The Next Best Book Club discussion
Cynthia's Seasonal Challenges
>
OFFICIAL SPRING CHALLENGE - 2009
Completed Tasks5 POINT TASKS
1.
6.
10 POINT TASKS
10.
15 POINT TASKS
2.
3.
5.
6.
7.
8.
25 POINT TASKS
4.
8.
TOTAL= 160 points (Just finished Perfume)
Meghan wrote: "Finished Girl with the Dragon Tattoo for 15.6... story was great, translation was a bit clunky.I felt the same way about Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. I hated the way he ended the book - not the climax of the story, but the last two pages. Maybe he was just trying to set up her story to keep going in the next book which comes out this summer (Girl Who Played With Fire)? It just left me really sad and left me with a weird feeling about the book.
5 POINTS1:Stolen by Kelley Armstrong (4/06/09)
2:84 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)
10 POINTS
3:Obernewtyn by Isobelle Carmody (3/20/09)
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
3:The Book Thief by Markus Zusak (4/02/09)
4:Bloodsucking Fiends by Christopher Moore (3/30/09)
5:The Bookshop by Penelope Fitzgerald (4/07/09) She won the Man Booker the year I was born (1979)--not for this book, although this one was short-listed the year it was published.
6:The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho (3/13/09)
8:City Dog by Alison Pace (3/01/09)
25 POINTS
1:The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald (3/09/09) and Rebel Angels by Libba Bray (3/16/09)
4:The Color of Magic by Terry Pratchett (3/24/09)
5:The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield (3/27/09)
8:Holes by Louis Sachar (3/17/09) and Life: An Autobiography as Told by Jack Gunthridge by Jack Gunthridge (3/18/09)
[image error]
Points: 235
Tasks Completed: 17.5/40
-Beth MN
Maliades wrote: "I can't believe I forgot to give myself points for this... my mom always gives me her old books to read and/or sell, and I was going to re-read 'Pieces of my Sister's Life' for this task, but reali..."I read Pieces after meeting the author on MySpace and ended up liking it quite a bit. I actually went right out and bought Promise The Moon which also looks good but I haven't got to yet. LOL
Kristina wrote: "♡ Eva ♡ wrote: "Cyndee wrote: "Yay! I've finally broken 100!! I've finished:25 pts, #8 (2 YA novels)--The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky, and Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants b..."
I think it's because you hear so darn much from so many different people. Usually you hear different thoughts and see different ratings and reviews and when you start hearing the SAME thing from everyone you start having insane expectations! I learned my lesson there though- any book with that much going on around it, kind of like The Shack when I read that, I'm not listening to anyone about until AFTER I read it! :)
two more challenges completed:2. Cinco de Mayo:
7. Mother's Day:
20 points added to previous total = 295 points as of 4.7.09
Cynthia wrote: "Wendy wrote: "The Red Tent counts in the biography of an insprational woman category. The book Sarah by Orson Scott Card was also excellent."Actually Wendy it wouldn't count as biography because i..."Oh right. Sorry.What was I thinking????
how do I cross out and bold books on my list?
If you use these arrows <> with an i (italics), b (bold), or s (strike) in between in front of the words you want in italics, striked, or bold and then in back of the words use the same arrows but with /i, /b, or /s in between.
There's a link that says (some html is ok) above the comment box - click on that and it will show you some basic html to use.
