The Seasonal Reading Challenge discussion
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SPRING CHALLENGE 2010
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Spring Challenge 2010 Completed Tasks
I am reposting for 25.1 Future Aspirations. I read "The Jane Austen Book Club by Karen Joy Fowler. I want to open my own home for dogs.
Also I am claiming points for 10.6 Academy Awards. I read Push by Sapphire which is based on the movie Precious.
Tasks Completed 15/27
Books Read 22/57
New Points 220
25.5 - Read 850 pages from TBR list. I read The Fountainhead with 720 pages and The Bluest Eye with 160 pages for a total of 880.
25.9 - Popular when I was in High SchoolI was in High School 1992-1996, I read Through My Eyes by Barbary Delinsky.
My Total - 305
Birish wrote: "25.9 - Popular when I was in High SchoolI was in High School 1992-1996, I read Through My Eyes by Barbary Delinsky.
My Total - 305
"
Oops... I forgot to mention Barbara Delinsky is a **Goodreads Author**!!!
30.4 - DLM Rose's Task - One if by Land, Two if by SeaA: Desert Heat by J.A. Jance
B: The Lake House by James Patterson
5.5 - "Whatever is popular deserves attention."
Dead as a Doornail by Charlaine Harris- 2005
Tasks Completed: 12
Points Earned: 265
Books Read: 16
I just finished Rose Cottage by Mary Stewart for Task 20.9 - Read a Book with the Name of a Cheese in the title. It was a quick, light read. It is an old style gothic mystery, and was thoroughly enjoyable as a light read. I give it 3 stars.Total pages: 240
Total Pages Read: 5104
Total number of books read: 12
Total Number of tasks completed: 8
Total Points: 110
10.1 A Tree Grows in Brooklyn - Betty Smith
155+10=165
155+10=165
Fantasy in Deathby J.D. Robb/Nora Roberts
Task: 15.9--What's in a name?
I would have a funny pen name something like Ima Busybee if I wrote humorous books...I just think it sounds funny!
15 points
20.1 - April Fool's! Listened to Fool by Christopher Moore.
Fool is a hilarious, vulgar, silly spoof on Shakespear's King Lear. Written from the perspective of the King's Jester, Fool. I absolutely LOVE Christopher Moore and this was my favorite thus far! My favorite lines from the book (that were repeated throughout) were "Moi, said I, in perfect f*cking french", and "There's always a bloody ghost"... cracked me up every time! 5*s!
My total - 325
I completed...--25.10: Little Women and Little Women and Werewolves.
I think in most ways, Little Women and Werewolves did live up to the original--of course, that's probably because most of the book IS the text of the original! Though Little Women is beloved for a reason, the mash-up parts here work better than you might expect. The classic will always stand by itself but this retelling was fun.
TOTALS:
POINTS=215
TASKS=10
BOOKS=15 [big books: 1; GoodReads author books: 2]
For 20.1 I read The Purse-Driven Life: It Really Is All About Me by Anita RenfroeAnita Renfroe is a comedian and she has written a very funny book on mid-life issues for women. She pokes fun at husbands, clothing and accessories, obsession with youth, menopause, etc. I enjoyed her humor and felt that the book was a good mix of laughs and truths.
Most memorable chapter title: "You're as Young as You're Ever Gonna Be"
POINTS FOR THIS TASK: 20
Total Points: 415
Tasks Completed: 25
Books by Goodreads authors: 12
Big Books: 1 (500+)
I have read Burning Bridge by John Flanagan for task #5.9. It is the second in the Rangers Apprentice series and was as good as the first.I also read Icebound Land which is book #3 of the Ranger's Apprentice series. I read this one for task #20.6. An orphan boy becomes an apprentice to a member of the Ranger's Corp. The Rangers are experts in archery and tracking and moving silently. Book 3 recounts this boy's trials as a captive of an enemy nation.
That should make me 70 points. (45 + 25) Cynthia, I think you have me down for 40 right now. It should be 45.
5.3 Suite Francaise by Irene Nemirovsky
A few more tasks done...5.6 - May is Asian-Pacific American Heritage Month
To celebrate this month read a novel that takes place in a Asian/Pacific county, that features an Asian/Pacific American character, or written by an Asian/Pacific American author.
For this task I read Mortal Sins by Eileen Wilks. This series has a Chinese-American as one of the main characters.
5.8 -“Mr. Watson, Come Here, I Want To See You.”
