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SU 22 Completed Tasks
Post 975Marie wrote: "20.9 - O67, Owned book: get it off your shelf!Guide du Routard Italie du Sud 2022/23
+20 Task
Task total = 20
Season total = 720
B: 7, 3, 11, 5, 4
I: 28, 23, I22, 21, 24, 27
N..."
This has 520 pages! Give yourself another 5 points.
30.46 - B7 - Best Books: rating is 4.0 or better To Be Taught, If Fortunate by Becky Chambers
This is a diary-style account of a small spaceship (a crew of four) that left Earth some decades ago to explore other planets that seemed likely to have life. It's unusual in the "visiting inhabited planets" genre(view spoiler). I loved the descriptions of the planets and life forms, but I would have appreciated some tension among the crew to give more depth to their story.
The ending seemed very abrupt, partly (but not entirely) because in my copy there are 30 pages after the end, with Q&A sessions and a sample of a book I'd already read, so the story ended when I thought I still had a lot to read. It's a short book so the "bonuses" make up almost 20% of the total pages!
(ETA: The actual novel is still over 100 pages - 132 in my edition.)
+30 Task
+ 5 Review
Task Total = 35
Season Total = 1660
60.68 O67 - Owned bookOd Magic by Patricia A. McKillip
+60 Task
Task total = 60
Post Total: 60
Season Total: 2785
60.73 - G57 https://www.theguardian.com/books/200... 1000 (any on list)Equal Rites (Discworld #3) by Terry Pratchett
+60 Task
+5 (Pub. 1987)
Post Total: 65
Season Total: 3,200
60.74 - B11 Rooting for the Bad Guy (any)Cat's Cradle by Kurt Vonnegut Jr
+60 Task
+5 (Pub. 1963)
Post Total: 65
Season Total: 3,265
Task 20.25 N42 New release: pub'd in 2021 or 2022Outlawed (2021) by Anna North
+20 Task
Task Total: 20
[Bingo #4: B7, I27, N42, G52, O65]
Grand Total: 535 + 20 + 50 = 605
B:
I:
N:
G:
O:
[Bingo #1: B3, I6, N32, G51, O61]
[Bingo #2: B6, I22, N38, G53, O63]
[Bingo #3: B4, I21, N35, G49, O75]
30.31 - O67 - Owed book: get it off your shelf!The Killing Game by Kate Bold
+30 task
Task total: 30
Grand total: 780
60.74 G59 GYPSUM: First letter of title is found in "gypsum" Good Riddance. Elinor Lipman
I wanted to like this, but I didn't. At all. I struggled to finish it, not finding the plot or the characters likeable. Sadly, it was the only book I had with me on an overnight trip to the beekeeper's conference.
+60 - task
+5 - review
Post total: 65
Season total: 3500
B: All B's have been claimed
I: All I's have been claimed
N: All N's have been claimed
G:
O: All O's have been claimed
(view spoiler)
60.74 G59, GYPSUM Mary Jane by Mary Jane
Another case of book synchronicity—a book set mostly in Baltimore, revolves around music, chosen families, and coming-of-age themes…SO echoey of the last book I finished.
Set in the mid-‘70s, Mary Jane, an upper-middle-class WASPy fourteen-year-old, takes a job as a nanny to the new family in the neighborhood. Her mother approves only because the dad is a doctor. Mary Jane worries that her mother will make her quit if she finds out he’s a psychiatrist (not a surgeon, as the mother imagines) and how very eclectic the family is. Mary Jane is torn between the cold, loveless home she was born into and the free, accepting, artistic Cone family.
I can’t quite put my finger on *why* I loved this so much, but I really did.
