The Next Best Book Club discussion
Cynthia's Seasonal Challenges
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OFFICIAL SPRING CHALLENGE - 2009
I've only been on this list for a few days but I haven't seen anyone post about Jon's task (the 400 page non fiction book on the British Monarchy)...has anyone found a book that a fiction lover could get through?
6. In honor of Earth Day (April 22) read a book with the word Earth, Moon, Sun or one of the other planets in the title. New Moon by Stephanie Meyer-3/12
New Total: 80
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Ashley, Susanna, and El--Thank you all for your recommendations! El, I would welcome reading suggestions of classic or contemporary books set in France that you thought were particularly good reads.
Thanks again!
Nicole wrote: "Ashley, Susanna, and El--Thank you all for your recommendations! El, I would welcome reading suggestions of classic or contemporary books set in France that you thought were particularly good re..."
Andre Gide (The Counterfeiters A Novel and The Immoralist)
Julien Gracq (Opposing Shore)
Andre Breton (Nadja)
Baroness Orczy (The Scarlet Pimpernel)
10. March, April, and May are the 3rd, 4th, and 5th months of the year- Read the third, fourth and fifth books of one series
Seduced by Moonlight (Meredith Gentry 3) by Laurell K Hamilton
Stroke of Midnight (Meredith Gentry 4) by Laurell K Hamilton
Mistral's Kiss (Meredith Gentry 5) by Laurell K Hamilton
Total as at 12 March: 135 Points
For the 5pt task of reading an epistolary novel or a non-fiction collection of letters/journal etc. can I use Prison Writings My Life Is My Sun Dance?
5 POINTS2:84 Charing Cross Road by Helene Hanff (3/04/09)
4:From Dead to Worse by Charlaine Harris (3/10/09)
7: My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult (3/12/09) (audiobook)
10 POINTS
4:A Great and Terribly Beauty by Libba Bray (3/02/09)
6:Moon Called by Patricia Briggs (3/11/09)
10:All Together Dead by Charlaine Harris (3/03/09)
15 POINTS
8:City Dog by Alison Pace. (3/01/09)
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Points: 60
Tasks Completed: 7.5/39
-Beth MN
UPDATE!!!I just finished Gunpowder Green for 15-point task #9. I ate lemon pepper chicken with green beans and a caesar salad for dinner.
This brings my new point total to 35. I still have a long way to go!
Finished another task:5. Magic: Bewitching Season by Marissa Doyle
10 points, making my total 115.
Among the major disappointments in Marissa Doyle's first novel is her characters. Twins, Persephone (Persy) and Penelope (Pen), are up and coming witches preparing for their seasons in 1830s England. They are terribly annoying, careless, and pretty much oblivious to everything around them. The story revolves around the disappearance/kidnapping of their governess (who is also a witch), yet the two never seem to actually care about rescuing her until the end. A lead male, and love interest, is their neighbor, Lochinvar, who conveniently has his own little secret linking himself to the girls. Although there is evidence of research done for the book, it is hardly up to snuff, and this is a big setback. With all its downsides, this novel cannot persevere. Hopefully, Ms. Doyle has improved on what she has done here as she releases subsequent books in this series.
Just completed my first 15 POINT TASK!5. Read a book written by an author who won a major literary prize: Feathers by Jacqueline Woodson (Newberry Honor 2008) 3/12/09
Total Points: 25
Two stars (OK)
I felt that Woodson had too many things going on in this YA novel: a deaf brother, a racial identity crisis, miscarriages / pregnancy, religion, a child's fear of losing a parent, bullying, etc. which detracted from the most important message; that kindness is power.
Oops...I can't figure out how to get my ticker in here - can someone help the helpless?
