Reading with Style discussion

20.8 Presidentially
The Autobiography of Harry S. Truman by Harry S. Truman

Review

These are the facts I knew about President Truman before reading this book;
His nickname was “give’em hell, Harry”, his predecessor was FDR, the S in his name was not an initial and stood just for the letter “S”, He grew up in Independence, Missouri, was formerly a haberdasher and had a daughter, Margaret who writes mystery novels. That was good enough for most Trivia Pursuit games but really not substance of this man. I’m glad I read this book. This is a publication of his own “autobiography” written all in long hand and begun on hotel stationery while on a trip. Samples of the pages are actually shown in photographs in the book and it definitely appears to be word for word. The editor has only changed some misspelled words, a weakness of his, and not even corrected dates or contradictions of his own words. President Truman appears to be one of our few presidents who was able to save his name and reputation as being both honorable and respectable despite some relations or even friendships with a few of the more shady political figures of the day. That he was to accomplish that as well as remaining one of our most effective presidents is worth a reading.
One line in this book that struck me and people in this group can appreciate is this quote of his; “Not all readers become leaders But all leaders must be readers”


+20 pts - Task
+10 pts - Combo (10.2 memory day, 20.7 Truman died in 1972, book published in 1980)
+5 pts - Oldies
+10 pts - Review

Task Total - 45 40 pts
Grand Total - 200 195 pts

10.10 Group Read

Fences by August Wilson

Thank you, Cory, for choosing this play as your pick. There is something so unique in the reading of a play...normally I spend half of the reading casting and then re-casting each of the roles. This one tells you precisely who held each of the roles originally (James Earl Jones as Troy Maxson!?). Instead, I imagined the inflection and facial expressions as each line was delivered.
In my own personal casting of this play, I never would have chosen Jones as the main character. I really detested Troy. Yes, he had a really rough time growing up with a truly awful father, too many siblings, and an absent mother. Yes, he seemed to be trying to do right by his family. But the more things that are revealed about this man as the play progresses, the less sympathy I feel for him.
I have been thinking about the play all day since finishing it, about the moral, ethical, racial, and metaphysical questions it raises. I enjoyed the glimpse into another time and another life.

+10 Task
+10 Review

Task Total = 20

Grand Total = 190

20.3 - In honor of Pride & Prejudice

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer

202,328 rating/4.09 avg

Review:
The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows took my completely by surprise. I came upon the novel as a recommendation from my friend who mentioned it was written in letters, which inspired me to add it to my TBR pile. After finishing my last cozy mystery I decided I needed something of substance and I was not wrong thinking that ‘The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society’ would offer me just that.

The story begins with letters from the central character; a writer Juliet Ashton from London who is trying to figure out what to write about now that WW2 is over and her column that kept her busy during the war is no longer required. We read Juliet’s letters to her publisher/friend and letters to her best friend but the one that grabs you and pulls you into the life of Juliet Ashton, and shape the story is the letter she receives from a stranger who came upon her address in a book he had come across.

This letter introduces Juliet to a world unknown to her; it is the world of Guernsey, part of the Channel Islands and what happen to this community during the war. Mary Ann Shaffer brought the history of this island alive through her storytelling and with the assistance of her niece Annie Barrows. I am truly thankful that my friend recommended this book to me and will pass it along as people as me for reading suggestions.

+20 Task
+10 Review

Task Total: 30
Grand Total: 100

20th Century - Chronologician

15.2 - Requiem for a Nun by William Faulkner, 1st pub'd 1950.


+15 task
+10 bonus

Task Total: 25 points
Grand Total: 40 points

I would like to switch a book.

See Post 47, Memoirs of an Egotist, posted to 20.1 with a combo to 10.2.

I'd like this to count for 10.2 instead with the combo to 20.1.

-10 points for the post.

