Amy’s Comments (group member since Nov 02, 2015)

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

Happy Thanksgiving!! also checking in to say I'm still reading 😄

Checking in to say I'm still trucking along with my reading (slowly but surely)! I hope everyone's having a great weekend!

I really enjoyed Spark of the Everflame for the first round of the challenge. I had heard mixed reviews with some people saying it leans too YA, but I really liked the plot and it's set up well for book 2 because I just can't wait to see what happens next.

I also liked The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi a lot overall, but it definitely got pretty over the top towards the last 1/4 of the book where it was hard to follow all the stuff going on.

Teddie, drinker of the bitter invention of Satan wrote: "The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi has been on my TBR for a while too - are you doing the text or audio book?"

I'm reading it via text not the audiobook!

Way to go team!!

I'm happy to say my toddler's cold didn't last too long, so I've been able to read as much as normal (which still isn't a TON since I have a toddler lol).

Has anyone else read The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi? That's what I'm reading first in this challenge and so far it's SO good!

happy reading everyone! I'm off to a slow start today after taking care of a sick toddler all day, but I finally get to settle in now and start reading!

Hi everyone! I'm Amy, and I live in the Midwest with my husband, my 2.5 year old, our dog, and two cats. I also work from home which I LOVE because winters here are just awful, although I still have to get out of the house more now that I have a toddler.

I go through phases of reading one genre more than another and right now I'm reading a lot of romantasy, fantasy, and a little bit of myster/thriller. I also like historical fiction and contemporary romance!

Here is my shelf!
wheel2024

Thanks Deanna and team!! This was a fun challenge!!

I could read Lub Dub Love on KU

Done!

Deanna wrote: "Mini challenge is looking good team. I updated the tracking post above. If you have anything for the open spots or if you are listed for a book that you won't have time to finish please let me know..."

I don't have any strong preferences on what we protect but admittedly I have a hard time wrapping my head around the strategy for the resources 😅

DQs Day 5 — ch 24-end

18. Jack and Lucy have an emotional discussion about dreams — and how giving up on dreams can be a relief as it’s one less thing to worry about. Do you think there’s any truth in this? Can giving up on a dream ever bring relief?
I think this is a very good observation and definitely true in many cases. Sometimes our dreams may be too unrealistic or put more weight on our shoulders than we even realize, and it can be a relief to just live in the moment and do what we can to enjoy our lives without putting expectations on ourselves of how things should be or how we want them to be.

19. We finally got to meet Angie and learn her side of the story! Were you surprised by what she had to say? If you were Lucy, do you think you would be able to forgive her after hearing her side?
I had a feeling there was probably going to be a reconciliation and a backstory to Angie acting the way she did when she was technically a child at the time of their big falling out, too. I would forgive someone in that situation as you can tell she has done the work through therapy to realize where she went wrong and why it was so difficult for her growing up trying to keep her parents attention, too. I do wish she would have focused a little more on Lucy than on her own trauma (just in the sense of explaining her mean words) but I can understand that.

20. Lucy mentions that she and Jack are planning to start a nonprofit to send books to foster children, but just as she’s about to say the prospective name, she gets cut off. Why do you think the author chose to leave that out? What name do you think the author had in mind, if any?
I feel like I missed this somehow.

21. In the end, even though the contest ended unlike how any of them predicted, everyone still got their wish. Since this book is all about wishing — is there anything you wish was different about the way the book ended, or are you happy with how it all wrapped up?
I enjoyed how the book ended, and I was smiling so much during the last couple of chapters. I kind of assumed going into it that Jack was looking for someone to live on Clock Island since he may not be there forever, but I wasn't really expecting him to be trying to get Hugo to stay as well through brining Lucy - I didn't love that aspect 100%, I would have liked it better if Hugo chose to stay and Jack was surprised, but I guess it's more realistic that Jack had his hand in it, too. While the book definitely feels a little bit "too" happy in the end with everything falling so perfectly into place, I can't say I minded it because I do love a good happy ending to a story!

