2015 Reading Challenge [Closed] discussion
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There is No Light in Darkness by Claire Contreras
Big Little Lies by Liane Moriarty
First Love, Last Rites by Ian McEwan
Hot Ice by Nora Roberts
Cold Fire by Dean Koontz
Angels & Demons by Dan Brown
My Life in Black and White by Natasha Friend
Where the Truth Lies by Jessica Warman
The Death and Life of Charlie St. Cloud by Ben Sherwood
Living Dead Girl by Elizabeth Scott
Brightest Kind of Darkness by P. T. Michelle
The Distance Between Lost and Found by Kathryn Holmes
Night and Day by Virginia Woolf
Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil: A Savannah Story by John Berendt
Same Difference by Derek Kirk Kim
These would count too, but they're in the middle of a series...
FrostFire (#2 in the Ruan series) by Zoe Marriott -- I read the first and really liked it. This seems to be a story set in the same world but not necessarily tied to the same characters?
Frozen Heat (#4 in the Nikki Heat series) by Richard Castle
Living Dead in Dallas (#2 in the Sookie Stackhouse series) by Charlaine Harris
Cold Fire (#3 in The Circle Opens series) by Tamora Pierce
EDIT: The Wrong Side of Right is being released in March (should be close to 2 months before the antonym task).
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http://www.ala.org/bbooks/frequentlyc...
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And Dean Koontz and John Saul have some psychologically creepy stuff.
I think a good rule of thumb on all of these is that this is supposed to be fun, so if you need to bend the rules a bit, what's the harm.
As far as scary books go, the books that scare me the most are not horror or thriller. Those types of books, as creepy as they can be are meant for entertainment. The scariest books are the ones that reveal humans at their worst; how we treat each other or our apparent disregard for environmental issues are two topics that scare the crap out of me.Two books I've read that fall into this category are:
"A Long Way Gone" - Ishmael Beah
"The World Without Us" - Alan Weisman
I have a question for week 46, A book written by an author with your same initials. My initials are R. L. R being my name (Richard) and L my surname (Lee). I was wondering if R. L. Stines is okay? Also, can I use wattpad books?
I am not sure of the best way to search for an author with my initials. Any suggestions? TT
I went through two goodreads lists of books published in 94 and there wasn't a single one that got my attention. Instead I'm going through the bibliography of some authors I enjoy that wrote during the nineties and see if any of them published something on 1994!
Bruce wrote: "I think a good rule of thumb on all of these is that this is supposed to be fun, so if you need to bend the rules a bit, what's the harm."Yes! You nailed it, Bruce!!
Thank you!! This topic gives me a lot of good options for the difficult choice categories :) Thank you!
Tanya wrote: "I am not sure of the best way to search for an author with my initials. Any suggestions? TT"I Googled for authors whose last names started with my last initial and checked a list on BookBrowse until I found one with the same first initial
Adriana wrote: "I went through two goodreads lists of books published in 94 and there wasn't a single one that got my attention. Instead I'm going through the bibliography of some authors I enjoy that wrote during..."I was born in 94, too, so I'm reading "Insomnia" by Stephen King.
Margarita - From 94 I got, so far, The Informers by Bret Easton Ellis, Insomnia by Stephen King and Mr. Vertigo by Paul Auster. I'm still not sure which one to pick! I'll probably decide later on.
Tanya wrote: "Erika--thanks for the suggestion!"Welcome!
Book in hometown: Vernor Vinge's Rainbows End --> San Diego.
Tanya wrote: "I am not sure of the best way to search for an author with my initials. Any suggestions? TT"I went to the listopia page and chose a list and skimmed for an author with my same initials. It didn't take too long. I found a couple of authors really quickly, but their genres were not my cup of tea so I kept scrolling and found one that actually sounds really good.
Ashlee-dawn wrote: I went to the listopia page and chose a list and skimmed for an author with my same initi..."
Another helpful suggestion. Thanks!
Michelle wrote: "Books with Antonym (and Antonyms-ish) TitlesBig Little Lies by Liane Moriarty
First Love, Last Rites by Ian McEwan
Hot Ice by Nora Roberts
[book:Cold Fir..."
The "Richard Castle" books could count for Books based on or turned into a TV Show too
War and Peace ;)Also...anime is not the same as a graphic novel. I hate to be "that person" but I had to point it out. Anime is just short for animation, i.e cartoons. Manga (Which I will point out the "ma' is pronounced like the 'ma' in " mama" ) is, as you mentioned, the graphic novel
;)
There are a LOT of misconceptions about graphic novels. It's sad, really.
Graphic Novels... I have to my to-read list but not sure which I will do for this challenge (none of which are manga or superheroes): The Complete Persepolis
Tomboy: A Graphic Memoir
Calling Dr. Laura: A Graphic Memoir
The Wrenchies
My friend Ramsey just put out a great graphic memoir last year that I loved:
Little Fish: A Memoir from a Different Kind of Year
Nicole wrote: "Graphic Novels... I have to my to-read list but not sure which I will do for this challenge (none of which are manga or superheroes): The Complete Persepolis
[book:Tomboy: A Graphic ..."
