2012 Summer Reading Challenge

[Jackie]

Jackie wrote: "Jackie wrote: "OK. Here is my list:
V-Cankered Root (G.G. Vandagriff)COMPLETED THANK GOODNESS
E-Eye of the World (Robert Jordan) IN PROGRESS
R-The Happiness Project (Gretchen Craft Rubin)COMPLETED
..."

Jackie wrote: "Jackie wrote: "OK. Here is my list:
V-Cankered Root (G.G. Vandagriff)COMPLETED THANK GOODNESS
E-Eye of the World (Robert Jordan) IN PROGRESS
R-The Happiness Project (Gretchen Craft Rubin)COMPLETED
..."

Jackie wrote: "OK. Here is my list:
V-Cankered Root (G.G. Vandagriff)FINISHED THANK GOODNESS
E-Eye of the World (Robert Jordan) IN PROGRESS
R-The Happiness Project (Gretchen Craft Rubin)COMPLETED
S-The Small Adventures of Popeye and Elv..."FINISHED

[Jackie]

Jackie wrote: "OK. Here is my list:
V-Cankered Root (G.G. Vandagriff)COMPLETED THANK GOODNESS
E-Eye of the World (Robert Jordan) IN PROGRESS
R-The Happiness Project (Gretchen Craft Rubin)COMPLETED
S-The Small Adv..."

[Debbie]

Another book completed for the 2nd expansion challenge. I'm finding it humorous that I'm reading all these additional books and I've not yet finished the original challenge list. It's a HUGE book and I'm glad the library allows 3 renewals. I may need them all!

E - Nine Days to Christmas by Marie Hall Ets and Aurora Labastida -- Completed 7/10
X -The Xanadu adventure by Lloyd Alexander
P - Pedro, the Angel of Olvera Street by Leo Politi -- Completed 7/22
A - Ashanti to Zulu: African Traditions by Leo & Diane Dillo and Margaret Musgrove -- Completed 7/10
N - Nine Days to Christmas by Marie Hall Ets and Aurora Labastida -- Completed 7/10
D - Dragon Reborn by Robert Jordan -- In Progress

Y - Hey, Al by Arthur Yorinks
O - One Fine Day by Nonny Hogrogian -- Completed 7/16
U - Crictor by Tomi Ungerer
R - May I Bring a Friend? by Beatrice Schenk de Regniers and Beni Montresor -- Completed 6/30

U - The Upstairs Room by Johanna Reiss -- Completed 6/23
N - Nothing At All by Wanda Gág -- Completed 6
I - In the Night Kitchen by Maurice Sendak -- Completed 6/19
V - Visit from the Goon Squad by Jennifer Egan -- Completed 6/16
E - Eye of the World by Robert Jordan -- Completed 6/2
R - The Road by Cormac McCarthy -- Completed 6/6
S - Silmarillion by J.R.R. Tolkien -- Completed 6/12
E - Edge of Sadness by Edwin O'Connor -- In Progress

[Greg]

Update:



E - Empires of Light: Edison, Tesla, Westinghouse, and the race to electrify the world by Jill Jonnes (In Progress)
X - Agent X by Noah Boyd (In Progress) (fudged a little on this one)
P - Partner in Crime by J.A. Jance Complete 7-14
A - All's Well That Ends Well by William Shakespeare Complete 7-5
N - A Nation Like No Other: Why American Exceptionalism Matters by Newt Gingrich Complete 7-14
D - Debt of Honor by Tom Clancy Complete 7-23

Y - You, Inc.: The Art of Selling Yourself by Harry and Christine Clifford Beckwith Complete 7-12
O - Othello by William Shakespeare Complete 7-7
U - The Unseen by Heather Graham (waiting for delivery)
R - River God by Wilbur Smith (In Progress)

