ladymurmur's winter reading challenge

[ladymurmur]

Just what I needed to brighten the dreary wintry days!

PROGRESS -
December = 4/4
January = 4/4
February = 4/4

[ladymurmur]

DECEMBER 4 of 4 complete

1. Winter
Brrrr. Time to break out the hats, scarves and gloves as the coldest time of the year approaches (in the northern hemisphere at least). On the other hand, cold weather is the perfect excuse to curl up under a blanket with your latest book. And, however cold you are, at least you can be glad your home town is warmer then Antarctica, where the lowest temperature on Earth was recorded: an icy −89.2°C (−128.6 °F).

2. Read a book with snow, snowflakes or a snowman on the cover OR a book with a person wearing winter clothing (scarf, hat, warm coat etc) on the cover.
- DONE!

2. December birthdays: Ann Patchett
The American novelist Ann Patchett was born on 2 December 1963. She has published eight novels, including Bel Canto, winner of the 2002 PEN/Faulkner Award and the Women’s Prize for Fiction. Her debut novel, The Patron Saint of Liars, was published in 1992 and her latest book, The Dutch House, was one of the most anticipated books of 2019.

2. Read a book by Ann Patchett or another author named Ann or a close variation (eg Anne, Anna, Annie etc)
Murder at Catmmando Mountain by Anna Celeste Burke - DONE!

3. Christmas
It’s the most wonderful time of the year... Time for decorating the Christmas tree, singing carols, wearing a novelty Christmas jumper, and hopefully waking up on Christmas morning to find the new release you’ve been excited to read waiting under the Christmas tree for you to unwrap. Merry Christmas!

3. Read a book on one of the following Christmas reading lists:
🎁 Oprah magazine: 35 best Christmas books of all time
🎁 Bustle: 9 classic Christmas books for adults
🎁 Stylist: 50 best Christmas books
The Adventure of the Christmas Pudding by Agatha Christie - DONE!

4. Winter sports: yukigassen
Imagine if someone turned snowball fighting into an official sport with rules, a referee, a court and a snowball making machine. That’s yukigassen! Created in Japan in 1988, there are now competitions all over the world. Teams of seven players battle to capture each other’s flag, while trying to avoid being hit by a snowball and eliminated from the game. Preparation for a match involves making 270 snowballs, no wonder they invented a snowball making machine!

1. Read a book by an author whose first and last initials appear in YUKIGASSEN.
-Alexia Gordon - DONE!

[ladymurmur]

JANUARY 4 of 4 complete!

1. Happy New Year! - DONE!

Happy 2020! Here’s to a great year of reading. Around the world people will be welcoming the new year while watching fireworks displays, drinking champagne and singing Auld Lang Syne.
3. Read a book in which all the words in the title have the same number of letters (eg The Bat, Ninth House, The Old Man and the Sea).
Lucifer's Daughter-Kel Carpenter

2. January birthdays: A.A. Milne DONE!

A.A. Milne was born in London in 18 January 1882. He is most famous for his Winnie the Pooh books which are among the most popular children’s books ever published and have been translated into numerous languages, including Latin!

1. Read a book by an author who is usually known by their initials (eg J.K. Rowling, J.D. Salinger, L.M. Montgomery)
Vampire Detective Midnight-JC Andrijeski

3. New Year Resolutions - DONE!

Millions of people see January 1st as an opportunity to set goals for the year ahead and the practice of making new year resolutions has a long history. In Babylonia new year was a time to promise the repayment of debts and return of borrowed items. And Romans are believed to have made sacrifices and promises to the god Janus, who is depicted as having two faces - one looking to the past and one to the future. Given that history, whether you keep or break your own resolutions this year, you’re probably in good company!

2. Read a book that looks into the past (historical fiction, history, etc) or a book that looks into the future (science fiction, fantasy, etc).
Junkyard Cats-Faith Hunter-Future

4. Winter sports: bobsleigh - DONE!

Bobsleighing originated in the Swiss town of St Moritz in the 19th century. Holidaymakers looking for entertainment in the cold winters hit on a plan to adapt delivery sleds into racing sleds and compete in races down the steep roads of the town. While undoubtedly entertaining for holidaymakers, the high speed sled races became immensely unpopular with residents of the town who, not unreasonably, objected to being mown down on their own streets by out of control sleds. In order to restore calm, a local hotel owner constructed an ice half-pipe track outside the town where the sled races could continue, and the sport of bobsleighing was born.

1. Read a book set mostly in a location that begins with a letter in SWITZERLAND.
Midnight Riot-Ben Aaronovitch - London

[ladymurmur]

FEBRUARY 4 of 4 complete!

1. Valentine’s Day - DONE!

February 14th is celebrated around the world as Valentine’s Day. It was originally a feast day honouring an early Christian saint and only became associated with love and romance in the 14th century. Fun fact: Cadbury first began producing heart-shaped boxes of chocolates for Valentine’s Day in 1868. Buying overpriced novelty chocolates as a token of love has a long history!

1. Read a book with Romance listed as one of the top five genres on its Goodreads page.
An Assembly Such as This - Pamela Aidan

2. February birthdays: Toni Morrison - DONE!

Toni Morrison was born on 18 February 1931. After becoming the first Black female editor at Random House (a position she used to champion the writings of Black authors), she began writing novels and became one of the most admired writers of her time. Her debut novel, The Bluest Eye, was published in 1970 and in total she published eleven novels as well as several children’s books, plays and short fiction. In 1993 she was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature.

1. Read a book with a colour in the title OR a book with a cover that is mostly blue.
Deep Pink-Sarah A. Hoyt

3. Winter sports: Ski jumping - DONE!

Ski jumping has featured in every Winter Olympics since 1924. Athletes ski down a specially designed ramp and compete against each other to see who can make the longest jump. The current world record is over 253 metres. It was set by Austrian ski jumper, Stefan Kraft, who perhaps predictably is known by the nickname Air Kraft.

1. Read a book that is at least 253 pages long.
Vampire Detective Midnight-J.C. Andrijeski - 388pgs

4. Leap year - DONE!

People born on 29th February technically only have a birthday every fourth year. This unusual situation is at the heart of Gilbert and Sullivan’s opera, The Pirates of Penzance. Frederic, the lead character, believes he is freed from his apprenticeship to a gang of pirates when he is 21 years old, only to find that actually his apprenticeship lasts until his 21st birthday and as he was born in a leap year that won’t be until he’s 88 years old! Fortunately most people today who are born on 29th February simply celebrate their birthday a day early.

3. Read a book with a word from Gilbert and Sullivan’s Modern Major-General Song in the title or subtitle. (Words must be at least four letters long to count).
Caffeine: How Caffeine Created the Modern World-Michael Pollan