Nothing But Reading Challenges discussion

Candace wrote: "Are people not liking The Circle? I picked it up from the library, but most reviews I've read about it are not great. I'm dreading reading it a little."

I liked it, but I did notice a lot of people didn't. The characters are honestly not that likable in general, and not in a 'love to hate' sort of way but more of a realistically bland and annoying sort of way. I've said a few times that the characters are who they needed to be for the story to develop in the way it did, but for some people that might not be enough, and that's okay. I think the premise though is scary in how it hits close to home in terms of our relationship with technology.

Bethany wrote: "Also, it SNOWED today. Blargh"

Snowed?!?

Wow, here it is 6pm and still 25C!
(And yes, I have now adapted a pinkish colour... =P )

Week 3 1000% Optional Tasks

Optional Book/Reading Discussion Task of the Week
Judge a book by it's cover! Pick a book in part based on how pretty the cover is, show it to us, and then tell us if you liked the story as much as you liked the book cover, and whether or not you thought it was a good representation of the book.

Team-Building Exercise

I'm quickly running out of ideas for these!

This week, see if you can find a team member and spell out their name (just first name is fine!) with books that they've read. If they haven't read any titles that start with one of the letters in their name, you can substitute with something you think they would like! You can eliminate words like "The" or "A" which start a title and parenthesize them at the end to preserve aesthetics. Example:

Catching Fire
Alchemist (the)
Lady And the Unicorn (the)
Year on Ladybug Farm (a)

Dark Matter

Random other thing because why not
What does your physical shelf in your house look like? How do you organize it? Optionally, take a picture of a shelf or shelves and show it to the team!

Candace wrote: "Are people not liking The Circle? I picked it up from the library, but most reviews I've read about it are not great. I'm dreading reading it a little."

I agree with what Bethany said. I think it was one of those books that was almost too good for its own good. I know that doesn't hardly make sense but...I just mean that it is hard to read because it really is such a foreseeable possibility and it truly does hit so close to home. I think that people should read it, to be honest. I just don't want us to ever end up like that. I was reading it and I kept thinking that this book is the prequel to every dystopian novel that has ever been written. Personally I think the genre should be "horror" but that's just me and this kind of stuff freaks me out.

I'm not doing a good job at talking you into reading the book, am I? Or maybe I'm making it sound interesting and alluring? OOOoooooOOOooooOooOoOoOOoooOOoO!!! O.o

Lindsay♫Sings wrote: "I'm not doing a good job at talking you into reading the book, am I? Or maybe I'm making it sound interesting and alluring? OOOoooooOOOooooOooOoOoOOoooOOoO!!! O.o"

Haha, Lindsay I love your description! You're funny, this line made me laugh out loud!

Annika wrote: "Bethany wrote: "Also, it SNOWED today. Blargh"

Snowed?!?

Wow, here it is 6pm and still 25C!
(And yes, I have now adapted a pinkish colour... =P )"

It was 80F (26C) yesterday. The weather where I live is indecisive, to say the least.

Bethany wrote: " Week 3 1000% Optional Tasks
Random other thing because why not
What does your physical shelf in your house look like? How do you organize it? Optionally, take a picture of a shelf or shelves and show it to the team! "


I sort my book by author and series and by size of the book.

My library:

Oh Lord, your shelf looks great. Mine looks like I crammed as many books as I could on a too tiny shelf and then exploded a bomb on it. It's just in shambles. I'm jealous.

Candace wrote: "Oh Lord, your shelf looks great. Mine looks like I crammed as many books as I could on a too tiny shelf and then exploded a bomb on it. It's just in shambles. I'm jealous."

Mine looked like that too, before I moved to this apartment. Then I only had 2 shelves, so they were really crammed.

Bethany wrote: "
Week 3 1000% Optional Tasks


Optional Book/Reading Discussion Task of the Week
Judge a book by it's cover! Pick a book in part based on how pretty the cover is, show it to us, and then tell us ..."

This is definitely a book that caught my eye because of the cover
. I liked the book though it was not as good as I hoped it would be mostly because of the characters. The history behind glassblowing was interesting and the best part of the book. The cover definitely captured that. I would recommend it to historical fiction fans.

