The Seasonal Reading Challenge discussion

15.9. OUT WITH THE OLD & IN WITH THE NEW BOOKS

My oldest TBR, Mistral's Daughter by Judith Krantz, and my new (to me) author Twilight [image error] by Stephenie Meyer.

Ms. Krantz's tri-generational love story/drama has been on my shelf for so long, I don't remember whether I picked it up on the bargain shelf at the grocer's or whether it actually belongs to my sister. Once I got past the first couple of chapters, it got better.
**POSSIBLE SPOILER ALERT**
Yes, I have been avoiding twilight. Ms. Meyer's vampires just don't appeal - for some of the same reasons that Mercedes Lackey's elven dudes are just really annoying. I want to go upside their heads with a firm admonition to get over themselves. All their doing things for "your own good" is just really patronising and tiresome. Edward, just bite the girl and get over it!


[image error]

5.9 Heart of Dixie which was cheesy and predictable.
10.8 Lucky Man A Memoir Michael J Fox's memoir, I didn't know he was Canadian, but I really enjoyed the book. He talks about his life growing up in Canada, time in Hollywood and then life with Parkinson's.

Total points: 60

Jan (the Gryphon) wrote: "15.9. OUT WITH THE OLD & IN WITH THE NEW BOOKS

My oldest TBR, Mistral's Daughter by Judith Krantz, and my new (to me) author [b..."

Your review made me laugh. I am curious though, which of Mercedes Lackey's elven dudes are you referring to? I only know of one. Edward doesn't want to turn Bella against her will. Read the rest of the series. There is ALOT more.

20.1-Revisit the past. I picked this task:


14. Read A Book That Was Has Been Translated From Its Original Language (I.E. It Could Be From Swedish To English Or English To Italian Etc.).

And I read "The Angel's Game" by Carlos Ruiz Zafron. It was translated from Spanish to English.

I really wanted to like this book, as I enjoyed "Shadow of the Wind". It started out good, but then just got too complicated, with too many characters to keep track of and alot of detail. It also was very dark, not my favorite.

One more down--

30.5--Diane/ELSEWHERE by Gabrielle Zevin

I LOVED this book! A young girl dies in an accident and moves on to ELSEWHERE. Once there she learns more about life, and death, than she ever learned in her 15 years on earth. A wonderful novel with great ideas about the afterlife and a message of hope at the end.

&

THE SALMON OF DOUBT by Douglas Adams

A collection of essays and interviews published posthumously show the depth and breadth of this talented and very funny writter. I'd recommend it, but just be sure you have no problems reading about the musings of a dedicated athiest (there are a few essays on this subject).

This brings me to 445 points!!

woohoo *finally* finished my first task for the winter challenge!

25.5 odd man out
Traveling with Pomegranates A Mother-Daughter Story.

WONDERFUL book. It made me want to delve more into Greek history and mythology.

15.8 Frost at Christmas- R D Wingfield
watched- Miracle on 34th Street

Finished 20-3 with The Stupidist Angel by Christopher Moore. I feel like I need to say 10 Hail Mary's after reading that, yuck.

100 points

Finished 25.9:

Map: The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows
Extras (a map, a timeline, and a cast of secondary characters): The Monster of Florence by Douglas Preston and Mario Spezi

Total Points: 55

15 point task

8) Holidays on Ice David Sedaris

watched the Polar Express

Carebear wrote: "15 point task

8) Holidays on Ice David Sedaris

watched the Polar Express"

I love the Polar Express!

Hi,

I have finished two tasks.
For 5 points I finished task 10 Alliteration, I read Me and Miss M by Jemma Forte.

For 15 points I finished task 6 Gifting and giving.
I read The book of tomorrow by Celia Ahern. This was brought for me by Steve when he found out my favourite book shop had gone into administration. I gave back by donating clothes to charity and taking Steve to a charity event.

Total points = 45

Kate.x.

Here are the tasks I completed this week:

5.2 Stargirl

15.3 Cooking Up Murder (first in the series "A Cooking Class Mystery" written by Miranda Bliss and Amelia Earhart. It was difficult choosing a book about a woman I admire - there are so many! I decided on Earhart because I didn't know much about her besides the basics.

