20.1 - Most Improved Player - Bea's task: January and Janus

[Bea]

Jamie wrote: "Does this work for "door on cover"

Thanks

"

Yes, Jamie, that works for option 1. Approved.

[Terra]

I would like to use Doomsday Book by Connie Willis for this task. It is both historical fiction and time travel in which historians from 2054 return to the 14th Century. It's hard to say exactly, but I'd estimate it at about a 60-40 split between the 14th and 21st Centuries. Any chance it will work?

[Bea]

Terra, I will approve this book for Option 2: Historical Fiction if at least 60% (approx 355 pages) of it is set in the 14th century.

It does not qualify for the Science Fiction side as 2054 is part of the 21st century and the task says it needs to be further in the future. So if more than 40% of the book is in the future, it will not work for this task.

[Terra]

Thanks Bea. I already returned the ebook to the library without counting pages, so I'm going to look around and see if I can use it for another task.

[Lagullande]

May How To Be Both by Ali Smith be used for Option 2? Historical Fiction is a main page genre - very slightly over 50% is set in the 1460s (186 pages out of 371).

[Elizabeth]

Hi! I'm wondering if this book works for option two for the science fiction option:

Day 21
It doesn't have a specific year, but centuries are supposed to have passed since this group was back on Earth, so I'm thinking it has to be past 2100.

Thank you!

[Bea]

@Laguilande - Thanks for the info on the page count. Yes, I will approve How to be both for option 2: Historical Fiction.

@Elizabeth - I agree that centuries passing certainly means this book is far into the future, especially giving that so far no one is living in space in this century (except the space station). Day 21 approved for option 2: Science Fiction.

[Lagullande]

Bea wrote: "@Laguilande - Thanks for the info on the page count. Yes, I will approve How to be both for option 2: Historical Fiction."

Thanks, Bea.

[Anne (Booklady)]

I think this will work for Opt 1 and 2

- train door & historical fiction

[Bea]

Anne (Booklady) wrote: "I think this will work for Opt 1 and 2

- train door & historical fiction"

Yes, it will work for either option.

[Anne (Booklady)]

Thx Bea

[Nicole]

May I please get these approved for option 3?

(not sure which I want yet- thanks!)

Tell the Wolves I'm Home
The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake
The Interestings
Whistling Past the Graveyard

I am sorry for the many requests.

[Bea]

Nicole wrote: "May I please get these approved for option 3?

(not sure which I want yet- thanks!)

Tell the Wolves I'm Home
The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake
The Interestings
Whistling Past the Graveyard"

Tell the Wolves I'm Home - 208 users
The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake - 64 users
The Interestings - 17 users
Whistling Past the Graveyard - 47 users

All approved for Coming of Age as a genre (option 3).

[Nicole]

Thanks so much Bea!

[Sandy, Moderator Emeritus]

Please verify main page genre of Young Adult>Coming of Age (currently 14 users) for Silver Sparrow. Thanks!

[Bea]

Sandy wrote: "Please verify main page genre of Young Adult>Coming of Age (currently 14 users) for Silver Sparrow. Thanks!"

Noted; approved for option 3.

[Melissa]

Would Working Stiff: Two Years, 262 Bodies, and the Making of a Medical Examiner by Judy Melinek, M.D. work for option 5? She is a medical examiner in NYC.

Thanks!

[Bea]

Melissa (SweetMelissa) wrote: "Would Working Stiff: Two Years, 262 Bodies, and the Making of a Medical Examiner by Judy Melinek, M.D. work for option 5? She is a medical examiner in NYC.

Thanks!"

Melissa, I am going to approve this book. I did not specify fiction, and it meets the criteria of being about a physician's practice. Approved.

[Michael]

For Option 2 Science Fiction: Solitary

Would you accept this book for this task since the book and author have both not stated a time for this book? And the setting is in future London where they take teenagers and put them in underground prison to do genetic experiments on them

[Bea]

Michael wrote: "For Option 2 Science Fiction: Solitary

Would you accept this book for this task since the book and author have both not stated a time for this book? And the setting is in future London..."

Michael, the mod Dlmrose asked me to rule on this when she was considering your post. Here is my response: "Dlmrose, I think I would reject this book.

It is hard to decide as the time is not stated, but, based on Wikipedia information about Warden's and Alfred's ages...

Warden is over 100 years old and was adopted during WWII (early 1940s). Even if he was born then, it would make the time about 2040 or so - short of 2100+.

