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FA 2014 RwS Completed Tasks - Fall 2014
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Rebekah wrote: "10.9 MythologicalOld Greasybeard: Tales from the Cumberland Gap by Leonard Roberts
+10 pts - Task
+10 pts - Combo (10.4, 20.6)
+10 pts - Non- Novel
+ 5 pts - Oldie..."
I found one copy at Amazon and filled in the details for this, and added your 1969 date. If you can give me more information in the librarians thread, I'll make a record for your copy.
Edit: Nevermind - I found the LOC copy.
15.5 Between the Wars (1927 - 1928) Constant TravelerAmerika by Franz Kafka
+15 pts - Task
+15 pts - Bonus
Task Total - 30 pts
Grand Total - 565 pts
Elizabeth (Alaska) wrote: "Rebekah wrote: "10.9 MythologicalOld Greasybeard: Tales from the Cumberland Gap by Leonard Roberts
+10 pts - Task
+10 pts - Combo (10.4, 20.6)
+10 pts - Non- Novel..."
Good deal
Task 20.6 - UnderratedBigfoot Dreams (1986) by Francine Prose (Paperback, 288 pages)
Review:Our heroine is a writer at a Tabloid Newspaper, living and working in 1980s New York City. She is attracted to the bizarre and the unusual, both professionally and personally (friends, boyfriends). She writes preposterous stories about UFOs and Bigfoot sightings, completely invented in her mind, albeit inspired by random observations of her fellow subway riders. Much to her shock and surprise, one of her invented stories turns out to be closer to the truth than she thought possible. This has ramifications in her personal life, as well as for various characters associated with her story. (Can you say: mid-life crisis?) She has to decide whether to continue living her life valuing bizarre, unpredictable, unreliable people and situations, or to change and embrace predictability (even if it is boring). The 1980s trappings (the clothing, the aerobic dancing, the aging ‘60s hipsters, even the occasional VietNam references), along with the lack of internet or cell phones, gave “it happened long ago” feel to the story. Overall, an entertaining novel. Recommended.
+20 Underrated
+05 Oldies -25 to 75 years old: (1939-1989)
+10 Review
Task Total: 20 + 05 + 10 = 35
Grand Total: 1425 + 35 = 1460
And that's it for me! Thanks to the moderators for all of their hard work & I'll see y'all in the Winter.
15.6 Between the Wars (1931- 1932) Constant TravelerSkipping 1929-1930
The Greater Trumps by Charles Williams
+15 pts - Task
+15 pts - Bonus
Task Total - 30 pts
Grand Total -
This has been a hectic three months for me so for the first time I was not able to complete either challenge :-(
There were so many I wanted to read. I'm hoping things will calm down for the winter (right! Holidays, anyone?).
But my priorities were reset
Daughter-Hospital, Grandson - custody-potty training, Family-move-Qatar-Tennessee, Husband- Retires
20.10 - Higher Education - Liz M's Task:Radium Girls: A Play in Two Acts by D.W. Gregory
+20 Task: http://www.shu.edu/offices/freshman-s...
+ 5 Combo: 20.6 - Underrated (2003, 46)
+10 Not a Novel (Play)
Task Total: 35
Grand Total: 2460
20.7 SlipstreamSarah Canary by Karen Joy Fowler
Review: I’m not sure how I feel about this book. I definitely understand that it fits into the slipstream genre – it’s not quite fantasy, not quite historical fiction, and not even magical realism. It’s something in between all of that, which is fine but left me a bit antsy. I’m comfortable with realistic fiction, and I’m comfortable with fantasy. I love urban fantasy, which has fantastic elements set in a real setting. Magical realism has always left me unsteady, and so does this. The story surrounds a character who exists only at the edges – she rarely speaks, and no one really understands who she is. The setting is interesting – the west coast right after the Civil War – but the whole thing is just hard to grasp. I guess that’s why they call it slipstream.
+20 Task
+10 Review
+5 Combo (20.6 – published 1991, 790 ratings)
Task Total: 35
Grand Total: 1260
20.2 - BirthplaceArms and the Man by George Bernard Shaw
+20 Task: born in Ireland
+ 5 Combo: 20.4 - Realism: on list
+10 Not a Novel (Play)
+10 Oldies (1894)
Task Total: 45
Grand Total: 2505
That's it for me. Thanks so much for a great fall challenge!
