Collecting Dust April 2014 Challenge

[MK]

This is a monthly challenge for those readers who have had books forever on their TBR list.

This challenge will help you get those books finally read.

If you wish to participate then from your TBR bookshelf list 5 books that you would like to read for the month of April. The next member who comments will pick two choices from your list. You are only obligated to read 1 of those books, but you may choose to read both. Once you read it, let us know and you may add your review or link to your review!

RULES:
1) If you would like to participate, please sign up by April 30th, 2014.

2) Choose 2 books from the person's list that commented before you. First in, is last to pick - First person to sign up, please pick books for the last person to sign up :).

3) Each participant will have the entire month to read their book(s), post their rating and review. And tell us what you think of your book in this thread.

Let's have fun reducing our TBR piles.

(link to March 2014)

[Katy, Quarterly Long Reads]

This month I am choosing books that I got for free from NetGalley or a FirstReads from GoodReads:

1) Dear Abigail: The Intimate Lives and Revolutionary Ideas of Abigail Adams and Her Two Remarkable Sisters
2) Africa's Peacemakers: Nobel Peace Laureates of African Descent
3) Misery Bay
4) Don't Hurry Me Down to Hades
5) The Lavender Garden

[Diana S]

Hi Kathy,

I chose for you: The Lavender Garden and Dear Abigail

My List of Five
1. The Virgin of Small Plains
2. The Persian Pickle Club
3. The Bird Sisters
4. The Last Report on the Miracles at Little No Horse
5. Frankenstein

[Connie]

Hi, Diana,
I chose for you:

The Persian Pickle Club
The Bird Sisters

My list of five:

1)A Farewell to Arms
2)The Sun Also Rises
3)Sarah's Key
4)The Executioner's Song
5)The Hours

[Daisy]

Connie, I choose for you:

The Hours
and
Sarah's Key

My list for April includes:

1. The Guide, R.K. Narayan
2. The Queen's Tiara, Carl Jonas Love Almqvist
3. Orlando, Virginia Woolf
4. The Giver, Lois Lowry
5. The Thin Man, Dashiell Hammett

[Katy, Quarterly Long Reads]

OH Tullia! I want to read all of your books!

[Dani]

Tullia I pick for you Dracula and The Handmaid's Tale

1. Slaughterhouse-Five
2. One Hundred Years of Solitude
3. Romeo and Juliet
4. The Count of Monte Cristo
5. Les Miserables

[Daisy]

Danielle, I think you might mean Tullia? (I notice this seems to happen on these threads sometimes? :) I hope we read Slaughterhouse-Five for a group read soon!)

[Connie]

Daisy wrote: "Danielle, I think you might mean Tullia? (I notice this seems to happen on these threads sometimes? :) I hope we read Slaughterhouse-Five for a group read soon!)"

Slaughterhouse-Five has been chosen for an April group read!

[Daisy]

That's wonderful.

[Dani]

Daisy wrote: "Danielle, I think you might mean Tullia? (I notice this seems to happen on these threads sometimes? :) I hope we read Slaughterhouse-Five for a group read soon!)"

Oops I did mean tullia sorry about that I looked at the wrong name

[Daisy]

Hey, no problem. Happy Reading!

[MK]

Two weeks to go for April Collecting Dust Challenge signups :)

[Alissa]

Danielle,
I choose for you The Count of Monte Cristo

and One Hundred Years of Solitude

Here are my five:
1.) Pride and Prejudice
2.) Little Women
3.) Animal Farm
4.) Fahrenheit 451
5.) Gone with the Wind

[Maria]

Hi Alissa!
I pick for you Pride and Prejudice and Animal Farm. I hope you'll enjoy your reading; personally, I loved them!

My five are:
1. A Tale of Two Cities
2. A Confederacy of Dunces
3. Blindness
4. The Picture of Dorian Gray
5. Lolita

[Katy, Quarterly Long Reads]

I don't know if this challenge is helping me to get my TBR lists under control or if they are just feeding my habit. I want to add most of the books that we all list to my list to read in the future. ;)

[Suzan]

This sounds like a fun challenge :)

Maria, for you I'll pick Lolita and Blindness , two books I've been willing to read as well, but do not (yet) own.

My books are:
1. I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings
2. Lady Chatterley's Lover
3. The Idiot
4. The Odyssey
5. The Bell Jar

[Helen]

Duane, for you I select The Idiot and The Invisible Man (two I will be adding to my list).

My books are:
Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking
Fahrenheit 451
The Fellowship of the Ring
The Count of Monte Cristo
The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe / The Magician's Nephew

[MK]

I was going to post a last weekend of the month invitation to all, reminding that there's still time to join April's Collecting Dust challenge, but I see it's not necessary! That's great :)

I have to head out of town this weekend for a funeral. I should be back for close of challenge Monday, but if not, then I'll just close it a day late on Tuesday. I know I'll be sneaking in on the last day again, with my tbr list ;-).

Happy reading!

[Shawn]

Helen, I choose Fahrenheit 451 and The Fellowship of the Ring

My books are:

1. Ham on Rye by Charles Bukowski
2. The 42nd Parallel by John Dos Passos
3. Player Piano by Kurt Vonnegut
4. The Color of Magic by Terry Pratchett
5. Good Omens: The Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch by Terry Pratchett

[MK]

I'm back from weekend out of town. Just a quick check in, as very tired! I'll be back in the morning with my tbr books, and to close the April challenge. Any last minute joiners, there's still a little window of time to sneak in under the wire :-).

[MK]

Shawn, I'm about to check out your books, and pick a couple for you, hopefully you'll love reading one of them! And then post my tbr for April (Kathy, will you pick for me?) :)

In the meanwhile, May TBR challenge is open for business!