Alfred Furnace, the founder, is over 300 years old having been born in the 1700s (18th century). So that puts him in the 2000s for current time, not the 2100s.

Also, the fact that the prison is 1 mile underground is not implausible in today's world."

Nor, I might add, is the fact of genetic experimentation.

[Michael]

Okay thanks for the quick response. What about Scarlet or Inside Out for Opton 2: Science Fiction

[Bea]

Michael wrote: "Okay thanks for the quick response. What about Scarlet or Inside Out"

In investigating Scarlet, I took a look at the author's page. Although she admits that androids and cyborgs are being developed by scientists, the reality of these in normal ordinary life is not yet here. The GR description also notes that one character is the lunar princess. The author's website describes a lunar settlement that has been granted Republic status. This certainly is far in the future. Scarlet is approved for Option 2: Science Fiction.

Re: Inside Out, it seems to be set in post-apocalyptic world. Certainly the world is vastly different from present times. Could it exist in the next 85 years? Possible. But first, the apocalypse would need to happen and then the Inside World would need to be developed with people who had no memory of the previous world. I am thinking that this could happen in 85 years, if the apocalypse happened soon. Given the uncertainty, I am at this going to reject Inside Out.

[Michael]

Thanks Bea for looking into the 2 books and for the quick response.

[Melissa]

For option 5, would a book like The Man Who Touched His Own Heart: True Tales of Science, Surgery, and Mystery work? It's a history of the development of cardiac medicine/treatment - there are a lot of doctors, surgeons, and researchers, just not one single focus.

[Val]

Want to verify that Coriolanus has 'Historical Fiction' as a main page genre...?

[Bea]

Valerie wrote: "Want to verify that Coriolanus has 'Historical Fiction' as a main page genre...?"

Historical Fiction - 23 users. Good to go.

[Bea]

Melissa wrote: "For option 5, would a book like The Man Who Touched His Own Heart: True Tales of Science, Surgery, and Mystery work? It's a history of the development of cardiac medicine/treatment..."

GR description indicates that the focus of this book is the heart, not the MD or his practice. Therefore, it does NOT meet the expectations of this task.

The Man Who Touched His Own Heart: True Tales of Science, Surgery, and Mystery - not approved.

[Pat]

Peakles

Trying to determine whether Everything Is Illuminated by Jonathan Safran Foer would qualify as
2. Main page Hx Fic < 21st cent

Jonathan Safran Zoer's character travels to Ukraine to learn about his ancestors. The book is broken into two time frames - the narration of the trip and the history of the ancestors.
The historical portion of the book told of events prior to World War II. It could be argued that the present day portion of the book took place prior to 2000, since the author was born in 1977 and he presumably makes this journey after his junior year in college.

If not approved for time frame, I can easily find another place to use this book in the Challenge. Thanks!

[Bea]

Pat wrote: "Peakles

Trying to determine whether Everything Is Illuminated by Jonathan Safran Foer would qualify as
2. Main page Hx Fic "

Yes, I will accept it. Wikipedia indicates that this book is autobiographical and that the author made that trip in 1999. Approved.

[dobbs]

Would this work for a doorway for option 1?


Thanks!

[Bea]

Dobbs wrote: "Would this work for a doorway for option 1?


Thanks!"

Hmmm. I do not think of this type of door as a doorway into a passage. But the task calls for a doorway, gate or door, and this is certainly a door...a door into a wardrobe. Approved for option 1.

[Vicki Willis]

I would like to approve
Third Degree for Option 5.

The main character is a doctor. The book has two storylines going, one about him kidnapping his wife because of a possible affair the other is a fraud unit investigating his medical practice, which set into action him kidnapping and murdering his medical partner. It continues with an investigation of his practice and his employees which results in his unraveling with his personal life.

[Bea]

Vicki wrote: "I would like to approve
Third Degree for Option 5.

The main character is a doctor. The book has two storylines going, one about him kidnapping his wife because of a possible affair ..."

Vicki, I do not feel that this story focuses on his medical practice as much as the criminal side. Rather the medical practice is only a piece of the story. That is not the intent of this task. Not approved for option 5. Sorry.

[Nicole]

This is a very last minute question so I might just go with what I know will work. But I was wondering if The Art Forger would qualify. Historical Fiction is definitely a main page genre, but it is not 100% set in the past. I would say maybe 30% of the events take place in Degas' life time although his work is vital to the entire story line. Thoughts? No big deal as I can slot it in 5.10. Just had an irrational desire to end with as many points as I could. :)