+60 Task
+5 Review
+50 Fourteenth bingo: B14, I24, N44, G59, O73
Task total: 115
Season total: 3550
B 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15
I 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30
N 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45
G 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 52, 53, 54, 56, 57, 58, 59, 60
O 61, 62, 63, 64, 65, 66, 67, 68, 69, 70, 71, 72, 73, 74, 75
30.46 G56 Get the giggles: HumorA Dirty Job by Christopher Moore
+30 Task
Post Total: 30
Season Total: 1490
30.47 G49 MPE Page count 400-499The Snake, the Crocodile and the Dog by Elizabeth Peters
+30 Task (432 pages)
Post Total: 30
Season Total: 1520
30.36 o67 Owned book: get it off your shelf!Due or Die by Jenn McKinlay
I read the first book in this series about 2 years ago, and liked it well enough – but not enough to dive right in. I picked this up from the library book sale recently; and it was just the ticket for my mood right now. I really enjoyed, well – basically everything about this instalment. The characters were believable; the main character in particular, was well thought out; the mystery was a good one (although by about 4/5ths I strongly suspected who did it); and there’s a puppy! Can’t go wrong with a puppy! This was a fun cozy, which hit most of Deedee’s hallmarks of a cozy! 4*
30 task
5 review
____
35
Running total: 1250 (still going with my #s, readerboard still 5 less)
30.37 g57 Guardian 1000 (any on list)Loitering with Intent by Muriel Spark
I really enjoyed this short novel. There is something about the very particular British snark that bucks me up. This novel is funny, and full of memorable characters – especially Lady Edwina (who could have devolved to a trope, but there is much nudging and winking here). I listened to the audiobook read by Nadia May, and I would recommend this format + version highly. 5*
30 task
5 oldie
5 review
______
40
Running total: 1290
30.38 b6 BEARDSSparks! Double Dog Dare by Ian Boothby
I enjoyed the first one so much I took the opportunity to jump right into the second. I did like it, but unfortunately the second one was not up to the same level. The first was witty and had back chat and snark, and more suspense but this one is all action, all the time….. Maybe the publishers wanted more of a superhero feel; but what I liked in the first was the anti- ‘super’ – hero aspect. 3*
30 task
5 review
____
35
Running total: 1325
30.39 n36 Not a NovelChildren of the Atom by Dave Lapp
Wow, totally weird….. This is a collection of Lapp’s serialized comic strip “Children of the Atom”. There are only two characters, Jam-jam girl and Franklin-boy, in an alternate absurdist world. They are simply drawn, and yet they can convey complex emotions. The world they inhabit is more graphically complex. These strips would have been an interesting oddity in a weekly newspaper. However, as a collection they are a bit more difficult, particularly because they speak using an alternate syntax. The overarching feeling is that they are having one looooong existential crisis, which about ¾ of the way through becomes sad (and maybe slightly depressing). 3*
30 task
5 review
_____
35
Running total: 1360
30.40 i28 If, if, if ... Speculative Fiction, Time Travel, Alternate HistoryTime Travelers Strictly Cash by Spider Robinson
This is the second collection of Robinson’s Callahan’s Crosstime Saloon stories. This collection has Saloon stories, a couple of other short stories, and a couple of non-fiction entries. I enjoyed this collection more than the first. It was nice to have the Saloon stories broken up. The two stand outs for me were “God is an Iron” (which is an interesting proto-cyberpunk story), and “Spider vs the Hax of Sol III” (a book review column). 3*
30 task
5 review
5 oldie
_____
40
Running total: 1450
bingo #8 b6, i28, n36, g57, o67 (my last bingo!)
owned books used: 27/40 (3 ebooks)
30.41 o66 Title has a repeated word (any except A or The)What I Talk About When I Talk About Running by Haruki Murakami
I’m not sure why I originally put this on my TBR list, but I am very glad that I did. I really enjoyed this book, which is surprising considering I’m not a runner. The overarching idea that Murakami puts forth is that running is (for him) like writing. You have to show up, and put in the miles to build your endurance. 4*
30 task
5 review
______
35
Running total: 1485
30.42 g50 Author born in the 50s, any centuryMagpie Murders by Anthony Horowitz
I knew that Horowitz wrote the young adult Alex Rider series, but I had no idea until just now that wrote for Midsomer Murders and writes Foyle’s War. That explains why he can write such a good mystery for adults. It’s not a spoiler to say this novel is two mysteries in one. One is written as a clear homage to golden age mysteries. The other one is set in contemporary times. Very readable, and fun mysteries. 4*
30 task
5 review
______
35
Running total: 1520
30.43 n38 NICKEL: first letter of title is found of "nickel"Chew, Vol. 1: Taster's Choice by John Layman
Oh my goodness, I liked this! I knew when I read Ann’s review that this would be right up my alley. I see there are 12 volumes! Yay! This is Vol. 1, where we are introduced, dramatically, to Tony Chu. He starts out as a cop, ends up (in this volume) as a FDA officer) which sounds run of the mill until you put it all together as John Layman and Rob Guillory have done. Great story, great art…… I can’t wait until I get to read Vol. 2! 4* (Not a graphic novel for kids.)