U - The Undaunted: the miracle of the hole-in-the-rock pioneers by Gerald N. Lund Complete 6-14
N - Nelson Mandela's Favorite African Folktales by Nelson Mandela Complete 6-9
I - The Illustrated Man by Ray Bradbury Complete 6-18
V - Valkyrie by Philipp Freiherr von Boeselager Complete 6-9
E - The Endurance: Shackleton's Legendary Antarctic Expedition by Caroline Alexander Complete 6-10
R - Ready Player One by Ernest Cline Complete 6-15
S - Shadows in Flight by Orson Scott Card Complete 6-18
E - Eddie Fantastic by Chris Heimerdinger Complete 6-19

[Carolyn]

U- Ursu, Anne- Breadcrumbs (Finished)
N- ?
I- Infinite Sacrifice- L.E Waters (In Process)
V- The Voynich Ciper, Russell Blake (done)
E- Eight Weeks to Optimal Health, Dr. Andrew Weil (done)
R- Rice, Anne- Christ the Lord (Done)
S- Soul Surfer, Bethany Hamilton (finished)
E- Epperson, Deborah- Breaking Twig (Finished)

[Myra]

I found the right combination on my to-read shelves:


Velde, Vivian Vande : Heir Apparent
Epic : Kostick, Conor
Reimann, Katya : Wind from a Foreign Sky
Scalzi, John : Old Man's War
Erasmus : In Praise of Folly

Let's see if I can get these all read!

[Ann]

JoAnn wrote: "I'm also almost finished with Candide by Voltaire (for "V"). It been a love-hate experience. It's definitely not what I expected, although exactly what I DID expect, I'm not sure."

I remember having a very similar reaction to it when I read it several years ago, though by the end I was ready to be done. Parts were truly amusing, but others were ridiculous to the point of being infuriating. I know it was meant to be a satire but by the time I got to the conclusion his point felt rather stale.

[Debbie]

My latest update, some forward movement in the last book for "Verse"

E - Nine Days to Christmas by Marie Hall Ets and Aurora Labastida -- Completed 7/10
X -The Xanadu adventure by Lloyd Alexander
P - Pedro, the Angel of Olvera Street by Leo Politi -- Completed 7/22
A - Ashanti to Zulu: African Traditions by Leo & Diane Dillo and Margaret Musgrove -- Completed 7/10
N - Nine Days to Christmas by Marie Hall Ets and Aurora Labastida -- Completed 7/10
D - Dragon Reborn by Robert Jordan -- Completed 7/25

Y - Hey, Al by Arthur Yorinks -- Completed 7/24
O - One Fine Day by Nonny Hogrogian -- Completed 7/16
U - Crictor by Tomi Ungerer -- Completed 7/23
R - May I Bring a Friend? by Beatrice Schenk de Regniers and Beni Montresor -- Completed 6/30

U - The Upstairs Room by Johanna Reiss -- Completed 6/23
N - Nothing At All by Wanda Gág -- Completed 6
I - In the Night Kitchen by Maurice Sendak -- Completed 6/19
V - Visit from the Goon Squad by Jennifer Egan -- Completed 6/16
E - Eye of the World by Robert Jordan -- Completed 6/2
R - The Road by Cormac McCarthy -- Completed 6/6
S - Silmarillion by J.R.R. Tolkien -- Completed 6/12
E - Edge of Sadness by Edwin O'Connor -- In Progress

[Jackie]

Finished with the challenge if I change my "E" book to Eleanor and Park" by Rainbow Rowell. I am listening to "Eye of the World" on CD, but it's a huge book, so I may give up.

[Jana]

Finally finished Villette. It was wonderful, but took a long time. I love Charlotte Bronte's writing. Here is the update.

V - Villette - Completed
E - Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close - Completed
R - Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry
S - The Snow Child - In progress
E - Elephants Can Remember

[Debbie]

Congrads, Jana, on finishing the core challenge!

I, too, am changing my last "E" book. Edge of Sadness is a good book, but huge -- and not available on audio Instead, I'll be reading Earth Unaware, the new Orson Scott Card's first prequel novel to the Ender series. After all, my copy is from the library and the waiting list will preclude any renewal. So I have to finish it first anyway, so why not use it?

[Greg]

Instead, I'll be reading Earth Unaware..."