Read a book with one of the following words in the title (Phone, Telephone, Cell, Cellular, Call, Calling, Called, Communicate, Communication, Conversation, Talk, Talking, Talked...similar words may be acceptable check with me).
For this task I read They Call Me Death by Missy Jane (Goodreads author)
20.6 - Supporting Goodreads Authors - Bridgit - Favorite Series
Read a book from your favorite series.
For this task I read Dream Warrior by Sherrilyn Kenyon. This is one of my favorite authors. The Dream Hunter series is an off-shoot of the Dark Hunters series. The Dream Hunters were created by the Gods of sleep to watch over and guard the dreams of humans. They also help the Dark Hunters to fight against diamons and other big baddies. This is a paranormal romance series.
30.5 - PJ Reads' Task - As Suggested By Tanja - Six Degrees of Separation
For this task I read Sex, Lies and Vampires by Katie MacAlister (Goodreads author) from my TBR pile. Then I chose to read Burning Alive by Shannon K. Butcher because Katie MacAlister wrote a short story in My Big Fat Supernatural Honeymoon, which Jim Butcher also wrote a short story. Shannon K. Butcher is Jim Butcher's wife. I think that's 3 degrees of separation.
Total Points: 850/980
Books Read: 68
Tasks Completed: 49/57
20.8 - Happy Birthday To You Rachel Lee (March 24th)! - A Magical Birthday -- The Trouble With Magic and A Charmed Death by Madelyn Alt 550 pages totalBooks Read: 38
Pages Read: 11047
Tasks Completed: 26
Tasks in Progress: 3
30.4 - DLM Rose's Task - One if by Land, Two if by Sea: Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson and Haunted Pool by George Sand
Books read: 18
Tasks completed: 14
Total Points: 350
Liz (Bklyn)
20.8 A Magical BirthdayThe Exile Waiting which has about an escape - 236 pages
Hart's Hope which has magic in it - 301 pages.
25.6 This Day in History
There was a major earthquake on my birthday so I read Disaster! The Great San Francisco Earthquake and Fire of 1906 When you take times zones into account, the fire started almost exactly 50 years before I was born. I followed this up with Miracle which is set in contempory San Francisco.
50.1 Luck be a Lady (resubmit)
1st roll 1 - Fantasy or Science Fiction A Midsummer Tempest which is an alternate history about the English Civil War.
2nd roll 5 - Historical Fiction A Splendid Defiance which is also about the English Civil War and shares some characters and situations, satisfying total 6 - both books having some sort of connection.
Finished:25.6 This Day in History: May 27, 1942
The assassination of top Nazi officer Reinhard Heydrich in Poland.
A. An alternate history of that event The Man with the Iron Heart by Harry Turtledove
B. Fiction taken place in 1962/3 of an attempted assassination of French President Charles deGaulle
The Day of the Jackal by Frederick Forsyth (the 1973 movie wasn't bad either.)
Finished 20.1 with
Mennonite in a Little Black Dress by Rhoda Janzen. I *loved* her writing style and deadpan humor. Unfortunately, the book itself didn't have much of a trajectory or else I'd have just plain loved the whole thing. Still, a very fun read that I'd recommend.
For Task 20.1The Sweet Potato Queens' Book of Love by Jill Conner Browne
I loved, loved LOVED this book. It has to be the absolutely-honest-to-God-laugh-till-you-cry-and-pee-your-pants funniest book I have ever read. I could here the Mississippi accent while I was reading it. I was afraid to read it at work during lunch because I would be tempted to read the funny parts out loud and the last thing I need is to be turned into HR (again) for inappropriate humor. I don't want to give anything away but I think EVERY woman should read this.
20.2 - Clean Sweep - I read Organize Yourself. It was a bit outdated despite the 2005 edition updates.Books Read: 24
Pages Read: 8691
Points: 300
Big Book Tickets Claimed: 1 out of 3
Good Reads Author Ticket: 1
Mod
Thanks, Ashley. This was a lot of fun.
Mod
Thanks, Cindie!