25.10 Dream House A Novel I was wandering the library a couple of weeks ago and saw this book. I always love a good spooky house story, and the imagery of the battered staircase enticed me. I gave the book three stars. I read the graphic novel Cancer Vixen A True Story

30.10 Mondays Are Red and 33 Snowfish

35.3 The Year of the Flood

35.4 Skipping the typical resolutions this year because I had to make them early due to some medical issues, I am going for something fun. My resolution is to complete at least ONE seasonal challenge this year for the seasonal challenge book club. This group has been great for me as a means of therapy because it gives me something fun and distracting to do, and I have lots of time to read on medical leave. The books I chose to represent this are: Book Club An Unshelved Collection(fiction) and So Many Books, So Little Time A Year of Passionate Reading (non-fiction).

My new point total:

I finished 10.7 by reading Blood Promise by Richelle Mead one of the Vampire Academy books. One of my favorite TV shows is Moonlight and I am still mad it was canceled!

I also finished 25.9 by reading The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer which has a map and Ella Minnow Pea A Novel in Letters by Mark Dunn which has a glossary of terms at the front.

That brings my total to 80 points.

Kim L wrote: "I finished 10.7 by reading Blood Promise by Richelle Mead one of the Vampire Academy books. One of my favorite TV shows is Moonlight and I am still mad it was cancel..."

I loved Moonlight!

FINISHED:

5.6 - Weekends at Bellevue - Julie Holland

There is NO WAY I could 1) work in a hospital and 2) work in the psych ER

TOTAL POINTS = 30
Erin MN

I finished task 30.10 by reading Princess in Pink by Meg Cabot (happy color in title). My daughter is reading this series so I've been reading along with her. They are cute, easy reads. I love the movies, too!

and reading: One Across, Two Down by Ruth Rendell (number in title). I was expecting a more traditional mystery, but once I got over that, I thought this book was delightfully creepy.

This brings my total points to 160

Ashley wrote: "One Across, Two Down by Ruth Rendell (number in title). I was expecting a more traditional mystery, but once I got over that, I thought this book was delightfully creepy...."

Ashley, Ruth Rendell writes good mysteries. They aren't traditional, like you say. Have you tried her other alias, Barbara Vine? These books have a mystery (in a family-secret type of way) and without the creepiness.

Completed another task:

35.1 PJREADS Dewey Decimal - My book from last challenge was 944 pages so I used 944 and 944-250=194 as numbers to select books from:

35.1 A Immoveable Feast A Paris Christmas by John Baxter (944.36: General History of Europe: France and Monaco)

An enlightening but not very interesting book about French traditions regarding Christmas. Heavily emphasizing the culinary traditions of France and the development of a family Christmas dinner by a native Australian now living in France. Written by the author of “We’ll Always Have Paris”, I expected a better read. (2 of 5 stars)

35.1 B Descartes' Bones A Skeletal History of the Conflict Between Faith and Reason by Russell Shorto (194: Modern Western Philosophy - France)

A long, but interesting treatise about the life and philosophy of Renee Descartes. Focusing on the mystery of his bones which seemed to have been lost and refound from his death in the 1600’s to today, the author traces the evolution of Cartesian/Modernistic thinking with the changing philosophy of each major period in history. His discussions of the conflicts between Descarte’s philosophy and the religious and political climate of the times helps to clarify the impact of his ideas. Especially interesting were the impact on the American and French revolutions of the late 1700’s. The author’s comparison of the current conflicts between fundamental religious thinking (such as, Islam and right-wing Christianity) and democratic government leads to some deep concerns. His belief is that they must go through the same growing pains as were experienced during the Enlightment.
4 of 5 stars

POINTS 110
TASKS 5
BOOKS 7
PAGES 2327

CHRISTMAS BOOKS 4

I just finished listening to The Last Song by Nicholas Sparks for 5.7. We are both Year of the Snake. I loved this book and gave it 5 stars.

That makes my total 85 points.

I finished
5.3, Royal Reading with
A Year with the Queen
and
30.1, Bonnie's end of the decade with
A. book- Night Work (2007) by GR author Steve Hamilton and
B. film- Australia (2008) Kidman/Jackman

+35
total 285

ok I feel like i'm never going to get any points, but I am half way through 2 of the tasks, they are multi-books tasks and have so far only read one for each of those, does that count :-) just kidding, hopefully will be done with one of them this weekend!

