Anne Finds Joy in the ABCs

[Anne ✨]

Year Long Challenge 2025 Folder

Main Challenge Thread

Additional Badges Thread

[Anne ✨]

BADGE 1 COMPLETE 15/15
B - Books about books The Bookshop Book
C - Childhood The Curse of Pietro Houdini
D - Dogs The Underdogs of Upson Downs
F - Fantasy, Legends & Lattes
G - Ghosts The Dead Romantics
H - History The Frozen River
L - Love The Best of Us
M - Mythology The Shadowed Land
N - Nature Wild Dark Shore
P - Pirates Tress of the Emerald Sea
R - Religion Good Soil: The Education of an Accidental Farmhand
S - Survival The Way of the Hermit: My 40 years in the Scottish Wilderness
T - True Crime Framed: Astonishing True Stories of Wrongful Convictions
V - Villainy Vicious
W - Women Brooke Shields Is Not Allowed to Get Old: Thoughts on Aging as a Woman

[Anne ✨]

Badge 2 BOOK TITLES - Tracking
Status 22/25
A- Annie Bot
B- The Black Loch
C- The Chessmen
D- Dear Life: A Doctor's Story of Love and Loss
E- Exit
F- The Final Curtain
G- Grateful American: A Journey from Self to Service
H- Heartwood
I - The Invisible Kingdom: Reimagining Chronic Illness
J- James
K - Kindness Goes Unpunished
L- The Lewis Man
M- My Friends
N- No Time To Spare: Thinking About What Matters
O- Opal: DS Walker, Book 3
P- Paradise
Q- The Quiet Librarian
T- The Tenant
U - The Unquiet Grave
W- Waypoints: My Scottish Journey
Y-Yours Truly
Z- Zconomy: How Gen Z Will Change the Future of Business—and What to Do About It

====

READING/UP NEXT

PLANNING - Book Titles
S- The Sentence (owned HC) OR The Society of Unknowable Objects
V- A Very Punchable Face - audio libby (hold placed)
R- Rabbit Moon (audio libby - hold placed)

[Anne ✨]

1. Badge 1, Book 1
2. Task F - Fantasy
3. Link – Legends & Lattes
4. Audiobook, 7hr 19mins.
5. Read a book with a theme of Fantasy
6. Cozy fantasy story - characters include orcs, hobs, gnomes. The main character (female Orc Viv) opens up a coffee shop selling lattees and baked goods :)

⭐ ⭐ ⭐ 1/2

[Janice, Moderator]

And she's away! Good job. :)

[Anne ✨]

Janice wrote: "And she's away! Good job. :)"
The start of the YLTO Challenge each January is a much anticipated joyous occasion! Thankyou so much for orchestrating yet another fantastically fun challenge, and happy reading!

[Janice, Moderator]

I hope you enjoy it Anne. I look forward to seeing what books you come up with.

[Anne ✨]

1. Badge 1, Book 2
2. Task H - History
3. Link - The Frozen River
4. Audiobook, 15hr, 5mins
5. Read a book with a theme of history.
6. This story is inspired by the life and diary of Martha Ballard, a renowned 18th-century midwife, in Maine, USA

⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ 1/2

[Anne ✨]

1. Badge 1, Book 3
2. Task W - Women
3. Link - Brooke Shields Is Not Allowed to Get Old: Thoughts on Aging as a Woman
4. Audiobook, 9hr, 1mins
5. Read a book with a theme of women.
6. Brooke's memoir focuses women and aging. She's 59, the same age as me :) I found it very inspiring!

⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ 1/2

[Anne ✨]

Update 2/20/25 - Changing this book to Theme of Love. More dominant theme.The story focuses on the love between two people, their struggles, and how their love endures through various life challenges. New post below

1. Badge 1, Book 4
2. Task S - Survival
3. Link - The Best of Us
4. Audiobook, 12hrs, 36mins
5. Read a book with a theme of survival.
6. Main part of this memoir is author's husband battling pancreatic cancer, the lengthy and agonizing efforts trying to beat the odds and survive. It was heart-renching, and in the end he did not survive it, dying after a 19month battle.

⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐

[Janice, Moderator]

Anne ✨ wrote: "1. Badge 1, Book 3
2. Task W - Women
3. Link - Brooke Shields Is Not Allowed to Get Old: Thoughts on Aging as a Woman
4. Audiobook, 9hr, 1mins
5. Read a book with a theme of women...."

This one does sound good. I watched a netflix movie a couple of movies with her in it. I think It was called Mother of the Bride.

