The Seasonal Reading Challenge discussion

Thanks, Sara, I was confused about that and having immense trouble finding an author with 18 letters in any combination of his/her name. Today I picked up "The Starter Wife" at a library book sale and it's by Gigi Levangie Grazer; 18 letters!

That's a LOT of letters! I only had 11!

Sara wrote: "That's a LOT of letters! I only had 11!"

I have 17 for the addition challenge, but I just started using process of elimination with some favorite authors and found mine. I knew I had to find someone, cause my subtraction option would have meant finding a title with 50 letters, and for the division option I would have to read a 1200 page book!

For tast 15.9 The Home or Work word:

Does the word house count?

I have a question about the Most Improved Player... can someone who finished the challenge last year still qualify for this since there are more points this time around? I have resolved that I am not going to be able to finish.

Angie wrote: "For tast 15.9 The Home or Work word:

Does the word house count?"

Seems like this one was pretty clear that 'Home' or 'Work' needed to be part of the title. But Cynthia should be the final say since it's her task. :-)

I'm going to use 'Home' by Marilyn Robinson as it's on my bookshelf and I've been meaning to get it read.

Angie wrote: "For tast 15.9 The Home or Work word:

Does the word house count?"

I'm pretty sure it has to be either 'home' or 'work' specifically. I'm using Home A Memoir of My Early Years, which is about Julie Andrews. I absolutely adore her. The Princess Diaries 2 was on the Disney Channel last night, I (cheesily) love that movie!

Candace wrote: "Angie wrote: "For tast 15.9 The Home or Work word:

Does the word house count?"

I'm pretty sure it has to be either 'home' or 'work' specifically. I'm using [book:Home A Memoir of My Early ..."


I saw that too and was thinking about reading that. Julie Andrews has been my favorite forever. I watched Mary Poppins over and over as a child. Couldn't get enough of it. haha

BJ Rose wrote: "Sara wrote: "That's a LOT of letters! I only had 11!"

I have 17 for the addition challenge, but I just started using process of elimination with some favorite authors and found mine. I knew I had..."

Glad someone else is having the same problems. I had no problem finding an author who has 10 letters in their name, but my book had to be 38 letters in the title, and I would have to read a 986 page book (I am OLD, LOL) Thank goodness we have the series challenge, I have books that I want to read that fit both digits of my division answer. WHEW!

Angie wrote: "Candace wrote: "Angie wrote: "For tast 15.9 The Home or Work word:

Does the word house count?"

I'm pretty sure it has to be either 'home' or 'work' specifically. I'm using [book:Home A Memoir ..."

Same here! I think I wore through the family copy on VHS I watched it so much. I always tried to jump into the pictures on the sidewalk too... too bad it never worked!!!

Would a book taking place on a cruise ship or a voyage count? For the In 1492 Columbus Sailed The Ocean Blue task.

Lyn wrote: "Glad someone else is having the same problems. I had no problem finding an author who has 10 letters in their name, but my book had to be 38 letters in the title, and I would have to read a 986 page book (I am OLD, LOL) Thank goodness we have the series challenge, I have books that I want to read that fit both digits of my division answer. WHEW!..."

LOL! I'm old, too! I was lucky to find that my Subtraction number (38) was the same as the recent Giveaway I won ( Run at Destruction A True Fatal Love Triangle ). Thank goodness for sub-titles!
So I'll be using that as one of my books. The other numbers are easier to find something for, I think (14, 728 and 3rd or 8th in a series).

Also, does The Clan of the Cave Bear work for 10.3 or not?

Petra wrote: "Lyn wrote: "Glad someone else is having the same problems. I had no problem finding an author who has 10 letters in their name, but my book had to be 38 letters in the title, and I would have to re..."

Petra - You found a book for 38? I'm jealous. I eventually gave up on that one. I want to change my name to Jo March, it only has 7 letters!

Sarah wrote: "Also, does The Clan of the Cave Bear work for 10.3 or not?"

Sarah, it has the word "bear" in the title, so it works for 10.3.

Yeah but is it a Juvenile book?

It definitely is not a juvenile book... it is certainly an adult read.

Would Our Inner Ape A Leading Primatologist Explains Why We Are Who We Are work for the science task?

Sarah wrote: "Yeah but is it a Juvenile book?"

As I understand it, for task 10.3 it doesn't have to be a juvenile book if it has the word "Bear" in the title, right?

Lyn wrote: "Sarah wrote: "Yeah but is it a Juvenile book?"

As I understand it, for task 10.3 it doesn't have to be a juvenile book if it has the word "Bear" in the title, right?"

Thats how I read the task. Either read a book with 'Bear' in the title, OR read a collection of CHILDREN'S stories, or Several Children's Books (The Number Of Pages Should Add Up To At Least 100).

Tanja wrote: "Teresa,

You mean the links to such places like bibilotravel.com and other lists? That's a good idea.

My suggestion would be people would PM Cynthia a list of links with a short description. ..."

