The Seasonal Reading Challenge discussion

Congrats to all the finishers!

Beth good luck, that's pretty a big day!!

Finished 15.1 two books with the preposition "with":
A Room With a View and Tuesdays with Morrie An Old Man, a Young Man, and Life's Greatest Lesson. I enjoyed both.

Total points: 190

BJ Rose wrote: "FINALLY posting more points!

5.4 Adoption Story: A Game Of Chance by Linda Howard Nov. 1
10.6 Native American Heritage Month: Ceremony by Leslie Marmon Silko Oct 25
20..."

BJRose, so glad to see you catching up.

10.5 Read The Book Thief which was an interesting look at German life under Hitler.

15.3 addition: 10 letters and I read A Living Nightmare by Darren Shan
Multiplication: 33 * 13=429 (+/- 25) I read Down the Rabbit Hole An Echo Falls Mystery

Total points: 250

Beth(MN) wrote: "I finished The Reader by Bernhard Schlink this afternoon for task 10.5 (book is set in Germany and was written by a German author). I thought it was okay and gave it 3 stars. It w..."

Hey Beth --- 5 days until the due date huh? Congratulations, and all the best as you prepare to meet the newest member of your family.

20.3 I read Julie and Julia by Julie Powell.

Krista wrote: "Hey Beth --- 5 days until the due date huh? Congratulations, and all the best as you prepare to meet the newest member of your family.


Yep! Not like I'm counting or anything.

Thanks :)

I have completed task 25.8 with
Person: Travels with Herodotus
Place: Portland People, Politics, And Power, 1851-2001
Thing: The Lemon Tree An Arab, a Jew, and the Heart of the Middle East.
This brings my total to 155.

I have several new posts for my reading over the past week. Task 10.5 Oktoberfest- Siddhartha by Hermann Hessse Task 10.7 Hero- Lucky Man by Michael J Fox. I cannot help but view him as hero for his ability to use his own personal illness to help and inspire millions. I also respect his long lasting marriage, a rare thing in Hollywood. Task 15.6 Music Appreciation- A Country Called Home by Kim Barnes I then watched Martina McBride Live (well live on GAC) and SoundStage with Trisha Yearwood Task 15.10 Teacher/Student Relations- The Music Teacher by Barbara Hall and High Scool Confidential-Secrets of an Undercover Student by Jeremy Iverson Task 25.9 Self Help- Bad Childhood Good Life by Dr. Laura Schlessinger and A Teenager's Journey- Overcoming a Childhood of Abuse by Richard Pelzer Both books were very good. I was surprised by how much I enjoyed Dr. Schessinger's book. I had been skeptical because I've always associated her with being controversial. However I found the book easy to read, and her view points seemed to make sense.

I finished task 15.5 (study abroad task) by reading The Girl Who Played with Fire and Let the Right One In. Both books were originally published in Swedish.

The Girl Who Played with Fire was good, but I didn't like it quite as much as the first one. I was really disappointed with Let the Right One In. I felt like it was way overhyped and I just couldn't get into it.

From my limited experience reading Swedish books, they seem a little preoccupied with sex, pornography, pedophiles, etc.

That should bring me up to 200 points!

Beth(MN) wrote: "Krista wrote: "Hey Beth --- 5 days until the due date huh? Congratulations, and all the best as you prepare to meet the newest member of your family.


Yep! Not like I'm counting or anything.
..."

I do hope you'll send the arrival in as a completed task!

Task 5.10 Traveling back in Time- Both Sides of Time by Caroline Cooney

I have completed Erin's task (#20.2) by reading the following:

American Born Chinese-Gene Luen Yang
Being Dead A Novel-Jim Crace*
The Crying of Lot 49-Thomas Pynchon

I finished 15.10 Teacher/Student. First I read A Separate Peace by John Knowles which takes place at a private boys school in New England. The main character is a student. Then I read These Happy Golden Years by Laura Ingalls Wilder in which Laura is a teacher.

This will bring my total to 420.

