SandyL’s Comments (group member since May 11, 2015)

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

I'm also a mood reader, but I'm also doing other challenges. I try to find books that will work with more than one challenge and many get categories called weekly, so I don't know what I'll need to read for them ahead of time.

I am making a list of potential books I want to read, though - especially longer ones!

Sounds good @Donna

Are you feeling better @Donna?

How are you feeling today @Donna?

Oh no, Donna!!! I hope you feel better soon. I hope you have someone to wait on your so you can take it easy.

Cait S wrote: "I just finished Pop Goes the Weasel and now I'm reading The Gray Wolf Throne.

One of my most anticipated books of the year turned out to be terrible and it put me i..."

Have you tried re-reading a book you really love? That often helps me.

Happy weekend everyone!! Any fun plans? Not much here - I think my nephew is coming over to swim, I've got some cleaning and other errands to do, and of course, reading. It's supposed to be really hot today and tomorrow here, so mostly taking it easy.

It looks great - thanks Navi, Donna and Lexi!!

Hi fellow Acedias! I'm Sandy and I live in southern California. I've done several TT's before and it's a lot of fun! I do taxes, so my work is seasonal and I won't be working during this challenge (although I do have a bunch of continuing education I need to get done.) I'm divorced with no kids, but I have two fur puppies as well as a cat and a half. I read mostly romance, but I'll read other stuff for challenges. I've started looking for longer books, and I'm going to try to find several for sin bingos.

Thanks again ladies!!! Now I just need a way to stop looking for letters when I'm reading my books! 😍 Happy rest of the summer to everyone and thanks for being a great team!!

Hey Greenies!!

It's been awesome reading with you all - and I really, really want to thank you all for sticking with it. You don't know how many times, and how frustrating it is, when someone just disappears!! (Hint - if you are ever doing a team challenge you can't finish please just say something to the captain or mods to let them know!)

@Melinda - back at you! You did most of the work, so THANK YOU SO MUCH!!! With the time differences you guys were up and at it long before I even woke up and I appreciate you keeping things on track first thing in the day, Melinda.

I'm working on one more book and I'll get everything logged and posted and get us checked in today by the deadline. I'll let you all know when that's done. I think we'll have a nice week on our points with all the reading you've all done for our final push!

I know Melinda - it's a mixed blessing. I'm behind on my SRC challenge books so, although I'll miss reading with you all, having more flexibility in what I read will be nice! I just finished a book and am in the middle of an audio book - I'll have time for one or two more depending on the length.

Completion Post


This Is How It Always Is by Laurie Frankel
Pages: 336
Completed: 8/6/19
Genre: No

C - character - Claude
R - character - Rosie

BOM - https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...


Dream a Little Dream by Susan Elizabeth Phillips
Pages: 404
Completed: 8/6/19
Genre: Yes

C - series - Chicago Stars
E - character - Ethan
R/S - character - Rachel Stone

Day 5
Novice - End
21. As Rosie battles the crisis of being a doctor in a hospital in the middle of a jungle with less than enough resources at hand, Claude/Poppy is thrust into a school to teach English to the kids there, which are very different from what she is used to - much simpler, maybe. If you had an opportunity to go to a place like that, would you take it? Do you think it would be life-changing for you? If yes/no, why?
When I was younger, maybe.

22. What did you think of the ending? Did you think Aggie and Poppy would make up? What about Penn selling his fairytale - do you think that is a story that you would read yourself or would read to your children, about Grumwald who was a prince and a princess at the same time?
I liked that Penn was able to turn his fairytale into something he could publish.

23. I especially liked the end chapter where his/her story is drawn out, a metaphor for everything Poppy went through. Did you think it was a good addition to the book? And what about the moral: 'story is the best magic there is'. Do you agree/disagree?
I did like it - it gave hope to having a good ending.

24. All in all, did you enjoy the book? How would you rate it?
I liked it and rated it 4 stars.

Day 4 - Who Knows? - Aid Ambiguous


16. Throughout the book Penn has used fairy tales to explore the issues in their lives. Did you enjoy this approach?
Yes.


17. All 4 boys admitted to telling Poppy's secret. Were you surprised by this? And how did you feel when it was later revealed how Poppy was outed?
I wasn't surprised that it came out and I was really sad to find out how it actually happened, but also glad for the boys that their part of telling the secret wasn't the cause.


18. Up to this point I really enjoyed the scenes with Mr. Tongo. What did you think of his guidance to Penn and Rosie? Do you believe that by sheltering Poppy they hindered her development?
I don't believe they sheltered Poppy as much as they think they did. Poppy decided herself to keep her secret but we all know it had to come out sometime.


