You'll love this one...!! A book club & more discussion

Theresa~OctoberLace wrote: "Is this okay for explaining my links? My full plan for Slick's Slugs can be found here.

We start with a French classic, Within a Budding Grove, then cross the border to read a Spani..."

The links look great.

I'm tempted to reread Mists of Avalon.

Janice, I'm glad to hear that you liked The Mists of Avalon. All the books I chose are new to me, though three are the next books in series I'm reading.

You asked about the checkmarks, so I looked it up. This from another goodreads post someplace or other...
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You can either copy and paste a check mark from another post, or you can type in & #10004; -- without the space between the & and # -- and a check mark will show up when your message posts, like this ✔

Now I just have to remember that or write it down somewhere I won't forget. Both equally hard! ✔

Dawn wrote: "Now I just have to remember that or write it down somewhere I won't forget. Both equally hard! ✔"

Go put one at the top of you Slick's Slugs section for reference then just copy and paste it in the right place each time you complete a book. That's what I'm off to do now!

Thanks Will for checking it out and letting us know!

Love learning new things ✔--

Thanks Will!

I'm going to paste it somewhere in my thread now too.

Thanks Will! Check! ✔

Thanks Will! ✔

And thanks Almeta!

✔ out this thread for other nifty things.

I'm also compelled to try ✔

Coool!!

Wow! I've have always wanted to know how to do it! ✔

I generally use a strikeout name of books when I finish a book but maybe now I will use a ✔

It worked - what fun to learn something new. Thanks

I have been making up list after list - including some new titles and trying to make connections. At one point I thought I won't be all that clever and just connect my books by the storylines taking place in different countries around the world. But I have a few other connections I will also use. I know there must be a connection between Ireland and England but at the moment my history lessons fail me. Was Ireland ever a colony? Does anybody know of a viable connection?

Nancy, I think I have got this right, when the Normans took over England in the 11th century, they also took over Ireland as well. This created political ties between the two countries as well as a common language. Ireland was completely under English control by the 16th century and remained that way for a few centuries.

As someone from the European mainland, my connection would be that they're both on the other side of the water ;-)

Also there are a lot of Irish people that emigrated to England; English is the spoken language for both countries; Ireland is next to England (I know it's across the water)?!?; You have to drive on the left-hand side of the road in both Ireland and England.

England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales are all part of the British Isles, or so I was taught in school a million years ago. My turn to try the new trick: ✔

Theresa~OctoberLace wrote: "Janice, I'm glad to hear that you liked The Mists of Avalon. All the books I chose are new to me, though three are the next books in series I'm reading."

Theresa - you can add my "here, here" to The Mists of Avalon. My daughter and I have always maintained it as one of our all time favorites. We were talking, not long ago, about doing a re-read too.

Lisa wrote: "Nancy, I think I have got this right, when the Normans took over England in the 11th century, they also took over Ireland as well. This created political ties between the two countries as well as a..."

Thanks Lisa for your connection. I knew England figured in Ireland's history - remember the saying the sun never sets on the English empire.

Peggy wrote: "As someone from the European mainland, my connection would be that they're both on the other side of the water ;-)"

A good connection Peggy now why didn't I think of this, huh?

Sarah wrote: "Also there are a lot of Irish people that emigrated to England; English is the spoken language for both countries; Ireland is next to England (I know it's across the water)?!?; You have to drive on..."

Sarah - I love that English is spoken in both countries and about the driving - you'd think I'd realize that.

Casceil wrote: "England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales are all part of the British Isles, or so I was taught in school a million years ago. My turn to try the new trick: ✔"

Would these three countries be considered the United Kingdom?

And love the ✔ which I also learned how to do.

Nancy wrote: "Would these three countries be considered the United Kingdom?

British Isles and United Kingdom are two different things. Then you have Great Britain to add to the mix! United Kingdom is made up of England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales. According to Wikipedia, prior to 1922, the whole of Ireland and not just Northern Island was part of UK. British Isles consists of the two main islands so covers England, Wales, Scotland, Ireland and Northern Ireland. Great Britain is just England, Scotland, and Wales. I hope that's clear!

Sarah wrote: "Nancy wrote: "Would these three countries be considered the United Kingdom?

British Isles and United Kingdom are two different things. Then you have Great Britain to add to the mix! United Kingdom..."

I need to digest this a bit and maybe I'll get it in a few days. It was relatively easy for me to connect England to Australia, Israel which was then Palestine, and the USA but Ireland was eluding me. Thanks again to all who answered me.

Hah I love this. Confuses everyone.

Last time Ireland was ruled by the British started in 1801. Lots of Irish didn't like this though, as there was a long and sordid history of oppression and such.

In the early 1900s there was a large Irish republican movement/rebellion that happened, including the Easter Rising. Then in 1920-1 the Republic of Ireland was formed, not ruled by the British.

Downtown Abbey anyone? This is Tom and Sybil's story line.

However, the northern part of the island is called Northern Ireland (original I know) and is still ruled by the British. But that's what people have been fighting over (IRA, Sinn Féin, etc) for the rest of the 20th Century.

Northern Ireland is part of the United Kingdom. But not part of Great Britain as Sarah said.