[Anne ✨]

Janice wrote: "Anne ✨ wrote: "1. Badge 1, Book 3
2. Task W - Women
3. Link - Brooke Shields Is Not Allowed to Get Old: Thoughts on Aging as a Woman
4. Audiobook, 9hr, 1mins
5. Read a book with a ..."

OOh i will look for that movie. I watchd a Netflix documentary about her titled "Pretty Baby" which was insightful. I hadn't known much about her life, she's had a lot of struggles behind all the fame!

Hope you get this memoir, and enjoy it too! She narrates the audio herself of course! And she's got a great comedic take on her life too, so it's entertaining.

[Janice, Moderator]

I've added it to my wishlist.

[Anne ✨]

1. Badge 1, Book 5
2. Task M - Mythology
3. Link - The Shadowed Land
4. Audiobook , 11hrs 48mins
5. Read a book with theme of mythology
6. 3rd book in series with tales of 6th century Scotland. Main character is Queen Languoreth, twin sister to Lailoken who inspired the legendary character of Merlin.

⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐
I've really enjoyed this series! Detailed Scottish history/myths brought to life through richly drawn characters and engaging storylines! Audio narration is excllent. Happy to learn there will now be a fourth after this!

[Anne ✨]

1. Badge 1, Book 6
2. Task P - Pirates
3. Link - Tress of the Emerald Sea
4. Audiobook, 12hr 47mins
5. Read a book with a theme of Pirates
6. A fairy-tale'sh fantasy story with a young girl who joins a crew of a Pirate's ship "The Crow's Song". Tales of adventure on the high seas.

⭐ ⭐ ⭐
Brandon Sanderson knows how to write fantasy! I found this one a bit slow/disjointed though.. I liked it well enough but didn't love it...

[Janice, Moderator]

The Lost Queen series sounds like it should be in my wishlist.

[Anne ✨]

Janice wrote: "The Lost Queen series sounds like it should be in my wishlist."

Indeed I imagine it should :) ! I remember being riveted through book 1, and immediately dove right into book 2. I gave both of them 5* You're in for a treat!

[Janice, Moderator]

Definitely in my wishlist, and my audiobook wishlist.

[Anne ✨]

Hi Janice,

Can you record a change of theme for my Book 4 entry? - I'd like to change the theme to Love. As I reflected further I felt that Love was really the over-arching theme for this memoir. While it does also have a theme of surviving illness.. I think I can find a better selection with a more dominant theme for Survival. I checked Chat GPT and it validated my thinking.
THANK YOU!

1. Badge 1, Book 4
2. Task S - Survival L - Love
3. Link - The Best of Us
4. Audiobook, 12hrs, 36mins
5. Read a book with a theme of survival.Love
6. Main part of this memoir is author's husband battling pancreatic cancer, the lengthy and agonizing efforts trying to beat the odds and survive. It was heart-renching, and in the end he did not survive it, dying after a 19month battle.
6. The story focuses on the love between two people, their struggles, and how their love endures through various life challenges.

⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐

[Janice, Moderator]

Done. I rely on ChatGPT for that too, but sometimes it gets a bit confused. I've found quite a few errors.

[Anne ✨]

1. Badge 1, Book 7
2. Task G - Ghosts
3. Link - The Dead Romantics
4. Audiobook, 10hrs 24mins
5. Read a book with a theme of Ghosts
6. The main character Florence can see and communicate with ghosts, and there's a romance storyline when she falls in love with one.

⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐

[Anne ✨]

1. Badge 1, Book 8
2. Task C - Childhood
3. Link - The Curse of Pietro Houdini
4. Audiobook, 11hrs, 23 mins
5. Read a book with a theme of childhood.
6. Story centers around a 14year old named Massimo, during WWII, who is taken in at a Benedictine Abbey after parents are killed. It's a coming-of-age story, with a coloful cast of characters, and a poignant storyline.

⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐⭐

Very original! It's my second book by this author, and I'm a fan! Excellent audio narration of multiple characters, different genders/ages/language accents etc..

[Anne ✨]

1. Badge 1, Book 9
2. Task S - Survival
3. Link - The Way of the Hermit: My 40 years in the Scottish Wilderness
4. Audiobook, 9hrs, 49mins
5. Read a book with a theme of survival
6. Memoir of a man who spent 40 years living alone off the grid, in a log cabin in Scottish Highlands. He learned how to survive through harsh conditions, a fire, and the wildlife. He survived a lot of health issues in his life, from brain injury to cancer. He's 75 now and still living in his cabin, but with a bit more outside help.

⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐

[Janice, Moderator]

Since we're talking about Scotland that one sounds very interesting.

[Anne ✨]

Janice wrote: "Since we're talking about Scotland that one sounds very interesting." It was! A nice blend of memoir/life story and respect for nature - definitely not an easy life to live like that!

[Anne ✨]

1. Badge 1, Book 10
2. Task V - Villainy
3. Link - Vicious
4. Audiobook,9hrs 23mins
5. Read a book with a theme of villainy
6. Story has two main characters who are "morally gray", so it's not clear at first who's the real villain. It's an engaging and clever storyline. The book shows up on many curated 'Villain' booklists!

I'd wanted to listen to this book for years, but the reviews of original audio narration had been critical, so I waited. It seems it was re-recorded in 2022 by Jeremy Arthur and the new narration is excellent!

⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐

[Janice, Moderator]

It's been so long since I read that book that I've forgotten most of it, but I do recall enjoying it quite a bit.

[Anne ✨]

1. Badge 1, Book 11
2. Task T - True Crime
3. Link - Framed: Astonishing True Stories of Wrongful Convictions
4. Audiobook, 13hr,55mins
5. Read a book with a theme of True Crime
6. The authors share stories of wrongful convictions of innocent people due to racism, misconduct, flawed testimony... etc.

⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐

Astonishing to grasp how much this actually happens(ed) in the U.S justice system. ....wrongly accused, convicted, and jailed for crimes they did not commit.

[Janice, Moderator]

Scary to think that happens.

[Anne ✨]

1. Badge 1, Book 12
2. Task D - Dogs
3. Link - The Underdogs of Upson Downs
4. Audiobook, 6hr, 15min
5. Read a book with a theme of Dogs
6. Sweet middle school story about a young girl who adopts a stray dog named Runt, and she enters an agility competition with him to earn the prize money for her family.

This was a heartwarming story, and I loved the Australian setting and narrator's accent. Fun characters, good message, story had a lot of depth to it. Going on my 'favorite children's stories' list :)

⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐⭐

[Anne ✨]

1. Badge 1, Book 13
2. Task N - Nature
3. Link - Wild Dark Shore
4. Audiobook, 9hrs, 35mins
5. Read a book with a theme of Nature
6. The story is set on a sub-Antarctic island (inspired by the real Macquerie Island). The story was FULL of nature!! From seals, penguins, albatross to rising sea levels, to stormy weather, menacing ocean waves, isolated island habitat, and much more!

⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐⭐
I adore this author! Nature is a main theme in her books, a character itself, and she writes so well, bringing it to life! This one was dark, moody, and the mystery element was well done too.. I could not put it down!

[Janice, Moderator]

I've been eyeing this book. It looks so good. I enjoyed Once There Were Wolves.

[Anne ✨]

Janice wrote: "I've been eyeing this book. It looks so good. I enjoyed Once There Were Wolves."

I want to read that one! Love that it's the Scottish highlands too !

[Anne ✨]

1. Badge 1, Book 14
2. Task R - Religion
3. Link - Good Soil: The Education of an Accidental Farmhand
4. Audiobook, 9hrs, 11mins
5. Read a book with a theme of Religion
6. Author is a pastor, this is a memoir of his time spent at Princeton Theological Seminary’s “Farminary”, where he explores connections between soil / earth / producing food to life, faith, human connections etc.

⭐ ⭐⭐

[Anne ✨]

1. Badge 1, Book 15
2. Task B - Books about books
3. Link - The Bookshop Book
4. Hardcover , 263 pages
5. Read a book with a theme of books
6. The book higlights three hundred "weirdly wonderful" bookshops across six continents, as well as bookish triva, and snippets from well know authors on their bookshop experiences.

⭐ ⭐⭐⭐⭐
This book is a fabulous collection of unique/famed bookstores across the world, along with book trivia and author experiences. The print book has lovely color photos of some of the bookstores featured. I took it out of the library; now I want to own this book to be able to refer back to it, and the index of featured bookstores at the back is a ready-made bucket list!

An excellent final read to complete the challenge!

