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

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

Ingrid wrote: "Well these lists will keep my reading list full!"

I know! There are so many on these lists that I want to read. I really want to read all the books on NPR's list. Perhaps that will be my reading goal for next year.

So how much did Audubon's The Birds of America sell for in 2010? It sold for a staggering $11.5 million. But it's not the most expensive book to have been sold at auction. Do you know which is? Head on over to vote for which book you think is the most expensive sold in this week's Book Trivia

It's hard to believe that we are in the last week of July already! Where does time go? If I had my way, my time would go into reading. But alas, real life gets in the way. I did manage to finish one book last week- Mary Roach's Grunt: The Curious Science of Humans at War. This week, I'm working on The Pursuit and Demon Fish.

What is everyone else reading this week?

Happy Monday! I hope everyone stayed cool over the past weekend.

A couple of quick things... why wait until August? Weekly Book Trivia starts now! Head on over to vote in this week's Book Trivia!

Secondly, this weekend is Chesapeake Public Library's annual fantasy/science fiction convention, FantaSci! Come to the Central Library from 10 to 4 for fun panels, cool vendors, and so much more! We look forward to seeing you there.

Finally, what is everyone reading this week? I have only 50 pages left in The Mind Club. Really hoping to finish that tonight. Then I'm working on Fantastic Planets, Forbidden Zones, and Lost Continents: The 100 Greatest Science-Fiction Films and The Annihilation of Nature.

Greetings, everyone. Happy Monday! How was your weekend? I hope everyone had a nice weekend and was able to get some reading in among all the summer activities.

A quick bit of housekeeping... during our Halfway Celebration, there was nice participation on our Book Trivia polls. So I am wondering- do you want weekly Book Trivia polls or would you rather stick with the Monthly Polls? I'm open to either way. I've set up July's poll for you all to vote on it. Whatever you decide, we'll start in August!

What is everyone reading this week? I just finished this super cute child's superhero book called Study Hall of Justice which is a young Batman, Superman, and Wonder Woman investigating this mysterious school. A quick read, but a lot of fun. I'm also reading The Fifty-Year Mission: The Complete, Uncensored, Unauthorized Oral History of Star Trek: The First 25 Years, Fantastic Planets, Forbidden Zones, and Lost Continents: The 100 Greatest Science-Fiction Films, and Lumberjanes.

Happy reading this week!

Nathan wrote: "Thanks! I'm already unpacking the Bag of Books into the ol' queue. :-)

Congrats again, Nathan! Enjoy the books. : )

Ann wrote: "Congrats Nathaniel! Enjoy!
I'm still reading (and enjoying) The Cuckoo's Calling by J.K.Rowling (aka...). It's really good so far.
"

I was pleasantly surprised by The Cuckoo's Calling when I first read it. I couldn't see Rowling as anyone other than Harry Potter's author but she crafted a fine story with Calling. Definitely read the sequels. I can't say they're as good, but they were still very enjoyable.

Congratulations to Nathaniel who has won our bag of books prize from last week's Halfway Celebration!

Thank you to everyone who voted in a poll, commented in a thread, or did a mini mini challenge! I hope you all had as much fun last week as I did.

What is everyone reading this week? I hope with the holiday, you all were able to get some extra reading in.

Nathan wrote: "Nathaniel Miller"

Congratulations, Nathaniel! You've won our bag of books!

Please email me at jherlan@infopeake.org (subject line: Halfway Winner) and let me know which Chesapeake Library branch you would like to pick your prize up at.

Thanks again to everyone for participating! And congrats again, Nathaniel!

For our final Book Trivia Question... the average person can read between 200 and 300 words per minute!

Thank you to everyone for participating!

We’re halfway through this challenge- just another 26 weeks left.

Is there any advice/encouragement you can give to your fellow challengers as we start on the final half?

Mine is this- don't lose sight of the journey for the destination. We all want to make the 52 book challenge. But don't let the rush of trying to make 52 books cloud the joy of just being able to read. Enjoy each book. Savor each word. And if you don't make 52 books, that's okay! You read. That's all that matters.

There is actually no mini mini challenge today, just a great big thank you from us to you for participating in this week's Halfway Celebration. We hope you had as much fun as we did!

Take some time today to do a little bit of reading and if there was a challenge from this week you didn't do, go back and do it!

Thank you again, everyone!

