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WINTER CHALLENGE 2020
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50 Point Task Idea Submissions
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APRILLEIGHTask 50.1 - Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
A few years back I ran into a wonderful little book at a local library, We Should All Be Feminists by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. I’m no longer sure why I picked it up that day, but I’m so glad I did. It wasn’t just the content, which is outstanding, but the way the author expressed herself. Later, adding the book to my Goodreads, I checked out a Ted Talk I found on her author profile, “The Danger of a Single Story.” I highly recommend everyone check it out. It isn’t very long, but it’s a powerful piece. Ever since then I’ve been trying to squeeze her books into my reading list, and I often go back and listen to that TED Talk - she’s well-spoken, well-organized, and witty, and is a real pleasure to listen to.
This is a three-book task, and in addition to a minimum of 750 pages for the three books combined, each book must be at least 250 pages.
Single authors only. No books with MPG Childrens or Kids and no books with MPG Sequential Art, Comics, Comic Book, or Manga.
I’m going to set this up a little differently. Instead of listing the requirements for each of three books, I’m going to give you three rules you must follow to select your three books.
Rule 1: Names Have Power
The author has a lovely three-part name, so each of the three books must contain all of the letters of a different part of the author’s name, CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE in the title and/or author’s name. Subtitles are excluded. You must use all three parts of her name (one per book), and all multiples (the 3 As in Chimamanda, for example) must be present.
Rule 2: The Danger of a Single Story
One of her TED Talks (both are linked on her author page) talks about how important it is not to listen to only one voice, or one story. Accordingly, each book must be by a different author, with at least one male and one female author represented.
Rule 3: Stranger in a Strange Land
A theme found in several of her books is the differences between people and cultures. Americanah features two Nigerian protagonists who have very different experiences in America and London. To fit with that theme, your three authors should all have been born in different countries.
Required: State the author’s country of birth and provide a supporting link if not listed on their author page.
Example:
CHIMAMANDA - Murder for Christmas (347 pp) by Francis Duncan (born in the UK)
NGOZI - Purple Hibiscus (336 pp) by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie (born in Nigeria)
ADICHIE - Split Second (364 pp) by Douglas E. Richards (born in the USA)
LaureY*UPDATED*
Task 50.1 - Serial Series Starter
Read one book per option. That will be three books totaling at least 750 pages.
No books with the genres children or kids on the main book page may be used.
Books whose main page lists any of these genres: Sequential Art, Comics, Comic Book, or Manga may not be used also.
I have come to realise over the last few years that I am a 'serial' series starter. By the end of this year, I reckon that I will have over 10 series on the go. Every season of the SRC, I try to dwindle my TBR down without too much success. So this task is a reminder to get on with it.
Book 1
Hooray! I think I am finally going to finish the excellent Dresden Files series by Jim Butcher. Only three books to go to complete the 17-book long series.
Option A: read a book with seventeen letters in its author's name or book title.
Option B: read a book wich is the last one published in a series (by the end date of the challenge).
Book 2
I promised myself not to start a new series this winter. The temptation is great though as I have already put a few new series on my TBR just in the last week!
I always find book 3 and 4 in a series sometimes dificult to pick up, so let's focus our attention on that difficult mid-series wobble.
Option A: read number three or four in a series - the title of the series or the book you are reading mush have the letters TBR in it.
Option C: go against the trend and read a book NOT in a series with a page number where both numbers 3 and 4 feature, e.g. 342, 403.
Book 3
The series I usually start and fail to finish fall in the following genres: fantasy and historical romances.
Option A: My favourite romance writer is still Julia Quinn. I have long finished to read her Bridgertons series, and I am so looking forward to watching its adaption on Netflix during the Christmas holidays.
Read a book with MPG of history or historical romance which has been adpated to the screen.
Option B: Fantasy is my to-go genre for escapism. I have been fascinated by the genre since I read a collection of fairy tales I was offered as as a Christmas present when I was six.
Read a book with MPG fairy tale or fantasy with snow or ice on the cover.
*UPDATED*Task 50.1 - Twister
In 1966, the classic party game Twister was published for the first time. Promoted as the game that ties you up in knots, it's played on a large plastic mat that is spread on the floor or ground. The mat has six rows of large colored circles on it with a different color in each row: red, yellow, green, and blue. A spinner is attached to a square board and is used to determine where the player has to put their hand or foot. After spinning, the combination is called (for example: "right hand yellow") and players must move their matching hand or foot to a circle of the correct color.
