Kate S’s Comments (group member since Sep 13, 2010)

Kate S’s comments from the Reading with Style group.

Anne Michaels (1997) and Ann Patchett (2002) have both won

Read a book by an author who shares one of these names similar to Ann/e: Ann, Anne, Anna, Hannah, Nancy, Nanette, Anika (etc). This name can be in the first or middle position in an author's published name.

List of alternate names

Please post any comments or questions about task 20.2 in this thread.

In honor of the most recent winner (as of posting), Hamnet, read a novel about a real person.

Please post any questions or comments about task 20.7 in this thread.

In honor of The Song of Achilles (2012 winner), read one of the top 150 books from Best Gay Fiction or one of the top 50 from Historical Fiction on Greece and Rome.

Please post any questions or comments about task 20.6 in this thread.

In honor of The Tiger's Wife (2011 winner), read a book set in the Balkans. The book could be either fiction or nonfiction. The setting must be important to the work, but you are not limited to a set number of pages or percentage.

These countries are generally accepted to comprise the Balkans: Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Greece, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Romania, Serbia, and Slovenia. The most Northeasterly part of Italy and the European part of Turkey lie on the Balkan peninsula and may be included.

Please post any comments/questions/suggestions about task 20.5 in this thread.

From Post 749

Joanna wrote: "10.9 The Fifth Season

The Broken Kingdoms by N.K. Jemisin

I'm enjoying this trilogy, though not quite as much as the author's Broken Earth trilogy. If you've alrea..."

+5 Combo 10.4

From Post 743

Valerie wrote: "10.3 Winter

The Cheltenham Square Murder by John Bude

This is the second Bude I’ve read. It is the third in the ‘Superintendent William Meredith’ series (of which..."

+5 Combo 10.8

From Post 733

Sarah wrote: "20.5 Africa (#81 on the list)

We Need New Names by NoViolet Bulawayo

+20 Task
+10 Awards (Betty Trask Award. Hemingway Foundation Award)

Post Total: +30
Season T..."

+5 Combo 10.6

From Post 731

Deedee wrote: "Task 20.5 Africa
In honor of Chinua Achebe, read one of the top 225 books from the list Africa (fiction and nonfiction).
On February 07, 2021: #58

Homegoing (2016) by [author:Yaa G..."

+15 Prize
+5 Combo 10.4

A Spell of Winter was the inaugural winner of the Bailey's/Orange/Women's Prize for fiction 25 years ago. In honor of this anniversary, read any book that has won or been nominated for this prize (under any name).

Women's Prize
Orange Prize

Spring Bonuses

1. RwS Finish (100 points): Complete all Reading with Style tasks (20 book minimum -- one claimed for task points for each 10 & 20 point task. Using a book for combo points for a task does not qualify as completing that task).

2. Mega Finish (200 points): Complete all Reading with Style tasks and sub-challenge (15-point) tasks. (30 book minimum -- at least one book claimed for task points for each task. Using a book for combo points for a task does not qualify as completing that task and a book may only be claimed for task points once).

Other Rewards*:
1. Group Reads -- the Fall 2021 "group reads" books will be chosen by a combination of moderators, mega-finishers, and members that read at least 5 books and read the highest percentage of 1001 book points in the Spring 2021 Challenge.

2. 10-point task creation -- the top three readers for the Spring 2021 Challenge, as determined by overall points, will each get to create a 10-point task for the Fall 2021 Challenge.

3. 20-point task creation -- the "most strategic" reader, the member that, on average, earns the most points per book (with a 5 book minimum) will have the opportunity to create a 20-point task for the Fall 2021 Challenge. In calculating this number, we are taking into account the Task & Style points for the RwS tasks, and the Task, Bonus, and Completion points for the sub-challenge. The RwS Finish & the Mega-finish will not be included in the calculation, so that members who are unable to read more than 20 books in three months have an equal chance at being the "most strategic reader" as our fastest readers.

4. Random -- All participants (except mods) who claim at least five books during the Spring 2021 season will be automatically entered into a drawing for a $25 US Amazon gift card to be awarded at the beginning of the Summer 2021 season. As this will repeat from season to season, the winner will not have won the drawing in either of the two previous seasons.

* although participants may be eligible for multiple rewards, only one will be granted per challenge. (Random excepted)

* Participants that create tasks for three consecutive challenges are ineligible for a task-creation reward on the fourth. Instead, the member will be asked to submit a group read book. Eligibility is reinstated on the following challenge.