Task 15.2: That's So 20th Century

I read Light A Penny Candle by Maeve Binchy

First pub: 1982

+15: task
+10: Chronological

+25: task total
+125: RwS TOTAL

10.10 Group Reads

FencesbyAugust Wilson

I was really glad to see another review of the play, Fences, in the completed task thread, because I realized I hadn't claimed this one yet. I liked the play. I thought it was realistic in the same way that A Raisin in the Sun depicts the struggles of the times. Troy was really living in the past and letting his former frustrations over race in baseball keep him from relating to his son and letting him move forward. I liked that the situation wasn't glamorized and that we learned that sometimes the downtrodden and bitter do just stay that way, and those around them must just overcome the obstacles set up by these people to the best of their ability. I listened to a full cast version of Raisin in the Sun and read this one, and found I really prefer listening to plays, but I still enjoyed it. I think I will look into more plays in this series.

+10 Task
+10 Review
+ 5 Oldies (1986)
Task Total: 25
Grand Total: 220

20.1 Jane Austen (1776-1817)
Villette by Charlotte Brontë (1816-1855)

+ 20 Task – lifetimes overlapped (just)
+ 10 Combo – 20.2 BBC production www.imdb.com/title/tt0421479/?ref_=fn..., 20.5 female author and female narrator
+ 15 Oldies - published 1853
+ 5 Jumbo – 573 pages

Task Total = 50

Grand Total = 130

Coralie wrote: "My link isn't working and I don't know what I've done wrong. Does anyone have any suggestions?..."

Coralie, welcome back, it's good to see you again.

Your link shows up as:
"www.goodreads.com/topics/show/http//w..."....

Edit your post to delete everything before http: "www.goodreads.com/topics/show/" and see if that works better for you.

20.4 Mansfield Park

Behind the Beautiful Forevers: Life, Death, and Hope in a Mumbai Undercity by Katherine Boo (#32)

+20 Task
+10 Review

Task total = 30
Grand total = 30

Liz M wrote: "Coralie wrote: "My link isn't working and I don't know what I've done wrong. Does anyone have any suggestions?..."

Coralie, welcome back, it's good to see you again.

Your link shows up as:
"www...."

Thanks Liz.

Don (The Book Guy) wrote: "Karen GHHS wrote: "10.10 Group Reads

FencesbyAugust Wilson

I was really glad to see another review of the play, Fences, in the completed task thread, because I realized I hadn't claimed this one ..."

Thanks, Don, you are right! Mods, I edited my post. Anika, you should claim these points, too!

10.1 Square Peg
by James Patterson

Task+10
Style+ 10 Review


This is the third installment in James Patterson's Alex Cross series. I have to say I like this series. I only read three books out of twenty. This book had me interested. Three killers and thirteen deaths, I think. Surprises around every corner. It had me guessing who the real killer was. You will never guess.
So a little summary, a child is killed near Alex Cross's son's school. In Washington D.C. a prodominant politican is killed. Doesn't seem to be a connection. Or is there? Both murders so cold and calculated. Then another child is dead. Alex Cross has his hands full trying to catch the killer or killers. Then an old acquaintance reaches out to contact him. Someone he thought he never have to hear from again. I can't wait to read the next book.

Book Total: 20
Total: 45

Task 20.10: Read a book by an author whose given names are usually published as initials only. Examples: V.S. Naipaul, T.C. Boyle, T.S. Eliot.

Read Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (★★★★★, 14 Mar '13)
Author: J.K. Rowling




Review:
The Harry Potter Series is, without a doubt, my favorite series. I only began reading it as an adult and since the first time I read it, I have become a die-hard fan, returning to these books every year.