5.7 - Developmental Disability - House Rules10.4 - Reduce - The Host, Reuse - from Lost challenge in the winter Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Recycle - loan a friend a book - Sweet Little Lies
Task Points: 5, 10
Total Points: 285
Tasks: 17
Books: 25
Nicki STL
Julie McVey20.5 - 1. The Giving Tree ~ Shel Silverstein (64 pages)
2. Skippyjon Jones ~ Judy Schachner (32)
3. Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day ~ Judith Viorst (32)
4. The Velveteen Rabbit ~ Margery Williams (40)
5. Click Clack Moo: Cows That Type ~ Doreen Cronin (32)
6. The Foot Book ~ Dr. Seuss (24)
7. If You Give a Mouse a Cookie ~ Laura Numeroff (32)
8. Are You My Mother? ~ P.D. Eastman (64)
9. Fox in Socks ~ Dr. Seuss (64)
10. Oh the thinks you can think - Dr. Seuss (48)
11. The Lorax ~ Dr. Seuss (72)
Pages = 504 pages
Total Points = 490 points
Total Books = 31 (not including my children's books!)
Total Pages = 9080 pages
10.8 "I could have gone on flying through space forever."The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams
Enjoyed this more than I thought I would...love it when this challenge makes me find a new book I would have otherwise never picked up!
HiI have just completed the 10.2 task 3/4/5. I read Tasmina Perry's Orginal Sin which was 3.45 but has since gone up to 3.50.
Total points = 215
Kate.x.
Finished 25-4 I read:Women and War Work by Helen Fraser. My middle name is Helen.
and:
Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe.
http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/72...Finished task 10.1: How the West was Won by Louis L'Amour (trees in cover picture, but I couldn't figure out how to get the cover in here)
TOTAL POINTS = 190
Finished:20.5 Read Across America Day:
From the 50 States List I read
A Girl of the Limberlost by Gene Stratton-Porter 479 pp
A Girl from Yamhill by Beverly Cleary 352 pp
and
20.9 A Really Cheesy Task
The Search for the Red Dragon by James A. Owen
If you are going to read this book, I highly recommend you read the first book of the series Here, There Be Dragons beforehand.
There is a cheese called Red Dragon, which I tried last year when they had some at the Whole Foods Store. Since I collect dragons, it seemed a natural to buy--pretty tasty, too.
According to my records, I'm now finished with the Challenge. here is a list of all that I read for it.5.1 Wizard of the Crow by Ngu-gi-wa Thiong'o
5.2 The French Gardener by Santa Montefiori
5.3 The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss
5.4 The German Mujahid by Boualem Sansal
5.5 The Hunt for Red October by Tom Clancy
5.6 Haunting Bombay by Shilpa Agarwal
5.7 The Turtle Catcher by Nicole Lee Helget
5.8 Talking to the Dead by Helen Dunmore
5.9 In Bed with the Duke by Christina Dodd
5.10 Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy
10.1 The Wild Trees by Richard Preston
10.2 The Winter Queen by Jane Stevenson
10.3 South of Broad by Pat Conroy
10.4C The Marriage Ring by Cathy Maxwell
10.5B My Friend the Fanatic by Sadanand Dhume
10.6 The Blind Side by Michael Lewis
10.7 The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher by Kate Summerscale
10.8A Torch of Freedom by David Weber & Eric Flint
10.8B Eyes on the Skies by Govert Schilling
10.9 The Horsemasters by Cynthia Harrod-Eagles
10.10 Turquoise Capris & Peach Daiquiris by Steven Gilbar
15.1A The Deaf-Mute Boy by Joseph Geraci (Tunisia)
15.1B Sister Pelagia and the Black Monk by Boris Akunin (Georgia)
15.2A Flying Too High by Kerry Greenwood
15.2B The Guns of August by Barbara Wertheim Tuchman
15.3 Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry
15.4A Those Remarkable Cunards: Emerald and Nancy by Daphne Fielding
15.4B Profiles in Courage by John F. Kennedy
15.5 While We've Still Got Feet by David Budbill
Hold it more closely,
This little cocoon of thought...
Butterfly of reading.
