Middle Grade Madness! discussion
August MG Reading Challenge 2022
>
Team Morrigan Crow
Mod
1. REFER TO THE RULES
- You can find them here: https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...
- They list every detail from how the points are calculated to information on the bonus tasks.
- If you have a question please check it against the rules and if you’re still looking for an answer please put it to your team captain who will ask me in the Captain's Chat and refer back to you.
2. MAKE SURE YOUR BOOKS COUNT
It’ll be really sad if you spend the time reading a book and then end up realising it doesn’t even count towards the challenge, so always check it counts before starting to read it!
Refer to the rules to remind yourself of what counts as an mg book for the challenge: https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...
Remember you can now check books against the US website: https://www.arbookfind.com/ AND UK website: https://www.arbookfind.co.uk/
If you’re reading a book with a specific task in mind and you’re not sure if your book will count towards the challenge, please check the Task Guidance tab on your team spreadsheet. If it doesn’t help then ask your team captain who will either answer if they can or pass on the question to me on the Captain's Chat and they’ll let you know the answer.
Mod
1. Introduce yourself! Tell your fellow team members what your favourite genres to read are and some things you like to do besides reading.
2. Decide on a team name! Choose the name of a protagonist (or main character) from a middle grade book/series. This challenge has been hosted twice now and here are what past teams have chosen: Coraline, Alice Queensmeadow, Logan Sweet, Lucy Pevensie, Sirius Black, Merlin, and Charlotte, so please don’t choose those!
Mod
This is my 3rd year hosting this challenge and the excitement is still just as great, if not more this year. I already have a few books lined up and ready to go, I can't wait! My favourite genres are time travel and mystery but I'll read pretty much any genre. I tend to avoid historical fiction and fantasy though.
Apart from reading, I love watching shows and movies. I'm a big fan of comics and manga so I watch anime and superhero movies too. I also love art though I haven't done any in like 2 months now, and I write but sporadically.
My idea for our team name is Morrigan Crow from The Trials of Morrigan Crow. I love the Nevermoor series!
What do you guys think? I'd love to hear your suggestions too, if you have any.
Hey Kadi, Hey Team! Woo hoo! "Morrigan Crow" is perfect! I'm all for it!
I'm a Canadian living in Switzerland (and I'm full of European travel advice, if you want any!). I like dusty, musty, yellowed juvenile literature that's older than me (so pre-80s). I'm definitely a fan of the paperback over eReaders, and I'll read just about anything. Unlike Kadi, I do like Fantasy, so send those recommendations this way! Also big on time travel, and any story with great setting (I don't mind where, so long as it is immersive!). I love archaeology, folk horror and 'earth mysteries' content in juv. lit., and will gladly accept recommendations!
Outside of that, I love being up in the Alps hiking, or exploring Europe by train. And I'm a huge Legend of Zelda and Nintendo nerd - I will definitely be watching Zeldathon Daybreak (100% of donations going to Direct Relief!) beginning live on August 2nd while I read! Zeldathon dot com for that, if you want nerdy but lovely background noise to read to. ;)
Very excited to be part of this team! This is my FIRST READING CHALLENGE EVER - I'm well-stocked and ready to go! :D
Mod
Woo hoo! "Morrigan Crow" is perfect! I'm all for it!
I'm a Canadian living in Switzerland (and..."
Hey Capn, I see you're a fellow Zelda lover! I've never played any of the games but I've always loved Zelda's character design and in an effort to get to know more about it all I read some of this manga: The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, Vol. 1 a couple of months back. It's really beautifully drawn! I digitally coloured some of the panels afterwards which was cool. Alas the manga is more YA than MG I think so it wouldn't count for the challenge otherwise it would've fit perfectly with your Zeldathon!
Have you heard of Linktober? It's so awesome when all the Zelda lovers who are artists come out in full force with Zelda art for a whole month!
Have you read the Nevermoor series? That's fantasy mg and that shows I do read it sometimes and can even love fantasy (it's crazy, I know😂) Book 4 comes out at the start of next year I think and I'm super excited for it!
Kadi wrote: "Capn wrote: "Hey Kadi, Hey Team! Woo hoo! "Morrigan Crow" is perfect! I'm all for it!
I'm a Canadian living in Switzerland (and..."
Hey Capn, I see you're a fellow Zelda lover! I've never playe..."
