2019 Summer Reading Challenge

[Elizabeth]

Good job everyone! Keep those titles coming. Remember our challenge goes through August, but the Summer Reading Program goes through the end of July. Make sure you turn in your reading records so you can get the prizes!

[Tanya]

All right, I finally finished. I read:

The Martian
Packing for Mars
Riding Rockets
Ender's Game
The Future of Humanity

It was kind of fun reading a group of books on one theme. I know a lot more about space travel now than I did in May.

[Debbie]

Linda wrote: "This just isn't my genre so I am having a hard time finding something that interests me to read."

I just read a fun book that I think you might like. It's about 140 pages and is an easy book that reads like a children's book. It's Mission Improbable by J.J. Green. The main character is a young woman who gets herself into several improbable situations because she has a bad habit of not really listening when she is given instructions. The result is a very funny story. It's a mix of science fiction and fantasy that isn't too full of science.

[Carolyn]

Finally have another book that I am going to count for this challenge. I read Zelda's Big Adventure when one of my sisters handed it to me after she had checked it out of the library. Zelda the chicken has decided that she wants to go to space. Think "The Little Red Hen" with a twist.

[Debbie]

I have finished my challenge. The books I read are:
Complete - 6/15 - The Martian by Andy Weir
Complete - 6/20 - Artemis by Andy Weir
Complete - 7/04 - The First Men in the Moon by H.G. Wells
Complete - 7/09 - Mission Improbable by J.J. Green
Complete - 7/11 - Contact by Carl Sagan

[Linda]

Linda wrote: "Debbie wrote: "Linda wrote: "This just isn't my genre so I am having a hard time finding something that interests me to read."

I just read a fun book that I think you might like. It's about 140 pa..."

Debbie I can't find it in the library search so I probably won't read it. :(

[Debbie]

Linda wrote: "Debbie I can't find it in the library search so I probably won't read it. :( "

That's too bad. I got it free as an e-book somewhere. I was looking forward to reading the other 4 books of the series!

[Debbie]

I just checked on Amazon. You can get it for a Kindle for free. The link is: https://smile.amazon.com/Mission-Impr...
I don't know if you do e-books.

[Linda]

Debbie wrote: "I just checked on Amazon. You can get it for a Kindle for free. The link is: https://smile.amazon.com/Mission-Impr......"

Thanks! I grabbed it.

[Debbie]

Linda wrote: "Debbie wrote: "I just checked on Amazon. You can get it for a Kindle for free. The link is: ...

Thanks! I grabbed it."

Oh, good! I hope you enjoy it's improbablilility (misspelling on purpose) as much as I did. Let me know what you think.

[Elizabeth]

Wow, some of you guys have finished so quickly. That's awesome. If you have any more recommendations for people who are still working on the challenge, let us know!

[Carolyn]

Finished my third book for the challenge. I went for a middle grade novel this time: Space Case. This was recommended earlier in the challenge, and I read another book by the author this summer. It's a mystery, and I picked the wrong suspect.

[Debbie]

Carolyn wrote: "Finished my third book for the challenge. I went for a middle grade novel this time: Space Case. This was recommended earlier in the challenge, and I read another book by the author..."

I never pick the right suspect unless the story is a variation on Agatha Christie's play And Then There Were None. But those variations tend to be in film rather than books.

[Elizabeth]

A couple of years ago, I recommended Space Case to a class of fourth graders and their teacher read it, because she doesn't read a ton of SciFi and wanted to give it a try and she LOVED it. So, now when I do SciFi for her classroom, she always brings it up. :)

[Elizabeth]

I hope everyone had a fun 24th of July and got some time to read some fun books!

[Elizabeth]

If you are participating in the library's Summer Reading Program, remember the last day to turn in your reading record is Wednesday, July 31!

The Goodreads Summer Reading Challenge will continue through August, so if you haven't finished you still have a whole additional month!

[Teresa]

I finished with A Big Ship at the Edge of the Universe, another space opera. I might still read Valkyrie Squadron, a web comic/graphic novel.

[Audrey]

I think I’ve got it done:

1. Navigating the Stars
2. Phasma
3. Apollo: The Epic Journey to the Moon, 1963-1972
4. Mars
5. The Northern Lights: Celestial Performances of the Aurora Borealis

[Elizabeth]

Awesome! You guys. There's still a couple more weeks in this challenge. Please let us know when you finish.

[Carolyn]

Picked out some more picture books and finished up tonight. My five books all together are:
The Moon's First Friends: How the Moon Met the Astronauts from Apollo 11
Zelda's Big Adventure
Space Case
A is for Astronaut: Blasting Through the Alphabet
If You Had Your Birthday Party on the Moon

[Debbie]

Carolyn wrote: "Picked out some more picture books and finished up tonight. My five books all together are:
The Moon's First Friends: How the Moon Met the Astronauts from Apollo 11
[book:Zelda's Bi..."

Most of the books I choose for the challenges are picture books or juvenile fiction. They are so much fun!

[Linda]

Carolyn wrote: "Picked out some more picture books and finished up tonight. My five books all together are:
The Moon's First Friends: How the Moon Met the Astronauts from Apollo 11
[book:Zelda's Bi..."
I like picture books or juvenile fiction books for the challenges because they are quick and fun and I don't have much time to read.

[Alene]

The 5 books I read:
• Good Night Astronauts by Adam Gamble and Mark Jasper
• Moon's First Friends : One Giant Leap for Friendship words by Susanna Leonard Hill, pictures by Elisa Paganelli
• Rise of the Rocket Girls by Nathalia Holt
• Hidden figures : the American dream and the untold story of the Black women mathematicians who helped win the space race by Margot Lee Shetterly
• Gene Roddenberry's Star Trek : the Original Cast Adventures by edited by Douglas Brode and Shea T. Brode

[Audrey]

For good measure, I also read
The Last Colony
Postcards from Mars: The First Photographer on the Red Planet
Mars: Distant Red Planet

[Elizabeth]

Nice guys! Only a few more days in this challenge. Keep it up!

[Donna]

I read the following and they are all Star Wars books:

Bloodline

Master and Apprentice

The Joiner King

The Unseen Queen

The Swarm War

[Debbie]

Congrats to all who joined this Summer Challenge, whether you read 1 or 10 or 100 books! I particularly admire those who weren't sure if they could do all the books but chose to give it a shot anyway. You, whether you finished them all or not, are the real winners in my book.

[Elizabeth]

Good job everyone! Just a heads up, the winner will be picked next week, because I am on vacation.

I'm so glad that so many people finished this time around.

September's reading challenge is up, and I hope you can participate there as well.

[Elizabeth]

Teresa is our prize drawing winner for Summer 2019’s reading challenge. They read Fortune's Pawn, Honor Among Thieves, Trading in Danger,A Big Ship at the Edge of the Universe and Constellations by Diane Sipiera.

Congratulations Teresa!

[Teresa]

Thanks!

[Debbie]

Congrats

[Teresa]

Thanks. I picked up my prize earlier today.