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

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

DQs: December 6th
Beer Buckets and Baby Jesus
27. What do you think of Vaughn's pranks? Do you find them funny throughout the story? Could you relate to the way he thinks - like everything is just a step away from a disaster to happen?
He pretty much explained why he did them at the end of the story. I felt bad for hiim.

28. I've noticed that the stories in the book have some kind of continuity regarding fathers and them leaving. Did you get a similar feeling too? What do you think why Vaughn's dad left and what do you think of his mom and how she is handling the whole situation?
I didn't notice and I think it's probably just a coincidence. But it's pretty common in real life and I think Vaughn and his mom's behavior are not out of the ordinary.

29. In my opinion, the quick love-to-be between Vaughn and Gracie felt a bit rushed. Do you feel the same way or do you have a different opinion? Do you think they go together well as a couple and why?
Well, it is a short story. Also, teenagers fall in and out of love quickly anyways.

30. During the reading, I also wondered how kind was Gracie's dad, the pastor, to Vaughn. What do you think was the course of his actions, do you think it was really just out of kindness as Gracie pointed out? Overall, how did you 'experience' the pastor? Did he seem like an actual pastor?
I liked the pastor and thought he was the one out of the ordinary! So often it's the religious leaders who are judgmental so it was refreshing to read about someone who lived as they preached.

Welcome to Christmas, CA
31. Would you like to live in a town like Christmas? If yes/no, why?
No - it sounds depressing.

32. What do you think you would be if you were a food?
Some type of chocolate

33. Did you expect Rick acting this way and saving money so Maria could go to college?
No, that was a nice surprise

34. Personally, I really liked Maria as a character - especially when she helped Candy so much. What did you think of her?
She seemed sweet.

35. What part of Christmas is your favorite?
Finding gifts for my family.

DQs Days 5

Krampuslauf
22. Krampuslauf is an unusual holiday festivity. Does your community and/or country have unusual holiday traditions and/or festivals?
Just Holiday in the Park where a main street is shut down to traffic and stores stay open late.

23. Penny and Silke were given the opportunity to decide if Roth was going to be punished. Penny showed more compassion with wanting Grieselda to punish him like Krampus would. What did you think about Roth being turned into a donkey?
I'm not sure why they chose a donkey and I just wondered if he'd stay that way.

24. Joachim told Hanna that his people are often beseeched for favors, but seldom invited to share feasts. When he offered her a gift, Hanna wanted to never forget that there’s magic in the world. Why do you think she wanted that?
I don't know? Maybe she just wanted to remember a special night?

What the Hell Have You Done, Sophie Roth

25. Sophie is having a hard time adjusting to college life. Having to say “just kidding” and wondering what she has done this time. Do you think she misread situations? No, I think she's just from somewhere else and is adjusting to a new way of life with people different from what she knows. She's young and I wouldn't expect her to be able to read situations so well yet.

26. Russell said the only constant in his life was the Simpsons. I feel when he was talking about his grandmother that she is a constant too, regardless of the amount of time he could spend with her. Is there something or someone that is a constant in your life that helps keep you grounded?
No

Redneck Romeo
Author: Lorelei James
Pages: 403
Completed: 12/6/18

Mini-challenge;
#3 - Read a book with a brown cover between 301 and 500 pages

R - title Redneck

A - character - Aurora
C - character - Caspar
R - character - Rory
T - character - Tell

Billionaire Untamed ~ Tate
Author: J.S. Scott
Pages: 210
Completed: 12/5/18

Mini-challenge
#18 - read a book where the character has a dog who was a stray/came from the shelter
- Tate is given a stray dog by his sister-in-law

T/C - character - Tate Colter
S - author - JS Scott
A - character - Aileen

14. We are halfway through. Do you have a favourite of the stories so far? Is there one you are particularly looking forward to reading?
No - they are all pretty bad so far! I'm suffering through the rest of the stories and would DNF this book if it wasn't points for WAT!

It's a yuletide miracle

15. Marigold's apartment was a suprise. Have you ever lived somewhere with things piled up around you like that or where you had boxes unpacked for months?
Yes! I still have stuff in boxes in the garage from my last move 10 years ago!