30 task
5 review
____
35
Running total: 1555
owned books used: 28/43 (3 ebooks)
This is my last post for the season. Super happy with all the owned books used from my towering TBR pile!
30.32 - B1 - One word title Fire by Kristin Cashore
Task: 30
BINGO #6 - B1, I16,N31, G58,O62 - 50
Post total : 80
Season total: 805
B4,7,6,2,12,1
I24,21,29,22, 17,16, (23)
N 34,44,39, 42,43,31,(32)
G56,52,49,59,58
O 65,66,71, 69, 72,62
( ) represents unused books for bingo
15.20 O67 Owned BookThe Little Book of Sloth Philosophy by Jennifer McCartney
My husband gifted me this book a couple of years ago mostly because he has named the sloth as his spirit animal. When he found out they sleep up to 18 hours a day, he figured that was something he can aspire to. The book is a snappy and lighthearted encouragement to slow down and not take things too seriously. An example of the advice in this book: “Put down your phone and read a book made of paper. Slow reading is good for your health.”
+15 task
+5 review
Task total: 20
+50 Bingo B7, I17, N44, G56, O67
Season total: 575
BingoO 69 Often-Author I read before
Home from the Seaby Mercedes Lackey
Task +15
Grand Total: 330
B-7
I
N-38,39,41
G-51,56
O-69
20.28 O63 First letter in title in OrphanAn Autumn War
The 3rd book in a quartet and one of the best fantasy books I have read. The entire series has been fantastic, but this 3rd book took it to a whole new level for me.
Daniel Abraham is a master of characterization. There are so many layers underneath these people he has created. Also, the world he has built (based on the Far East) is so unique, along with the magic system. What an imagination!
The title basically tells you that this book is about a war. Abraham does not sugar coat the horrors of war torn countries, he makes it very real and heart-wrenching. Nothing is sugar coated.
If you enjoy High Fantasy, I highly recommend this series and author.
+20 task
+5 Review
Total Task 25
Season Total 705
From Post 964Joanne wrote: " 20.27 O67 Owned book
Blood of Dragons
The final chapter in The Rain wild Chronicles, and I don't think I have ever been this satisfied in the conclusion of a series. Hobb is ano..."
You claimed this book in post 820. Did you mean a different title?
So sorry, Elizabeth 820 should have City of Dragons in post 820-I mention in the review the 3rd book, which is that one. I guess I was thinking of getting to the fourth book and dropped that title in. I will change post 820 tp the correct title
40.47 I22 Title has 2 wordsMidnight's Children bySalman Rushdie
+30 task
+5 647 pages
+5 Pub date 1981
Post total:40
Season total: 1505
30.33 I21 - First Letter of Title found in "Inflow" We Are Not Like Them by Christine Pride and Jo Piazza
Interesting read. Not entirely sure how I felt about it, but I'm glad I read it. The book is told in alternating chapters, one white woman and one Black woman, who have been best friends since childhood. The white woman, Jen, is married to a police officer and her husband is involved in the shooting of an unarmed Black teenager, and the Black woman, Riley, is a newscaster. The story reveals a lot about the many, many ways that most of us struggle with communication in relationships, especially when dealing with tough topics.
