Joanna’s Comments (group member since Dec 27, 2013)

Joanna’s comments from the CPL's Book a Week Challenge group.

Woot! I've actually completed three of these challenges already!

I've read Arrow: Vengeance- part of a series that is a television show. Also reading American Gods which will soon be a mini series, but I'm not done with that yet.

American Zoo I started in 2016 and finished in 2017.

And Scrappy Little Nobody has a blue background behind Anna Kendrick's photo. Does that count?

Thanks, Jennifer, for posting our first mini challenge! Unfortunately, due to the weather, mine won't be posted until the beginning of next week. I left all my information at work. Oops. Ah, snow.

Nathan wrote: "I loved this one! Am looking forward to seeing it come to life in graphic novel and television form this spring"

Me, too! It's why I decided to try to read it again. And I must admit, I am enjoying it much more now. Not sure why. But it really is very good.

Let me know how Shadows of the Empire is! I haven't read that one yet.

Becky wrote: "@joanna, Luckily, I found out how to sign up for the reading challenge on GoodReads, I will just put my info from there onto the site when its up :) "

Glad you found the Goodreads reading challenge! I like doing the challenge through Goodreads as well because it'll keep you posted on how close you are to your goals plus if you're ahead/behind. :)

Becky wrote: "Website for the registration and logs is down :( I am adding a book log to my phone til the website stops being a butt head lol"

The website will be down until probably the end of January; I am in the process of working on the new site. Keep your eyes posted here to be the first to know when the site goes live. :)

Kayzee wrote: "Joanna wrote: "Holly wrote: "Greetings, having fallen off the bookmobile ( so to speak) I am looking forward to starting off afresh in 2017. Is there a 2017 version of 52 pickup? Haven't been able ..."

Nope! We will have three brand new mini monthly challenges! They should be posted by the end of the week.

Welcome to the 2017 52 Book Pickup Challenge!!!!!

We are so excited to have you along as we attempt the challenge of reading 52 books in 2017- that's one book per week!

Are you ready?

We will have a site for 2017! At the moment, I am in the process of working on it. It should go live near the end of January. In the meantime, keep track of your books here on Goodreads. Keep your eyes posted for updates and the link!

What can you except here for 2017? More of the same great content! We'll be doing our weekly threads and continue with our weekly book trivia. There are three brand new monthly challenges! They should be up by the end of the week.

We are so excited to have you along and to help you complete this challenge.

Last year, we ended our book trivia talking about how reading can reduce stress... up to 68%! Now that we're trying for 52 books this year, do you know the average number of books read per year per individual? Take a guess here.

What books are you starting your New Year off with? I've been working on American Zoo, Scrappy Little Nobody, American Gods (I'm trying this one again after failing in 2015), and for fun, Wonder Woman at Superhero High.

Here's to another great year reaching our reading goals!

Holly wrote: "Greetings, having fallen off the bookmobile ( so to speak) I am looking forward to starting off afresh in 2017. Is there a 2017 version of 52 pickup? Haven't been able to find the links...any help ..."

Yes! We are doing a 2017 52 Book Pickup Challenge. I am currently working on the site- it should go live sometime near the end of January. Keep your eyes posted here for the latest updates. Good luck as you start off the 2017 challenge! You can do this!

Nathan wrote: "Having completed my 52 books, I'm reading to finish off James Harvey Young's The Medical Messiahs, though it looks like it'll end up counting for my 2017 challenge. Happy New Year all!"

Congratulations on reaching 52! And it's always good to start the new year right by finishing a book. Happy New Year!

Ann wrote: "I'm reading my 150th book as we speak (I should finish it before midnight tonight). I think I'll only try for 100 next year as I have big plans in other areas (exercise and writing goals).
Have a ..."

Woo hoo! Congrats on making 150! That was my goal, but I fell a bit short. Going to try for it this year. Hope you had a Happy New Year!

Which book has sold an equivalent of one book every minute since it was first published? That would be Eric Carle's A Very Hungry Caterpillar. Did you know that reading is therapeutic and can reduce stress levels? Take a guess as to how much it can reduce your stress level here.

The ending is upon us- after 52 weeks, we have made it to the end. But it's not really the end. It is just the turning of a page and soon we will start the next chapter in our reading goal quest. It has been a pleasure reading with you all this year. I am looking forward to taking up the challenge again next year.

What books are you reading to finish off 2016? I'm currently working on American Zoo and Scrappy Little Nobody. We will see how far I can get and whether or not those will end up counting for the 2017 challenge.

Happy Reading, everyone! Wishing you all a Happy New Year's as well!

Thank you for participating in our 2016 52 Book Pickup Challenge. We look forward to seeing you all back next year for the 2017 Challenge.

Lyn wrote: "I've finished the challenge,I'm on book # 73,I'm enjoying the new Bookshots by James Patterson.
any word if we'll do this again in 2017?"