Looks like there's another Kristen in the contest... I've changed my name to distinguish myself :) Here's my update...5 points
1. The Suicide Collectors
3. Farthing
5. The Sovereign's Last Battle
7. The Mysterious Island
10. Crystal Rain
10 points
4. Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency (currently reading)
5. Blood Rites (Dresden Files)
6. The First Men in the Moon
7. The Carousel
8. Chain of Thought: The Story of a WWII Marine
9. 84 Charing Cross Road
10. When God Was a Woman
15 points
3. The Audacity of Hope
6. The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo
7. What Dreams May Come, Swann's Way
8. The Crown Conspiracy
25 points
3. The Pact, The Golden Compass
8. Little Brother, Artemis Fowl (currently reading)
Total points: 40
Kristina wrote: "Finished another task:5. Magic: Bewitching Season by Marissa Doyle
10 points, making my total 115.
Among the major disappointments in Marissa Doyle's first novel is her characters. Twins, Persep..."
I read that book last year, and I didn't like it much either. I agree that the characters weren't very engaging. I was really annoyed that I'd gone out and BOUGHT it instead of waiting for my library to get it; bad move on my part.
While I enjoy the trend of magical regency YA books, I wish that the ones coming out were better (La Petite Four had equally annoying heroines). For GOOD regency magic, Patricia C. Wrede's Mairelon the Magician and especially its sequel Magician's Ward were excellent.
Bonnie wrote: . . .I recently have gotten into the magical type of Young Adult books and was just so put off by this one. I am going to add your suggestion to my to-be-read list- good recommendations are always welcome!
5 Points 1. Fire Study - Maria V. Snyder
2. Ella Minnow Pea A Novel in Letters - Mark Dunn
3. Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close -
4.
5. The Shack - William P. Young
6.
7.
8.
9. Down the Rabbit Hole An Echo Falls Mystery - Peter Abrahams
10. The Shadow of the Wind - Carlos Ruiz Zafón
10 Points
1.
2. Rain of Gold - Victor Villaseñor
3.
4. Until I Find You A Novel - John Irving (March 2nd)
5.
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.
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. The Six Wives of Henry VIII
8. The White Darkness and
9.
Total
95 Points, 8 Tasks
Nicole wrote: "Ashley, Susanna, and El--Thank you all for your recommendations! El, I would welcome reading suggestions of classic or contemporary books set in France that you thought were particularly good re..."
The Count of Monte Cristo is also in France, and one of my favorites! It is darker than the movie, but I LOVE it!! So good!
Rory wrote: "Just completed my first 15 POINT TASK!5. Read a book written by an author who won a major literary prize: [b:Feathers|272334|Feathers|Jacqueline Woodson|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1173......"
Rory, what year were you born in? I believe that task needs to be for an author who won the award the year you were born...
Tasks Completed5 Points
#1 Read a sci-fi or fantasy novel- Dark Lover by J.R. Ward
#6 Read a book while in a car- Lover Eternal by J.R. Ward
#9 Read a book with a type of bird in the title- The Secret Life of Sparrow Delaney by Suzanne Harper
10 Points
#5 Read a book about magic- Ink Exchange by Melissa Marr
15 Points
#6 Read a book that has been translated from its original language- Perfume The Story of a Murderer by Patrick Suskind
25 Points
#5 Read a book outside of your normal genres-Ghost Walk by Brian Keene
Total Points= 65
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10 Point TasksHarry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban: J.K. Rowling
15 Point Tasks
How to Hook a Hottie by Tina Ferraro
Total: 25 Points
Rory wrote: "Oops...I can't figure out how to get my ticker in here - can someone help the helpless?"just cut and paste from the litte box that says something like html when youve finished your ticker - its has lots of random letters in it but it works when you post. then it updates itself automatically on here when you log on to ticker and change your score
i think Jenny should be getting some kind of commision from them!
Darla wrote: "Hey you guys... sorry about my lateness... I have no internet right now... I sent my challenge to Cynthia, but it looks like I might be too late??? :("
Hi darla! we missed you - you might be too late, but i dont think shes crossed you off altogether, cythias away for a week or so so you never know, she might still be able to sneak you in with the task
Rory, I didn't see a response to your question, so I'll tell you what I do to post my ticker.Once you've created a ticker, updated, and saved it, you'll be taken to a page that has several different copy and paste codes. Copy (right click on your mouse) the HTML code and paste (right click on your mouse) it in your goodreads comment box.