This is a 3 book task. The total page count must be at least 750 pages. No books with the genres children or kids on the main book page may be used. Books whose main page lists any of these genres: Sequential Art, Comics, Comic Book, or Manga may not be used.
Go to this online Twister spinner, spin the wheel ONE TIME and record your result. For each book, you will complete the option that matches your spin.
Book 1 - Left or Right
Option Left: Read a book by an author you have read from before. You must state in your post that you have read from this author before.
Option Right: Read a book by an author you have NOT read from before. You must state in your post that you have not read from this author before.
Book 2 - Hand or Foot
Option Hand: Read a book with 3 or less words in the title only. Ignore subtitles. Spaces determine words.
Option Foot: Read a book with 4 or more words in the title only. Ignore subtitles. Spaces determine words.
Book 3 - Color
Read a book where the cover is at least 50% the color from your spin. Use the Tineye website to determine the color percentages, and include the results in your post.
CoralieA COW of a job.
The big thing for the next foreseeable future will probably be worldwide vaccine deployment.
As the word vaccine means 'of a cow', this task is centred around the word COW.
The three books should add up to a total of 750 pages or more. No books with the genres children or kids on the main book page may be used.
Book 1. Read a book with a title that begins (ignoring articles) with a letter in the word COW,
Book 2. Read a book by a single author whose first or last name begins with a different letter in the work COW.
Book 3.
Option A. Read a book in a series that begins with the final letter in the word COW.
Option B. Read a book with a main page genre that begins with the final letter in the word COW.
Example
Book 1. Wuthering Heights begins with letter W.
Book 2. By the Pricking of My Thumbs by Agatha Christie author's last name begins with C.
Book 3. Option A. Owlflight series Owl Mage begins with O.
Chris MDTask 50.1 I’ve Always Loved a Good Series
I am a true child of the ‘60s. I was born in 1960 and grew up with so many wonderful TV series. I also fell in love with reading at a very early age, and I devoured many book series, especially Nancy Drew, the Hardy Boys, and the Happy Hollisters. So this task combines these two things.
Read three books totaling at least 750 pages.
No books with the genres children or kids on the main book page may be used, nor may books with these main page genres: Sequential Art, Comics, Comic Book, or Manga.
To be considered for this task, the series must have at least three books published before Mar 1, 2021. "In-between" books (e.g., 1.5) are acceptable if they're more than 100 pages long.
You must use the lists provided to select your books, but you can read any book in a series that appears on the list. Required: You must state the list page where the book is listed or the series first appears.
In addition, each book you select must meet one of these criteria. You cannot use the same option twice.
A. A new-to-you series. It doesn’t have to be Book 1, but you must state that you haven’t read any books in this series previously. (It’s OK if you’ve read something else by the same author.)
B. A series set in a country other than the one you live in. State the country where you live and the country where the book is set.
C. A series set in a time period outside the years 1960-2020, inclusive. Series set in a time beyond 2020 will work. Mention the time period in your post, for example: Regency, World War I, 25th century.
Book 1: Book 'Em, Danno - Mystery/Thriller
I loved Dragnet, Hawaii 5-0, and Mission Impossible. Maybe that’s why I love reading mystery series. And there are so many good series out there!
The clue to a good mystery series can be found in this list:
Best Detective Mystery Series
Book 2: Set Phasers on Stun – Science Fiction
Who didn’t love My Favorite Martian or Lost in Space? (Not to mention The Jetsons!) But Star Trek is the ultimate classic ‘60s science fiction show; millions of people around the world who weren’t even born in the ‘60s know phrases like “Beam me up, Scotty” and “Live long and prosper.”
It would be highly illogical to not find a series to like on this list:
Best Science Fiction Series
Book 3: Get ‘Em Up, Move ‘Em Out - Westerns
OK, so I’ll admit that most of my interest in the Western series of the '60s had to do with the extremely good looking actors: Lee Majors (Big Valley) and Michael Landon (Bonanza) among others. There was also Gunsmoke, Rawhide, and another favorite, The Wild, Wild West. And most of these shows had great theme songs too!
