The Seasonal Reading Challenge discussion

IT'S ALL ABOUT FUN AND GAMES
A. Read A Book That Has Your Favorite Game (Card, Board, Video, Computer Etc.) In The Title Or Relates In Some Way To That Game .
AND
B. Spend An Hour Or More Playing That Game.

Ex. If you enjoy the game LIFE you could read an (auto)biography i.e. the story of someone's life OR a book with the word LIFE in the title such as The Secret Life of Bees AND then play the game.

If you need suggestions for books to read for this task post a request here.

Does the word in the title have to match exactly the name of the game? (hearts/heart)

Michelle wrote: "Does the word in the title have to match exactly the name of the game? (hearts/heart)"Heart/Hearts is fine but if the game has more than one word i.e. Go Fish - both words must be in the title or the book has to be related to it in some way.

Michelle - Have you found any good Hearts books?

There are ZERO books about Pinochle... Well, there are books that tell you how to play, but I already know how to do that! And as for How to Win at Pinochle... Hello! It's called CHEATING! ;) My mom and I are the worst...

sara - your comment made me LOL.

I'm just sad there aren't pinochle books! I mean, YES, it's an old person game, and I've been playing since I was about 14, and watching since I was REALLY young, but whatever... But I know we'll play HOURS of it over Christmas, and it would be nice to read a book where people play it! I also love Rummikub..... That's not a very popular book title, either...


I love games, though. I might go in the Life or Clue direction if Hearts doesn't pan out for me.

For solitare lovers, there's a book called Cheating at Solitaire by Ally Carter. I bought it at Half-Price Books, because I like her other books, but I haven't read it yet.

My favorite game is The Sims, but I am at a loss of how to find a book about it (other than the Prima guide or something.) Any ideas?

Are guides to the game allowed, Cynthia?

Amanda R. in Louisville

Amanda wrote: "My favorite game is The Sims, but I am at a loss of how to find a book about it (other than the Prima guide or something.) Any ideas?

Are guides to the game allowed, Cynthia?

Amanda R. in Louisville"You could use a game guide but for the sims anything about Virtual Reality would work.

Sara ♥ wrote: "I'm just sad there aren't pinochle books! I mean, YES, it's an old person game, and I've been playing since I was about 14, and watching since I was REALLY young, but whatever... But I know we'll..."
Pinochle Book Ideas - If you can get a hold of either of these I would take them. - Household Saints A Novel - A character wins his wife in a pinochle game with the girls father, Sorcerers - Main Character learns he has telepathic powers while performing a card trick for his father's pinochle group. If the game is included in the plot that counts too.

Wow -- the whole name of the game has to appear in the title, huh? Right now I'm having a blast playing "Don't Break the Ice" with my young nephews. I guess I won't be using that game for this challenge though. :-)

Krista wrote: "Wow -- the whole name of the game has to appear in the title, huh? Right now I'm having a blast playing "Don't Break the Ice" with my young nephews. I guess I won't be using that game for this ch..."But you could read a book that is related in idea - a book about an arctic expedition that kind of thing.

Cynthia wrote: "Krista wrote: "Wow -- the whole name of the game has to appear in the title, huh? Right now I'm having a blast playing "Don't Break the Ice" with my young nephews. I guess I won't be using that ...
But you could read a book that is related in idea - a book about an arctic expedition that kind of thing..."

Ooooh, that sparked a thought. There is a book about Shackelton's expedition to the South Pole sitting on my bookshelf right now that I've been meaning to read.

Thanks!!

Apples to Apples is one of my favorite games. Would any book I use only have to have the words "apples" and "to" in it, since one of the words is repeated? Or am I better off using something easy like "Life"?

Ok so my favorite games are Trivial Pursuit, Scene It, Jeopardy, and Tetris (yes, I know I'm a dork). :o)

Any suggestions?

