Nothing But Reading Challenges discussion

1. (view spoiler)[silence (though you will forget it exists when you turn away) (hide spoiler)]
2.(view spoiler)[5 (hide spoiler)]
3.(view spoiler)[his son (hide spoiler)]

I can't see riddles and not thing 'Why is a raven like a writing desk?"

I see my book was moved on the planning sheet from being a turquiose cover to just covering a letter. Was it deemed not turquiose enough?

Kirsten wrote: "I see my book was moved on the planning sheet from being a turquiose cover to just covering a letter. Was it deemed not turquiose enough?"

The turquiose color on the background covered less than half of the image when I checked it on tineye. I know we don't have to meet a certain percentage, but I also don't want to risk negative points. I may move it back after we see what books the other teams are using with the new standards, but at the moment I'm not sure I can make a winning argument about color if the mods challenged it.

Deanna wrote: "Kirsten wrote: "I see my book was moved on the planning sheet from being a turquiose cover to just covering a letter. Was it deemed not turq..."

Ah ok, yeah I figured since though it's not over 50% (though we don't have that minimum this time around) it being at 44.2% when the next most abundant colour is then at only 14.5% it shows as being the main/most predominant colour in the cover which I thought would be enough proof for the judges. They did mention we can also use other websites other than tineye for colours such as turquoise...are there any specific others ones the mods have mentioned?

While I too don't want to risk getting negative points, I don't see this one as a risk, but will go with whatever y'all as captains decide. Others may also come up with even more turquoisy covers, who knows...

I guessed 2 out of 3 of Deanna's riddles, so there is a room for improvement :)

Started reading which is a BR book.
Also trying really hard not to DNF Lilac Girls because of BOM points. I don't like it. Too depressing and very, very brutal. I know this probably is very close to actual historical events but for some reason I just can't take it right now. I'm not usually such a wimp.

Kirsten wrote: "Deanna wrote: "Kirsten wrote: "I see my book was moved on the planning sheet from being a turquiose cover to just covering a letter. Was it ..."

I posted a question about it in the captain's board with mixed results. Silje responded with a firm no that there wasn't enough turquoise. Since she is a mod, I'm taking that as the final decision.

Deanna wrote: "Kirsten wrote: "Deanna wrote: "Kirsten wrote: "I see my book was moved on the planning sheet from being a turquiose cover to just covering a..."

Too bad. Thanks for checking. I'm surprised that despite the rule of there not being a required percentage that 5% less than 50% isn't good enough...

Hi team....sorry for being a bit late to the challenge. My name is Ava and I am from Bavaria, Germany. Currently I am on parental leave for this summer as our little guy arrived in January this year. Right now I am mainly listening to audio books and try to read a bit in the evenings. The little one only sleeps at daytime if I am either carrying him or if we are walking with a stroller...thus the audio books.

Currently I am reading . A zombie book in with an outbreakt on Mallorca (I was there on vacation last week). As for the audiobook I started listening to . I am still trying to figure out how my books will fit the classes.

Avamuc wrote: "Hi team....sorry for being a bit late to the challenge. My name is Ava and I am from Bavaria, Germany. Currently I am on parental leave for this summer as our little guy arrived in January this yea..."

Welcome! The zombie book can fit under defense against the dark arts. The second one can fit in spells somewhere.

Avamuc wrote: "Hi team....sorry for being a bit late to the challenge. My name is Ava and I am from Bavaria, Germany. Currently I am on parental leave for this summer as our little guy arrived in January this yea..."

Aww... Congratulations! Very exciting. Is he your first?

Hello, Ava! :)

Reading update:

Just finished this morning.
Nearly halfway through the audiobook of and about to start my next buddy read now. Both are fatties so will see how long it takes me to get through them.

I just finished an audiobook, today while working on our spreadsheet and need to peruse Overdrive for a new one.

For Buddy Reads, I started reading and yesterday and will start after dinner this evening.

I also need to read and before I have to return them to the library this weekend.

@Kirsten- Both Valiant and Cuckoo's Calling look interesting. I'll have to check later to see if they are available at my library.

@Deanna - Valiant was alright but it is more of a companion to the first book in the series rather than a continuation as I really enjoyed the first book, and wanted more answers to things left unsaid. It was also a bit to heavy/too focused on the mortals for my preference for a faerie book. You might enjoy it more than I did however! :) Cuckoo's good so far and I keep having to remind myself that this book was also written by JK Rowling.

Oh & instead of starting Grave Mercy right away like I planned to I ended up picking up as it is pretty short and has a non-burning house on the cover should we need it. :P

Reading update :
So, I finished the first 3 HP books :)

I am currently reading the audiobook for The Count of Monte Cristo, which could be use for the Arithmancy class (book >901 pages. (1,276 pages)

I am also reading The Shining, but I think it could only be use for Spells..