I'm changing my E to the same book. I got it yesterday, and I do audio much faster than print, so...

[Greg]

Update:



E - Earth Unaware by Orson Scott Card (In Progress)
X - Agent X by Noah Boyd Complete 7-24 (fudged a little on this one)
P - Partner in Crime by J.A. Jance Complete 7-14
A - All's Well That Ends Well by William Shakespeare Complete 7-5
N - A Nation Like No Other: Why American Exceptionalism Matters by Newt Gingrich Complete 7-14
D - Debt of Honor by Tom Clancy Complete 7-23

Y - You, Inc.: The Art of Selling Yourself by Harry and Christine Clifford Beckwith Complete 7-12
O - Othello by William Shakespeare Complete 7-7
U - The Unseen by Heather Graham (waiting for delivery)
R - River God by Wilbur Smith Complete 8-1

U - The Undaunted: the miracle of the hole-in-the-rock pioneers by Gerald N. Lund Complete 6-14
N - Nelson Mandela's Favorite African Folktales by Nelson Mandela Complete 6-9
I - The Illustrated Man by Ray Bradbury Complete 6-18
V - Valkyrie by Philipp Freiherr von Boeselager Complete 6-9
E - The Endurance: Shackleton's Legendary Antarctic Expedition by Caroline Alexander Complete 6-10
R - Ready Player One by Ernest Cline Complete 6-15
S - Shadows in Flight by Orson Scott Card Complete 6-18
E - Eddie Fantastic by Chris Heimerdinger Complete 6-19

[Ann]

Way to go everyone! I know we're all readers, but everyone is really tearing up this challenge.

For those of you that joined partway through, or still have remaining books to fill in our 'verse challenge, don't worry too much. We still have a month left.

[Becky]

Here is my August update:

U--The Uninvited Guests by Sadie Jones, not started
N--Trapped by Michael Northrop, not started
I--The Snow Child by Eowyn Ivey, complete
V--Slaughterhouse Five by Kurt Vonnegut, complete
E--What We Talk About When We Talk About Anne Frank by Nathan Englander, complete
R--Insurgent by Veronica Roth, complete
S--Sacre Bleu by Christopher Moore, complete
E--Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell, complete

[Jackie]

OK. Here is my list:
V-Cankered Root (G.G. Vandagriff)COMPLETED THANK GOODNESS
E-Eye of the World (Robert Jordan) COMPLETED
R-The Happiness Project (Gretchen Craft Rubin)COMPLETED
S-The Small Adventures of Popeye and Elvis (Barbara O'Conner)COMPLETED
E-Elijah of Buxton (Christopher Paul Curtis) COMPLETED
If I get through these, number one, it will be a miracle, and two, I will add the books for UNI. :0)
Thanks for helping me with my goal to whittle down my "to read" list!
U- The Weight of Heaven (Thrity Umrigar) I would love to squeeze "Unwholly" in, but itdoesn't come out until the end of August. COMPLETE
N- Emily's Fortune (Phyllis Reynolds Naylor) COMPLETE
I- Idlewild (Nick Sagen) IN PROGRESS

[Jenny]

Here's my progress:

U--Underwood, Deborah...The Quiet Book, not started
N--Nelson, Kadir... Heart and Soul, not started
Nelson Mandela's Favorite African Folk Tales, COMPLETED
I--Isop, Laurie. How do you hug a porcupine, not started And/or
In a Good Place by Rachel Johnson, not started
V--The Vacation by Polly Horvath, COMPLETED
Verne, Jules The Mysterious Island, In progress
E--Elegance of the Hedgehog, by Mariel Barbery--COMPLETED
R--Raiders Ranson, by Emily Diamand, COMPLETED
Rubin, Gretchen, The Happiness Project, COMPLETED
S--Sijie, Dai. Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress, COMPLETED.
Sweet Dates in Basra. Jessica Jiji. COMPLETED.
The Submission. Amy Waldman. COMPLETED.
E--Elephant Scientist. Caitlin O'Connell. COMPLETED.
Eight Keys. Suzanne LeFleur. COMPLETED.