[Janice, Moderator]

Congrats on earning Badge 1! Great that you ended it with a 5 star read. :)

[Anne ✨]

Janice wrote: "Congrats on earning Badge 1! Great that you ended it with a 5 star read. :)"

Thanks Janice! I've had a good run of highly enjoyable reads this badge! Hope I can continue that trend in badge 2 :)

[Anne ✨]

BADGE 2 BEGINS :)
List Two - Titles. Read books alphabetically by Title

1. Badge 2, Book 1
2. Titles; Task Letter A
3. Link - Annie Bot
4. Audiobook, 9hrs 31mins
5. Book Title starts with letter 'A'
6. "Annie" starts with A

⭐⭐⭐⭐
A sci-fi story that explores the notion of AI sex robots. Well thought out, was a uncomfortable at times to imagine, but was keen insight on questions of what makes us human ; what makes us real ; who or what deserves free will? The story also points to important women's issues: consent, emotional abuse, and relationship power imbalances.

[Janice, Moderator]

4 stars is a good start to badge 2.

[Anne ✨]

1. Badge 2, Book 2
2. Titles, Task Letter L
3. Link - The Lewis Man
4. Audiobook - 11hrs
5. Book Title starts with Letter 'L'
6. "Lewis" starts with L

⭐⭐⭐⭐
Really enjoying this scottish mystery series. Richly imagined story, complex character development and vivid scenic backdrop. Super audio narration too.

So happy I saw this on your page, Janice, it's been great! Yet another satisfying 4* read hahahaha still on a roll!!

[Janice, Moderator]

I'm planning to read the final book in the series The Black Loch next month.

His first book in the Enzo Files Extraordinary People in on sale in Audible this month. I'm going to get it. My friend is reading the Enzo Files and really enjoying them.

[Anne ✨]

Janice wrote: "I'm planning to read the final book in the series The Black Loch next month.

His first book in the Enzo Files Extraordinary People in on sale in Audible this month...."

Ooh YES!!! thanks for the tip! I'd definitely read more of his works, and it's the same narrator too , and the sale price is perfect! Definitely gonna grab that! :)

[Anne ✨]

1.Badge 2, Book 3
2. Titles,Task Letter C
3. Link - The Chessmen
4. Audiobook, 10hrs
5. Book title starts with "C"
6. "Chessman"

⭐⭐⭐1/2
Another good one in the series

Agree with you Janice, I too thought the Lewis Man was a bit more enjoyable, but this was still solid, and I'll happily continue on with #4

[Anne ✨]

1. Badge 2, Book 4
2. Titles, Task Letter M
3. Link - My Friends
4. Audiobook, 13hr 7mins
5. Book titl starts with "M"
6. "My"

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
One of my most favorite authors, and this one might just be my most favorite of his works! I adored it!!! And of course the pairing of his writing with Marin Ireland audio narration is perfection!
:)

[Janice, Moderator]

I'm going to be reading 2 of his books when I start badge 3, authors. I enjoy his books as well.

[Anne ✨]

Janice wrote: "I'm going to be reading 2 of his books when I start badge 3, authors. I enjoy his books as well."

What a treat to have 2 to read! ENJOY!!!

[Anne ✨]

1. Badge 2, Book 5
2. Titles , Task Letter J
3. Link - James
4. Audiobook, 7hr 49mins
5. Book title starts with J
6. "James"

⭐⭐⭐1/2
It's a well-written, clever book.. Slow to start, then held my attention. Overall, though, I just didn't love reading it.

[Anne ✨]

1. Badge 2, Book 6
2. Titles, Task Letter W
3. Link- Waypoints: My Scottish Journey
4. Audiobook, 7hr, 47mins
5. Book starts with "W"
6. "Waypoints"

⭐⭐⭐1/2
Entertaining peek into Sam Heughan the actor, (Jamie Fraser on Outlander). He's youthful, honest, good sense of humor, and loves his scotch/whiskey! The book intersperses narrative on his doing a trek in the Highlands, with a memoir of his path to fame in acting.

[Anne ✨]

1. Badge 2, Book 7
2. Titles, Task Letter Z
3. Link - Zconomy: How Gen Z Will Change the Future of Business—and What to Do About It
4. Audiobook, 9hrs, 28mins
5. Book starts with "Z"
6. "Zconomy"

⭐⭐⭐
Well, my 2 sons are Gen Z, so thought I'd read this for insights... there were a few interesting datapoints from surveys they'd done, but overall, this book is geared towards companies hiring Gen Z, to understand the overall culture. It was just an ok read, not memorable or useful for me.

Happy to get letter Z out of the way ha! :o

[Anne ✨]

1. Badge 2, Book 8
2. Titles, Task B
3. Link - The Black Loch
4. Audiobook, 11hrs 29mins
5. Book starts with "B"
6. "Black"

⭐⭐⭐⭐1/2
Enjoyable finish to the series! Characters and storyline were better in this one!