The Next Best Book Club discussion
Cynthia's Seasonal Challenges
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OFFICIAL SPRING CHALLENGE - 2009
My goodness controversy controversy! i must admit im not a YA reader, but then i dont think ive every really tried apart from harry potter and older classics that i liked when i was younger - so i wouldnt go all out YA (i move straight on fromt he pink glittery girly books!)- but that said - Lauras been at me to try 'I am the messenger' (especially being aussie)and Fiona had 'I capture the castle' as her fave book of all time so im liking the opportunity to give them a bash and see what i think. And i bet i will get some enjoyment out of them - so i think the challenge is great for that. Now im amusing myself by remmembering i once had to ask someone on here what YA meant so ive allready broadened my horizons and realised what a large fan base amongst adults it hasI can see that my task might appear to be the other end of the spectrum to YA - i reckon a full on YA reader would balk at mine and vice versa but i like the idea of people giving it a crack as im as convicnced as the YA fans that if you pick the right book on mine youll come away going - 'wow that was really fascinating - i had no idea that what sounds like a dry topic could be so readable' I reckon if you enjoy something like 'the other boleyn girl' youd enjoy this stuff too and maybe even more. So looking forward to peoples reviews. Its amazing the stuff that went on in some of these books ' truth is stranger than fiction!' im not offended if its not everyones bag though
I have to say i have an immediate gut-reaction balk at the Christian stuff - not my thing at all, im not anti-religion as such even though i have a problem with fanatacism of any variety (i get an immediate vision of scary bible belt America even though i know full well if i think about it that it shouldnt have that association at all - I know Christian doesnt equal fanatic just as much as Muslim doesnt - i just get immediate irrational shivers), id probably put myself as agnostic and dont particulalry want to read a novel based larlgely around religion - (now thats controversy lol - dont hate me!) - But even there theres a way to work it for you - im happy to read a Narnia book cos my mum read them all to me as a kid and i have really fond memories. You can always miss a task if you really dont like the sound of it. So i have no problem at all that someones put it up there. with mine for example - the scopes so wide you could go from full on trash-mongering gossip books for humour, to biography, to history, to politics and from any point of view in terms of being monarchist or not.
Ill end with - 'all we need is love' lol and i love you all for having different tastes and backgrounds - how boring would we be if we were all the same!
p.s please dont let this set of a religion debate - its just me,i respect everyones beliefs, ive seen religion debates go horribly wrong in other posts so i dont want to be the cause of another one and mean no offence :) its all about the books!
Holy cow... Is I Capture the Castle YA?? I never knew! In my bookstore it's found amongst the fiction and literature section, not with the YA section. Jon, I don't particularly think of I Am the Messenger as YA either. Granted, the main character is a young adult (he's 19, I think), but its chock full of excellence and categorizing it doesn't really give it its full credit. ;)
I was actually refreshed by your task idea, Jon.YA has a place but even though I do not read YA as a general rule, I still do not consider it a challenge to pick up a YA novel. I'm a part of these challenges because I like to find things that are not always considered "easy reads". If I chose YA for all or most of the tasks I would be done pretty quickly and wouldn't have challenged myself nor would it be fair to everyone else who perhaps were not reading YA. But again, to each their own. I prefer to challenge myself, but not everyone feels the same. I have not yet been so challenged by any task that I haven't been able to find something. Searching for books is part of the challenge and part of the fun.
Another question:Can anyone read 2 books that equal 400 pages for Jon's task or is that option limited to younger participants?
I have no problem reading a 400-pg. book on the British Royals (goodness knows, I love all things British). I just want to know what my options are. (I have a few in mind: 2 books that go hand-in-hand OR 1 that is lengthy, but looks to be gripping.)
i came across I capture the castle in the YA section of my library, so im hoping its allowed! I actually dont know much about the book, but thats where i found it so i stuck it with the YA's
The main character of I Capture the Castle is 17, so if age is the designator, it definitely counts for YA. :)It really is a wonderful book. It's one of those books I've said that anyone who is or was a teenage girl must read. All that said, it's also one of those books that I don't think would be off-putting to male readers either. It's just a wonderful story with a great sense of humor.