+30 Task
+ 5 Review
Task total: 35
Season Total: 1025
20.27 O63 First Letter of Title is Found in "orphan"Odds Against by Dick Francis
Steeplechase jockey Sid Halley had a bad fall, slicing open his left hand and arm with a razor-sharp racing horseshoe. That ended his racing career, so Sid went to work for a detective agency that specializes in clients from the racing world. Two years later, Sid was shot in the abdomen during a minor job. He's put on a case investigating a group that has been sabotaging a race course so it loses its value. The crooks want to eventually sell the land for millions to developers who will turn the land into housing lots.
During the investigation Sid meets a woman whose face was severely burned when she was younger. They help each other emotionally deal with deformity and people's reactions to their disfigurements. This adds a thought-provoking theme to a good mystery.
"Odds Against" is the first of a series about Sid Halley, and I'm planning to read the next book, "Whip Hands." I enjoyed the atmosphere at the detective agency, and the steeplechase racing scene.
+20 task
+ 5 oldie (pub 1965)
+ 5 review
Task total: 30
Season total: 795
15.12 B7 – Best booksOn Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean Vuong (rating: 4.05)
Review: An intense and beautiful read. It's overtly political, dramatic and poetic. It reminded me of spoken word, with every feeling heightened and every emotional height and depth wrung from each scene.
It's a hard one to rate, because it's not entirely my sort of thing. A little too in-your-face and it flirted with melodrama without ever becoming melodrama. But it achieves everything it set out to do - it's perfectly executed, even if it's not fully for me.
+15 Task
+5 Review
Task total = 20
Season total = 315
(view spoiler)
15.13 B6 – BEARDSEverything That Rises Must Converge: Stories by Flannery O'Connor
Review: These are not happy stories, and some the ending knocked me over, emotionally. There are a lot of mothers here with disappointing sons, and a few fathers who think their children (or children-in-law) are disappointing. Everyone who deserves it (and some who don't) get at least some of their due, sometimes viciously.
The title of the collection is apt for all the stories, though it's the titular story that gives us the sense of the title's meaning. In every story, someone (or a group, like black people or working class people) is rising, and the convergence with those (usually MCs who think they're better results in something explosive.
These stories are fascinating for their time, and well worth reading with their context (southern, 1960s) in mind.
+15 Task
+5 Review
+5 Oldies (first pub’d 1965)
Task total = 25
Season total = 340
(view spoiler)
15.14 B9 – MPE page count 100-199Batouala by René Maran (150 pages)
Review: I wasn't sure what to expect, but this was a very enjoyable read that struck me as ahead of its time. It's 100 years old and much has changed in Africa in that time. I also only have a very small amount of context for understanding Maran as an author and where and why he wrote.
That said, I really liked that Batouala gives us the African (male) perspective, and doesn't shy away from calling out white colonists for their racism and lack of cultural humility.
I also found much of the language really visual and beautiful. I love when an obscure classic like this still has so much to offer.
+15 Task
+5 Review
+5 Oldies (first pub’d 1921)
Task total = 25
Season total = 365
(view spoiler)
15.15 N31 – New to me authorThe Tower, the Zoo, and the Tortoise by Julia Stuart (first book I’ve read by this author)
Review: This was mostly charming throughout and occasionally had me laughing or smiling at the sheer charm of a moment. It is occasionally a little roll-your-eyes cute, avoiding real emotional issues. But for the most part, it doesn't shy away. There's a lot of depth here, more than I expected. Balthazar and Hebe are emotionally estranged, and that tension keeps the story afloat.
The other characters are more distraction than addition to the story, but they have their fun moments, especially Valerie Jennings who keeps accidentally greeting Arthur Catnip while wearing something ridiculous on her head.
The sense of place here is a real triumph. I especially loved the details of the London Underground lost property office, but the descriptions of life in the Tower of London were wonderful too.
+15 Task
+5 Review
Task total = 20
Season total = 385
(view spoiler)
15.16 G49 – MPE Page count 400-499The Counterfeiters by André Gide (451 pages)
Review: I went in a bit blind, but I really enjoyed this. Gide takes on a lot here:
-what it takes to write and a contribution to transforming the novel as a form
-a huge cast of characters with complex, changing identities and relationships
-many perspectives, and both narrative and journal formats
-subtle gay subtext (in 1925)
-psychological musings that pack a punch
-and also a plot with turns and surprises
It's not all perfect and some threads get dropped, but it's pretty close. And I love the abrupt crescendo of an ending.