So admittedly, I'm not a big graphic novel fan! :S I haven't read much, though - only the Rivers of London Volume 1: Body Work up to what ever is in the first two boxed sets (Rivers of London: Water Weed, I think?), and that's because I've been reading all the novels and these contained referenced side stories, etc. :)
I also tried The Tea Dragon Society, which I thought was super cute. But I kept wishing there was more text. :) So I can't tell if I'm just not a graphic novel sort of person, OR, if I haven't found the right stuff for me, yet!
I have got the LoZ manga in the back of my mind - I might request it as a Christmas gift if asked. ;) I LOVE LOVE LOVE the artwork! I'm not surprised that there are fans just from the artwork side! (Oh yes, I know Linktober! Some of the artists design the charity tshirts for Zeldathon!). Twilight Princess was always very beautiful (dark, for Zelda!). One of my favourite games! But playing Breath of the Wild - oh my goodness! A never ending manga you can 'choose your own adventure' through! :D I highly recommend it, even if you've never played a single video game before (it's brilliant - totally accessible for anyone, really, of any age). The game is absolutely breathtaking, and you can do whatever you want, at your own pace. It's really special! I wish I could live in that version of Hyrule! <3
Oh right, forgot to mention - The Trials of Morrigan Crow is on my TBR! I haven't read it yet! :) I have since upgraded it to my priority folder. :)
Morrigan Crow is a good team name!!!Hi, I'm Breanne. This is my second year participating in this challenge! I live in Canada and I work at an amazing bookstore. My favorite genres are realistic fiction and romance but I'm always down to read pretty much anything.
Aside from reading, I'm passionate about fitness, journaling, writing, baking, theater arts, and hanging out with my family!
Can't wait to get started!! I have a ton of library and work loans that I'm dying to read!
(Aww rats, my photo won't embed!)Here's an incomplete stack of my August MG Reading Challenge 2022 shelf for the upcoming challenge! I'm sure I annoyed the local postie to no end - was snowed under with a stack today! :)
https://www.goodreads.com/photo/user/...
Excited! Nice to meet you too, Breanne. :)
Mod
I read the Tea Dragon Society too! It was surprisingly not that bad and yeah very cute! If you want a graphic novel with more writing you should check out the Idhun Chronicles. I’ve actually had friends complain to me that it had way too many words😂 it’s based on a Spanish book series so it pretty much lifts all the exposition and dialogue. Personally I loved it and it was very nicely illustrated too.
I’ve always wanted to play Breath of the Wild but I don’t have anything to play it on and I don’t think my old Nintendo DSi is going to cut it😂
Mod
You work at a bookstore wow! That’s like the dream job for a reader! Do you get to read on the job if it’s quiet? Do you get to recommend books to customers? I tried to get a job at a bookstore in London when I was studying at university but then covid happened and my uni went online so I left London.
I used to say I didn’t like romance but I was on quite a romance fix last month and read like 5 romance books back to back (which is a lot for me)! Have you ever read any mg romance books? I’ve been wondering lately if any exist.
Mod
You’ve got some great titles there! Eragon and famous five are classics. And Bunnicula haha what a coincidence! I just got this new story idea which means I’d have to write an unreliable narrator so I wanted some mg examples for reference and inspiration and someone listed that book as an example of one.
Kadi wrote: "Omg Capn!! Thanks so much for sharing that pic! I literally squealed when I opened it I’m not even exaggerating. There’s something about a huge pile of books that makes me so happy! I’m reading alm..."Oh I'm glad! :D Yep, me too - I'm just going to arrange it to be more esthetically pleasing now...
Thanks for the The Idhun Chronicles, Vol. 1: The Resistance: Search recommendation. :)
Ha, Bunnicula. It's been about 30 years since I read it last - I bought it in advance for the next generation (I believe in fully stocked bookshelves at home!), and realised I might like a re-read...
Capn wrote: "(Aww rats, my photo won't embed!)Here's an incomplete stack of my August MG Reading Challenge 2022 shelf for the upcoming challenge! I'm sure I annoyed the local postie to no end - was snowed und..."
That's a stack!! So many classics!!
Kadi wrote: "Hey Breanne! Glad to have you back for a second year of the challenge😊
You work at a bookstore wow! That’s like the dream job for a reader! Do you get to read on the job if it’s quiet? Do you get ..."
OMG I recommend books all the time and it's literally the best part of the job!! This challenge helps me do my job a lot because we have a lot of middle grade readers that come in looking for the books they should read after HP / PJ and it's just so great to actually be able to help these customers find relevant reads. As for reading on the job, I wish I could but I definitely find myself perusing the shelves.