Just finished War of the Windsors my task 25pnts will post review seperateFive Point Tasks
1. Science Fiction/Fantasy Novel: Brave New World
2 Letters: Paper Darts by Virginia Woolf
3. Spring Cleaning: Girl with a Pearl Earring
5. Christian: The Magician's Nephew
6. Women's History: Smart Blonde
7. Arbor Day: Fugitive Pieces A Novel
8. Humorous The Uncommon Reader A Novella
10. Book with Flower: The Name of the Rose
10 Point Tasks
2. Mexican Theme: Under the Volcano A Novel
3. ANZAC Day: Cloudstreet A Novel
4. Author B'Day in May: Heat and Dust
5. Book with Magic: The Mistress of Spices
7. Mother's Day: Moominvalley in November
8. Armed Forces Day: The Ghost Road
9. TNBBC Top Books List: 84, Charing Cross Road (#98)
10. Five Stars: Of Human Bondage
15 Points
2. National Poetry Month: Singing the Snake Poems from the Western Desert, 1979-88
3. TNBBC Group Read:The Witch of Portobello
4. Spring Visit: Possession A Romance
5. Award Winning Author: Schindler's List by Thomas Keneally (won Miles Franklin Award for Australian Literature in 1968)
6. Translated Book: Our Lady Of The Flowers
7. Rhyming Books: The Remains of the Day / The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay
8. Get to Know the Author: The Blind Assassin
9. Book with Colour Title: White Teeth
10. 3-4-5: Three Continents , Four Queens The Provencal Sisters Who Ruled Europe>, Slaughterhouse-Five
25 Points
1. G/R The Godfather/The Road Home
2. Diarist Illustrated Pepys Extracts from the Diary
3. Jamie's Shelves: Interpreter of Maladies and Mrs. Dalloway
4. Big Read : Pride and Prejudice
5. Off Genre - True Crime Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil
7. PENDING
8. YA : I Am the Messenger/I Capture the Castle
9. Saras Crazy Title Sisters to the King The Tumultuous Lives of Henry VIII's Sisters - Margaret of Scotland and Mary of France
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Nicole, For a book set in France, I'm listening to Labyrinth by Kate Mosse for the Planes, Trains and Automobile task, and that book is set in France, mainly in Carcassonne and Chartres. I'm really enjoying it... It's thrilling! I'm not much into audiobooks -- this is my 3rd or 4th attempt at this one -- but the story itself is REALLY good.
Kate Mosse has another book out, Sepulchre, which I believe is also set in France.
Okay, finally on the board! It's been a busy week, I haven't had much time to read. For 10 points:
Read a book given to you/recomended by your mother-Portrait of an Unknown Woman by Vanora Bennett
My mom gave this to me because I like to read historical fiction and because art figures significantly in the plot (I was an art history major and now I work in a gallery). I would definitly recommend this as a fun, fairly quick read. The plot centers around Thomas More and his family during Henry VIII's divorce from Catherine of Aragon.
If any Capricorns are still looking for a book about an artist this would work-Hans Holbein the Younger is one of the two main characters.
Kristina wrote: "I recently have gotten into the magical type of Young Adult books and was just so put off by this one. I am going to add your suggestion to my to-be-read list- good recommenda..."I hope you like them! There's a ton of great YA fantasy out there. The problem is there are also some real stinkers.
15 Points6. Translated book: The Stranger by Albert Camus.
I'm surprised I hadn't already read it in one of my many French lit classes, considering how famous it is (though we did read other Camus). Have to say, I didn't like it. I'm just glad it was so slim.
Total Points: 100
Jon, For your task would I be allowed Lady Jane Grey, And Her Times byGeorge Howard? It is only just 400 pages and she was only Queen for 9 days....
Thanks!
