The Seasonal Reading Challenge discussion

25.7. CINDY'S TASK - One, Two, Three - Read Three Books...
• One With A One Word Title
• The Second With A Two Word Title
• And The Third With A Three Word Title.
Drown by Diaz
The Scarecrow by Connolly
The Coldest Winter by Halberstam
25 points
235 total

5.6. Terrifying Titles - Read A Novel That Has An Adjective In The Title That Relates To Halloween...I.E. Spooky, Creepy, Crawly, Scary etc.
evil
Web of Evil by J.A. Jance

Finally finished task 15.7 (Let's Get Physical) tonight. For this one, I listened to the audiobook of Meg Cabot's The Princess Diaries (I couldn't get my link page to work... stupid computer). I liked the story, it was read by Anne Hathaway (which was cool b/c she actually played the character of Mia in the movie.

There were SEVERAL differences, but I think that the book was good and pretty cute overall. I'm sure the other people at the gym were wondering why I would just randomly laugh when the TV screen in front of me wasn't even on... :D

Total points = 230


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1. Our Children Are Our Future (Reads) - Funnily The First Letters Of The Fall Months Spell Out The Word Son (September, October, November) - So Read A Book That Has The Word Son(s), Daughter(s) (Because They're Just As Important), Kid(s), Child, or Children In The Title.

The Memory Keeper's Daughter - Kim Edwards

Total = 5 points

Sara wrote: "2 More tasks completed:

10.10 Cats Meow - I read Bad Kitty by Michelle Jaffe and also
for
25.10 Devil,Witch, Vampire, Zombie or Werewolf I read
[book:Mr. Darcy, Vampyr..."

What was Mr Darcy, Vampyre like? Any good?

Finished Roseann's task!

My current job is as an editor, so I read The Sunday Philosophy Club - the main character edits journals. Didn't enjoy this much, too much of it was the main character having philosophical thoughts that seemed to go nowhere.

My dream job is to own and run a bookshop, so I read The Ghost and Mrs. McClure - set in a haunted bookshop. Thanks Roseann for listing this in your post - it was a light read and I enjoyed it, though I don't think I'll bother with the rest in the series.

30.1 Current/dream job – Current (editor) The Sunday Philosophy Club by Alexander McCall Smith, Dream (bookshop owner) The Ghost and Mrs. McClure by Alice Kimberly

Total: 85/690 points
8/59 books
6/45 tasks
2862 pages

5.3 Pacific Lady The First Woman to Sail Solo across the World's Largest Ocean

new total 240

Beth(MN) wrote: "Teresa in Ohio wrote: "I can safely say this is one I WON'T add to my tbr shelf : )


Definitely don't. Even if you like romance...JUST. SAY. NO!!!

" then this is a double NO NO I don't read romance lol

10.1 Prince Caspian by C.S. Lewis (published 1951)
10.10 Cat & Mouse by James Patterson

Total points: 140

25.1 rhyme time

sling shot hip hop poetry
crazy hot A book I thought would have me reading about dinosaur bones and fossils and forensics, nope more of romance hovel BLECH!!!!!!

new total
265

I got a lot of reading done watching the season opening of House, I found it lacking at times.

20.3. GROUP READ - Read The Shadow of the Wind, Julie and Julia 365 Days, 524 Recipes, 1 Tiny Apartment Kitchen, or Shutter Island.

Shutter Island by Dennis Lehane

TOTAL = 70

25.10-I read "The Devil Wears Prada". Although different than the movie, I liked it!

Brings me to 105.

I have finished 10.4, Hispanic Heritage with
Like Water for Chocolate A Novel in Monthly Installments with Recipes, Romances, and Home Remedies by Laura Esquivel

+10
total 300

Janice, your tickers are so cute!

I completed 25.10 by reading Girl's Guide to Witchcraft.

My total is 65 points.

25.9 Diane's Task - Self Improvement - 1) Non-fiction Self Help/Improvement Book - The Inner Game of Stress Outsmart Life's Challenges and Fulfill Your Potential by W. Timothy Gallwey. I won this book through First Reads and am happy to have finally read it. 2) Book in which main character undergoes self-improvement - The Undomestic Goddess by Sophie Kinsella. The main character was leading an unhappy, high-stress lifestyle and learned what things in her life were truly important and ultimately achieved happiness.

Total Points: 335/690
Books Read: 38 (+ 8 Berenstain Bears books)
Tasks Completed: 25/45
Tasks in Progress: 4


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Finished 15.10 (Teacher/Student Relations) with The Schwa Was Here by Neal Shusterman (student) and Good-Bye, Mr. Chips by James Hilton (teacher). This was the 1st multi-book task where I was totally into both books. I recommend either, heartily!


