Bernadette’s Comments (group member since May 28, 2020)

Bernadette’s comments from the Nothing But Reading Challenges group.

Shy The WidowMaker wrote: "How did yall find books set in Argentina?"

Mine was already on my TRB list. Furia

This may help https://www.goodreads.com/places/214-...

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Categor...

Snowtulip wrote: "Love the picture of Argentina in the spreadsheet, it would be so amazing to visit!



Carrie is responsible for the beautiful picture. I miss traveling😥.

Carrie wrote: "I read that as our start date is the day we got our itinerary. I have to go back and look at the rules but I believe that we are at each stop for a minimum of 2 weeks before we can move on to the n..."

I put our start date as 9/28, the date we got the First Class itinerary and decided we should use the Business Class instead. Let the traveling begin✈️.

Any problems with the spreadsheet, let me know.

One more question, do we move to the next stop only after everyone has complete the stop we are currently at??

OK - so I have updated the spreadsheet. I moved the tab for this round so it more easily visible. It is right next to the "Business" tab.

The rules say "Books count that are started after your team thread is created. Provided the book is started during your challenge period, it can be used at any point during your challenge for a task or detour"

Is our start day today or the date we got our itinerary?

I'm good with Argentina. I love me a good spreadsheet😂 (I'm an accountant) - I can take a crack at keeping the spreadsheet up to date if no one else can or really wants to.

Carrie wrote: "You are so right! My apologies. I was going back and forth between our old itinerary and the new one looking over how things were done the last time around and I had my page on Aberdeen from the fi..."


I agree with you - I appears that Business Class should be done before First Class. The Leader Board says the team already completed Business Class so maybe NBRC Travel Agent has some bad info.

Hello ladies - newbie here with a question...how did we determine Great Britain? I thought the task was to read a book set in the country or by an author from the country. Palmas seems to be in Brazil - I'm confused???

Looking forward to it!

Thanks for letting me know about the open spot! Is this my user ID..
https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/1...? It is the link to my profile.

Looking forward to traveling with you✈️

Finished my first Wheelathon and need a new challenge but the Restaurant Challenge doesn't appeal to me.

I'm interested in this challenge but seems I may be too late, guess I'll have to wait for the next group.....unless there is room available?

I just finished my last 2 books and updated the SS.

This was my first group challenge. I can't believe how many books I read in the last 2 months! It was interesting seeing what everyone read. Thanks for the fun ladies😍

Thanks captains for your work and for answering all my questions.

Keep on reading🧡

I just finished my last for this round and marked it on the SS.

Since we are Team Wonderful Wizard of Oz🌈 , for the last round I will read Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West . It's been on my TBR list for over 6 years 😂

Day 3 DQs

11. In the beginning of this section, we find out that Noa not only looks like a middle class Japanese boy, he also wants to be one. What are you opinions on this and why do you think he wants this? What do you think would happen if he shared this with his parents?

He wants it because he thinks life will be easier. If he shared it with his parents, they would not be happy.

12. Isak is back from jail finally after two years. I found this to be a bit of a surprise because I was expecting him to die in jail. I wasn't expecting him to be let out. What were your thoughts on him being let out of jail to die in his home. He was obviously let out to die at home, but did you find this mercy surprising? Did you expect this?

They didn't want to be responsible for his death in jail.

13. A run in with Hansu. I thought it was super creepy that Hansu has been keeping tabs on Sunja (even though one of the kids is his). What are your opinions on this? And then he drops the whole "we're about to get bombed" curveball. Do you like him more because he warned Sunja or do you still think he's being selfish and trying to keep his only son alive?

I think he still has some feelings for her and wants to take care of that "family" of his.

14. Wow. Hansu lying to Yoseb about his parents being dead. That is beyond harsh. Why do you think Hansu did this? He obviously wants his child, Noa, but do you think he is also planning on getting Sunja back?

15. Hansu later tells Kim that Yoseb is dying and to scoop up Kyunghee before she gets old. Talk about a jerk. What do you think of Hansu after this? What about Kim? Do you think Kim will eventually try?

Hansu has many personalities and we never which one we will see.

DQ - Day 2

6. I might be too judgmental, but her pining for Hansu is constantly making me frown. She promised to care for and honor her husband, never to betray him. Yet she keeps marveling about her lost "love", how she misses him, how she wants to see him, how she has already been in the city with him in her mind, etc. Are such thought not a kind of betrayal? She is so rational and reasonable about what happened and knows full well how he lured her in and used her, but cannot stop the pining and reminiscing about it. Why do you think she can't let it go and focus on her future?

