All about Goals ; FAQ

[Cat]

Hi.....

ISBN10 goals....

I've been treating zero as even, but I am flummoxed with X.

given an ISBN10 of 148142968X: does that have 6 or 7 even numbers?! how do we treat the pesky X?!

Thanks for your help!

[Sonia]

Catherine wrote: "Hi.....

ISBN10 goals....

I've been treating zero as even, but I am flummoxed with X.

given an ISBN10 of 148142968X: does that have 6 or 7 even numbers?! how do we treat the pesky X?!

Thanks for..."

X is not a number, so it should be ignored

[Moderators of NBRC, Challenger-in-Chief]

Updated through 152

[Vicky]

We have the goal "Read a book where someone discovers an infidelity on someone’s part."

Should this be sexual acts with someone who is not the character's spouse or could be a YA scenario where a character is caught kissing someone who isn't their boyfriend?

[Sonia]

Vicky wrote: "We have the goal "Read a book where someone discovers an infidelity on someone’s part."

Should this be sexual acts with someone who is not the character's spouse or could be a YA scenario where a ..."

Well, I think cheating definition varies according to age and maturity, so I'd say both count.

[Denise]

For the goal: "Read a book where a character has lost one of their senses", does it work if the character has lost a sense for a period of time or does it have to be permanent? We have a teammate reading a book where the MC is temporarily blind.

Thanks! :)

[Sonia]

Denise wrote: "For the goal: "Read a book where a character has lost one of their senses", does it work if the character has lost a sense for a period of time or does it have to be permanent? We have a teammate r..."

Yes. It does.

[SandyL]

Hi Mods
Question about goal "Read a book set in your home state/country" - if you live in the US does it have to be your state, or just the US? Thanks!

[❀Tea❀]

Sandy wrote: "Hi Mods
Question about goal "Read a book set in your home state/country" - if you live in the US does it have to be your state, or just the US? Thanks!"

If you live in US, it is your state.

[Alison]

For the goal "character is an undertaker" are variations allowed? Could we use funeral director, medical examiner or mortician for example?

[ilovebakedgoods (Teresa)]

Jen wrote: "Karen wrote: "It is title
Sorry for the confusion. Inconsistency can happen when multiple people write goals"

Oh. :'( Okay. Thanks.

Can someone with editing permission update the text for those g..."

There are a lot of goals. I don't think anyone has time to go through them all and edit them. Assume that if the goal is "book starts with *letter*", it must mean the title, since that IS what a book starts with. Pretty sure the goal would read something like, "opening line starts with the word *word* or the letter *letter*" if the goal was that and not title.

[ilovebakedgoods (Teresa)]

Alison wrote: "For the goal "character is an undertaker" are variations allowed? Could we use funeral director, medical examiner or mortician for example?"

Definition of undertaker: un·der·tak·er
[ˈəndərˌtākər]
NOUN

a person whose business is preparing dead bodies for burial or cremation and making arrangements for funerals.

[Ashley]

We have the goal; Read a book with a single body part on the cover

Does this cover a face, or a back...or is the goal intended to be an eye, a nose, an arm etc?

[ilovebakedgoods (Teresa)]

Ashley wrote: "We have the goal; Read a book with a single body part on the cover

Does this cover a face, or a back...or is the goal intended to be an eye, a nose, an arm etc?"

The face and back are indeed body parts. (Though the face might have eyes, nose, etc showing, so perhaps not considered a "single" body part in that case)

[Grace]

We have the goal °Read a book where the page numbers add to 5 (i.e. 345 pages = 3+4+5 = 12)

Does it have to be the three digits = 5 eg 302 3+0+2=5 or can it be like this 392 3+9+2 =14 1+4=5

[Karen ⊰✿, Fiction Aficionado]

Thanks Muffin :)

With a face I think that comprises of multiple body parts ; so you're really looking just for an eye for example

Just your first example there Grace. 392 pages would be 14

[Ashley]

Thanks!

[Grace]

Thanks I wasn't sure with the phrase "add to" that usually implies keep adding .

[Karla]

For "Read a book where the title is at least 3 words and is a tautogram "

1. Can we ignore words like the, a, an, is, and any other non capitalized word in the title.
2. Can we just use the title and ignore the subtitle if there is one?
3. Do ALL words need to be part of the tautogram, or does it just have to be 3 words if the title is longer?

[Gea]

I have some trouble when I sort my TBR for average rating. The rating says one thing and my sorting another. Those two books that are wrong are new so is it possible that the ratings are higher than showed but Goodreads just hasn't caught up with them yet? We don't have that goal yet but it's good to know in advance

Here's the photo: http://prntscr.com/92d6y0

[Shannon]

Quick question...not related to a current goal, but I've been asked so I'm passing off to you guys...

When you copy & paste a book read from the member's tabs, it sometimes includes the series name which then in turn gets included in the formula to count characters in the title...

So for title related goals where is asks number of characters or "x constants in title" etc.... Are we supposed to go by what the spreadsheet is calculating and using as the entire "title" or do we use just the title and sub-title (if it has one) and ignore the series name?

