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2021 Read-a-Thon #1: Team Sunflower
Great Sue. I think it's probably easier to find three books with different ages than the two where it specifically has to be elderly, so I'd go with that I think.I'm off to bed and a couple more chapters. Goodnight everyone and happy reading!
Hi all!I just edited the "# of Options" columns so that it tallies all the x's from columns H to AZ (currently Sue's Invisible Boys column).
Note that if you wish to add a column, please insert it anywhere before Sue's Invisible Boys' column so that it will automatically increase the "# of Options" range and total.
If you add your column to the right of Sue's Invisible Boys entry, your entry will be outside the # of Options range, and thus not be counted in the # of Options column.
Sorry, if my explanation is unclear. I guess I could add extra empty columns to the right of Invisible Boys. If an experienced teammate knows how to add/insert columns while keeping the # of Options value accurate, please share.
Thoughts, Hannah?
Hi team! Nice job on the reading already! I started listening to A Deadly Education this morning and so added my hours to the spreadsheet. I am going to start reading The Stillwater Girls and will add my pages read to the spreadsheet tomorrow morning. Hope to finish one or both of them tomorrow.
Just now I finish Less, which I've used for the prompt "Two LGBTQIA+ books featuring a love story."I'm starting two books next:
I decided to download an audiobook (which I hardly ever do), as I have several car trips to do this week, and will also listen to it when I would otherwise be listening to podcasts (eg. while gardening, housework, walking). So, I am now reading Miss Benson's Beetle as well as Elizabeth Is Missing. Loving it!
Hello everyone! I finished my pet-book last night.
@Oshizu, it makes perfect sense.
I'm off to finish the Ship of Destiny.
@JohanneI love Robin Hobb! I read Ship of Destiny this past December and enjoyed it immensely!.
It's so good! I'm slowly reading through the realm og the Elderlings. Love it :)
oshizu wrote: "Just now I finish Less, which I've used for the prompt "Two LGBTQIA+ books featuring a love story."I'm starting two books next:
[bookcover:The G..."I read Less last year for some prompt and read Jar of Hearts earlier this year.
I am currently reading The Starless Sea, maybe this will make me finish it (its not really gaining my interest). Anyone have an idea where it would fit?
I just finished The Guest Cat for the "characters who have pets" prompt.Although the cat was technically owned by the narrator and his wife, the cat spend half his time with the couple who provided him with his own doorway, sleeping quarters, and daily meal.
Well, their next-door neighbor owned the cat, so I'm using it for this prompt.
I'll be starting
by William Shakespeare tomorrow. Since I see Kat's planning to read Julius Caesar, I will use this book as a second "hearts on the cover" book. :)
Edie wrote: "I read Less last year for some prompt and read Jar of Hearts earlier this year"Edie
I rather enjoyed Less.
I'm halfway through Jar of Hearts and find it awfully creepy in a can't-help-but-watch-the train-wreck sort of way. Did you enjoy it?
oshizu wrote: "Edie wrote: "I read Less last year for some prompt and read Jar of Hearts earlier this year"Edie
I rather enjoyed Less.
I'm halfway through Jar of Hearts and find it awfully creepy in a can't-he..."
Ultimately I liked Jars of Hearts. It took me quite a while to get into it... and seriously considered abandoning it (which I rarely do), but stuck with it since it was a book I was reading for a challenge prompt and am glad I did.
Alicia wrote: "I am currently reading The Starless Sea, maybe this will make me finish it (its not really gaining my interest). Anyone have an idea where it would fit?"It took me a while to get into the rhythm of The Starless Sea, but I ended up really liking it. I would think it could fit for three books featuring a theme of friendship or theme related to hope or perhaps fresh starts.
@Alicia, I really liked the Starless Sea, but it's the kind of book you have to let envelop you, without questioning too much. Apart from what Edie said, there are different covers, so maybe some of the cover ones depending on which cover you have. @Edie, I hope to finish Ship of Destiny tomorrow and The Fires of Vengeance tomorrow or the day after. They fit the two books with similar cover (they both have dragons). You have two books with bikes on the planning tab - do your bike books have other good places to go, or is the similar cover the best ones? In other words - should I put The ship of Destiny for similar cover or something else (it has a couple of places where it fits).
I've finished my first book for this read-a-thon and added it to the spreadsheet. I should finish another book tomorrow that works for a couple of prompts. I've also tidied up the spreadsheet a bit, and added lots of extra columns so we shouldn't need to keep playing about with the formulas to calculate the number of options for each prompt.
Hannah wrote: "and added lots of extra columns so we shouldn't need to keep playing about with the formulas to calculate the number of options for each prompt.."Thank you, Hannah!
I didn't much enjoy Jar of Hearts, but I finished it just now for the 'hearts on the cover" prompt.Edie
Thank you for sharing your impressions of Jar of Hearts.
I'd just like to confirm before I start reading Love's Labours Lost.For the "hearts on the cover" prompt, may I still use this book although it only features a single heart?