I just finished "The Magicians" by Lev Grossman for task 10.5 It was very absorbing, but so different than I thought it would be. It reminded me of his previous book, Codex. He takes these trendy genres (in this case, the magical, Harry Potter, Narnia ilk) and makes it many degrees darker. Hm. I need something happy for my next task.
Points for this task: 10
total points: 65/11000
total books: 4

5.7 - EYING THE YEAR OF THE TIGER - In Honor Of Chinese New Year Which Falls During This Challenge (February 14th, 2010) Read A Book Written By An Author Who Shares Your Chinese Zodiac Sign.

I am a TIGER (born in 1974) and Judy Blume is a TIGER (born in 1938) so I re-read "Are You There God It's Me Margaret" for this task.

It was like going back in time! I loved this book as a pre-teen and the re-read took me back to that time and how many questions I had, how much I worried about, how important so many things were. It was fun to 'go back in time' with this book.

So, 5 points. That brings me to 55 pts total, 5 books total read.

5.4 A WINNING DECADE - As We Transition From One Decade To The Next We Should Recognize The Books That Won Us Over In The Last One…For This Task Read A Book That Has Received A Literary Award During The Years (2000-2009).

I read We Need to Talk About Kevin A Novel for this task. This book won The Orange Prize for Fiction in 2005.

Wow. What a dark and twisted book. I had a really difficult time with the material - there is nothing upbeat or even hopeful in any part of the book. I do think that its a very interesting take on a very brutal subject. It's original and haunting. Overall, I didn't love it but it was a good book and I can see why it has received so much praise.

So, 5 more points. That brings me to 60 pts total, 5 books total read.

TOTAL POINTS = 115 + 30 = 145

New Tasks:

30.4 Epidemic: The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan
Book is about a zombie apocalypse--which was not what I was expecting at all...the title and cover kept grabbing me so I finally checked it out from the library. You get infected by being bitten by a zombie. Insinuations in the book that we brought this pandemic on ourselves by trying to live longer/forever. The only non-infected humans live in little enclaves protected by fences.


Old Tasks:

5.1 Disney: (Beauty and the Beast) Beauty by Robin McKinley
10.1 Circus: Flesh Circus by Lilith Saintcrow
15.7 Cooking: Fresh from the Vegetarian Slow Cooker by Robin G Robertson
25.2 Friendship: The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery
25.5 Gourmet Rhapsody by Muriel Barbery
35.3 About Time: Born on a Blue Day by Daniel Tammet

Wow! 480 posts already, and this is my first one - have been on jury duty since Thanksgiving, and finally finished late today.

5.8 Cozy-mystery: The Deeds of the Disturber by Elizabeth Peters - Dec. 4 This is the continuing saga of Amelia Peabody, Emerson, and their very precocious Ramses. My hot beverage of choice was a cappuccino with whipped cream & that something extra to relax me.

10.5 Hot Books of 2009: my birth month is March: Angels' Blood by Nalini Singh - Dec. 8

15.4 All About Fun & Games: Death by Sudoku by Kaye Morgan - Dec. 5 I played the paper version for an hour or more, and the electronic version for 1.5 hours

15.7 Food + Family + Friends: Candy for Christmas by Joanne Fluke. I made Butter-Scotchies (cookies) and served 1/2 of them to my family and the other 1/2 to the members of the jury panel.

30.9 Newbery Winners: I read The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman (the 2009 Newbery Winner), and Savvy by Ingrid Law (one of the Honor Books for the same year. These are both excellent coming-of-age stories, both have elements of the paranormal (Bod is raised by ghosts, and the Beaumont family members all have "savvy", a special-to-each-person extraordinary ability that exhibits at age 13; Mibs is just coming of age as this story begins. I liked both stories a lot, and in a different year, Savvy may have been the winner, but there was just something extra to The Graveyard Book, and I agree with the committee's decision.

Total Tasks Completed = 5
Total Pages Read = 1739
Total Points = 75

10.5 The Devil's Arithmetic by Jane Yolen 1988 list
25.2 A Corner of the Universe by Ann M. Martin

Friendship is one of the most important things in my life. My friends are there for me through everything, whether it is staying up late, laughing and talking, or if I need a shoulder to cry on. Friendship helps me to be the best person I can be, and I am very grateful for it!