Caly ☯ wrote: "This is definitely a book that caught my eye because of the cover
The Glassblower by Petra Durst-Benning. I liked the book though it was not as good as I hoped"

I am *so* sorry Caly, but because of my tired/post-sickness brain and my quick-reading making me be scramble the little letters, I really thought the title of that book was "The Gallbladder"! Man, am I having quite the day, I tell ya!!

Lindsay♫Sings wrote: "Caly ☯ wrote: "This is definitely a book that caught my eye because of the cover
The Glassblower by Petra Durst-Benning. I liked the book though it was not as good as I hoped"

I am *so* sorry Ca..."

ROFL!!

I left my copy of A Gentleman From Moscow at my parents place last weekend and just now got it back. I know this is answered somewhere in here, but I can't find it. Can I still read and answer the questions for points?

megan wrote: "I left my copy of A Gentleman From Moscow at my parents place last weekend and just now got it back. I know this is answered somewhere in here, but I can't find it. Can I still read and answer the ..."

Yep, participation is due 1 month from the start of the buddy read. I think it was the 12th?

Bethany wrote: "megan wrote: "I left my copy of A Gentleman From Moscow at my parents place last weekend and just now got it back. I know this is answered somewhere in here, but I can't find it. Can I still read a..."

It is the 12th. For future reference, there's a red colored column in the BOM tab in your spreadsheet, that shows the final days for completion of each of the BOMs for points. :)

Lindsay♫Sings wrote: "The Gallbladder"


And I thought The Ringworm Throne was a bad book title.

Annika wrote: "Bethany wrote: " Week 3 1000% Optional Tasks
Random other thing because why not
What does your physical shelf in your house look like? How do you organize it? Optionally, take a picture of a shelf ..."

That library looks fantastic! If I took a picture, I'd be taking a picture of two disorganized shelves (one contains most of my "must read now/soon" sci fi and fantasy) and then my pile of 18ish boxes that I need to unpack...

Also, I swear I'm almost done with one of my books. In fact... that is on the agenda tonight. Worst case scenario, you get a book update from me tomorrow sometime!

Jennifer wrote: "Annika wrote: "Bethany wrote: " Week 3 1000% Optional Tasks
Random other thing because why not
What does your physical shelf in your house look like? How do you organize it? Optionally, take a pict..."

Don't feel bad Jennifer, mine is much the same way. I have my non-fiction reference books on a shelf above my desk but everything else is pile in an way too small bookshelf. One shelf has my Taoist books, the other is shelf has my books I have already read, (overflowing in piles now) and the top of the shelves has 2 stacks of books I haven't read yet.

Caly ☯ wrote: "Jennifer wrote: "Annika wrote: "Bethany wrote: " Week 3 1000% Optional Tasks
Random other thing because why not
What does your physical shelf in your house look like? How do you organize it? Option..."

Well, I also have a bunch of crap everywhere all over the floor because I didn't have time to clean in-between one semester and another (I had one day of break). Which is my other excuse for not taking a picture...

So... because of class, I had to divert reading to (counts) and (doesn't count). I have about an hour of reading left in the first book, so that should be finished tonight (I went to bed and didn't get up early enough this morning to get more done).

Also because of class, I chose John Lewis as my author of choice for the author project. While , , and don't count for this challenge, does count. So... that is what I am reading on Sunday.

Here are my 'personal' shelves in my office.

To-Read books, excluding what my SO is reading or read and didn't put back:


Read-and liked books that I personally bought, excluding those currently loaned out, being read by the SO, or put by me in SO's 'you gotta read this' pile. There's a lot missing from this because I compulsively loan out my favorites:


The top shelf here is the Malazan series, which I plan to read... eventually. The second shelf is books I didn't really like and plan to sell or donate, excluding stuff that I loaned out on request:


I don't really organize by any specific method. I keep series together, but not always authors together. I put books on shelves where they'll fit in the most appropriate shelf that I can. I've tried various methods like by author alphabetically, but I didn't like it because my shelf heights on the to-read shelf aren't always tall enough to fit.

We also have a bunch of books that are over time being transferred to us from my SO's parents, who have been collecting them for decades. We're attempting to organize them by author on tall shelves, but to give you an idea, I think we've gotten through maybe the E's or F's, and have used five six foot tall, three foot wide shelves. The rest are in boxes. It's a mess, and I don't know how we'll ever get them all shelved. We don't even have all the boxes yet!