A note on young adult books: If you want to claim style points for YA, you can do so--with one catch: You must have read a YA novel (designated YA, Assignment, or Juv by the Brooklyn Public Library) with a Lexile score of at least 800. Not familiar with Lexile? Want to find out if your book has a high enough score...go here.

A note on graphic novels: Graphic novels can be read and claimed for tasks, unless otherwise specified. However, they are not eligible for style points.

Spring 2021 Styles

1. Combo (5 points): Read a book for one task that could have applied to another task as well. If a book applies to one other task, you will receive 5 style points. If it applies to two other tasks, you will receive 10 points...and so on.

2. Non-Western (10 points): read a book by author born and citizen of/residing in a non-Western country: Mexico, Central America, South America, Africa, and Asia (which includes Russia & all former USSR countries).

3. 1001 Books (10 points): Receive 10 extra points when you read a work that is on the list of the Boxall 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die. We will be using the list from this google doc.

4. Jumbo(5 to 25 points): Receive extra points for reading big books according to the following scale:
500-699 Pages: 5 Points
700-799 Pages: 10 Points
800-899 Pages: 15 Points
900-999 Pages: 20 Points
1000+ Pages: 25 Points

5. Oldies (5 to 25 points): Put down the bestseller list and read something with a bit more mileage on it. Based on a book's original publication date, style points will be awarded according to the following scale:

-25 to 75 years old: 5 points (1946-1996)
-76 to 150 years old: 10 points (1871-1945)
-151 to 250 years old: 15 points (1771-1870)
-251 to 400 rs old: 20 points (1621-1770)
-400+ years old: 25 points (1620 and older).

20.1 Prize

A Spell of Winter was the inaugural winner of the Bailey's/Orange/Women's Prize for fiction 25 years ago. In honor of this anniversary, read any book that has won or been nominated for this prize (under any name).

Women's Prize
Orange Prize

20.2 Ann/e

Anne Michaels (1997) and Ann Patchett (2002) have both won

Read a book by an author who shares one of these names similar to Ann/e: Ann, Anne, Anna, Hannah, Nancy, Nanette, Anika (etc). This name can be in the first or middle position in an author's published name.

List of alternate names

20.3 Opposites

In honor of Larry's Party (1998 winner), read a book written by an author of one sex, using a point of view of the opposite sex.

20.4 Crime

In honor of A Crime in the Neighborhood (1999 winner), read any book by a woman with an MPG of Crime.

20.5 Balkans

In honor of The Tiger's Wife (2011 winner), read a book set in the Balkans. The book could be either fiction or nonfiction. The setting must be important to the work, but you are not limited to a set number of pages or percentage.

These countries are generally accepted to comprise the Balkans: Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Greece, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Romania, Serbia, and Slovenia. The most Northeasterly part of Italy and the European part of Turkey lie on the Balkan peninsula and may be included.

20.6 Achilles

In honor of The Song of Achilles (2012 winner), read one of the top 150 books from Best Gay Fiction or one of the top 50 from Historical Fiction on Greece and Rome.

20.7 Real Person

In honor of the most recent winner (as of posting), Hamnet, read a novel about a real person.

20.8 Queen of Short Fiction (Denise's Task)

Read a collection of short stories or novellas from the mystery genre. The collection may be written by a single author or multiple authors. No work in the collection should be longer than 125 pages. A single novella will qualify.

20.9 Series (Kate S's task)

Spring is a time to start something new. Read the first book in a new series, or use this season to continue a series you have previously started.

20.10 Family (Elizabeth (Alaska)'s Task)

Read any book that is multi-generational or a family saga. Should include at least 3 generations of a family OR extended family of 3 or more households (adult siblings, cousins, etc.)

10.1 Enjoyed

Read a book by an author you enjoyed last season. This task can be repeated 3 times. This task cannot be used for combo points.

10.2 Name

Read a book by an author who uses at least one four letter name for their publications, eg Lisa Genova, Bret Easton Ellis, Roald Dahl, Victor Hugo.

10.3 Naughty

Read a book published in the naughty nineties, any century.

10.4 Spring

Read any book with a 5 in its original publication date.

10.5 Mother

Read any book by one of these authors who is/was also a mother.

10.6 Sentence

In honor of National Speak in Sentences Day (May 31), read any book whose title is a complete sentence.

10.7 Codebreakers (Tien's Task)

I've just finished (& loved) The Codebreakers and would love to read more about codebreaking in WWII.