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I complete the following:

5.7 (Thanks) by reading Fun Home A Family Tragicomic - I am very thankful for my family and I found this to be an interesting read - I enjoyed all of the book references and I appreciated the diversity and detail of the artwork.

10.6 (Native American) by reading The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian which is easily one of the best books that I have read this year - heart warming and funny and clever and thought provoking.

Total Points: 235

Finished Fatherland by Robert Harris for task 15.2. I thought this was a really good book, the first 5* read of the challenge for me.

So, do I think the world would be better today if the author's version of history had happened? Definitely NOT. The Germany that Robert Harris described terrified me. People being killed for having the wrong background, the wrong looks, the wrong opinions. The control the leaders have over the people. Germany in this book felt to me like a prison. The world is definitely not a perfect place today, but I think that if this version of history had happened it would have been much worse.

Books Read: 5
Tasks Completed: 4
Pages Read: 1,830
Total Points: 55

I just finished task 5.5 (reread book from school) and I read The Great Gatsby. This is by far one of my favorite books of all time, so I love it just as much now as before.

Total points for this task: 5
Tasks completed: 9

Total points for challenge thus far: 115

Tracy's Completed Tasks ...


25.7 CINDY'S TASK
- One, Two, Three - Read Three Books...

• One With A One Word Title - Contagious-Scott Sigler
• The Second With A Two Word Title - Bloodsucking Fiends-Christopher Moore
• And The Third With A Three Word Title - Water For Elephants-Sara Gruen

Finished 5.8 the two-author task with Sundays at Tiffany's, which was surprisingly sweet.

Total points: 95

Completed 20.3 Group Read: Shutter Island by Dennis LeHane

I read this book two years ago as an audiobook and was totally entranced. Have just finished rereading it in book form as a group read and am equally overwhelmed. It is a psychological thriller that holds you enrapt until the very end. Mind-blowing ending which catches you totally unprepared. Much better than Mystic River.

Book seemed to work well in both media - was spellbound in both cases. Great read.

Points: 125
Books: 10
Pages: 3519
Tasks: 10
In Proc: 6

Jennifer wrote: "Janice, your tickers are so cute!"

Thank you.

Hello!

I just completed Task 5.7 - Giving Thanks

I read the book:

Endangered Pleasures In Defense of Naps, Bacon, Martinis, Profanity, and Other Indulgences by Barbara Holland.

This is a non-fiction book. I chose it because Holland writes, both seriously and humorously, about the many little things in life in which people can find joy. I am very thankful (and joyful) for the little things in life - bare feet on the grass or sand; naps on a cold, rainy day; the morning newspaper; a cup of tea; water - the ocean, a lake, river or lovely, warm bath (lol); a great meal and good glass of wine with wonderful friends; animals and, of course, books are just a few of the things I give thanks for.

To quote the jacket notes: "Holland takes up arms against America's current ethic of industrious virtue. We work longer than we did twenty years ago, she says, and eat more vegetables, but why get rich and live forever if our lives are gray and arduous?"

I couldn't agree more! :)




Total Tasks Completed: 10
Total # Books Read: 15
Total # Pages Read: 4864
Total # Points Accrued: 145

Finished reading Wuthering Heights (Emily Bronte) and Jane Eyre (Charlotte Bronte) for task 25.2.

I've got to say that I really enjoyed both books, and I even cried a little in some portions of Jane Eyre.

That should bring me to 40 pts.

Only completed one so far, I'm so behind.

10 Points
10.1 Published between (9/7/36 - 2/3/59)
The Little Prince by Antoine Saint-Exupery


Liz from NY

I finished these tasks:

20.3 Group Read Shutter Island by Dennis Lehane


Part of 15.3 Subtraction - The total number was 3. The book I chose was The Book Thief by Markus Zusak.

I really enjoyed Shutter Island, one of the best books I've read all year and The Book Thief I felt was just ok. Not what I thought it was going to be.

Total Points: 65 points
Task In Progess: 1
Books Reading: 1

I finished 10.6, Native American Heritage with
Wind Spirit by Aimee and David Thurlo

+10
total 310

Finished 25-9 Diane's self-help task. I feel like I need therapy now to recover!

Driven to Distraction by Edward Hallowell and John Ratey-excellent book about ADD.

and:

Naturally Thin by Bethenny Frankel, she wrote this to help others who may have food issues. She talks about the rules she lives by that have helped her to lose 20 pounds. It made me crave a Big Mac.

75 points now.