Finished 25.8 - Noun with three short reads last night:

Person: Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare
Place: Bridge to Terebithia by Katherine Patterson
Thing: Hatchet by Gary paulson

POINTS:350
TASKS:23
BOOKS:32
PAGES:9991

I completed task 5.8 by reading Good Omens The Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch by Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaimen.

My conclusion? Two heads are great! I have read both authors seperatly and would have to say for me the combination far exceeded Terry Pratchett alone and slightly exceeded Neil Gaiman. It was a great read.

Point Total: 315
Page Total: 6838

5.9 The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman

completed 15.7 - book while exercising
Half Broke Horses A True-Life Novelby Jeanette Walls
completed 15.4 -science fiction/science

Fahrenheit 451- Ray Bradbury and I watched 2 episodes of Planet Earth.

completed 25.5 - Fortune Telling
The Lace Reader-Brunonia Barry

New total: 145 points

I completed task 20.2 ABC task. I read EFG... The Elegance of the Hedgehog, The Friday Night Knitting Club, and The Gargoyle. Great choices all around!
Total points for this task: 20
Tasks completed: 19
Many in progress

Total points for challenge thus far: 265

10.5 Grimm's Fairy Tales by the Brothers Grimm

Congratulations to all the finishers so far - it looks like the Winter Challenge is going to be a big one!!!

FINISHED:

25.1 – Something Big Was Here – Jack Prelutsky

Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: A Year of Food Life – Barbara Kingsolver

TOTAL POINTS = 230

Finished 10.7 - The Time of My Life

I appreciate his great work ethic, his long time marriage and admire him for his hard battle against cancer. After reading the book I also look up to his wife as a strong and independent woman.

This brings me to 155 pts.

Task 15.10 - Teacher / Student
A: Teacher - The Host by Stephanie Myers. Main Character, 'Wanderer', is a story teller which is their term for teacher. Teaches at a University. Loved this book - 5 Stars.

B: Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson - Based on story of two students that become friends. Another great read, quite heart wrenching - 4 stars.

Total Points for Task = 15

New Grand Total = 155

25.8 - Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins (Thing)
Getting Away with Murder: The True Story of the Emmett Till Case by Christ Crowe (Person)
The Watsons Go to Birmingham by Christopher Paul Curtis (Place)

Points: 25
Total Points: 55

Finished task 10.10 - The Cat Who Went to Paris, by Peter Gethers http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25.... This has Cat in the title and a picture of the cat on the cover. It was such a fun book, I could read it again and again!

Totals:
150/690 points
Tasks Completed: 12
Tasks In Progress: 6
Books Read: 19 (+3 children’s books)
Pages Read: 4,931

I completed 25.8:

Person: Amy and Isabelle A Novel

Place: Shanghai Girls A Novel

Thing: Her Fearful Symmetry

My total is now 250.

completed two multi-book tasks in the last two days. YAY!

15.5 read Strange Pilgrims and Like Water for Chocolate. both were originally written in spanish. strange pilgrims was fabulous, though most of the stories were rather depressing. chocolate was a re-read (after 15 years!) and was even better this time!

25.9 read self-help:Eat, Drink, & Be Merry America's Doctor Tells You Why the Health Experts Are Wrong
character who has a significant change in life: Before Night Falls A Memoir. both fabulous reads!

i broke 300! woo! :)





Total Points: 320/690
Books Read: 24/62
Tasks Completed: 16/45
Tasks in Progress: 1

I finished 20.2, the ABCs challenge, with these books:
The Age of American Unreason by Susan Jacoby
Breaking Dawn by Stephenie Meyer
Cat's Cradle by Kurt Vonnegut

It feels good to be finished with one of the big multi-book tasks. And I'm finally in the triple digits!

This is my first time trying a seasonal challenge, and I'm really loving it. I'm reading so many books I wouldn't have read otherwise (Cat's Cradle, for instance: I've never read any Vonnegut and picked this one simply because it was a book with a C title that was already on my bookshelf. I ended up enjoying it.)

Tasks Currently in Progress: 5
Tasks Completed: 10
Total Books: 20

Total Points: 100

I finished Decked by Carol Higgins Clark (daughter) and The Lottery Winner Alvirah and Willy Stories by Mary Higgins Clark (mother) for task 25.2 where the authors are related.

