August 2015 Challenge - This or That

[Almeta]

Kristie wrote: "So far, I'm thinking about going with The Light Between Oceans, though I still may do some more gophering. Does anyone know if there is a dog in the book? ..."

A five star read for me. My Review

[Sarah]

Awesome gophering Theresa!

[Peggy]

Peggy wrote: "I think I'll go for Long Way Down by Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman.

My five words
Spice - Might be mentioned in the book, and otherwise location Sudan, one of the visited countr..."

I used the amazon look inside search function and surprisingly, all 5 words are in the book. I had expected lake (31 times!) and maybe moon, hoped for spices, but would not have bet on chocolates or lilies. Seems I can use my words in many different ways. Will that give us bonus points Janice? ;-)

[Sarah]

I'm guessing metaphorical mentions don't count so we can't rely too heavily on the search facility. I found a book with boat mentioned 5 times but they were all part of phrases as opposed to actual boats appearing. So it will be a read it and see in many cases. I'm gearing for a definite one or two words covered then seeing how it pans out as I read.

[Kristie, Moderator]

Almeta wrote: "Kristie wrote: "So far, I'm thinking about going with The Light Between Oceans, though I still may do some more gophering. Does anyone know if there is a dog in the book? ..."

A fi..."

Nice review, Almeta. I hope I love it that much. :)

[Sandra, Moderator]

Thanks to the Look Inside function I found out that 3 books I have at home contain my 5 words:

Nineteen Minutes
The Bonesetter's Daughter
Iron House

I just have to decide which one I'll read.

[Janice, Moderator]

Sarah wrote: "I'm guessing metaphorical mentions don't count so we can't rely too heavily on the search facility. I found a book with boat mentioned 5 times but they were all part of phrases as opposed to actual..."

Great observation, Sarah.

Sorry, Peggy. No bonus points. :)

[Janice, Moderator]

I think I'm going to read Song of Susannah:

Spice - Character Susannah
Rose - There is always a rose in The Dark Tower series. If not, Character Roland Deschain
Cat - Character Jake Chambers
Cotton - Character Father Callahan
King - Author

I will end up sacrificing the book points in the series, but oh well.

[KimeyDiann]

I have a few potential books selected.
My choices were: Rose, moon, chocolate, dog, and ocean.

Fits all five:
Phoenix Island: A Tale of Disaster, Survival, and Rebirth - character names and takes place on an island in Pacific (?) Ocean
Metamorphosis (The Two Moons of Rehnor Series) - Chocolate=Caroline, search reveals a dog and an ocean.
The Color of Secrets - Roses on the cover, search reveals all of the other words as items in the text

Other options that don't easily fit all 5 before reading:
The Flood (no dog or roses)
Alora (Can a wolf count as a dog? no chocolate or roses)
A Head Full Of Knives - A Supernatural Mystery ((No roses or chocolate)
Huntress Moon (no dog, possible ocean)
What She Left Behind (no ocean)

[Janice, Moderator]

I'm going to say no to the wolf being substituted for dog. While they are both in the same species, I think the spirit of the pairing (cat/dog) was more along the lines of domestic animals.

[Kerri]

I think I've narrowed it down to a cople of choices. My words were Hawk, Country, Ocean, Jeans and Blue.
All the Blue-Eyed Angels or Into the Darkest Corner the main character is Catherine Bailey.

[Cherie]

Almeta wrote: "Oh, and rummage through your keepsakes drawer, and get out your Grandmother's Irish linen hand embroidered hankie...paper facial tissue is just too cheap for this wonderful book..."

I must have brought home 50 hankies from my grandmother's stuff after she passed. Some were still in boxes. I do not carry them, but I love them all the same. I will break them out when I read the book. I hope I love it the same too!

[Cherie]

Kerri wrote: "I think I've narrowed it down to a cople of choices. My words were Hawk, Country, Ocean, Jeans and Blue.
All the Blue-Eyed Angels or Into the Darkest Corner the main..."

Kerri - you have three of the same words that I did, and you could also read Blue Jeans and Coffee Beans. The main character is Maris Carrington which would go with your C in Country. I have to hope for an Owl and you would have to hope for a Hawk - or words to go with them. ;)

[Cherie]

Sandra wrote: "Thanks to the Look Inside function..."

Where is this "Look Inside function"?

[Sandra, Moderator]

Cherie wrote: "Where is this "Look Inside function"?"

