2013 Summer Reading Challenge

[Linda]

This is the first challenge I have actually finished on time. The books I read are:
1. The Secret Garden - Frances Hodgson Burnett
2. Ghost at Work - Carolyn Hart
3. The Island House - Posie Graeme-Evans
4. I Survived the San Francisco Earthquake - Lauren Tarshis (this is a JF book. I was introduced to these books at the school I work at. The kids love them and they are really good books about different natural disasters)
5. Five 4ths of July - Pat Hughes
All of these books were very good and I would recommend them to anyone.

[Debbie]

Linda wrote: "This is the first challenge I have actually finished on time. "

Double congratulations to you, Linda! Not only finishing on time, but one with 5 books to read in only 3 months! Great job!

[Ann]

Linda wrote: "This is the first challenge I have actually finished on time."

Way to go! I love seeing new names for finishers with our reading challenge.

[Jackie]

Update:
The Secret Garden-finished.
The Dead-Tossed Waves-finished
Death of the Mantis-finished (caves)
Endangered-finished (revolution)
Just need to find a short natural disaster book and I will be done :0)
Finished the challenge with "Life as We Knew It". So glad to be finished! Now onto a new release that is calling my name :)

[Mandy]

Okay - I'm done!

* for "Gardens" I read Seeds of Deception: Exposing Industry and Government Lies about the Safety of the Genetically Engineered Foods You're Eating (finished 7/1) which was really good. 4/5 stars
* for "Natural Disasters" I read Fragments (finished 6/2013) which I really, really enjoyed. 5/5 stars
* for "Revolution" I read Insurgent (finished 6/2013) which was a lot of fun. 4/5 stars
* for "Afterlife/Undead" I read Locke and Key, Vol. 5: Clockworks volumes 1-5 (finished last one 8/2013) over all 4/5 stars
* for "Caves/Underground" I read Keeper of Dreams, a collection of short stories. 4 or 5 of them had caves or something underground in them! I really liked the collection - 4/5 stars

[Debbie]

Good for you, Mandy. And it's great you enjoyed each book so much!

[Debbie]

Hooray, Jackie! (I read bottom up so I saw yours second).

[Carolyn]

I am officially finished with the challenge!

1- The Forgotten Garden- Kate Morton- Completed 5 of 5 stars

2-The Enchantress- Michael Scott- Completed 3 of 5 stars

3- Journey to the Center of the Earth- Jules Verne- Complete!

4- Deep Fathom- James Rollins- COMPLETE! 3 stars

5- The Blood Upon the Rose- about the Irish revolution.- COMPLETE- about 3 stars not the best book, but okay.

[Debbie]

Hooray, Carolyn!

[Brittany]

Yay! I am finished with the challenge!! I had so much fun with this challenge and I can't wait to see what the next one is.

Gardens category: The Forgotten Garden
4/5 stars - I absolutely loved this book! I fell in love with the character Eliza and loved that the author included some of her full length fairy tales in the story. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who loves fairy tales or mystery.

Afterlife/Undead category: The Night Circus
4/5 stars - This book was a pleasant surprise. I didn't know what to expect when I picked it up, but I loved reading it! The descriptions in this book are gorgeous and left me wanting to read more. I wish this circus was real, because I grew to love it through these pages.

Caves/Underground category: Journey to the Center of the Earth
3/5 stars - This book was bordering 2 stars for me, only the fantastic descriptions bumped it up to 3 stars. This book is basically a very specific scientific travel log mixed with science fiction. If you are looking for plot and character development this is not the book for you. All of the characters were very static throughout the novel and the narrator was unreliable.

Natural Disasters category: The Wonderful Wizard of Oz
4/5 stars - I chose this book because of the cyclone that takes Dorothy to Oz. This was my second time reading this book. The first time I read it was when I was in elementary school. It was nice to revisit. I love the fairy tale style of writing. It's an easy read, great for kids, and I would definitely recommend it to anyone.

Revolution category: A Tale of Two Cities
5/5 stars - This is easily one of my new favorite books! The story is one of the saddest stories I have ever read, but Dickens is a master story-teller and makes even such a sad tale an enjoyable read. If you are looking for a good book that will touch your heart-strings, this is it.

[Debbie]

Thanks for the brief descriptions, Brittany. I'll have to read the ones I haven't yet read. How do you make the link to the book page?

[Brittany]

If you're using the phone app you can't add it, but on the computer above the comment box on the right there's an option that says "add book/author." If you click on that it will let you add a link to the book.

[Jackie]

That is an awesome little tip. Thanks, Brittany!

[De]

Jackie wrote: "Update:
The Secret Garden-finished.
The Dead-Tossed Waves-finished
Death of the Mantis-finished (caves)
Endangered-finished (revolution)
Just need to find a short natural disaster book and I will b..."