They were both 'meh' in my opinion and it's unlikely I'll ever read anything by either of them again by choice.




TASKS COMPLETED: 29
TASKS PARTIALLY COMPLETED: 4
BOOKS READ: 38 (+4 kids books)
PAGES READ: 12,186
POINTS EARNED: 375
NUMBER OF BOOKS READ FROM MY 'OWNED AND UNREAD' SHELF: 23

Finished 20.3:
Julie & Julia by Julie Powell

TOTALS:
Points: 350
Books: 44
Tasks: 26
Pages: 12,383

One month left and 22 books to go... Not sure I'll make it, but at least I'm having fun trying!

I finally finished the third book necessary to complete task 25.7!
1 word = Outliers
2 words = The Stranger
3 words = The Wordy Shipmates

Total Points Earned: 80

Just finished 10.3 and 10.4 for 20 more points -
For 10.3 I thoroughly enjoyed reading 4 Berenstain Bears books from my classroom. I realized that I still have them practically memorized from childhood!

For 10.4 I read City of the Beasts by Isabel Allende who is from Chile.

Finished:

5.4 Adoption
Kimchi & Calamari
25.3 Wendy's Task
Another Kind Of Cowboy

Both were excellent portrayals of young men who see themselves as outsiders in some way. I'd highly recommend either of them.

Total Points: 150
Cindy from Canada

5.10. Fall Back In Time For Daylight Savings Time – Read A Novel Where One Or More Character(s) Travel Back In Time.
Time of My Life by Allison Winn Scotch-11/2 (283 pgs)

New Total: 310

So, it seems having two plane rides today paid off. Finished another task...
Read Shutter Island for the group read task 20.3. I was pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoyed this book and couldn't put it down. 4 stars.

Total points for this task: 20
Tasks completed: 20
Many in progress

Total points for challenge thus far: 285

25.2 The Mist by Stephen King, Heart-Shaped Box A Novel by Joe Hill

Total Points: 410
Tasks Completed: 26

I completed task 10.10 Cat in the title or cover.

I read Definitely Dead by Charlaine Harris

Finished:

Task 5.3 (sea travel): Life of Pi - Yann Martel (11/1) 4 stars

Task 10.3 (bear/children's): The Violent Bear It Away A Novel - Flannery O'Connor (11/2) 3 stars - I did like this book, but I think I'm going to be a much bigger fan of her short stories


Total Points: 440/690
Books Read: 43/62
Tasks Completed: 29/45
Pages Read: 13,406

Completed 20 point task Learn Your ABC's.
Read: Angry Housewives Eating Bon-Bons by Lorna Landvick 416 pages, Bright Eyes by Catherine Anderson 419 pages, The Call of the Wild by Jack London 137 pages.

Completed 15 point task #9 Read a book with Home in the title.
Read: No Place Like Home by Fern Michaels 223 pages.
Homework Assignment: Write an essay about your families holiday traditions. Then describe what your perfect family or holiday gathering would be.

Finished task 5.7
Read Call the Midwife by Jennifer Worth.
I had a difficult childbirth and I'm very grateful that it happened in a time where good medical support was readily available. I'm very aware that 50 years earlier things might have turned tragic for my son and myself.

Finished 25.2 DONNA JO'S TASK - Find Two Authors Who Are Related By Blood Or Marriage And Read A Book By Each - I read When in Rome... A Novel of Piazzas and Passion by Gemma Townley and Twenties Girl A Novel by Sophie Kinsella. Gemma Townley and Sophie Kinsella are sisters. I have to say that I did not really like either book.

