Reading with Style discussion
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WI 20-21 Completed Tasks
15.3 Name of the GameChristmas Days: 12 Stories and 12 Feasts for 12 Days by Jeanette Winterson
Square 8B--Letter W--Auth 1st/last starts with "W" (Winterson)
Square 3C--Letter A--Auth born in Aug (27 Aug 1959)
Square 6D--Letter N--Title has a Number (12)
Square 16B--Letter E--Auth born in Europe (Manchester, England)
Word = WANE
+15 Task
+5 Non Fiction
Task total: 20
Season total: 60
20.4 ScienceThe Medusa and the Snail: More Notes of a Biology Watcher by Lewis Thomas
An interesting book that uses science as a springboard to discuss more philosophical topics. Written in the mid 1970s, this book still provides insights on some scientific topics that may not be general knowledge. Thomas then branches into a discussion of several tangentially related subjects including linguistics, the scientific method, and history. While this sometimes seems like an arbitrary mash up of ideas, it generally works quite well. Worth a read - well written with some unusual insights
20 pts 20.4 Science
5 pts Award Winning
10 pts Review
Task total: 35 pts
Season total: 120 pts
10.1 ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ...
... 20.2 ... 20.4 ... ... ... ... ... ...
15.1... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 1- Four Letter Word (NoG)
15.4 Name of the GameThe Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan
Square 7C--Letter G--Goodreads Author
Square 14C--Letter Y--One of author's names ends in "Y" (Amy)
Square 1B--Letter R--+10K Ratings (602,141)
Square 16C--Letter E--Pub'd in the '80s (1989)
Word = GYRE
+15 Task
+5 Pre-'96 pub (1989)
Task total: 20
Season total: 80
15.5 Name of the GameLight Changes Everything by Nancy E. Turner
Square 11B--Letter H--MPG: Hist Fic
Square 2B--Letter E--Auth pub'd name +2 "E"s
Square 1C--Letter R--MPG: Romance
Word = HER
+20 Task
Task total: 20
Season total: 100
15.6 Name of the GameThe Christmas Pearl by Dorothea Benton Frank
Square 11E--Letter H--Highly Rated (by Lisa)
Square 8D--Letter O--Wild Card!
Square 7B--Letter G--No "G" in auth name
Word = HOG
+20 Task
Task total: 20
Season total: 120
10.4 CherubsThe Story of a Goat by Perumal Murugan
A book originally published in Tamil, this is actually a novel told from the point of view of a small black goat and her owners. The goat is a gift from a mysterious stranger and becomes the center of an elderly couple’s life. Using this device Murugan describes the life and challenges of a small rural Indian village and the effect of any disruption on the ability to make a living. While it seems odd, this book is also partly a love story betwwen two goats and a story of loss and emotional challenges. It is a charming story and well written.
10 pts 10.4 Cherubs
10 Translation
10 pts Review
Task total: 30 pts
Season total: 150 pts
10.1 ... ... 10.4 ... ... ... ... ... ...
... 20.2 ... 20.4 ... ... ... ... ... ...
15.1... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 1- Four Letter Word (NoG)
15.7 Name of the GameLittle House in the Big Woods by Laura Ingalls Wilder (930 Lexile)
Square 4E--Letter D--Double Trouble (ingaLLs)
Square 5C--Letter I--Title word In, Inn, Into (In)
Square 4B--Letter D--Debut Novel
Word = DID
+20 Task
+5 Pre-'96 Pub'd (1932)
Task total: 25
Season total: 145
15.8 Name of the GameThe Weight of Blood by Laura McHugh
Square 10B--Letter T--Pub'd in Teens (2014)
Square 5D--Letter I--Author name has no "I"
Square 16E--Letter E--Novel +8 named characters
Word = TIE
+30 Task
Task total: 30
Season total: 175
15.9 Name of the GameThe Likely Resolutions of Oliver Clock by Jane Riley
Square 13E--Letter T--Title includes character name (Oliver Clock)
Square 11D--Letter H--Hot off the presses (2020)
Square 3B--Letter A--Set in "A" country (Australia)
Square 6E--Letter N--New to you author
Word = THAN
+30 Task
Task total: 30
Season total: 205
15.10 Name of the GameShadowfever by Karen Marie Moning
Square 8E--Letter W--Winner Goodreads Choice (Paranormal/Fantasy, 2011)
Square 9E--Letter I--Set in Ireland
Square 15C--Letter L--+400 page count (608 pages)
Square 10E--Letter T--Title has no "The"
Square 12C--Letter S--Series #4-7 (#5)
Word = WILTS
+45 Task
+100 NotG Completion
+100 Bonus, created five 4+ letter words
Task total: 245
Season total: 445
10.1 Square PegTroubled Blood by Robert Galbraith
I'm already ready for the next installment of this series!!