This will definitely be a tough mini!! I have a couple books I could read that are #2 or #3 in a series for sure, but I also could pick up some later books from the Sherlock Holmes series if they would count? There are 9 books in the series it looks like. A Study in Scarlet

I also have a couple old series I've read that I could just pick up later books in the series to reread again since they aren't too long. Private I'll wait to see what everyone else is thinking!

DQ's Day 4 Ch. 18-23

14. Lucy's winning streak comes to an end and she loses the riddle to Melanie. How do you think this is going to affect her and the way she is playing the game? Do you think she still has a chance to win? What do you think she is going to have to face as far as her fear?
I do still think she has a chance to win, especially since I think the last game will basically be enough points for whoever wins that to be the overall winner, but I do think it brings you down a lot when you start off strong and then realiez you're all still on the same playing field. Knowing Jack said something about someone arriving to the island, I imagine her sister may be there to be her biggest fear - I've been wondering if her sister has grown up and felt bad about how things have been for Lucy in the past and will be ready to acknowledge that. I can't imagine it being her parents coming to the island, but I could be wrong!

15. Jack's riddle comes back again "Two men on an island and both blame the water...". We find out what it means in this section. How awful for him to see 'fan' letters that depict children going through such terrible things and how horrible for those poor children begging for help. Jack tried to help this girl and it ended with the worst possible outcome. Do you think Jack should have done something different? How would you have reacted if you were Jack?
That is a truly terrifying situation all around. I'm not sure what else he could have done exactly other than choosing his words more carefully and potentially traveling to where the child lived to talk to authorities there - or maybe her mother?

16. We also learn why Jack started writing his Clock Island books and the life he faced as a child. Does this change your opinion on Jack in any way?
I can't say my opinion changed much as I imagined that Jack had his own tough childhood which is why he was writing children books the way he did and he has a definite soft spot for children who are struggling or in abusive/neglectful homes.

17. Lucy learns that Christopher is going to be going to a new foster home and tries to leave the island but Hugo stops her. We also learn more about Lucy's past. Each person seems to have gone through some terrible event in their lives and these books have helped them through it. Do you believe books have that power? Are there any books as a child or an adult that have helped you through a tough time in your life?
I remember really connecting with childrens stories while I was growing up and putting myself in the shoes of the boys and girls that were getting to go on these magical adventures. I think books have the power to help in so many ways from giving people an escape from their own reality to giving people hope or ideas on how they want to live their lives going forward - sometimes it's just a hard balance coming back to reality.

DQs Day 3, Chapters 12 - 17:

10. We read something that moves us, touches us, speaks to us and it... it changes us?"
Do you agree with that quote? Are there any books that changed you personally?
I do agree with that quote. Books can open our eyes (whether we notice it or not) to different ideas, perspectives, and the complexities of life. I don't have one book in particular that has changed me, but overall the books I read almost all have probably had a little bit of an impact on me growing as a person - whether that's seeing myself in another character and acknolwedging my own flaws or communication style or if it's just something that I want to replicate in my own life, I think there are countless times I probably don't realize I'm learning things from my books and applying them to my own subconscious mind.

11. We finally get the first riddle. Did you guess it before Lucy did?
Yes, I guess this one right away! To be fair though, it was a riddle my coworkers and I had heard a few years ago, and I'm pretty sure it took me a LOT longer to guess the riddle then. It especially helps seeing the words written out, so it's easier to connect the dots. I think hearing it explained out loud was harder for my brain to comprehend.

12. What did you think of The City of Secondhand and of Markham showing up like that? Is he just a sleezy lawyer, or is there something more sinister going on?
I liked that there were more things from Jack's books that are popping up in real life on the island. I think there's probably more to Markham than just being a lawyer (maybe he knew Jack??), but overall I felt like it was odd for such a secluded place to randomly have a lawyer popping up and sending notes under people's doors without being noticed.

13. do you have to keep reminding yourself that the "contestants" are adults, not children?
I don't necessarily view them as all children still, but they definitely seem barely 20s vs some of them being 30+?