Like if you want to make the word 'love' bold you'd do thisleft arrow, b, right arrow, love, left arrow, /, b, right arrow
just no commas
LEADERBOARD
DONNA JO - 395
LIZZI - 385
MEGHAN - 385
KRISTEN IL - 355
BRIDGIT - 350
SANDY - 350
BONNIE - 340
SHARON - 335
LEORA - 305
BEV - 300
JOSIE - 300
BJ ROSE - 295
ASHLEY ID - 290
TINA - 290
KRISTINA - 270
RORA - 270
KRISTENR - 265
PERS - 265
EVA - 245
LIZ BRKLYN - 245
RORY - 245
CAIT - 240
BETH MN - 235
KRITIKA - 225
COURTNEY - 220
ANGIE - 215
FIONA (TITCH)- 215
SARA - 210
LOUISE - 205
SUZIER - 205
ANGELA - 195
ASHLEY AL - 190
CATHEROO - 190
ALICE - 185
APRIL - 180
EL - 180
LINDSEY - 180
MAGGIE - 180
MARY BETH - 180
NICOLE NC - 180
JON - 175
LAURA - 175
REBECCA J - 175
CYNTHIA (SCM) - 170
JAMIE MN - 170
SUSAN - 170
WENDY - 170
STEPH - 165
FALLON - 160
LIZ VEGAS - 160
SANDIE - 160
BECKY - 155
STEPHANIE - 155
AMY - 150
JUDITH IA - 150
LILY - 150
LORI - 150
ROS - 150
ELIZABETH NC - 145
LYNLEE4 - 145
DAVID - 140
JOY - 140
VICTORIA - 140
KAREN - 135
ROSEANN - 135
JEGKA - 130
ALISHA - 125
CAROL - 125
HEATHER KS - 125
RHIANNON - 125
CASSIE - 120
CYNDEE - 120
KATE - 120
ANN FROM SC - 115
POTJY - 115
RENFREW - 115
SERA - 115
CATHERINE - 105
MANDAY - 105
ABBIE - 100
JENNIFER IN - 100
RYAN - 100
WV HEATHER - 100
TRYPHENA - 95
CYNTHIA - 90
TRACY - 90
JOANNA - 85
LAUREN - 85
MEREDITH H - 85
ELIZABETH (ALASKA) - 80
HAYES - 80
JENNY - 80
BETH - 75
JEN B - 75
JULIE UK - 75
KICKI - 75
LINDA - 75
MEGAN - 75
SUSANNA UK - 75
MELODY - 70
NATALIA - 70
REBECCA - 70
SLAIMI - 70
KATHRYN - 65
MALIADES - 65
SAI - 65
AMANDA - 60
KELLY - 60
ALYSSA - 55
JEN - 55
JOANIE - 55
MEL - 55
ROBIN - 55
JESSICA MI - 50
JESSICA SC - 50
RACHEL - 50
SHANNON - 50
SARAH - 50
ALLISON - 45
ELIZ - 45
LACY - 45
ASHLEY UT - 40
JAMIE WA - 40
JEANE - 40
JENNIFER MD - 40
JULIE (ID)'S - 40
KIM - 40
KRISTINA UK - 40
LDB - 40
LISA CO - 40
LIZ NY - 40
TOBIE - 40
VICKI - 40
KATIE - 35
TERRI - 35
JULIE TN - 30
SHELLIE - 30
DOROTHY - 25
JAIME 26 - 25
KRISTI - 25
MELISSA - 25
MACKENZIE - 20
NICOLE CA - 20
CAITLIN - 15
JENNI - 15
GREG - 10
MORGAN - 10
JAMIE 23 - 5
JUDITH NY - 5
MICHELLE - 5
SHELBY - 5
Is it too late to join the challenge?
Kelly wrote: "Is it too late to join the challenge?"Not at all! Anyone can join in up until the challenge ends, and you can count all the books you've read since March 1st if you can fit them into a challenge spot! Welcome!
finished the Cinco de Mayo task - Malinche by Laura Esquivel. I have to say that I really hated this book. Luckily it was pretty short!Total Points: 350
Finished Dewey as an audiobook in my car for 5.45 Points
1.
2. Ella Minnow Pea A Novel in Letters
3.
4.
5. The Shack
6.
7.
8.
9. Down the Rabbit Hole An Echo Falls Mystery
10.
Total: 25
10 Points
1.
2. Rain of Gold
3.
4. Until I Find You A Novel - John Irving (March 2nd)
5.
6. The Earth, My Butt, and Other Big Round Things
7.
8. Outlander
9. The Eyre Affair
10. The Virgin Suicides
Total: 40 points
15 Points
1.
2.
3.
4.
5. The Witches of Eastwick - John Updike (National Book Critics Circle Award for Fiction - 1981)
6.
7.
8.
9.