I'm using

[Jana]

Debbie wrote: "Congrads, Jana, on finishing the core challenge!

I, too, am changing my last "E" book. Edge of Sadness is a good book, but huge -- and not available on audio Instead, I'll be reading Earth Unawa..."

Thanks, but I haven't finished yet. I still have two books to read. I'm working on The Snow Child now and then reading Elephants Can Remember. I should have more time to read now that summer activities are starting to slow down. I'll keep you posted when I finish these.

[Debbie]

Jana wrote: "Thanks, but I haven't finished yet."

Oopsie! My bad. Well, that just means I get to congratulate you twice. ha ha ha

[Debbie]

I have completed the core challenge with these wonderful books:

V - Visit from the Goon Squad by Jennifer Egan -- Completed 6/16
E - Eye of the World by Robert Jordan -- Completed 6/2
R - The Road by Cormac McCarthy -- Completed 6/6
S - Silmarillion by J.R.R. Tolkien -- Completed 6/12
E - Earth Unaware by Orson Scott Card -- Completed 8/3

[Jackie]

Debbie,
What did you think of "The Road"? Read it several years ago, and I still think about it often. I am buying guns and ammo instead of food now for my emergency storage, lol.

[Debbie]

I loved it! The way he revealed the backstory was amazing. It certainly gives one pause for when, not if, something like that happens.

I will note, that it was weird. It seems like in the last few years, all the Pulitzer winners have been weird. Others have not pulled it off as well as this. And I found myself trying to decide where, along the road, they actually were.

[Debbie]

My progress on the 2nd expansion of the original challenge. "Expand Your Universe" Only one book left to read.

E - Nine Days to Christmas by Marie Hall Ets and Aurora Labastida -- Completed 7/10
X -The Xanadu adventure by Lloyd Alexander -- In Progress
P - Pedro, the Angel of Olvera Street by Leo Politi -- Completed 7/22
A - Ashanti to Zulu: African Traditions by Leo & Diane Dillo and Margaret Musgrove -- Completed 7/10
N - Nine Days to Christmas by Marie Hall Ets and Aurora Labastida -- Completed 7/10
D - Dragon Reborn by Robert Jordan -- Completed 7/25

Y - Hey, Al by Arthur Yorinks -- Completed 7/24
O - One Fine Day by Nonny Hogrogian -- Completed 7/16
U - Crictor by Tomi Ungerer -- Completed 7/23
R - May I Bring a Friend? by Beatrice Schenk de Regniers and Beni Montresor -- Completed 6/30

U - The Upstairs Room by Johanna Reiss -- Completed 6/23
N - Nothing At All by Wanda Gág -- Completed 6
I - In the Night Kitchen by Maurice Sendak -- Completed 6/19
V - Visit from the Goon Squad by Jennifer Egan -- Completed 6/16
E - Eye of the World by Robert Jordan -- Completed 6/2
R - The Road by Cormac McCarthy -- Completed 6/6
S - Silmarillion by J.R.R. Tolkien -- Completed 6/12
E - Earth Unaware by Orson Scott Card -- Completed 8/3

[Jackie]

Debbie wrote: "I loved it! The way he revealed the backstory was amazing. It certainly gives one pause for when, not if, something like that happens.

I will note, that it was weird. It seems like in the last..."
I thought the vagueness of the story was part of the reason I found it so fascinating. .loved that the author didn't attach names to things or people. I might have used the bullets, though, which is also disturbing.

[JoAnn]

Updated List of Completed Titles:

E- Over the Top by Arthur Empey
X- Buying a Fishing Rod for My Grandfather by Gao Xingjian
P- The Prince by Niccolo Machiavelli
A- The Snow Queen by Hans Christian Anderson
N- The Black Hawk Journey by Lee Nelson
D- The Log Cabin Lady by Anonymous, Originally published in "The Delineator Magazine."



