June Challenge - Miles Franklin and/or TBR list!

[Michele]

Starting on Sunflowers by Sheramy Bundrick - this book has been on my tbr pile since 2009! Definitely time it was read :)

[Elaine]

Just started my first for this challenge,not a Miles Franklin but from my TBR. Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close.

[Trina]

Finished my first TBR The Shining Girls by Lauren Beukes, review to come, when I write it (rated 5 stars)

edit: review WITH SPOILERS http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/...

[Elaine]

Finished my first TBR Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close . I gave it 3 stars. It was an interesting read.

[Amber]

1. The Light Between Oceans by M.L. Stedman★★★★
2. Bitter Greens by Kate Forsyth ★★★★★

[Amber]

Another TBR off the pile, and another Aussie author to boot :-)

3. The Happiest Refugee: A Memoir by Anh Do ★★★★★

[Brenda, Aussie Authors Queen]

This is my TBR read list at the moment:)

1. Ryders Ridge by Charlotte Nash 5★s
2. 12th of Never by James Patterson 5★s
3. The Turn of the Screw by Henry James 2★s
4. All the Birds, Singing by Evie Wyld 3★s
5. The Goodbye Ride by Lily Malone 5★s
6. Unseen by Karin Slaughter 5★s
7. Outback Fear by Suzanne Brandyn 4★s
8. Daddy's Gone A Hunting by Mary Higgins Clark 5★s
9. This Red Earth by Kim Kelly 5★s
10. Mother of Ten by J.B. Rowley 4★s

[Trina]

Finished a second TBR Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn, rated 5 stars.

[Mish]

Brenda wrote: "This is my TBR read list at the moment:)

1. Ryders Ridge by Charlotte Nash 5★s
2. 12th of Never by James Patterson 5★s
3. The Turn of the Screw by Henry James 2★s
4. All the Birds, Singing by Evie..."

Oh Brenda that is AMAZING! You said 12 at the beginning of this thread but I think it's going to be more like 24 :)

[Nicola]

Read Lola Bensky / Lily Brett
Couldn't decide if I liked it or not! The premise was good but the character wasn't real enough for me - she seemed to have a fantastic job on no qualifications at all and no relevant experience and the back story about her parents just got so annoying.

[Donna R]

Dark Palace,
Winter in Madrid
The Secret Garden

Dark Palace will be my MF book and then I've added two which are both on my TBR and in my Winter Challenge.

[Brenda, Aussie Authors Queen]

Mish wrote: "Brenda wrote: "This is my TBR read list at the moment:)

1. Ryders Ridge by Charlotte Nash 5★s
2. 12th of Never by James Patterson 5★s
3. The Turn of the Screw by Henry James 2★s
4. All the Birds, ..."

lol! Thanks Mish, I'm trying;)

[Brenda, Aussie Authors Queen]

Donna wrote: "Dark Palace
Winter in Madrid
The Secret Garden

Dark Palace will be my MF book and then I've added two which are both on my TBR and in my Winter Challenge."

Well done Donna:)

[Trina]

Finished my third TBR, The Dead I Know by Scot Gardner (Not Miles Franklin but it has a sticker on it that says it was shortlisted for the Children's Book Council of Australia and that's about as close as I'm going to get really.) rated 5 stars, a quick, easy read. I read it in two sittings today (it feels like I'm cheating though, YA books are so easy to read quickly).

[Michele]

Finished my third TBR:

Sunflowers by Sheramy Bundrick - I really enjoyed this book, historical fiction based on the last couple of years of the life of Vincent Van Gogh.
Postcards from Nam by Uyen Nicole Duong - a quick read
Savage Summit: The True Stories of the First Five Women Who Climbed K2, the World's Most Feared Mountain by Jennifer Jordan - whilst I cannot understand the fascination that people have with high risk sports, I do enjoy reading about their adventures

[Brenda, Aussie Authors Queen]

Doing well Michele:)

[Michele]

Thanks Brenda :)

[Michele]

Finished my fourth TBR - Eating Up Italy: Voyages on a Vespa by Matthew Fort. This book has been on my TBR since March 2008 - what a disappointment - it was blah - the writer seemed to have a fixation with offal and any food that included offal and he even managed to make Italy and Italian food sound boring - not recommended!

[Trina]

Finished my fourth TBR The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood, excellent book, five stars.