10. Three Cups of Tea One Man's Mission to Promote Peace . . . One School at a Time; The Rule of Four; Slaughterhouse-Five
Total: 120 Points
25 Points
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
Total: 200 points
Grand Total
385 points, 25 Tasks
Maliades wrote: "Question: is 'Heart of Gold' by Sharon Shinn considered YA? Or is it just Sci Fi? I don't read YA so I'm having much trouble with task 25.8! Tried to get 'Uglies' by Scott Westerfield but library ..."Heart of Gold is classified as an adult novel from what I can tell so noSharon wrote: "I am struggling with Catch 22 which I had chosen for the 10.8 task
In Honor of Memorial and Armed Forces Day – Read a book about a veteran OR someone serving in the military (fiction or non-fiction..." - Looking at your shelves you could read March
Loretta wrote: "Hi, everybody. I am new to this group and want to do the spring challenge. I want to know if we have to tell what books we are planning on reading or whether we can just tell you right before the c..." It's up to you - how you want to do it - just make sure if you wait until the end to post everything that you get it in on time (time being before midnight (EST) on May 31st.
Heather wrote: "Wow. I think we've spent more time saying what doesn't rhyme on this thing than that particular challenge was worth. I didn't know we were being so picky about exactly where the rhyme is. Oh wel..."The reason I'm being picky on that task is only because it's worth more points if it was a 5 pointer I would let it slide but the more points it is the harder it should be to earn and I want things to be as fair and equal as possible. yes you can count Are You There Vodka? It's Me, Chelsea for the humor task. Something isn't quite right with either your math or mine because I have you at 100 points not 125, here's what I have for you...
15 Point Task #3 - Water For Elephants
5 Point Task #4 - The Beach House
25 Point Task #8 - Stargirl and Forever
25 Point Task #3 - The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time and The Book Thief
5 Point Task #7 - Snow Flower and the Secret Fan
10 Point Task #4 - The Dare
15 Point Task #7 - Barefoot
15+5+25+25+5+10+15 = 100 not 125
Kelly wrote: "Is it too late to join the challenge?"No it's not too late until it's overRory wrote: "Cynthia: For task 5.10 can I use The Sheltering Sky?"It's not really a rain/weather related word so no
10 pts for the author b-day task. That brings me to 175!5 POINTS
1.
2.
3. Spring Cleaning – Leni: The Life and Work of Leni Riefenstahl, Steven Bach
4. Planes, Trains and Automobiles audiobook – Ragtime, E.L. Doctorow
5.
6. Women’s History Month – The Lady and the Unicorn, Tracy Chevalier
7. Arbor Day “recycle book” – Burnt Offerings, Laurell K. Hamilton
8. Humorous Novel – Undead and Uneasy, MaryJanice Davidson
9. Spring Animals in title – Lamb: The Gospel According to Biff, Christ’s Childhood Pal, Christopher Moore
10. April Showers Bring May Flowers – The Enchantment of Lily Dahl: A Novel, Siri Hustvedt
10 POINTS
1. Set in Ireland – Three Bags Full, Leonie Swan
2. Cinco De Mayo -- Set in Mexico, The Falling Woman, Pat Murphey
3. Australian Author –I Am the Messenger, Markus Zusak or The People of the Book, Geraldine Brooks
4.
5.
6. Sun in Title – Mistress of the Sun, Sandra Gulland
7.
8. Memorial and Armed forces day – Band of Brothers, Stephen Ambrose
9. TNBBC Top Books list –I Capture the Castle, Dodie Smith
10. TNBBC Member 5 star book – Pride and Prejudice, Jane Austen
15 POINTS
1. SAGITARIUS: The archer – read a book about an athlete or sports. Shanks for Nothing, Rick Reiley
2. April is National Poetry Month – Read a book of poetry OR about a famous poet. Wintering: A Novel of Sylvia Plath, Kate Moses
3. TNBBC Group Read – A Great and Terrible Beauty, Libba Bray
4.
5. Major Literary Prize, 1981 – John Updike, winner of the National Book Critics Circle Award, Witches of Eastwick
6. Translation – Suite Francaise, Irene Nemirovsky
7. Two books with rhyming titles – Bitten,….Ten Big Ones, Janet Evanovich
8.