LEADERBOARD
ROS - 90
EVA - 75
KAREN - 70
FIONA (TITCH) - 65
ASHLEY - 60
BONNIE - 50
LIZ VEGAS - 50
PERS - 50
CAROL - 45
SANDY - 45
BETH MN - 40
BEV - 40
CASSIE - 40
KATE - 40
LINDSEY - 40
LOUISE - 40
SANDIE - 40
CYNTHIA - 35
FALLON - 35
VICTORIA - 35
ALISHA - 30
JUDITH - 30
LIZ (BKLYN) - 30
MEL - 30
SARA - 30
SUZIER - 30
ALICE - 25
DOROTHY - 25
JENNY - 25
MEGHAN - 25
NATALIA - 25
RORA - 25
SERA - 25
ANGIE - 20
ANN FROM SC - 20
BECKY - 20
BETH - 20
JAMIE MN - 20
KRISTINA - 20
LEORA - 20
ABBIE - 15
ANGELA - 15
CAITLIN - 15
COURTNEY - 15
JON - 15
JOSIE - 15
ROBIN - 15
STEPHANIE - 15
WV HEATHER - 15
EL - 10
JOY - 10
MELISSA - 10
MELODY - 10
SUSAN - 10
TINA - 10
KICKI - 5
LISA CO - 5
MAGGIE - 5
Charity , i think weve come down on the side of it doesnt matter how you reach the 400 mark, even though Cynthia came up with the idea for young readers as there was a specific request - ive opened that up to everyonemy goodness look how far down the score list i am this time! ..must not obsess, must not obsess, must not obsess lol
Are the Princess Diaries young adult novels?
HOLY COW - I go away for a couple hours and you people go nuts...lol...what's going to happen when I'm gone next week for 4+ days. OH BY THE WAY... thought I'd slip that in there that I'll be away from my computer from Wednesday March 11th (evening) until late Sunday March 15th - I'm going to my friends wedding in Texas and probably won't have access to a computer. Don't panic you'll survive - that's the great thing about this group - everyone helps each out with questions about stuff.Love the YA debate...that's part of what I want this challenge to be about - to bring people from all over together with different opinions to talk about our mutual passion for books and reading.
The challenge is also what you make it - whether you use it as creative way to clear out some books from your tbr shelf - or as inspiration to read more than you would normally - or to branch out and discover new genres/and authors.
Thanks, Jon! That's a big help. :-)I'm going to plan on reading Little Men and The Yearling for the 2 YA Books task, unless Cynthia says nope.
dont worry we'll be good while Mommas away lol we wont have a party and trash the joint :)
As far as the two YA books task goes - there are a lot of books that cross the line between adult and teen/ya - I will accept books that fall in that category of books that were not originally written for younger readers but now are widely read by kids that age.
Would a book about Anne Boleyn count for the British monarchy challenge?
The second one is blue, and the 4.5th one is purple. I think the 3rd is red... lol
Cynthia wrote: "HOLY COW - I go away for a couple hours and you people go nuts...lol...what's going to happen when I'm gone next week for 4+ days. OH BY THE WAY... thought I'd slip that in there that I'll be away..."Cynthia, I saw in another thread a comment about how wonderful it is to have a really good librarian here to help us, and I found my head resembling a bobblehead. So thank you now and forever if I forget to mention it again (which I hope I don't but just in case). I hope you have a really good time at the wedding, in Texas, with your friends - all three!
I don't mean to be a pest, but....Would these two books work for your task, Jon?
- Sex with Kings: 500 Years of Adultery, Power, Rivalry, and Revenge by Eleanor Herman
- Sex with the Queen: 900 Years of Vile Kings, Virile Lovers, and Passionate Politics by Eleanor Herman
They both deal heavily with the British Royalty, but tie in other European Royals as well. I don't know if it has to be exclusively about the British Monarchy or if it is okay if the majority is about the British Royalty. Inquiring minds...
Thanks in advance!
Haha, Jon, I agree with you - I have no problem with Christian fiction but I do realise my immediate reaction to say "um, um, can I work this into something Jewish?" was maybe a little unfair. My first thought was just "wait, no Passover challenge?" :-D
Thank you, Judith. That was my reaction too, but somehow I felt allowed only one controversy per challenge.
Gabby wrote: "Are the Princess Diaries young adult novels?"Yup. They are. Yeah, the covers are a little off putting, so I stuck to reading it at home . . . in my bedroom . . . hidden under the covers, so no one could see it. LOL
Hahaha! That was funny, Elizabeth! I'll just say that my choices for that particular challenge are a tad on the blasphemous side.
Do share an idea or two, Charity. I'm not supposed to be buying books for this challenge (my rule for myself, no dictum for anyone else), but . . .
Elizabeth, I am doing the challenge completely with what I already own as well. It definitely makes it interesting! :)
Becky, I loved looking at the books I already owned, but had not yet read, and seeing how I could fit them in. It felt like getting to "buy" them all over again. I don't have enough to finish the challenge, but if I do well between now and a trip to Nashville the end of April, perhaps I will have "earned" a small buying spree.
