Romance Readers Reading Challenges discussion
2017 Challenges Archive
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2017 March Pick-It-For-Me Challenge!
PIFM SIGN-UP INFORMATION
When most people think of March, they think of the beginning of spring, St. Patrick’s Day or sometimes Easter. But for many, many US sports fanatics, March means March Madness or the Road to the Final Four. I am talking about the NCAA Men’s Basketball Championship Tournament which for many is the Holy Grail of sports competitions.
This month’s Pick It For Me will be based on the 2016 tournament bracket. But first, you must sign up for the challenge by letting us know your level of fanaticism – which group do you fall into?
A. What is basketball? Is it that little ball someone hits with a stick?
B. Basketball, shmasketball – I’d rather be watching football!
C. There is only one sport in the US and it is collegiate basketball!
✱✱ If you have a preferred shelf, please list it along with your pick! ✱✱
IMPORTANT DATES
✱ Sign-ups will remain open until Friday, February 24 - 6:00 pm US EST
For your convenience: Time Zone Converter
You’ll have until February 27th - 6:00 pm US EST to make your recommendations.
Please do not start reading your book(s) until the first of the month. You then have the entire month to read your pick(s) and give some feedback.
If you’re new please read the PIFM Guidelines and FAQ. If you have any questions that are not addressed there, please feel free to ask!
✱Please note that late sign-ups will be included at the host's discretion and no one will be included after re-picks are assigned!✱
TIPS TO MAKE THE CHALLENGE ENJOYABLE FOR EVERYONE!
Pickees
✱To help your picker understand the type of books you like or are currently reading, please make sure your ‘read’ shelf is up to date. You can create shelves for books you DNFed (Did Not Finish) or authors that don’t work for you as well as favorite books and authors. In addition, you might consider updating your profile. You can include info about your favorite books, authors, genres, themes or tropes (or themes/tropes you dislike – i.e. secret baby).
✱Please do not specify likes/dislikes in the sign-up thread. This information will not be included in the pairings and your pickee may not see your message and does not need to rely on that information when making picks.
Pickers
✱Please remember this is primarily a romance readers group. Thus, most, if not all, of your picks should be romance. There are various sub genres within the romance category - Contemporary, Historical, Paranormal, Romantic Suspense, Erotica, M/M, Urban Fantasy. If your pickee reads a wide variety, you could add a non-romance as a choice.
✱Choose at least 4 new titles for your pickee. These can be brand new to them (not found on any of their shelves) or a book found on their shelves if they've never read any of the author's work previously.
✱Remember, too many options is often worse than too few! It can be overwhelming to have too many books to choose from. Please limit your picks to no more than two for each picking rule.
A few hints to help with book selection:
✱Check the book’s publishing date. Select "date pub" from the checkbox selections and save.
✱Check pickee's personalized shelves, especially their exclusive shelves. A personalized shelf is one the member has created. (e.g., 'to read next', 'favorites' ‘didn’t like’)
✱Make sure the books you choose are not on their 'read' shelf. Just because it isn't rated doesn't mean it wasn't read.
✱Look at your pickee's 'read' shelf and see what genres they have recently read or read the most. Reviewing their ‘read’ shelf might help you in choosing something they are interested in reading right now.
✱If your pickee reads lots of books in a genre you are not familiar with (erotic romance, GLBT, YA, etc.) Contact the Mods or the month's organizer for guidance.
✱Include a variety of books (e.g., shorter page count, new addition to their 'to-read' shelf, an older book on their 'to-read' shelf) This variety gives your pickee options when choosing the book or books they will be reading this month. Use the sort feature within their shelves to determine date a book was added, published or read; page numbers, ratings, etc.
If you want to volunteer to make repicks:
✱We love that you want to help out, but please remember those who need picks have been waiting for a long time already. Please only volunteer if you are able to make the repicks within a few hours of the deadline. Thank you!