9. Book with color/meal – Blue Moon, Laurell K. Hamilton
10. 3, 4, 5 series or titles – Kim Harrison
Every Which Way But Dead
A Fistful of Charms
For a Few Demons More
25 POINT
1.
2.Diarist – The World of Louisa May Alcott, William Anderson
3.Jen’s List –The Virgin Suicides and Ferris Beach
4. Anne of Green Gables, L.M. Montgomery
5.
6. Eleanor of Aquitaine: A Life, Alison Weir or Nell Gwyn: Mistress to a King, Charles Beauclerk
7.
8.
9. Book with 12 or more words in the title – The Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair that Changed America, Erik Larson
Total Points: 175/575
Tasks Completed: 11
Books Read: 14
Total Pages Read: 5530
[image error]
My score is slowly creeping up!25 pts
#3 - Angela's task - I read 2 books from Elizabeth NC's list:
Ex Libris
Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close
I think that brings me to 190? Told ya, creeping. By the way Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close is an extremely amazing and incredibly touching story. I loved it.
8. Veteran - Jarhead : A Marine's Chronicle of the Gulf War and Other Battles (Audio CD) by and narrated by Anthony Swofford
10 points, making my total 270.
I liked this one more than I thought I would but wasn't too impressed with the author doing the reading but it did add something.
Tasks Completed 5 Points
#1 Read a sci-fi or fantasy novel- Dark Lover by J.R. Ward
#4 Read a book while in a car- Lover Eternal by J.R. Ward
#6 Read a book with one of the following in the title: woman, women, etc..- A Drowned Maiden's Hair A Melodrama by Laura Amy Schlitz
#9 Read a book with a type of bird in the title- The Secret Life of Sparrow Delaney by Suzanne Harper
10 Points
#3 Read a book written by an Australian author- I Am the Messenger by Markus Zusak
#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
#7 Read two books w/rhyming titles- Iron Kissed by Patricia Briggs and Beyond the Highland Mist by Karen Marie Moning
#8 Read a book & then read an interview with that author- Bone Crossed by Patricia Briggs http://us.penguingroup.com/static/htm...
#9 Read a book w/a color in the title- Redwall by Brian Jacques
#10 Read the 3rd, 4th, and 5th books of one series- Lover Awakened, BDB#3; Lover Revealed, BDB#4; Lover Unbound, BDB#5 by J.R. Ward
25 Points
#4 Read a book from The Big Read's list- Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier
#5 Read a book outside of your normal genres- Ghost Walk by Brian Keene
#7 Read a book referenced in a movie- The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum (referenced in the movie Inkheart)
#8 Read two YA novels- Confessions of a Serial Kisser by Wendelin Van Draanen and Love, Cajun Style by Diane Les Becquets
Total Points= 215
I finished Wolf Queen The Claidi Journals III on the way home on the bus today, which means I've completed Task 5.4. The Claidi books are short, but incredibly fun and quirky. They're written as Claidi's diary, and she has such a great, believable voice! I'm going to read the fourth and final soon, even though I can't fit it into any of the Spring Challenge tasks...Total: 300
Tasks completed2. EL’s TASK - Read a Non-Fiction book about OR by a noted diarist from This List http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_dia... who lived prior to the 1900’s.