Congratulations on finishing the challenge! Make sure you drop by any Chesapeake library to collect your participation prize. Do I have your information for the grand prize drawing?

Yes! We are doing the 52 Book Pickup in 2017! I'm hoping to have the new site up and ready by end of January. So come January 1st, start keeping a record of your books and keep an eye out here for announcements. We'll still be doing our weekly threads, book trivia, and mini-challenges (there'll be new themes in 2017). I'm so excited to be doing this again with you all! :)

Happy Holidays!

How many of us suffer from "tsundoku?" This Japanese word means the act of leaving a book unread after buying it, typically piling it up together with other such unread books. I know I suffer from this! My pile is a good fifty books deep right now. Hopefully, most of those won't stay unread forever.

Do you know which book has sold the equivalent of one book every minute since it was published? Take a guess here.

Happy Holidays, everyone!! I hope your holiday season is merry and bright and full of all good things.

Does anyone have any reading plans for over the holidays? I'm blessed with four days off of work so my goal is to try and work on some of those book piles. Most likely it won't happen since the family will be around, but I can still dream. Currently, I'm working on Iron Man: The Gauntlet, American Zoo, and The Hammer of Thor.

Happy Reading!

Come one. Come all! Have you reached the 52 book goal? If so, congratulations! Reading 52 books in a year is a major accomplishment, especially since the average person only reads about 12 books a year.

For all who have reached the goal, we have a small prize for you! Stop by any Chesapeake Library branch to pick it up.

In addition, those who have finished 52 books will be entered in for the grand prize drawing of a Kindle Fire 8 HD. The grand prize will be drawn on January 9th. You will have until January 8th to send me your updated book list plus contact information. Send it to me at: jherlan@infopeake.org

The word "shrine" derives from the Latin for "chest for books." For this week's poll, most of us suffer from tsundoku. This is a Japanese word but do you know what it means? Take a guess here.

Only three full weeks left and then it'll be 2017! What is everyone reading this week? I'm still working on The Graveyard Apartment and I have added The Killer Whale Who Changed the World and Rogue One: Catalyst in anticipation of the movie that comes out on Friday!

What former First Lady spent nearly twenty years as a book editor? That would be Jackie Kennedy Onassis (apologies for the misspelling of her name in the poll). This week, do you know which word derives from the Latin for "chest for books?" Take a guess here.

Be on the look out in the next week for information on the prizes! There's going to be a small prize for everyone who finishes the 52 books plus a grand prize drawing. More details soon.

This is it! The final push! How is everyone doing? What is everyone reading this week? I was in the middle of four books but I finished two yesterday. Now I am working on The Graveyard Apartment and The Witnesses.

Happy Holidays, everyone! Did you know that there are over 20 different holidays in the month of December from a wide variety of religions? The big three are of course Christmas, Hanukkah, and Kwanzaa, but there is also the Bodhi Day for Buddhism, the Pancha Ganapat of Hinduism, and the Pagan celebration of Yalda.

In honor of all the holidays this month, December’s genre theme is Holidays! Read a book about or that centers around a specific holiday. And it doesn’t have to be a holiday that occurs in December! Read about Easter or Mother’s Day or the 4th of July.

Need some help getting started? These lists cover some of the major holidays celebrated in the United States. Some of them give books that are about the holiday; others give recommendations for what to read on the holiday. Take a look but don’t feel you need to be limited to these holidays! There are so many out there.

Goodreads' Holiday Themed Books

Holiday Mystery Books (This covers a wide range of holidays through out the year)

New Year's Books

Chinese New Year

Valentine's Day Mysteries

St. Patrick's Day

Memorial Day

4th of July

More 4th of July Books

Labor Day

Halloween

Veteran's Day

Thanksgiving

Happy celebrating, everyone!

We come to it at last…the final Dewey Decimal section! Well, at least the last half of the last section. The 900s were so big, we split it in two. This month, your challenge if you choose to accept is to read a book found between 950 and 999. Not sure where to start? Take a look at some of these interesting subdivisions.

950 History of Asia; Far East
952 Japan
953 Arabian Peninsula & adjacent areas
960 History of Africa
962 Egypt & Sudan
968 Southern Africa; Republic of South Africa
969 South Indian Ocean islands
970 History of North America
971 Canada
973 United States
974 Northeastern United States
975 Southeastern United States
976 South central United States
977 North central United States
978 Western United States
980 History of South America
981 Brazil
993 New Zealand
996 Other parts of Pacific; Polynesia
998 Arctic islands & Antarctica
999 Extraterrestrial worlds

Thank you, everyone, for taking this ride through the Dewey Decimal classification system. It’s been so much fun sharing this library system with you. Hopefully you learned a bit and have a new appreciation for how libraries organize their material!

Happy exploring!

