The Seasonal Reading Challenge discussion

Congratulations Bonnie!

FOr the poetry and novel task for 25 points I have read If I don't know by Wendy Cope and Dead Sky by Tami Hoag. This is rhyming I with Sky.


Previous reads

5.1 Children are our future - Child 44 by Rob Tom Smith
5.2 Apple a day - Notes on a Scandal by Zoe Heller
5.4 Adoption - Digging to America by Anne Tyler
5.10 Fall back in time - Human Croquet by Kate Atkinson

10.1 Buddy Holly's lifetime - Scoop by Evelyn Waugh
10.4 Hispanic Heritage Month - The Forest of Pygmies by Isabel Allende Allende is chilean.
10.5 Oktober fest - The Witch's Trinity by Erika Mailman this book is set in Germany.
10.7 Faster than a Speeding Bullet - A Song Flung up to Heaven by Maya Angelou
10.8 Word Generator - Something Might Happen by Julie Myerson (might)
10.10 The Cat's Meow - Kafka on the Shore by Haruki Marukami

15.3 Addition - Salmon Fishing in the Yemen by Paul Torday (Alice Gould) Muliplication - Everything is Illuminated by Jonathan Safran Foer (10x27=270, 276 pages)
15.9 Homework - Home by Marilynne Robinson
15.10 Teacher - The Piano Teacher by Janice Y.K. Less Student - Testimony by Anita Shreve

20.3 Group Read - Shutter Island by Dennis LeHane

25.4 Film and Book - Mystic River by Dennis LeHane
25.5 Fortune in the title - Fortune's Rocks by Anita Shreve
25.8 Nouns - person The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde, thing Purple Hibiscus by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, place Brick Lane by Monica Ali
25.10 Halloween - Pride and Prejudice and Zombies

30.1 current job and dream job - The History Man by Malcolm Bradbury(I work in a University) and The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield (I would love to own a bookshop).

50.1 Sense - The Scent of the Night by Andrea Camilleri Emotion - Even the Stars Look Lonesome Tonight by Maya Angelou Memory The Great Divorce by Valerie Martin


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Finished 5.1 last night The Tailor's Daughter by Janice Graham. I can't say enough about this book! It was so beautifully written and the story was wonderful.

If anyone is looking for a book for the Winter Challenge for the Louis Louis task, the main character in the book loses her hearing at age 16.

Total: 530

30 Point Tasks
1. ROSEANN'S TASK - Your Job/Dream Job Challenge - First Read A Book That Is Somehow Related To Your Current Profession AND Then Read A Book That Is Related To Either Your Current Or Childhood Dream Job. The Books Can Either Have A Character Or Setting That Relates To That Job.
Hey, I'm the Customer by Ron Willingham-11/12 (194 pgs)
I am a teller manager and this book was about giving exceptional customer service (which I have been trained to do). I have been there almost 13 years. This book also had about 10 examples about finanical institutions as well as tellers giving both bad and good customer service.

How I Became a Famous Novelist by Steve Hely-11/4 (322 pgs)
I have always wanted to write a novel or memoir, even as a child, I would write short stories or books. This is still something I aspire to do one day.

New Total: 445

I finished World War Z An Oral History of the Zombie War for challenge 25.10. I love this book. Its my second time through it and it only gets better.

This should put me at 80 points.

5.5 Back to school
I read Oedipus Rex by Sophocles which I had read in 12th grade English. I liked it then because I was just starting to appreciate literature, and not just reading for fun. I was worried because we were reading Antigone for Basic composition at the exact same time. I thought the two plots might start to run together in my memory,but realized I could read multiple stories at the same time. I still enjoyed it, and refreshing my memory about the plot.

Congratulations, Bonnie!

Helen, you're almost there!

Finally finished The Trial by Franz Kafka, which means I can FINALLY post that I've finished task 15.5..I also read The Neverending Story by Michael Ende, both books originally written in German.

Way to go, Bonnie!

Also, for Cynthia, I finished another:

5.3: The Secret Sharer by Joseph Conrad


TOTALS:
Points: 480
Books: 55
Pages: 14,482
Tasks: 34

Hello!

I have the following completed tasks to report:

A) Task 20.3 - Group Reads ~ I read Julie and Julia: My Year of Cooking Dangerously.

