Dare to Dream discussion

Please post all comments/questions/updates about the winter 2016/2017 reading challenge in this thread. :)


The Winter 2016/2017 Reading Challenge will begin December 7th, 2016 and end February 28th, 2017.

Rules of the challenge:

Read 3 books (or more)
Complete 3 tasks (or more)
Books can be any genre
Rereads are okay

This winter, complete 3 (or more) of the following tasks:


1. Winter = cold temps for most.

So this winter:

READ A BOOK WITH THE LETTERS C-O-L-D IN THE TITLE (these letters do not have to be in order).

2. It's a Wonderful Life is a classic holiday movie. In case you haven't seen it, it's about a man named George who lives in a small town. George is a good guy who always does the right thing. Then money gets lost and although it's not his fault, George faces prison. He wishes he had never been born. His guardian angel appears and shows George an alternate reality-basically what his hometown (and the lives of his loved ones) would be like if he had never been born. It's a great film.

So this winter:

a. READ A BOOK WITH THE WORD "LIFE" IN THE TITLE/SUBTITLE
or
b. READ A BOOK THAT FEATURES A CHARACTER NAMED GEORGE
or
c. READ A BOOK IN WHICH THE MAIN CHARACTER FINDS HIM/HERSELF IN AN ALTERNATE REALITY/PARALLEL UNIVERSE

3. The Chanukah Song was performed by Adam Sandler on Saturday Night Live on December 3rd, 1994. It's a great song.

So this winter:

READ A BOOK PUBLISHED IN 1994
or
READ A BOOK BY AN AUTHOR NAMED ADAM (first or last name) (adams is also ok)

4. National hand washing awareness week begins on December 4th.

So this winter:

READ A BOOK WITH A HAND OR HANDPRINT ON THE COVER (PLEASE POST THE COVER).
Please note that the hand/hands must be a focal point of the cover.

5. Rosa Parks was born on February 4, 1913. On December 1, 1955 she refused to give up her seat on a bus to a white man and was arrested. She was an important individual in the Civil Rights Movement.

So this winter, in honor of this awesome woman:

READ A BOOK ABOUT A STRONG WOMAN.
THE PURPOSE OF THIS TASK IS TO CELEBRATE THE BADASS FEMALES IN LITERATURE. :D

6. Many talented authors have birthdays in the winter.

So this winter, read a book by one of the following:

a. Shirley Jackson-December 14th
b. Karin Slaughter- January 6th
c. Haruki Murakami-January 12th
d. Toni Morrison- February 18th
e. Richard Matheson- February 20th

7. Random task-This task counts towards the challenge but is not inspired by the season.

So this winter:

READ A RE-TELLING.

HAVE A HAPPY WINTER, EVERYONE! :D

WoW! You have us all ready for the next challenge. Its awesome. Thank you!!!!!

Another great challenge!! Thank you!

The much anticipated day has arrived :-)

You're welcome. :) Glad you guys like it :D

I love alternate realities & parallel universes.

Dustin Crazy little brown owl wrote: "I love alternate realities & parallel universes."

Me too. :)

Great challenge!
Can you believe I never seen Its a Wonderful life??

I don't believe it!

I did see Miracle on 34th street though, never seen White Christmas either!

You will certainly need to watch It's A Wonderful Life as an extracurricular activity during this Winter Challenge :-)

I love all the Christmas movies that you guys have talked about. It's a Wonderful Life is probably my favorite with White Christmas a close second. Another movie, one that is a bit newer, that I love is Elf. I am not a big fan of Will Ferrell but I love this movie.

I love Elf too. Christmas Vacation and The Santa Clause

Christmas Vacation always makes me laugh!

I never did watch ELF but I sure hear a lot about it. Perhaps this month I should find out why everyone keeps talking about it. I watch a lot more movies now than I used to.

I think I better watch A CHRISTMAS STORY again. I love the leg lamp his tongue getting stuck and "You'll shoot your eye out!"

A Christmas Story, Elf & It's a Wonderful Life are my top 3. :)

How could I forget A Christmas Story....I love that one too!

So I watched It's a Wonderful Life again a few days ago-the first time was years ago-and that ending still gets to me. It's one of my favorite movie endings of all time. :)

Which made me think of other awesome movie endings...

An Officer & A Gentleman-Richard Gere-um yes please.

Grease-Not the ridiculous flying car but when Danny sees Sandy at the carnival and literally falls for her lol

Jaws-SMILE


HAPPY DECEMBER, EVERYONE! :D

Happy Wintertime to all you kids! :-)

Hi everyone! Sadly I won't participate in this winter challenge. My sweet Bandit passed away and it's do very hard for me that I can barely function. Not hungry, crying not sleeping well. We did everything together, always together. He was my shadow in life and its unbearable bring without him. All 3 of my pets passed this year. I feel I have nothing to look forward to. Please share some inspiring words for me.

Jenn,
I'm so sorry-I know it's been such a difficult year. When my dog died I was devastated-he had been a part of my life for so long and had been there for me during some really hard times. All I can say is you're not alone-if you need to talk-please don't hesitate. Try to find some comfort in the fact that you gave bandit and your other pets a great life and I promise while you will always miss them-you will be okay. Sending hugs.