5.6 Plum Spooky by Janet Evanovich

Finished one more--

10.2--DIARY OF AN EXERCISE ADDICT by Peach Friedman

I didn't expect to enjoy this read as much as I did. Ms. Friedman's addiction lasted a few years, but she was very bad for only one so the majority of the book was about recovery. The one thing I took from this that I never knew before was that if you loose most of your fat, your body compensates by beginning to grow a sort of white, fluffy fur (weird).

This brings me to 355 points!!

Total Points = 105
5 point tasks:
1. Why do they act that way: a survival guide to the adolescent brain for you and your teen by David Walsh
2. Twilight by Stephanie Meyer
9. The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett
10 point tasks:
3. The Spiderwick Chronicles by Holli Black and Tony DiTerlizzi
6. New Moon by Stephanie Meyer
15 point tasks:
9.Working on the Work by Philliip Schletcty HW assignment: design a page on my website that supports the concepts presented
20 point tasks:
25 point tasks:
5. JANICE'S TASK - The Celestine Prophecy by James Redfield
30 point tasks:
Current: The Teaching Gap by Stigler and Hiebert & Dream: How to get into Law School by Susan Estrich

Finished task 15.7 by listening to Revolutionary Road. What a great book and a TERRIFIC audio performance!

New total: 80 points

Heather in KS

I finished the following challenges:

5-4 Finding Miracles by Julia Alvarez

20-1 The Shack by William P. Young

5-6 Agatha Raisin and the Haunted House by M.C. Beaton

10-3 Tunes for Bears to Dance To by Robert Cormier and Hiroshima by Laurence Yep

This totals 40 additional points for a total of 105.

Thanks!!

I finished a couple more tasks yesterday/today.

Task 10.5 - German Author: Inkheart by Cornelia Funke (9/21/09)

Task 15.4 - Science vs Sci-Fi: Jumper by Steven Gould (9/21/09) and Expelled (9/22/09)

Both books were really great. Inkheart was better than the movie, although I felt the movie was pretty true to the book, relatively speaking. Jumper on the other hand... The book was really great (and I quite enjoyed the movie), but it was so different than the movie that if they had different titles, I never would have associated the two! The book was much more... realistic (if you can say that about a book with teleporting). It was more grounded.

Expelled is a documentary by Ben Stein, who is known for being very intelligent. (It's free to watch on the Netflix website, if you're a member!) It's about the concept of Intelligent Design (which is NOT Creationism), which is the idea/belief that (organic) life on Earth didn't emerge from (inorganic) primordial soup, but was created/set into motion/designed by a power greater and more intelligent than ourselves. This includes creation by God, life seeded by beings from another planet, or any other idea where something or someone intelligent somehow started life on the planet. The documentary is also about how scientists who believe this and promote this scientific theory are shunned, fired, or otherwise disgraced... I think it's pretty obvious that the documentary is presented from a skewed point of view, but there are some really good points in it.

CURRENT STATS
Tasks Completed: 15/45
Tasks Partially Completed: 3/45
Books Read: 20/60
Pages Read: 6,647
Points Earned: 170/690

For task 5.5 I reread The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, which I liked better than I did in high school.

For task 15.9 I read Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic by Alison Bechdel. For the homework assignment: as this book is an autobiographical comic, the assignment is to create a short autobiographical comic (10 to 15 frames) describing an important instance in one's life. Graphics can be hand drawn or computer generated, but must illustrate the specific instance and why it is important or memorable.

Books Read: 16
Tasks Completed: 13
Total Points: 185
Total Pages: 4584

I finished another task -

25.10 - SAM'S TASK - Halloween Part III - Pride and Prejudice and Zombies by Jane Austen and Seth Grahame-Smith

Total Books Read = 17
Tasks Completed = 11
Tasks In Progress = 8

Michelle wrote: "For task 5.5 I reread The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, which I liked better than I did in high school.

For task 15.9 I read Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic by Alison Bechdel. For the home..."

What a great homework assignment!

15.3 Discover The Equation For Good Books (Math) - Pick 2 Of The Following...
• Addition - Add Up The Number Of Letters Found In Your First and Last Names Then Read A Book Written By An Author Whose Name Contains The Same Number Of Letters. Ex. For Me That Would Be 14 Letters So I Could Read A Book Written By Tracy Chevalier
• Subtraction - Subtract The Number Of Letters Found In Your Whole Name (First, Middle, Last) From Your Age And Read A Book With That Many Letters Or Words In The Title. Ex. I'm 27 And My Name Has 18 Letters Which Would Mean I Could Read A Book With 9 Letters In The Title Such As Going Home.
14 or 41
• Multiplication - Multiply Your Age By The Number Of Letters In Your Name And Read A Book With Approximately That Number Of Pages (+/- 25 Pages). If Your Total Is Less Than 100 Pages You Would Need To Read A Book Between 100-125 Pages. Ex. 27*18 = 486 So I Would Need To Read A Book Between 461 And 511 Pages Such As Ransom
• Addition 14 letters
Nancy Rappaport In Her Wake
Division - Divide The Year You Were Born By Your Age (Round That Number To The Nearest Whole Number) And Then Read A Book That Is That Number In A Series.Ex. 1982/27 Is Equal To Approximately 73 Therefore I Would Need To Read A Book That Is The 3rd Or 7th In A Series.
3rd in series 59/1950=33
Eclipse by Meyer
15 points
250 total