Galbraith (Rowling) is sooo good at creating relatable, well-rounded, fallible characters--and not just the main characters. Every person you encounter in these books is astoundingly whole--the only other time I've encountered this in a mystery series is Louise Penny's Inspector Gamache collection--and that wholeness extends to the plot as well. It's never just a simple plot-driven whodunit, but a story filled with personal lives and complications and people who have nothing to do with "the case" weaving in and out of the tale. While it clocked in at 944 pages (or 31 hours and 52 minutes if you're listening, as I did--the reader is FANTASTIC), I was still saddened that it was "over already?!" It could have gone on for several more hours and I would have been pleased as punch.
+10 Task
+10 Review
+20 Jumbo (944 pgs)
Task total: 40
Season total: 485
10.4 Valentine'sHHhH by Laurent Binet
When you look at this (granted, it's small and not terribly detailed), you immediately recognize it: it's the Mona Lisa, of course. But if you could see it more closely, you'd realize it's a Mona Lisa composed of Lego rather than paint. A Mona Lisa that could be taken apart, brick by brick, until it was a pile of plastic rather than a recreation of a masterpiece.
This book reminded me of the person I imagine putting the Lego Mona Lisa together: examining each brick and analyzing how it will fit into the bigger picture, placing each one with care and sometimes deciding that two have been transposed and needing to switch it up, all the while having a conversation with anyone who happens to enter the room.
While the author is ostensibly telling us about Operation Anthropoid (the Lego Mona Lisa he is attempting to create) each chapter is a close look at each individual Lego: the stories that create the final story, the stories of men and women who sacrificed everything to see the fall of an evil empire, the acts of bravery that ended as we--and they--knew they must: with their deaths, the politicking occurring in the Reich, the simple and the grand, the secret and the flamboyant, the journey of the author from the present into the past and the constant reminder that the present reflects on and distorts the past in very practical ways....every brick has its place and every brick must be present for the final picture to come clear.
It was a strange ride of a book, which I enjoyed immensely.
+10 Task
+10 Review
+10 Lost in Translation
+5 Prize-Worthy, Prix Goncourt du primier roman 2010
+10 Combo: 10.5 (approved in task thread), 10.6 (2012)
Task total: 45
Season total: 530
10.4 ValentinesShadow Reaper by Christine Feehan
Okay, the couple dynamic power issues in this one were much more of a push and pull than in the first of the series, but they were definitely there, in both the deeper "thriller" plot points and the main reason the protagonists met - he was looking for a rope model for Japanese rope bondage. And the weird extracted promise whne she was tured and how he happened to call it in when she was dramatically feeling better just that day, ugh. Mostly there was both more politics of their hidden world going on and more steamy scenes. Still fun in the action movie sort of way with lots of darkness and violence that plays out with a James Bond movie sort of feel. Yet so much angst in all the backstories, when I pause the action to reflect, that is apparently somehow made all better by this dramatic romantic relationship.
