Joanna’s Comments (group member since Nov 17, 2010)

Joanna’s comments from the Reading with Style group.

Elizabeth (Alaska) wrote: "The old Non-Western style included:

... read a book by author born and citizen of/residing in a non-Western country ...

Does this still apply or is it only born in?"

Yes, I've clarified over in the Styles section.

Post your completed tasks here. In order to help us better manage our score keeping: PLEASE ONLY POST ONE BOOK PER MESSAGE.

Please use the add book/author link for the book titles and include both title and author in your post.

If using an outside source to qualify a book for points, please be sure to post in the appropriate task thread prior to posting in this thread.

Sample Post

20.1 Paul Auster & Alice Munro

Searching for Caleb by Anne Tyler

+20 Task
+10 Combo (20.3; 20.8 - pub. 1975)
+10 Aged (b. 1941)
+5 Oldies (pub. 1975)

Task total: 45
Grand total: 90 (assuming mid-season with a previous total of 45)

Completion Bonuses

1. Half-way Finish (50 points): Complete all of the 10-point tasks OR all of the 20-point Reading with Style tasks. (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 the 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 Spring 2025 "group reads" books will be chosen by a combination of moderators, mega-finishers, and members that read at least 5 books and earn the highest number of Aged points in the Winter 24-25 Challenge.

2. 10-point task creation: the top three readers for the Winter 24-25 Challenge, as determined by overall points, will each get to create a 10-point task for the Spring 2025 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 Spring 2025 Challenge. In calculating this number, we are taking into account the Task & Style points for the RwS tasks, and the Task and Completion points for the sub-challenge. The Halfway Finish(es) & 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.

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

* 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.

Note: Our usual Lexile rules will apply (we have reverted to a lexile score of 700).

Styles and Bonuses

1. Combo: 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 a non-Western author, which means an author born in and a citizen/resident of a non-western country. Non-western includes: Mexico, Central America, South America, Africa, Middle East, Asia (including Russia & former USSR countries - Armenia; Azerbaijan; Belarus; Estonia; Georgia; Kazakhstan; Kyrgyzstan; Latvia; Lithuania; Moldova; Russia; Tajikistan; Turkmenistan; Ukraine; Uzbekistan).

3. Aged (10 points): Read a book by an older author. Collect 10 points for each book read by an author, living or dead, who reached age 70 or older. (For the purpose of this challenge, we will use only birth/death years; exact dates will not be considered.)

4. Oldies (5+ points): (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 (1950-2000)
-76 to 150 years old: 10 points (1875-1949)
-151 to 250 years old: 15 points (1775-1874)
-251 to 400 years old: 20 points (1625-1774)
-400+ years old: 25 points (1624 and older).

5. 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

20.10 The _____ of _____ (Joanna's task):
Read a book with a title that takes the form of The Something of Something. (E.g., The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue, The Pillow Book of Sei Shōnagon, The Stress of Her Regard).

20.9 That's Not How It Happened (Anika's task):
Don't we sometimes wonder what the world would look like if certain events in history had turned out differently? Read a novel that was nominated for or won a Sidewise Award for Alternate Histories: http://www.uchronia.net/sidewise/comp... OR a book from the "Standalone Novels," "Novel Series," or "Plays" section of the Wikipedia list of alternate histories: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of...

20.8 International Women’s Year (Apple's task):
The U.N. declared 1975 International Women’s Year. Read a book by a woman who died or was born in 1975, a book published by a woman in 1975, or a book nominated for the Orange Prize/Women’s Prize for Fiction.

20.7 Best Friends Forever (Owlette's task):
Read a novel with a cat or dog as character with a beneficial role such as companion, health supporter, or mystery solving-assistant. Please give the name of the cat or dog and a short description.

20.6 Akira Toriyama: Read a book by Akira Toriyama or any graphic novel, graphic non-fiction, or graphic memoir. For this task only, styles are allowed for graphic books posted to this task. This task may not be used for combos.