Wordsworth, Dorothy Title Dorothy Wordsworth's illustrated Lakeland journals READ
NEW TOTAL = 335 points
5 points
1 Inkheart (Inkheart, Book 1) by Cornelia Funke
2 The Diary of a Young Girl – Anne Frank(ordered)
4 Little Women - EBOOK (reading)
6 Mah, Adeline Yen Title Falling leaves return to their roots : the true story of an unwanted Chinese daughter
7 Barbara Trapido – Juggling - read then give to charity (on shelf)
8 Three bags full / Leonie Swan /
9 The One Flew over the cukoos nest – Kesey
10 The House of Thunder – Dean Kootz
10/50 points
10 points
2 Like Water for Chocolate by Laura Esquivel READ
3 Author Grenville, Kate Title The Secret river READ
4 SUE GRAFTON O is for Outlaw
5 Practical Magic – Alice Goffman
7 Walk Two Moons – Sharon Creech
8 TBD
9 Numer 1 on the list - I Capture the Castle – Dodie Smith (on shelf)
50/100 points
15 points
1 Riordan, Rick Title The lightning thief (ordered)
3 The Audacity of Hope – Barack Obama (ordered)
One city / Alexander McCall Smith, Ian Rankin and Irvine Welsh READ
6 Love in the time of Cholera(on shelf)
7 : Alias Grace Mary Higgins Clark & No Place Like Home A Novel Margaret Atwood
Then read about him online. DONE
9 A CLOCKWORK ORANGE READ
CARROT AND SWEET POTATO MASH
10 Stirling, Jessica - Sisters three (on shelf)
Caldwell, Ian – Rule of Four (on shelf)
Harris, Joanna – Five quarters of the orange(on shelf)
75/150 points
25 points
2 Wordsworth, Dorothy Title Dorothy Wordsworth's illustrated Lakeland journals READ
3 The Cellist of Sarajevo – Steven Galloway READ
When Will There Be good news – Kate Atkinson READ
4 Animal Farm – George Orwell READ
5 Young Adult – Angus, Thongs and perfect snogging READ
6 In The Footsteps of Robert Bruce – Alan Young & Michael J Stead 190 pages (on shelf)
On the Trail of William Wallace – David R. Ross 146 pages READ
8 The growing pains of Adrian Mole – Sue Townsend READ
Private peaceful – Michael Morpurgo READ
9 Waiting for Daisy : the true story of one couple's quest to have a baby / Peggy Orenstein READ
200/225 points
Total 335 points
I've just completed:15.10: Three, Four, Five -
Total Pts: 240
Cynthia, are planning to have the top scorers submit tasks this time around too? I was thinking that it might be fun to have one submitted by the "most improved reader." I know I don't have a chance of coming close to the 300 mark and I'm sure there are some others that are feeling the same way. What if we all looked at our score from the last challenge and compared it to our score for this challenge and the person whose score increased by the largest percentage wins the "most improved reader" award and gets to submit a task? Just thought it might be a way to create a little competition for those of us who are not near the top of the leaderboard.
Cynthia, thanks for clearing up my question about the Sharon Shinn YA novel! I am going to use it for the 5.1 task though, since it's classified as sci fi in my library and on GR. I also need to keep track of my points better, ack! I'm getting confused. My correct point total should be 65, not 60 as in my last post. I am going to type up a list like others are doing and post it later. I also want to track the number of pages I've read for this challenge, am curious to see how much I can read! lol
To everyone looking for a novel for the (task 10.8) Armed Forces day: All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque is pretty good. Or, you could use it as the translated novel (task 15.6), since it was originally published in German. It is pretty good, and a fairly quick read.
Hi Cynthia! I have also read Fun Home A Family Tragicomic for the 25 point task of read something out of your "norm." I have never read a graphic novel before. That is the other 25 points making my total 125. Thanks!Heather in KS
I've been getting frustrated with myself for not being able to sit down and finish reading a book... but I finished one last night. Just a baby 5-pointer, but whatever.Task 5.8 - Humorous Novel: Undead and Uneasy by MaryJanice Davidson
This is my favorite book of the series so far. It was pretty fabulous.
New Stats
Tasks Completed: 15/39
Books Read: 20/45
Pages Read: 5285
Points Earned: 210
5 pts for womens history month task! Up to 180.5 POINTS
1.
2.
3. Spring Cleaning – Leni: The Life and Work of Leni Riefenstahl, Steven Bach
4. Planes, Trains and Automobiles audiobook – Ragtime, E.L. Doctorow
5.
6.
7. Arbor Day “recycle book” – Burnt Offerings, Laurell K. Hamilton
8. Humorous Novel – Undead and Uneasy, MaryJanice Davidson
9. Spring Animals in title – Lamb: The Gospel According to Biff, Christ’s Childhood Pal, Christopher Moore
10. April Showers Bring May Flowers – The Enchantment of Lily Dahl: A Novel, Siri Hustvedt
10 POINTS
1. Set in Ireland – Three Bags Full, Leonie Swan
2. Cinco De Mayo -- Set in Mexico, The Falling Woman, Pat Murphey
3. Australian Author –I Am the Messenger, Markus Zusak or The People of the Book, Geraldine Brooks
4. Author Birthday –
5.