Finally, reading A Court of Wings and Ruin, which is a hardcover book...

Caroline wrote: "Reading update :
So, I finished the first 3 HP books :)

I am currently reading the audiobook for The Count of Monte Cristo, which could be use for the Arithmancy class (book >901 pages..."

I moved Kirsten's Valiant book to DADA because it contained fae, and I have a book with iron in the title to read at the end of the week. Your last book can fit the knife slot under potions.

I'm still debating whether or not to read The Count of Monte Cristo. There are so many great buddy reads that it's hard to choose.

Kirsten wrote: "@Deanna - Valiant was alright but it is more of a companion to the first book in the series rather than a continuation as I really enjoyed the first book, and wanted more answers to things left uns..."

Somehow I missed that it was the second in the series. I'll add the first to tbr.

I ended up picking up by Matthew Costello as it is pretty short and has a non-burning house on the cover should we need it. :P

Yeah!!! I'll add it under charms with the Nancy Drew book after I read another section of my Kate Daniels book.

Amber wrote: "Avamuc wrote: "Hi team....sorry for being a bit late to the challenge. My name is Ava and I am from Bavaria, Germany. Currently I am on parental leave for this summer as our little guy arrived in J..."

Thank you :). yes, he is my first :D

Hey guys, Just checking in. Sorry for being MIA this last week, but had a crazy work period. I don't know about you, but every time I pick a really good book that I can't wait to finish an all-hand-on-deck-kinda-crisis hits at work and I can't even find time to scratch my nose.
It crazy and sometimes make me want to take a leave just so I can finish my precious book.
And the sucking part is that I can't keep up with you guys on the convo. Can someone please sum it for me. Is there anything new I should know about?
I'll be finishing my book today. I'm going to my hide out place, wish me luck.

Fun fact: Did you know that Ollivander was in Ravenclaw?

From the Pottermore website

Garrick Ollivander fact file
By J.K. Rowling

BIRTHDAY
25 September

WAND
Hornbeam and dragon heartstring, twelve and three-quarter inches, slightly bendy

HOUSE
Ravenclaw

PARENTS
Wizard father, Muggle-born mother

SKILLS
An incomparable understanding of wandcraft

HOBBIES
None; his profession is his obsession

Related articles by Rowling
📝Mr. Ollivander
📝Wand Cores
📝Wand Woods

My Pottermore wand is 10 inch maple with a unicorn hair core.

Deanna wrote: "Fun fact: Did you know that Ollivander was in Ravenclaw?

From the Pottermore website

Garrick Ollivander fact file
By J.K. Rowling

BIRTHDAY
25 September

WAND
Hornbeam and dragon heartstring, twe..."

Yay Ravenclaw! :)

My wand is 14 1/2 inches, pine w/ phoenix feather core

Abir wrote: "Hey guys, Just checking in. Sorry for being MIA this last week, but had a crazy work period. I don't know about you, but every time I pick a really good book that I can't wait to finish an all-hand..."

Hello! Look for the Raven image at the top of Deanna's posts for the really important info. (in addition to the first few posts with links and whatnot of this thread). Otherwise we have been generally just sharing updates on what we are reading, what buddy reads we are planning on joining, etc. Deanna has also be posting riddles just for fun every so often.

@Captains: is there a list somewhere containing all the words that can be used as a defense againt dark arts? I seem to remember having seen some kind of a list, but can't find it anymore and no sure whether it was complete.

Camilla wrote: "@Captains: is there a list somewhere containing all the words that can be used as a defense againt dark arts? I seem to remember having seen some kind of a list, but can't find it anymore and no su..."

These are the ideas I posted right after the class information came up. It's not an exhaustive list. I polled my two teenage girls, and this was the result. If you have a book with a creature not on the list I can do some research

Dark Art or Creature / Defense

werewolf / silver, wolfsbane
vampire / sun, wood stake, silver, holy water, cross, fire
demon / salt
fae magic / iron
trolls / sunlight
zombie / fire, axe, sword

@Deanna: Great list to reference!

At some point during Towers I plan to read:
Moon Called - werewolf characters (could also work for astronomy)
Summer Knight - fae characters
Bite Me - vampire characters
The Good Daughter - flame on the cover (defense of vampires or zombies)
Salt - title references defense of demons

I’m sure there will be others for DAAD on my read list this summer, but those are the only ones I know for sure.

QUESTION: Can we repeat the dark art/creature? For example, can I read Bite Me and someone else read The Vampire Lestat for different years? Or what about if 2 people read the same book? Can it be applied twice to the same class?

Brooke wrote: "@Deanna: Great list to reference!