Louise wrote: "Jon, For your task would I be allowed Lady Jane Grey, And Her Times by..."
yes thats fine
My review for the monarchy task. (I got a bit carried away - so much good stuff i had to take notes lol) - p,s Good reads has this as 368 pages, mine was 432I felt slightly guilty in the end considering it was for a book challenge task in honour of The Queens birthday.. i wont be getting a knighthood any time soon!. Actually H.M comes out relatively unscathed but in general the whole House of Windsor is summarily blasted. Its a definate page turner - we all love a scandal don't we?. Its seemingly very well researched and does point out clearly where things cant be proven and what facts there are. The more you go on, it does seem the more they had to find on them to keep up the pace so it seems whilst the majority of the book is extremely likely to be accurate there are one or two claims when you think, now come on thats a bit much.
e.g - The famous Soviet spy Anthony Blunt who was the Queens Art curator who managed to stay in close contact and in his job with the Royals for 15yrs after being uncovered as a traitor before it became public - the authors suggest was possibly an illegitimate child of George V, hence family resemblences and he new secrets, hence looked after.
- Lord Louis Mountbatten, Prince Charles favorite uncle and National War hero, while quite convincingly being shown to have been a megalomaniac, incompetent, bisexual and who pushed Prince Philip into the royal marriage in order to create a dynastic house of Mountbatten (which Prince Charles may well adopt the title of on his accession), is suggested to have been in cahoots with the Soviets and finally killed not by the IRA but by the KGB getting rid of evidence under the guise of the IRA - hmm not sure about that one! Why would a prominent Royal be pro communist being the antipethis of everything communism stands for and at the same time promote his family's dynastic claims
Most of the rest of the book however enlightens us on some other interesting facts, most of which either now well known to the public or corroborated by other researchers suggestions.
Famously the Windsor dynastic line were never really British at all and came to power through an obscure German count who was 52nd in line to the throne but happened to be the closest related protestant they could find after Queen Annne. Following anti-German feeling during the first world war they reluctantly changed their name to Windsor to try be as British as possible but still remained on excellent terms with the German royal families. They were looked down on by the blue blood english aristocracy who really were decended from English nobility. Re Germaness - just as theyd managed to become truly British, the Queen managed to marry a Prince of Greece who is 7/8 German, 1/8 Danish and 0/8 British
Communism was seen as the ultimate threat given what happened to their cousins the Romanovs so though hopefully unaware of the true nature of Nazi-ism were very pro German even during the war and frequently tried to bring behind the scenes peace with Germany to side with them over the Russians. The Royal family were very closely related to some very senior Nazis
At various times George the V was shown to have made unconstitutional influences over the government and it is claimed MRS Simpson was a convenient scape goat to force Edward the VIII into abdication because his views were so reactionary and he did not plan on being a hands-off monarch allowing the elected government to do its thing.
The Queen mum is claimed to have been after Edward but settled for second best with George VI hence her unending hatred and snubbing of the Duchess of Windsor who was refused a royal title.
Oh and rather shockingly the British Monarchy costs more than all the other seven European monarchies put together and when the Queen magnanimously 'voluteered' to pay tax whilst its always assumed the Monarch never did, this was actually something a previous Windsor had managed to get away with due to a loop hole in the law, actually before George V the monarch always paid tax
But still we love em - cant live with em, cant live without em lol
All this and more ! certianly a fascinating read - thoroughly enjoyed it.
Rory: In what year were you born? The number 5 task for 15 points is to read a book by a writer that won a major literary prize in the year you were born.
So, I just read The Perks of Being a Wallflower for my epistolary novel. I really liked the book. It was well written, engaging, and made me think, and a lot of times, Charlie is a character I could relate to, even though I have never experienced anything he went through. That being said, I also had a hard time identifying with a lot of what happened, and it got a little old to hear- I cried, She cried, He cried, They cried, etc. Everyone in this book seemed overly emotional.
That isn't enough to make me dislike the book though. I was a big fan, for the most part.
It felt like an... honest book.
That gives me a total of 130!