I hope no one minds that I volunteered to do discussion questions for The Gunslinger. It's the only group read I can get ahold of. I read it years ago, but I don't really remember what happens;-). I plan on eventually reading the entire series.

Kelly B wrote: "I hope no one minds that I volunteered to do discussion questions for The Gunslinger. It's the only group read I can get ahold of. I read it years ago, but I don't really remember what..."

That's great! I may pick it up too.

Kelly B wrote: "I hope no one minds that I volunteered to do discussion questions for The Gunslinger. It's the only group read I can get ahold of. I read it years ago, but I don't really remember what..."

That is great Kelly, thanks for doing that. To be honest none of the June books really interest me so I am going to pass, especially since most of May will be taken up by the 2 BoMs that were so long.

Hey all! I am getting ready to head out of town for the weekend. Hope to finish A Gentleman in Moscow while I am away. Bethany is around to hold down the fort so to speak. 8-)

So Happy Reading everyone!

Oh and quick question.. Is anyone else planning on doing the Hunger Games Challenge with the 'For the Love of a Book' group? Just curious. It sounds like fun!

I volunteered. I thought it sounded cool. I'm sure I'll be eliminated quickly, depending on what the challenges are.

So I've really enjoyed the last two books I've read.

is a paranormal cozy mystery that keeps getting better each book. Small town setting with some great characters. MC recently learned she is a witch and is practicing magic in the bakery as well as solving murders.

has silly, over the top characters but are fun stories. The first two books focus on wolves but this one brings us into the dragon world.

Ooo, a paranormal cozy mystery sounds fun!

I signed up for the Hunger Games challenge. I'm sure I'll also be eliminated quickly, but it sounds like fun and I think it coincides with classes ending for the summer.

I haven't heard of the Hunger Games Challenge....off to check it out;-).

I am also participating in the Hunger Games Challenge. Should be fun!

I ended up joining the Lights...Camera...Action challenge instead. It looks like fun:-).

Caly ☯ wrote: "Is anyone else planning on doing the Hunger Games Challenge with the 'For the Love of a Book' group? Just curious. It sounds like fun! "

I will look into it for sure! I think I am going to try to pick up The Gunslinger and The Hate U Give for next month's BOM reads. Sometime soon I'll upload my bookshelf pics. I've been taking down and rearranging my shelves lately because I'm starting a blog and bookstagram so things are crazy-like. Work in progress.

Oh my gosh. The Hate U Give would fit perfectly with my schoolwork right now... Yay!

It's been a while since I posted a random question of the day. Here's one: What book can you think of with a really interesting title?

Bethany wrote: "It's been a while since I posted a random question of the day. Here's one: What book can you think of with a really interesting title?"

This book The Sound of a Wild Snail Eating definitely caught my attention because of the title. It turned out to be a really good book too!

An Almond for a Parrot For some reason in my head, it doesn't make sense that a parrot would want an almond.

Other alternatives: The Man Who Died, The Man Who Never Stopped Sleeping

Also, anything cozy mysteries. Their titles crack me up. I wish I could remember the most recent author... most of the titles were awful, but then I got halfway down the list and couldn't stop laughing. My coworker was looking at me sideways like "why are you laughing... at work."

The Zillionaire Vampire Cowboy's Secret Werewolf Babies is the best title I've ever seen. Of course it is a parody of all the romance tropes, so it makes sense.

I picked up The Suicidal Peanut for the title. Sadly the title was the only good thing about it.

Hey Bethany,

Here is my post #88

For the current BoM

Can you add it to the spreadsheet please? Thanks!

I just started reading the BoM . Oh my GOSH guys, why are you not all reading it? This book is *fantastic*. /says the latecomer to the party

Seriously though, I just spent a very restful hour reading, and I'm tempted to forego schoolwork, read for another 30-45 minutes, and then head to bed and assume tomorrow is a new day... Not sure that's a great idea, but this heat is making me feel sick, on top of an asthma flare-up due to controlled burns in the region/poor air quality. Staring and not thinking sounds way better than the alternatives.

Jennifer wrote: "I just started reading the BoM . Oh my GOSH guys, why are you not all reading it? This book is *fantastic*. /says the latecomer to the party

Seriously thoug..."

I have 2 books to finish (I'm more than halfway and moving fast through one and about a third through the other and its a pretty quick read as well) and then I'm picking up . I'm glad you're enjoying it but I'm sorry you're not feeling well! That's a bummer!! :( I've heard so many good things about the book though!!