In the first installment of the series, we meet Harry Potter, a boy of eleven who seems just as ordinary as any other boy his age. He lives with his cousin Dudley, Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon. The Dursley family has little love for their Potter nephew, often ignoring him, giving him little and treating him like he doesn’t exist. Harry is content to be out of their way and stay out of trouble but he misses his parents an awful lot. His parents had died when he was just a year old and that’s how he came to live with his mother’s sister. But he doesn’t know much about them as questions are forbidden in the Dursley household and Aunt Petunia didn’t share much love with her sister to begin with. For Harry there is a constant nagging ache of being an orphan. Sometimes he wishes and almost feels like a distant relation is coming to seek him.

What Harry doesn’t know is at exactly the stroke of midnight on his 11th birthday, he will discover something truly amazing about himself: that he is a wizard and his parents were a witch and wizard too.

This revelation will come with many more surprises: the truth about his parent’s death, of why Harry wasn’t told he was a wizard and how there is an entire school called Hogwarts that trains young witches and wizards. When Harry reaches Hogwarts he discovers that almost every person already knows his name: he is famous, or rather has been famous since the night his parents died.

It was a dark wizard, Voldemort, who wrecked havoc in people’s lives years ago and killed many good and innocent people. None survived this evil lord, except Harry. And that makes Harry famous. But Voldemort is far from gone. His powers diminished, his form weakened, he lies in wait to seek revenge. And it is in his first year at Hogwarts that Harry will discover just how much danger he is in.

Harry will come to discover a lot of things about his life he didn’t know could exist: Friendship in the forms of Ron and Hermione, rivalry in the form of Draco Malfoy, affection in the form of Hagrid and hatred in the form of Professor Snape.

At Hogwarts, Harry will discover his strengths and his weaknesses. He will discover what lurks in the Forbidden Forest and what secrets are hidden in the third floor corridor. He will discover why the wizarding bank, Gringotts, was broken into and why someone was trying to curse him while he was playing his first ever Quidditch match.

With all its ups and downs Hogwarts will be the first true home Harry has had. And with Hogwarts, Rowling has created a world for me which is the very best of fantasy.

+20 Task
+10 Review
+5 Combo (qualifies for task 20.3)

Task Total: 35

Grand Total: 55

Task 10.1:Square peg: Read a book that does not fit any of the other Reading with Style 10 or 20-point tasks.

The Autobiography of Henry VIII: With Notes by His Fool, Will Somers (★★★★, 14 Mar '13)




Review:

Henry VIII is one of the most fascinating characters I’ve come across in my reading experience. His life is full of instances which makes the reader hungry for more.

In this book, Margaret George writes from the perspective of Henry himself. Henry is most notoriously known for his flirtations and the marriages resulting from them. He was married a total of six times at a time when divorce was frowned upon.
Henry made a historic break, separating the Church of England from Rome. He had many neighbors who, depending on which way the politics brewed in Europe, became his allies or turned foes.

As the second son of King Henry VII, Henry is destined to support his elder brother, Arthur, as England’s heir and devote his own life to religion and priesthood. But the sudden death of his brother makes him the next in line to the throne and his life changes dramatically overnight.

He must now be trained in the arts of politics and warfare, he must learn to formulate laws and policies and must earn the respect and loyalty of his people. It is in the bid to maintain political connections with Spain that Henry marries his brother’s wife, Katherine of Aragon, a maid, yet untouched by a man. His love for his wife grows over the years. But their marriage eventually heads towards a split. Katherine has been able to birth only one daughter, Mary, who is still living, while all the other children have died either before or after birth. Leaving no male heir for England is what constantly nags Henry and he begins to question whether he has sinned against God and is being punished for it.

Henry faces a dilemma, of whether his marriage to his brother’s wife is true and legitimate, whether his wife was truly a virgin when she came to his bed. From these doubts emerges a long drawn battle with his wife, his councilors and even the Pope. When Henry falls in love with Anne Boleyn, the Pope begins to see his dilemma as nothing but an excuse to get rid of his wife and feed the greed of the ambitious Boleyns.
Henry, getting much encouragement from the Protestant-leaning factions, separates himself from the Roman Church and establishes the Church of England with himself being its Supreme Head. This rages a religious was of sorts but earns Henry the right to cast away Katherine and marry Anne.

