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Cynthia's Seasonal Challenges > OFFICIAL SPRING CHALLENGE - 2009

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message 1551: by Ashley (last edited Mar 08, 2009 09:49PM) (new)

Ashley (affie) | 371 comments Bonnie,
I have a hard time picking my favorite, but I also really liked Beauty Sleep, and thought Golden was good! I also liked Water Song, about the Frog Prince, but part of that is because I have never read a novelized version before. I liked it though, and I loved the one about the 12 Dancing Princesses, because that has been my favorite fairy tale since I was like 5, and I like the tie to King Arthur. Which ones did you dislike?
I wasn't a huge fan of Before Midnight, it felt a little stiff to me. I don't remember the others right now though... I'd have to check my list again...
Do you generally like fairy tales? I love them, and always have, and I am on this huge kick lately, where I have been reading them like crazy! So, if you have any favorite retellings, please, Let me know!! Thanks...!




message 1552: by Becky (new)

Becky (beckyofthe19and9) BJ, You're right. You can join anytime and count the books you've read this month as long as they fit the tasks.


message 1553: by Ashley (new)

Ashley (affie) | 371 comments Question- for the Earth day task, can we use works like Heaven, Sky, or Universe? Thanks!


message 1554: by Lizzi (last edited Mar 13, 2009 08:40AM) (new)

Lizzi Crystal (fortelleren) Here is my reading list for the challenge! I'm not sure if I'll be able to complete a book for each task, but I'll go as far as I can. :-) I've numbered each task as it was numbered on the introduction page by Cynthia, and bolded the ones I've finished so far. I'll update this list as I read more!

Please let me know if any of these do not fit the categories.

This sounds SO.FUN!! I can't wait to join in the summer challenge when I have more time!


25 POINT TASKS:

1. The Game (Jones) AND TBD
2. The Maine Woods (Thoreau)
3. The Time Traveler's Wife AND Ella Enchanted
4. Persuasion (Austen) - READ 3/8/09
5. Till We Have Faces (Lewis)
6. TBD
8. The Woman in the Wall (Kindl) - READ 3/2/09 AND TBD (will be vampire teen fiction)
9. Flower Confidential, The Good, The Bad, and the Beautiful in the Business of Flowers (does this count for 12 or more words?)

15 POINT TASKS:
1. The Truth Teller's Tale (Shinn)
2. Emily Dickinson's Collected Works (Barnes and Noble Classics series)
3. Stardust (Gaiman)
4. TBD
5. TBD
6. Inkheart (Funke)
7. Around the World in 80 Days (Verne) - READ 3/9/09 AND House of Many Ways (Jones) -READ 3/4/09
8. The Historian (Kostova) - READ 3/6/09
9. The Green Angel (Hoffman)
10. TBD

10 POINT TASKS:
1. TBD
2. TBD
3. TBD
4. Practical Magic (Hoffman)
5. TBD
6. A Wizard of Earthsea (Le Guin)
7. These Happy Golden Years (Wilder)
8. TBD
9. The Eyre Affair
10. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets

5 POINT TASKS:
All TBD.


POINTS SO FAR: 55


message 1555: by Bonnie (new)

Bonnie | 271 comments Ashley wrote: "Bonnie,
I have a hard time picking my favorite, but I also really liked Beauty Sleep, and thought Golden was good! I also liked Water Song, about the Frog Prince, but part of that is because I ha..."


I actually really disliked The Night Dance! I didn't like Suzanne Weyn's writing at all. I've also really liked the 12 Dancing Princesses fairy tale, so I was sad that I was so disappointed with the book. After The Night Dance I avoided any other Suzanne Weyn novels, so I haven't read any others by her. And I HATED Scarlet Moon; I thought it was so bad it was laughable. I agree Before Midnight wasn't Dokey's best, but I liked it better than you did. I did think it unraveled a bit near the end.