At some point during Towers I plan to read:
Moon Called - werewolf characters (could also work for astronomy)
Summer Knight - fae characters
Bite Me - vampire ch..."

Yes, we can repeat the same dark art/creature for different years. The same book read by two different people can be applied to the same class.

@Ava-Congrats on the new little guy! Hope you are enjoying.

Quick update on my reading:

I have just been notified Lilac Girls is waiting for me at the library! On Monday I was number 43 in line for it, I guess we have a lot more copies than I knew. I will pick it up tomorrow and will have no problem getting it done for the BOM in time.

I have also downloaded both Every Heart a Doorway and The Invasion of the Tearling for BRs (Although I need to read The Queen of the Tearling before starting the second one)

I finished a couple more books today, will get them posted in the appropriate thread shortly.

I have copies of all the Harry Potter books, and may end up starting a re-read of that series this weekend, depending on how some of my other reading is going.

A few questions about our plans:

Does Quidditch start this weekend? Are we going to have House Groups soon for planning?

Have we seen the final score breakdown for the classes? I would think this would be good information for us to begin planning for some of the harder tasks.

I tend to plan my books quarterly, and this weekend is an ideal time for me to plan my summer reading...I can certainly add a few things I wouldn't necessarily read on my own to help the team.

Does Quidditch start this weekend? Are we going to have House Groups soon for planning?

Have we seen the final score breakdown for the classes? I would think this would be good information for us to begin planning for some of the harder tasks.

The only date I've seen for Quidditch is Sonia's post on the Quidditch thread that it starts May 26. Since there are no common rooms yet, I take this to mean that the House Groups will be set up by the 26th for us to form teams.

Looking over the spreadsheet again, I don't see any changes to the formulas from when I last calculated points. My breakdown was...

Arithmancy - (total books read / 7) est. >60 pts. per book
History of Magic - 17.1 pts per book
Unforgiveable Spells - 11.67 to 12.5 pts. per book
All other classes except astronomy - 10 pts. per book
Obscure spells - 5.83 to 6 pts per book
Spells - 2.29 to 3 pts per book

We've completed the History of Magic class. The unforgiveable spells are nearly complete. I haven't added them to the official spreadsheet yet because I have been swapping some books over to tasks for the classes and replacing the open letters with new books that only worked for spells. I'll most likely move them to the official spreadsheet next week.

With the exception of U's and X's we are putting books in classes first, then spells. I've expanded our spell tracking spreadsheet to include class tasks. See the spell status tab for a quick view of what letters are still open. See the class tasks for a list of all the class tasks. The class possibles tab has cover images to help find books for charms, magical creature, and transfiguration. Feel free to type your book information on either the spells or class tasks tab if you are reading for a specific letter or task, or just drop a post in this thread listing the book and what task it is for and one of the co-captains or I will update the spreadsheet.

I'm a little groggy with allergy medicine at the moment, so please ask questions if I didn't explain any of the above clearly enough.

Thanks Deanna! Here's a list of books that I have available, if needed for defense. I chose only books that are max 300 pages and so quickly readable.

Sun: Surrender The Sun, Sun Dragon, Under a Broken Sun (I guess these would work for the planetary body as well, right?)
Fire: Fire, Midnight Fire, Fire Starter, Angel Fire, A Hidden Fire, Mendocino Fire: Stories, Fire
Salt: Salt (this was a bit over 300 pages, but the next one with salt was over 700, so added this as well)
I also have a Silver book, but it's over 500 pages, so I'll not read it unless absolutely needed.

For Deanna to help planning -

I have in June planned and started reading 912 pages - covers the book +900 pages
I can also tackle one U -

Skandia wrote: "For Deanna to help planning -

I have in June planned and started reading 912 pages - covers the book +900 pages
I can also tackle one U"

If you have already started reading Sarum, You'll be way ahead of me when I start with the Buddy Read on the 4th! :O My copy only has 897 pages though... unless the cassette tapes come through from my library lol

@Deanna: I noticed that my recent book, Blood River, had been put on the magical creature/localization task as having a setting of Papua New Guinea. Unfortunately, that is a mistake in the book metadata: it is repeatedly stated in the book that it is set in the Papua province of Indonesia, not Papua New Guinea. Maybe that should be corrected?

Camilla wrote: "@Deanna: I noticed that my recent book, Blood River, had been put on the magical creature/localization task as having a setting of Papua New Guinea. Unfortunately, that is a mistake in the book met..."

Fixed! Thanks for letting me know.

Thanks Deanna! I will correct the metadata when I sit down at the PC, too cumbersome to do it via my phone.

Camilla wrote: "Thanks Deanna! Here's a list of books that I have available, if needed for defense. I chose only books that are max 300 pages and so quickly readable.

Sun: Surrender The Sun, [book..."