With the holiday last week, I had a weird work schedule. I blinked and the week was over and I realized I had forgotten our weekly thread. Oops! So sorry everyone! I hope everyone had a nice holiday.

We now continue with our regularly scheduled program...

Who had their eyeglasses stolen from their face and ransomed? Jonathan Franzen, poor guy. He did get his glasses back and didn't have to pay that ransom. Do you know which first lady spent nearly 20 years as a book editor? Take a guess here.

Even though last week was Thanksgiving, our national holiday of thanks, we can still be grateful for the books in our lives every week! Whether because they taught us a valuable lesson, helped us get through a tough time, entertained us when we needed it, or just because they exist, books are a wonderful resource that we should be grateful for every day.

What books are you most grateful for? Let us know in the comments!

Why should you never write in a library book? Because you could potentially end up in jail like playwright Joe Orton. He spent six months in jail for defacing library books.

Do you know whose eye glasses were stolen from his head and then ransomed for 100,000 pounds? Take a guess at our Book Trivia page.

What is everyone reading this week? Have you tried out your book/movie combination yet for the November challenge? I will admit, I am so far behind in my reading. I've been in a slump. But things are looking up. I have time off next week and I plan to read, read, read!

As a quick reminder, the log in site for the 52 Books is no longer available. If you haven't done so already, please send me your name, contact information, and number of books read so far so I can keep track. You can email me here: jherlan@infopeake.org.

Thank you, everyone!

Happy reading!

Hello, everyone! Unfortunately, due to circumstances beyond our control, the site where we were logging our 52 books is no longer active. We are therefore implementing a new way to log books.

I will be keeping a log of the number of books people have read.

Please email your name, contact information (for the grand prize drawing), and the number of books read to date to: jherlan@infopeake.org

If you don't remember how many you have read, an estimate is fine.

For the next two months, email me - jherlan@infopeake.org - your titles/authors that you finish. You can email them to me as you finish the book or email me them all in one group at the end of December.

I do apologize for any inconvenience this has caused. If you have further questions, please feel free to contact me.

If you know of anyone completing the 52 Book Challenge who is not on Goodreads, please give them my contact information and have them get in touch with me.

Thank you, everyone, for your patience and understanding.

Joanna

Hello, everyone! Unfortunately, due to circumstances beyond our control, the site where we were logging our 52 books is no longer active. We are therefore implementing a new way to log books.

I will be keeping a log of the number of books people have read.

Please email your name, contact information (for the grand prize drawing), and the number of books read to date to: jherlan@infopeake.org

If you don't remember how many you have read, an estimate is fine.

For the next two months, email me - jherlan@infopeake.org - your titles/authors that you finish. You can email them to me as you finish the book or email me them all in one group at the end of December.

I do apologize for any inconvenience this has caused. If you have further questions, please feel free to contact me.

If you know of anyone completing the 52 Book Challenge who is not on Goodreads, please give them my contact information and have them get in touch with me.

Thank you, everyone, for your patience and understanding.

Joanna

“The book was better.” It’s a refrain we here all too often, especially now that more and more movies are seemingly being based on books. Surprisingly, that statement is generally true. Books tend to be richer, with more characters and the ability to showcase events and items that defy even the best CGI. It doesn’t necessarily make the movie any less enjoyable, but sometimes the books really just is better.

Your challenge this month is twofold- read a book a movie was based on and then watch that movie. Let us know which you thought was better and why.

Need some help getting started? Take a look at the links below-

13 Books to Read Before They Become Movies
Movies You Might Not Know Were Based on Books
More Movies You Might Not Know Were Based on Books
Goodreads' Books Made Into Movies List
50 Greatest Book to Movie Adaptations
40 Best Film Adapations

Looking forward to everyone's book/movie choice!

We’ve come to it at last- our final Dewey class. The 900s. This is the History and Geography class. Need a travel book? A guide to ancient Egypt? Want to know the details of an important battle during World War 1? Fascinated by the Civil War? Need information on Japanese culture? This is the class you need to consult.

Because this class is so large and wide reaching, we are going to break it in half. For the month of November, your challenge is to read a book found between 900 and 949. Not sure where to start? Take a look at these interesting subdivisions.

909- World History
910- Geography and Travel
913- Geography of & travel in ancient world
916- Geography of & travel in Africa
917- Geography of & travel in North America
929- Genealogy, names & insignia
930- History of ancient world to ca. 499
931- China to 420
932- Egypt to 640
938- Greece to 323
940- History of Europe
941- British Isles
943- Central Europe; Germany
947- Eastern Europe; Russia
948- Scandinavia

Happy exploring!

Hello, everyone!

I just wanted to give you a head's up that the site where you log your 52 books is down. We are attempting to figure out a solution but it may take us a while.

Keep on tracking the books you read and as soon as I know anything, I will let you know.

If you have questions, please don't hesitate to call at 757-410-7147. Ask for Joanna.

Thank you!

Joanna