PARTICIPANTS
(links coming)
A. What is basketball? Is it that little ball someone hits with a stick?
Christina
Kait Up Next
Nicole
Fran PIFM shelf
Suzanne
Kimberly
Ashley
Carrie
JoJo
Enqi ✯ kindle-tbr
Breann ✯ 1-pifm-pick-me
Raine ✯ 2017 PIFM
B. Basketball, shmasketball – I’d rather be watching football!
Nancy H
Lekshmy
Rachel C. ✯ must read by end of 2017.
Pamela
☘KathyD☘ ✯ cp-pick-it-for-me
Elke ✯ On deck 4 chlges
Tammie ✯ Tammie's PIFM Shelf
J.C. ✯ 17-challenges-pick-list
Leigh ✯ pick-it-for-me-challenge
Romanticbookworm ✯ pick-for-me
Shelby ✯ Current Challenge to Reads
Alexis ✯ PIFM books
Danielle Gypsy Soul ✯ Possible March books OR books-i-have-tbr
Stacey
Nadine Bookaholic ✯ mg-pofm-challenge-pick-shelf
Mary-Megan
Ezinwanyi~ThatEzi ✯ review-books
Queen Bee
B.R.
Susan A ✯ pick from here
Tina "IRead2Escape" ✯ Pick Me
Jody ✯ meet-n-greet-pick
C. There is only one sport in the US and it is collegiate basketball!
Heather ✯ Pifm
Jenny (Ynnej)
MountainKatt ✯ to-read-asap
LaurLa ✯ 04-challenges-to-pick
Brett
~KarenH~ ✯ cant-wait-to-read
☼♎ Carmen the Bootyshaker Temptress ☼♎
Diane ~Firefly~ ✯ mng_picking shelf
Katherine
PAIRINGS
Please complete picks by February 27, 6:00 pm EST
Please pick for the person below you in your group. The last person in each group picks for the first person, for example - Breann picks for Ashley in Group A
✔ - picks complete
A. What is basketball? Is it that little ball someone hits with a stick?
✔Ashley
✔JoJo
✔Kait ✯ Up Next
✔Raine ✯ 2017 PIFM
✔Nicole
✔Kimberly
✔Fran ✯ PIFM shelf
✔Enqi ✯ kindle-tbr
✔Christina
Suzanne
✔Carrie
✔Breann ✯ 1-pifm-pick-me
B. Basketball, shmasketball – I’d rather be watching football!
✔Romanticbookworm ✯ pick-for-me
✔☘KathyD☘ ✯ cp-pick-it-for-me
✔Ezinwanyi~ThatEzi ✯ review-books
✔Susan A ✯ pick from here
✔Danielle Gypsy Soul ✯ Possible March books
B.R.
✔Tina "IRead2Escape" ✯ Pick Me
✔Alexis ✯ PIFM books
✔Nadine Bookaholic ✯ mg-pofm-challenge-pick-shelf
✔Stacey
✔Lekshmy
✔Tammie ✯ Tammie's PIFM Shelf
✔Queen Bee
✔J.C. ✯ 17-challenges-pick-list
✔Elke ✯ On deck 4 chlges
✔Pamela
✔Leigh ✯ pick-it-for-me-challenge
✔Shelby ✯ Current Challenge to Reads
✔Mary-Megan
✔Jody ✯ meet-n-greet-pick
✔Rachel C. ✯ must read by end of 2017.
✔Nancy H
C. There is only one sport in the US and it is collegiate basketball!
✔~KarenH~ ✯ cant-wait-to-read
✔☼♎ Carmen the Bootyshaker Temptress ☼♎
✔MountainKat ✯ to-read-asap
✔Brett
✔Heather ✯ Pifm
✔Katherine
✔Jenny (Ynnej)
✔LaurLa ✯ 04-challenges-to-pick
✔Diane ~Firefly~ ✯ mng_picking shelf
Volunteer for re-picks
Challenge Picking Rules
Hold on to your seats, everyone, because...
MARCH MADNESS IS UPON US!!