Draw your six-shooter and aim for a book on this list:
Western Series Books
Example Post:
Book 1 Option B: A Fearsome Doubt by Charles Todd. #6 in the Inspector Ian Rutledge series. The series takes place in the U.K. I live in the U.S. The series is first mentioned on page 2 of the Best Detective/Mystery Series list.
Book 2 Option C: Blackout by Connie Willis. This series takes place in the middle of the 21st century. (This book's description places it in 2060.) This book is #3 in the Oxford Time Travel series. The series is first mentioned on page one of the list.
Book 3 Option A: Open Season by C.J. Box. #1 in the Joe Picket series. This is the only book I have read in this series. The series is mentioned on the first page of the list.
Trishhartuk’s idea: Well That Was an Unusual ChristmasCOVID lockdowns and the tier system we have in the UK have not exactly been, what you might call, consistent. This was especially true in December. Following our November lockdown, things kind of opened up again, albeit it at a higher level of restrictions than before it. London moved from Tier 2 to Tier 3, but until about ten days before Christmas, folks in London were still being assured that they could meet their family on the big day. And then, along came Tier 4, and we couldn’t meet anyone from outside our households inside, so Christmas became a far more solitary thing. And as of 5th January, we’re locked down for the third time. It’s all been very frustrating.
We were supposed to visit my sister on Christmas Day, but ended up having to settle for a Zoom call, and then online board games. Still, at least we got to "see" them, and there was plenty of food and wine…
Read three books, totalling at least 750pg, one from each option. No books with the genres children or kids on the main book page may be used, nor may books with these main page genres: Sequential Art, Comics, Comic Book, or Manga.
Book 1: It was still Christmas…
Read a book with the MPG “Holiday”. The MPG can be stand alone or embedded. Any Holiday will do, not just Holiday > Christmas.
Book 2: Food and drink.
Read a book with one or more cooked meals (not just cookies and cakes, or ingredients!), or bottles of wine or champagne on the cover: it can be a photo, drawing or generally stylised, as long as it's still identifiable. Required: include the cover and point out the item.
Book 3: Board games.
Board games have seen a huge resurgence this year, with families locked down at home. There are also board game sites, so you can play with people you don’t see every day. The one we found was https://en.boardgamearena.com/.
Read a book with a word in the title of at least three letters, which matches one of the words in gamesradar’s best board games of 2020: https://www.gamesradar.com/uk/best-bo.... The words on the right of the colon can be used. "And" and "the” can’t. Words must match exactly, although plurals are allowed.
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The Seasonal Reading Challenge
Books mentioned in this topic
Blackout (other topics)Open Season (other topics)
A Fearsome Doubt (other topics)
Wuthering Heights (other topics)
By the Pricking of My Thumbs (other topics)
More...
Authors mentioned in this topic
Agatha Christie (other topics)Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie (other topics)
Francis Duncan (other topics)
Douglas E. Richards (other topics)
The 50 point task will require:
1. Only 3 options.
2. One book per option.
3. Three books totaling at least 750 pages. Your task idea may require a higher page threshold but this must be disclosed in your entry.
4. No books with the genres children or kids on the main book page may be used.
5. Books whose main page lists any of these genres: Sequential Art, Comics, Comic Book, or Manga may not be used.
6. No “free choice” options will be allowed. This is a challenge, so tasks that have no element of challenge do not fit the purpose.
7. A task must be accessible to the majority of players, i.e. not limited to a specific format, edition, publisher, etc. and reviewable by the moderators.
Anyone eligible* to design a task may submit an idea for a task that follows the general guidelines above. Your idea should be a sketch that may be developed with the moderators.
* To be eligible to create a task, the player’s profile must be set up to accept Goodreads messages, and they must not have a task in the current challenge. Only one task per person per challenge.
The group will vote to determine the 50 point task. All ideas that fit the general guidelines will be included in a poll. The poll winner will develop their idea with the moderators to refine their task. The final task may differ from the original idea submission. The task will be posted as close to the midpoint as reasonably possible. The task creator will monitor and answer questions in the help thread.
Please include your Readerboard name and a title for your task. The entries will be listed by Readerboard name and task title in the poll. Please include only one task idea entry per post.
PLEASE DO NOT comment on people's entries in this thread - this is for submissions only - you will be able to comment when voting begins. Comments in this thread will be deleted.