Points earned: 35
Total Points: 45

Task 15.4. 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.

I read High Stakes by Erin McCarthy and loved it!!
I went online a played some Texas Hold em and some slots.

Total Points: 135/1100
Books Read: 9
Tasks Completed: 8/58
Total Pages: 2407

15.1 Make Me Laugh - The Wrong Box by Robert Louis Stevenson
Film - The Addams Family

25.5 Odd Man Out - Tracks by Louise Erdrich

25.6 Island Country: French Polynesia (Tahiti) - Frangipani A Novel by Célestine Hitiura Vaite

25.7 Lost Generation Author - The Autobiography of Alice B. Toklas by Gertrude Stein
Lost Series - The Sheltering Sky by Paul Bowles

25.10 Attractive Cover - Daughters of the Stone A Novel by Dahlma Llanos-Figueroa
[image error]
Graphic Novel - The Sandman Vol. 7 Brief Lives by Neil Gaiman
GoodReads Author

30.1 End of Decade: 2008 - Snake Agent by Liz Williams
To Movie 2007 - The Diving Bell and the Butterfly by Jean-Dominique Bauby

30.4 AIDS - Company of Liars by Karen Maitland

30.5 Deceased Narrator - To Your Scattered Bodies Go by Philip José Farmer
After Death of Author - The Third Policeman by Flann O'Brien

35.1 Dewey Decimal 5* book City of Illusions by Ursula K Le Guin
215 Science & Religion - The Dream of the Earth by Thomas Berry
467 Spanish Language Variations - El Sobrino del Mago (The Magician's Nephew) by C.S. Lewis ... read in Spanish

35.2 Winter Vacation - Death of a Cozy Writer A St. Just Mystery by G.M. Malliet
Fireflood and Other Stories by Vonda N. McIntyre (OK'd for Fire by Donna Jo)

Tasks completed: 12
Tasks started: 2
Books read: 21
Pages read: 5,558

Completed task 25.6 Island Dreams - read The Hostage Bride by Jane Feather, which takes place in the island nation of the UK. This was such a fun read for me, I've been reading a lot of "heavy" novels lately and it was fun to read some historical romance fluff :) Brings me to a total of:

50/1100 points
Tasks Completed: 2/60
Tasks In Progress: 4
Books Read: 5
Pages Read: 1,398

Just decided to join the challenge so here's my first completed task:)

5.6 IT'S A DIRTY JOB BUT… - In The Fall Challenge We Read About Our Current And Dream Job So For This Task...
A. Read A Novel Where The Main Character Does A Job You Could Never Imagine Doing.

Terminal Freeze by Lincoln Child. The main character is a Paleoecologist and works in Alaska's Federal Wildlife Zone, Arctic Circle. I would freeze to death in seconds!

Total points: 5

5.8 BABY IT'S COLD OUTSIDE - While Outside It May Be Cold And Blustery; Inside You Can Cozy Up To A Cozy Mystery.

I read Casting Spells by Barbara Bretton. Cute story, and tons of knitting talk, which made me very happy. But now I want my own ever-replenishing basket of roving.

Total Points: 10

Finally managed to finish another challenge. :/ The last two weeks have been completely crazy at school -with finals, tests, projects to turn in, applying for college and all-, but now that the winter holiday's finally started I'm trying my best at catching up with everybody else.

I've read Rosshalde by Hermann Hesse & Fathers and Sons by Turgenev for task 25.1. Read two books from the 1001 Books You Must Read before You Die list. I enjoyed reading both books, although I couldn't call them 5* reads, more like 4,3*, although I can see why they're both must-reads, they didn't appeal to me personally that much and the endings were a bit weird. In both books the most interesting and lovable character dies towards the end. And I know I shouldn't judge books based on that. From a technical -so to say- point of view, both books are really good.
Now I have a total of 75 points.

Another one down...

Task 15.4 Fun and Games
I love to play Bunco, so I read Whack 'N' Roll A Bunco Babes Mystery and gave it 2 1/2 stars. Not the greatest book, but it fulfilled the need. I also played Bunco for 2 hours earlier this week.

Tasks Completed: 8
Points for this task: 15
Points thus far: 105/1100
Books read: 12
Pages read: 4058 (updated 12/12)

Life catches up fast! But I've been reading anyway...