6. Sun in Title – Mistress of the Sun, Sandra Gulland
7.
8. Memorial and Armed forces day – Band of Brothers, Stephen Ambrose
9. TNBBC Top Books list –I Capture the Castle, Dodie Smith
10. TNBBC Member 5 star book – Pride and Prejudice, Jane Austen
15 POINTS
1. SAGITARIUS: The archer – read a book about an athlete or sports. Shanks for Nothing, Rick Reiley
2. April is National Poetry Month – Read a book of poetry OR about a famous poet. Wintering: A Novel of Sylvia Plath, Kate Moses
3. TNBBC Group Read – A Great and Terrible Beauty, Libba Bray
4.
5. Major Literary Prize, 1981 – John Updike, winner of the National Book Critics Circle Award, Witches of Eastwick
6. Translation – Suite Francaise, Irene Nemirovsky
7. Two books with rhyming titles – Bitten,….Ten Big Ones, Janet Evanovich
8.
9. Book with color/meal – Blue Moon, Laurell K. Hamilton
10. 3, 4, 5 series or titles – Kim Harrison
Every Which Way But Dead
A Fistful of Charms
For a Few Demons More
25 POINT
1.
2.Diarist – The World of Louisa May Alcott, William Anderson
3.Jen’s List –The Virgin Suicides and Ferris Beach
4. Anne of Green Gables, L.M. Montgomery
5.
6. Eleanor of Aquitaine: A Life, Alison Weir or Nell Gwyn: Mistress to a King, Charles Beauclerk
7.
8.
9. Book with 12 or more words in the title – The Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair that Changed America, Erik Larson
Total Points: 180/575
Tasks Completed: 12
Books Read: 15
Total Pages Read: 5786
[image error]
P.S. Cynthia- THANK YOU for all you are doing on here. It's a ton of work, but it is so much fun to have goals for reading-makes me really sit down and finish books!Heather in KS
[image error]
8. In Honor of Memorial and Armed Forces Day – Read a book about a veteran OR someone serving in the military (fiction or non-fiction).
This was decent. I'm glad I read it because knowing next to nothing about the army it does give some insight and she seems to be quite honest.
I got a bad impression of her in the very beginning because she was very negative about Lynndie England and Jessica Lynch's situations. She apparently believes they aren't up to par with her and what she went through and that Lynch made a mistake which brought this on herself. Her saying that seemed even more strange later in the book because she goes on to talk about mistakes of her own and other soldiers. I'm still not sure what to make of that because it was all contradictory.
Besides that the book seemed very honest, she also opened up about her own feelings and actions and some of it I'm sure most people would not have shared. She spoke of humiliating prisoners, feelings of wanting to just kill locals, etc.
I thought she brought forth her feelings well overall and it is great to learn about some of the day to day situations some of the soldiers face.
It's a quick book too- it only took me this long to get through because I was reading three others.
This is probably an easy one for this task.
Read Ariel and other poems by Sylvia Plath for "read a book of poetry." 15 more points.Total: 45 points
5 pts#1Breaking Dawn
15 pts
#7Tara Road and The Redemption of Sarah Cain
25 pts
#8 Twilight and Eclipse
that should be for a grand total of 90 pts hoorah!
How did you like Sylvia Plath's poetry, Julie? I just read The Bell Jar and really enjoyed it. I'm interested in checking out more of her poetry now.
Did you skip New Moon, Lacy? If so, that's understandable (it was my least favorite of the series)!
Jamie wrote: "How did you like Sylvia Plath's poetry, Julie? I just read The Bell Jar and really enjoyed it. I'm interested in checking out more of her poetry now."Jamie, if you liked The Bell Jar you should also check out her book Johnny Panic and the Bible of Dreams Short Stories, Prose, and Diary Excerpts (if you haven't already). I really liked that one.
I finished To Hell and Back by Lilith Saintcrow last night. That makes 3, 4, and 5 of the Dante Valentine series for task 15.10. Which brings my total points to 165. 3=The Devil's Right Hand: and 4=Saint City Sinners:[image error]
I really enjoyed this series. It is very different from the usual paranormal books that I read, but I still liked it very much. I would recommend it to anyone who likes paranormal fiction as long as they don't mind it being a little bit futuristic. Dante lives 600 years in our future and some of the changes the author makes are very interesting.