Not sure which ones : ( There are few posted in the abroad books, someone post a link for stopyourekillingme.com for locatons and there are many more

Lyn wrote: "Petra wrote: "Lyn wrote: "Glad someone else is having the same problems. I had no problem finding an author who has 10 letters in their name, but my book had to be 38 letters in the title, and I wo..."

LOL! True! I'm going to have a simple, easy name next time around, too.
If True Crime drama is something you enjoy, this book may work for you, too, Lyn. I found a few other books that, with sub-titles, were 30+ letters in length but none that were 38 (besides this Giveaway book).

Krista wrote: "Lyn wrote: "Sarah wrote: "Yeah but is it a Juvenile book?"

As I understand it, for task 10.3 it doesn't have to be a juvenile book if it has the word "Bear" in the title, right?"

Thats how I ..."

I think Cynthia differentiated between children's picture books and juvenile or ya books.

So, you could read a book with "bear" in the title or children's stories/books.

Petra wrote: "Lyn wrote: "Glad someone else is having the same problems. I had no problem finding an author who has 10 letters in their name, but my book had to be 38 letters in the title, and I would have to re..."

LOL -- I HATED that math challenge. It made me feel so 'well seasoned'. ;-)

29 was the number of characters in the book title I needed, and 980 pages for the multipication task. Luckily I found a 4th in the series book (my number was 40), and several authors with 13 character in their name. Whew!!

At least Cynthia was kind enough to give us four options and only made us choose two for that task.

Krista wrote: "Thats how I read the task. Either read a book with 'Bear' in the title, OR read a juvenilve book."

Actually it specifically says that juvenile books are not allowed for the task.

"• Read A Book With The Word Bear Or Bears In The Title.
OR
• A Collection Of Children's Stories.
OR
• Several Children's Books (The Number Of Pages Should Add Up To At Least 100).
No Juvenile Or YA Books For This Task."

Krista and Katie - Thanks for clarifying.

Petra - I will keep that one in mind, thanks.

Katie wrote: "Krista wrote: "Lyn wrote: "Sarah wrote: "Yeah but is it a Juvenile book?"

As I understand it, for task 10.3 it doesn't have to be a juvenile book if it has the word "Bear" in the title, right?"

T..."


Oops, yes -- you're right. This should be CHILDREN'S books. I'll go back and edit my repy post. Thanks!

Would Our Inner Ape A Leading Primatologist Explains Why We Are Who We Are work for the science task?

BJ Rose wrote: "Sara wrote: "That's a LOT of letters! I only had 11!"

I have 17 for the addition challenge, but I just started using process of elimination with some favorite authors and found mine. I knew I had to find someone, cause my subtraction option would have meant finding a title with 50 letters, and for the division option I would have to read a 1200 page book!"

I think you mean multiplication was a 1200 pages book. That's insane! I got 425 even, and I found a book with 400 pages even... What series numbers did you get for division? I got 7 and 9, and went, "Uhh... no."

(Oh, and you know you have to do TWO of the maths, right? I didn't see that at first...)

Petra wrote: "Lyn wrote: "Glad someone else is having the same problems. I had no problem finding an author who has 10 letters in their name, but my book had to be 38 letters in the title, and I would have to re..."

Yes, yes ,yes! I went through the library counting book titles, and none of them fit. My book length is 1173 pages - NO WAY! Thank heaven for the 3rd and 8th in a series, even then it was hard to find the 8th.

Sara, I'm glad you pointed out the fact that we have to choose two of the math options. I'm so bad at math that I completely discounted that word "two" in the instructions. :)

Sarah wrote: "Would Our Inner Ape A Leading Primatologist Explains Why We Are Who We Are work for the science task? "

Looks good. You'll need to watch a sci-fi show/movie also.

El wrote: "Sara, I'm glad you pointed out the fact that we have to choose two of the math options. I'm so bad at math that I completely discounted that word "two" in the instructions. :)"

I'm good at math, but bad at reading instructions... so I guess we're even! ;) I didn't notice myself until I was looking over someone's list, and they had two books down...

Cynthia, for 5.8 (more than one author), I was thinking of reading Click, which is a novel with each chapter by a different author. Would that count?

Titles with 38 letters:
The Life And Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby by Charles Dickens
The Adventures and Misadventures of Maqroll by by Álvaro Mutis

Titles with 29 letters:
The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes
Saturday Night and Sunday Morning
The Unbearable Lightness of Being
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe

I found one book with a 49-letter title, but that is the longest one yet.

Cynthia,
Could I use Rhett Butler's People for the Civil War task? It takes place before, during, and after the war.

Danielle wrote: "I have a long name, 18 letters in my first and last, not including the 9 in my middle. For the addition ta..."

Authors with 18-letter names:
Vassilis Vassilikos
Rabindranath Tagore
Akutagawa Ryunosuke
Nathaniel Hawthorne
Penelope Fitzgerald
William Shakespeare
Katherine Mansfield
Margaret Mazzantini
Friedrich Hölderlin
Jonathan Safran Foer
Pedro Juan Gutierrez
David Foster Wallace
Erich Maria Remarque
Arturo Pérez-Reverte

Sara wrote: "BJ Rose wrote: "Sara wrote: "That's a LOT of letters! I only had 11!"