+10 task
+10 review
Task total: 20
Grand total: 425
15.8 Name of the GameHollow Empire (Poison War #2) by Sam Hawke
Square 11C - letter H - author's last name begins with H, Hawke
Square 5D - letter I - no "I" in author's name
Square 10E - letter T - no "the" in title
Word: HIT
+30 Task
Post Total: 30
Season Total: 455
15.9 Name of the GameYou Don't Know Me by Imran Mahmood
Square 4B - letter D - Debut novel
Square 16B - letter E - author born in Liverpool, UK
Square 6E - letter N - new-to-me author
Square 14E - letter Y - "you" in title
Word: DENY
+30 Task
Post Total: 30
Season Total: 485
20.10 Grand Master The Little Drummer Girl by John le Carré
+20 Task
+5 Combo 10.3
+5 Prize-worthy (Japan Adventure Fiction Association Prize)
+5 Jumbo (672 pages)
Task total = 35
Season Total: 360
15.5Metamorphic: 21st century poets respond to Ovid ed by Nessa O'Mahony
Square 5D - no I in author name - I
Square 6D - title has a number - N
Square 13D - title had the word "to" - T
Word - TIN
+20 task
+5 not a novel
Task total: 25
Grand total: 450
Post 256 Anika wrote: "15.6 Name of the GameSquare 11E--Letter H--Highly Rated (by Lisa)
Square 8D--Letter O--Wild Card!
Square 7B--Letter G--No "G" in auth name
Word = HOG
+20 Task
Task total: 20
Season total: 120"
Oops! We need a title and author for this one!
15.1 Name of the GameCloser to Home by Mercedes Lackey
7C- Letter G -goodreads author
2B- letter E- author has 2+ Es in their name
16E-letter E-+8 named characters
Word-GEE
Task +15
Grand Total: 55
10.3 WinterElsewhere by Dean Koontz
Review
My first ever Koontz' and it did not disappoint!
But yes, I am familiar with this author's name but horror isn't a genre I read a lot of, tbh. However, this parallel world trope is something that I'm fascinated with so I really had no choice but to dive in.
The father-daughter relationship in this novel is truly the highlight for me. And that little bit of romance of looking for the missing wife/mother didn't hurt at all; it's so not at all a romantic novel but it's subtly there (or maybe I just chose to read it as such ;p). The parallel worlds are quite fascinating but I find that I wanted more... it just wasn't enough travels to other worlds and each travel so short that we barely got a glimpse of each.
At the end, I felt that this novel has a similar vibe to Stephen King's 11/22/63, which I loved, but just a shorter briefer sort of version with better ending ;) Maybe 'better' isn't the correct description but I don't want to spoil you for either books. I am now keen to explore more of Koontz works.
+10 Task
+5 Combo (10.4 - E for Elsewhere)
+10 Review
Post Total: 25
Season Total: 510
15.3 Name of the GameWatching from the Dark by Gytha Lodge
Square 7C - letter G - Goodreads author
Square 16B - letter E - author born in Europe (UK)
Square 10C - letter T - MPG thriller
Word = GET
+15 Task
Post Total: 15
Season Total: 45
20.8 TravelLonely Planet's Best in Travel 2020 by Lonely Planet
(Oh, the irony.) I noticed this book when I was shelving books at the library and thought it looked like a nice book to dream with. It is.
I gather that Lonely Planet publishes a book like this every year, but this was the first one I’ve seen. It’s like a travel look book. There are beautiful photographs and short informational segments on each country, city, region, or value trip that the Lonely Planet staff have compiled. They also include information to enable you to make more informed choices.
Because of the format I used this book as my ‘light read before sleeping’ book. It is perfect for that. I did come away with some new ideas for trips on my list (as if I needed that), and perhaps more importantly definite ideas about where I don’t want to go. This is a very nice book for armchair travelers, and a useful one for travelers who are considering expanding their list. 3.5* (My last book for 2020.)