Jamie wrote: "Did you skip New Moon, Lacy? If so, that's understandable (it was my least favorite of the series)!"Oh sad! I love New Moon. It's much better the second time you read it... Of course, to me, Bella doesn't seem terribly whiney. I could understand it you thought that though...
So I'm a little miffed that I ordered a bunch of used books to complete my 25 point tasks for this challenge, but they haven't arrived yet. I ordered them over a month ago, but nothing! So I'm re-shuffling my list...a bit of a bummer because I really wanted to read some of those, too. Okay, end of rant! In the meantime I've finished another task:
10 Point Tasks
5. March 24 is Harry Houdini’s Birthday – Read a book about magic, a magician etc.
Garden Spells by Sarah Addison Allen
I loved absolutely everything about this book! I highly recommend it -- there are several spots where it can be used in this challenge.
New Point Total: 85
Full challenge list in post #75
[image error]
I got on the Twilight bandwagon well into it's spiraling popularity. The media specialist at my school saw me on campus last summer & said "You have to read this series...it's the next Harry Potter & will get our kids reading!". With an endorsement like that I absolutely had to read them! I definitely enjoyed Twilight (the first book) and proceeded to read the next 3 in quick succession. Personally I thought New Moon was very slow and Bella did grate on my nerves - in my eyes she was desperate. I don't find this type of heroine to be a great role model for girls. She redeemed herself in other ways though in my opinion. I thought the Renesme plot twist a little over the top...and just plain weird but I'm a fan of Conan so, really my tastes aren't that discerning!
I'm on the AP Listserv (it helps me prepare our next AP students as I'm at the middle school level) and this series has sparked tons of debate - does it have literary merit, discussions about Meyer's writing style, etc.
Personally I wouldn't "teach" the book per se in class but it has inspired many of my students to read - now how can that be a bad thing? In fact, the books were incredibly popular with a few of my rough & tough hispanic boys - you gotta love that!
My personal reading odyssey began with Charlie and the Chocolate Factory in 5th grade and I was quickly led to historial romance (the Sunfire series put out by Scholastic - Amanda) which eventually led me to be an AP English student in high school where I was reading Jane Eyre, A Separate Peace, and To Kill a Mockingbird in class and books by Johanna Lindsey on my own. Now I teach Language Arts! These days I wouldn't typically pick up a romance novel but it seems that after Charlie got me hooked on reading that was my genre of choice for awhile.
Someone said reading 1,000 books won't hurt a child but reading just one, with one point of view, will. My point is, who knows where one book can take a child!
I'll leave you with a quote from Maya Angelou that goes out on all my school emails: Any book that helps a child to form a habit of reading, to make reading one of his deep and continuing needs, is good for him.
LEADERBOARD
DONNA JO - 395
LIZZI - 385
MEGHAN - 385
KRISTEN IL - 360
BRIDGIT - 350
SANDY - 350
BONNIE - 340
SHARON - 335
BEV - 325
LEORA - 310
JOSIE - 300
BJ ROSE - 295
ASHLEY ID - 290
TINA - 290
KRISTINA - 270
RORA - 270
KRISTENR - 265
PERS - 265
EVA - 255
LIZ BRKLYN - 245
RORY - 245
CAIT - 240
BETH MN - 235
KRITIKA - 225
COURTNEY - 220
ANGIE - 215
FIONA (TITCH)- 215
SARA - 210
LOUISE - 205
SUZIER - 205
ANGELA - 195
ASHLEY AL - 190