I'm a night owl so if you ever can't sleep or just need someone to talk to-send me a note, either here or my email and we'll talk. :)

Jenn,
I am so sorry for you. I know how you feel. No one can replace Bandit but you obviously have a lot of love to give, maybe there is someone out there who needs a loving forever home that can help you deal with the grief. Sometimes it seems as though the world can't understand the grief we feel at the loss of a pet but there are many of us who do. I wish there were something I could do for you, but many of us are here to listen. I bet Rachel doesn't mind if you share your grief on here. You can send me a message here at Goodreads and I will give you my email address. I too, am here to listen.

Thank you everyone if deny of you perps are on Facebook I have a ton of pictures of him there. Guess I have to go to work tomorrow or they shut my phone and cable off. I just miss him so much I never felt such pain.

I have seen The Bandit on Facebook :-) He is so funny!
Best Wishes as you go through this week Jenn

I've been out of town. Jenn, I am so sorry to hear about Bandit. We are here for you. Pop in when you can. Hugs to you!

I finished my first book for the challenge, . Its about a teenager who is involved in a bad accident, she walks away from it but her friend does not. Guilt plays a big part of her life but in the process of healing she does some pretty badass things, my favorite are the rescue of abused dogs. This book is a GR giveaway right now!!!!!

Christine wrote: "I finished my first book for the challenge, . Its about a teenager who is involved in a bad accident, she walks away from it but her friend does not. Guilt plays a big ..."

Thanks for the update, Christine! :D
I really want to read this. I haven't won a giveaway in a while but I keep trying! :)

I haven't won a giveaway in about 6 years, but I keep entering.

finished The Cold Dish-Not a perfect book but I really liked the protagonist Walt Longmire so I'll continue the series.

I haven't really looked for titles that go with this challenge yet :-) I've got to finish up some books to complete my Goodreads Reading Goal of 99 books before the end of the year.

I will probably really get into this challenge in January.

I've heard good things about the Longmire series of books. I loved the TV show.

Thanks everyone for being so awesome here! Did you see in my old post I write perps instead of peeps?! Omg I needed that laugh. Got through my 5-10 hour work week with a heavy heart. I did manage to collect a bunch of blankets, cat and dog food, cleaning supplies and toys for the local animal shelter. It's my way of giving back to animals as Bandit gave so much to me and more. Reading, reflecting, getting through my back injections and donating time to the shelter is how I will spend my week off. Again you's are a great bunch and thanks Rachel for all the time and effort you put into keeping our little group interesting and entertaining.

Dustin Crazy little brown owl wrote: "I haven't really looked for titles that go with this challenge yet :-) I've got to finish up some books to complete my Goodreads Reading Goal of 99 books before the end of the year.

I will probabl..."

Good luck with your gr challenge-can't believe it's almost the end of the year. I think I'm just barely going to reach my goal of 52.

p.s. You have a lot of titles that will work for the winter tasks-look forward to you joining the challenge in January. :)

Christine wrote: "I've heard good things about the Longmire series of books. I loved the TV show."

I really want to watch the series but I'm afraid to get spoiled-i heard the show does follow the books somewhat but not sure how closely. I really liked the Longmire character. :)

Does Dean Koontz's Frankenstein count as a retelling?

Jenn wrote: "Thanks everyone for being so awesome here! Did you see in my old post I write perps instead of peeps?! Omg I needed that laugh. Got through my 5-10 hour work week with a heavy heart. I did manage t..."

You're welcome, Jenn! We're all here for you. :)

I think it's great you're volunteering at the shelter! I'm sure they appreciate the help and hopefully it will help you to feel a little better too.

Hope the injections help your back. :)

Dustin Crazy little brown owl wrote: "Does Dean Koontz's Frankenstein count as a retelling?"

Of course. :D

Well, I'll be reading a lot of "retellings" then.

finished Sparkling Cyanide -I'm a Agatha Christie fan so this was a quick enjoyable read for me. It features a character named George.

HAPPY HOLIDAYS, EVERYONE! :D

Happy Christmas Kids! :-)

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!!!

Merry Christmas friends!!

Hope everyone has a safe and joyous Holidays! May your stockings be filled with books, or a gift card to a store that sells books!

I love the idea of my stockings being filled with books!

Merry Christmas Everyone!!!!

I finished task #1, c-o-l-d in the title. I finally finished
I liked it! I loved all the photos in the book, an interesting way to build a story.

So what books did people get for Christmas? I got plus a gift card!

Christine wrote: "I finished task #1, c-o-l-d in the title. I finally finished
I liked it! I loved all the photos in the book, an interesting way to bu..."

Thanks for the update, Christine! :D

I loved the creepy photos in that book too-definitely set that story apart.

I didn't get any books for Christmas but did get a couple of gift cards. :)

I'm finally reading Little Bee lol

Jenn wrote: "I'm finally reading Little Bee lol"

Hope you like it, Jenn! :)

Congrats to my most excellent friends who are finally reading the classic works of Peculiar Children and Little Bee :-)