Cait wrote: "Ok so my favorite games are Trivial Pursuit, Scene It, Jeopardy, and Tetris (yes, I know I'm a dork). :o)

Any suggestions?
"

I don't know about books, but you can come to my house and play with me. Actually, your best bet would probably be Jeopardy. My library lists :
Certain jeopardy by Jeff Struecker,
Prisoner of Trebekistan: a decade in Jeopardy by Bob Harris (about the tv show apparently),
Alice in Jeopardy by Ed McBain (which would work for the Alice one, too, so it would work for the Multitasking
Final Jeopardy by Linda Fairstein
Spinsters in jeopardy by Ngaio Marsh
File under--Jeopardy by Sarah Lacey
Children in jeopardy:can we break the cycle of poverty? by Irving B. Harris
Triple Jeopardy by Rex Stout
Jeopardy in the courtroom: a scientific analysis of children's testimony by Stephen J. Ceci
Double jeopardy by William Bernhardt
The Jeopardy! book: The answers, the questions, the facts and the stories of the greatest game show in history by Alex Trebek
Archer in jeopardy by Ross Macdonald
Triple Jeopardy: three novels by Philip MacDonald
Marriage in jeopardy by Anna Adams

Cait wrote: "Ok so my favorite games are Trivial Pursuit, Scene It, Jeopardy, and Tetris (yes, I know I'm a dork). :o)

Any suggestions?
"Trivial Pursuit - any book about someone going after (pursuing) something meaningless (trivial); Scene It - book about a stage actor rehearsing scenes; Jeopardy - Alice in Jeopardy A Novel, Final Jeopardy; Tetris - A book about organization because tetris is basically organizing (fitting) blocks together. You can be creative with this task just be sure to explain the connection when you claim points.

Ms Anderson wrote: "Apples to Apples is one of my favorite games. Would any book I use only have to have the words "apples" and "to" in it, since one of the words is repeated? Or am I better off using something easy l..."For that one you could read any book that has apples as a major theme or plot point

Cynthia wrote: "Pinochle Book Ideas - If you can get a hold of either of these I would take them. - Household Saints A Novel - A character wins his wife in a pinochle game with the girls father"

OOOOOHHHH!!! My library totally has this book!!! Consider it read. Thanks for the tip!!

Thank you Donna Jo and Cynthia!

Here's a list that could help:

http://www.northbrook.info/lib_fictio...

Especially for those that like chess and card games.

One of my favorite games is Harvest Moon. Could I read New Moon for this?

Jamie wrote: "Here's a list that could help:

http://www.northbrook.info/lib_fictio...

Especially for those that like chess and card games."

Thanks for the great link. I had completely forgotten about crossword puzzles! There's even a Ruth Rendell book that will work for that. (One Across, Two Down)

Now I'm wondering if there are books involving jigsaw puzzles. Hmmm -- off to check for those titles.

Erin wrote: "One of my favorite games is Harvest Moon. Could I read New Moon for this?"For this it needs to have both words of the game title in the name of the book OR relate to the idea of the game so for that game you could read a book about farming/living on a farm etc. or

Dancing at the Harvest Moon (also takes place in Canada by the way)
Harvest Moon
Night of the Harvest Moon Vampyre a Tale of the Living and the Undead
etc.

How about An Unquiet Mind: A Memoir of Moods and Madness for the game Cranium, since they both relate to the brain?

Jamie wrote: "How about An Unquiet Mind: A Memoir of Moods and Madness for the game Cranium, since they both relate to the brain?"That's fine

Jamie wrote: "How about An Unquiet Mind: A Memoir of Moods and Madness for the game Cranium, since they both relate to the brain?"

I recently read by Richard Powers. It deals with brain disorders.

Great, thanks!

So if Guitar Hero is my favorite game can I read a book about one of the bands or musicians featured in the game?

For those MMO fans, there's Blow Me Down. It's a humorous romance book quite different from the norm. The couple get stuck in the pirate-themed MMO.

Yay for Guitar Hero! And Rock Band!

Cait wrote: "Ok so my favorite games are Trivial Pursuit, Scene It, Jeopardy, and Tetris (yes, I know I'm a dork). :o)

Any suggestions?
"

I just realized I can read Q & A (the book that Slumdog Millionaire was based off of). Yay!

*palmfaces* I KNEW there was a book I had in mind for you, Cait! Q&A! Ahahaha.

Sounds like my choice : The Kings of New York A Year Among the Geeks, Oddballs, and Geniuses Who Make Up America's Top HighSchool Chess Team by Michael Weinreb should fit then, even though the word "Chess" doesn't occur until 20+ words into the title :0).