20 task
10 review
_____
30
Running total: 355
15.4 Name of the Game The Thirst by Jo Nesbø
Square 10D - letter T - translated
Square 5D - letter I - no I in author's name
Square 6C - letter N - Nordic Noir
Square - 14B - letter Y - set in Norway
Word = TINY
Post Total = 15
Season Total: 60
15.5 Name of the Game Ghosts in the Schoolyard: Racism and School Closings on Chicago's South Side by Eve L. Ewing
Square 4E - letter D - consecutive letters (oo in schoolyard)
Square 5C - letter I - title word "in"
Square 6B - letter N - not a novel
Word = DIN
+20 task
+5 not a novel
Post Total = 25
Season Total: 85
15.6 Name of the GameFog of Doubt by Christianna Brand
Square 12C - Letter S - Series 4-7 (#5)
Square 16D - Letter E - Title has no E
Square 10E - Letter T - no The in Title
Word = SET
+20 Task
+ 5 Before 1996 (pub'd 1952)
Task total = 25
Season total = 315
15.3 Name of the GameOrange Crush by Tim Dorsey
Square 1E- "R"-series with "R"- series name is SeRge StoRms
Square 10C-"T"- Thriller
Square 14C-"Y"- name ends in "Y"-dorseY
word=TRY
Task=15
Task Total=20
Grand Total= 105
....; ....; ....; ....;....; ....; 10.7; ....; .....; ....;
15.1; 15.2, 15.3
....; ....; .....; .....; .....; .....; .....; 20.8; .....; .....;
15.9 Name of the GameSwami and Friends by R.K. Narayan
Square 12B - letter S - page count 75-199
Square 5B - letter I - author born in India
Square 10 D - letter T - translated
Square 2E - letter E - "end" contained in word "friends"
Word = SITE
+30 Task
+5 Published 1996 or before (1935)
Task total: 35
Season total: 215 (edited from 210 to 215 to jive with the Jan 2 Readerboard)
20.2 JazzMiss Pettigrew Lives for a Day by Winifred Watson
"Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day" is a humorous 1938 novel about second chances. Guinevere Pettigrew is a destitute governess in her 40s who was sent by her employment agency to interview for a job. The agency had mixed up their clients, and they sent her to Delysia LaFosse who was in need of a maid. When Miss Pettigrew arrives, Delysia is frantic because she has to get rid of one lover before another arrives. Miss Pettigrew, who usually is very straitlaced, tells one little lie after another, getting Delysia out of tough situations. By the end of the day, Miss Pettigrew learns how to have fun, and she acts as a good influence on Delysia.
Many British men were killed during World War I so there were extra women in that generation. The women ended up working as servants and governesses when they often would have loved to be married with a family. Miss Pettigrew was in that situation and did not enjoy her work.
The story is fun and frothy with the dialogue reminding me of a 1930s black and white romantic comedy film. Unfortunately, there were several anti-Semitic remarks in the dialogue. Overall, the book is pure escapism for when you want a dose of humor. Persephone re-released the book, and a film was made in 2008.