DQs Day 2 Chapter 6 - 11

6. Jack replied to Lucy's letter and Lucy decided to run away from home. What did you think of his letter and would you have done the same as Lucy?
I liked his letter to Lucy, and I feel like it gives an extra look into Jack's personality and how he must have his own past as a child that makes him want to help other children not feel so alone. I was not the type of kid to have thoughts of running away from home (even when I myself might have felt lonely), so that's not something I could ever see myself doing!

7. We get more insights on Clock Island. Every 'hour' is its own section like for example a beach. Would you like to visit the island? Do you find the idea of it fascinating or could you not care less?
Of course! It sounds like a fairytale type of place to me with some mystery thrown in. I would have loved to visit that as a child or now as an adut.

8. Every part starts with a quote from Jack's book. Do you think these parts are important for the story? Just showing off Jack's work? Something else?
I do think they're important aspects to include in the book and helps give an idea of what Lucy and other kids were reading about as children and why they connected with it, and it also gives a deeper look at possibly Jack's own history or what he's trying to convey through his stories.

9. It seems like there will be a deeper connection between Lucy and Hugo. Do you agree? And would you approve of it given that Hugo had first met her when she was still a child?
It gives me a bit of a sour feeling thinking about them meeting when Lucy was just thirteen. Obviously he had no interest in her at that age, which I'm glad about, but it's still weird having flashbacks to what she was like at 13 and then finding her attractive now. I don't mind the age gap in general, but it does add a weirdness having met before and she was infatuated with him.

Day 1
1. We have been introduced to a few important characters - Lucy, Christopher, and Hugo. Plus the off-page persona of Jack. What do you think of the characters so far?
I find all of the characters interesing so far. I'm curious to learn more about all of them, and I'm wondering if we'll get more backstory on them all (I hope we get a lot more). I do feel like Lucy feels a lot younger to me than 26 though. She seems to act a little clueless to the realities of life even though she's been through some tough things herself. While I love that she loves Christopher so much, it's surprising to me she doesn't understand why it's not feasible for her to take over his care completely right now. It might not seem fair, but it's very logical that no one would want to let someone foster/adopt a child when they're not stable. I'm hoping to see a character progression with her and that there's meaning behind making her seems so naïve at this point in the book.

2. We get a riddle right away in the Prologue:

"Two men on an island and both blame the water
for the loss of a wife and the death of a daughter
but neither ever married, and neither's a father.
What is the secret of the girls and the water?"

Then Hugo thinks to himself that "Five years ago, it [the ocean] had brought low the small, strange kingdom of Clock Island." Do you think the riddle is related to what happened five years ago? Any speculations on what it all means, assuming you haven't read ahead?
I thought right away that there has to be more to that riddle that ties in with Huge and Jack's actual history. I'm wondering if the "death" of a daughter doesn't mean an actual death but something that feels like that to a person?

3. At the beginning of Chapter Two, Hugo says that he used to dream about living in Greenwich Village, but now that he can actually afford it, it doesn't hold the same appeal. He basically says that success kills motivation. Do you agree with this statement? Why or why not?
I can't relate to this feeling at all, so it's hard for me to comprehend. I get that he has a lot of guilt on his conscience that we don't know everything about, so maybe there's something more there that makes it make sense.

4. What do you think of the wishing game Lucy plays with Christopher? Do you think this game and mindset are healthy? Do you agree with Lucy that it gives them hope, or do you agree with the social worker that it just gets their hopes up?
I see where Lucy's heart is coming from with this wishing game. A part of me feels like Lucy sees a lot of herself in Christopher and she's trying to be the person she needed growing up for him, but she also seems stunted in that mindset and hasn't quite evolved enough to realize that hope is always important to have, but there has to be a balance of hope/wishing with reality.

5. Why do you think Jack finally started writing again? And what might be his motive in holding a contest for the only copy of the new book?
I wondered if he is hoping to find someone to help take over the island when he passes on someday. I don't have any thoughts yet on why he's hosting a contest for it, but I'm definitely curious!

Thanks, Deanna!

Agreed, I think those endings would be the hardest to find. I found some books that started with "Llewellyn" but couldn't find as much for NCE, so maybe that one is the best bet? Otherwise I would vote for whichever book sounds most interesting to the reader!?

I found Estelle on KU