For anyone who likes to read fantasy, David Eddings's Belgariad series all have titles that relate to chess: Pawn of Prophecy, Queen of Sorcery, Magician's Gambit, Castle of Wizardry, and Enchanters' End Game and one of the recurring motifs is that the characters are like chess pieces being moved around by unseen forces of good and evil.

For those Sudodu puzzle lovers out there. (Like me!!) There is a mystery series that would fit the task. At least the first book in the series fits the task. :-)

Death by Sudoku A Sudoku Mystery

Plus it's a cozy mystery, and it's set on the Oregon coast. Sheesh, another book to add to my TBR pile!

Kim wrote: "So if Guitar Hero is my favorite game can I read a book about one of the bands or musicians featured in the game?"Yes

Books about bridge, anyone??
Not The Bridges of Madison County or The Bridge over the River Kwai

Cindy wrote: "Books about bridge, anyone??
Not The Bridges of Madison County or The Bridge over the River Kwai"

A couple of Bridge Related mysteries
Cards on the Table
On The Slam A Bridge Club Mystery
Doubled in Spades A Cassandra Swann Mystery

Bridge in the title
Bridge of Sighs
The Bridge of San Luis Rey
Between the Bridge and the RiverAutumn Bridge
Troll Bridge A Rock 'n' Roll Fairy Tale
Lots more where that came from if you don't like any of these.

Cynthia, I just don't know how you find out about all these RANDOM books!! You're AMAZING!

Cynthia wrote: "Cindy wrote: "Books about bridge, anyone??
Not The Bridges of Madison County or The Bridge over the River Kwai"

A couple of Bridge Related mysteries
Cards on the Table
[book:On The Sl..."

Oooo, I just read The Bridge of San Luis Rey. It was really good!

I knew you guys would come through, thanks!

Sara ♥ wrote: "Cynthia, I just don't know how you find out about all these RANDOM books!! You're AMAZING!"

You must be forgetting that Cynthia has super powers- she's a librarian! There's even an action figure!

I am blessed with an excellent library that's a member of a larger consortium with excellent online resources- besides a catalog I can access remotely with call number, author, title, keyword searches, I can check what is on the same shelf as another book. I also have access to online databases about books- Novelist- to name just one- where you can search by plot keyword. My librarians also provide excellent advice- they know their stuff! I know many community libraries don't have access to these resources- especially in this economy- that's why Cynthia's generosity in sharing is even more outstanding.

Cindy wrote: "Books about bridge, anyone??
Not The Bridges of Madison County or The Bridge over the River Kwai"

Burning Bridges - Fantasy

Bridge to Terabithia - Do NOT read unless you're ready to cry. It's that emotionally impacting but oh so beautiful!

Since my computer game based on ancient Rome and Greece was approved. I thought to dig into my classics pile and read Ben Hur. The setting is ancient Rome! YAY!


For those who like Spades, this is a funny title -
Never Hit a Jellyfish With a Spade How to Survive Life's Smaller Challenges

I don't remember ANYTHING about Bridge to Terabithia (which I read in elementary school) except that I cried! :*)

For people who like RPGs, a couple of suggestions:

Caverns of Socrates by Dennis L. McKiernan - About a group of people who end up stuck in a VR RPG and have to figure out a way out.

The Otherland series by Tad Williams. The first book is City of Golden Shadow, and a big part of the plot is that people are getting trapped inside a virtual reality game called Otherland. It's a good series, and if you're not intimidated by length, I highly recommend it.

Sara <3, not gonna give away the plot but it is SAAAAAAAD! ^.^ Very much worth the read or even re-read.

Tanja - you found a Spades book that actually looks like it will be funny, amusing and actually worth reading...AWESOME!

That is my very favorite game ever and I've been coming up empty-handed. So YAY!!!

You're welcome, Beth!

If one of my favourite games is cluedo, would I be able to read some sort of country-house based mystery, e.g. Agatha Christie?

Heidi wrote: "If one of my favourite games is cluedo, would I be able to read some sort of country-house based mystery, e.g. Agatha Christie?"

Yes any kind of who done it kind of mystery is fine for that game.