25.10 SAM'S TASK - Halloween Part III - The Witches by Roald Dahl.

Total Points: 210
Books Read: 22
Tasks Completed: 14
Pages Read: 7292

Cynthia- I believe I am missing 15 points from message 2948. It's somewhat my fault becaue everything got pushed together when I hit post. Sorry that it was so hard to distinquish individual tasks. Thanks

Completed Task 15.8: (Initials ST) The Rock Alphabet by Henrietta Rose-Innes (South Africa) and Tintin in Tibet by Herge (Tibet)
I didn't enjoy The Rock Alphabet (I wasn't sure if it was a love story or a mystery, I didn't care about the characters at all), but Tintin was really cool, am on the look out for more. 4 stars
TOTAL = 60

Shannon wrote: "Completed Task 15.8: (Initials ST) The Rock Alphabet by Henrietta Rose-Innes (South Africa) and Tintin in Tibet by Herge (Tibet)
I didn't enjoy The Rock Alphabet (I wasn't sure if it was a love st..."

Glad you liked Tintin, part of my childhood being Belgian!

5pt tasks-
9. Once upon a quinceañera : coming of age in the USA / Julia Alvarez.

10 pt. tasks

2. Got the life : my journey of addiction, faith, recovery, and Korn / Fieldy ; with Laura Morton.

6. - Circle of life : traditional teachings of Native American elders / James David Audlin (Distant Eagle)

7. - Leaper : the misadventures of a not-necessarily-super hero / by Geoffrey Wood.

8. - Enlightenment for idiots : a novel / Anne Cushman.

9. - Oldest living Confederate widow tells all / Allan Gurganus.

10.- The jade cat / Suzanne Brøgger ; translated from the Danish by Anne Born

15 pt. tasks

8.
A- Austria - The lonely empress : Elizabeth of Austria / Joan Haslip.
D- Denmark - The yellow star : the legend of King Christian X of Denmark / Carmen Agra Deedy

10.
-Teacher man / by Frank McCourt.
-Ten things your student with autism wishes you knew / Ellen Notbohm with Veronica Zysk.
Notbohm, Ellen.

20 pt. tasks

1.-In the shadow of the Sun King / Golden Keyes Parsons.

25 pt. tasks

2. Todd Mccaffrey - Dragonheart son of Anne Mccaffrey - The chronicles of Pern : first fall

3. - The mayor of Castro Street : the life and times of Harvey Milk / Randy Shilts.

4. - Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince by J.K. Rowling – I liked the book better because you get all the details and lately the movies skim over things or assume you know what is going on. I don’t like that, I feel if they are going to make a movie from a book stick to the way it’s written people liked it for a reason.

5. - The fortune teller's daughter / Susan Wilson.

8.
1. My Life in France by Julia Child
2. The gospel according to Coco Chanel : life lessons from the world's most elegant woman / Karen Karbo
3. Running with scissors : a memoir / Augusten Burroughs.

30 pt. tasks

1.
Current job – special education teacher -
A smile as big as the moon : a teacher, his class, and their unforgettable journey / Mike Kersjes
Dream Job – Queen 
- The cupcake queen / Heather Hepler.


Total Points for whole challenge- 410

Finished 15.1.

I used a verb and its participle form.

VERB: Break
Ivy and Bean Break the Fossil Record by Annie Barrows

PARTICIPLE: Breaking
Breaking Dawn by Stephenie Meyer

TOTALS:
Points: 365
Books: 45
Tasks: 27
Pages: 12,515

kiki wrote: "completed two multi-book tasks in the last two days. YAY!

i broke 300! woo! :)..."

Congrats on breaking 300! I'm hoping to get to 400 by the end of the challenge. I seem to be stuck at 260 right now though. I'm reading a big honking Diana Gabaldon book right now.

Anyway -- good on ya!

I read The Trial for half of task 15.5 as it was originally published in German.

Still my total is 105 points.
books finished: 11

I've FINALLY finished another book! I've too busy for words! But I've finished the very tongue in cheek The Superman Handbook The Ultimate Guide to Saving the Dayfor task 10.7 I now know how to save someone from quicksand AND escape wild animal attacks!

I finished my first task!!! Not gonna make the ten I had set out for myself : ( But, I should make at least two. Maybe I'll do better next time.

At any rate....
finished task no 8 for 5 points - book with two authors: The 101 Most Influential People That Never Lived (Lazar, Karlan, Salter)

5.4 Anne of Green Gables
5.6 Ghostly Scotland
10.2 The Heroin Diaries A Year in the Life of a Shattered Rock Star
15.6 Much Ado About Nothing