+20 task (set in 1930s)
+10 review
Task total: 30
Season total: 190
From Post 207Karen Michele wrote: "20.5 Africa
The River Between by Ngũgĩ wa Thiong'o
+20 Task
Task Total: 20
Season Total: 215"
+5 Combo 10.4
From Post 225Coralie wrote: "10.5 Author
A Breath of Life by Clarice Lispector
+10 Task
+5 combo (10.4)
+10 Lost in Translation
Task total = 25
Season Total: 275"
+5 Combo 20.3
15.6 Name of the GameHow to Be an Antiracist by Ibram X. Kendi
Square 2E- Letter E - “end” in author name k END I
Square 6B - Letter N - not a novel
Square 11E -Letter H - highly rated 5 star by Joanna
Word: HEN
+20 task
+5 NAN
Task total: 25
Season total: 175
15.10 Name of the GameThe Patience of the Spider (Commissario Montalbano #8) by Andrea Camilleri
Square 14B - letter Y - setting: Italy
Square 16E - letter E - 8+ named characters
Square 10D - letter T - translated
Word: YET
+45 Task
+100 Completion
+100 3x 4-letter words (SIRE, DENY, HALT)
Post Total: 245
Season Total: 755
10.3 WinterStamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You by Jason Reynolds 1000 Lexile
+10 Task
+ 5 Combo: 10.4 Valentine's
Task Total: 15
Season Total: 265
10.9 The Fifth Season (Ann's Task)Conjure Women by Afia Atakora
+10 Task
+ 5 Combo: 10.4 Valentine's
Task Total: 15
Season Total: 280
20.6 CaribbeanThe Long Song by Andrea Levy
+20 Task
+ 5 Combo: 10. 6 Notable
+ 5 Prizeworthy
Task Total: 30
Season Total: 310
20.8 Travel (Ed's Task)My Family and Other Animals by Gerald Durrell
+20 Task
Task Total: 20
Season Total: 330
15.1 Name of the GameKing Lear by William Shakespeare
Square 8B - letter W - Author first or last name begins with W (William)
Square 16E - letter E - Novel has Eight or more named characters
(Regan, Cordelia, Goneril, Leir of Britain, Fool, Duke of Cornwall, Duke of Albany, Earl of Kent, Earl of Gloucester, Edgar, Edmund)
Square 13E - letter T - Title includes the name of a character. (King Lear)
Word = WET
+15 Task
+ 5 Not fiction (Not a Novel)
+ 5 Pub'd 1996 and earlier
Post Total: 25
Season Total: 355
15.2 Name of the GameFlight or Fright: 17 Turbulent Tales by Stephen King
Square 10B - Letter T - published in 2018
Square 16D - Letter E - Title contains no "E"
Square 6B - Letter N - Not a Novel
Square 10E - Letter T - Title contains no "the"
Word - TENT
+15 Task
Bonus Not a Novel +5
Task Total: 20pts
Grand Total: 135pts
15.3 Name of the GameThe Haunting of Tram Car 015 by P. Djèlí Clark
G - B7 - author name without G
E - 8D - Wild card
N - 6D - Title contains a number
T - 10B - Published 2019
S - 12B - 130 pages
GENTS
Task total - 15
Season total = 180
20.1 Black History MonthA Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry
Review:
It's been 10 years since I last read this and had very little recollection of the story. This play should never be redone with colour blind casting but my god what a treat it would be to explore these relationships as an actor. Arguably, many roles that people decry are reserved for one group or another do not need to be performed as such, but in this case, this story should be performed only by those who have lived the "Black experience".
The relationships are made clear from the outset of the play and the family dynamics bring both a chuckle and a sigh. Every family is messed up in their own special way. As a reader, you are in that apartment with them from scene 1. My sole critique; the characters of Beneatha's beaus felt like contrived caricatures. It is clear that they are meant to show the large dichotomy between young people at the time but Asagai in particular reads too elevated for the other characters of the play.
Hansberry was the first black female playwright to have a play on Broadway and died at the age of 34. A great loss to theatre.