I have 17 for the addition challenge, but I just started using process of elimination with some favorite authors and found mi..."

This math is killing me! I think there should probably be a Senior Citizens Discount here on the multiplication one!
And I would need a 54 letter title! I keep losing track halfway through the count. Shades of balancing my checkbook!

Hahaha! I'll take the Senior's discount please. At this age, who wants to multiply it. I took the division route too. ^_^

After the age counts, It appears the mods are punishing the older people this challenge. I'm not saying that's the case, it's just how it appears. o_O

I'll take any discount I can. Time is a luxury I can seldom afford sometimes. XD

Jennifer wrote: "After the age counts, It appears the mods are punishing the older people this challenge. I'm not saying that's the case, it's just how it appears. o_O"

We'll know it's true if for the Winter Challenge they ask for us to count every grey hair and use it for the letter count!

I read a lot of comics, I'm an excessive geek in that effect.. ;D So I get my fair share of superheroes there, but I'm assuming comics/graphic novels don't count here. BUT I was hoping one of these would work.The Superman Handbook The Ultimate Guide to Saving the Day or The Action Heroine's Handbook

Cindy wrote: "Petra wrote: "Lyn wrote: "Glad someone else is having the same problems. I had no problem finding an author who has 10 letters in their name, but my book had to be 38 letters in the title, and I wo..."

Isn't it if your number is 38 you have to read a book that is EITHER third OR eighth, but not both? (I hope)

Liz wrote: "Titles with 38 letters:
The Life And Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby by Charles Dickens
The Adventures and Misadventures of Maqroll by by Álvaro Mutis

Titles with 29 let..."

THANK YOU LIZ. You must have way too much time on your hands LOL, but I'm glad you do!

Donna Jo wrote: "Jennifer wrote: "After the age counts, It appears the mods are punishing the older people this challenge. I'm not saying that's the case, it's just how it appears. o_O"

We'll know it's true if f..."

Another justification for hair dye!

Andrea wrote: "I read a lot of comics, I'm an excessive geek in that effect.. ;D So I get my fair share of superheroes there, but I'm assuming comics/graphic novels don't count here. BUT I was hoping one of these would work.The Superman Handbook The Ultimate Guide to Saving the Day or The Action Heroine's Handbook "

I definitely think so.

Lyn wrote: "Isn't it if your number is 38 you have to read a book that is EITHER third OR eighth, but not both? (I hope)"

The rules say: "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."

So yes. OR.

Lyn wrote: "Cindy wrote: "Petra wrote: "Lyn wrote: "Glad someone else is having the same problems. I had no problem finding an author who has 10 letters in their name, but my book had to be 38 letters in the t..."Yes for the division task it is OR

Andrea wrote: "I read a lot of comics, I'm an excessive geek in that effect.. ;D So I get my fair share of superheroes there, but I'm assuming comics/graphic novels don't count here. BUT I was hoping one of these..."Yes I'll take them and actually I would accept a graphic novel but not comics

Jenna wrote: "Cynthia,
Could I use Rhett Butler's People for the Civil War task? It takes place before, during, and after the war. "Yes I'll take it - I hope you like it - I thought it was a wonderful book BUT I would suggest re-reading or reading Gone With The Wind near the time you read it - I hadn't read the original in probably 10 years when I read RBP (it was a required read for 11th grade English) and I think I would have enjoyed it more had GWTW been fresh in my memory.

Abigail wrote: "Cynthia, for 5.8 (more than one author), I was thinking of reading Click, which is a novel with each chapter by a different author. Would that count?"I'll take it

Sarah wrote: "Would Our Inner Ape A Leading Primatologist Explains Why We Are Who We Are work for the science task? "Yes

Sarah wrote: "Also, does The Clan of the Cave Bear work for 10.3 or not?"Yes that's the one I plan to use

Sarah wrote: "Would a book taking place on a cruise ship or a voyage count? For the In 1492 Columbus Sailed The Ocean Blue task."Yes

Angela wrote: "I have a question about the Most Improved Player... can someone who finished the challenge last year still qualify for this since there are more points this time around? I have resolved that I am n..."No because it's based on percentage of tasks completed not total points

Angie wrote: "For tast 15.9 The Home or Work word:

Does the word house count?"No

Danielle wrote: "One more question (though this might have been answered previously, and if so, I'm sorry):
I have a long name, 18 letters in my first and last, not including the 9 in my middle. For the addition ta..."For that option it would have to match so if the author includes their middle name you would need to use for the count as well - that's why I gave 4 options thinking most people would find some harder to do than others

Alice wrote: "Cynthia for the task with the Homophones in do both the words need to be in the same tense and form? For instance I wanted to read a book with Tale in the title but the book to go with it has Tails..."No it would need to be in the same tense i.e. tail/tale or tales/tails

Sarah wrote: "Yeah but is it a Juvenile book?"

It doesn't have to be both. It only has to either have the word bear in OR be a children's book not a juvenile. So as it has bear in the title it would count.

Am I right in thinking that a book can only be used for one task?