I LOVE fairy tale retellings. I've been trying to find all the ones I can and read them. And they seem to be publishing more of them every year, so I'm happpy about that! There's a thread in the recommendations file of this group about fairy tale retelling suggestions, but my personal favorites are:

(1) Ella Enchanted (I'm sure you've read it, but it's still my favorite)
(2) Wildwood Dancing (good 12 Dancing Princesses retelling)
(3) The Goose Girl (fairy tale of the same name; the author, Shannon Hale, is good for YA in general)
(4) A Curse Dark as Gold (Rapunzel)
(5) The Perilous Gard (Tam Lin)
(6) East (East of the Sun, West of the Moon; another version of this is Sun and Moon, Ice and Snow, but I didn't like it as much)
(7) The Swan Kingdom (The Wild Swans)
(8) The Sevenwaters Trilogy, Book 1 Daughter of the Forest (The Six Swans)
(9) Mercedes Lackey has a whole series called The Elemental Masters, which again vary in quality; my favorite so far is The Fire Rose (Beauty and the Beast)

For something darker and more twisty, I loved The Book of Lost Things. And I haven't read it yet, but I want to read Princess of the Midnight Ball (12 Dancing Princesses).


message 1556: by Becky (last edited Mar 13, 2009 06:19AM) (new)

Becky (beckyofthe19and9) Goal: 305 Points / 28 books

---Stats---
Earned Points: 45/305
Books Read: 4/28
Total Pages Read: 2110
-----------

5 POINT TASKS
1. Read a Science Fiction OR Fantasy Novel.
Oryx and Crake by Margaret Atwood (Science fiction)

2. Read an epistolary novel...
The Screwtape Letters by C.S. Lewis

4. Read or listen to a book while you are on a plane, on a train, or in a car...
Labyrinth by Kate Mosse (audiobook)

5. For Easter/Lent - Read a Christian Fiction novel...
Showdown by Ted Dekker

6. In Honor Of Women’s History Month…
- Read a novel with woman, women, lady, etc in the title.
Lady Susan, The Watsons, Sanditon by Jane Austen

7. For Arbor Day – Do your part to save some trees by reading a book and “recycling” it...
Vital Signs by Robin Cook

8. For April Fools Day read a humorous novel...
The Princess Bride by William Goldman

9. Read a book with a spring animal in the title...
I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou

10. Read a book with a type of tree or flower in the title...
The Scarlet Pimpernel by Emmuska Orczy

10 POINT TASKS
1. For St. Patrick’s Day – Read a book by an Irish author, set in Ireland, OR about Ireland.
Angela's Ashes by Frank McCourt
(Read 3.4.09)

4. Read a book by an author who was born in March, April, or May.
Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides /Born: March 8, 1960

5. March 24 is Harry Houdini’s Birthday – Read a book about magic, a magician etc.
Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell by Susana Clarke
(Read 3.3.09)

6. In honor of Earth Day (April 22), read a book with the word Earth, Moon, World, etc in the title.
World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War by Max Brooks

7. In Honor of Mother’s Day, read a book recommended by/given to you by your mother.
The Dogs of Babel by Carolyn Parkhurst

8. Read a book about a veteran OR someone serving in the military.
Othello by William Shakespeare

10. TNBBC member 5-Star rated book...
Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen (Thanks Heather from page 39!)

15 POINT TASKS
1. Read a book that corresponds to your astrological sign...
- LIBRA: Read a book about a lawyer, the law, a judge etc.
The Last Juror by John Grisham

2. April is National Poetry Month – Read a book of poetry OR about a famous poet.
Inferno by Dante Alighieri

3. Read a past OR present TNBBC group read that you haven’t read before.
Neverwhere: A Novel by Neil Gaiman

6. Read a book that was has been translated from its original language.
The Plague by Albert Camus

8. Get To Know The Author - Read a book by an author AND then either attend a reading by that author OR read/listen to an interview with that author.
Thinner by Stephen King

9. Read a book with a color in the title AND eat a meal that includes at least 2 foods of that color.
The Woman in White by Wilkie Collins
(Planned foods: Garlic and Feta cheese mashed potatoes and vanilla ice-cream)

25 POINT TASKS
1. Karen's Task: Read a book starting with "G" & a book starting with "R".
The Green Mile (Complete Serial Novel) by Stephen King (Read 3.7.09) & Roots by Alex Haley

4. Ros's Task: Read a book from the Big Reads List.
The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame

5. Bonnie's Task: Read a book outside my normal genre.
(Non-fictional memoir -- I normally read fiction: fantasy, horror, classics, etc.)
Death Be Not Proud by John Gunther
(Read 3.8.09)

8. Cassie's Task: Read two YA novels.
Blue Is For Nightmares & White Is for Magic by Laurie Faria Stolarz


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message 1557: by Jon (new)