Look at this example in the "Alphabet House" book page in amazon, Cherie:

http://www.amazon.com/Alphabet-House-...

Do you see the "Look inside" above the cover? If you click there you'll get a searching box.
Not all the books have this function, but around 70% of the books I checked today had it.

Hope it's useful!

[Cherie]

Thank you, Sandra. I looked all over and never noticed it right above the book cover. I think my computer is as tired as I am though, because the internet is breaking up and I cannot get my book to come up again. I will look again tomorrow. I need to shut down and go home. It has been a crazy day here at work and 10 hours is enough.

[Sandra, Moderator]

I'm glad to know you finally found it, Cherie. Go home and have some rest now. :)

[Esther]

I have my original message (msg 15) to include my selected book.

[KimeyDiann]

Janice wrote: "I'm going to say no to the wolf being substituted for dog. While they are both in the same species, I think the spirit of the pairing (cat/dog) was more along the lines of domestic animals."

That is what I figured, but thought I'd ask to be sure. :)

[Lori]

Janice,
I have edited message 140 to include my book and have tweaked my selections slightly. I read one of your messages that said we could make changes until the challenge started. If I misunderstood, let me know, I can un-tweak them. Thanks!

[Caitlin]

Alright, I think I will read The English Teacher.

The Author is Lily King (two of my picks). One character is Caleb (C= Country) and another character is Tom Belou (B= Boat). Couldn't get lake right away but something might pop up once I start reading. I should be reading this mid-month.

Plane or Boat - Boat
Rose or Lily - Lily
Country or City - Country
Ocean or Lake - Lake
King or Jack - King

[Janice, Moderator]

Lori wrote: "Janice,
I have edited message 140 to include my book and have tweaked my selections slightly. I read one of your messages that said we could make changes until the challenge started. If I misund..."

You could change them up until such time as the remainder of the challenge was posted.

ETA - see msg 2

[Kelly]

I'm going to plan to read In the Cities of Coin and Spice. My pairs are
Sugar or Spice - Spice
Rose or Lily - Lily
Sun or Moon - Moon
Beer or Wine - Wine
Cat or Dog - Cat
So at least two are covered with just the title and author. Hopefully I will be able to get the rest of the words. I've been wanting to read this since I read the first book earlier this year, so I'm looking forward to it!

[Teanka]

Kelly wrote: "I'm going to plan to read In the Cities of Coin and Spice.

I'd like to read it in August too, I'm reading the first book now and like it. Unfortunately, it doesn't fit my challenge as well as yours, though I also have spice in it:)

[Thing Two]

Sun or Moon - Moon
Country or City - City
Beer or Wine - Beer
Dress or Jeans - Jeans
Blue or Pink - Blue

[Peggy]

Teanka wrote: "Kelly wrote: "I'm going to plan to read In the Cities of Coin and Spice.

I'd like to read it in August too, I'm reading the first book now and like it. Unfortunately, it doesn't fit ..."

I have it on my tbr (the first book). Did you read her Fairyland series? I read the first one some time last year (I think it was a group read or buddy read here)and enjoyed it a lot.

[Teanka]

Peggy wrote: "I have it on my tbr (the first book). Did you read her Fairyland series? I read the first one some time last year (I think it was a group read or buddy read here)and enjoyed it a lot. "

No, I haven't so I cannot compare the two. This is my first Valente book and I was taken by surprise :).

[Debra]

Sun or Moon - Moon
Dress or Jeans - Dress
Beer or Wine - Wine
Leather or Cotton - Leather
Cat or Dog - Cat

[Debra]

Now that I've read the rules, I'm like WOW! This one's hard!

[Janice, Moderator]

*evil laugh*

[Janice, Moderator]

Especially with your picks, Debra. Maybe something like Moon Called? You've got moon in the title, leather on the cover (leather belt)...

[Debra]

Janice wrote: "Especially with your picks, Debra. Maybe something like Moon Called? You've got moon in the title, leather on the cover (leather belt)..."

I might just try that one, although paranormal romances aren't usually my favorite AND I don't want to get hooked on another series. But it's short and probably a quick, light read.

[Janice, Moderator]

I think it's more Urban Fantasy than Paranormal Romance, but I haven't read it yet to be sure. I have it on audiobook.

[Kristie, Moderator]

Debra wrote: "Janice wrote: "Especially with your picks, Debra. Maybe something like Moon Called? You've got moon in the title, leather on the cover (leather belt)..."

