Map of Oceania created by Tintazul distributed under a CC BY-SA 3.0 license
While looking over the map of the all the countries we've read so far (8.17% of the world as shown on our Reading List page), it became glaringly obvious that we've missed out on one of my favorite areas of the world: Oceania!
Oceania is a region centered on the islands of the tropical Pacific Ocean & while the exact scope varies, it generally includes the 14 countries & 9 dependencies shown in the map above. Unlike other continental groupings (e.g., North America, Europe, etc.), it is the ocean rather than the continent that links all of these nations together.
SO WHAT COUNTRY ARE WE READING IN October?
We're going to read one of the most well known countries in Oceania—Australia! And that's because I've already chosen one of my suggestions which is shown here.
The book is not only highly reviewed with 4.5 stars on 500+ Amazon reviews & 4 stars on 9,500 Goodreads ratings, but it was also made into a movie which also received great reviews. I'm not trying to influence your vote as I'm going to read the book whether we end up choosing it for the book club or not. I'm just so excited about both the book & the movie! (Coincidentally, our book club moderator, Mia loved the movie!) My only question is whether I will first see the movie as I usually hate the movie if I read the book first. However, I also don't want to ruin any surprises in the book by first watching the movie so if you've done both, let me know with which I should begin
If you're curious about the movie, see the trailer below or check the movie out on Amazon Prime Video.
View the movie on Amazon (US) | (UK)
HAVE ANY BOOK CLUB SUGGESTIONS?
Just let us know your Australian suggestions by Sat., Sept. 15 11PM ET. (That's NYC time. See this converted to your local time below.)
We'll use 2 suggestions from book club members, 2 suggestions from Mia (the book club moderator) & 2 of my suggestions to compile a list of 6 books on which book club members will vote. The most popular book from the list will then be read.
Please note - We're specific in our books, they must:
- Largely occur in the location specified unless the world described is an alternate reality
- Be written by an author born there who has spent a good portion of their life there
- Exist in paperback & ebook available on both Amazon & Kindle at least in the US & hopefully elsewhere