Y- The Tragic Bride by Francis Brett Young
O- Widdershins bu Oliver Onions
U- UFO by USFBI
R- Rastignac the Devil by Philip Jose Farmer

U- Utopia by Sir Thomas More
N- 1906 by James Dalessandro
I- The Master Builder by Henrik Ibsen
V- Candide by Voltaire
E- The Gray Plague by Lloyd Eshbach
R- Daughters in My Kingdom: The History and Work of Relief Society by The Relief Society General Board of TheChurch of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints
S- The Missing Bride by E.D.E.N Southworth
E- Enemy of the People by Henrik Ibsen

I started the challenge over as of July 1, so this list does not count the books I read in June.

Finished again!

[Debbie]

JoAnn, You might want to consider putting Rastignac the Devil down in the VERSE part of the challenge. That way you will have finished the core part of the challenge. And you will be in the drawing for the challenge winner. Your call, of course, but you might consider it.

[JoAnn]

Debbie wrote: "JoAnn, You might want to consider putting Rastignac the Devil down in the VERSE part of the challenge. That way you will have finished the core part of the challenge. And you will be in the drawi..."

Thanks, but I already "finished" UNIVERSE once in June, but decided to restart in July. I really do read a lot.

[Debbie]

JoAnn wrote: "Thanks, but I already "finished" UNIVERSE once in June"

WOW!!!! Well good for you! Are you going to do a 3rd for August! Makes me glad the winners are chosen by a drawing rather than who finishes fastest or the most time! 'Cause I'd not win unless I was 1 day away from finishing a book that fit the new month's challenge! ha ha ha!

[Debbie]

I am pleased to announce that I have completed what I tag the second expansion of the original challenge. The original challenge was to read books spelling out 'VERSE'. It is only from that challenge that the drawing for a winner will occur. Just want folks clear on that. The expansions were originated by we readers (us readers? but I digress) just for a bit of fun. The first expansion spelled out 'UNIVERSE' and the second spelled out the phrase 'EXPAND YOUR UNIVERSE'. So my completion:

E - Nine Days to Christmas by Marie Hall Ets and Aurora Labastida -- Completed 7/10
X -The Xanadu adventure by Lloyd Alexander -- Completed 8/6
P - Pedro, the Angel of Olvera Street by Leo Politi -- Completed 7/22
A - Ashanti to Zulu: African Traditions by Leo & Diane Dillo and Margaret Musgrove -- Completed 7/10
N - Nine Days to Christmas by Marie Hall Ets and Aurora Labastida -- Completed 7/10
D - Dragon Reborn by Robert Jordan -- Completed 7/25

Y - Hey, Al by Arthur Yorinks -- Completed 7/24
O - One Fine Day by Nonny Hogrogian -- Completed 7/16
U - Crictor by Tomi Ungerer -- Completed 7/23
R - May I Bring a Friend? by Beatrice Schenk de Regniers and Beni Montresor -- Completed 6/30

U - The Upstairs Room by Johanna Reiss -- Completed 6/23
N - Nothing At All by Wanda Gág -- Completed 6
I - In the Night Kitchen by Maurice Sendak -- Completed 6/19
V - Visit from the Goon Squad by Jennifer Egan -- Completed 6/16
E - Eye of the World by Robert Jordan -- Completed 6/2
R - The Road by Cormac McCarthy -- Completed 6/6
S - Silmarillion by J.R.R. Tolkien -- Completed 6/12
E - Earth Unaware by Orson Scott Card -- Completed 8/3

Of all these, which did I like best? I can't pick just one title, but the ones at the top are (no particular order):
The Road
Earth Unaware
The Upstairs Room
The Dragon Reborn
In the Night Kitchen

Any I did not like and would not have finished had it not been for the challenge (in this order, worst first):
Visit from the Goon Squad
The Xanadu Adventure

That's my story and I'm sticking to it. And now I'll shut up.

[Myra]

Velde, Vivan Vande : Heir Apparent - finished 8/6
Erebos : Poznanski, Ursula - finished 8/5
Reimann, Katya : Wind from a Foreign Sky - currently reading
Scalzi : Old Man's War - to read
Epic : Kostick, Conor - to read

[Jackie]

Finished "Eye of the World". That completes my VERSE list, wahoo!
I think "The Happiness Project" was my favorite of the five.