Finished task 10.10 - The Cat's Meow with, ironically, Terrier by Tamora Pierce.



I got this one out from the library on a whim, without really thinking where it would fit into the challenge. Thankfully, it worked perfectly for a task that I was still undecided on; if you look closely, you'll notice that there's a black cat twining around Beka's feet.

Total points: 30
3 tasks complete - 8 tasks in progress
6 books read
2,258 pages read

just finished task 10.10 by reading Max And The Cats A Novel. quick read, fairly intriguing, not great, but decent.



go fishy, go!

Total Points: 55/690
Books Read: 8/60
Tasks Completed: 5/45
Tasks in Progress: 4

Finally finished another book that actually gets me points.

For task 20.1 I read Gods and Kings, by Lynn Austin. This was an incredible book looking at the Old Testament story of King Ahaz and King Hezekiah.

CURRENT POINTS: 30

Amanda R. in Louisville

25.10 Sam's Task - Halloween Part III: Monsterfest - The Devil and Miss Prym A Novel of Temptation by Paulo Coelho. Loved this book!

Total Points: 360/690
Books Read: 39 (+ 8 Berenstain Bears books)
Tasks Completed: 26/45
Tasks in Progress: 5


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25.9. I read "Full Catastrophe Living" by Jon Kabat Zinn, and "The Art of Mending" by Elizabeth Berg. Both very good books!

Brings me to 130.

I just finished Task 25.2 by reading The Two Destinies by Wilkie Collins.
I had previously re-read A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens.
Charles Dickens is the father-in-law of Wilkie Collins' brother.
I really enjoyed The Two Destinies. It's a very Victorian novel of the love between two people who were parted at a young age. It's a story of their journey back together again.

Thanks, Donna Jo, for this task. I never realized these two authors were related. Both are favorites of mine and this additional fact that they're related is an interesting tidbit.

Total Points: 130

I finished 15.9 Homework Assignment with Nice to Come Home To by Rebecca Flowers, I loved this book. Another reviewer described it as "intelligent chicklit", a modern version of Sense and Sensibility, but more than that as well. I didn't even absorb the connection until I was finished with the book, the characters were so well created they grabbed the plot and ran with you.

This book is really about self discovery, Pru the main character is forced to realize that what she received her degrees for, and where her true passion lies takes her down a far different road. She has to come to terms with not being able to follow a perfect life "plan". For homework I'd have everyone create a presentation that turns something they love doing into a business. For a physical element they would have to take the career and creat a 10 in. high minature store front for it. In the end stores fronts will be combined to create a "class mall".

I had a similar project in school for Interior Design, but for apartments. It was a lot of fun.


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You do a great job on keeping up on the points and I am not sure if you missed it or if I reported it wrong?

#1194 I posted

Rhyme time Task 25.1
crazy hot poorly written book

and sling shot hip hop poetry

I rhymed shot and hot

total should be 265 Thanks

I've been holding out on reporting because I have several books that can go in several categories, but once again, I'm feeling the need to see my points go up! So...

for 30 point I read Putting on the Dog by Cynthia Baxter (dream job--vet, plus she solved a murder. Can't get any better than that!) and What was She Thinking by Zoe Heller (current job--teacher). This was a strange book and I'm not sure how I feel about it. (It was also made into a movie--Notes on a Scandal, and has an apple on the cover) It is about a teacher who has an affair with one of her students, but is told from the point of view of a fellow teacher who has feelings for the first one.

15.3 I read Gregor and the Code of Claw, Suzanne Collins (1970/39 = 51; this is the fifth book of the series) and Specials by Scott Westerfeld (We have the same number letters in our name--addition part) I was not happy with this last installment in the Uglies series--it started out so strong and I felt like each book was weaker. The Gregor series, however, was fantasic from first to last.

10.10 (cat on the cover) April Fool Dead

That gives me
155 points,
3475 pages read

5.4 The Lost Daughters of China: Abandoned Girls, Their Journey to America, and the Search for a Missing Past by Karin Evans

Total points: 145