[Michele]

#5 from my TBR finished The Dark Room by Rachel Seiffert - interesting read about the war

[Brenda, Aussie Authors Queen]

This is my TBR read list at the moment:)

1. Ryders Ridge by Charlotte Nash 5★s
2. 12th of Never by James Patterson 5★s
3. The Turn of the Screw by Henry James 2★s
4. All the Birds, Singing by Evie Wyld 3★s
5. The Goodbye Ride by Lily Malone 5★s
6. Unseen by Karin Slaughter 5★s
7. Outback Fear by Suzanne Brandyn 4★s
8. Daddy's Gone A Hunting by Mary Higgins Clark 5★s
9. This Red Earth by Kim Kelly 5★s
10. Mother of Ten by J.B. Rowley 4★s
11. Vodka Doesn't Freeze by Leah Giarratano 5★s
12. Song of the Jikhoshi by Katie W. Stewart 5★s
13. Evidence of Life by Barbara Taylor Sissel 5★s
14. The Shadow Year by Hannah Richell 5★s
15. Whistling Past the Graveyard by Susan Crandall 5★s
16. The Precipice by Virginia Duigan 3★s


with more to follow:)

[B the BookAddict]

Forgot to be marking off my June Challenge books.

From my TBR List I've finished:

The Shortest Way Home by Juliette Fay
The Life of David Gale by Dewey Gram

Halfway through The Storyteller by Jodi Picoult but I've stopped at the moment because I'm up to the part about the Holocaust. I hate reading about that...

[Trina]

Finished another TBR: A Storm of Swords Steel and Snow.

[Michele]

Brenda wrote: "This is my TBR read list at the moment:)

1. Ryders Ridge by Charlotte Nash 5★s
2. 12th of Never by James Patterson 5★s
3. The Turn of the Screw by Henry James 2★s
4. All the Birds, Singing by Evie..."

I am impressed Brenda, I am happy that I got through 5 and probably will finish 6 by the end of the month :)

[Brenda, Aussie Authors Queen]

Thanks Michele, you have done well with 6!

[Michele]

Finished #6 The Brass Verdict by Michael Connelly, it was ok - I used to read a lot of Michael Connelly and I think I prefer his earlier Harry Bosch series, don't think I will read anymore of this particular series.

[Marianne]

Oh, my! Without realising it, I took part in the June challenge when I read (and very much enjoyed) 5 stars!!! And as for TBR, everything I've read in June is from my TBR!

[Michele]

Finished #7 on my TBR list - by Nando Parrado. I am not a huge fan of memoirs, but having read Alive many years ago, I thought that reading a first hand account of their ordeal would be interesting, and it was. I am amazed how they were able to survive in those temperatures for so long - having just moved to a location where winter temps of -30 are normal, I could really appreciate how miserable they must have been in those freezing conditions.

[Janine]

I have just finished my Miles Franklin after a bit of a struggle
Oscar and Lucinda by Peter Carey
I have also attacked my TBR pile and have managed to read some of the oldest on the list
Not a Penny More, Not a Penny Less by Jeffrey Archer
Vodka Doesn't Freeze by Leah Giarratano
Acts of Mercy by Mariah Stewart
Lucky in Love by Jill Shalvis
Heaven Is High by Kate Wilhelm
A Week in Winter by Maeve Binchy
The Vanished Man by Jeffery Deaver
Where We Belong by Emily Giffin
The Story of the Trapp Family Singers by Maria von Trapp
The Russian Concubine by Kate Furnivall
Cry Mercy by Mariah Stewart
Unseen by Karin Slaughter
Just One Kiss by Susan Mallery
Enduring Love by Ian McEwan
Wonder by R.J. Palacio
Busted (Novella) by Karin Slaughter
A Palm for Mrs. Pollifax by Dorothy Gilman
State of the Onion by Julie Hyzy
The Island House by Posie Graeme-Evans
Eleven Hours by Paullina Simons

[Brenda, Aussie Authors Queen]

Janine wrote: "I have just finished my Miles Franklin after a bit of a struggle
Oscar and Lucinda by Peter Carey
I have also attacked my TBR pile and have managed to read some ..."