Anne Boleyn, in her new-found power, surrounds herself with young musicians and artists, friends and family: people who favored her rise to the Queen's throne. But it eventually leads to her downfall. Having giving birth to only a girl, Elizabeth, Henry has no hesitation in sentencing his wife to execution when charges of treason and adultery are leveled against her.

On the very day of Anne’s execution, Henry marries his third wife Jane, a lady at court, previously in Anne Boleyn’s service. Jane, not as ambitious as Anne, appealed to Henry with her simplistic and country ways. Even later, after all the other marriages, Henry would consider Jane to be his first true wife and the only wife he really loved and missed. Jane dies during childbirth leaving behind a son, Edward, the heir Henry had been longing for a long time.

With Jane gone, Henry is once again an eligible bachelor. This time, the Reformist leaning Thomas Cromwell, Henry’s trusted advisor, seeks a marriage alliance for him, winning him Anne of Cleves as his bride. Having beheld Anne only in a portrait, Henry is full of excitement in seeing her in person for the first time. But as he looks upon her face his only thought is that he is married to an ugly, pockmarked creature. Henry cannot have such a bride and soon their marriage is annulled.

Henry for the last time fall prey to his lust, when he sees Catherine Howard, a cousin of Anne Boleyn, and decides that she is the woman he is meant to be with. But their marriage too ends up with Catherine getting executed for exactly the same reasons as her cousin, Anne Boleyn.

Five wives, two princesses and a price later, Henry finally decides to swear off women. He never wants to bed or wed another one. But his resolve is weakened when he comes upon Katherine Parr, a widow at court, who is spiritual and religious. She appeals to an altogether different side of Henry: his spiritual self. Having reached his middle years all Henry longs for now is company, the company of a woman, with no lust to distract or betray him.

His sixth and final marriage is mostly peaceful. By now Henry has come to realize that his end is near and must now come to terms with what his life has been and what he has created for his kingdom in his capacity as a king. In the end all he wants to do is die a man.

Brilliantly researched, Margaret George doesn’t let in a single dull moment, which is saying something, as this edition of mine was a 900 pager. Absolutely beautiful writing style. Can’t wait to get hold of some more Margaret George books!


+10 Task
+10 Review
+5 Oldies (published in 1986)
+20 Jumbo (my edition had 932 pages)

Task Total: 45

Grand Total: 100

20th Century - Chronologician

15.4 Shooting at Loons by Margaret Maron published 1994

+15
+10 Chronologician

Task total: 25
Grand total: 115

Karen GHHS wrote: "Thanks, Don, you are right! Mods, I edited my post. Anika, you should claim these points, too! "

Good catch! We'll get to this section of posts this weekend. (Fortunately, the database catches such things, so you would not have been shorted.)

20th Century - Chronologician

15.4 From 1993 / Lexile 800

Missing Angel Juan by Francesca Lia Block

This is a change from my original plan. I realized I had read that book before.

+15 Task
+10 Bonus

Task Total: 25
Grand Total: 240

Task 20.5 : In honor of Emma

Me Before You by Jojo Moyes



The author is female and the story it told in 1st person (with the exception of about 15% of the story) by main character Louisa Clark. (With the exception of the prologue, all non-Louisa 1st person is used as POV of another character’s take on Louisa or for expository purposes to the story.)

This book has been touted as a modern day “Love Story” but having never read “Love Story” nor seen the movie, I don’t know if this statement is accurate. Yes it is a love story about two people from different ‘worlds’, but it is also about a young woman who’s perspective on life is changed when she become a companion to a paraplegic. Louisa is 27, from a working class family. She has never seen the world nor stretched herself much. She is content working at a café and living at home. Her paycheque helps support the family. When her job ends, she is forced to take a position as a companion to a well-to-do man who used to have a big-city job, and has travelled the world. They clash initially, but then gradually they get to know each other. Yes, it all sounds cliché and I did find the story fairly predictable. However, I liked Louisa as I enjoyed the voice the authour gave her. There is a fairly significant ethical topic raised within the context of the story and it did give me food for though.