Nicole wrote: "Ashley, Susanna, and El--Thank you all for your recommendations! El, I would welcome reading suggestions of classic or contemporary books set in France that you thought were particularly good re..."
I'm reading Hunting and Gathering for the "read a book that's been translated from it's original language task" and it is set in Paris. I'm only halfway through but really loving it.
Jon wrote: "My review for the monarchy task. (I got a bit carried away - so much good stuff i had to take notes lol) - p,s Good reads has this as 368 pages, mine was 432I felt slightly guilty in the end cons..."
Jon- your book that has 432 pages- is it hardback? If the listing here on GR is listed as hardback and has the wrong number of pages a librarian can change that.
If you let me know I'll do it but I don't know what book it is. :)
Rory wrote: "I've only been on this list for a few days but I haven't seen anyone post about Jon's task (the 400 page non fiction book on the British Monarchy)...has anyone found a book that a fiction lover cou..."I'm not sure how many but if you scroll back a few pages you'll find A TON of suggestions. Quite a few people, including myself, were in the dark about what to use for that and Jon went ahead and gave a lot of books that could be used.
I wish I knew what page so it'd be easier to find but I don't think it could be more than about 5 and it's a loooong post so you can sweep past the shorter ones looking for it.
Ashley wrote: "So, I just read The Perks of Being a Wallflower for my epistolary novel. I really liked the book. It was well written, engaging, and made me think, and a lot of times, Charlie is a character I co..."
I'm reading the same book for the same task so I'm glad to see you liked it. I actually almost started it last week but then something stopped me.
♡ Eva ♡ wrote: "Ashley wrote: "So, I just read The Perks of Being a Wallflower for my epistolary novel. I really liked the book. It was well written, engaging, and made me think, and a lot of times, Charlie is a..."
It is pretty good. I would be interested to hear what you think about it when you are done. Let me know!
Karen wrote: "10. March, April, and May are the 3rd, 4th, and 5th months of the year- Read the third, fourth and fifth books of one series
Seduced by Moonlight (Meredith Gentry 3) by Laurell K Hamilton
St..."
Don't you just love Laurell K. Hamilton!!!
Ashley wrote: "♡ Eva ♡ wrote: "Ashley wrote: "So, I just read The Perks of Being a Wallflower for my epistolary novel. I really liked the book. It was well written, engaging, and made me think, and a lot of tim..."
I definitely will. I actually already grabbed it out this morning after I saw your post. I'm almost done with the 12 word title task- I'll be finished this afternoon or this evening and plan to start Perks then. Thanks again!
Completed for 5 Points (so far):Non-fiction collection of letters/journal: Julie and Julia by Julie Powell
Spring Cleaning: Bone Crossed by Patricia Briggs
Planes, Trains, and Automobiles: The Best Christmas Pageant Ever by Barbara Robinson (audiobook in automobile)
April Fool's Day: Cosbyology by Bill Cosby
Completed for 10 Points:
For Cinco de Mayo: Like Water for Chocolate by Laura Esquivel
In Honor of Mother's Day: The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum
Completed for 25 points:
Angela's Task: The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula LeGuin and Catch-22 by Joseph Heller (from El's list)
Sara's Task: Read a book that has a title of 12 or more words: Of Kinkajous, Capybaras, Horned Beetles, Seladangs: The World's Oddest and Most Wonderful Mammals, Insects, Birds and Plants by Jeanne K. Hanson, Deane Morrison
Ashley wrote: "♡ Eva ♡ wrote: "Ashley wrote: "So, I just read The Perks of Being a Wallflower for my epistolary novel. I really liked the book. It was well written, engaging, and made me think, and a lot of tim..."
In general I think The Perks of Being a Wallflower is a love it or hate it book.... If you want to know what I thought, you can read my scathing review...
Sara wrote: "Ashley wrote: "♡ Eva ♡ wrote: "Ashley wrote: "So, I just read The Perks of Being a Wallflower for my epistolary novel. I really liked the book. It was well written, engaging, and made me think, a..."