Fantastic Janine!! Great effort:)

[Brenda, Aussie Authors Queen]

This is my final result for June:)

These are from my TBR list:

1. Ryders Ridge by Charlotte Nash 5★s
2. 12th of Never by James Patterson 5★s
3. The Turn of the Screw by Henry James 2★s
4. All the Birds, Singing by Evie Wyld 3★s
5. The Goodbye Ride by Lily Malone 5★s
6. Unseen by Karin Slaughter 5★s
7. Outback Fear by Suzanne Brandyn 4★s
8. Daddy's Gone A Hunting by Mary Higgins Clark 5★s
9. This Red Earth by Kim Kelly 5★s
10. Mother of Ten by J.B. Rowley 4★s
11. Vodka Doesn't Freeze by Leah Giarratano 5★s
12. Song of the Jikhoshi by Katie W. Stewart 5★s
13. Evidence of Life by Barbara Taylor Sissel 5★s
14. The Shadow Year by Hannah Richell 5★s
15. Whistling Past the Graveyard by Susan Crandall 5★s
16. The Precipice by Virginia Duigan 3★s
17. The Unicorn Tree by Cynthia Collins 5★
18. Savage Tide by Greg Barron 5★
19. The Time Machine by H.G. Wells 2★
20. When Justice Fails by P.D. Martin 4★
21. Black Ice by Leah Giarratano 4★
22. 44 Charles Street by Danielle Steel 3★
23. The Black Ice by Michael Connelly 4★
24. What Love Sounds Like by Alissa Callen 5★
25. Lifeboat by A.B. Shepherd 5★
26. Merry Christmas, Alex Cross by James Patterson 5★
27. Nothing Lasts Forever by Roderick Thorp 4★
28. Bats and Bones by Karen Musser Nortman 5★
29. Crisis of Identity by Denise Moncrief 3★

Earlier in the month, I set myself a mini-challenge to read 30 for the month of June, so as well as the above from my TBR I also read


30. Tomorrow City by Kirk Kjeldsen 4★
31. Marionette by Anya Allyn 5★
32. Getting Lucky by Craig Anderson 4★
33. The Spirit of Imagination by S.A. Tawks 4★
34. Amelia's Call by Margaret Lynette Sharp
35. An Outback Awakening by Peter Rake 4★

So I'm very happy with my result:D

[Sharon]

Well done Brenda. Very impressive list :)

[Brenda, Aussie Authors Queen]

Thank you Sharon...I have never read this many books in such a short time! A first for everything;)

[Sharon]

Goes to show we can achieve anything if we put our minds to it. So do you have set amount to read for July?

[Brenda, Aussie Authors Queen]

Sharon wrote: "Goes to show we can achieve anything if we put our minds to it. So do you have set amount to read for July?"

No, I'll ease up a little:)

[Janine]

Amazing effort Brenda.

[Elaine]

Brenda wrote: "This is my final result for June:)

These are from my TBR list:

1. Ryders Ridge by Charlotte Nash 5★s
2. 12th of Never by James Patterson 5★s
3. The Turn of the Screw by Henry James 2★s
4. All the..."

Wow Brenda. I didn't think I could be surprised anymore with the amount of books you read but you've certainly taken it up a notch or two this month. You are truly amazing. Well done.

[Brenda, Aussie Authors Queen]

Thanks Janine and Elaine:)

[Michele]

Very impressive Brenda!

[Brenda, Aussie Authors Queen]

Thanks Michele:)

[Mish]

Amazing Janine and Brenda. Well done to you both :D

[Amber]

Books I managed to read in the month of June:

1. The Light Between Oceans by M.L. Stedman★★★★
2. Bitter Greens by Kate Forsyth ★★★★★
3. The Happiest Refugee: A Memoir by Anh Do ★★★★★
4. Angels & Demons by Dan Brown ★★★
5. Winter by John Marsden ★★★
6. Maus by Art Spiegelman ★★★★
7. The Dalai Lama's Cat by David Michie ★★★
8. The One and Only Ivan by Katherine Applegate ★★★
9. Interpreter of Maladies by Jhumpa Lahiri ★★★
10. The Great Escape by Emily Bearn ★★★
11. A Seaside Adventure by Emily Bearn ★★★★

Most of them were for the Winter challenge and the rest were read aloud to my daughter :-)

[Brenda, Aussie Authors Queen]

Thanks Mish:)

Well done Amber:)

[B the BookAddict]

My books for June:

Miles Franklin Award bookThe Beloved by Annah Faulkner
From my TBR List
Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee: An Indian History of the American West by Dee Brown
The Shortest Way Home by Juliette Fay
The Life of David Gale by Dewey Gram
The Last Letter from Your Lover by Jojo Moyes

My review for Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee: An Indian History of the American West is at http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/...