[Ann]

I know we usually only do longer books for our challenges, but here’s my children’s picture book version of “Expand Your Universe.”

E – Ernest the Moose Who Doesn’t Fit
X – Xx (I checked all through the catalog and only this alphabet book fit the bill—no author’s with a last name starting in x at the branch I work at either, I’m afraid.)
P – The Prince’s New Pet
A – All the Water in the World
N – No Bears
D – The Duckling Gets a Cookie

Y – You Will Be My Friend
O – One Cool Friend
U – Up & Down
R – Red & Yellow’s Noisy Night

U – The Umbrella
N – Neville
I – I’ll Save You Bobo
V – Virginia Wolf
E – Extra Yarn
R – Red Knit Cap Girl
S – Surfer Chick
E – The Egg

I definitely liked some of these more than others, but as always, I had fun reading books that have pictures in them once again.

[Myra]

Velde, Vivan Vande : Heir Apparent - finished 8/6
Erebos : Poznanski, Ursula - finished 8/5
Reimann, Katya : Wind from a Foreign Sky - gave up, need a new one
Scalzi : Old Man's War - finished 8/12
Epic : Kostick, Conor - reading

[Carolyn]

Okay, I am finished with UNIVERSE, I am not doing "EXPAND YOUR" because I have so many books I want to read that don't fit. It was fun to fit books into a certain pattern, but now on to other things. Thanks SLCounty Library!

U- Ursu, Anne- Breadcrumbs (Finished)
N- Night of the Purple Moon,( I forget the author)- finished
I- Infinite Sacrifice- L.E Waters (Finished)
V- The Voynich Ciper, Russell Blake (done)
E- Eight Weeks to Optimal Health, Dr. Andrew Weil (done)
R- Rice, Anne- Christ the Lord (Done)
S- Soul Surfer, Bethany Hamilton (finished)
E- Epperson, Deborah- Breaking Twig (Finished)

[Becky]

I am finished! Good challenge! Thanks S.L. County Libraries for helping me reduce my to-read list!! Best book read on this list, "Eleanor and Park".

U--The Uninvited Guests by Sadie Jones, complete
N--Trapped by Michael Northrop, complete
I--The Snow Child by Eowyn Ivey, complete
V--Slaughterhouse Five by Kurt Vonnegut, complete
E--What We Talk About When We Talk About Anne Frank by Nathan Englander, complete
R--Insurgent by Veronica Roth, complete
S--Sacre Bleu by Christopher Moore, complete
E--Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell, complete

[Greg]

Update:



E - Earth Unaware by Orson Scott Card Complete 8-24
X - Agent X by Noah Boyd Complete 7-24 (fudged a little on this one)
P - Partner in Crime by J.A. Jance Complete 7-14
A - All's Well That Ends Well by William Shakespeare Complete 7-5
N - A Nation Like No Other: Why American Exceptionalism Matters by Newt Gingrich Complete 7-14
D - Debt of Honor by Tom Clancy Complete 7-23

Y - You, Inc.: The Art of Selling Yourself by Harry and Christine Clifford Beckwith Complete 7-12
O - Othello by William Shakespeare Complete 7-7
U - The Unseen by Heather Graham Complete 8-16
R - River God by Wilbur Smith Complete 8-1

U - The Undaunted: the miracle of the hole-in-the-rock pioneers by Gerald N. Lund Complete 6-14
N - Nelson Mandela's Favorite African Folktales by Nelson Mandela Complete 6-9
I - The Illustrated Man by Ray Bradbury Complete 6-18
V - Valkyrie by Philipp Freiherr von Boeselager Complete 6-9
E - The Endurance: Shackleton's Legendary Antarctic Expedition by Caroline Alexander Complete 6-10
R - Ready Player One by Ernest Cline Complete 6-15
S - Shadows in Flight by Orson Scott Card Complete 6-18
E - Eddie Fantastic by Chris Heimerdinger Complete 6-19