+15 Task
+5 Review
+5 Oldies (first published 1925)
Task total = 25
Season total = 410
(view spoiler)
60.75 - O64 Orange Prize &Women's Prize (winners and nominees)The Walk Home by Rachel Seiffert
+60 Task
+50 BINGO (B11 - post #1006; I30 - post #1001; N45 - post #1000; G57 - post #1005; O64 - this post)
Post Total: 110
Season Total: 3,375
Elizabeth (Alaska) wrote: "Post 975Marie wrote: "20.9 - O67, Owned book: get it off your shelf!Guide du Routard Italie du Sud 2022/23
+20 Task
Task total = 20
Season total = 720
B: 7, 3, 11, 5, 4
I: 28,..."
Ah thanks, but since it's a travel guide not sure it qualifies for the bonus points :)
30.2 - N39, MPE Page count 300-399Les Beaux Étés - Intégrale complète by Zidrou and Jordi Lafebre
+30 Task
Task total = 30
Season total = 850
B:
I:
N:
G:
O:
30.3, B2, Title has 2+ B's The Crabby Condition by Arthur de Pins
+30 Task
Task total = 30
Season total = 880
B:
I:
N:
G:
O:
30.4 - 072, Set in: Ohio, Oklahoma Oregon, or Ontario (Canada)Betty by Tiffany McDaniel
Set in the fictionnal city of Breathed, Ohio.
+30 Task
Task total = 30
Season total = 910
B:
I:
N:
G:
O:
Marie wrote: "Elizabeth (Alaska) wrote: "Post 975Marie wrote: "20.9 - O67, Owned book: get it off your shelf!Guide du Routard Italie du Sud 2022/23
Ah thanks, but since it's a travel guide not sure it qualifies for the bonus points :)
"
Everything qualifies this season!
60.75 G60 Book pub'd in the 60s, any centuryDesert Solitaire. Edward Abbey
4.5 rounded to 5 stars - A wonderful classic by author and essayist Edward Abbey, who spent several years as a park ranger, and who deeply loved the American southwest wilderness and advocated for keeping it that way. Although he occasionally worked for the government, he was an anarchist who was on the government watch list for years. When he died, he requested a "green burial" with his body put in an old sleeping bag and quietly buried in an undisclosed location.
I did a hybrid read of this book, listening to much of it, but also reading along the way. Both methods had things to recommend them. The narrator was excellent, but so were the line drawings in the physical book. The language, descriptive detail and interesting anecdotes makes this a book I would be happy to own, and read aloud on a cold winter night.
+60 - task
+5 - review
+50 - Bingo #15 : G49; G54; G57; G59; G60
Post total: 115
Season total: 3615
B: All B's have been claimed
I: All I's have been claimed
N: All N's have been claimed
G: All G's have been claimed
O: All O's have been claimed
(view spoiler)
60.75 G55, Title has a word with a double GTagged for Death by Sherry Harris
Sarah's life has been turned upside down: her husband of 18 years impregnated his mistress, so she divorced him and moved into a small apartment. Problem is, he was military and they lived on base so now she has to get "sponsored" every time she wants to visit her friends or go to her job at the thrift shop on base.
Having left the spoils of her yard sale scouring in her Suburban overnight, she starts the processing of unloading. She finds a garbage bag in there that she doesn't remember purchasing. In it, she finds the bloodstained shirts of her ex-husband and his girlfriend.
Thus begins this cozy-ish mystery. I really enjoyed the first half, though the last half became a bit disjointed and the denouement was a bit of a disappointment. I *might* pick up another in this series, but with so many of my favorite authors/series dropping new books in the next couple of months I probably won't any time soon.