Jon Becky i think your doing yourself out of some points there - isnt that 70?


message 1558: by Josie (new)

Josie (maid_marian) Cynthia, I'm sorry for making your task harder by not getting my points total right! For some reason I thought the 25 point tasks were actually 20 point tasks...I have now realised my mistake!
Today I finished The Prestige, a novel about two feuding stage magicians set in Victorian London. This gives me ten points, as it fits under:
Ten Points
5. March 24 is Harry Houdini's birthday. Read a book about magic, a magician, etc.
(I liked the book, but kept comparing it to the movie, which was better!)
Total: 75 points


message 1559: by Sharon75uk (new)

Sharon75uk | 69 comments 6. In honor of Earth Day (April 22) read a book with the word Earth, Moon, Sun, World, Star or one of the other planets (Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune) in the title.
- Words such as earthly, sunset etc. are acceptable.
The Almost Moon – Alice Sebold READ

Total 90 points




message 1560: by Eva-Marie (new)

Eva-Marie Nevarez (evamarie3578) BJ Rose wrote: "I'm posting so I can join the Spring Challenge - hope I'm not too late. Am I correct in thinking that I can use books already read in March if they fit the requirements of a challenge? Now just hav..."
It's not too late- people join at all times and yes, as far as I know you can use anything that fits that you've read since March 1st.




message 1561: by Eva-Marie (new)

Eva-Marie Nevarez (evamarie3578) Jon wrote: "i quite like it all being in this thread - im probably quite sad but i like coming in everyday and seeing whats been said - mind you i suppose if i went away for a week or had a life it might be di..."


Jon, I started doing something last challenge that makes it a lot easier. And then your friends that aren't in the group can also see it and it goes into your updates- I just copied and pasted the entire challenge into 'my writing' on my page. Then I can can just copy and paste as I finish and put it here. Maybe that would help?



message 1562: by Jo (new)

Jo I finished two more books this weekend:

5 points
10. April Showers Bring May Flowers...
Die Katze, die Schwalbe, die Rose und der Tod (The swallow, the cat, the rose and death)

15 points
5. Road-side Dog
Czeslaw Milosz won the Nobel Prize in 1980.

New total: 110 points


message 1564: by Jon (last edited Mar 09, 2009 06:03AM) (new)

Jon ♡ Eva ♡ wrote: "Jon wrote: "i quite like it all being in this thread - im probably quite sad but i like coming in everyday and seeing whats been said - mind you i suppose if i went away for a week or had a life it..."

oh thats an interesting idea, i might try it... and incidentally i only just accidentally worked out how to reply to someone properly!

yay. it works! only hope nobody goes hunting for samples of my literary penmanship in there!


message 1565: by SusannaW (last edited Mar 09, 2009 04:53AM) (new)

SusannaW (susannauk) | 51 comments Hi

Scraped 5 points:
4. Olivia , Dorothy Bussy (Dorothy Strachey).


message 1566: by [deleted user] (last edited Mar 09, 2009 05:08AM) (new)

THE TASKS

5 POINTS
5.Christian Fiction: The Proposal by Lori Wick.
8. Humorous: Big Trouble by Dave Barry
Points: 10/50


10 POINTS
7. In Honor of Mother’s Day- The Pilot’s Wife by Anita Shreve –Mom’s Name is Anita
8. Military: True Devotion by Dee Henderson
Points: 20/100


15 POINTS
1. VIRGO—And The Bride Wore White: Seven Secrets to Sexual Purity by Dannah Gresh

7. . Rhyming Books: Way You Are by Christina Dodd
Star Bright by Catherine Anderson
Total Points: 30/150

25 Point Task
1. KAREN’S TASK: Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbach
A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry
6. YA Tasks—Twilight by Stephenie Meyers (one to go)
Points: 25/200

Total Points: 85/500



message 1567: by SusannaW (last edited Mar 09, 2009 06:01AM) (new)

SusannaW (susannauk) | 51 comments I was going to use Kafka's The Trial for the zodiac challenge - I'm a Libran.

But I'm wondering if there's any great novels about lawyers, justice etc I might be missing... has any one got any suggestions before I send for my next Amazon box...?!


message 1568: by Terri (new)

Terri (terrisa-uk) ♡ Eva ♡ wrote: "Jon wrote: "i quite like it all being in this thread - im probably quite sad but i like coming in everyday and seeing whats been said - mind you i suppose if i went away for a week or had a life it..."