[JoAnn]

My August Challenge: Finish the alphabet based on books read already this summer:

A - Austen, Jane. Northanger Abbey.
Anderson, Hans Christian. The Snow Queen.
B - The Black Tulip. Dumas
Bierce, Ambrose. In The Mist of Life.
C - Candide. Voltaire.
D - Daughters in My Kingdom. General RS of LDS Church.
Dando-Collins, Stephen. The Ides.
E - The End. Lemony Snickett
F - Fanu, J.S. Le, The Evil Guest.
Farmer, Philip Jose. Rastignac, the Devil
G - The Gray Plague. Eschbach.
H - The Handmaid and the Carpenter
I - Ibsen, Henrik. The Master Builder, John Gabriel Borkman, When We Dead Awaken, An Enemy of the People, Wild Duck
J - Jamison, Kay Redfield. An Unquiet Mind.
K - Knitting Traditions by PieceWork Magazine.
. Kreger, Randi. Stop Walking on Eggshells. READING.
L - Leiber, Fritz. No Great Magic.
The Log Cabin Lady. Anon.
Levine, Gail Carson. Ever
M- My Southern Home. William Wells Brown.
Medea. Euripides
N - The Naked Lady Who Stood On Her Head. Small, Gary.
NNNNN- Reiner, Cark
1906. Dalessandro, James.
Nelson, Lee. Black Hawk Journey
O - Over the Top. Empey, Arthur.
P - The Prince. Michiavelli
Q - Quicksand by Nella Larsen
R - Radcliffe, Ann. The Mysteries of Uldolpho.
Runner. Newton, Robert.
S - Self and Self-Management. Bennett, Arnold.
Southworth, E.D.E.N. The Missing Bride.
Smith, Joseph (Translator). The Book of Mormon.
String of Pearls. Unknown Author.
Stealer of Dreams
T - The Thing From the Lake. Ingram, Eleanor
U - Utopia. Sir, Thomas More
V - Vonnegut, Kurt. God Bless You, Dr. Kevorkian.
W - Widdershins. Onions, Oliver.
Wodehouse, PG. Summer Lightening.
X - Xingjian, Gao. Buying a Fishing Rod for My Grandfather.
Y - Young, Francis. The Tragic Bride.
Z - The Zodiac, by Robert Graysmith
The Flood by Emile Zola

So I need to find books for H Q Z. Any ideas?

[Ann]

JoAnn wrote: "So I need to find books for H Q Z. Any ideas?"

Here's a couple suggestions:

H:
Mette Ivie Harrison (She writes teen fantasy books with a light romance.)
Shannon Hale (Some teen and adult titles-often fantasy.)
Mararet Peterson Haddix (Suspenseful teen and children's author.)
The Healer's Keep- Victoria Hanley
The Hiding Place- Corrie Ten Boom
The Hollow Kingdom- Clare B. Dunkle (This is a really creative teen fantasy set in 1800's England. I loved it.)
The Hob's Bargain- Patricia Briggs (I haven't read a book by this author that I haven't enjoyed yet.)

Q:
Amanda Quick (She writes historical romances, sometimes with a paranormal twist.)
The Queen of Attolia- Megan Whalen Turner (This is actually the second book in an excellent teen fiction series.)
Quest for a Maid- Frances Mary Hendry

Z:
Zel- Donna Jo Napoli
The Book Thief- Markus Zusak
Elsewhere- Gabrielle Zevin

I hope this helps.

[Jana]

I finally finished the challenge!! Villette put me way behind on it, but I did it!!

V - Villette - COMPLETE
E - Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close - COMPLETE
R - Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry - COMPLETE
S - The Snow Child - COMPLETE
E - Elephants Can Remember - COMPLETE

School starts next week, so I won't have time to go on to any of the extra challenges. Other than Extremely Loud, I thoroughly enjoyed these books, The Snow Child probably being my favorite, the others close behind.