Thank you Nicole!
Great group Jessica and other mods.Can I suggest Maus for a graphic novel?
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Complete-MAUS...
It's interesting about the "book that scares you" category. My first thought was not horror, or sci fi, or psychological. Instead I thought of books that I've always felt I "ought" to read but either started and couldn't finish or just felt like they didn't interest me -- such as "War and Peace" or "Moby Dick" or "The Brothers Karamazov". When I was in the Peace Corps the PC office in the capital had a lending library type room where everyone dropped off the books they'd brought to the country, and took some more. For the longest time "The Brothers Karamazov" was making the rounds and everyone was raving about how great it was. I finally go a hold of it and tried to get into that book. I concluded that most of those other people were making it up about how much they liked it. rofl.
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I'm still making up my list (which I reserve the right to change! lol) and the one I'm having trouble with is #20 a book at the bottom of your reading list. I don't have one of those. I mean, I have so many books I'd like to read that I don't really have one that I'd like to read "less", if that makes sense. Unless it could mean a book that I just have no desire to read. I'm not sure I actually have any of those either. I'm sure there are books out there that I wouldn't like but obviously I don't know every book in my library, so I can't actually think of one that I know the title of and can think "oh, I don't want to read that one." I guess I'll have to think about this a bit more. lol
A great antonym choice is Little, Big by John Crowley
Actually Elizabeth you've solved my problem! lol. I had "Watership Down" for "book your mother loved" (or whatever that category is). My mom has been trying to get me to read that book for years and years, and I never have. I've taken other recommendations from her, many times, but somehow "Watership Down" just didn't interest me. So that's it, #20 solved. Thanks! Now, I need another one for the "book your mother loved..." category. I'll call her tomorrow and ask. :)
Michelle wrote: "Great group Jessica and other mods.Can I suggest Maus for a graphic novel?
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Complete-MAUS..."
Thank you! Great book, by the way.
I took the "bottom of your to-read list" literally and decided to read a book that was at the end of a "100 books I'd like to read list" I did last year :D
I have a question about the weeks. Are we changing week/topic on sundays or on thursdays (since the 1 of january was thursday) ?
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I had a difficult time finding books with bad reviews which surprised me. I went through the lists checking for ratings. One list I went through had 871 books but I was still unsatisfied. A Google search only came up with lengthy classics...Any suggestions?
Jacquelyne wrote: "I had a difficult time finding books with bad reviews which surprised me. I went through the lists checking for ratings. One list I went through had 871 books but I was still unsatisfied. A Google ..."I went through the lists too and there were very few books who had ratings below 2 stars. For that week, I'm not going to pick a book with low ratings but a book with a lot of bad reviews. There are always those that when you scroll down the first three reviews or so are only 1 star and have tons of likes, even if the average rating is of 3 stars.
Adriana, thank you ! That is a great idea. I guess I was being too literal. I think I will check the profile of person who has reviewed a vast number of books -- > Suz.(Happy New Year!)
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https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/2...
For the bad reviews week, I want a book which is pretty much like an horror movie. I want stereotyped characters, predictable development and hilarious monster (not like in "funny" but more like cheesy). So I'll do a one chapter at the time and I'll try to predict what will happen next (I like doing that with horror movies :p). I'm not sure I'll succeed to find my book :D
Zaz, that link is perfect! I wish that I had thought of it myself yesterday
Jacquelyne wrote: "Adriana, thank you ! That is a great idea. I guess I was being too literal. I think I will check the profile of person who has reviewed a vast number of books -- > Suz.(Happy New Year!)"
No matter how much you dislike a book there will always be people who are going to like it!
Zaz, I like what you're going for! I'm sure you'll find it :P For that week, I think I'll choose a book which most people consider badly written.
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With bad books you can have good ratings from people who enjoyed the very well done bad story for example. Choice is not easy.
I found 2 awesome horror books, look at the summaries (and the titles):
The Woods Are Dark
"In the woods are six dead trees. The killing trees. That's where they take them. People like Neala and her friend Sherri, and the Dills family. Innocent travellers on vacation, seized and bound, stripped of their valuables and shackled to the trees to wait. In the woods. In the dark."
Slugs
"They slime, they ooze, they kill..... a novel of mid shattering horror, and a new breed of slime ridden, oozing slugs lurking in the waist-high grass, developing a taste for new things..... for blood, for flesh.. human flesh! "
The 2 are around 200 pages. Slugs is a little old so I'm not sure there is an ebook, The Woods has one.
Zaz - Thanks! I will definitely take The Woods Are Dark. It reminds me of an episode of Supernatural where strangers were bound to trees and offered up to a pagan god in return for good fortune!
Another option for a book with bad reviews would be to download one of the free self-published ones from Pixel of Ink or BookBub. I find some good ones there, and there are also some really bad ones. I do it through Amazon so I can read the reviews there.
For the "bad reviews" book, I googled "good book with bad reviews" because I didn't actually want to read a "bad" book.