19. On the one hand we have Penn enthusiastically researching vaginoplasty for Poppy's future, but on the other we have Rosie more along the lines of making decisions based on the present. Considering that Poppy is only 10 and taking into account the events leading up to this discussion, which side did you most agree with?
I do think that if they had to start making decisions in the next couple of years they should have started to have some basic discussions with Poppy about what was ahead.


20. Unexpectedly Rosie decided to work at the clinic in Thailand and to take Claude/Poppy with her. Did you think this was the right thing to do for Claude/Poppy? For her family?
At first I thought she was just running away again (like she did from WI, although with good reason.)

DQs Day 3 - Everyone Who? - Hedge Enemies

11. The description of them unpacking - pictures on wall first - is so true to me: pictures on the wall, books on shelves and the rest can wait. Do you unpack like that? More widely, did you enjoy the information about the family settling into the new neighbourhood?
I haven't unpacked anything in so long I can't remember.

12. Rosie is having difficulties settling into the new job, and the senior partner's slightly wonky (but oh-so-real) view about how flexible working actually functions. Do you enjoy that Frankel is bringing in adult life issues wider than just parenting a trans kid?
I think Frankel is a dick!

13. Roo.... poor Roo. What did you think about his video project when you first read about it? How did you feel by the end of the section? Any thoughts on how Roo's story will pan out?
I was confused about how Roo would make a project of this type and figured he was acting out because of the move.

14. The last chapter has a discussion about gender pay equality, and Rosie realises that Poppy had no idea about this, and wonders if they have done her a disservice by sheltering her too much from equality issues. Do you agree? Do you think it's realistic that Poppy wouldn't know?
She's a little kid and her mom was the breadwinner in the family, so I don't think it was something that had ever been an issue in her family.

15. I find the narrator's voice slightly odd: it veers from a high-level view down into intimate POV, and chucks in a whole load of Ominous Warnings of Impending Doom. Are you enjoying the writing style?
I had a hard time getting used to the writing style - I can't say I enjoyed it.

DQs Day 2: Maybe to Rival Neighbor Princess

6.) The adults in this book have a wide range of reactions to Claude. You have the fun Mr. Tongo, the principle, Victoria Revels, Miss Appleton, the gun totting Nick, the horrible Cindy (who risks a kid's life like that!?!) and their reactions to Claude vary drastically. Thinking about these characters, I keep going back to the quote "At home Claude is loved no matter what. At school, sometimes it feels the opposite: you are not loved no matter what."
What do you think about this quote, is it true? What does the reactions of the older kids and adults versus the younger kids say about society?
For Claude it was accurate because his family did love him no matter what. That's not true for a lot of people though. And the second part about school is definitely true (as well as plenty of other places besides school.)

7.) In this section we learn where the title comes from. Do you agree with Penn's statement?
I;ve finished the book and don't remember this part.

8.) Claude chooses his new name, and as new names are wont to do, a new identity. Were you surprised at his choice? Do you think it was a good choice? Or a foreshadow of danger ahead?
I think it was a sweet choice.

9.) Do you agree with Rosie's decision to move the family? Do you think problems will crop up with Roo in their new home with how attached he was to life in WI?
There are problems everywhere, so yes. But I don't think she had a choice - she would never feel her family was safe in WI after the incidents.

10.) What are your thoughts are keeping Claude/Poppy's gender secret in their new home? How do you think the truth will come out? When it does, what do you think will happen to Poppy?
I think this is a trainwreck waiting to happen.

Day 1: Start - Halloween

1. Did you have any preconcieved ideas about this book before you started, what where they?
No.

2. Rosie shares with us the continued pursuit of having a daughter and possibly having a version of her little sister Poppy in that daughter, what was your reaction to that?
I thought it was normal but sad.

3. What do you think of Rosie and Penn's parenting style so far?
I think they do a great job!

4. I'm loving grandma, she doesn't even blink twice when Claude wants a bikini; what do you think would help Claude most, letting him wear bikini and dress in public or restricting him to only wear those at home?
I think letting him be who he is helped him the most.

5. It breaks my heart when Penn shows Rosie the drawings Claude has made of the family, where he is getting smaller with every drawing. What should they do?
Since I've finished the book, they did the right thing in letting Claude be who he was.

Planning sheet updated to here

Completion Post


Kulti by Mariana Zapata
Pages: 572
Completed: 8/3/19
Genre: Yes

E - character - Eric
R - character - Reiner
C/S - character - Sal Casillas


Quarterback Draw by Jaci Burton
Pages: 309
Completed: 8/4/19
Genre: Yes

C - character - Grant Cassidy
Q - title - Quarterback
R - character - Liz Reilly
S - character - Savannah



One Baby Daddy by Meghan Quinn
Pages: 364
Completed: 8/5/19
Genre: Yes

C - character - Calder
Q - author - Meghan Quinn
R - character - Rachel
S - narrator - Aiden Snow