I'm sure we can find a book with vampires if you want to go ahead and read one of the fire books. I also have a demon book on my kindle to pair with your salt.

I am currently reading Pale Fire which could also be a defense. If this book qualifies. I understand that there is no poetry allowed for this challenge, but how is poetry book defined? This novel has been labeled as poetry by many members of GoodReads. There is a rather lengthy poem within the book, but it is not a collection of poetry.

Wikipedia says it well: "The novel is presented as a 999-line poem titled "Pale Fire", written by the fictional poet John Shade, with a foreword and lengthy commentary written by Shade's neighbor and academic colleague, Charles Kinbote. Together these elements form a narrative in which both fictional authors are central characters."

I understand that this is someone else's sand box, and I will play by the rules, but I would like to know how the rules are defined.

Deanna wrote: "I'm a little groggy with allergy medicine at the moment, so please ask questions if I didn't explain any of the above clearly enough."

Sorry you're not feeling well.

I think you explained just fine.

Kirsten's explanation is better. See below.

Essentially if a book in goodreads lists "poetry" as one of its main page genres then it isn't allowed to be used by TT. That was the answer I received awhile back when I asked about books written by Ellen Hopkins which are all single stores but written in verse.

Hey team! If you haven't already, have a stop by at the Leaky Cauldron, grab a mug of Butterbeer and answer the survey question. (There are house points involved!)

Kirsten wrote: "Hey team! If you haven't already, have a stop by at the Leaky Cauldron, grab a mug of Butterbeer and answer the survey question. (There are house points involved!)"

Done!

Kirsten wrote: "Hey team! If you haven't already, have a stop by at the Leaky Cauldron, grab a mug of Butterbeer and answer the survey question. (There are house points involved!)"

thanks for the heads up!

Hey team! Another great week with over 40 books read!

What are you reading now or looking forward to getting started reading? Any books that really caught your attention this past week? Any books that made you laugh or cry?

If you are looking for book ideas, there are lots of buddy reads beginning in the upcoming week.

Circe (May 25)
Scent of Magic (May 25)
The Bat (May 26)
Devil in Spring (May 27)
The Glittering Court (May 27)
God-Shaped Hole (May 28)
Big Little Lies (May 29)
Artemis (May 30)
The Good Liar (June 1)
Midnight Crossroad (June 1)
Red Rising (June 1)
Outlander (June 1)
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (June 2)

Yay team!

I'm participating in a few of the upcoming buddy reads:
and .

I've had a quiet work day for once, so I should be able to finish 2 or 3 books today: and . I'm also about finished with the buddy read .

I've really enjoyed Too Fat, Too Slutty, Too Loud: The Rise and Reign of the Unruly Woman. Each essay makes you think.

Aside from the upcoming buddy reads I'm participating in, I've also got and up next.

Kirsten wrote: "Hey team! If you haven't already, have a stop by at the Leaky Cauldron, grab a mug of Butterbeer and answer the survey question. (There are house points involved!)"

Done! Thanks for catching this Kirsten. I took the kids to the new Star Wars movie this morning and am just getting caught up.

I think we're doing great, currently in 3rd place! I will finish The Poppy Girls this evening, have about 20 pages left, will head to read in bed soon (got up at 5.15 am this morning, the end of school year is killing me, sigh). Will also finish A Good Year to Die: The Story of the Great Sioux War in a few days, but it's bit tedious a read. And that one works for the vision task, if we still need one.

I am a little over halfway through and and roughly 1/3 of the way through for a buddy read.

My favorite book and the one that made me laugh the most was , although I also thoroughly enjoyed . It was such a sweet story.

For the upcoming week, I'll be reading , , and for Buddy Reads.

I wish I was further along in my current two books but I didn't read anything yesterday and only a few pages so far today. Other things have been taking priority over my time sadly. Tomorrow is looking busy as well so hopefully Sunday will be more low-key so I can read more.

I am barely scratching the surface of but I got an ebook copy so hopefully that will save my fingers from falling asleep as they have been I try to hold up the paperback book. That;s for a buddy read.

I am also nearly halfway through the audiobook of

Beyond these I am planning to join in on the June 4th buddy read of (if my fingers don't fall asleep too much hah as that ones in hardcover). I'd also live to participate in the buddy read but will see how things go.

Weekly Update

Team Flitwick stats for the second week of Tower Teams VI:
📖 45 books read (current total 85)
📖 13,981 pages read (current total 22439)
📖 1,410 pages points earned (current total 2520)
📖 300 buddy read points earned (current total 450)
📖 20 BOM points earned (current total 20)

Current Rankings
🏆 House Cup: Ravenclaw in 4th with 2632 points
🏆 NEWT: 3rd with 3110 points
🏆 OWL: 2nd with 85 books read

Awesome job team!