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(group member since Aug 04, 2010)
Deedee’s
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from the Reading with Style group.
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Rebekah wrote: "This might explain the task I chose. See, here in the Smokey Mountains, we have talking animals. Also the bears talk with an accent that sounds similar to an Irish accent. 😹https://m.facebook.com/..."
So funny! I feel for that mama bear!
Task 10.3 -- 9, 10, 11Read a book where any of the author's names begins with the 9th, 10th or 11th letter of the alphabet (I, J, K).
Kate Quinn was Born in Long Beach, CA, The United States
The Alice Network (2017) by Kate Quinn (Paperback 503 pages)
+10 Task
+10 Combo (#10.2 born USA; #20.9 (initials: K. Q.))
+05 Jumbo 500-699 Pages:
Task Total: 10 + 10 + 05 = 25
Grand Total: 205 + 25 = 230
Thanks for the recommendations! I've read several of your suggestions already (J.R.R. Tolkien's trilogy, Watership Down, and Book 1 of the Landover Series, Books 1-2: Magic Kingdom for Sale - Sold!; The Black Unicorn). I'll have to check out Watchers :)
Found a new-to-me book where the animals talk. I haven't read it yet (I have it on reserve at the library), but it does have potential.The Animals in That Country (2020) by Laura Jean McKay
a debut novel that has been nominated or won the following awards:
Arthur C. Clarke Award (2021)
Miles Franklin Literary Award Nominee, Longlist (2021)
Ditmar Award Nominee, Best Novel (2021)
Aurealis Award, Best Science Fiction Novel (2020)
The Kitschies Nominee, Golden Tentacle (Debut) (2020)
The Stella Prize Nominee (2021)
The Stella Prize is one of the awards listed for Eyes on the Prize Redux
It won't work for Miles Franklin Literary Award Nominee as it is on the Longlist, not the Shortlist
I hesitated to make this post because I haven't read the book yet and while it might be amazing, it might also be a dud. There are very few adult novels that fit this task so it caught my eye, and I'm passing it along .......
Task 10.9 NFL (Anika's Task)Read a book set at least 75% in any of these cities which have a professional football team.
Novel set entirely in New York City.
The Rainbow (1974) by Pearl S. Buck (Hardback 256 pages)
A humorous aside – The Rainbow was first published in 1974. The main character’s name: Henry Potter – almost Harry Potter LOL.
+10 Task
+05 Oldies -25 to 75 years old: 5 points (1947-1997)
Task Total: 10 + 05 = 15
Grand Total: 170 + 15 = 185
Task 20.2 KingRead any debut novel.
The Space Between the Stars (2017) by Anne Corlett (Goodreads Author) (Hardcover 368 pages)
Review: The Space Between the Stars is Anne Corlett’s debut novel. According to goodreads, it is her only published novel to date. The novel had potential but, in my opinion, the potential was unrealized.
The Space Between the Stars is science fiction, set a few centuries in the future. Mankind has started spreading to nearby star systems. Then, a particularly virulent epidemic hits, killing 99% of all humans. Our heroine is one of the 1% of survivors.
I’ll start with what I liked: the characters. Most were sympathetic, and all had flaws as well as virtues. What I didn’t like: the coincidences – I can roll with one or two but there were too many. I also was irritated by the whole outer space aspect. The novel, as written, could have taken place completely on Earth, with an ocean-going ship (like the late Titanic) instead of a spaceship. The different planets in the novel were like Earth islands. The human culture was identical from planet to planet, as was gravity, food production, and the environment. If there isn’t going to be a variation between planets, why set it in outer space? Just set it on Earth, and go forward with the story of the survivors.
Overall, the novel was OK. I wouldn’t recommend it, as there are better novels in print handling the same kind of story as this one.
+20 Task
+05 Combo (#20.9 Alphabetical Order)
+10 Review
Task Total: 20 + 05 + 10 = 35
Grand Total: 135 + 35 = 170
And, just as an aside, I’ve now read 3 books in a row with nobody eating soup!!
Task 20.10 Birthday (Elizabeth (Alaska's) TaskRead any book whose original publication year is 2 consecutive digits.
Publication year: 2006
Heroine Eden Moore is described as ‘biracial’. It was a major plot point in the first book of the series that her mother was African-American while her father was white. In this book, the second in the series, Eden being biracial is mentioned in passing, blink and you’ll miss it.
Wings to the Kingdom (Eden Moore #2) (2006) by Cherie Priest (Goodreads Author) (Paperback 399 pages)
+20 Task
+15 Combo (#10.4 Series; #20.1 person of color; #20.9 Alphabetic order)
Task Total: 20 + 15 = 35
Grand Total: 100 + 35 = 135
Task 10.9 NFL (Anika's Task)Chrysta was born and raised in the Los Angeles Metropolitan area.