The Road to the Final Four, March Madness, the NCAA Men’s (and Women’s) Basketball Championship Tournament is a 64-team single elimination tournament. Which basically means, you lose you go home. And that is one of the many reasons so many casual fans love this tournament. Each of the 64 teams has an equal chance of advancing through the tournament, or not.
There are many stops along the Road to the Final Four, the first being a school winning the conference they play in – this gives them an automatic bid into the tournament. The next stop is the selection of the at-large bids and the seeding of the 64 teams. The selection process and seeding is done in a secret room over the course of a weekend and the announcement of the bracket is aired on ESPN during primetime. For many schools, just making it to ‘the Big Dance’ is a win in itself, capping a successful season. For others, nothing short of making it to the Final Four is considered a successful season.
Other stops along the road are the Sweet Sixteen (final 16 teams left in the tournament), Elite Eight and of course, the Final Four. The two Final Four games and the Final Championship game are played the first weekend in April, making March the crazy, mad month in which conference tournaments, the bracket selection and the first 3 rounds of the tournament are played out.
The bracket is made of 4 regions – East, South, Midwest and West – each with seeded teams 1-16 to make up the 64 teams. The winners of those four regions make up the Final Four and the eventual champion. Every year there is what is called a Cinderella team – usually this is the lowest or very low seeded team who somehow makes it far into the tournament. For many, this is the reason to watch the tournament. To see a small, underdog school upset one of the powerhouse, big-dog schools.
Below are the highlights of the 2016 Tournament bracket and your challenge picking rules:
East #1 Seed – North Carolina Tarheels:
The University of North Carolina’s team name is the Tarheels and their colors are sky blue and white. The name stems from the state's early years of industry that relied on the tar, or pitch, created from the pine forests the state is known for.
Pick a book with
✯ blue on the cover; OR
✯ the letters T-A-R somewhere in the title or author; OR
✯ trees (more than one) on the cover
South #1 Seed – Kansas Jayhawks:
The main University of Kansas campus is located in Lawrence, Kansas on what is known as Mount Oread. Their team name and mascot, Jayhawk, a fictional bird, is a term that was coined to represent the struggles early Kansas settlers suffered. It was also used to refer to guerrilla soldiers during the US Civil War.
Pick a book with
✯ a mountain setting; OR
✯ a bird on the cover; OR
✯ a US Historical setting or set in a US southern state – bonus if it takes place in the mid-1800's around the time of the Civil War
Midwest #1 Seed – Virginia Cavaliers:
The University of Virginia’s team name, Cavaliers, is a term representing supporters of King Charles I during the English Civil War. The team mascot does look like a soldier from 'back in the day'. The University is one of the oldest in the country and is famous for its secret societies.
Pick a book with
✯ a historical England setting; OR
✯ a soldier MC (can be former); OR
✯ a character that is keeping a secret
West #1 Seed – Oregon Ducks:
The main University of Oregon's campus is along the Willamette River in Eugene, Oregon. The university is considered a research university. Their mascot is a Fighting Duck and is based on Walt Disney's Donald Duck. Their team colors are green and yellow.
Pick a book with
✯ a setting on any body of water or on the cover; OR
✯ a green or yellow cover (at least 50%) or has a duck on the cover; OR
✯ a character involved in research or something scientific (geeky/nerd character) or set at a school
Cinderella Team – Syracuse Orange:
The Syracuse Orange were last year’s Cinderella team – they were a #10 Seed and made it to Final Four, upsetting #1 seed Virginia in the Midwest Regional Final.
Syracuse University was founded as a private university by the Methodist Episcopal Church in Lima, New York. Their team name was originally the Orioles but they quickly became known as the Orange because of the use of orange as their team color. Their mascot is Otto the Orange - yes, orange as in the fruit.