+20 Task
+10 Review

Task Total: +30

Grand TOTAL: 120

From post #109:
Karen Lord qualifies for:
+10 Style:2. Non-Western (10 points):

Grand Total: 95 + 10 = 105



Task 10.10 - Group reads

HHhH: A Novel (2010) by Laurent Binet (translated by Sam Taylor)
Review:First, the title: HHhH: “Himmlers Hirn heisst Heydrich”, or “Himmler’s brain is called Heydrich”. This novel is written in the style of Metafiction (a type of fiction that self-consciously addresses the devices of fiction, exposing the fictional illusion). I don’t normally read Metafiction, so it took a few pages for me to get into the flow of the “novel”. Once I did, the novel read very quickly, and the “story” was easy to follow. The motivating event of the novel is the historical (it actually happened) 1942 assassination of a high-ranking Nazi official, Reinhard Heydrich. The author covers Heydrich’s Nazi activities, the activities of his assassins, and the real world fallout from his assassination. (see: Lidice, Czech Republic) I like reading novels that can be categorized as “something completely different”, and so I liked reading this novel. Recommended for when you are looking for something offbeat.

+10 Task
+10 Style:3. Review (10 points)

Task Total: 10 + 10 = 20


Grand Total: 105 + 20 = 125

20th Century - Chronologician
15.3 Red Star Rising: More Chronicles Of Pern by Anne McCaffrey
published 1996

+15 Task
+ 10 Bonus

Task Total = 25

Grand Total = 155

20th Century - Chronologician

15.3 Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes published 1966

Task +15
Bonus +10

Sub total for That's so 20th Century: 65

GRAND TOTAL: 145

20.9 Heretically
The Red and the Black by Stendhal

Review
The setting is post-Napoleon, Restoration Franc, a time when politics could change at any moment. Although the aristocracy is back on top, there is the undershifting of the common classes who may erupt at any time. The “Red” in the title is for the military and the “Black: in the title stands for the church. In both of these colors, Julien Sorel attempts to appease his high ambitions. With a talent for perfect memory and cleverness, Julien ascends from the son of a carpenter to rubbing shoulders with high society. However he has fatal character flaws. Pride, fear of insult, capriciousness and like most young men, his libido. Often mistaking innocent expressions for snubs at his birth, refusing to be humbled and seducing the most inappropriate women, he reaches his apex in which he is about to have it all and then in a moment of thoughtless revenge, brings it all crashing down, ending with his death by guillotine. This is Stendhal’s masterpiece.

+20 pts - Task
+5 10 pts - Combo (20.1 1783-1842, 20.2 )
+15 pts - Oldies (1830)
+5 pts - Jumbo (607 pgs)
+10 pts - Review

Task Total - 55 pts 60 pts
Grand Total - 255 pts 260 pts

20th Century - Chronologician

15.5 - Arcadia by Jim Crace, pub. 1992

+15 task points
+10 bonus

Task Total: 25 points
Grand total: 115 points

Rebekah wrote: "20.9 Heretically
The Red and the Black by Stendhal

Review
The setting is post-Napoleon, Restoration Franc, a time when politics could change at any moment. Although the aristocracy is back on top,..."

+5 combo 20.2 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scarlet_...