16. I thought this story had a nice style. Have you read any books by Stephanie Perkins? What did you think?
I've never heard of her before. Not my style.

17. I was trying to picture Asheville in my mind and ended up doing some google-ing. Have you ever been there or somewhere like it?
No, I've never been.

Your temporary Santa

18. This story was the most unusual for me. I felt like there was a lot more going on than what I understood (like the nasty sister and the strange interaction with the mum in the hallway). But I find that a lot with Levithan books! How about you?
I got the impression the dad used to dress up as Santa. I haven't read anything else by this author.

19. I like how he is Jewish and his parents gave him the story about Santa and how "you can wave to him as he flies past if you want". Did your parents have any unusual Christmas stories or traditions?
No, just the regular 'get to bed early and wait for Santa and then get up early to open presents.'

20. Did you ever see Santa? When did you stop believing?
No, never saw him. I don't remember when I stopped believing.

Decoration or Dishonor?
Author: Don Corzine
Pages: 212
Completed: 12/4/18

Bonus - "decoration" in title

C - author - Don Corzine
D - title - Decoration
S - character - Sam
R - character - Riley

DQs 2

Angels in the Snow

8. Shy puts up a good front that everything is just fine when he is actually starving and lonely. Haley's invitation to dinner seems to be exactly what he needs. Why do you think he is making choices that are clearly making him miserable?
I kept wondering that same thing and it was never explained. Possibly something his dad passed on to him?

9. Haley asks Shy about his meals, invites him to dinner, and then brings muffins which she puts straight into the refrigerator without giving Shy a chance to stop her. Do you think she suspects that he doesn't have any food? What did you think of her solution of fixing dinner and then dragging him up to her apartment to eat it?
I don't know if Haley suspected Shy didn't have any food, but I thought it was weird to put a plate of muffins in the refrigerator - who likes a cold, dried-out muffin? I did like that she took the initiative to drag him up to dinner.

10. In the end, it turns out that Haley wasn't completely honest, and she confesses her deception to Shy. What do you think initially motivated her to deceive him? Why is she telling him the truth now?
I think she was interested in Shy so she made up the water thing, but also kept her boyfriend in the picture as an out in case she didn't end up liking Shy.

Polaris Is Where You'll Find Me

11. Given that Natalie has lived at the North Pole since she was a baby, did you find it odd that she seemed so completely alone at the party and separate from the elves?
No, since she is the only human - basically she is different from everyone else and feels alone.

12. What did you think of Santa as a dad: the dress, the dance, the fact he can't be lied to?
That would be tough growing up with that!!

13. The end of the story was really open ended. Do you think Flynn is right that she will go away someday and stop believing or do you think she will stay at the North Pole?
I wondered if this had happened before (Santa bringing an orphan to grow up with him) and then the child growing up and forgetting everything (possibly by Santa's magic.)

I've struggled through four of the stories so far - this book is not improving!! What did you guys think?

Regarding the first story in this book - was anyone else yucked out when Mags shoves a bunch of Chex Mix in her mouth and then Noel shows up and gives her a kiss (and I didn't even remember about the allergies) - I'm just thinking about kissing someone with all those little pieces of Chex in their mouth.

DQ's - Dec 1

Midnights
1. Mags and Noel meet at a New Years Eve party and we read dialogue from 4 consecutive celebrations. To me, it’s pretty obvious Noel is interested in more than a ‘friendship’ relationship with Mags. What are your thoughts about why Mags is so reluctant?
I think she is socially awkward

2. Not sure, but Noel appears to have some experience with other girls…Natalie, Amy, Alicia…while Mags doesn’t interact with other boys. What’s keeping Mags from other boys and if Noel really likes Mags why is he kissing/dating other girls?
Again, she is young and socially awkward

3. It seems that Noel is really the one open to different things and specifically change vs Mags who appears likes things status quo. One quote ’everything was the same and everything was different’… what does this mean to you?
I have no idea - this story made no sense to me other than Mags seemed to be a girl with no confidence.