[Britt, Book Habitue]

I need one more E for VERSE and G, K, O, Q, X and Z for the alphabet. :)

V: A Very Grimm Guide
E: Everneath
R: Reynolds, Marjorie- The Starlite Drivein
S: The Secret Life of Pronouns
E:___________

[JoAnn]

I LOVED several of these books already and am tempted into a reread.

The Hiding Place
Quest for a Maid (read multiple times already. I wonder if the neighbor girl returned it?)
Book Thief.
I like Haddix, too.

I'm checking the ebook availability of others right now.

Thanks!

[Becky]

not sure where I should post this but here it goes....
I'm reading Jane Eyre for the 2nd time (first time was many years ago in high school & it was required reading so I"m not sure I really enjoyed it).
I've forgotten how much I HATE Mr. Rochester. He is so self-absorbed & cruel in his comments / actions to Jane. I really want to punch him. Poor Jane... to have fallen in love with such a man.

[Debbie]

Jana wrote: "I finally finished the challenge!! Villette put me way behind on it, but I did it!!"

Congrads, Jana!

[Jana]

Debbie wrote: "Jana wrote: "I finally finished the challenge!! Villette put me way behind on it, but I did it!!"

Congrads, Jana!"

Thanks, Debbie!

[Nancy]

I just finished the summer reading challenge. Here is what I read:


V - Vonnegut, Kurt - 'Cat's Cradle'
E - Evanovich, Janet - 'Sizzling Sixteen' (I know...)
R - Roche, David - 'The Church of 80% Sincerity'
S - 'the Stolen Child' - Keith Donohue
E - Evan, Chris - "The Good Thief's Guide to Amsterdam'

Just realized the book I just finished was an extra
E - 'the Enchanted April' - Elizabeth von Arnim

[Debbie]

Nancy wrote: "I just finished the summer reading challenge."

Congrads, Nancy. I envy you your "easy" E's. If Orson Scott Card's Earth Unaware had not come out, I'd still be struggling with my second E.

[Nancy]

I wanted to do the challenge but was so crazy busy during this time period that I had to choose ease as opposed to depth....

[Ann]

There’s still plenty of time to finish up the Summer Reading Challenge; we have a little under two weeks until the end of August. But just to make sure I haven’t missed anyone that has completed the ‘verse challenge earlier this summer, these are the names I have written down as having completed the challenge so far.

April
Becky
Carolyn
Dawnmcd
Debbie
Greg
Jackie
Jana
JoAnn
Nancy

If I’m missing you, just let me know. With over three pages of comments I may have accidentally missed someone. (I’ll be keeping a closer eye out for finishers from here on out, as we are starting to wind down with the challenge.)

[Debbie]

Nancy wrote: "I wanted to do the challenge but was so crazy busy during this time period that I had to choose ease as opposed to depth...."

I got the expanded challenges, for the most part, by reading Caldecott winners. Fast books all because they are picture books.

[Ann]

Britt, Book Habitue wrote: "I need one more E for VERSE and G, K, O, Q, X and Z for the alphabet. :)"

If you're not finding anything you like here’s a couple ideas for E, G, K, and O.

E:
East by Edith Pattou
An Earthly Knight by Janet McNaughton
Eight Cousins by Louisa May Alcott
Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine
Emma by Jane Austin
Sarah M. Eden (She writes gentle romance in the time period around Regency England)

G:
The Princess Bride by William Goldman
The Giver or its sequel Gathering Blue both by Lois Lowry
Goddess of Yesterday by Caroline B. Cooney
Ursula K. Le Guin (She writes teen fantasy.)

K:
Goose Chase by Patrice Kindl
Keturah and Lord Death by Martine Leavitt
Lynn Kurland (Gentle Romance and some fantasy)
Barbara Kingsolver

O:
Our Mutual Friend by Charles Dickens
On Fortune's Wheel by Cynthia Voigt
An Old-Fashioned Girl by Louisa May Alcott
Scott O’Dell

I listed some ideas for letters Q & Z in Message # 143. (I didn’t have any books or authors that I’ve read and enjoyed that fell under X—sorry. I’ll keep an eye out though.)