Jackie, try 'Under a Flaming Sky' by Daniel James Brown. http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16...

[Jackie]

That sounds interesting. Thanks for the recommendation!

[Britt, Book Habitue]

Update:
gardens-- Magic Lost, Trouble Found (Complete)
afterlife/undead, etc.-- Ocean at the End of the Lane (Complete)
caves/underground-- How to Train Your Dragon (a stretch maybe, but there's a cave in there... Complete)
natural disasters-- Three Times Lucky (Complete)
revolution-- still thinking...

[Ann]

Wow! That was a bunch of finishers in one week. For those of you still working on it we still have half a month to go, so no stress. (I'm still working on one of the five categories myself.)

This summer reading challenge has been awesome, like so many of you have said, but I can't claim any credit for that. This summer's challenge is thanks to the brilliant thinking and work of the library's Adult Summer Reading Committee, so here's a special thanks to them for the creative categories they came up with.

[Lynn]

Three books down and two to go. I have really enjoyed all the books I've read so far, but my favorite was The Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton. The others I've read were Proof of Heaven (about a neuroscientist's near death experience) and Washed Away (about the 1913 flood). I've decided to read Path of Freedom by Jennifer Hudson Taylor about the Underground Railroad instead of the Thomas Knox book I was originally going to read for the caves/underground category.

[Ann]

Lynn wrote: "I've decided to read Path of Freedom by Jennifer Hudson Taylor about the Underground Railroad instead of the Thomas Knox book I was originally going to read for the caves/underground category. "

Ha, Ha! I love your spin on the underground category. I hadn't even thought about the other uses for the word underground. Way to be creative!

[Britt, Book Habitue]

Britt, Book Habitue wrote: "Update:
gardens-- Magic Lost, Trouble Found (Complete)
afterlife/undead, etc.-- Ocean at the End of the Lane (Complete)
caves/underground-- How to Train Your Dragon (a stretch maybe, but there's a ..."

Revolution: Bomb by Steve Sheinkin (Complete)
The bomb certainly revolutionized technology and warfare.

So, I'm finished. :)

[Debbie]

Britt, Book Habitue wrote: "... So, I'm finished. :) "

Good for you, Britt!

[Heidi]

I'm done! here's my list:
garden: The Lavender Garden
undead/afterlife: The Arrivals
underground: The Doll
natural disaster: I Survived the San Francisco Earthquake 1906
revolution: Madame Tussaud

[Debbie]

Yeah, Heidi!

[Ann]

Just a heads up for those of you who have finished the Summer Reading Challenge and are looking for what to try next, I've just posted September's Reading Challenge.

[Lynn]

4 down and one to go. John Adams by David McCullough is not going to get read by the end of the week so I have changed my reading for the Revolution category to a more manageable 250 page book by Ron Carter entitled: "Unlikely Heroes: Ordinary Men and Women Whose Courage Won the Revolution".

[Nielson]

I just finished the last of my summer reading books! Here is what I read for each category:
Garden: The Secret Garden
Afterlife/Undead: Touch of Power
Caves/Underground: Far Far Away
Natural Disaster: Isolation
Revolution: Revolution

I loved doing this challenge because it helped me branch out and read books I might not normally read. Looking forward to doing September's challenge...I'm thinking I'll read Ender's Game before the movie comes out!

[Ann]

Remember you have until the end of the day on August 31 to post that you have finished the Summer Reading Challenge. Make sure to let me know if you finish the challenge and share what books you read.

Though the challenge ends after August 31, the winner for the Summer Reading Challenge will not be announced until September 10, unfortunately. So while you'll have to wait to find out who's the winner know that I haven't forgotten and will be announcing it, just later than usual in the month.

[Lynn]

I am finally finished with the summer reading challenge. Really enjoyed most of the books I read and look forward to continuing to participate in other challenges.

[JoAnn]

I finished the program and thought I had updated my list weeks ago, but I can't seem to find it.

Disaster: San Francisco Earthquake
Gardens: Clarissa
Revolution: The Odd Women
Afterlife:The Shunned House
Caves/underground:Buried Memories

[Ann]

Thanks to everyone who participated in the Summer Reading Challenge. Whether you finished or not we love getting to read your comments and hear what you haveto say about the books you are reading.

Also thank you all for your patience about the delay in announcing the winner for the Summer Reading Challenge drawing. And the drawing winner is—Nephi.

He read:

Garden- Drops of Gold
Afterlife/Un-dead- Dark Memories
Caves- The Striker
Natural Disaster- Sand Storm
Revolution- The Hit

[Jackie]

Congrats, Nephi!

[Debbie]

Congrats, Nephi!