The Lady and the Fox
4. The man (Fenny) is outside standing still…in the trees always at Christmas, always in the snow… What do you think about this man? He says he’s where he’s supposed to be…he’s only allowed to come when it shows…why do you think he’s supposed to be there?
Possibly time travel


5. Fenny gives Miranda the Fox Damask from his coat as a present and she fixes it so the fox is no longer chained and returns it to him one year later, again as a present. Is this ‘fox’ magic? Would he have been able to be free of the lady had this not occurred do you think?
No I don't think the fox is magic as he still had to go back after she gave it to him.

6. The fact that Miranda’s mother is in jail is one aspect of this story that requires ‘imagination’. What does her mother have in common with Finny (the man in the snow) and/or the lady? Do you think her mother is really in jail in Thailand?
I don't know what the significance of the mother in jail in Thailand was other than it made it so Miranda spent her holidays with this family.

7. The book was written in a ‘different’ style. If you were going to put a label on the style, what would you call it and why? Does Link’s style remind you on another author you’ve read…if so, who?
I'm not sure about a different style - it was just strange and I did not enjoy it either. 0 for 2!!!

Laura wrote: "SandyL wrote: "Sounds good - I should be done with decoration in the title book tonight and BOM tomorrow."

Which is your favorite short story in the BOM so far?"

I just started it and the first one is pretty bad!!!!

Sounds good - I should be done with decoration in the title book tonight and BOM tomorrow.

Two by Two
Author: Nicholas Sparks
Pages: 512
Completed: 12/4/18

Mini-challenge
Pg 216 "I made a quick dinner; chicken, rice, glazed carrots, and a salad,"

N - author - Nicholas Sparks

E - character - Emily
R - character - Russ
S - author - Nicholas Sparks
T - character - Joey Taglieri

Geri wrote: "Sandy, I know you love KA. I am making my way through Dream Man series. I loved, loved, LOVED Law Man! But now I am reading Motorcycle Man and UGH! I just can’t warm up to Kane. KA really can write..."

Yes, Kane can be a jerk, but, like all her books, it ends well. It's the precursor to her Chaos series, so the biker aspect is a bit different than her other books. If you want to borrow any let me know since I own almost all of them.

I did like I Flipping Love You, but not as much as the first two in the series. I was listening to the audio and it didn't hold my attention as well. But I still love HH's books! And I'm guessing there will be one with Lawson which I'll enjoy reading!

I found a couple of books with "decoration" in the title (I'm assuming since we can use plurals we can go the opposite and drop the s, right?) Neither one looks particularly good, so I'll do my best to finish one of them, but no guarantees! 😁

A Cotswold Christmas
Author: Kate Hewitt
Pages: 162
Completed: 12/3/18

Bonus - "festive" - alternate word as genre

A - character - Anna
C - character - Colin

I Flipping Love You
Author: Helena Hunting
Pages: 320
Completed: 12/3/18

Mini-challenge
#27 - belt on cover

I - title - I

R/S - character - Rian Sutter

How was everybody's weekend? My sister left on a Caribbean cruise (I'm so jealous) so I've got her dog (a yappy puggle) and cat (who needs twice daily medication) here, added to my menagerie. They are sweet, but one of my dogs is being a butt-head, so I need to keep the dogs separate, and my cat won't come inside now. Oh well....it's just a week!

Karen ⊰✿ wrote: "Sure - it is here, but there are goals not on there as we haven't updated it in a bit :o

P.s
Modern History is 1500 - 1969
Post Modern is 1973–present"

I can't help myself - what's the period of 1969-1973???

The Ending I Want
Author: Samantha Towle
Pages: 467
Completed: 12/2/18

mini-challenge
#15 - four items of clothing within text (40 pts)
Pg 34 -" I get out the clothes I packed in my carry-on - clean panties, bra, leggings and tank-top - and dress in them."

#13 - characters get on a plan
Pg 255 "I climb up the little stepladder and into the plane..."

T - author - Samantha Towle

A - character - Archie
C - character - Cam
E - character - Eddie
S - author - Samantha Towle