(I'll post it myself in a few days. ;-) )

10.3 The Plus

The Fetch by Laura Whitcomb (Lexile 890)

Calder is a Fetch: the person who collects the souls of the dead, guides them through the Aisle to the Captain who ferries them to Heaven. He was 19 when he died; he has been a Fetch for 330 years.
When a Fetch opens a Death Door to collect a soul, that soul must choose whether to live or die and the Fetch must abide by that choice. Calder, though, has attended the death scene of the same soul on two different occasions and has broken his vow to remain uninvolved by urging the soul to live. Calder breaks another law of the Fetch (sorry...I know it's so vague, I'm just trying not to give anything away), and in doing so tears a gaping rent in the fabric of Heaven, Earth, and Purgatory. As the world is torn apart by WWI and the Russian Revolution, the Lost Souls are rising up in revolt against Heaven.
It was so interesting a concept and well-crafted, I had to forgive the tag line on the front "A Supernatural Romance" (because, let's face it: any book with that tag line has already got 10 points against it).

+10 Task
+10 Review

Task Total = 20

Found Points = 5 (for Fences--oldies, 1986; re: posts 126/127, big THANK YOU to Don and Karen for that!)

Grand Total = 215

Elizabeth (Alaska) wrote: "Rebekah wrote: "20.9 Heretically
The Red and the Black by Stendhal

Review
The setting is post-Napoleon, Restoration Franc, a time when politics could change at any moment. Although the aristocracy..."

Thanks, Elizabeth! I look forward to reading what you write about the book. For myself, Julien, made me want to "ground" him for a few months. That's the mom in me, I guess!
I'll correct my post

15.3 20th Century - Chronologicalian
How to Make an American Quilt by Whitney Otto pub 1991

+15 pts - Task
+10 pts - Bonus

Task Total - 25 pts
Grand Total - 285 pts

10.3 - The plus

The Photograph by Penelope Lively

+10 Task

Task total=10
Grand total=125

10.3 - The Plus

The Dressmaker by Kate Alcott

This novel has to do with the Titanic, and from the description I thought a large chunk of the action would take place on ship, both before and after the crash. When the ship went down and our main characters were rescued by chapter three I knew I was in for a very different novel.

Most of the story is about the Congressional hearings following the disaster and how they affected a small cast of characters. If you don't know much about the Titanic you may find this interesting. However, if you're like me and have read the hearing transcripts and newspaper reports of the time (it was a phase, I tell you) you'll be bored.

Add in cardboard cutout characters and a stereotypical love triangle (shall she fall in love with the rich but sketchy man or the poor but awesome sailor?) and you get an unremarkable tale.

+10 task
+10 review
+5 combo (20.5 - female author, female main character [Tess])

Task total: 25
Grand total: 170

10.4 Irish American month
The Drowning Girl by Caitlín R. Kiernan

+ 10 Task – author born in Dublin, Ireland
+ 5 Combo – 20.5 female author and female narrator

Task Total = 15

Grand Total = 170

10.8 - Spell it Out

The Downhill Lie: A Hacker's Return to a Ruinous Sport by Carl Hiaasen

Hiaasen decided to get back into golf after decades away and spent a year and a half, a sizable chunk of change, and many hours of frustration trying to get his stroke back. I knew I'd like him from the first line of the preface: "There are so many people to blame for this book that it's hard to know where to begin."

What makes this memoir better than the Q School slog is that Hiaasen actually has a life and gets away from the action now and then. There are stories about his dad (a golfer himself, who died suddenly many years ago), how courses have become a refuge for wildlife in highly developed Florida, and fly fishing. All relate back to golf in one way or another and allow a breather from the action.

While plodding at times (especially during the last tourney) the book was easy enough for this non-golfer to follow and enjoy.

+10 task (CH)
+10 review
+10 combo (10.2 - shelved B, 20.6 - listed satirist)

Task total: 30
Grand total: 200

Task 10.3: "The" plus

I read The Opportunist by Tarryn Fisher

REVIEW:
I read this book in almost one sitting. I really liked it! It grabs you and keeps moving right from the start. There weren't any slow parts to wade through. The main character, Olivia, is sarcastic, cunning, and judgmental...all the traits I seem to like in a friend. The best friend, partner-in-crime, Cammie, is a supporting role and I liked that. SIDE NOTE: Cammie was my nickname growing up, always nice to see your name in print. (HA) I did want a little more info on what actually happened at the party in Caleb's office, Che never gave any real explanation--now that I think of it, his lies were part of it all, too. I wanted the reveal about Leah's involvement with Turner, but no resolve there. Overall, good read, quick and easy. I liked the tying up of all the relationships in the end, not what I expected.