I definitely find myself falling more into realistic MG stories and I love the ones with first loves or first crushes just because they're so sweet and relatable regardless of age.
Annie wrote: "Hi there I am Annie (you can call me Ann) and I love Middle Grade books the most of all kinds but preferably diverse, contemporary, adventure, sci-fi, mystery kinds. Fantasies are fine too, but I t..."Great to meet ya Annie!!
Annie wrote: "Hi there I am Annie (you can call me Ann) and I love Middle Grade books the most of all kinds but preferably diverse, contemporary, adventure, sci-fi, mystery kinds. Fantasies are fine too, but I t..."Welcome, Ann!
Just thought I'd mention this one: Ann's Alpine Adventure. It's one of my favs. :) Old school (1950s!) trip from England to Andermatt in Switzerland for the summer. Squeaky clean but super fun anyway. :) It was republished by Girls Gone By Publishers (a vicar of the Church of England and her friend in a cottage! So cute!).
I can't find another copy for sale, anywhere, at the moment, sadly. But one to keep an eye out for, perhaps. :) You can create "wants" on Abebooks and "requests" (I think?) on ThriftBooks. Or, of course, there's interlibrary loans.
Anyway, just thought it worth mentioning. One of my favs. :)
Where are you, Ann? I'm in Switzerland, Breanne's in Canada, and Kadi is in Dubai. :) (none of us are in the US, I don't think!)
I haven't been to any of the Balkans yet, but I would like to! :) Some gorgeous landscapes you have! (90% of my neighbours here are from the Balkans, ha ha!)
Mod
lol Capn it’s almost like you’re guessing one of the tasks there😂 you may be onto something but I’m trying not to give anything away so I’ll stop at that🤭
Also it’s cool we’re an international team! I’m only in Dubai for August, I’m going back to England so I’ll be travelling on the last few days of the challenge which is not ideal timing but should be fine. I think the same thing happened last year because I live in both countries so I’m always coming and going.
And it seems like everyone’s on board for Morrigan Crow as the team name🎉 I’ll just wait for Amy to join and give her thoughts on it before we make a final decision.
Mod
Aaw thanks! Hopefully I get my interest in art back after August though😂 I'm planning on focusing totally on reading next month. It's going to be interesting to see if I can do it because lately I've been hooked on this new Kdrama Extraordinary Attorney Woo that I haven't been doing any reading!
Not sure if any of you guys watch kdramas but oh my gosh I can't recommend it enough! It's so funny and cute wholesome romance and the representation with the autistic protagonist is fantastic.
Mod
I agree with you that it’s damaging how media sometimes portray autistic people only as geniuses as though there aren’t so many different kinds of autism and autistic people! That’s why I really REALLY love that the 3rd episode of the show features another autistic character. So whilst she is portrayed as a genius it’s definitely not the only facet of her personality. The character depth for her is fantastic and she’s genuinely funny and unapologetically herself and not just a walking stereotype for what an autistic person would be. The show dives into the mind of an autistic person and I think it handles it perfectly because it shows all sides of perception: so how people perceive her, how she perceives others and even how she perceives herself and her own life. It has an extremely progressive view on autism but even more than that, every case they tackle says something about society and I think it’s honestly beautiful and on a deeper level thought-provoking. If it was a book I’d put it on my all time faves shelf😂
I feel like it’s inspiring me to read a heartfelt contemporary with a neurodivergent or autistic protagonist. Maybe I’ll go for Fish in a Tree or Out of My Mind.
Also sorry for going on about it, I’m a little obsessed right now!
Also no my replies were working fine from my laptop. Maybe sign out and sign back in?
Hello everyone!! My name is Amy and I live in the US! This is my second year participating and I am so excited to take part again! My favorite genres other than MG are Mystery, Historical Fiction, Non-Fiction/Memoir, and Classics. Other than reading, I enjoy knitting, gardening, bread making, preserving, and hiking! I also homeschool my four kids! :)
I love the Team Name suggestion, Kadi, although I have never read the book! LOL!
Looking forward to getting to know you all better throughout the month!!
Mod
Hey Amy! Great to have you back for another year! I've recently taken up gardening too and I love it and hate it. Weeds are the bane of my existence!!
Awesome so we're all in agreement for the team name then! It feels kind of weird to have it as our team name because I'm the only one who's read it but maybe this will be like motivation for you guys to read it if you want to! It's a great series.