I don't think it is unusual for her to think about life would have life been like with her first love.


7. After all Isak said about his successful brother and all his dreams about the better life in the city, he arrived to some harsh revelations. I am starting to think they might have been better staying on the island. Isak's brother's revelations about his house, his neighbors, the judgement in the city, the discrimination at work and spying everywhere are very disappointing and brutal. Do you think it a natural disillusion of impossible dreams? Or Yoseb's hope that it might be better for his brother here, where he can watch over him?

Relocating can be difficult. The family s poor, but they are together and family is important.

8. That scene in the church with the brother and sister. The pastor discussing what it actually means when a wealthy man wants to be a young girl's "friend". The duplicity of the pastor - being nice and not judgmental to the siblings, yet judging them harshly when they have left was not surprising but annoying still. The sweet talk to their face, but harsh berating behind their back would have been exactly what happened to Sunja and her family. Do you think this scene was included to reveal to Isak more truths about his wife's condition and impossible choices to help him understand her?

Possibly....

9. The pastor's reason for hiring Isak was revealed as well - to get money from his family and avoid paying him wages - and I must admit it didn't endear the pastor to me at all. And the pawnbroker and his greed, the loan sharks and their scare tactics. We get introduced to many characters that are not really likable and portray humanity at its worst. Do you think it is a decision by the author to reveal the true nature of people in all kinds of positions in general or is it included to especially note how people get in times of oppression and hard times? I am starting to think Isak coming to Japan was a huge mistake with every little revelation. Do you think it will work out? Or do you agree it was a mistake?

Humans are not always good. I know how it will end. I've finished the book already.

10. The debacle with the watch was very educational. We get to see a merchant's attitude towards women, husband's attitude towards a wife in stark contrast to how men are treated. Yoseb is enraged with his wife and sister-in-law, he can't forgive them or appreciate the help, yet he can forgive and accept when his brother asks him to. Do you think he would have gotten over it in time if his brother hadn't asked him? Or would he be always resentful towards women? The whole "head of the house" part further gets the point home that women will always be under the command of a man, even in regards to baby names. The prison scene also drives home how women are still supposed to be home and stay away from men's troubles, too weak to do something about it. And women who work are still frowned upon, even in their own family. Do you think it will change further in the story? Will oppression and war open their minds towards changing a woman's role in the family and world?

Women as second class citizens and not having their voices heard has been around for a long time.

Day 1 DQs

1. This novel starts with the sentence: "History has failed us, but no matter." Did you like this opening line? What do you think it means, and why do you think the author chose it?

History may have failed us, but we can't change it.

2. I am half-Korean, and my mom has shared a lot of the history of her own family and how it's interwoven with Korean history in general. What, if anything, did you know of the Japanese colonization of Korea -- or the history of Korea, Japan, and China in the 20th century in general -- before beginning to read this book?

I did not know much.

3. Hansu seems like a complicated character. What were your thoughts on him? Did you hate him?

I've already completed the book so I have an answer that would be different at the beginning than the end.

4. What did you think of Sunja's decision to not accept being Hansu's mistress? Why do you think she chose to reject him? Do you think she made the right decision?

I think she made the right decision based on her upbringing and morals.

5. In this first section of the novel, we see two couples wed -- Hoonie and Yangjin, and then Isak and Sunja. What were some of the similarities between these marriages, and what were the differences?

Many of these marriages are for practical purposes, but love usually can grow in time.

I just finished reading Mexican Gothic . I highly recommend it - creatively creepy - part mystery, part horror.

Tammie wrote: "Hey everyone....a few 'task' reminders

1) remember you can only use the items on your task list once...so heavy readers especially...be sure you've kept track of what you've used.

2) I know I'd l..."

I am going to find it harder to find items on the task list as we move on. I will look to recommendations more! Following are some more from me:

The Green Mile - I loved this Stephen King book. My husband is reading it now.
The Outsiders - a classic
The Roanoke Girls
If I Stay - an interesting YA book
The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants
The Silver Linings Playbook
The Time Traveler's Wife

Donna wrote: "Bernadette, I found The One-in-a-Million Boy on your shelf but don't see it on our spreadsheet. Does it fit any of the letters?"

It is on Line 85