5.3 Royal Reading: Marie Antoinette Princess of Versailles, Austria-France, 1769

15.7 Food: How to Eat Fried Worms
I made tasty "worm pudding" from the recipe in the back of the book for my brother when he visited me.

25.2 International Friendship Month: The Pinballs
Friendship is always being there and never giving up on someone. It's give-and-take; you can't just expect a friend to do everything for you, you need to do something in return. A good friend will be there when you need it, and you'll be there for your friend. A good friend is your wingman, your partner in crime, your shoulder to cry on, your teammate, and, most importantly, your strength.

25.3 A Game of Clue: The Rope Trick and Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist
Professor Plum with the rope...in my local library! Both these books (and a good 3/5s of the others I've read) came from the library down the street.

25.4 Turn Back Time: Catherine, Called Birdy and Kate's House
I don't know that I'd like to live in either of these time periods. I'm not so good with dirt and bugs and DEFINITELY not with being told constantly what to do. I would have loathed being Catherine, since she was little more than a bargaining chip for her father's greed, but she still managed to play jokes and have fun...and I wouldn't mind the feasts and such of medieval England. But I don't know how well I would've gotten along in mid-1800s Oregon, either. I don't think I would've liked all the chores and blazing the trail or any of that. I'd probably rather have been a pioneer, if I had to choose between the two. You're less likely to be burned at the stake for heresy.

25.7 Lost Generation: Great Gatsby and The Little Prince
Note: The version of The Little Prince that I own is longer than the version here on Goodreads. I went digging through the "other editions," but I couldn't find the exact one I have.

25.10 Don't Judge a Book by Its Cover: and Fruits Basket, Volume 1
I don't know what it is about Bound's cover that grabs me, but I love it. The half face with its haunted eye, so dark you cant even see the pupil. The beautiful piece of the painting on the left. The mysterious almost-smile. I just think it's beautiful.

Total: 145 + 265 (from earlier) = 410 points

Two more tasks completed.

5.1 My absolute favorite Disney movie ever is Beauty and the Beast. To this day, I can watch it, deliver every line and sing every song in unison with the characters. I remeber going to see it on ice. (I was 10 when it came out, still young enough to enjoy it). Belle has always been my favorite out of the Disney Princesses (cuz she's smart and brave).

I read Cameron Dokey's Belle A Retelling of "Beauty and the Beast". The twist in the story is that Belle is not beautiful (as her name suggests), but that she can see beauty where most people can't. I really enjoyed it.


20.1 Past Challenge - I decided to do challenge 25.4 from the Fall Challenge (read a book that was adapted into a film, and that was both written and adapted within the last ten years). So I read
The Private Lives of Pippa Lee by Rebecca Miller and went out to see the film. I have to say that I really enjoyed both the book and the film. It was interesting and funny, and the movie definitely did justice to the book (this may have to do with the fact that Miller also directed the movie. Anyways, its about a much younger woman who moves into a retirement community with her much older husband, and basically her perfect-ness starts to unravel.

I recommend the film. Robin Wright did a great job of conveying Pippa's emotions and reactions to the madness around her, and there are some great cameos by Maria Bello, Julianne Moore and Winona Ryder.

Previous Score: 80
Current Score: 105

Oh Snap! I'm in the triple digits.

Can I just say that I am incredibly impressed with Roseann and Ms Anderson for being in the 400s. You guys are awesome.

20.3 GROUP READS: B. Winter - The Stupidest Angel Completed the book and posted comment to group discussion.

Tasks Completed: 6
Books Completed: 7
Pages Read: 2227

30.5 The Wish List
Eoin Coifer
and
The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society
Shaffer and Barrows

5.9 ISN'T IT ROMANTIC
Sweetheart by Chelsea Cain (read Dec 10/09)

Tasks Completed: 2/60
Books Read: 2
Pages Read: 657

15/1100 points

A few more done--

10.4--CAKE WRECKS by Jen Yates (Donna Jo’s list)

I have not laughed more reading a book in quite some time. I cannot believe some of the cakes featured in this book and I have to admit that I did laugh hysterically at the "dirty" chapter. If you need some cheering up, this is the book to turn to.