+10: task
+10: review
+5: combo (20.5)

+25: task total
RwS TOTAL: +150

20.4 - In honor of Mansfield Park

Hunger by Knut Hamsun

+20 Task
+10 Oldies (1890)

Task total=30
Grand total=155

20.10 - Elizabeth (Alaska) task – Initially:

Ask The Passengers by A.S. King, low lexile

Excellent addition to YA GLBT literature!

+20 Points
Task Total: 20

Grand Total: 265

In Post 114 Rebekah wrote: "20.8 Presidentially
The Autobiography of Harry S. Truman by Harry S. Truman

Review

These are the facts I knew about President Truman before reading this book;
His nickname was “give’em hell, Harr..."

20.7 requires a novel, so this doesn't meet the requirements for the combo. -5 for this task

20th Century - Chronologician

15.5 The Celestine Prophecy by James Redfield, pub. 1993

+15 task
+10 bonus

Task Total = 25
Grand Total = 115

20th Century - Chronologician

15.6 Soul Music by Terry Pratchett, pub. 1994

+15 task
+10 bonus

Task Total = 25
Grand Total = 140

Task 20.3: In honor of Pride and Prejudice

I read Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen

REVIEW:
I put off reading this book when it first came out because I downloaded on my Nook, read the first chapter, and was bored. I've never liked circuses to begin with--fear of clowns. Nor did I see the movie because it had that Twilight kid in it. However, it fit this task, so I thought I would give it another go. Overall, the book was an enjoyable read. I felt bad for the old Jacob because my own grandmother was in an assisted living home and she didn't like it either. The young Jacob was so naïve that it made him easy to like and connect with in the story. I did get confused about which people were the flying brothers and which were workers and rubes, but it didn't matter all that much in the plot anyway. I had a feeling that, despite the rough times and hardships, that all would work out for our hero and heroine. I was sad to see some of the circus folk come to their ends as they did, but everyone can't survive in a gripping novel, now can they?

+20: task
+10: review

+30: task total

+180: RwS TOTAL

20.2 In honor of Sense & Sensibility
Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen

Review

Another of Jane Austen’s well-known classics well loved and well read over the years. I preferred Pride and Prejudice over this one. There were humorous moments, usually supplied by Mrs. Jennings. However Elinor’s high honor and her role of the paragon to virtue to her mother, sisters and other acquaintances made her too unreal for me. How she suffered a similar tragedy as her sister, Marianne who became seriously ill over it, Elinor stoically kept her pain to herself, with little shedding of tears. I don’t care if it was the time, that’s not normal. Anyway, Austen’s books did poke fun at the society of her time so that makes Elinor acceptable to me.
Those overblown orations amongst the sisters on what is proper, what might have happened, other people’s conduct could definitely have been shortened. Listening to audiobook, I had to listen to every word whereas when I first read it, I probably skimmed for the gist of the sermons without reading each and every word and may be why it seemed more tiresome to me this time than when I read it first. Or it may have been the difference of the 35 years of living that made this reading a different experience than what I remember. However it is a classic and has withstood the test of time.

+20 pts - Task
+10 pts - Combo(20.1, 20.3 -4.03 rating)
+10 pts - Review
+15 pts - Oldies (pub 1811)

Task Total - 55 pts
Grand Total - 340 335 pts

20th Century - Chronologician

15.5 - Foundation by Isaac Asimov, originally pub. 1951

+15 task points
+10 bonus

Task Total: 25 points

Grand total: 65 points

Task 20.5 In honor of Emma

Female authour and female 1st person narrator/main character

One Good Hustle by Billie Livingston


Set in the 80s, this is the story of a 17-year-old Sammie Bell, who has been raised by two con artists. The story begins as she has moved out on her drunk, suicidal mother and is staying with her best friend, Jill.