B) Task 25.4 - Candace's Task (book/movie) ~ I read the book Little Children by Tom Perrotta published in 2004 and also watched the movie, based on the book, released in 2006. I liked both but found the depth and nuances of the characters were much more evident in the book. Generally I always prefer the book over the film, but this film was very strong with amazing performances by Kate Winslet and Jackie Earle Hailey (Hey, Bad News Bears!). It was his performance that stood out the most for me in the film. I did find, in the book, some more harsher moments as well as the dark comedy to be more evident.

C)Task 50.1 - PJ's Task - Minding the World

(i) Senses ~ I read Deafening by Frances Itani. War and deafness are the twin themes of this psychologically rich, impeccably crafted debut novel set during WWI. Born in the late 19th century, Grania O'Neill comes from solid middle-class stock, her father a hotel owner in Deseronto, Ontario, her mother a God-fearing daughter of an Irish immigrant. When Grania is five, she loses her hearing to scarlet fever. When she is nine, she is sent to the Ontario Institution for the Deaf and Dumb in Belleville and given an education not only in lipreading, signing and speaking but also in emotional self-sufficiency. After graduating, she works as a nurse in the Belleville hospital, where she meets and falls in love with Jim Lloyd. They marry, but Jim is bound for the war as a stretcher bearer. His war is hell on earth: lurid wounds; stinks; sudden, endless slaughter redeemed only by comradeship. Itani's remarkably vivid, unflinching descriptions of his ordeal tend to overshadow Grania's musings on the home front, but Grania's story comes to the fore again when her brother-in-law and childhood friend, Kenan, comes back to Deseronto from the trenches in Europe with a dead arm and a half-smashed face, refusing to speak. Grania, who was educated to configure sounds she couldn't hear into words that "the hearing" could understand, brings Kenan back to life by teaching him sounds again, and then by making portraits of the people in the town whom she, Kenan and her sister Tress know in common. As she talks to Kenan, she reinvigorates him with a sense that his life, having had such a rich past, must have a future, too. This subplot eloquently expresses Itani's evident, pervasive faith in the unexpected power of story to not only represent life but to enact itself within lives. Her wonderfully felt novel is a timely reminder of war's cost, told from an unexpected perspective. A 5 Star novel!

(ii) Emotions ~ I read the novel Kiss the Joy as it Flies by Sheree Fitch. It has the word "Joy" in the title, but the story covers a range of emotions as a women awaits a possible cancer diagnosis - joy, fear, love, acceptance, distraction, disappointment, annoyance, surprise, anticipation and optimism. This novel was chock-a-block with emotions. It was a great read and had a lot of humour throughout.

(iii) Memories ~ I read Last Night in Twisted River by John Irving. I chose this novel because of my fond University memories. Much of the novel takes places in States I spent a lot of time in as a student - Vermont and New Hampshire. They were wonderful times.





# of Books Read: 29
# of Tasks Completed: 45
# of Pages Read: 14519
# of Points Accumulated: 510

I completed the Group Reads task by reading Julie and Julia My Year of Cooking Dangerously - It was up and down for me - sometimes I was into it, sometimes not. I DID love all the references to Buffy The Vampire Slayer.

Total points: 530

Buffy! Hmmm I'll have to get on that one.

Read The Virgin Suicides for task 5.9.
New point total: 55 points

New Completed Tasks:

Task 5.1 - Children: The Wedding Planner's Daughter by Coleen Murtagh Paratore (11/11/09)

Task 5.4 - Adoption: Kimchi & Calamari by Rose Kent (11/8/09)

***NOTE*** I've moved The Off Season from Task 15.7 to here:
Task 25.2 - Donna Jo — Related Authors: (Cathy is Liz's older sister.)
The Off Season by Catherine Gilbert Murdock (9/23/09) AND
Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert (11/4/09)

Task 25.10 - Sam — Halloween Monsters: Zombie Blondes by Brian James (11/12/09)

CURRENT STATS
Tasks Completed: 34/45
Tasks Partially Completed: 3
Books Read: 50/62
Pages Read: 16,798
Points Earned: 520/690 (475 - 15 + 5 + 5 + 25 + 25 = 520)



I hope I finish! I still have the MASSIVE dead presidents book to read..........

Tanya wrote: "It's been forever since I updated, but really, what do you expect from a 950 pg book? lol...

Anyways, finished task 5-10 by reading Dragonfly in Amber- Diana Gabaldon

So many pages for so few..."


Oh Tanya, I know the feeling. I just finished A Breath of Snow and Ashes today. It took forever to read, and didn't garner me many points, but it was what I was hankering to read. What is a reader supposed to do? :-)

Congratulations to Bonnie on finishing the challenge!!