Pick a book with
✯ a fairy tale retelling or a Cinderella type character; OR
✯ the color orange on the cover; OR
✯ fruit or something round like an orange on the cover
2016 NCAA Men’s Basketball Champions – Villanova Wildcats:
Villanova University is located in Pennsylvania and is the oldest Catholic university in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Their team name is the Wildcats. The University still houses the Liberty Bell's "Sister Bell," which was a replacement bell for the Liberty Bell after it cracked. The Sister Bell eventually found its way to Villanova and is still found on display in the St. Augustine Monastery on Villanova's campus.
Pick a book with
✯ a MC that wins something; OR
✯ a religious character; OR
✯ any animal on the cover or as part of the book (can be a shifter) - bonus if it is a wild cat
Final Four – Villanova Wildcats; Oklahoma Sooners; North Carolina; Syracuse Orange
The University of Oklahoma is ranked first among public universities in enrollment of National Merit Scholars and among the top ten in the graduation of Rhodes Scholars. Their team name is the Sooners and their colors are crimson and cream.
Pick a book with
✯ the number 4 on the cover, in the title or is part of a 4 book series; OR
✯ an extremely smart character; OR
✯ the letters S-O-O-N in the title or author name (must have two Os)
Elite Eight – Kansas Jayhawks; Villanova Wildcats; Oregon Ducks; Oklahoma Sooners; North Carolina Tarheels; Notre Dame Fighting Irish; Virginia Cavaliers; Syracuse Orange.
The University of Notre Dame team name is the Fighting Irish with a fighting leprechaun as their mascot. Their official/original name is University of Notre Dame du Lac or Our Lady of the Lake referring to their patron saint, the Virgin Mary. The school's campus is known for its Golden Dome and 'Touchdown Jesus' mural landmarks.
Pick a book with
✯ the author's first and last name, or one of the author's names and the title starting with the same letter just as Elite Eight and Sweet Sixteen do; OR
✯ a character of Irish descent or set in Ireland; OR
✯ a character named Mary or a variation of Mary or or a virginal/sweet character
C.....but I suspect this will not be a popular answer here, so anywhere you want to stick me is fine, thanksA good shelf to pick from:
Pifm
I'm not a big sports fan, but I'll go with B.
I'm going to go with A since there is no hockey reference.preferred shelf: To read first
If I could never see a sport again, I would read SO happily ;)A. What is basketball? Is it that little ball someone hits with a stick?
Up Next shelf
LOL. I'd go with A but I played in high school even though I would rather never see a basketball again (seriously, running up and down the court seemed pointless)... so I have to go with B :)must read by end of 2017
I'm in! B - I’d rather be watching football!
Please use my to-read shelf
I'm in with an A.....I'm not much of a sports watcher, but when I do watch, it's baseball :) (Go Mets!)PIFM shelf- https://www.goodreads.com/review/list...
My profile is private but I will 'friend' anyone who gets me!
B. Basketball, shmasketball – I’d rather be watching football!Nancy H
https://www.goodreads.com/review/list...
I'm going with A also. I agree with Christina on there not being a hockey reference. And Hey, What about the Female Final Four? Please choose from my TBR file.
I'm so torn! Football is my sport, love it - even if my team deserted me... =/ But this time of year, it is all about college basketball - emphasis on college, I hate the NBA! (I don't even think they are playing the same game!)But those C's look a little lonely, so I will go with C!
Please use my to-read-asap shelf, thanks!
Hey LaurLa, I just noticed that you put me in group C. I'm actually a B. But if you need me to be a C, that's totally ok as long as nobody asks me anything about college basketball :D
Jenny (Ynnej) wrote: "Hey LaurLa, I just noticed that you put me in group C. I'm actually a B. But if you need me to be a C, that's totally ok as long as nobody asks me anything about college basketball :D"
HA! My bad! I promise no one is going to ask you anything about basketball or any sport for that matter :-D If I get a few more Cs, I'll move you over but so far you are in fabulous company in the C group. And I'm not saying that just cuz that's my group!
LaurLa wrote: "Jenny (Ynnej) wrote: "Hey LaurLa, I just noticed that you put me in group C. I'm actually a B. But if you need me to be a C, that's totally ok as long as nobody asks me anything about college bask..."