What a great idea! I'll be doing that too from now on! Thanks for sharing!


message 1569: by Meghan (last edited Mar 09, 2009 06:27AM) (new)

Meghan (meghanly) | 218 comments 5 Points
1. Fire Study - Maria V. Snyder
2. Ella Minnow Pea A Novel in Letters - Mark Dunn
3. Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close - Jonathan Safran Foer
4.
5. The Shack - William P. Young
6. Blackout Girl Growing Up and Drying Out in America - Jennifer Storm (3/8/09)
7.
8. Good Omens The Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch - Terry Pratchett
9. Down the Rabbit Hole An Echo Falls Mystery - Peter Abrahams
10. The Shadow of the Wind - Carlos Ruiz Zafón

10 Points
1. The Likeness A Novel - Tana French
2. Rain of Gold - Victor Villaseñor
3. Tender Morsels - Margo Lanagan (3/2/09)
4. Until I Find You A Novel - John Irving (March 2nd)
5. Magic Study - Maria V. Snyder
6. The Earth, My Butt, and Other Big Round Things - Carolyn Mackler
7. Postmortem - Patricia Cornwell
8. Outlander - Diana Gabaldon
9. The Eyre Affair - Jasper Fforde
10. The Virgin Suicides - Jeffrey Eugenides

15 Points
1.
2.
3. Neverwhere A Novel - Neil Gaiman
4.
5. The Witches of Eastwick - John Updike (National Book Critics Circle Award for Fiction - 1981)
6. Ines of My Soul A Novel - Isabel Allende
7. Night - Elie Wiesel and A Northern Light - Jennifer Donnelly
8. The Graveyard Book - Neil Gaiman 3/3/09
9. Redwall - Brian Jacques
10.

25 Points
1. Gossamer, The Red Shoe
2.
3. The Art of Racing in the Rain and Whale Talk
4. Noughts & Crosses
5. Blood Brothers
6.
7.
8. The White Darkness and The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks (3/8/09)
9. The Boyfriend List 15 guys, 11 shrink appointments, 4 ceramic frogs, and me, Ruby Oliver

Total
30 Points, 3 Tasks



message 1570: by Meghan (new)

Meghan (meghanly) | 218 comments PS - I moved into my first house on 2/28/09 - so I think finishing four books and getting completely moved in and unpacked in a week is pretty darn good. I am giving myself a pat on the back! :):):)


message 1571: by Steph (new)

Steph Completed 25-point task:
ROS’ TASK - Read a book that’s on the big reads list
Animal Farm by George Orwell

I know I read this at some point in highschool; I definitely appreciated it much more this time around!

Total points: 40


message 1572: by rebecca j (new)

rebecca j (technophobe) | 6029 comments Susanna UK - John Grisham wrote lots of books set in law arenas. Especially loved The Client.

Completed:
5 pt. tasks
5. Oathbound by Mercedes Lackey
7. The Doctor's Daughter - passed to a friend
8. 10. The Fire Rose - Mercedes Lackey

10. pt. task
1. Tears of the Moon - Nora Roberts set in Ireland
5. The Trouble With Magic - Madelyn Alt

35 pts. for now!


message 1573: by Stephanie (new)

Stephanie (sbez05) | 556 comments 25 Point Task Completed:
4. Ros' Task: A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving

Points to Date: 40/550
Tasks Completed: 3/39


message 1574: by Natalia (new)

Natalia (antimony) | 25 comments I finished another one over the weekend!

Previously completed:
25.4 - The Woman in White

Newly completed:
15 point task #1: LEO - The king of the jungle – read a book about royalty
3/7/2009 - The Other Boleyn Girl

Total Tasks Completed: 2
Total Ponts Earned: 40

The book was fun, total brain candy. The history was sketchy enough that even though I don't know a whole lot about the wives of Henry VIII, even I was scratching my head.


message 1575: by Eva-Marie (new)

Eva-Marie Nevarez (evamarie3578) Jon wrote: "♡ Eva ♡ wrote: "Jon wrote: "i quite like it all being in this thread - im probably quite sad but i like coming in everyday and seeing whats been said - mind you i suppose if i went away for a week ..."