CATHEROO - 190
ALICE - 185
SANDIE - 185
APRIL - 180
EL - 180
LINDSEY - 180
MAGGIE - 180
MARY BETH - 180
NICOLE NC - 180
JON - 175
LAURA - 175
REBECCA J - 175
CYNTHIA (SCM) - 170
JAMIE MN - 170
SUSAN - 170
WENDY - 170
LORI - 165
STEPH - 165
FALLON - 160
LIZ VEGAS - 160
BECKY - 155
STEPHANIE - 155
AMY - 150
JUDITH IA - 150
LILY - 150
ROS - 150
ELIZABETH NC - 145
LYNLEE4 - 145
DAVID - 140
JOY - 140
VICTORIA - 140
KAREN - 135
ROSEANN - 135
JEGKA - 130
ALISHA - 125
CAROL - 125
HEATHER KS - 125
RHIANNON - 125
CASSIE - 120
CYNDEE - 120
KATE - 120
ANN FROM SC - 115
POTJY - 115
RENFREW - 115
SERA - 115
CATHERINE - 105
MANDAY - 105
ABBIE - 100
JENNIFER IN - 100
RYAN - 100
WV HEATHER - 100
TRYPHENA - 95
CYNTHIA - 90
LACY - 90
TRACY - 90
JEN B - 85
JOANNA - 85
LAUREN - 85
MEREDITH H - 85
ELIZABETH (ALASKA) - 80
HAYES - 80
JENNY - 80
BETH - 75
JESSICA SC - 75
JULIE UK - 75
KATHRYN - 75
KICKI - 75
LINDA - 75
MALIADES - 75
MEGAN - 75
SUSANNA UK - 75
MELODY - 70
NATALIA - 70
REBECCA - 70
SLAIMI - 70
KRISTINA UK - 65
SAI - 65
AMANDA - 60
KELLY - 60
ALYSSA - 55
JEN - 55
JOANIE - 55
MEL - 55
ROBIN - 55
JEANE - 50
JESSICA MI - 50
RACHEL - 50
SHANNON - 50
SARAH - 50
ALLISON - 45
ELIZ - 45
JULIE TN - 45
ASHLEY UT - 40
JAMIE WA - 40
JENNIFER MD - 40
JULIE (ID)'S - 40
KIM - 40
LDB - 40
LISA CO - 40
LIZ NY - 40
SHELLIE - 40
TOBIE - 40
VICKI - 40
KATIE - 35
TERRI - 35
DOROTHY - 25
JAIME 26 - 25
KRISTI - 25
MELISSA - 25
MACKENZIE - 20
NICOLE CA - 20
CAITLIN - 15
JENNI - 15
GREG - 10
MORGAN - 10
JAMIE 23 - 5
JUDITH NY - 5
MICHELLE - 5
SHELBY - 5
Heather wrote: "P.S. Cynthia- THANK YOU for all you are doing on here. It's a ton of work, but it is so much fun to have goals for reading-makes me really sit down and finish books!Heather in KS"Your Welcome
Joanie wrote: "Cynthia, are planning to have the top scorers submit tasks this time around too? I was thinking that it might be fun to have one submitted by the "most improved reader." I know I don't have a ch..."Yes at least the top 3 scorers (unless more than 3 people finish the entire challenge) will get to select a 25 pointer for this summers challenge. And that isn't a bad idea....SO for the next challenge both the "Most Improved Player" and the "Best Rookie of the Season" i.e. a player who hasn't played before will also get to select a 25 pointer (if either of those people are in the top 3 already the award will go on to the next person).
I like that idea, Cynthia - the Most Improved and Best Rookie choices.
Just completed task 5-8, I read Fool by Christopher Moore. It was a light, funny read but very baudy! My first Christopher Moore.
I now have 310 points.
If we finish the entire challenge (575 points), by midnight on May 31st then we get to pick a 25 point task for the summer challenge? Wow!
Abbie wrote: "I just finished Harry Potter and the Prizoner of Azkaban. I also moved Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets to 25 point task #3 so that changed my point total.5 points
1. Fantasy - [b:Harry..."
Abbie, I jsut finsihed the same book like you!!! i am also planning to read four and five but a bit later.
The Next Best Book Club
Books mentioned in this topic
Tempting Fate (other topics)Romeo and Juliet (other topics)
Romeo and Juliet (other topics)
Why Don't Penguins' Feet Freeze?: And 114 Other Questions (other topics)
Where the Sidewalk Ends (other topics)
More...
Authors mentioned in this topic
Anita Shreve (other topics)Markus Zusak (other topics)
Neil Gaiman (other topics)
Paulo Coelho (other topics)
Douglas Adams (other topics)
More...
Total: 295 points