I'm going to start reading a different book now instead until I know for sure.
@Oshizu, yes, that's absolutely how I understand that prompt: one or more hearts on each cover.
JohanneThank you for responding so quickly. I had second thoughts about the cover's eligibility since the prompt says "hearts." haha
I had planned to read Last Rituals for the Title that starts with L prompt but decided that I don’t want to read it. I added Lean Mean 13 to the planning tab to replace it but if somebody else is going to complete the prompt that is okay with me. I have been checking our spreadsheet before I start a book to see what is still available.
Alicia wrote: "I am currently reading The Starless Sea, maybe this will make me finish it (its not really gaining my interest). Anyone have an idea where it would fit?"The hardcover edition has a heart shape in the keytop at the upper right corner.
I haven’t read The Starless Sea but two of the genres listed are LGBTQIA+ and romance. Maybe use it for that prompt?
Hello everyone. It's afternoon here, and I'm finished with today's work. I'm off for a walk with my audiobook, since the rest of the family are doing other things today (we usually walk together in some constellation): One needed a walk by himself, another is playing outside with this cousins who are also neighbours, a third is busy playing CS:GO and my husband is drawing.
Good morning, hope everyone had a nice weekend. I finished up my first 2 books yesterday and added them to the spreadsheet. I am going to get started on The Midnight Library today and I hope to find an audiobook to start as well. Johanne you family activities sound like the start of a book, hopefully something fun and lighthearted!
Good afternoon, Team Sunflower!I tallied the number of total prompts so we can better gauge our progress.
Team Sunflower's Progress
Total prompts: 57
Prompts completed: 32 (56%)
Wild Cards available: 12
- - -
@Kat
I wanted you to know that I used my
(Love's Labours Lost) for the Shakespeare prompt this morning because the "2 books with hearts on the cover" had already been completed. Sorry!
I want to Thank whoever is keeping the spreadsheet nice and neat. I am so worried about moving something around and messing things up that I really appreciate the help! If there is a need to move any of the books I have read to a different prompt please feel free. I am trying to make sure all the possibilities for the books are marked on the planning tab.
Impressive! We may get new prompts when we're finished with these. I honestly thought there were so many we wouldn't need it, but at this rate, we will :) When we're a bit closer to finishing, we might move around books, but mainly if finished books don't work anywhere. And then just use the wildcards for the remainder. Thanks for that overview Oshizu.
@Samantha, yes my family is cozy chaos most of the time.
I finished two more books tonight and have added them to the spreadsheet together with my page total for today.It's late at night here now, so I'll have a look at the spreadsheet tomorrow morning and choose my next books based on which prompts are still open and have fewest options.
What do you all think about including a row on the spreadsheet to show when we expect to finish a book, or at least which books listed on the spreadsheet are being actually being read instead of planned reads? This could help us to know which prompts to focus on when choosing books to read next.
Hannah wrote: "What do you all think about including a row on the spreadsheet to show when we expect to finish a book, or at least which books listed on the spreadsheet are being actually being read instead of planned reads? This could help us to know which prompts to focus on when choosing books to read next..."I vote yes to this great idea.
oshizu wrote: "Hannah wrote: "What do you all think about including a row on the spreadsheet to show when we expect to finish a book, or at least which books listed on the spreadsheet are being actually being rea..."Yes, great idea. An easy way would be to change the cell colour of books currently being read. I have only added books to the planning sheet that I know I will complete this week (a couple of extras are in the wings), but as I haven't read them yet I am not entirely sure of the most relevant prompts - easy to change options as the book progresses. I can't believe how much some of you are able to read in a day!
I would like advice from Johanne and Team Sunflower members on how to proceed.Looking at our Plans tab, I see 4 ore more options for every remaining prompt except 3 prompts in genres I don't typically read (YA, romance).
So it doesn't seem like I need to read books that target specific prompts for the rest of this week, or do I?
Should I just be reading whatever I want to earn our team more Wild Cards?
I love Sue's idea of using a color other than navy blue to indicate our "currently reading" books. Could we add an additional color for "a completed book that hasn't been slotted into a prompt yet"?
Any suggestions would be much appreciated! 😊
Good morning everyone!@Sue, Yes, great idea. An easy way would be to change the cell colour of books currently being read.
Good idea. Though I personally only added books I'm currently reading.
@Oshizu, I don't think adding a different colour for books finished not slotted into a prompt yet, is necessary. The reason to do that would be when books don't have a proper slot and we may have to move books around. In those cases I think it's better to write here in the comments and then we can fix it together.
I think you should read whatever you want, and if the choice is between books, you can choose what fits best, but there's no reason to force yourself to read something you're not in the mood for.
Firstly, things move really fast, and you may start a book to fill a slot, but then that slot may be already filled by another book when you're finished . That's alright if it's a book you enjoyed, but not if you didn't.
Secondly, we have a plethora of wildcards to use for those leftover slots.