I might do Fifty Shades of grey for book with bad reviews. It is popular but has some real humdingers of bad reviews, I was toying with the idea of doing it for the trilogy but I honestly don't think I can bear that!
Michelle >i was thinking the same! yesterday i was looking for a bad reviewed book in listopia and it was the only i thought i could stand.And finally found a book with antonyms in the title that I already have (so no need to buy it!! So happy!!) Never Have I Ever by Sara Shepard!
2015 Reading Challenge [Closed]
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4. Book published this year
”OMG! 2015 just started!” Yes it did! Because this topic is so early in the challenge (Jan 22-28), we are going to accept anything published from January 2014 to January 2015. Goodreads has a list of books published this year, so check that out!
7. A book with nonhuman characters
This does not have to be a book with only animals or animals at all! Some suggestions have included cyborgs, aliens, werewolves, etc. As long as you can justify your choice, you are good to go!
Sci-Fi Books with Nonhuman Characters
10 Books with Animals
21. A book your mom loves (no folder yet)
If this topic does not apply to you for various reasons, use someone else! It's that simple. Choose a book that your dad, uncle, teacher, daughter, neighbor, dog, fish, etc. etc. loves!
22. A book that scares you (no folder yet)
"Books don't scare me!" "I don't where to start!" "What does this mean? I'm so confused I can't breathe omg asdhkl;j" Okay. Stop and breathe, your trusty mod is here to help. For a book to scare you, it does not have to be in the horror genre. I suggest trying psychological thrillers or mysteries with a plot that is personal to you. Also, who says you have to be scared at all? Read one of these notorious horrors and let us know your reactions.
50 Scariest Books of All Time
9 Books Scarier Than Horror Movies
24. A book based on its cover (no folder yet)
This one is fairly simple. Go to a library or bookstore (or just browse Kindle books or iBooks online) and find you a fun looking book! If you want, feel free to stick to a certain genre. For example, I’ll visit the science fiction section (my favorite) of my local bookstore and go from there.
32 Books to Judge by Their Cover
50 Beautiful Book Covers
25. A book you were supposed to read in school but didn’t (no folder yet)
You read every book in school you were assigned? (Be honest.) If that’s the case, feel free to browse a list of some commonly assigned literature.
Required Reading for High School
10 Books You Were Forced to Read in High School
10 Required Readings That Will Change Your Life
If you find that a story is very short and you finish earlier than expected, use the extra time to read another book or enjoy your break!
28. A book with an antonym in the title (no folder yet)
”But oh amazing Jessica… what is an antonym?” Well, oh awesome group member, an antonym is ”a word opposite in meaning to another” (thanks Webster). This could be good and bad or up and down. Need some examples? Here ya go!
Endings and Beginings by Nora Roberts
Cold Tea on a Hot Day by Curtiss Ann Matlock
Good Girl Gone Bad by Karin Tabke
The Man She Loves to Hate by Kelly Hunter
The Right Kind of Wrong by Felicity Heaton
30. A book published the year you were born (no folder yet)
We have so many members in this wonderful group and our birth years span many decades. Here are a few ways to search for books by their publication date.
Wikipedia’s Books by Year (1832-2015)
Amazon’s Advanced Book Search
42. A graphic novel (no folder yet)
”Jessica, I hate anime! What do I do?” Well, who says graphic novels have to be manga or anime? Check these out.
Award Winning Graphic Novels
Best Graphic Novels on Goodreads
Amazon Bestseller Graphic Novels
44. A book you own but haven’t read (no folder yet)
”But I’ve read everything I own!” Oh come on… this is an easy one! This is your excuse to go by a new book. Have fun!
45. A book set in your hometown (no folder yet)
”I live in the middle of nowhere! HELP!!” Sure thing wonderful group member! Here you go:
Book Set In…
Novels on Location
LitMap
46. A book originally written in another language (no folder yet)
If English is your second language then this week should be fairly easy for you! Just find an English book translated into your native language. For everyone else? Well.. let’s get to searching.Books Not Originally Not in English
There has been a LOT of confusion about this week. I think I'll leave this up to the reader. The intention is to read a book that is written in a language THAT THE AUTHOR DID NOT WRITE IT IN. (For example, I will be reading Cornelia Funke's Thief Lord. It is in English, but she originally wrote it in German.)
50. A banned book (no folder yet)
”What are banned books??” “Banned Books Week is an annual event celebrating the freedom to read.” (Banned Books Week) Sometimes people complain about certain material in books and they aren’t allowed to be read in schools! How crazy.
Frequently Challenged Books
Google’s Banned Books
52. A book you started but never finished (no folder yet)
”Ha! I’ve finished every book I have started!” Well, I doubt that, but if that’s the case, then good job! But please remember this is the very last week of the challenge, so who knows what could happen between now and then. If you still do not have a book to fit this topic, then just use this as your freebie week.
Can I complete the challenge out of order? I’m busy/bored/blah.
Of course you can! However, having said that, I will only publish folders a few weeks at a time (at this current time only weeks 1-10 are published). I would encourage everyone to follow the order just for the sake of participation and discussion, but do what you need to do! We just want to get everyone reading some awesome books!!