My Newly Completed Tasks:

15.6 - Creative Minds - Music Appreciation Class - Read A Book With A Type Of Music In The Title (Jazz, Country, Pop, Rap Etc.) And Listen To A CD Or Attend A Concert Of That Type Of Music.
Book: Martin Scorsese Presents The Blues A Musical Journey
CDs: One Kind Favor by BB King, and Skin Deep by Buddy Guy

This book was a great history about the blues from the early years of its emergence in the early 1900’s through it’s continued influence of today’s musical artists in many musical genres. It’s a companion book to the 7 disc DVD set that Martin Scorsese produced outlining the history of the blues. Now I’ve got to get my hands on the movies!

20.2 - ROOKIE OF THE SEASON - ERIN - Learn Your ABC's
A - An Angel for Emily
B - A Breath of Snow and Ashes (Erin Okayed this for the ‘B’ slot)
C - Caravaggio's Angel

An Angel For Emily: A quick, cute romantic mystery. Emily does need an angel.

A Breath of Snow and Ashes: Whew, Diana Gabaldon got back on track with this book. I really didn’t like The Fiery Cross, but I enjoyed this book (another mammoth read) and I’m anxious to get the latest book in the series from the library soon. I gave this one 4 stars.

I’m really proud that I read two Gabaldon books for this challenge. I hesitated to read them because they both had large page counts. I knew reading them would keep my point total down. But I decided that reading what I really wanted to read instead of focusing on point totals would be a growth step for me. :-)

Caravaggio’s Angel: Quirky art history mystery with some WWII intrigue thrown in for good measure. Set in France and England. First in series. Interesting enough that I’d read the next in the series if it works into a challenge soon I gave this one 3 stars.

Total Points: 325
Completed Tasks: 20/45
Books Read for Completed Tasks: 28/62
Pages Read for Completed Tasks: 10,739
Other Tasks in Process: 4

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I completed TASK 25.2 - DONNA JO'S TASK.

I read:
The History of Love by Nicole Krauss
Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close by Jonathan Safran Foer.
Krauss and Foer are married.

Bonnie wrote: "Yay, I'm finished!

20 Points
3. Group Read: The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon

The translator should win some kind of award for this. It was a beautifully written book ..."

Congrats, Bonnie!!

10. 10. This Task Is The Cat's Meow - Read A Book That...
• Has The Word Cat(s) In The Title.
Or Has A Picture Of A Cat(s) On The Cover.
The Cat Who Ate Danish Modern Lilian Jackson Braun 11-12-09 247 Pages

Current Pages Read: 8032
Books Read: 23
Challenges Completed: 17
Total Points: 265

Jennifer wrote: "
Hello!

I have the following completed tasks to report:

A) Task 20.3 - Group Reads ~ I read Julie and Julia: My Year of Cooking Dangerously.

B) Task 25.4 - Candace's Task (book/movi..."

What is the keepsake for the 3rd portion of the 50 pointer?

10.2 Dry by Augusten Burroughs

total: 150 points

Congratulations on the finish, Bonnie!

Two more tasks to get me closer to that finish line:

5.1 Children are Our Future: The General's Daughter by Kate Huntington Nov. 12

15.9 Homework: Home Song by LaVyrle Spencer Nov. 8
This story is about how infidelity affects & impacts all members of the family, and about how it spills over into other areas of their lives (much of this story is carried out in the school the children attend, where Tom is principal & Claire is a teacher).

My homework assignment:
Analyze the actions/reactions of Tom & Claire (husband & wife) and the 3 children involved.
a. How could Tom have acted differently when he learned about his out-of-wedlock son? What might have been different if he had been more honest?
b. Claire had difficulty reconciling her roles as wife, mother, and teacher. Give your reactions to her behavior at home with her family, and her actions at school in her professional role as teacher.
c. In your opinion, was the behavior of the 3 teens realistic? Use examples to explain your answer.

Total Pages = 18,036

Total Points - 655

COMPLETED TASKS:

50.1 SENSES - (Taste & Smell) Comfort Food by Kate Jacobs (pp 352) READ 11.12.09
I could taste and smell some of the mouth watering foods that were prepared in this book. It was absolutely delightful!

50.1 EMOTIONS - (FEAR) A Living Nightmare by Darren Shan (pp 272) READ 10.14.09
This book was creepy and did not allay my fear of spiders.