15.6A Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert
15.6B The Irrational Season by Madeleine L'Engle
15.7 Unholy Business:A True Story of Faith, Greed and Forgery by Nina Burleigh
15.8 Caravaggio: A Novel by Christopher Peachment
John the Baptist in the Nelson Atkins Museum, KC
15.9 Amaryllis by Jayne Castle/Jane Ann Krentz
15.10 This Time Together: Laughter and Refections by Carol Burnett
A sense of humore helps make life more livable
20.1 Must Love Dogs by Claire Cook
20.2A Maid for Murder by Barbara Colley
20.3 Kissing Doorknobs by Terry Spencer Hesser YA
20.4B Middling Folk: Three Seas, Three Centuries, One Scots-Irish Family by Linda H. Matthews
20.4D Trails, Rails, and Tales: Olathe's First 150 Years by George R. Bauer
20.5 A Girl of the Limberlost by Gene Stratton-Porter
20.5 A Girl from Yamhill by Beverly Cleary
From NEA's 50 States List
20.6 Delectable Mountains by Earlene Fowler
20.7 All About Love by Stephanie Laurens
20.8 The Enchantment Emporium by Tanya Huff 304 pp
Storm Rising by Mercedes Lackey 384 pp
20.9 The Search for the Red Dragon by James A. Owen YA
20.10 The Golden Compass by Philip Pullman
25.1 Tomato Rhapsody by Adam Schell
I want to get a vine ripe warm tomato off my plants
25.2A If Morning Ever Comes by Ann Tyler
25.2B The Tin Can Tree
25.3 Anonymous Rex by Eric Garcia
25.4A Murder with Puffins by Donna Andrews
25.4B The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot
25.5 A Perfect Red by Amy Butler Greenfield 338 pp
25.5 The Happiness Project by Gretchen Rubin 301 pp
25.5 Storm Glass by Maria V. Snyder 488 pp YA
25.6A The Man with the Iron Heart by Harry Turtledove
25.6B The Day of the Jackal by Frederick Forsyth
May 27, 1942 The assassination of Nazi commander Reinhard Heydrich
25.7 Book of the Gods, Part One by Fred Saberhagen
25.8A Beautiful Joe by Marshall Saunders Juv
25.8B Wolf and Iron by Gordon R. Dickerson
25.9 The Spy Who Came in from the Cold by John le Carre
25.10A Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell
25.10B Rhett Butler's People by Donald McCaig
30.1A Prairie Spring by Pete Dunne
30.1B The Bookwoman's Last Fling by Jon Dunning
30.2A The Hound of Rowan by Henry Neff Juv
30.2B The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate YA
30.3A The Secret Life of Emily Dickinson by Jerome Charyn
30.3B Only the Nail Remain: Scenes from the Balkan Wars by Christopher Merrill
30.4A Fire on the Plateau by Charles F. Wilkinson
30.4B The Golden Ocean by Patrick O'Brian
30.5A Arabella by Georgette Heyer
30.5B Where There's a Will by John Mortimer
30.6A The Butcher and the Vegetarian by Tara Austen Weaver
30.6B The Omnivore's Dilemma by Michael Pollen
50 Rolled a 3 and a 5, so one needed to be an award winner
Romance Oh. My. Gods. by Tera Lynn Childs which won 2009 RITA Best First Novel Award
Historical Fiction The Emerald Swan by Jane Feather
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Congratulations, Donna Jo!! What an accomplishment!
10.4 - Reduce, Reuse, RecycleReuse - 50 pt task in 2009 Summer Challenge
Everything I Needed to Know about Being a Girl I Learned from Judy Blume by Jennifer O'Connell
10.7 - Beware the Ides of March
In Cold Blood by Truman Capote
Total Points = 410
I finished task 10.5 and read The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest by Stieg Larsson. There are several journalists in this book, and one of them is the main character. I gave it 4 stars because it was really good but my favorite book in the trilogy is definitely the first one.This book had +500 pages (709 to be exact).
Books Read: 3
Tasks Completed: 3
Pages Read: 1402
Total Points: 45
Hi...5.9- Dead and Gone by Charlaine Harris
Total points: 5/980 (oh my)
Books Read: 1 (Till I take a look and see what other categories I can finish)
Tasks Completed: 1
Tasks in Progress: many
From Owned: Yes
Completed: 5.2 The Vegetable Gardener's Bible: Discover Ed's High-Yield W-O-R-D System for All North American Gardening Regions by Ed Smith. I love this book.Total Points: 10/980
Books Read: 2
Tasks Completed: 2
Tasks in Progress: so many lol
From Owned TBR: 2
20.6-In the Belly of the Bloodhound: Being an Account of a Particularly Peculiar Adventure in the Life of Jacky Faber by L. A. Meyer. This series is about a young girl named Jacky who finds herself in the midst of adventures that range from captaining a ship to pirating to rescuing Mrs. Peabody's girls from slavery (as well as herself). In pursuit of her love Jaimy and her desire to operate her own business, she finds that trouble is always getting in her way.