It's funny you should mention that- comments can't be deleted as far as I could see and someone left me a comment about how great my "story" was and how much they enjoyed it. Then they promptly asked me to check theirs out. LOL
I just had to send her a message after that to let her know it was quite obvious she'd never "read" my story. :D
But, all in all, it works out great...I definitely suggets giving it a try!



message 1576: by Mary Beth (new)

Mary Beth (marybethbaker) | 98 comments ♡ Eva ♡ wrote: "Jon wrote: "♡ Eva ♡ wrote: "Jon wrote: "i quite like it all being in this thread - im probably quite sad but i like coming in everyday and seeing whats been said - mind you i suppose if i went away..."

Thanks, Eva! It worked great for me, and it saves me sooooo much time.


message 1577: by Alice (last edited Mar 09, 2009 09:38AM) (new)

Alice (aliceg) | 254 comments Just finished The Face by Dean Koontz for 25 points

5 POINTS

1. A Neil Gaiman book
2. Adrian Mole and the Weapons of Mass Destruction by Sue Townsend
3. Half of Yellow Sun by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
4. ?
5. The Shack by William P. Young
6. The Girls by Lori Lansons
7. ?
8. The Difficult Second Book by Chris Moyles
9. ?
10. ?

10 POINTS

1. The Gathering by Anne Enright (Set in Ireland)
2. Like Water for Chocolate by Laura Esquivel
3. His Illegal Self by Peter Carey (Aussie Author)
4. Mr Pip by Lloyd Jones (Born 23rd March)
5. Carter Beats the Devil by Glen David Gold
6. East of the Sun by Julia Gregson
7. The Bookshop by Penelope Fitzgerald (rec. by mum)
8. The Welsh Girl by Peter Ho Davies
9. I Capture the Castle (no. 1 of TNBBC top 10 list)
10. Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas by Hunter S. Thompson (One of Meg's 5 star rated books).

15 POINTS

1. ?
2. Shakespeare by Bill Bryson
3. Water for Elephants by Sarah Gruen
4. The Visible World by Mark Slouka (set in Prague)
5. The Sea by John Banville (won the Guardian Prize in 1981 for Kepler
6. Shape of Water by Andrea Camillia (translated from Italian into English
7. The Girl who was going to die by Glyn Maxwell and The End of Mr Y by Scarlett Thompson
8. The Almost Moon by Alice Sebold
9. The White Tiger by Aravind Acliga
10. ?

25 POINTS

1. The Gargoyle by Andrew Davidson and The Reader by Bernhard Schlink
2. ?
3. The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Chasing Harry Winston by Lauren Weisberger (from Angela's bookshelves)
4. Woman in White by Wilkie Collins
5. The Face by Dean Koontz (Horror)
6. ?
7. ?
8. Eragon and Eldest by Christopher Paolini
9. ?


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message 1578: by Sara ♥ (new)

Sara ♥ (saranicole) Kicki wrote: "Jeane: I've also read PS. I Love You, and that was much better, in my opinion. This was a nice and easy read, which is what I was after this weekend, and the story is pretty sweet, just like those kind of stories usually are. I just wasn't so fond of it being written as text messages, instant messages, e-mails and letters. That's all it was, different messages sent to the other characters. But overall, it was a nice read.

Oooh... now I'm even more excited to read PS I Love You! I LOVE books written in text messages, instant messages, e-mails, and letters! ;) I think they're great! Very visually appealing to me to break up the text-text-text-text-and-more-text style of almost all books.


message 1579: by Elizabeth (Alaska) (new)

Elizabeth (Alaska) Alice wrote: " Just finished The Face by Dean Koontz for 25 points"

Alice, I hope you like The Welsh Girl. I thoroughly enjoyed it.


message 1580: by Elizabeth (Alaska) (new)

Elizabeth (Alaska) Sara wrote: "Kicki wrote: "Jeane: I've also read PS. I Love You, and that was much better, in my opinion. This was a nice and easy read, which is what I was after this weekend, and the story is pretty sweet, ju..."