Mod
Thanks for all the recs Annie! You know so much more on the best representation so it's great to get such knowledgeable recs! I'm going to check them all out and see which ones tickle my fancy. The last one sounds pretty great.
For your reply button issue maybe restart your mac. If that doesn't fix it then send an email to goodreads about your problem. You can contact them by leaving a question on the help page on the desktop website or send a direct email to them via the help section on the goodreads app. The second way is more likely to get you a direct response.
Mod
Mod
Kadi wrote: "Yeah it was probably more likely to be a bug in goodreads’ system. Anyway I’m glad it’s working for you again!"I was having problems with notifications for awhile, too. The app worked for me, but not the desktop. It happens to me often, as I'm online "at night" for the U.S. based IT support. I think they do all their monkeying around then. ;)
Mod
So about time zones and the start time - are we all running off of one clock, or our own local times? :)(Basically, I just want to know when I should check in, and when I can start reading!)
Kadi wrote: "Amy wrote: "Hello everyone!! My name is Amy and I live in the US! This is my second year participating and I am so excited to take part again! My favorite genres other than MG are Mystery, Historic..."I'll be reading Nevermoor some day. It'll have lovely associations, too, I hope! :) Although, I have a pretty big stack I should probably get through, first..... :S
Bring on the stash bust!!!
Capn wrote: "So about time zones and the start time - are we all running off of one clock, or our own local times? :)(Basically, I just want to know when I should check in, and when I can start reading!)"
I want to know this too!
Also, I have a couple of ARCs that I want to read, is it okay to read them for this challenge? I can give you the titles if it helps @Kadi !
Mod
The team spreadsheet has been sent to all of you via email invite, so please check your junk mail. If you don’t see the invite soon then please let your captain know or message me privately and I can send you an invite again or we can try with another email if you want.
The spreadsheet has 4 tabs at the bottom:
1. MG Challenge – The official challenge sheet. Points calculate themselves here so please don’t change any of the points coding!
2. Tracking Sheet – An informal tracking sheet for everyone’s book details.
3. Task Guidance – Specific and helpful guidance for individual tasks. Please check this first before asking your captain or me questions.
4. Example of MG Challenge – An example to show you how to fill in the first tab.
I'm in charge of the MG Challenge sheet (the first tab) so please leave it to me to fill in the official challenge sheet. The tracking sheet is for everyone, fill it in as you please!
For page numbers please either:
1. Use the number in the goodreads’ book entry OR
2. Use the number in your own copy
(They shouldn’t be too wildly different anyway)
Please wait for August 1st in your time zone before you start reading books for the challenge!
The bonus tasks will be added to your spreadsheet on August 15th.
And happy reading!😊
Mod
@Breanne ARCs are fine as long as they're marketed as MG. If your unsure about any of them just let me know the titles before you start reading them and I can check them out and confirm for you. It would be a shame if you start it and then it doesn't count!
Mod
All I need to know:
- Book title + author
- Start date + end date
- ALL the tasks it fulfils + how it fulfils them. Even if you read it to fulfil one specific task please say all other tasks it fulfils too, that way if I need to move things around later on to get maximum points for the team, I can.
- Number of pages
If you want to pick certain tasks to read for or a whole category it may be helpful to tell the team beforehand. I prefer to just read whatever and then see how it fits in so it's up to each person!
Kadi wrote: "Hey Team!The team spreadsheet has been sent to all of you via email invite, so please check your junk mail. If you don’t see the invite soon then please let your captain know or message me private..."
YEP! Woo hoo!
Just had a look at this and......Holy smokes, what a lot of work for you Kadi!!! :O Appreciate the effort!!!!!!!! :D
Mod
Hehe thank you! You have no idea how excited I've been to reveal this. It's got rainbow colour!! Though I've come to the sad realisation that I think like 3 of the tasks I came up with are similar to some from last year😞 Oh well! Still a lot of new ones!
Kadi wrote: "So guys for the tracking sheet if you don't want to/can't fill it in that's totally fine. Just leave all the details here on this discussion page and I'll do it for you.All I need to know:
- Book..."
I don't know how you continue to think of new prompts! This is so awesome!
Mod
I am so excited!!! 3 1/2 hours until it's the first...for me!! :) Happy reading, team!!
Mod
Happy reading, team!!"
🎉🎉
What's everyone's first read? There's no rush so take your time guys. And if anyone wants to claim tasks or categories just let us all know!