Normal Family: On Truth, Love, and How I Met My 35 Siblings (2022) by Chrysta Bilton (Goodreads Author) (Hardcover 288 pages) [176.209]
Review: Normal Family is a memoir of Chrysta’s childhood. She was a donor-conceived child of a lesbian mother. Unlike the majority of donor-conceived children, Chrysta’s mother Debra knew Chrysta’s father. Debra chose him because he was handsome, artistic, and from a high-achieving family. She convinced him to go to a clinic and make his deposit, with insemination happening later that day. Four years later, Debra conceived a second child with the same man, outside of the clinic and with the help of a turkey baster. Chrysta’s homelife was very unstable. Every few months to few years, Debra changed romantic partners. Additionally, Debra’s finances veered from millionaire to living in her car. Somehow Chrysta and her sister survived to adulthood, and became functioning adults. (Therapy helped a lot with that.) Then, surprise!, Chrysta discovers that her father had a side business of donations to the Clinic, spanning several years. With the advent of 23andMe and other consumer DNA companies, donor-conceived people are discovering their half-siblings. As of this book going to press, 35 of her father’s other children have contacted Chrysta. There are probably more half-siblings in existence who haven't contacted Chrysta.
Most of the book was about Chrysta’s remembrance of her unconventional upbringing. I would have liked more details about the whole donor-conceived processes. Despite that, I would recommend this book.
+10 Task
+10 Review
Task Total: 10 + 10 = 20
Grand Total: 80 + 20 = 100
Task 15.2 EotP ReduxLadies of Horror Fiction Award (winners and nominees)
2021 Nominee for Best Novel
Cackle (2021) by Rachel Harrison
+15 Task
Task Total: 15
Grand Total: 65 + 15 = 80
Task 15.1 EotP ReduxJerusalem Prize (Israel, international laureates) 2019
Joyce Carol Oates (United States)
The Falls (2004) by Joyce Carol Oates
+15 Task
+05 500 pages or more (the MPE version is 512 pages)
Task Total: 15 + 05 = 20
Grand Total: 45 + 20 = 65
Alive! is set in the Los Angeles metropolitan area -- which includes Hollywood and UCLA. Would that work? Even if most of it is in Hollywood? Thanks
Task 20.1 JemisinRead any book whose main character is a person of color.
This memoir was written by Ann Mah. Her parents immigrated to California from China. Ann was born and raised in California. She is of Chinese ancestry.
Mastering the Art of French Eating: Lessons in Food and Love from a Year in Paris (2013) by Ann Mah [641.5944]
Review: Ann Mah was an aspiring editor at a New York publishing firm when she met and fell in love with Calvin. They got married. Calvin works for the US State Department as a mid-level member of the diplomatic core. Every 2-3 years he gets transferred to a different country. Ann had some resentment about being constantly uprooted, but in time she’s adjusted. Part of that adjustment was pursuing her career on a piecemeal, freelance basis – mainly temporary jobs where they are stationed and commissioned articles from various publications. She’s also written three novels (including The Lost Vintage, a 5 star read of mine from 2021) and this memoir.
Calvin was assigned to Paris for 3 years. Then, powers that be altered his assignment. He will spend 1 year in Baghdad, Iraq, followed by 3 years in Paris. During that 1 year Calvin is in Baghdad, Ann will be in Paris. This book is her memoir of that year. She divided it into 10 chapters. Each chapter, she goes to a different province of France, and eats the local specialties. She included a bit of history, an anecdote or two from her life, and exhaustive descriptions of the food she ate. Each chapter ends with recipes. They all seemed too complicated for a home cook like me to make, but I don’t think she expected her readers to actually cook from the recipes.
By the end of the book, the anecdotes seemed repetitive, the history bits too brief, and the food descriptions too long. There was a lot of information on French food, so I’d recommend this for anyone with that particular interest. Additionally, for a very interesting and involving novel, I’d recommend Ann Mah’s novel The Lost Vintage.
+20 Task
+10 Review
+15 Combo (#10.2(born USA), #20.8 Soup (Chapter 5: Soupe au Pistou, all about soup in Provence), #20.9 (initials: A. M.))
Task Total: 20 + 10 + 15 = 45
Grand Total: 00 + 45 = 45
Do all non-white or non-European ancestry 'count' as person of color?I'm reading a memoir by Ann Mah. She's an American born in California of Chinese ancestry. And, as it is a memoir, she's the main character in her book!
Task 20.25 N42 New release: pub'd in 2021 or 2022Outlawed (2021) by Anna North
+20 Task
Task Total: 20
[Bingo #4: B7, I27, N42, G52, O65]
Grand Total: 535 + 20 + 50 = 605
B:
I:
N:
G:
O:
[Bingo #1: B3, I6, N32, G51, O61]
[Bingo #2: B6, I22, N38, G53, O63]
[Bingo #3: B4, I21, N35, G49, O75]
Happy Birthday, Jayme!
Glad to be of assistance :)
Elizabeth (Alaska) wrote: "Valerie wrote: "Now you will get to read all the fun picture books."Just what I was thinking!"
Husband & I have already bought both babies Pat the Bunny!
And .... to multiply blessings .... two of my children are expecting! One's due in December, the other one in January. Zero to two grandchildren in one short year :)
I'm going to be a grandmother!!!!!!!