50.1 MEMORIES - * Arabella by Georgette Heyer (pp 320) READ 11.10.09- My keepsake is the book itself. I spent lots of time reading romance novels as a teen. Reading this Regency romance novel by Georgette Heyer, who was very popular back then, transported me back in time.






TASKS COMPLETED: 27
TASKS IN PROGRESS: 5
BOOKS READ: 42/62
PAGES READ: 12,900
TOTAL POINTS EARNED: 450
*Books I Own

Finished 20.2
ABC's
Are You There Vodka? It's Me, Chelsea
Beyond Heaving Bosoms The Smart Bitches' Guide to Romance Novels
Catching Fire

Completed: 10.2 (addiction)

Killing Yourself to Live: 85% of a True Story
by Chuck Klosterman

Klosterman, a writer for Spin Magazine, travels around America visiting the sites where many rock stars met their demise. 80% of the cases were directly related to intoxication. One crazy rock god went as far as replacing his blood with whiskey, morphine, cocaine, and THC. (I guess that wasn't an urban legend). 10% were suicides and plane, car, and motorcycle crashes often linked to drugs and alcohol. The final 10% died of natural causes or were murdered. Klosterman wanted to discern why people become more famous after death. He ends up only dedicating 2 or 3 pages to answering the central question of his own book. I wish I would have read Permanent Midnight by Jerry Stahl. I loved that movie.

+10
total 115
Thanks

Another task completed! I read Travels in the Scriptorium A Novel, by Paul Auster, and A Tale Etched in Blood and Hard Black Pencil, by Christopher Brookmyre, for task 15.1 (the preposition being 'in').

BJ Rose wrote:
Two more tasks to get me closer to that finish line:

5.1 Children are Our Future: The General's Daughter by Kate Huntington Nov. 12

15.9 Homew..."

Yay, BJ Rose. It won't be long until you're finished!!

20.3: Julie & Julia by Julie Powell

Points: 20

Also -

15.3: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J.K. Rowling (division) and Anne of the Island by L.M. Montgomery (multiplication)

Points: 15

Total Points: 355
Total Pages: 10263

I have finished Julie & Julia by Julie Powell for 20.3

Current points: 50
Books read: 4

Hello Everyone. I found this group really late, but I still wanted to jump in and see what I could get done by the end of the month. I do have a week's vacation coming up so we will see what I can accomplish.

So far,

5.1 Children of the Night (Dan Simmons)
5.7 Handmaid's Tale (Margaret Atwood) I'm thankful for my freedom!
5.9 Flowers for Algernon (Daniel Keyes)
5.10 A Wrinkle in Time (Madeleine L'Engle)

20.3 Shutter Island (Dennis Lehane)

Total: 40

Finished my last 5-pointer with a quickie:

5.7: I am thankful for so many things, and this books relates to many of them. The name of the main character is the name of my family's dearest friend in Japan (and the namesake of my own middle name!). I am so grateful that we have a special relationship that spans generations and seas. But the book is really about belief in yourself, resilience, friendship, and finding a way out of difficult times with the help . These are all things that I am deeply grateful for.

Mieko and the Fifth Treasure by Eleanor Coerr

TOTALS:
Points: 485
Books: 56
Pages: 14,562
Tasks: 35

Finished reading Chicken Soup for the Body and Soul for task 20.1.

That should bring me to 135 pts. That was also my 50th book of the year- I've officially met my 50 book goal for 2009 a month and a half early!

Just wanted to say Thank you again to Cynthia- without these challenges I would have still been reading chick-lit almost exclusively. The challenges have forced me to open my eyes to other genres and to read more than I normally would :)

15-3 is done-yay!

Addition=10, Angels All Over Town by Luanne Rice and,

Subtraction=20, Betsy In Spite of Herself by Maud Hart Lovelace

445 points

I have a few tasks to post for:
1. 25.7- a. One word- Resilence by Elizabeth Edwards b. Two word- Julia's Chocolates by Cathy Lamb c. Three word- The Pain Nurse by Jon Talton

2. 25.8 Nouns- a. Person- All About Jane by Cheryl Mendelson b. Place- Home to HollySprings by Jan Karon c. Thing- Hurry Down Sunshine by Michael Greebberg

Task 5.1 Children- After Etan- The Missing Child Case that Held America Captive by Lisa R Cohen

Jenilyn wrote: "Hello Everyone. I found this group really late, but I still wanted to jump in and see what I could get done by the end of the month. I do have a week's vacation coming up so we will see what I ca..."

Congratulations, Jenilyn. Hope you have a good time reading.