...Lol. Not a fan huh? There were times when I was not a big fan of the language, or the wording, but I felt like it was written very honestly. It felt to me the way a kid that age, going through that type of stuff would actually speak. Even when I wasn't thrilled with the language, or wording, I appreciated the honesty with which it was spoken. Everything Charlie said was very matter of fact, and just told it like it is.
Some books are just not for everyone... And that is one of my favorite things about stuff like this, are the different ways different people see the same stuff! I love the different perspectives people have. Makes like very intereting!
I had two issues with it: the language (which was awful!) and just the... crudeness. The book was perverse. After reading this book, I stopped wondering what went through boys' heads. I don't want to know anymore. AT ALL. Gross.If the book were a movie, it would DEFINITELY be R-rated, so I want to know how they can justify the YA classification. And I read a LOT of YA, and that book was like..... one-of-these-books-is-not-like-the-others...
On a different subject... For those of you who have read The Road... Is the whole thing as scary as the first 1/4 of the book? Holy cannibals, Batman! *creepy!!* I was afraid I was going to have nightmares last night!!(As a reference point for Sara's level of inability in handling the "horror" genre: Jurassic Park scared the crap out of me! And don't get me started on Hocus Pocus... I don't watch scary movies... EVER...)
The story is finally drawing me in, although every once and a while, the author will use a phrase that makes me go, "Who the HELL says that?? That's the stupidest thing I've ever heard!" (And I'm listening to the audiobook, so I'm hearing all these phrases aloud, which I think makes it worse...) But the author used the word "wonky" (one of my favorite words), so I have to finish it now.
Oh, and the boy and his "papa" are nameless the whole book, aren't they? That's DEFINITELY a first for me...
Hmm... I didn't get the R feel. I would probably have given it a decently mild PG-13. The language was a little crude at parts, but, (I don't know how long it's been since you were in HS) it was actually a bit tamer than the language I often heard at school. (And I can tell you, almost without a doubt that I went to school in one of the most sheltered, small town communities you can think of. Not tiny, but small, and VERY VERY sheltered...) Anyway, some of the stuff I heard was worse than this. How long since you read the book? I am trying to remember anything that would give it an R, and other than the drugs, and sex (that never gets descriptive) I can't think of anything... And, there are PG-13 movies with much worse in them...
By language, do you mean swearing, or the way it was written?
I think it felt a lot like YA- a high schooler suffering through an identity crisis, dealing with girls, sex, death, abuse, and drugs. Feels pretty typical YA to me... (I read quite a bit too, big fan a lot of the time!)
I do admit though, that this doesn't fit the feel good, happy happy YA chick lit type stuff that there is quite a bit of. (And, I do read a little of that... One of those things I almost don't admit I read... Sigh... My only guilty reading pleasure;)...)
Anyway... I like that you disagree with me. It makes me think more about the book than I had before.
♡ Eva ♡ wrote: "Jon wrote: "My review for the monarchy task. (I got a bit carried away - so much good stuff i had to take notes lol) - p,s Good reads has this as 368 pages, mine was 432I felt slightly guilty i..."
no oddly its paper back. its this coloured cover
its isbn 1-74066-098-6 and 432 pages
thanks x
I meant the swearing and just the crudeness, in general--I don't remember anything about the way it was written, other than it just kept going on and on and wouldn't end... *shrugs* I went to high school in Fort Worth (2001 grad), but Texas, in general, is a lot more conservative than other places, I think. PLUS, I was quite quite quite sheltered. None of my friends were drinking or doing drugs or having sex or being abused or dying, so I guess I just have a hard time identifying with those issues, although they are DEFINITELY out there--no doubt about that. They just weren't issues I saw up close and personal.
I read a lot of that "feel good, happy happy YA chick lit type stuff" and I'm not ashamed. I like to read things that make me happy. I have enough stress and deep-thinking at work. I read to escape.
The Next Best Book Club
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For 25pts, Sara's task to read a book with 12 or more words in the title: What Would MacGyver Do? True Stories of Improvised Genius in Everyday Life by Brendan Vaughan
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