Don't worry, I'm glad to be in such a nice group ;)
I love March Madness. I'm a C. Go University of Arizona Wildcats!
I'm in.Such an easy choice for me, as I'm not a basketball fan at all.
A. What is basketball? Is it that little ball someone hits with a stick?
I'll go with BPossible March books (use first)
If you can't find it on that list than you can use:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/list...
Alexis wrote: "I'm in for B. Only team that matters for me is the Seahawks!"I like how you think, Alexis! :D However, while I would rather be watching football (specifically the Seahawks), since it's not an option this time of year I have no problem getting into the NCAA tournament, so I'll go with C.
Please use my cant-wait-to-read shelf. Thanks!
I'm in and I did watch basketball but haven't watched it in awhile. So I'm going to go with C.
I really don't fit any group, but I know what basketball is and hate football, so I'll go with C.mng_picking shelf
I'm absolutely a non-sporty person. Definitely A :) pick from my kindle-tbr shelfhttps://www.goodreads.com/review/list...#
I am definately going with B. There are 2 seasons in my house. 1Football season 2 Waiting for football season
I am in. C. There is only one sport in the US and it is collegiate basketball!
I don't fit in any group. Firstly I do not understand American football, because the ball looks like an egg and the players most of the time has the ball in their hands. (Please explain this game to me????Or why it called football???) and I like more basketball then football/soccer, that is why I don't fit in B group . And I know about basketball I watched it live so I not fit in group A. And why I do not fit in C? Because there are "only one sport in the US" part in C. I am not from US of A. And I believe in this group are other people from other places in the world. :)
It's been a long time since I've participated in this challenge :)B. Basketball, shmasketball – I’d rather be watching football! (actually baseball :) )
Please pick from this shelf: https://www.goodreads.com/review/list...
I've never done this challenge before, but I'm up for something new.B. Basketball, shmasketball – I’d rather be watching
Me! It's been awhile since I've done a PIFM :)I'm definitely an A
My shelf: https://www.goodreads.com/review/list...
(I'll add to it this afternoon)
Brett wrote: "I love March Madness. I'm a C. Go University of Arizona Wildcats!"Hey! I was an Arizona Wildcat!! :D
Romance Readers Reading Challenges
Books mentioned in this topic
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Authors mentioned in this topic
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Nicole James (other topics)
Marie Mason (other topics)
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The Pick-It-For-Me Challenge (PIFM) is a reading challenge where each participant gives and receives book recommendations based on a given a set of rules. The assignment method and book selection rules change each month so it’s always new and always different.
The idea of the PIFM challenge is that you will get new-to-you books and authors selected for you as well as a push to read some books that have been lingering on your shelves. You may not be interested in the new books recommended, which is why you also get a minimum of four books from your shelf.
You only have to read ONE book to complete this challenge!
After signups are closed, your names and any extra info will go into the super secret PIFM randomizer and it will select someone for you to recommend books to and someone to give you recommendations. This list will be posted along with any specific picking rules for the month.
In order to participate you need to either HAVE YOUR PROFILE SET TO PUBLIC (preferable), or friend the person giving you recommendations. PLEASE NOTE: if you choose to keep your profile private, it is your responsibility to send a friend request to the person picking for you as soon as possible after the match-ups are posted. Whether your profile is private or not, it is also very important that your profile be set to receive Private Messages (PMs) in case anyone needs to reach out to you (mods, organizer etc.)
Everything gets done in this thread so be sure to come back often!!!
Repicks:
You can ask for repicks if:
✱ The books picked for you are not yet released.
✱ If you have already read the chosen book(s) and they are on your ‘read’ shelf.
✱ If you did not receive four picks from your ‘to-read’ shelf, with at least one from your preferred shelf.
You may NOT ask for repicks because:
✱ A book is not available at your library.
✱ A genre or author you don’t enjoy.