25.2--FRIENDSHIP CAKE by Lynne Hinton

A sweet story about some women in a church group who decide to go about the task of creating a cookbook. The recipies chosen match in a few cases the characters, but I would like to have seen the author do this more. An OK read.

How do I see friendship... This is a tough one for me as I have grown apart from many of my friends. We just seemed to take different paths. My best friends would have to be my husband and my mother. So I guess friendship to me means having someone who is there for you, sticks by you, and loves you even when you are not the best you can be.

and

25.5--ABIGAIL/ DANCING SHOES by Noel Streatfeild

The story is abot two young girls, Rachel and Hillary who are orphaned and sent to live with their Aunt Cora who has a daughter named Dulcie who can do no wrong. Aunt Cora runs a dance company which she expects Rachel and Hillary to join. Problems begin when Rachel explains she is not interested in dance and Hillary appears to be a better dancer than Dulcie.

This brings me to 505 points!!

30.9 Rachel Lee's Task Newbery Awards

I chose the 1982 awards for books written in 1981, A Visit To William Blake's Inn (Winner) by Nancy Willard and Ramona Quimby, Age 8 (Honor) by Beverly Cleary.

There were many reasons for this choice. My daughter's birth in 1981 gave me back the legitimate excuse to buy and read Juvenile Lit that I lost when I left my first job in a school library. Beverly Cleary had been a favorite of mine since the early 60's and Henry Huggins was first chapter book I remember reading! Somehow I had missed Ramona, even when reading everything that my children brought home. She reminded me of my years in school. I never got to ride a bus to school and I was the older sister but the trials that she felt just hit home with me. She was a "likeable" character without being too sweet. William Blake's Inn was "written" and illustrated by people that live where I grew up in the Hudson Valley and are names I knew well. The poetry, by Blake was fun. I generally do not like poetry, but this was inviting. Maybe if I had read this in elementary school, and had a teacher who knew how to present it, I would like poetry more! The artwork, generally not a part of the Newbery, was well done and whimsical. I saw more every time I opened the book. So, which did I prefer, William Blake's Inn.

Rachel Lee wrote: "Finished:

30.4 Fever 1793-4*- I listed to the audiobook of this and really enjoyed the narrator and the story. It concerns the YellowFever epidemic in Philadelphia during 1793. A..."
Great book!

5.6.A It's A Dirty Job But...

Luncheon Of The Boating Party by Susan Vreeland. I have 0 artistic talent, I really cannot even draw a straight line with a ruler. I can not even begin to imagine all the thought, and anguish that Renoir went through while working on this painting.

Tasks Completed: 2
Total Read: 4
Total Pages: 1,298
Total Points: 35/1100

Finished my first task, 15 point task number 3-What Women Want. I read poison study by Maria Snyder and A Country Wife by Lucy Pinney-I've enjoyed and admired her columns in the times but have never got around to reading the novel. Thoroughly enjoyed both books. A good start.

i read party princess by meg cabot for 15.3
it works because the author and main charachter are girls

30.3 Masterharper of Pern, Ann McCaffery 431p
and Sometimes a Light Surprises, by Jamie Langston Turner 399 p
830 pages for this task

finished task 20.1 Revisiting the Past. I chose to revisit the task "April Is National Poetry Month – Read A Book Of Poetry Or A Book About A Famous Poet," by reading Cold Mountain 100 Poems. i love chinese poetry! so simple, yet elegant and profound.




Total Points: 85/1100
Books Read: 5/79+
Tasks Completed: 3 /58
Tasks in Progress: 3

15.1- Make me laugh- The Stupidest Angel- Christopher Moore. I also caught a movie on tv last night called- THe Final Curtain which was a black comedy.

Finished...

15.2:
The Screwtape Letters by C.S. Lewis 4*
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum 4*

30.3 (BJ ROSE's TASK): 827 pages total
The Princess Diaries by Meg Cabot (283 pages) 4*
The Color of Magic by Terry Pratchett (240 pages) 3*
Pudd'nhead Wilson by Mark Twain (176 pages) 3*
The Lorax by Dr. Seuss (72 pages) 5*
Oh, the Places You'll Go! by Dr. Seuss (56 pages) 4*

35.3 (DLM ROSE's TASK):
Around the World in Eighty Days and 5 Weeks in a Balloon by Jules Verne 3*