I think texting will break down communication in all forms. I hope it doesn't become the norm. I don't understand most of it, can find no use for it.


message 1581: by Charity (new)

Charity (charityross) I agree, Elizabeth. I DESPISE textspeak! Very difficult to read/decipher.


message 1582: by Sara ♥ (last edited Mar 09, 2009 09:54AM) (new)

Sara ♥ (saranicole) Kristen wrote: "Ahhh...a western....yup that's outside my normal reading. ... Any recommendations on a western? I don't even know where to start! "

I read the Texas trilogy by Lorraine Heath, and it was really good. They're western romance... but whatever. The first one is Texas Destiny. The description of the book says, "Don't read this fabulous book in public unless you're prepared to weep in front of strangers", but I bawled during the second one (Texas Glory), not the first one. They all have happy endings though... so no worries there. Book three is Texas Splendor.


message 1583: by Becky (last edited Mar 09, 2009 09:57AM) (new)

Becky (beckyofthe19and9) Jon, thanks, but I've only read 1/2 of the "GR" task - "The Green Mile". (I just took out the redundant part of the post that said as much!) I don't get the 25 points until I've read "Roots" as well, but since I've been reading really depressing stuff lately, I need to read something happy or funny before I drive my car off a bridge. So, "The Princess Bride" is up next. ;)

PS, I like your new Koala!


message 1584: by Kelly (new)

Kelly Hi all! This is my updated list (some new book choices) and my first score!

15 Points---I finished J.F. Lewis' ReVamped and listened to his interview on Ghost in the Machine podcast with Gail Z. Martin.

5 Points
1. Fantasy – Blood Bound
2. Epistolary - Diary
3. Spring Cleaning - Tropic of Cancer
4. Planes, Trains,... - The Exhaustion Cure
5. Lent/Book about Sacrifice - In Defense of Food
6. Women's History -Bitten Women of the Underworld Book 1
7. Arbor Day - (Audio) The Host
8. April Fool's Day/Humorous - A Dirty Job
9. Spring Animals - The Secret Life of Bees
10. Rain-Related - The Mists of Avalon

10 Points
1. Ireland -The Alchemyst
2. Mexico - Rainbow Boys
3. Australia - Unreal : Eight Surprising Stories
4. Author Birthday - Certain Girls (Jennifer Weiner March 28)
5. Book about Magic -Haunted
6. Earth Day - Moon Called
7. Mother's Day – Mom recommended One for the Money
8. Military - From Baghdad with Love
9. TNBBC Top Book List - The Bell Jar
10. TNBBC Member's 5 Star - (Rebecca Armstrong) The Two Towers

15 Points
1. Cancer (Cancer Patient) - Evening
2. Poetry - Leaves of Grass
3. TNBBC Group Read - Love in the Time of Cholera
4. Spring Break - (Chicago) Devil in the White City
5. Award Winner - (1976 Nobel Prize winner) Humboldts Gift
6. Translated – The Art of War
7. Rhyming Books - Stolen and Iron Kissed
8. Get to Know Author - RevampedJ.F. Lewis
9. Color Book/Food - White Witch Black Curse
10. 3, 4, and 5 Books – Women of the Underworld Series:Dime Store Magic, Industrial Magic, & Broken

25 Points
1. Karen’s G & R- Great Expectations & The Ragged Trousered Philanthropists
2. Diary/Diarist - Invincible Louisa: The Story of the Author of Little Women
3. Spring Challenge Post – Pride and Prejudice & The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants
4. Big Reads – The Lord of the Rings
5. New genre – Design for Ecological Democracy
6. Monarchy – The Life and Death of Anne Boleyn
7. Darla’s – PENDING
8. Two YA – The Graveyard Book & [Breaking Dawn:]
9. 12 Word Title – A Field Guide to Demons Fairies Fallen Angels and Other Subversive Spirits




message 1585: by Steph (new)

Steph Becky wrote: "Jon, thanks, but I've only read 1/2 of the "GR" task - "The Green Mile". (I just took out the redundant part of the post that said as much!) I don't get the 25 points until I've read "Roots" as wel..."


Hehe! I just finished The Princess Bride - and it definitely provided some much-needed comic relief. I had read it once before, and had forgotten how fun it is! (Of course, I've seen the movie too many times to count.) Enjoy!



message 1586: by Barb H (new)

Barb H (barbhh) El wrote: "Barbara, why not Lent?"

Lent is fine, but I meant to suggest Passover as well.


message 1587: by Sara ♥ (last edited Mar 09, 2009 10:02AM) (new)

Sara ♥ (saranicole) Elizabeth wrote: I think texting will break down communication in all forms. I hope it doesn't become the norm. I don't understand most of it, can find no use for it.