In honor of this, read a book related to codebreaking, cryptology, or cryptography (karma points for it being set during WWII).

These lists may help: Books Set in Bletchley Park, codebreaking, cryptography, cryptology"

10.8 Birds (Kim's Task)

In honor of spring, read a book with a bird's name (or the word bird) in the title or author's name.

The bird word should be the simple/generic word for a kind of bird such as Robin or Jay and nothing more specific like American or Johnson. For the title, you may use plurals and possessives but no compound words.

No subtitles allowed on this one.

10.9 Pub Trivia (Anika's Task)

In honor of St. Patrick’s Day, I thought I’d combine two of my favorite things: word games and potent potables. Use the letters from the title, subtitle, and author’s published name to spell one of the following words: whiskey, bourbon, cabernet, absinthe, vodka, Baileys, Kahlua, merlot, riesling, lambic, amaretto, chardonnay, sauvignon, or shiraz.

Example: Who are You , Calvin Bledsoe? by Brock Clarke= “bourbon”

Post which beverage you’re “spelling” when claiming this task.

Letters must be used as often as needed for the target word. For example, Amaretto must match a title/subtitle/author name with at least 2 A's, 1 M, 1 R, 1 E, 2 T's and 1 O.

10.10 Group Reads

Read one of the following books recommended by RwS readers.

Elizabeth (Alaska): Winter by Christopher Nicholson
Kate S: A Children's Bible by Lydia Millet
Rebekah: All This I Will Give to You by Dolores Redondo
Rosemary: The Radetzky March by Joseph Roth
Valerie: The Memory Police by Yōko Ogawa
Ed: The Red Notebook by Antoine Laurain
Joanna: The Queen's Gambit by Walter Tevis
Sarah: The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman
Karen Michele: Transcendent Kingdom by Yaa Gyasi
Katy: All Systems Red by Martha Wells
Marie: Into the Forest by Jean Hegland
Mary: The Fire Next Time by James Baldwin
Coralie: The House in the Cerulean Sea by T.J. Klune
Lagullande: He Never Came Back by Helen McCloy

While not required, here is a place to share your sub-challenge plans.

This is the thread to ask any questions regarding our sub-challenge, Fabulous Firsts.

Fabulous Firsts

Read 10 books by 10 different authors where the first letter of the title and the first letter of the author's first name are in opposite halves of the alphabet. (A-M is one group and N-Z is the other). For the title, leading articles can be ignored at the member's convenience (but note that A, An and The may be helpful, so don't automatically turn your nose up at them).

You are not restricted to using only the first half for titles and the 2nd half for authors, or vice versa. You may mix and match. The one caveat is that you may not re-use a letter once used, either for title or author.

Scoring:

15.1-15.8: 15 points
15.9-15.10: 20 points

Per book bonuses:
+5 Non-fiction
+5 Jumbo (500 pages or better)

Finisher: 100 points

This sub-challenge can be completed up to three times during the season. Each chain must be completed in full before a second chain may be started.

A few reminders:

I. You cannot claim regular style points for any book you read for the Name of the Game (nor do the Name of the Game tasks count as Combo style points for regular Reading with Style tasks).

II. All books read for this sub-challenge must be at least 100 pages, based on the most popular English-language print edition (MPE).

III. Please be aware that cookbooks, illustrated guides, and graphic novels are not allowed for the sub-challenge. Also, books designated as "YA", "Assignment", or "Juv" by the Brooklyn Public Library with a Lexile score less than 800.

Denise wrote: "Hi Kate,

I have my total at 520 but the latest Readerboard says 515. No big deaI, but I can't find where I messed up. Thanks."

Found and fixed.

From Post 528

Karen Michele wrote: "20.9 Nieces (Kate S's Task)

The History of Love by Nicole Krauss

+20 Task
+10 Combo: 10.4 Valentine's / 10.5 Author

Task Total: 30
Rws Finish: 100
Season Total: 550"

+15 Prize worthy
+5 Combo 20.3

From Post 527

Karen Michele wrote: "20.4 Science

The Bird Way: A New Look at How Birds Talk, Work, Play, Parent, and Think by Jennifer Ackerman

+20 Task
+ 5 Combo: 10.4 Valentine's

Task Total: 25
Se..."

+5 Combo 103

From Post 522

Nick wrote: "10.6 Notable

Read a book from the NYT Notable Books from 2010-2019.

Annihilation by Jeff VanderMeer from the 2014 list (last entry).

Former points (with added poin..."

+5 Combo 20.3