+20 Task #24 on list
+5 Combo 10.4 CHERUBS
+10 Review
+5 Awards (second award is for audiobook)
Task Total: 40pts
Grand Total: 175 pts
15.4 Name of the GameOur Lady of the Flowers by Jean Genet
I-Square 5D-no I in name
T- Square 10D- translated
L-Square 15E- LGBT
word= LIT
Task=15
pre-1996 =5 (1943)
Task Total=20
Grand Total= 125
....; ....; ....; ....;....; ....; 10.7; ....; .....; ....;
15.1; 15.2, 15.3, 15.4
....; ....; .....; .....; .....; .....; .....; 20.8; .....; .....;
15.5 Name of the GameI Hope I Shall Arrive Soon by Philip K. Dick
Square 3D - letter A - MPG Adventure
Square 10C - letter T - MPG Thriller
Square 12E - letter S - MPG Science Fiction
Word = SAT
+20 task
+ 5 not-a-novel
+ 5 pub'd 1985
Task total=30
Season total=130
20.7 LifetimeA Study in Scarletby Arthur Conan Doyle
Published in 1887
Three Stars
I love Sherlock Holmes retellings but I realised recently that I have never actually read any of the source material. I decided to start at the beginning with the first appearance of Sherlock and Watson. The story begins quite slowly with Watson and Sherlock moving into shared accommodations, it picks up with the arrival of a summons for Sherlock to a murder scene and he invites Watson to tag along. From there we don’t actually get much detective work from Sherlock, instead we hear about the work that the two rival scotland yard detectives, Lestrade and Gregson, are conducting while Sherlock essentially makes fun of them. Strangely in the middle of the book we get a story that takes place in Utah and ultimately reveals the motive and the murderer. Then the story ends with Sherlock’s great reveal of his chain of deduction and the apprehension of the suspect who confesses. The interlude in the middle of the story, while well written and interesting was a bit jarring and unexpected, but overall I enjoyed this quick read and look forward to reading more of the Sherlock Holmes stories.
+20 Task
+10 Review
+5 Combo (10.4)
Task Total: +35
Season Total: 85
Elizabeth (Alaska) wrote: "Post 256 Anika wrote: "15.6 Name of the GameSquare 11E--Letter H--Highly Rated (by Lisa)
Square 8D--Letter O--Wild Card!
Square 7B--Letter G--No "G" in auth name
Word = HOG
+20 Task
Task total:..."
I don’t know how in the world I messed that up :-/ sorry! I’ve amended the post, but it was The Christmas Pearl by Dorothea Benton Frank that was used here. Sorry ‘bout that!
15.1 Name of the GameThe Truths We Hold: An American Journey by Kamala Harris
H - 11 c (Harris)
E - 8 e (Wild Card)
R - 1 b (11,273)
D - 4 e (Harris)
HERD
+15 pts - task
+ 5 pts - not a novel
Task Total - 20 pts
Season Total - 120 pts
15.2 Name of the GameBecoming Bulletproof: Protect Yourself, Read People, Influence Situations, and Live Fearlessly by Evy Poumpouras
H - 11 d (2020 publication)
I - 9 c ( City University of New York )
https://www.evypoumpouras.com/about
L - 15 d (most recent book)
T - 10 e ( no THE in title)
HILT
+15 pts - task
+ 5 pts - not a novel
Task Total - 20 pts
Season Total - 140 pts
15.3 Name of the GameToo Much and Never Enough: How My Family Created the World's Most Dangerous Man by Mary L. Trump
T - 13 d (Too)
H - 10 e ( 5 stars by member named Bell)
Y - 14 c ( Mary)
THY
+15 pts - task
+ 5 pts - not a novel
Task Total - 20 pts
Season Total - 160 pts
15.4 Name of the Game"Why Are All The Black Kids Sitting Together in the Cafeteria?": A Psychologist Explains the Development of Racial Identity by Beverly Daniel Tatum
N - 6 e ( new author)
E - 2 c (Explains)
W - 8 c (Why)
NEW
+15 pts - task
+ 5 pts. - not a novel
Task Total - 20 pts
Season Total - 180 pts
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Reading with Style
Books mentioned in this topic
Gods of Jade and Shadow (other topics)The Inn (other topics)
Rogue Protocol (other topics)
The Inn (other topics)
The Escape (other topics)
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Authors mentioned in this topic
Silvia Moreno-Garcia (other topics)James Patterson (other topics)
Martha Wells (other topics)
James Patterson (other topics)
David Baldacci (other topics)
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Dance Hall of the Dead by Tony Hillerman
Square 4D--Letter D--Title words: Dead, Deadly, Death, Detective (Dead)
Square 1E--Letter R--Series name includes "R" (Leaphorn & Chee)
Square 14D--Letter Y--MPG Mystery
Word = DRY
+15 Task
+5 pre-'96 pub (1973)
Task total: 20
Season total: 40