Agreed! I think texting is AWFUL! I text, but you'd better believe, I use proper capitalization, spelling, AND punctuation. But then, I think spell check has had adverse affects on spelling as well! There's no "need" to know how to spell anymore, like when I was younger. Then again, maybe we should just blame the public schooling system for not teaching the basics like spelling, grammar, and phonics.

But whoever's fault it is for the English language skills of children in America (and the world) epically failing... I still like reading books with those types of non-regular-text formats in them... :)


message 1588: by Sara ♥ (new)

Sara ♥ (saranicole) I didn't accumulate a single point over the weekend, although I'm in the middle of SIX books now. Soon(ish) I'll be over 100 points!

I DID finish a book this weekend: Smart Girls Think Twice, which I liked very much. It is half of my rhyming titles task. The other will be Cross My Heart and Hope to Spy (smart/heart), but that book is book 2 in a series... and I need to read the book 1 first, as part of Cassie's 2-YA task. So it'll be a while on those points. But I felt like reading a romance novel, so I'm happy.

I agree with Jon--I LOVE reading everyone's comments. It's tons of fun!


message 1589: by Meghan (new)

Meghan (meghanly) | 218 comments 5 Points
1. Fire Study - Maria V. Snyder
2. Ella Minnow Pea A Novel in Letters
3. Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close -
4.
5. The Shack - William P. Young
6. Blackout Girl Growing Up and Drying Out in America - Jennifer Storm (3/8/09)
7.
8. Good Omens The Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch - Terry Pratchett
9. Down the Rabbit Hole An Echo Falls Mystery - Peter Abrahams
10. The Shadow of the Wind - Carlos Ruiz Zafón

10 Points
1. The Likeness A Novel - Tana French
2. Rain of Gold - Victor Villaseñor
3. Tender Morsels - Margo Lanagan (3/2/09)
4. Until I Find You A Novel - John Irving (March 2nd)
5. Magic Study - Maria V. Snyder
6. The Earth, My Butt, and Other Big Round Things - Carolyn Mackler
7. Postmortem - Patricia Cornwell
8. Outlander - Diana Gabaldon
9. The Eyre Affair - Jasper Fforde
10. The Virgin Suicides - Jeffrey Eugenides

15 Points
1.
2.
3. Neverwhere A Novel - Neil Gaiman
4.
5. The Witches of Eastwick - John Updike (National Book Critics Circle Award for Fiction - 1981)
6. Ines of My Soul A Novel - Isabel Allende
7. Night - Elie Wiesel and A Northern Light - Jennifer Donnelly
8. The Graveyard Book - Neil Gaiman 3/3/09
9. Redwall - Brian Jacques
10.

25 Points
1. Gossamer, The Red Shoe
2. Anne Frank Remembered
3. The Art of Racing in the Rain and Whale Talk
4. Noughts & Crosses
5. Blood Brothers
6. The Six Wives of Henry VIII
7.
8. The White Darkness and The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks (3/8/09)
9. The Boyfriend List 15 guys, 11 shrink appointments, 4 ceramic frogs, and me, Ruby Oliver

Total
30 Points, 3 Tasks



message 1590: by Carol (new)

Carol (caroldias) More points! I travelled this weekend so I had lots of time to listen lol

5 Points

1 - Coraline by Neil Gaiman
2 - Anne Frank The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank
3 - Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen
4 - Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by J.K. Rowling audiobook
5 - Memnoch the Devil by Anne Rice
6 - [[book:Girl, Interrupted|68783] by Susanna Kaysen
7 - Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J.K. Rowling audiobook
8 -
9 - The Midnight Kittens by Dodie Smith
10 - The House of Thunder by Dean Koontz

10 Points

1 - In the Woods by Tana French
2 - Like Water for Chocolate by Laura Esquivel
3 - not yet
4 - Practical Magic by Alice Hoffman
5 - Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by J.K. Rowling
6 - Midnight Sun by Stephenie Meyer
7 - Pandora by Anne Rice
8 - Cold Mountain by Charles Frazier
9 - I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith
10 - http://www.goodreads.com/review/list/... Interview With the Vampire