+60 Task
+5 Review
+50 Fifteenth bingo: B3, I30, N34, G55, O67
Task total: 115
Season total: 3665
30.33 - N33 - 3 N in title Thinking, Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman
Task : 30
Post: 30
Season total: 835
B4,7,6,2,12,1
I24,21,29,22, 17,16, (23)
N 34,44,39, 42,43,31,(32,33)
G56,52,49,59,58
O 65,66,71, 69, 72,62
( ) represents unused books for bingo
15.3 O65 - Title has five wordsHouse of Sand and Fog by Andre Dubus III
I am perhaps one of the last readers to have read this book. It's been sitting patiently on my shelves since at least 2007.
I'm glad to have finally read it and I found it broadly entertaining, but not likely to be particularly memorable. The story sets up a culture clash story between a displaced Iranian family who fled with the fall of the Shah and a woman whose life has somewhat fallen apart, but at least someone left her a house.
The characters are well-drawn and compelling, particularly Colonel Behrani. But in the end, I found the plot so ridiculous that I couldn't quite connect with the story as a whole.
+15 Task
+5 Review
Task total: 20
Grand total: 320
20.21 B1 one word titleMecca by Susan Straight
Straight has written a book that attempts to encompass many story threads of black and brown people in Southern California—Spanish, Mexican, Indigneous, Black. She does it with an involved story over many years mostly focusing on a group of friends—young men attending CHP (California Highway Patrol) Academy and young women studying nursing. She stretches points occasionally with people making decisions that make no sense and some unexplained internet failure in Los Angeles but ties things up somewhat at the end.
I enjoyed the story of Johnny, CHP going through a shift of routine patrol.
I listened to an audio edition. Mostly well done, but it is difficult to read a series of internet posts that are basically repetitive in an understandable way.
I did get a little tired of most of white people portrayed in the book as being obnoxiously racist.
+20 task
+5 review
Season total: 600
60.69 N32 - NeighborsThe Witch's Heart by Genevieve Gornichec
+60 Task On Scifi and Fantasy Book Club shelf
https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/...
Task total = 60
Post Total: 60
Season Total: 2835
60.70 G60 - Published in 60sThe Nonesuch by Georgette Heyer
+60 Task published 1962
+5 Oldies
Task total = 65
+50 Bingo: fourteenth bingo; B9, I29, N32, G60, O67
Post Total: 115
Season Total: 2950
60.71 N43 - Title has three wordsThe Cruel Prince by Holly Black
+60 Task
Task total = 60
Post Total: 60
Season Total: 3010
30.34 N36 Not a Novel The Desperate Hours: One Hospital's Fight to Save a City on the Pandemic's Front Lines by Marie Brenner
I really, really enjoyed this book. It was a long one, but because it was SO in depth. It tells the story of one hospital system, New York-Presbyterian, in the early days of Covid - up until the delivery of the first vaccines, basically. I live in NYC, so it was especially interesting to read about history that I lived. I still remember the endless days and nights when it seemed like sirens didn't ever stop and it was both interesting and horrifying to read that the folks inside hospitals were basically just as confused and overwhelmed as all the rest of us. It also gave me an even greater appreciation for the vaccines and treatments that have come out in the past 2.5 years -- remembering how bad it really was. Definitely recommended if you're interested in the topic, like nonfiction that reads like a novel, or are interested in mostly oral history.
+30 task
+5 review
Task Total: 35
Season Total: 1060
30.35 G58 Ghosts! This Coven Won't Break by Isabel Sterling
In this second (hopefully not the last?) installment of the lesbian teen witches series, the entire witchy community in Salem is dealing with the devastation that the witch hunters wreaked on the town in the last book. Meanwhile, Hannah is starting her senior year of high school, dating Morgan, and grieving her father - plus her magic doesn't quite work like it used to. Fun, action-packed follow up to the first book.
+30 task (shelved as Paranormal 63 times!)
+5 review
Task Total: 35
Season Total: 1095
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Reading with Style
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A Blunt Instrument (Inspectors Hannasyde & Hemingway #4) by Georgette Heyer
+60 Task
+5 (Pub. 1938)
Post Total: 65
Season Total: 3,135