I might just try that one, ..."

She also has a cat and it takes place in Washington state (wine). Not sure if she wears a dress in the first one. It's not her typical attire, though she does wear one on a date in one of the earlier books. It's not a romance, but there are a couple people that are interested in her romantically. You might get hooked on the series though...

[Esther]

Kristie wrote: "Debra wrote: "Janice wrote: "Especially with your picks, Debra. Maybe something like Moon Called? You've got moon in the title, leather on the cover (leather belt)..."

I might just ..."

I agree with Kristie. This series is more on the urban fantasy side. Romance is present but it's not the focus. This reminds me I have one left to read. Easy points for the series challenge.

[Kristie, Moderator]

I just finished the series for level 2, Esther. I thought the most recent book was great. Hope you love it.

[Sarah]

@Debra - I liked Moon Called - definitely Urban Fantasy. A little romance creeps in towards the end but it isn't the main focus. It is a pretty short and quick read too.

[Debra]

Well, since everyone says good things about Moon Called I've ordered it from the library. Janice, thanks for making my life easier!

[Janice, Moderator]

Yeah, I might regret that, especially if you score higher than me. LOL!

[Sarah]

I think I'm going to double up and use the book I'm reading for Peggy's Party for this challenge. If I have more time towards the end of the month I might try a higher scorer. I am reading The Rithmatist by Brandon Sanderson. One of my chosen words as Boat, so B for Brandon, author's name qualifies this book. Now to see what else crops up.

[Teanka]

I've done some more searching and I think I'll read . I ordered it from the library when it was a group read here, but it didn't arrive on time.

My words are: spice, jeans as Jessie Burton, hawk, dog - there are dogs in the story, and blue - the cover is blue. I've seen some names starting with 'S' and 'H' too so I'm satisfied that it should cover all of my words.

[Tasha]

I'll be reading The Drowning Tree. I used the really cool amazon feature and found that each of my words makes an appearance in the book!
owl, jeans, wine, dog and ocean.

I've had that book on my real shelf for a long time and am really happy to have a reason to choose it. I did consider The Ship of Brides but that's a recent addition to my shelves so it can wait...but not for long. ;)

[Jayme, Moderator]

I'm going to readLives of the Monster Dogs
My pairs are:
chocolate or flowers - flowers are mentioned five times
lake or ocean - ?
dog or cat - dog is in the title
country or city - New York City is the location
Wine or beer - ?

I'm hoping I can find the questionable ones while reading the book. I do have a few of the other point categories covered, so we will see..

[Cassandra]

Just got on here today and haven't read the challenge. Here are my choices.

Plane boat. - boat
Country city - country
Ocean lake - ocean
Blue pink - blue
King Jack - Jack

Hopefully that's ok that I have just put in my choices. Haven't got time to read what the challenge is now so will look this afternoon.

[Janice, Moderator]

Cassandra wrote: "Hopefully that's ok that I have just put in my choices. Haven't got time to read what the challenge is now so will look this afternoon.."

You're supposed to pick your selections before you move on to the details of the challenge, so you are just fine!

[Peggy]

Teanka wrote: "I've done some more searching and I think I'll read . I ordered it from the library when it was a group read here, but it didn't arrive on time.

My words are: ..."

I read it recently and really enjoyed it. I think it was for the monthly group read just a few months ago, you can look up the discussion thread while/after reading if you're interested :)

edit: here it is, we read it in June: https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

[Teanka]

Sure Peggy, I just wrote above that I have ordered it from the library to participate in the group read here in June but it didn't arrive on time (there was a queue) so now I want to read it before I have to give it back :).

[Peggy]

Ooh I'm sorry Teanka, I only read half your message. I think I stopped after seeing the cover picture. Must have not been properly awake yet..

[Shannon SA]

I've just started Brother Fish by Bryce Courtenay

So far:

Boat - MC is a fisherman so I'm sure boats will feature
Owl - Jimmy Oldcorn is one of the main characters
Country -
Wine -
Cat -

Bonus points:
The main character quotes poetry - 3
500+ pages long (book is 1078pp) - 5
The main character has a sister, Sue - 3

[Bella]

I'm going to read Detroit City Is the Place to Be: The Afterlife of an American Metropolis by Mark Binelli. It's not going to give me maximum points, but I'm tired of looking and really want to read this book. (I bought it when it first came out and it's been sitting there patiently.)