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

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

My husband & I had Covid tests done yesterday because we are going to St. Thomas Virgin Islands on Wednesday for a week😎😊🌞✈️ - thankfully they were negative!

Alyana wrote: "UNO sign ups is now open! ☺️

https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/..."

I've never done Uno before - yet another addiction!

Thanks captains for all your work!

I'm done - and I finished pretty close to my predicted number of books😉

Melissa wrote: "I’m probably only going to get The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo finished this round. I doubt I’ll have time to eat anymore before Saturday.

How’s everyone else doing? We’re at th..."

Melissa - I hope you have time to eat before Saturday😂🤣

I just finished a “Y” book but my internet is down and have not been able to update the SS. Hopefully I can tonight. Repair technician from Verizon is scheduled to be here soon.

I updated the SS so the detour is "MPG - Paranormal Romance".

@Melissa & Louise - The Color Purple is on the "pretty" list but I did not put that on the SS originally. I just added it to that column, but you may want to update the master SS.

SS is ready!

I vote for #3

I just finished the last letter/book for Hurghada Egypt. We still have three more places to visit before this traveling band dissolves.

Ladies - it looks like we will be done traveling after this trip😭 - see the following from the recent newsletter:

Around the World Challenge

After a lovely 5 years with lots of teams participating, and some still going strong, this self-directed team challenge will retire in 2022.

Do not fear! If your team is still working on a trip, you will of course be able to finish it, no matter how long it takes you, and new itineraries will be updated until 31st December. No new teams will be formed however.

A year-long challenge along the lines of this particular challenge will be available in 2022. So keep your eyes on the January newsletter for more information on that!

Melissa & Louise - I just noticed that our tracking spreadsheet is missing a column for "Y" - hate to get through this and be missing a letter🙄 - Yikes!

SS is ready for spell-out!

Spell-out for me too. I don't really have any books that fit the detour.

Thanksgiving was great - we survived 22 guests for dinner!

DQs - Day 3 - Chapter Nine - Twelve

10. We are about half way through the book now and I've been looking at the cover and trying to see how it fits with the story. The cover feels dark to me and so far I don't really feel that in the story. Do you feel like the cover fits the story?

It seems like it fits to me. It has a picture of London.

11. So the old fashioned booksellers in charge might feel the need to remove Susan if they find out her father is one of the Ancients. It seems like Merrihew and Thurston are not greatly respected in the Booksellers realm. How do you feel about them? Do you think they might be involved in what is happening to Susan?

They probably haven't needed their "old" skills in a long time and have lost interest and/or ability. They may step up.

12. We keep getting all these references to books, musical groups, and other pop culture from the 80's. Take for example this quote: "The ground floor facing the street was all floor-to-ceiling high windows, with a wonderful display of Umberto Eco's The Name of the Rose complete with a cardboard castle to the left of the central revolving door, and a selection of new release thrillers an mysteries built up in a series of pyramids in the window to the right, including John Le Carre's The Little Drummer Girl, Jeffery Archer's First Among Equals, and Ken Follett's On Wings of Eagles." That sentence is long and the following one is not much shorter. How do you feel about all of these references?

It's a story that includes booksellers so I would expect references to BOOKS.

13. In the last section Vivian gives Susan a steel knife and salt and tells her how to bind something to herself. Do you think she will have to bind something? Any idea who or what she will bind?

I'll have to keep reading to answer this question - hoe could I possibly know.

For planning purposes - looks like we may need more "F"s??

DQ's - Day 2 - CHAPTER 5 to CHAPTER 8

6. Merlin and Susan get pulled into the May Fair. "The happiness is unsettling, all the smiling and laughing". Was there a part of the fair that stuck out to you? And would YOU have noticed the colorless rose?

I thought the May Fair was rather creepy> I think it would be difficult to notice something colorless amidst all that color.

7. Susan seems to have some sort of powers of command, which we see with the wolf at the end of the fair, and hear more about at the end of Chapter 8. What are your guesses about her heritage? Do you have any new guesses about her father?

Her heritage is obviously connected to the magical world. And I still have no guesses about her father so I will keep reading

8. My favorite part of these chapters was reading about the New Bookstore and its contents. If you could spend time in there, what would you want to check out?

The books!

9. The grandmothers were interesting. Any thoughts about them? If I were one of the grandmothers, I'd totally be hanging out with my mastiff. What would you have keeping you company?

The grandmother(s) was interesting - multiple people in one "ghost" body? I certainly would not have an animal with me.

DQ'S DAY 1 - PROLOGUE - CHAPTER 4

1. I nominated this book because titles with libraries or books naturally draw me in and I've wanted to read a Garth Nix book for ages. What are your reasons for reading.. long term Garth Nix affectionado or "It's only about the points, baby"?

I am often drawn to books about libraries, booksellers, etc. I probably would have gotten to/found this book eventually so the points are a plus.

2. Wikipedia (The Oracle of quick searches about whatever and sometimes actually factual) defines a prologue as "Opening to a story that establishes the context and gives background details, often some earlier story that ties into the main one and other miscellaneous information." What have you learnt in this particular prologue that seems important to the story moving forward?

That I will probably like the book and want to read more....

3. Chapter 1 introduces us to our main protagonists in a scene filled with murder, fashion descriptions and a giant louse! First impressions of Merlin and Susan and any sign if they will be friends or enemies or maybe even frenemies ?

Friends - but Susan will be cautious.

4. Right handed and left handed booksellers policing multi layered worlds and realities. Set in 1983 London but the language and environment heavily leans on the Victorian Age. Are you comfortable with the preliminary world building, do you find it interesting and unique or same old same old in the YA fantasy genre?

I didn't notice that it was a YA book.

5. It seems someone is after Susan, probably because of her mysterious missing father. Who do you think he is and what maybe is his significance in this alternate world and to the plot in general?

I don't know who he is or his significance - therefore the reason to read the book....

Melissa wrote: "Spreadsheet is all caught up.

We've completed the White letters on cover and have filled 3 spots for the Mythology tag. I have 2 more books I can read for this round that will cover so that will l..."

The next book up for me is The Left-Handed Booksellers of London which has mythology tags.