[Katy, Quarterly Long Reads]

Okay, MK I will wait for you to post and then I will choose your books. Happy April!

[MK]

Shawn wrote: "...My books are:

1. Ham on Rye by Charles Bukowski
2. The 42nd Parallel by John Dos Passos
3. Player Piano by Kurt Vonnegut
4. The Color of Magic by Terry Pratchett
5. Good Omens: The Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch by Terry Pratchett "


Shawn, once again, your books are awesome! Hard to choose ..... and yet, I must. Soooooo


oof, it's hard. Okay, I choose:

Ham on Rye, by Charles Bukowski
and The Color of Magic, by Terry Pratchett. Hope you enjoy reading at least one of them! :)



My leftovers from last month (and I say that loosely, as I'm still finishing my tbr from last month :-o), plus one additional are:

1. Oh, Waiter! One Order of Crow!: Inside the Strangest Presidential Election Finish in American History, by Jeff Greenfield
2. The Time in Between, by Maria Duenas
3. The House At Riverton, by Kate Morton
4. The Valkyries, by Paulo Coelho
5. The Birth of Venus, by Sarah Dunant

[Katy, Quarterly Long Reads]

MK

I choose for you
The Time in Between and The Birth of Venus

I have both of those on my physical book shelf, but have never read them.

[MK]

Kathy wrote: "Okay, MK I will wait for you to post and then I will choose your books. Happy April!"

ty! Back atcha! heheh April Fool's Day. The local paper published with a front page announcing one of the three major routes downtown was being turned into a one-way street ..... APRIL FOOL'S! (they were kidding)

lol

[MK]

Kathy wrote: "MK

I choose for you
The Time in Between and The Birth of Venus

I have both of those on my physical book shelf, but have never read them."


*thumbs up!* thx, Kathy! I'll be sure to post followup when done - maybe you'll read one/both too, soon! :)

[Alissa]

The books Maria chose for me were Pride and Prejudice and Animal Farm. I have already finished Animal Farm- read it in one day... i love when that happens! A nice read and I was able to take another Classic TBR book off of my shelf- woohoo!!

I know we're only required to read one, but since I got a short book and already finished it, I am definitely going to strive to read Pride and Prejudice.

Thanks for picking the book for me, Maria!

[Katy, Quarterly Long Reads]

Wow. Alissa I love when that happens too!

[Maria]

You're welcome, Alissa. I'm glad you liked it! :)

[Connie]

I have finished one of my April books for this challenge. It was The Hours. It took me a few chapters to settle into it but once I got into the rhythm of it, I found it interesting. I loved the way the time periods and characters were woven together.

I am hoping to read the second one from this challenge Sarah's Key 1st (first) edition Text Only as well but also have some other reading to finish.

[Katy, Quarterly Long Reads]

Haven't even started my April books. But I will somehow this year at least.

[MK]

Kathy wrote: "Haven't even started my April books. But I will somehow this year at least."

Me neither ... me too :p

[Bob, Short Story Classics]

Kathy, MK, at least you were thinking positive and played. I’m so far behind I skipped playing this month. I hope to catch up enough to do a last minute entry for May, we’ll see.

[MK]

:D I might have to skip May ... and catch up :p. We'll see!

[Katy, Quarterly Long Reads]

Started my April dusty book. Chose Dear Abigail: The Intimate Lives and Revolutionary Ideas of Abigail Adams and Her Two Remarkable Sisters. It is really good so far.

[Maria]

I've just finished Lolita and... wow. There are so many interesting reflexions behind this book. It will be stuck in my mind for a long time!

[Alissa]

Lolita has been on my list for a long time... i hope to get to it soon!!

[MK]

Maria wrote: "I've just finished Lolita and... wow. There are so many interesting reflexions behind this book. It will be stuck in my mind for a long time!"

Alissa wrote: "Lolita has been on my list for a long time... i hope to get to it soon!!"

That one is currently winning our June 2014 Contemporary Classic Group Read poll. It might be a group read for us soon :).

[Alissa]

i did see that, im keeping my fingers crossed haha

[MK]

Alissa wrote: "i did see that, im keeping my fingers crossed haha"

:D :D :D

[Connie]

I read the second of my challenge books for April. Sarah's Key has been on my TBR list for awhile. It is about a Jewish family living in Paris who is swept up in the roundup of Jews and taken to camps. Very heart-wrenching but an interesting read.

[MK]

Connie wrote: "I read the second of my challenge books for April. Sarah's Key has been on my TBR list for awhile. It is about a Jewish family living in Paris who is swept up in the roundup of Jews ..."

I read that one last month for my tbr challenge! I really loved it. I gave it to my niece, when I saw her a few weeks back. I had originally bought it for her a couple years ago, but at the last minute, decided she was still too young. She just turned 14 last month, so I thought she was old enough now.

[Shawn]

I am nearly finished with The Color of Magic. This is of the same style / feel as the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. There are a number of parts throughout the book that I found very humorous. With that being said, there were a few parts that just didn't seem to work for me. All in all, I enjoyed the book and plan on reading further into the Disc World series. I do feel like the Hitchhiker's Guide has a more friendly / enjoyable feel than the Color of Magic.

I have heard from Terry Pratchett fans that the series gets better as you go along. I'm not quite ready to give up on him or the series yet. I would give this one a rating of 3 out of 5.

[MK]

Interesting review! That is definitely on my bucket list, that series. I bought a bunch of Discworlds on a Kindle Daily Deal sale several months back.

[Katy, Quarterly Long Reads]

Finished my April challenge -- a bit late. Really good read. Dear Abigail: The Intimate Lives and Revolutionary Ideas of Abigail Adams and Her Two Remarkable Sisters

[MK]

Nice! (I'm still working on March :P )