Jennifer wrote: "I just started reading the BoM . Oh my GOSH guys, why are you not all reading it? This book is *fantastic*. /says the latecomer to the party

Seriously thoug..."

I agree Jennifer! This book is wonderful! The imagery is amazing. My favorite line so far is (view spoiler)["He had crossed continents and drunk starlight from rivers without names." (hide spoiler)]

Jennifer wrote: "I just started reading the BoM . Oh my GOSH guys, why are you not all reading it? This book is *fantastic*. /says the latecomer to the party

Seriously thoug..."

It does look pretty good! I've been checking, and so far my library doesn't have it yet.

8 days until my big exam. I applied for 11 jobs today. Its now almost 2:30am and I'm wiped. I put off the urge to buy another book today. I have been buying WAY too much stuff lately considering I am living off of my savings account. :'( BUT I do have a Barnes & Noble gift card and this is coupon weekend so....I'm bargaining with myself that **IF** I get my act together and study x amount of hours over the next day or two I will treat myself to a book or two I've been wanting. (There have been a couple AMAZING releases in the last weeks that I want SOOOO bad!!!) I am definitely counting all of the job applying I did tonight as "work" as well because I've been at it for hours. UGH!!

Okay. Rant for tonight over. How has everyone else's week been?

Lindsay♫Sings wrote: "8 days until my big exam. I applied for 11 jobs today. Its now almost 2:30am and I'm wiped. I put off the urge to buy another book today. I have been buying WAY too much stuff lately considering I ..."

Wow, Good luck finding a job! I know what you mean about buying books, I budget myself a bit of money every month (that should be going to pay down credit cards LOL) to buy books because I am always finding a new one I want.
Week has been okay for me so far. My step daughter came home from her study abroad trip this past weekend and we picked her up in Atlanta so it was nice to have some family time. Now this weekend I have to work because of the holiday so that will cut into reading time. bleh!

Lindsay♫Sings wrote: "8 days until my big exam. I applied for 11 jobs today. Its now almost 2:30am and I'm wiped. I put off the urge to buy another book today. I have been buying WAY too much stuff lately considering I ..."

Don't forget about the library! We love to lend out free books! ;)

I totally understand though. My mom is constantly harping on me about how many books I have (spoiler alert: I'm in my 30s). You can never have too many books!

Oh no! I'm so behind, I'm sorry work has been crazy (I'm flying out to meet a sponsor next week) and my reading has been overall pretty slumpy.

1000% optional tasks

Book Challenge: Read something really popular! Maybe it's something that has been nominated for a book prize, made a NYT top books list, or just that your friends have hyped up.

Team-building Challenge: Find someone who read something you also read, if possible that had a similar rating for that book, and rant or rave about that book in a PM or in the comments with spoiler tags.

Spoiler-free discussion: Remember all those fancy literary terms that we learned in high school, or even college? Foreshadowing, symbolism, irony, foils, alliteration? Find an example of one of those fancy literary terms and share it!

Random Discussion Question of the Day

Is there anything that you do that you think is cool, but also seems somewhat unusual or misunderstood? This could be book-related (for example, I have a friend who starts by reading the end of books), or it could just be generally.

Hello! I posted in the daily questions for Strange the Dreamer!! (Instead of doing homework; also, the exclamation points show you how excited I was to be a rebel).

Do we get points if we post more than once? Or is it only once per book?

https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

Jennifer wrote: "Hello! I posted in the daily questions for Strange the Dreamer!! (Instead of doing homework; also, the exclamation points show you how excited I was to be a rebel).

Do we get points if we post mor..."

Nope, you only get the same amount for general discussion participation.

Bethany wrote: "Jennifer wrote: "Hello! I posted in the daily questions for Strange the Dreamer!! (Instead of doing homework; also, the exclamation points show you how excited I was to be a rebel).

Do we get poin..."

Bummer. I kind of figured as much...

I was trying to do this because I feel like I'm behind on my reading right now. I only got as far as Part 1 in Strange the Dreamer, and haven't had a chance to read it again. Although, I guess I'll have more kids books to add to the "read" thread later...

I am currently reading , , and . It looks like they're all above 30,000 words. Yay! (I have a school project due tomorrow, and more stuff to do over the weekend...)