Post 1016 Rebekah wrote: "20.5 - The Prime MinisterThe Trial Of Andrew Johnson by Noel B. Gerson
+20 pts - Task
+ 5 pts - Combo (20.60
+ 5 pts - Oldies (1977)
+10 pts - Not a Novel
Task Tota..."
+5 combo 20.9, Gerson was born 1914.
Post 1025 Karen Michele wrote: "20.2 - BirthplaceArms and the Man by George Bernard Shaw
+20 Task: born in Ireland
+ 5 Combo: 20.4 - Realism: on list
+10 Not a Novel (Play)
+10 Oldies (1894)
Task T..."
I'm sorry, Karen. This is listed as Assignment at BPL, and has no lexile. Task, no styles.
Elizabeth (Alaska) wrote: "Post 1025 Karen Michele wrote: "20.2 - BirthplaceArms and the Man by George Bernard Shaw
+20 Task: born in Ireland
+ 5 Combo: 20.4 - Realism: on list
+10 Not a Novel ..."
Ah, phooey - no problem --- it was short and I threw it in at the last minute and didn't even check.
10.7 Honored AuthorsWinesburg, Ohio by Sherwood Anderson
I wasn’t wild about this book, honestly. It is a classic book of interconnected stories (really more character studies than stories) set in the small town of Winesburg. I really liked some moments, and some stories – “Hands” and “Adventure” stood out – and I was of course impressed with Sherwood Anderson’s skill at crafting these characters. That seems like the main reason to read this and it’s quite an education in that skill. However, I felt the lack of plot pretty keenly. And something about the book made me feel blah. I didn’t hate reading it, didn’t put it aside, but I also wasn’t compelled to pick it up to read more. From reading other reviews of the book, I wonder if I will feel differently when and if I reread it later.
+10 task (Sherwood Anderson Foundation Fiction Award)
+ 5 combo (10.4)
+10 oldies (1919)
+10 not a novel (stories)
+10 review
Task Total: 45
Grand Total: 685
10.4 - 9, 10, 11The Forgotten Garden - Kate Morton
This was such a wonderful novel! There were so many twists and turns, and I just adored how the author wove together the stories across three generations. I really wasn't sure what to expect when I started this one, and honestly the first few chapters didn't really grip me the way I was hoping, but once it got going I couldn't put it down! It had everything: mystery, a bit of romance, a hint of fantasy, family drama...The writing was so whimsical and the author was really able to give each of the characters their own voice, which isn't something that always comes across in narratives like this. Really, just a fantastic novel all around!
+10 task
+10 review
+5 jumbo
Post total: 25
Grand total: 390
10.10 - Group ReadsTenth of December - George Saunders
First time I've actually managed to get around to one of the group reads! Yay! Unfortunately I was a little disappointed by this one. Given all the hype, I was expecting the stories to be just absolutely GREAT. And some of them really were. The first three stories were great, especially the opening story, Victory Lap. They were short, but still felt satisfying and I really felt like I was able to connect with the characters, which doesn't often happen for me in short stories. But after that the stories went downhill for me. The more speculative ones in the collection (Escape from Spiderhead, The Semplica Girls Diary) just didn't do much for me. They didn't seem to fit with the opening stories in the collection. That said, the collection absolutely ends with a bang. Tenth of December is a fantastic story, so emotional and touching. But seeing a few really great stories like that one and Victory Lap just really served to highlight how much better the rest of the collection could have been. Still an enjoyable collection, but for me it didn't live up to the hype.
+10 task
+10 review
+10 not a novel
Post total: 30
Grand total: 420
20.7 Make it StrangePastoralia by George Saunders
I am usually attracted to slipstream literature, and have no problem with dark or violent stories, so I was surprised how unsettling I found this collection of short stories. On the surface, there is a lot of humor in almost all of them, and Saunders is clearly satirizing our myopic mainstream American culture, both of which I appreciated. Nevertheless, the satire stays so close to the ugly reality that it is difficult and disconcerting to read. I found several of the stories profoundly sad, and was so uncomfortable reading many if them that I had to walk away from the book in the middle of a story ( once two pages before it ended). This is the mark of good literature, and I think I will want to read more of Saunders, but I definitely need to be in the right mood the next time I approach one of his books.