I found the authour really captured the essence of an adolescent girl - her sarcastic defensiveness mixed with vulnerability. Sammie came life instantly on the page with her distinctive voice. Sammie is torn between loyalty to her parents and her desire to be a 'normal' kid. She also feels that she is damned to be a grifter like her parents. When I picked this up I feared that it would be a bleak story, but it is not. It is not overly heavy and there is actually a great deal of humour in the tale but it is heartfelt and thoughtful. I was sorry when the story ended as it seemed to do so rather abruptly. I would have happily spent more time in Sammie's world.

On a side note, the story is set in Burnaby, British Columbia (the city just east of Vancouver). I live not too far away and I always find it a treat to read a story set in my 'neck-of-the-woods.'

+20 Task
+10 Review

+30 Task total

Grand total = 175

From Post 116

Arow wrote: "20.3 - In honor of Pride & Prejudice

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer

202,328 rating/4.09 avg

Review:
The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by M..."

+5 Combo 10.9

Paula wrote: " 20th Century - Chronologician

15.5 The Celestine Prophecy by James Redfield, pub. 1993

+15 task
+10 bonus

Task Total = 25
Grand Total = 115"

I loved that book!

Rebekah wrote: "I loved that book!"

It was really interesting, for sure. I needed a bit of a breather after reading it, just to let it all sink in. It's been sitting on my unread bookshelves for years, and fit perfectly into the "20th century" task. Definitely one to re-read, and I don't say that often!

Nick wrote: "20th Century - Chronologician

15.5 - Foundation by Isaac Asimov, originally pub. 1951

+15 task points
+10 bonus

Task Total: 25 points

Grand total: 65 points"

If you're at 15.5 and are going in chrono order, I think you should have more total overall points - perhaps 115?

20.5 Emma--an autobiography of a woman
Up the Capitol Steps: A Woman's March to the Governorship by Barbara Roberts.
Review: Thank you, Barbara. (Beyond western informality, Barbara Roberts has shared so much of her life in this book that I feel like she is a friend.)
Barbara Roberts was the first (and so far, the only) woman who has served as governor of Oregon.
I want to thank her for sharing her challenges with her early marriage, being a single mom, raising an autistic child, the deaths of her parents, sister and husband.
I want to thank her for the insights into political campaigning and into the job of governor.
I want to thank her for the reminders of how far we women have come and what challenges we still face.
This book is also a reminder of the challenges the state of Oregon faced during her tenure and a history to some of those issues that we are continuing to face.
+20 Task
+10 Review
Task total: 30
Grand Total: 90

20th Century - Chronologician

15.1 - The Firm by John Grisham, 1991

+15 task

Task Total: 15
Grand Total: 215

20.6 Northanger Abbey

How Right You Are, Jeeves by P.G. Wodehouse

Review: I always enjoy P.G. Wodehouse and stories about Bertie Wooster and Jeeves. Sadly, Jeeves is missing from most of this book and I sorely missed him. The book still has amusing antics and the thread of meanness that makes these books so cutting, but this one wasn't quite as amusing as others that I've read. I also don't think this book is the best introduction to these characters--it's better if you have some prior knowledge from reading some of the other stories even though the actual plot is stand-alone. Recommended for folks looking to read more Jeeves stories but not to those who are reading their first one.

+20 Task
+10 Review
+5 Oldies (published 1960)
+5 Combo (20.10)

Task total: 40
Grand total: 80

15.3 20th Century - Chronologician
published 1998

The Girl in the Flammable Skirt: Stories by Aimee Bender

+15 Task
+10 Bonus

Task total: 25
Grand total: 105