Thirdly, there may be other people more inclined to jump on some of the leftover prompts, like YA (me for instance).
Johanne wrote: "Good morning everyone!@Sue, Yes, great idea. An easy way would be to change the cell colour of books currently being read.
Good idea. Though I personally only added books I'm currently reading.
@..."
Agree Johanne - I think we should all just slot a book in where it fits when we finish reading - as you say, it all moves fast and there seem to be plenty of books to fill the slots. Read what you want to read - that's really what it's all about!
Good morning, everyone!Like others have said, I say read the books you want to read, and if they fit an open prompt, slot them in. If they don’t fit an open prompt, post it here, and we can always look at moving some books around. We might need to do this for the 4 warm and fuzzy books, for example, as that is a really hard prompt to know you can fill if you haven’t already read the book.
I’ve started reading a book that works for 7 prompts we still need books for, including YA rom com and enemies to lovers. As it’s YA, it should be a very quick read, so I’ll finish it today. Not be usual genres, but the book is on my TBR, and it fits a Popsugar prompt, so I’m happy to read it now.
I’ve got a few errands I need to do today, so I’ll also look for a quick audio book, and I might be able to finish that whilst doing some housework later.
I've been spying in the other groups' spreadsheets (mwuahaha) and as far as I can tell, we're in the lead!I know it's not really a competition like that, but I still can't help getting a kick out of being in the lead :)
I also have my eyes on quick reads on my TBR for fuzzy feelings (I've read some of it, so I know this) and YA rom com, depending on what's needed most.
Great job so far everyone. It's filling up nicely. I've only added books to the plan that I am currently reading. I'm not actually sure where either of them will fit in just yet bit hopefully I can find a place for them.
I thought I would wait til later in the week before picking something new to see what still needed reading.
I am currently reading
and had thought it would work for 2 people on the cover but found that there are a couple shadow people behind them. Do you think it would still work for that prompt? The only other prompt I think it would fit right now is Warm and Fuzzy because it is a cozy mystery.
Poppet wrote: "Rachel wrote: "I am currently reading and had thought it would work for 2 people on the cover but found that there are a couple shadow people behind ..."Thanks Poppet! I felt anxious and needed another opinion about it.
Alicia wrote: "I am currently reading The Starless Sea, maybe this will make me finish it (its not really gaining my interest). Anyone have an idea where it would fit?"This book was DNF for me, although I heard the ending ties it all together. Good luck! Did you read any of her other books last year? If so, it could go with #13.
Johanne wrote: "I've been spying in the other groups' spreadsheets (mwuahaha) and as far as I can tell, we're in the lead!I know it's not really a competition like that, but I still can't help getting a kick out ..."
mwuahaha!!! Love the competitive spirit!
You can always count on me getting excited over games like this. I'm not at all competitive in other ways, but games, yes :)
I just finished The Fires of Vengeance on audio, but will wait putting it on the tracking sheet till I've finished Ship of Destiny since they work together as a pair (dragon on the cover), but if Edie finishes her bike books first I'll put them for something else. I only have 30 pages left in Ship of Destiny, but it's evening now and I have to face that I can't read Hobb in the evening and expect to sleep. Her writing enduces so strong feelings and vivid imaginations that I have a hard time falling asleep, and when I do I have weird nightmarish dreams (happened the last two nights). So I'll leave it for the morning light, and instead start Leah on the Offbeat that works for a lot of the remaining prompts (YA rom com, starts with an L, lgbtq love story and more).
@Johanne, Sue, and HannahThanks so much for letting me know that i can just continue reading what I'd planned to read this month (though I did add two books to finish up the Shakespeare & pets prompts).
I just finished When Death Comes Stealing, a mystery that fills the "over 10 years" prompt.
Johanne wrote: "I've been spying in the other groups' spreadsheets (mwuahaha) and as far as I can tell, we're in the lead!I know it's not really a competition like that, but I still can't help getting a kick out ..."
Johanne
Your comment made me crack up and I might also have been looking at the other teams' spreadsheets. 😇 *adjusts slightly crooked halo...
But yes, Team Sunflower is absolutely killing this readathon challenge. Here's where we're at right now.
Team Sunflower's Progress
Total prompts: 57
Prompts completed: 36 (63%)
Wild Cards available: 15!!!
If we were to use all 15 Wild Cards this minute (which, of course, we won't), we'd have only 6 prompts left.
Go Team Sunflower!
Edited to add: I saw another spreadsheet that had a table below Wild Cards to track "Total Prompts," "Prompts Completed," and "Prompts Remaining." I've added that to our own spreadsheet. :D
I finished Coraline and logged under three books not featuring a romantic story. Couldn't figure out what to do on the "plans" tab so I just put in done under the book and the prompt. What has happened to the books from Plans that were completed? I thought we were going highlight them or put them at the front or something so we could move things around if needed. The Sunflower team is really doing a great job.
Around the Year in 52 Books
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Thanks everyone!