15 Points

1 - Nightmare in Pink by John D. MacDonald
2 -
3 - Dracula by Bram Stoker
4 - Blindness by José Saramago
5 - People of the Book by Geraldine Brooks
6 - Another View by Rosamunde Pilcher read in Portugues
7 - ---
8 - Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by J.K. Rowling audiobook
9 - not yet
10 - ---

25 Points

1 - not yet
2 - not yet
3 - not yet
4 - Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë
5 - Message by Fernando Pessoa I REALLY don´t like poetry >.<
6 - not yet
7 - not yet
8 - Twilight and Breaking Dawn by Stephenie Meyer
9 - not yet


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message 1591: by Louise (new)

Louise | 49 comments I have finished the Planes, Trains, and Automobiles Task (the 4th 5 point task). I have been listening to the audiobook of Emma by Jane Austen in the car on the way to work. That's another 5 pts which gives a total of 75 pts so far.

This challenge is brilliant; i'm reading all sorts of things that have been on my shelves for years and watching at lot less rubbish TV! Thanks Cynthia!




message 1592: by Ashley (new)

Ashley Louise wrote: "I have finished the Planes, Trains, and Automobiles Task (the 4th 5 point task). I have been listening to the audiobook of Emma by Jane Austen in the car on the way to work. That's another 5 pts w..."

I couldn't agree more! I love this challenge because I am trying to find more time to read in my busy schedule an I am picking up things that have been on my shelf for years, literally. Plus, it makes me search out new books that I didn't know about and put it on my TBR list! I love it. I think I'll be sticking around to do more challenges. :)


message 1593: by El (new)

El Meghan wrote: " 5 Points
1. Fire Study - [a:Maria V. Snyder|445303|Maria V. Snyder|http://..."


Meghan, I just noticed you planned to read Anne Frank for the 25-point diary task - she did not live prior to 1900 so if you could find something else for that task, that would be good.


message 1594: by Kristina (last edited Mar 09, 2009 11:52AM) (new)

Kristina (klonk) Sara: It wasn't PS. I Love You that was written with different kind of messaging. It was Where Rainbows End (Love, Rosie). I just tried to compare the two books. So if you want to read a book written in text messages, instant messages, e-mails, and letters - you should read the last one I mentioned. :)


message 1595: by Sara ♥ (new)

Sara ♥ (saranicole) El wrote: "Meghan, I just noticed you planned to read Anne Frank for the 25-point diary task - she did not live prior to 1900 so if you could find something else for that task, that would be good."

Meghan -- I'm reading the Diary of Anne Frank for my translated book--if you really wanted to read it, you could move it up to that task.


message 1596: by Sara ♥ (last edited Mar 09, 2009 11:33AM) (new)

Sara ♥ (saranicole) Kicki wrote: "Elizabeth: It wasn't PS. I Love You that was written with different kind of messaging. It was Where Rainbows End (Love, Rosie). I just tried to compare the two books. So if you want to read a book ..."

Oooh... okay. I'll have to read that one, too, then. My library doesn't have it, though, and I'm at my max on interlibrary loan requests, so I'm going to have to wait..... which I'm really bad at...

EDIT: Oh.... apparently an alternate title is Rosie Dunne, so they DO have it! Yay!


message 1597: by Jeane (last edited Mar 09, 2009 11:32AM) (new)

Jeane (icegini) | 4891 comments 15points-9
9. Read a book with a color in the title AND eat a meal that includes at least 2 foods of that color.

The Red and the Green

ate pasta with green peppers and tomato sauce

total points: 15


message 1598: by Steph (last edited Mar 10, 2009 07:58AM) (new)

Steph Updating my list -
Adding a few more of the 25-point tasks (to-do, not done):

3. One for the Money - Janet Evanovich
The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society - Mary Ann Shaffer

8. The Catcher in the Rye - J.D. Salinger
A Tree Grows in Brooklyn - Betty Smith

9. The Real Jesus: The Misguided Quest for the Historical Jesus and the Truth of the Traditional Gospels - Luke Timothy Johnson


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message 1599: by Meghan (new)

Meghan (meghanly) | 218 comments I can't find a book I like for the diarist thing! Urgh.


message 1600: by Charity (new)

Charity (charityross) Meghan, I noticed that you read and loved Little Women. What about Eden's Outcasts: The Story of Louisa May Alcott and Her Father by John Matteson (which won the Pulitzer for Nonfiction last year) for the 'Diarist Task'?


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