Elizabeth,I will either be reading The Last Temptation of Christ by Nikos Kazantzakis or The Gospel According to Jesus Christ by José Saramago. But, of course, you can read a book about sacrifice for that challenge. A few people have discussed reading A Thousand Splendid Suns for that...which I noticed on your shelves. Don't know if that helps at all. :-)
Courtney that works fine if 400pCharity - yep those are ok(and sound like the sort of scadalous goss i would enjoy!) as long as feature a good proportion of British Monarchs dont want to stray too far from the theme
I forgot to mention, i just went to lunch and remembered that i may well have audibly groaned at the poetry task!, i ve never read a book of them in my life even at school and sort of thought it over my head or a bit pointless - then i thought wait.. i love beatiful lines in song, im a lyrics man(i get a buzz out of things like 'like magnet and iron the souls' 'part of you comes out of me in these lines from time to time' 'stay with him but be prepared to bleed' etc by Joni Mitchell) and i love beautifully written prose thats almost lyrical - so really its making me try something i wouldnt otherwise have done - and whatsmore i found something written by Australian Aboriginals that looks really interesting so who knows - thanks challenge!
As for using what you own to fit the challenge, I'm doing the same thing. With several hundred unread books at home, this hasn't been too much of a challenge. I believe there are only 2 challenges that I don't have books to fit, but then again, maybe I haven't looked hard enough at my shelves. Ha ha!I'll just do the ones that I can first and then decide if I want to buy books to fit the remaining challenges or not.
Me too Elizabeth. I had to plan and rearrange very carefully, but it was fun. I don't know what I am going to do for the Summer challenge though, I think I might run out of eligible books!Fiona, you SHOULD have a book that will fit everything, you have a mountain of them!
Jon wrote: "Charity - yep those are ok(and sound like the sort of scadalous goss i would enjoy!)"Hahahaha! Glad to know I'm in good company. :-) Thanks again!!
A Thousand Splendid Suns moved to my stack for the challenge. Yippee!!! Thanks Charity!
No prob, Elizabeth! I really enjoyed that book. I hope you do too. :-)
A Thousand Splendid Suns, and The Kite Runner are two of my favorite novels. So good!! I also really liked My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult, and I feel like it works well with sacrifice... There is a lot to give in that book. I dunno. I hope whoever of you decide to read A Thousand Splendid Suns likes it. It's really worth reading!
Ashley, "suns" is on my shelf because I liked The Kite Runner so much. I liked My Sister's Keeper, too (would you expect me to shy away from controversy?). I even liked the ending, though I understand some people did not. My introduction to Jodi Picoult was Keeping Faith, which I think would also work for that task.I haven't selected a book for the Get to Know the Author task. Just about any will do, as finding something online about an author is pretty easy these days, and I want to see if I can get the others covered. (Like I'm going to get to all in my challenge stack as it is.)
I just found "The Other Boleyn Girl" in my stack of books. I would assume that if Anne Boleyn would work, this would work too (for the British Monarchy challenge). Please let me know if I am incorrect in thinking this.
Courtney wrote: "I just found "The Other Boleyn Girl" in my stack of books. I would assume that if Anne Boleyn would work, this would work too (for the British Monarchy challenge). Please let me know if I am inco..."Jon specified non-fiction in his task, and The Other Boleyn Girl is fiction. But you could use it for another task, like 5 points #6, word with girl/lady/woman/etc. in the title.
Elizabeth, I am glad you liked those 2, and bet/hope you like A Thousand Splendid Suns too. It's so good. I can't ever decide for sure, but even though I love them both, I think I might like A Thousand Splendid Suns better. It just hurts my heart. And, you get to see some amazing character growth and development. It's wonderful. I really liked the ending to My Sister's Keeper, but wow... It made me cry. So, how do you generally feel about Jodi Picoult? I have read 2 of her books, and Really liked one, but thought the other was just so-so. I am thinking about reading one of hers for my author interview task (there is one at B&N.com- they have a ton! and probably on her website too...) but I wanted to get a recommendation from someone about which one to read next. I feel like I would like her other books, but am not sure which way to go with that... Help if you've got it would be appreciated!
I do know that at B&N.com there are a ton of interviews with authors (and hope those count...), some are longer than others, and more indepth (saw one with Khaled Hosseni that was longer than the others...) but they cover things like favorite books, movies and music, writing habits, tips for new writers, success rates etc. They are fun to look at.
Courntey no - not the other Boleyn girl as is historical fiction - the other one i ddint look up but sounded like a biography so fine
Ashley, which was the other Jodi Picoult you've read, but didn't care much about?
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban: J.K. Rowling
Total: 10 Points
Or THE OTHER BOLYEN GIRL could be read as a past tnbbc book club read.
