May 2021 Reporting - Arrived on the Island!

[Almeta]

WoF Almeta

I generated these:
Grenadines
Selayar
Anguilla
Key West
Mount Desert Island
Saint John

I chose Mount Desert Island

Pronounce “Desert” like “Dessert” since it is of French origin. The island got its current name from the French explorer Champlain who's ship ran aground here in 1604 AD.

The largest island off the coast of Maine and the second largest (behind Long Island, New York) on the eastern seaboard of the United States. Widely known as the home of Acadia National Park and the town of Bar Harbor

Acadia National Park is the oldest park east of the Mississippi and the most well-known landmark in Maine.
Elsewhere on Mount Desert Island is the massive Cadillac Mountain. Even after being sheared off by the glaciers, it remains the highest point along the North Atlantic Seaboard at 1,530 feet (466.34m) above sea level and provides spectacular panoramic views of the land, ocean, and communities far below.

Some famous past and present residents include:

• David Rockefeller & Family, Ford Family
• Cap Weinberger, Secretary of Defense under President Reagan
• Edward C. “Ned” Johnson
• Roxanne Quimby
• Martha Stewart
• Actors Susan Sarandon, Tim Robbins, John Travolta, Fred Savage, David Morse

Site of The Mount Desert Island Marathon, Half & Relay, North America’s premier destination road race.

I read Racing the Rain 25 May, because of the well known Marathon, Half & Relay annual races. Author John L. Parker Jr.is a runner himself. The novel is about "the making of a runner".

[Annerlee]

WoF annerlee
I chose to go with Marion Island and make a connection to Marion Robert Morrison (John Wayne ). So, my task was:- Read a book that inspired a movie starring John Wayne.

I 'read' True Grit on audio book (the paperback is 224 pages long)

I haven't read many Western books, so this was outside the norm for me, but I actually really enjoyed it. I enjoyed Mattie as a character, so young but so switched on. Her bargaining skills were something else. Sometimes I'd think her a fool forr being so direct and outspoken with the truth, but she always seemed to have chosen the right path towards getting what she wanted.

There is a lot of 'grit' shown by the main characters (Cogburn and Mattie both) but although Deputy Marshall Cogburn is described as the man with grit, I think Mattie is sometimes his superior.

The character le Boeuf was irritating at first, but grew on me as the book progressed. I enjoyed the spats between him and Cogburn immensely. All characters were memorable in their own way and I enjoyed my unexpected foray into the Wild West.

[Kristie, Moderator]

WoF: Kristie

I read Ask Me No Questions for this challenge. I chose it because one of my islands, Isla de la Juventud, means 'Isle of Youth' in English, so I decided to go with a YA title. My main character in this book is also a youth at 14 years old.

I enjoyed the book, although I didn't love it. I thought it was a good glimpse into the life of a Muslim family living in the US illegally after the September 11th attacks. I liked that the characters seemed pretty realistic and their responses to situations also seemed to be realistic, though the end was probably a little too easily tied up.

[Vicki]

WoF Vicki

Of my six islands, I chose Jarvis Island, a lonesome island in the middle of the Pacific. In the 1800s the United States mined guano (bat or bird droppings) for 21 years to use as fertilizer. After they abandoned the project companies from New Zealand and Britain attempted to pick up the guano biz but not for long.

I read The Big Necessity: The Unmentionable World of Human Waste and Why It Matters which is about human droppings and sometimes it was also about using them as fertilizer.

Did I like it? Not really. The statistics were worse than I expected and I am already a bit of a pessimist. The tone of the book was a bit flippant which I didn't care for. The author was bringing a taboo subject into the mainstream and there were attempts at levity. A lot of the anecdotes of her travels didn't seem very relevant and we kept going back and forth, mostly to India. I would have liked more science but the author made it clear that that isn't possible because no one is studying this shit.

[Rusalka, Moderator]

WoF - Rusalka

My islands were:
Celebes
Sumba
Caprera Island
Novaya Zemlya
P’eng-hu Islands
Sea Islands

I choose Celebes, which is really called Sulawesi. The island's name comes from sula ("island") and besi ("iron"). So I read a book which related to iron in someway (title, author, series name)

I read Staked, which is the 8th book in the Iron Druid Chronicles. While I think the series isn't as strong as it was to begin with, this was still a fun trip back into this world. I am not overly fond of the multiple storylines, but overall it did tidy everything up and tied everything together. I don't really want to give anything away for those still reading the series, but it was fun.

[Rusalka, Moderator]

Badges posted! It's not Ibiza, it's Thailand. But hopefully very island-esq

Let me know if I missed you.

[Janice, Moderator]

BTW Rusalka. I changed Emma's WoF name to Emma R. You had badges for 2 Emma's. One was from a closed thread.

[Rusalka, Moderator]

Thanks Janice. I thought I double checked that properly, I remember thinking through it as there were a couple of Emma walls.

I obviously did not.

[Janice, Moderator]

You were just giving me some brain physio.

[Rusalka, Moderator]

Lol I am happy to help... eek!