Clear as mud?

Cherie & Janice, thanks for your comments on The Mists of Avalon. I've re-arranged my list to put that one in first place for a New Year's Day start.

I hope you enjoy it, Theresa. Let us know what you think of it.

Okay, I'm late to the party, but got to try it.✔

Thanks Rusalka for expanding on the history! It is terribly confusing!

Rusalka wrote: "Hah I love this. Confuses everyone.

Last time Ireland was ruled by the British started in 1801. Lots of Irish didn't like this though, as there was a long and sordid history of oppression and suc..."

Very muddy but very clear and thanks to the reference about Downton Abbey since I am patiently waiting for it to begin here Sunday evening.

Thanks for the great trick, Will! ✔

Nancy wrote: "Very muddy but very clear and thanks to the reference about Downton Abbey since I am patiently waiting for it to begin here Sunday evening. ."

No worries. I personally learn history best through stories. So finding historical fiction with some facts that I can fill in the blanks for suits me the best. If I latch on to people I can learn or more importantly WANT to learn the story:)

Just checking (✔) If your book is over 1000 pages can it count for 2 books?

I have been away for a bit and just looked at this challenge - I am definitely in! Maybe I can find some more foodie mysteries to link because I sure have more of them to read! But I am also looking for other ways to link things, and I think this is just a great challenge!

Lori wrote: "Just checking (✔) If your book is over 1000 pages can it count for 2 books?"

No, it counts as one.

How does the ticker for this challenge work if we read two short books to make up one read?! Does it count it as 1 book or 2?

Sarah wrote: "How does the ticker for this challenge work if we read two short books to make up one read?! Does it count it as 1 book or 2?"

Unfortunately, the ticker isn't all that sophisticated. It simply looks at the "read" date of books on the specified shelf. It's going to read them as 2 books read. So, I will include those in my goal. I have 10 books listed for Slick's Slugs, so my goal is going to be 10.

Thanks Janice - that's what I thought. I've only got a couple reads where I will be reading two books to make the one so I'll take that it to account.

I'm jumping into the 2014 challenge right away instead of plodding away on my 2013 unfinished round two books. That will be more fun!

✔ Had to try it out, too, hee hee : ) Will be useful for ticking off books from challenge lists and such. Cool!

Now that I'm finished with grad school (and not yet working full time again), I can read for fun all I want to for fun! I am going to tackle this one! I didn't do the 2013 Alphabet challenge, and I haven't participated in a monthly challenge for awhile, even though I have kept up with what they are and thought a little about trying to...I never got around to reading a book that would have qualified.

I'm very excited about this challenge, even though most of the books I read are not "chunksters" I have a few series that started but haven't finished reading all the books in the series. And the to series I'm thinking about specifically I can already think of a connection between those two series. What I'm not sure about is how many books I'll have to read to make the 500+, probably only 2, but possibly 3. I guess I'll have to do a bit of research for that.

I am not much of a planner when it comes to my reading though. I have been known to get books from the library and return them because I didn't read them. Currently I have 4 books checked out, and not a one is over 500 pages. But 2 are part of the one series I mentioned. And I also suppose a connection could be that they are library books. I will set up my thread and work on my planning but I bet it will change. I do hope I can finish it. I'd really like to make it to the Mickey level...just because I like Mickey. :)

Oh and I have to try to check too ✔! yay! Now to remember that...ha!

Robin wrote: " But 2 are part of the one series I mentioned. And I also suppose a connection could be that they are library books."

That, or the fact that they are from the same series would work for a link.

I'm glad you're going to be able to join us Robin.

Congrats on finishing school, Robin! I'm glad to hear that you're enjoying the newly found freedom. The chunkster challenge is a perfect "me time" celebration :)

Scott wrote: "Woot! My daughter got me [Doctor Zhivago for Xmas, and a copy of Water For Elephants. Love my e-Reader, but curling up with a real book is awesome as well"

[book:Doctor Zhivago|866819] Doctor Zhivago by Boris Pasternak is a great Chunkster, but I can't imagine trying to make a connection with Water for Elephants.☺

ETA: I can not make any edition link work as a beginning line. Odd. :(

Almeta, one connection between Doctor Zhivago and Water for Elephants could be that both are books made into popular movies. A second is that both Yury Zhivago and Jacob Jankowski were in love with married women.

Theresa~OctoberLace wrote: "Janice, I'm glad to hear that you liked The Mists of Avalon. All the books I chose are new to me, though three are the next books in series I'm reading."

I actually thought about rereading (as cherie stated earlier) the Avalon series this year if i got through my other bigger books. I LOVED it.

✔ me out.....I resisted as long as possible

Theresa~OctoberLace wrote: "Almeta, one connection between Doctor Zhivago and Water for Elephants could be that both are books made into popular movies. A second is that both Yury Zhivago and Jacob..."

Very clever Theresa.☺

Theresa~OctoberLace wrote: "Almeta, one connection between Doctor Zhivago and Water for Elephants could be that both are books made into popular movies. A second is that both Yury Zhivago and Jacob..."

AND they both won literary awards - not the same, but an award is an award.... For the authors they could be "opposites" one dead, one alive & male/female sexes