[Sonia]

Series info doesn't count, so... you have either to count it manually, or use the "paste values only" option.

[Shannon]

Sonia wrote: "Series info doesn't count, so... you have either to count it manually, or use the "paste values only" option."

The paste value didn't work for me, it was still pulling in the series title, but I can just go in and erase that part...

Thanks!

[Sonia]

Shannon wrote: "Sonia wrote: "Series info doesn't count, so... you have either to count it manually, or use the "paste values only" option."

The paste value didn't work for me, it was still pulling in the series ..."

Well yes, I forgot to say that... but is easier than to add by hand, I think

[Shannon]

Sonia wrote: "Shannon wrote: "Sonia wrote: "Series info doesn't count, so... you have either to count it manually, or use the "paste values only" option."

The paste value didn't work for me, it was still pullin..."

I just figured I was picking the wrong paste option! I know diddly squat about spreadsheets. We should all count ourselves lucky I've figured out how to copy and paste. :D

and yes ma'am way easier than entering manually. :)

[Sonia]

Shannon wrote: "Sonia wrote: "Shannon wrote: "Sonia wrote: "Series info doesn't count, so... you have either to count it manually, or use the "paste values only" option."

The paste value didn't work for me, it wa..."

Don't make me laugh that I'm still at work!!!

And I'm all alone on my office room, meaning people on the corridor will think I'm crazy :D

[Melissa (ladybug)]

Does this book work for: Read a book where the title is written in different colors on the cover?

[Eni]

hai there! I couldn't find this goal explained anywhere so i'm sorry if it was already explained but i just missed it. I blame it on the time!

- Read a book where a character has lost one of their senses
Does it have to happen in the book?
Or for example the MC was born blind can count?

Thanks! =)

[Amanda]

Melissa (ladybug) wrote: "Does this book work for: Read a book where the title is written in different colors on the cover?

"

Yes, that works for me.

[Amanda]

Eni wrote: "hai there! I couldn't find this goal explained anywhere so i'm sorry if it was already explained but i just missed it. I blame it on the time!

- Read a book where a character has lost one of their..."

"Has lost" sounds like past to me so yes, I think that would be fine.

If it said "read a book where a character loses one of their senses" then I would say it should happen during the book.

[Karla]

One of my team members read Stepbrother's Silent Love Series, it is a boxset of the whole series. In this case, can we use it for the goal "Read a book where the same vowel appears in the title at least 5 times" because that is what the book was called? I wouldn't ask to include the series if it was in parenthesis.

[Karen ⊰✿, Fiction Aficionado]

Remember that we don't count boxed sets ; they need to be shelved as separate books ;)

[Karla]

Karen wrote: "Remember that we don't count boxed sets ; they need to be shelved as separate books ;)"

Oh, I missed that. I'll let my team member know. Thanks.

[Jen]

Hi Mods, have questions 169 and 170 been answered? I haven't seen them answered in this thread, but it's after 1:30 in the morning here and my eyesight is fading, so I apologize if I just missed the answers.

[Karla]

Jen wrote: "Hi Mods, have questions 169 and 170 been answered? I haven't seen them answered in this thread, but it's after 1:30 in the morning here and my eyesight is fading, so I apologize if I just missed th..."

No, they haven't been answered. I was just going to repost my question (#169).

[Karen ⊰✿, Fiction Aficionado]

Gea wrote: "I have some trouble when I sort my TBR for average rating. The rating says one thing and my sorting another. Those two books that are wrong are new so is it possible that the ratings are higher tha..."

Either it's fixed or I'm looking at the wrong thing and don't understand your question, sorry. They are all showing the same rating as on the book page for me

[Karen ⊰✿, Fiction Aficionado]

Karla wrote: "Jen wrote: "Hi Mods, have questions 169 and 170 been answered? I haven't seen them answered in this thread, but it's after 1:30 in the morning here and my eyesight is fading, so I apologize if I ju..."

I've just sent a note to Kelly for that one as I beleive she made the goal and I honestly have no idea what a tautogram is... lol

[Karla]

Karen wrote: "Karla wrote: "Jen wrote: "Hi Mods, have questions 169 and 170 been answered? I haven't seen them answered in this thread, but it's after 1:30 in the morning here and my eyesight is fading, so I apo..."

I had to google it!

[Kelly]

Karla wrote: "For "Read a book where the title is at least 3 words and is a tautogram "

1. Can we ignore words like the, a, an, is, and any other non capitalized word in the title.
2. Can we just use the title and ignore the subtitle if there is one?
3. Do ALL words need to be part of the tautogram, or does it just have to be 3 words if the title is longer? "

1. I'm ok skipping A/An/The like we do for first letter. But all other words should be used.
2. You can ignore the subtitle. (But the title still has to be at least 3 words then)
3. It should be the whole remaining title after the other 2 questions are applied.

The tautogram part should be at least 3 words, so if you remove A from the beginning it should still be 3 words left. And you can choose to use A/An/The if it helps you.