Elizabeth, I read Change of Heart. I liked it for the most part, but she had one theme through it that just didn't really do it for me... It was well written, and I liked the controversy, but there were parts that were too Green Mile meets the new Jesus. None of that was beleiveable to me. It felt weird to be reading a story line that was unbelievable along with such realistic fiction... It makes me sad to, because I really liked a lot of other parts to the story. Oh well. Have you read that one?
I just now finished 1/2 of the YA task, read 'Marked'. Wow, I got sucked right in.Has anyone read the sequel-'Betrayed'? Is it as good as the first one?
Cynthia, we have the same vacation dates pretty much (I'm going to an academic conference in LA and come back a day earlier) and I have been dreading how many posts I'll have to wade through here when I return. I can't imagine what it'd be like to be the actual moderator! Have a great time in Texas :-)
Change of Heart was ok, but perhaps not her best. Her first was Sounds of the Humpback Whale. With that one, I just persevered. You might like The Pact, in which she handles the difficult situation of teenage suicide, or Plain Truth, for which she spent 3 weeks living Amish for research.I just thought of another one for the Christian/Fiction task: The Patron Saint of Liars by Ann Patchett. I like this author and this book. Wow, I'm thinking I was a bit put off by this task and now I can recommend some I've already read. Will wonders ever cease?
Update 6 March: 5 PointsUpdate 6 March : 5 Points
5 Points
1. Northern Lights – Phillip Pullman
2. 84 Charing Cross Road – Helene Hanff OR
The Guernsey Literary & Potato Pie Society – Mary Ann Shaffer OR
Ella Minnow Pea – Mark Dunn
3. To be decided
4. Murder on the Orient Express – Agatha Christie – audio book in car
5. Jonathan Living Seagull – Richard Bach (inspirational instead of Christian)
6. Little Women – Louisa May Alcott
7. To be decided
8. To be decided
9. I heard the owl call my name – Margaret Craven
10. Before the storm – Judith Lennox OR
The rain before it falls – Jonathan Coe OR
The rose of Sebastopol – Katherine McMahon
10 Points
1. That they may face the rising sun OR Amongst Women OR The Barracks by John McGahern
2. Pedro Paramo – Juan Rulfo
3. In Tasmania – Nicolas Shakespeare
4. A prayer for Owen Meany – John Irving (2 March)
5. The magician’s apprentice – Trudi Canavan OR
The magician’s nephew – C S Lewis
6. Star Gazing – Linda Gillard
7. The virgin in the garden (Book 1 of the Frederica Quartet) – A S Byatt OR
Frederica – Georgette Heyer
8. First Light – Geoffrey Wellum OR
All quiet on the Western Front – Erich Maria Remarque
9. I capture the castle – Dodie Smith
10. Private Peaceful – Michael Morpugo
15 Points
1. Zorba the Greek – Nikos Kazantzakis (Aries)
2. Collected tales & poems – Edgar Allan Poe
3. Jane Eyre – Charlotte Bronte
4. Dry store room no. 1 – Richard Fortey OR
Pickwick Papers – Charles Dickens (London)
5. Ginger Pye – Eleanor Estes (Newbery Award 1952)
6. Seven years in Tibet – Heinrich Harrer OR
The three musketeers – Alexandre Dumas
7. How to be free – Tom Hodgkinson & The cruel sea – Nicholas Monsarrat
8. Second glance – Jodi Piccoult
9. The woman in black – Susan Hill
10. The fatal Englishman: 3 short lives – Sebastian Faulks AND
Four arrows & a magpie – N Scott Momaday AND
Five on a treasure island – Enid Blyton
25 Points
1. Great Expectations – Charles Dickens AND
Revolutionary Road – Richard Yates
3. Dracula – Bram Stoker AND
The Adventures of Kavalier and Clay – Michael Chabon (Jon’s List)
4. The Wind in the Willows – Kenneth Graham (Big Reads)
Shannon, you will have to let me know what you thought of Ginger Pye. I am trying to read the Newberry Award and Honor list, and that is one that I keep putting off. I hope you like it...!
Leora wrote: "I just now finished 1/2 of the YA task, read 'Marked'. Wow, I got sucked right in.Has anyone read the sequel-'Betrayed'? Is it as good as the first one?"
I loved Betrayed just as much if not more. I enjoyed the whole House of Night series. I think this might be the series that got me obsessed with vampire books.
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4. ROS’ TASK - Read a book that’s on the big reads list. http://www.bbc.co.uk/arts/bigread/top100...
Shannon - i think Cynthia ruled out Seven years in Tibet for translated, id asked about that one too
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Thunderstruck by Erik Larson. It's a nonfiction historical book. He's the same guy who wrote The Devil in the White City Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair that Changed America.