Total Points: 30/980
Books Read: 3
Tasks Completed: 3
Tasks In Progress: Many
From Owned: 3
redacted; update posted
First of all congrats to all who completed the challenge! 20.4 - Always The Bridesmaid, Never The Bride - Heidi - Our Histories
I read High Five by Janet Evanovich which takes place in Trenton, NJ. I was born and raised there. 4* I love these books!
I also read The Heretic's Daughter by Kathleen Kent for the family saga part of the task. 3*
Total Points: 380
Tasks Completed: 17
Books Read: 22
Pages Read: 9,736
Tasks in Process: 5.4, 10.6, 25.3, 30.3
Great job Donna Jo (and everyone else who has recently completed the challenge!Continuing on my way...
Just completed task 25.4. I read Man Walks Into a Room by Nicole Krauss (we share the same first name, as you can see) and The Late, Lamented Molly Marx (book with a character name in the title). Both were good, solid four stars books for me.
Tasks Completed: 43/57
Books Read: 61
Pages Read: 18,569
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Finished another one.10.7 The Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair that Changed America
15.10 Hearing God's Voice
180/980
I haven't updated my total lately and I still have several books to assign after this, but here is an update...50 point midway task
I rolled a 1 = Fantasy or Fiction: The Girl Who Chased the Moon (Goodreads author)
and a 2 = Nonfiction: The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin
These add to 3, so one of the books must come from the library, which was The Girl Who Chased the Moon.
This brings my to 280 points.
Congratulations to all that have completed the challenge! That is something that I don't think I will ever be able to do...
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Shelley wrote: "Congratulations to all that have completed the challenge! That is something that I don't think I will ever be able to do... "But Shelley, are you having fun with it anyway?
25.7 The Gods Must be Crazy I read Rick Riordans "The Lightening Thief" new points: 25
total points: 75
I completed task 30.5 by reading Cry, the Beloved Country and The Beautiful and DamnedHere is the connection: Fitzgerald's editor was William Maxwell Evarts Perkins who was also the editor for Thomas Wolfe and Alan Paton (He helped publish Cry, the Beloved country.
Both were good reads, especially Cry, the Beloved Country
I also completed task 20.7 by reading Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, I desperately need to clean the old school stuff out of my office. Harry potter is about a boarding school. (incedentely I could also use some magic to help me clean up!!)
Books Read: 27
Pages Read: 10094
Points: 350
Big Book Tickets Claimed: 1 out of 3
Good Reads Author Ticket: 1
10 points10.4 Reuse: To Desire A Devil - Elizabeth Hoyt*
15 points
15.3 The Hunger Games - Suzanne Collins
20 points
20.2 To Beguile A Beast - Elizabeth Hoyt*
20.6 Catching Fire - Suzanne Collins
A new favorite series to be sure, starting with the Hunger Games this series has taken me out of the world of now and into a horrific future where people just accept their oppression and exploitation by the Capital. Every year they force children to compete in a fight to the death, the Hunger Games. These books (once you get over the ridiculous names) are super gripping and full of interesting plots and characters.
20.10 The Handmaid's Tale - Margaret Atwood
25 points
25.3 The Red Tent - Anita Diamant
25.4 Brighter Than the Sun - Julia Quinn
Angela's Ashes - Frank McCourt
25.8 The Art of Racing in the Rain - Garth Stein*
To Seduce A Sinner - Elizabeth Hoyt*
50 points
3. (Romance) In Bed with the Duke - Christina Dodd
+6 (short stories) Scottish Brides - Christina Dodd, Julia Quinn, Stephanie Laurens and Karen Ranney
Totals
Points: 210
Books: 12
Challenges: 9
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The Seasonal Reading Challenge
Books mentioned in this topic
Frankenstein (other topics)Chelsea Chelsea Bang Bang (other topics)
Loving Frank (other topics)
Maus II: A Survivor's Tale: And Here My Troubles Began (other topics)
Committed: A Skeptic Makes Peace with Marriage (other topics)
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Authors mentioned in this topic
Nancy Horan (other topics)Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley (other topics)
Elizabeth Gilbert (other topics)
Chelsea Handler (other topics)
Eric Puchner (other topics)
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Also, I finished task 10.6 by reading Push by Sapphire.
Tasks Completed 15/27
Books Read 22/57
Total Points: 220