[Joanne]

For the goal: "Read a book where someone discovers an infidelity on someone’s part" a team-mate has asked if a book: Everything I Left Unsaid would work. This is the explanation given:

She is married but runs away as he is abusive, and has a thing with a man that doesn't know anything about it until near the end? They do mention the word adultery while they are discussing it if that helps?

I wasn't sure if it counts as infidelity if she leaves him.

[Kelly]

Joanne wrote: "For the goal: "Read a book where someone discovers an infidelity on someone’s part" a team-mate has asked if a book: Everything I Left Unsaid would work. This is the explanation giv..."

Heh. Apparently the legal answer is that it varies by state. http://info.legalzoom.com/can-married...

I think you're safe to count it since it's infidelity in some parts.

[Karla]

Kelly wrote: "Karla wrote: "For "Read a book where the title is at least 3 words and is a tautogram "

1. Can we ignore words like the, a, an, is, and any other non capitalized word in the title.
2. Can we just ..."

Thanks!

[Karla]

My team member wants to know:
I am reading a book called the Gauntlet. It has two men who are pretty main characters. (so far) They grew up in Pakistan together. One family moved back to the US. The parents of the second family were killed in a car crash, so the second man (still a boy) moved to the US and the boys were raised together. Does that count as interconnected families? It is not the main idea of the story but is that enough to count?

[Karen ⊰✿, Fiction Aficionado]

I'm not really sure that it would count unless the boy they adopted has more of a family to "connect" with the new family. Otherwise it's just kind of an adoption really?

[Karla]

Karen wrote: "I'm not really sure that it would count unless the boy they adopted has more of a family to "connect" with the new family. Otherwise it's just kind of an adoption really?"

I'll let her know. Thanks.

[SandyL]

Hi Mods
Could Puck from Midsummer Night's Dream work for the Imp goal:

From Wikipedia:
According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the etymology of the name Puck is "unsettled"; it is compared to Old Norse puki (Old Swedish puke, Icelandic puki, Frisian Puk). Celtic origins (based on Welsh pwca, Cornish Bucca and Irish púca) have also been proposed,[1] but as the Old English and Old Norse attestations are considerably older than the Celtic ones, loan from Germanic to Celtic seems more probable. The Old English púcel[2] is a kind of half-tamed woodland spirit, leading folk astray with echoes and lights in nighttime woodlands (like the German and Dutch "Weisse Frauen" and "Witte Wieven" and the French "Dames Blanches," all "White Ladies"), or coming into the farmstead and souring milk in the churn. The etymology of Puck is examined by Katharine Mary Briggs, in Anatomy of Puck (New York: Arno) 1977.[3] The term pixie is in origin a diminutive of puck (compared to Swedish word "pyske" meaning "small fairy").

Puck may also be called "Robin Goodfellow" or "Hobgoblin",[4] in which "Hob" may substitute for "Rob" or may simply refer to the "goblin of the hearth" or hob. The name Robin is Middle English in origin, deriving from Old French Robin, the pet form for the name Robert. The earliest reference to "Robin Goodfellow" cited by the Oxford English Dictionary is from 1531. After Meyerbeer's successful opera Robert le Diable (1831), neo-medievalists and occultists began to apply the name Robin Goodfellow to the Devil, with appropriately extravagant imagery.

Characteristics[edit]

Joseph Noel Paton, Puck and Fairies, detail from
A Midsummer Night's Dream
If you had the knack, Puck might do minor housework for you, quick fine needlework or butter-churning, which could be undone in a moment by his knavish tricks if you fell out of favour with him[citation needed] He may also do work for you if you leave him small gifts, such as a glass of milk or other such treats, otherwise he may do the opposite by "make[ing] the drink[beer] to bear no barm" and other such fiendish acts. Pucks are also known to be inherently lonely creatures, and often share the goal of acquiring friends. "Those that Hob-goblin call you, and sweet Puck, / You do their work, and they shall have good luck" said one of William Shakespeare's fairies. Shakespeare's characterization of "shrewd and knavish" Puck in A Midsummer Night's Dream may have revived flagging interest in Puck.[5]

According to Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898):

[Robin Goodfellow is a] "drudging fiend", and merry domestic fairy, famous for mischievous pranks and practical jokes. At night-time he will sometimes do little services for the family over which he presides. The Scots call this domestic spirit a brownie; the Germans, Kobold or Knecht Ruprecht. Scandinavians called it Nissë God-dreng. Puck, the jester of Fairy-court, is the same.

Thanks!

[Karen ⊰✿, Fiction Aficionado]

Hi Sandy - Yes, I would say Puck is fine as an imp

[SandyL]

Thanks karen!

[Vicky]

Double checking on two goals.

Would "france" work for Read a book shelved (listed on the first page on GR) as french - plurals and spelling acceptable?

For Read a book whose author died last year, the death should be in 2014 not within the last year (as in Nov 2014 - Nov 2015)?

[Eni]

Amanda wrote: "Eni wrote: "hai there! I couldn't find this goal explained anywhere so i'm sorry if it was already explained but i just missed it. I blame it on the time!

- Read a book where a character has lost ..."

thank you Amanda =)