07 - The first book you touch on a shelf with your eyes closed

[Courtney]

I used the app Tiny Decisions to pick my book. I put in the books that fit other prompts for my other challenges and used that book for this prompt as well. It gave me .

[Sallie]

I had my hubby close his eyes and choose something. He came up with The Orphan Master’s Son. I’m reading it now. It’s interesting but not an easy read. I’m taking my time with it reading 10 to 15 pages a day.

[SadieReadsAgain]

I read The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern. Someone tell me why I resisted this book for so long? I was so busy claiming not to like fantasy that I nearly missed this absolute treasure. But what could be more fantastical than an enchanted circus, the monochrome arena for a contest between two wielders of stunning magic and their shady puppet masters. The true magician here is Morgenstern, as even for a sceptic like me none of this felt unbelievable. I had no doubt that everything in this book was real. And maybe that was me being enchanted by the circus, perhaps I was also under a spell. Because I can acknowledge that the characters were not as deep as they could have been, that the romance felt a little cool for the stakes. But it didn't matter. And why? Because this book isn't a love story, it isn't a character study, it is a pure celebration of the power of magic. The beauty of illusion...when that illusion is completely real. The joy of something without purpose, which exists simply for the enjoyment of being in it. What begins as a competition between two egomaniacal old sorcerers becomes something so much more, so separate from them, that it has to endure. At any cost. Stunning.

[Doni]

This has been my hardest challenge so far. I picked from my physical TBR shelves with my eyes closed. The one that was sticking out the farthest was Freedom by Jonathan Franzen. I started reading it, but when it got to a callous rape scene, I stopped. I don't want to read it anymore, but I feel like it would be cheating to select another book.

[Renee]

Read The Hunting Party - quick, fun read with a great twist

[Anshita]

I closed my eyes and selected a book out of my semester syllabus, and it was by Jospeh Conrad. Not a fan of Conrad but I'm giving it another shot.

[Laura]

From my physical bookshelf : The Gingerbread Book: 54 Cookie-Construction Projects for Party Centerpieces and Holiday Decorations, 117 Full-Sized Patterns, Plans for 18 Structures, Over 100 Color Photos, Recipes, Cookie Shapes, Children's Projects, History, and Step-by-Step How-To's byAllen D. Bragdon 🏠Oh what fun🍪🎄

[Harry]

I read Our Souls at Night by Kent Haruf. A quite, simple story about two lonely 70 year olds finding companionship. If you're working on 2019 prompts, this would fit the one for a book published posthumously.

[Tamara]

I read "How To Say No Without Feeling Guilty" by Patti Breitman.

[Brandon]

Some libraries are offering random book selections based on reading age or genre. If you are really struggling for this prompt, find one that offers picture books, and you will be done in less than 10 minutes!

Seriously, though, this is a cool offering. I've done it a few times this summer for my five-year-old daughter, and she has been interested in 80% or more of the books in the bag each time.

[Jessica]

I am doing this prompt now. I am reading “Before We Were Yours” by Lisa Wingate.

[Jennifer]

Jillian wrote: "I felt like it would be cheating on my own bookshelf since I have a pretty good sense of where everything is, and I was impatient and didn't want to go to a bookstore or library so I scrolled throu..."

brilliant idea. My own bookshelf only contains books I have already read and my library is closed.

[Virginia]

I picked How to Be a Girl in the World for this prompt.

[Sarah]

I've never thought of myself as a control freak but this prompt has really got me re-thinking that! It's my only prompt left and every time I pick something I find an excuse not to read that one.