I'm reading something right now and so far it doesn't fit any task! I didn't think it was possible😂
Mod
Quick update:
- I've changed the wording of task 37.
- I've added task guidance for task 36 & 37.
- Rereads count!
- Protagonists and main character are NOT the same thing. All protagonists are main characters but not all main characters are protagonists.
For example: in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, Harry is the protagonist. Harry, Ron & Hermione are main characters. Seamus, Dean, and Neville are minor characters.
Some tasks say protagonist, some say main character so make sure to check!
Kadi wrote: "Amy wrote: "I am so excited!!! 3 1/2 hours until it's the first...for me!! :) Happy reading, team!!"
🎉🎉
What's everyone's first read? There's no rush so take your time guys. And if anyone wants t..."
Just finished book 1 Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH! I had two contenders for #66 (the other is Howl’s Moving Castle, so if I get to that, there's some wiggle room for us later (can move out NIMH and put in Howl's, for example).
Otherwise, I find the tasks difficult! I think I can do the snowy one with (Calico Bush), potentially....
Quick question - do you have a link for task #36? (2019 titles from Middle Grade Madness)? Or a list? :)
Mod
Happy reading, team!!"
🎉🎉
What's everyone's first read? There's no rush so take your time guys. And if a..."
I honestly thought I was making it too easy this year but maybe I made them too hard😞 Some are very specific.
Congrats you're going to be our first point for the team!🎉 I'll put it in task 66 for now. If you want to look around for books that fit all one category that could be interesting but it's totally up to you! If anyone wants recs for specific tasks we can put our heads together and come up with some I'm sure!
Mod
Yeah it's in the task guidance tab. There's a lot of helpful info on that tab so please check it out if you can😊
Kadi wrote: "Capn wrote: "Kadi wrote: "Amy wrote: "I am so excited!!! 3 1/2 hours until it's the first...for me!! :) Happy reading, team!!"
🎉🎉
What's everyone's first read? There's no rush so take your time g..."
I don't think I have any easy sweeps - going to try #47 and others in the sea category now with The Eyes of the Amaryllis - unless anyone has a better plan for that. ;) Just say so! And happy to have my books moved around to benefit the team, no problem!
EDIT: I forgot about Seaward, I Saw Three Ships & The Voyage of QV66!
I'll have a stab at the category "UNCHARTED WATERS", tasks #46 - 50. Sadly no gondola (Venetian boat, right? Not cable car. Either way, I don't have it, I don't think).
Mod
Yeah it's meant to mean the Venetian boat. I didn't know cable cars are also called that!
So for the gondola one I found:
Postcards from Venice
The Thief Lord - I'm pretty sure that's a gondola in the background of the cover. There are other cover designs but this is the only one with a gondola on it
The Mask of Aribella
The Dastardly Deed - but it's book 2
Daughter of Venice
I feel like the last one might suit your tastes the most and it's the oldest one as it's from the early 2000s. Plus it actually sounds pretty good so I've added it to my TBR!
I do like the look of that last one!Okay, let's all hope a sea shanty shows up somewhere! ;)
Middle Grade Madness!
Books mentioned in this topic
El encanto de la oscuridad (other topics)Broken Bones (other topics)
The Witches (other topics)
The Tale of Despereaux (other topics)
The Devil's Arithmetic (other topics)
More...
Authors mentioned in this topic
Eoin Colfer (other topics)Astrid Lindgren (other topics)
Elissa Brent Weissman (other topics)
Cory Leonardo (other topics)
Sharon M. Draper (other topics)
Members:
1. (CAPTAIN) Kadi - Half-Moon Investigations by Eoin Colfer
2. Capn - Ronia, the Robber's Daughter by Astrid Lindgren
3. Amy - The Length of a String by Elissa Brent Weissman
4. Breanne - The Hedgehog of Oz by Cory Leonardo
5. Annie - Out of My Mind by Sharon M. Draper
*Please take note of your assigned numbers, they may be important for some of the tasks*
(Each person’s name is linked to their challenge bookshelf and the book listed beside their name is their mg book recommendation)
The spreadsheet containing all the tasks will be shared with every team member via email invite on August 1st: (countdown: https://www.timeanddate.com/countdown...)
I understand that may make it a bit hard to plan your first few books if you need to borrow them from a library in advance, but the tasks are many and wide enough in criteria that you can read any book at first and easily apply it to a task.