Last day to put your name in the hat! Names must be in this thread no later than 11:59 pm, July 3rd.

Good luck!

You all were on the right track! Surprisingly, Dracula is the literary character most widely portrayed in film and television, with Sherlock Holmes being a very close second (he's the most widely portrayed human literary character).

Click on the link to vote for Day 7's Book Trivia!

Why is everyone participating in the 52 Book Pickup Challenge? Are you trying to read more? Are you competitive? Do you just like having somewhere to go to talk about books?

I could say I'm here because it's my job, but that's not true. I participated before this became my job. I love having a place to talk about books and find new reads. I'm also a bit competitive so I like having some sort of reading challenge every year. This whole experience has been a lot of fun for me and I greatly enjoy every minute of it.

Let us know your reasons why!

Continuing with the poetry theme, today's mini mini challenge is to read a poem by Edgar Allan Poe! There are numerous sites with his poetry, but this is the one I used.

I read The Sleeper which is hauntingly beautiful, especially when you realize his love is dead.

This is also a badge for the Chesapeake Summer Challenge! Make sure to go claim it.

(If you're not that into Edgar, feel free to read a poem by another author! Just let us know what you read and what you thought)

This was a tiny bit harder, I see. Fifty Shades of Grey was originally Twilight fan fiction! It was put on FanFiction.net (later removed and placed on James' own webite) under the title "Master of the Universe." James later removed it and reworked it as an original piece.

Click on the link to vote in Day 6's Book Trivia.

Journey to worlds unknown or places far, far away by picking up a fantasy or science fiction novel! This genre challenge encompasses some of my favorites (aka Lord of the Rings). Need help figuring out where to start? Take a look at some of these helpful links!

NPR put together a list of the top 100 Fantasy and Science Fiction Books. It's quite a list, as you can see. Thankfully, someone put together this awesome flowchart where you can follow the lines based on your interests! Start at the top and work your way around until you find a book.

Other lists:

51 Best Fantasy Series of All Time
Goodreads' Best Epic Fantasy Lists
Reddit's Top Fantasy Reads
Washington Post's Best Science Fiction Books
Abe Books 50 Essential Science Fiction Books
Goodreads' Best Science Fiction Lists

Don't forget- July 23rd is Chesapeake Public Library's annual convention FantaSci! Drop by the Central anytime between 10-4 for fun panels, vendors, and more. Make sure to dress up! We look forward to seeing you there.

May the Force be with you!

This next Dewey classification is close to my heart. The 500s is the Science classification and covers everything from math to physics to the animal kingdom to space. You can learn so much by picking up almost any book in this area. I have a thing for animals so my reading tends to be in the 590s (zoology). So if you would like some recommendations there, I have a few. Come on in and jump into the wonderful world of the sciences.

Here are some interesting areas to take a look at:

510- Mathematics
512- Algebra
520- Astronomy
525- Earth (Astronomical geography)
527- Celestial navigation
530- Physics
536- Heat
537- Electricity & electronics
540- Chemistry
547- Organic chemistry
550- Earth Sciences
560- Paleontology; paleozoology (aka dinosaurs!)
570- Life sciences; biology
577- Ecology
580- Botany (plants)
590- Zoology (animals)
598- Birds
599- Mammals

What book surprised you the most this year? Whether because you didn't expect to like it and did; or the content was not what you were expecting; or because you thought it would be perfect and it wasn't; or for any other reason.

I think the most surprising book I've read so far was The State of Play: Creators and Critics on Video Game Culture. I picked it up, not because I play, but because I'm interested in that culture and I like reading scholarly books. I wasn't really expecting this to hold my attention too well or be anything other than dry. I was wrong. It was quite fascinating and the articles were incredibly diverse from a diverse cast of people, each with unique voices. I ended up really enjoying the individual essays in the book. I recommend it for anyone interested in video game culture.

Today's challenge is a fun one. Grab four or five books off your shelves and make a "poem" out of the titles! Or, come to the library and find some books on our shelves to make your poem.

Here's mine:

I, Ripper
The Prince of Tides
House of the Rising Sun
The Relic Master
Lie in Plain Sight

Have fun!

I'm going to have to come up with harder book trivia questions for you all.

Congrats! The "trilogy" that started off as a radio series was indeed The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. It aired in the UK in 1978, with Douglas Adams publishing the first novel in 1979.

Click on the link to go vote for Day 5's Book Trivia.