;^) Jan (the Gryphon)

Yeay, I finished The Grapes of Wrathfor task 10.1!!! It was a re-read and just as good this time as the first!




Total Points: 350/690
Books Read: 27/62
Tasks Completed: 19/45
Tasks in Progress: 2

I completed the 50 pt. task by reading: Senses -So Long, See You Tomorrow, Emotions - Postcards from Heaven Messages of Love from the Other Side(audiobook), Memories - The Puzzle Bark Tree throughout my childhood & now with my daughter one of my favorite memories/pasttimes is doing jigsaw puzzles. I really enjoyed all three of these books. Great task!
Total - 275

Hooray - break out the champagne - I am done with this challenge!!! This was my first exploration into book challenges. Great fun!! Thanks Cynthia!!

Last post for Fall Challenge

15.2 Rewriting History: Fatherland by Robert Harris

This was a surprisingly good book. Fast paced mystery with a plotline that showed Germany winning WWII. Took place in 1964 when no one knew what had happened to the European Jews and Joseph Kennedy was the US president. The map in the front of the book of the new Germany was very interesting - took in most of Europe.

I would definitely not have liked to live in that world alternative. A police state is not to my liking - loved the comment that if you have a police state then you have a state run by criminals. Also, I really didn't like having every title being 4-5 syllables and ending in "fuhrer".


Points: 690
Books: 61
Pages: 17743
Tasks: 45
In Proc: Looking over tasks for Winter Challenge

*pop* A toast to Helen, voracious reader and first time challenge winner!

Also, my congratulations to Tanya for meeting her goal and discovering literary life beyond chick-lit.

25.1 I read Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire and The Poets' Grimm 20th Century Poems from Grimm Fairy Tales

HP is always fun, the poems were kind of a let down. There were a couple of gems (particularly one by Neil Gaiman), but it was not worth the slog through the rest. Unfortunate since the title and theme seemed so fun.

Point Total: 340
Page Total: 7876

Hooray, Helen! How nice you finished the first time around. (Plus you bump me up to the 30 pointers.)

Congrats Helen!!

@ Helen

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7. Giving Thanks - In Honor Of Thanksgiving (November 26th) Read A Book That Relates To The Thing You Are Most Thankful For.
• Please Tell Us What That Is When You Claim Points.
B-Mother by Maureen O'Brien-11/13 (276 pgs)
This book is about a 16 year old who is basically forced to give her child up for adoption. I am thankful that my own parents choose to keep me. My mom was in a similar situation, pregnant at 16 and her parents would not help support her. Luckily my dad decided to support both of them by getting two jobs at the age of 18.

New Total 450

Yeay, Helen! Way to go! :)

Congratulations, Helen!!!! Awesome!!!

I completed Task 20.2 (ABC) by reading:

Evil Under the Sun - I haven't read many Hercule Poirot books. By the end, I can't figure out who dunnit......everyone looks guilty and, although all the facts have been presented throughout the book, they could go together in a number of ways. I enjoyed this mystery and all of it's twists and turns.

Fifth Business - another delightful Davies story. This one follows the life of Dunstan Ramsay as he tells his story. Small events of no apparant importance come back in large, important ways. This is the first of a trilogy and I look forward to reading the other books to see how the story plays out.
This is the third Roberson Davies book I've read and I've enjoyed them all. There's an easy going, everyday Life aspect to them and the characters are interesting. He's also got a good sense of humour that pops up throughout the story.

Getting Married - The copy I read had over 160 pages. It contained an introduction on the laws, views and expectations of marriage in the days of Bernard Shaw as these were what he based this play on. Very interesting reading.
The play itself is a hilarious look at the pros and cons (mainly cons) of marriage. The group of people involved discuss and argue what marriage entails and the personal indebtedness that one puts oneself into when agreeing to marry. They sit down to write a new Marriage Contract that is fair and agreeable to both sides.
George Bernard Shaw has a witty way with words that makes this play laugh-out-loud funny.
The last scene does seem a bit out of place. The story seems to end, the dilemma resolved and then there's an extra scene that seems to drag a bit. I'm not sure why this scene was added.
I would like to see this piece performed on stage.

Donna Jo wrote: "Hooray, Helen! How nice you finished the first time around. (Plus you bump me up to the 30 pointers.)"

Thanks for the cheering. Glad you got to the 30 pointers. See what a little friendship can do!! Glad to help out!!

Lisa wrote: "@ Helen

"

Burp - just popped that bottle - celebrating heartily. Thanks - Helen

Congrats Helen!