10.1 Stylish Sci-Fi
Monkey: The Journey to the West by Wu Cheng'en
The Word for World Is Forest by Ursula K. Le Guin
Orbital by Samantha Harvey

10.2 Holiday Travel
Railsea by China Miéville

10.3 NY Resolution - Bookclub books
On Tyranny: Twenty Lessons from the Twentieth Century by Timothy Snyder

10.4 Penguin Awareness Day
Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott

10.5 New Year New Date
(maybe Monkey from 10.1)
Fat Girl: A True Story by Judith Moore (2005)

10.6 Year of the Snake
XOXO by Axie Oh (low lexile)

10.7 Verity
City Boy by Herman Wouk

10.8 Theater
Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe
Glengarry Glen Ross by David Mamet

10.9 Scandinavia
Beartown by Fredrik Backman

10.10 Group Reads
Annihilation by Jeff VanderMeer

20.1 Paul Auster & Alice Munro
Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver

20.2 Edna O'Brien
Neon Roses by Rachel Dawson

20.3 Francine Pascal & Nelson DeMille
4321 by Paul Auster

20.4 C.J. Sansom and Caleb Carr
Die Trying by Lee Child

20.5 Tom Spanbauer
Somewhere Beyond the Sea by T.J. Klune

20.6 Akira Toriyama
Ducks: Two Years in the Oil Sands by Kate Beaton

20.7 Best Friends Forever
The Dalai Lama's Cat by David Michie
The Last Family in England by Matt Haig

20.8 Not How It Happened
The Calculating Stars by Mary Robinette Kowal

20.9 International Women
The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett

20.10 The ___ of ___
The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by Victoria E. Schwab

Here is a place for posting your RwS plans. Posting here is not required; it's just a place for tracking and sharing ideas.

20.5 Tom Spanbauer: Read a book by Tom Spanbauer or any book by an LGBTQ author. For this task, we will only accept authors included on this list: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/... [Note: you can add to this list by posting here with a link to identification of the author as LGBTQ.]

20.4 C.J. Sansom and Caleb Carr: Read a book by C.J. Sansom, Caleb Carr, or any book with at least two of the following MPGs listed: Mystery, Historical Fiction, Historical Mystery, Crime, History.

20.3 Francine Pascal and Nelson DeMille: Read any book by Francine Pascal, Nelson DeMille, or any author who has published more than 20 books.

20.2 Edna O'Brien: Read a book by Edna O'Brien or any novel that passes the Bechdel Test. To pass the Bechdel test, a novel must have: 1) at least two female characters; 2) who talk to each other; 3) about something other than a man/romantic interest in a man.

20.1 Paul Auster and Alice Munro: Read a book by Paul Auster, Alice Munro, or by a current member of the American Academy of Arts and Letters in the Literature division. See https://www.artsandletters.org/member... (click on "current" and on "literature" to get a list of the current [i.e., living] authors). You can also view the list here: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/...

10.10 Group Reads:
Read one of the following books OR any book by the author of one of these books recommended by fellow RwS readers:
Apple - Annihilation by Jeff VanderMeer
Anika - Beautyland by Marie-Helene Bertino
Joanna - Yellowface by R.F. Kuang
Karen Michele - The Day the Falls Stood Still by Cathy Marie Buchanan
Connie - You Are Here by David Nicholls
Bucket - Sabrina & Corina by Kali Fajardo-Anstine
Joanne - Major Pettigrew's Last Stand by Helen Simonson
Kathleen (itpdx) - Material World: The Six Raw Materials That Shape Modern Civilization by Ed Conway
Marie - Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: A Year of Food Life by Barbara Kingsolver
Elizabeth (Alaska) - Days Without End by Sebastian Barry
Tien - Days at the Morisaki Bookshop by Satoshi Yagisawa
Tawallah - Burning Bright by Melissa McShane
Denise - Old Babes in the Wood: Stories by Margaret Atwood
Mary - James by Percival Everett
Rosemary - Uncle Silas by J. Sheridan Le Fanu
Jayme - Lost Dogs and Lonely Hearts by Lucy Dillon
Katy - Here One Moment by Liane Moriarty
Nick - The Ivory Grin by Ross Macdonald

10.9 Scandinavia (Norma's Task):
Read a book set at least 75% in Denmark, Sweden Finland, Iceland, or Norway.

10.8 Theater (Valerie's Task):
Read a play or a book that has been adapted into a play (eg. Fifteen Dogs by Andre Alexis).

10.7 Verity (Coralie's Task):
In honour of my granddaughter Verity, read a book that has a word in the title (not subtitle) that ends -ITY.