20 pt. task
+10 review
+5 combo (10.4 - pastoralia)
+10 not a novel ( short stories)
Task total:45
Grand total: 680
Elizabeth (Alaska) wrote: "Post 1016 Rebekah wrote: "20.5 - The Prime MinisterThe Trial Of Andrew Johnson by Noel B. Gerson
+20 pts - Task
+ 5 pts - Combo (20.60
+ 5 pts - Oldies (1977)
+10 p..."
Elizabeth I looked him up on Wikipedia and his birthdate was given as 1913. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Noel_Gerson
20.7 - Make It StrangeStranger Things Happen - Kelly Link
This one was a HUGE disappointment. I'd heard so many fantastic things about Kelly Link's stories, and for me they were all just so unsatisfying. There were a couple that weren't too bad, but for the most part they just fell flat. It seemed like as soon as a story would really get going, it would end just very abruptly. The ones that I enjoyed more were the longer ones like Travels with the Snow Queen and Survivor's Ball, since those were more fleshed out and had a more satisfying ending. Even then though, I can't say I was a big fan of her writing style or the ambiguity of the stories. I still might try another one of her collections at some point, but based on this one I won't be in any big rush.
+20 task
+10 review
+10 not a novel
Post total: 40
Grand total: 460
And that's it for me! I'm excited that I managed to get so many tasks done, even if I didn't manage to finish! Now come on Winter! :)
Rebekah wrote: "Elizabeth (Alaska) wrote: "Post 1016 Rebekah wrote: "20.5 - The Prime MinisterThe Trial Of Andrew Johnson by Noel B. Gerson
+20 pts - Task
+ 5 pts - Combo (20.60
+ ..."
I think this information from Library of Congress might be more reliable.
20.2 Birthplaces (Belgium, Ireland, Germany, Switzerland) Dracula by Bram Stoker
Review: I’ve read a lot of modern vampire stories, but hadn’t read what amounts to the “original” until now. Unfortunately, I think I prefer the new ones. I think I knew this was an epistolary novel, but I don’t think I realized how little of it actually focused directly on Dracula. I feel like I’ve read enough novels inspired by Dracula that the real thing left me a little cold. I think it’s a case of going back to the original and feeling like it’s been done before, even though it was the beginning of it all. I did like some of the characters though, and it can’t be denied that this novel was the start of a tradition I have to say I love.
+20 Task (born in Ireland)
+10 Review
+10 Oldies (published 1879)
+20 Combo (10.2, 10.7, 20.1, 20.10)
Task Total: 60
RwS Completion Bonus: 100
Grand Total: 1420
20.2 BirthplacesThe Secret Place by Tana French
I’ve read all the rest of the Dublin Murder Squad series, and liked them, but this was a different thing altogether. Tana French steps outside the usual structure for her, telling the story in chapters that alternate perspectives. This might have been hard to tell at first, though the voices are quite different, but I had read reviews of the book that gave me a heads up. The story was interesting, and the characters were well-drawn, but what made this book so engaging to me was how brilliantly French captures the way being a teenage girl feels. Some of the details she captures are absolutely perfect – “Julia is trying out swearing. It still only sort of works” and “If it were an hour later, when they would be in the cafeteria, sprawled forward over the table, catching last crumbs of dry cake with licked fingertips” – and make this book worth reading even if you aren’t a Tana French or mystery fan.
+20 task (born in Ireland)
+10 review
Task Total: 30
Grand Total: 715
And that's it for the season...thanks to Elizabeth, Liz, and Kate!
20.6 Underrated Obsessionsby Carol Davis
61 ratings
Style + 5 10.4 Obsessions
Book Total: 25
Grand Total: 200
Last post
Well done, everyone! On to Winter!
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Reading with Style
Books mentioned in this topic
Quantum Leap: Obsessions (other topics)The Secret Place (other topics)
Dracula (other topics)
The Trial of Andrew Johnson (other topics)
Stranger Things Happen (other topics)
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Authors mentioned in this topic
Carol Davis (other topics)Tana French (other topics)
Bram Stoker (other topics)
Noel B. Gerson (other topics)
Noel B. Gerson (other topics)
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Pan by Knut Hamsun
+20 pts - Task
+ 5 pts - Combo (10.5 Norway)
+10 pts - Oldies (1894)
Task Total - 35 pts
Grand Total - 535 pts