography
10. History

[Buccaneer]

Very nice pick again, cartman.

[cartman]

CR, I see you are reading the thread, and you are up.

[DaddyTorgo]

*rubs my hands in glee* my next pick is going to be fun!

[lordscarlet]

cartman, excellent pick. That wasn't even on my radar (but it should have been).

[Chief Rum]

Chief Rum's list

1. Fiction
2. Single Short Story-- 2.10 A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens
3. Poem
4. Fantasy/Science Fiction
5. Series (A set of books continuing the same story and intended to be read sequentially)
6. Sport Related
7. Children's
8. Non-Fiction
9. Biography/Autobiography
10. History-- The Holy Bible by God (1.1)

This is getting to be a very difficult contest already. And it's not about finding the choices. There are tons of deserving choices. It is in picking the right ones. And I am certain that in picking one, I will lose the chance to pick many others as the draft goes on.

This one came down to Dickens' importance to the English literature. It's arguable what is his most well-known work, but this would be among them. And none can question that Dickens' novella redefined the Christmas myth.

An assist to MapleLeafs for switching to the The Diary of Anne Frank

[Chief Rum]

Chief Rum's list

1. Fiction
2. Single Short Story-- 2.10 A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens
3. Poem
4. Fantasy/Science Fiction
5. Series (A set of books continuing the same story and intended to be read sequentially)
6. Sport Related
7. Children's
8. Non-Fiction
9. Biography/Autobiography-- 3.1 Walden by Henry David Thoreau
10. History-- 1.1 The Holy Bible by God

I selected this next one not only because of its influence on American thinking and writing, but because it was a key influence to the philosophies of Mahatma Ghandi and Martin Luther King Jr., two of the greatest men who ever lived.

The placement of this book was much more difficult. I originally looked to nonfiction, but I decided that field was far too strong if I could place Walden eslewhere. I feel this is autobiographical (well, it is, even if it doesn't treat Thoreau's life as a whole to that point--and that can be argued as well), and is a good selection to slot into a more difficult to fill category.

[sabotai]

Nice pick by cartman.

Interesting pick on A Christmas Carol. Not sure I'd count it as a short story.

[Buccaneer]

Chief, you have absolutely nailed the Short Story. Well done.

In readin Sab's comment, it could work as Poem but I like it better here though since it has been read as a short story for generations.

[NoMyths]

Nice pick, CR. I think I'd prefer to see it in Non-Fiction as it's more of a philosophical treatise and reflection on nature than an autobiography, but still a thoughtful choice.

[cartman]

For my next pick, I'm going to take a work from one of the great American authors. Edgar Allan Poe released many great works, and it was difficult to chose only one. "The Raven" would be a worthy choice for poem, but I felt that I needed to choose one of his short stories. "Tell-Tale Heart", "The Fall of the House of Usher", "The Pit and the Pendulum" all could be solid choices for this list. However, I'm going to go with:

The Cask of Amontillado, Edgar Allan Poe

cartman's list:

1. Fiction
2. Single Short Story - 3.2 The Cask of Amontillado, Edgar Allan Poe
3. Poem
4. Fantasy/Science Fiction - 2.9 Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, Lewis Carroll
5. Series (A set of books continuing the same story and intended to be read sequentially) - 1.2: The Lord of The Rings Trilogy (Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers, The Return of the King), J.R.R. Tolkein
6. Sport Related
7. Children's
8. Non-Fiction
9. Biography/Autobiography
10. History

[Lathum]

waste of Poe

[sabotai]

Originally Posted by Buccaneer

Chief, you have absolutely nailed the Short Story. Well done.

In readin Sab's comment, it could work as Poem but I like it better here though since it has been read as a short story for generations.

A Poem?

I think A Christmas Carol is just a bit too long to be considered a "short story" is all.

[Chief Rum]

Originally Posted by NoMyths

Nice pick, CR. I think I'd prefer to see it in Non-Fiction as it's more of a philosophical treatise and reflection on nature than an autobiography, but still a thoughtful choice.

I knew it was a stretch. But I really feel autobiography/biography is a very difficult section to fill (perhaps the most difficult), and it was a way for me to get two of the best nonfiction books into the same list (assuming I get a really good one for that category, and I should).