The Seasonal Reading Challenge discussion

I have finished 35.1, PJ Read's Task: Number of pages in "Midwives" (one of my 5* books) = 374 Adult Education.

When I searched that DD #, there were a lot of books about book clubs. So: The dead of midnight A thriller by Catherine Hunter which is a mystery about a book club. It was ok -- definitely had me reading to see what happened, but I thought the characters weren't defined enough for me to keep them straight.

374 minus 250 = 124 (previously: Infinity). 126 is The Self: Genesis by Bernard Beckett. I really liked this book and have recommended it to two family members so that I have people who will discuss it with me! Very thought-provoking book about what it means to be human, etc. This was approved by PJ Reads in that thread, message 71

I've also read
Bite Me! by Melissa Francis, which is in the August 2009 list (my birthday is Aug. 6th), so I finished 10.5

New Points: 45
Total Points: 85

Just finished Michelle's task for 25 points (short and long title):

short title--Demian by Hermann Hesse

long title-- The Happiness Project Or, Why I Spent a Year Trying to Sing in the Morning, Clean My Closets, Fight Right, Read Aristotle, and Generally Have More Fun By Gretchen Rubin


I liked Demian. It was extremely thought provoking and loved Hesse's style. I was SO inspired by The Happiness Project (which I won on GR) that I'm starting my own in January. I would highly recommend this book if you are wondering if you could add more happiness to your life..you don't have to be an unhappy person to try it! :)

Jamie(24)
NEW TOTAL: 50 points

Tasks Completed: 2
Points for this task: 25
Points thus far: 50/1100
Books read: 3
Pages read: 844

Task 5.8 Club Dead by Charlaine Harris


Tasks: 2
Books: 3
Total Pages: 848
Total Points: 20/1100

I have completed task 15.8 by reading A Christmas Carol and watching Love Actually (I love that movie!!)

It was interesting to read the story in its original form when I have seen it performed so many times in so many different ways. It is actually impressive how close all the movie versions are to the book. I liked Dicken's humor in the book that does not necesarily cross over into the movies (for example, the discussion about the phrase dead as a door nail). I am giving it 4 stars.

Point Total: 25
Page Total: 621
Book Total: 3

I just finished 25.2 by reading Firefly Lane by Kristin Hannah where friendship is the main theme of the book. I really liked this book and rated it 4 stars.

Friendship is pretty important to me. I met the best friend I have ever had in college. She was my bridesmaid, but after college I didn't do a good job of keeping in touch and now we are no longer in contact. I feel bad about that and if I ever make another friend like that, I won't make the same mistake twice.

That brings my total to 30 points.

I've just read Blue Dahlia from Rachel's list for the Winner's Choice task. 4 stars for me, but I'm quite stingy with my stars :)

10.4 Winner’s choice – Blue Dahlia by Nora Roberts (Rachel Lee’s list)

TOTALS:
15 points
3 books
2 tasks
1238 pages
1 task in progress

At last, I buckled down and finished a task. Yes, I know that both words don't need to be in both titles, but the idea was too fun to let go.

35.2. DONNA JO'S TASK - GOING ON A WINTER VACATION
A. Pick One Of The Following: 1)Ski Trip, 2)Warm Beach, 3)Cozy Fire, 4)Sleigh Ride, 5)Tropical Island, OR 6) Northern Lights.
B. Read Two Books For This Task; Each Must Have A Word In The Title Of The Vacation You Chose (I.E., Ski Trip Might Be Ski Weekend By R.L. Stine And A Trip With A Tycoon By Nicola Marsh).
Northern Lights by Nora Roberts and Northern Lights by Christie Cole.

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I finished 20.3 The Stupidest Angel A Heartwarming Tale of Christmas Terror, Version 2.0 by Christopher Moore and I made a comment in the group reads discussion folder.

Total Points: 25
Number of Books: 2
Tasks Completed: 2
Total Page Numbers: 579

The Books I read for the Westward Expansion all have her name spelled with a g--Our library system had no books on her spelled with a j, only the g. So I guess I will be reading a book about her since I had never heard of her.

I finished another task last night.

10.6: 5-star of person close to you. I chose Mary in Mount Pleasant, SC. I read Breaking Dawn. I also read Eclipse for 15.3 but will post it officially once I finish the second part of that challenge.

Total points: 50
Books read: 4
Total pages: 1672

Off and running.

5:8 Baby it's cold outside Unnatural Causes
P.D James - (Good Reads Author)

Total Points - 5

I have completed the following tasks

5.6 The Pampered Chef by Doris Christopher
I could never be a chef or demonstrator or entepreneur--just not in me to be able to do that sort of stuff.

15.1A A Dirty Job by Christopher Moore
15.2A Blazing Saddles a Mel Brooks Movie

15.3A Perfect Mistake by Kate Brian
15.3B High on Arrival by Mackenzie Phillips

15.7A Great Pies and Tarts by Carole Walker
15.7B Southern Pecan Pie pg 314-315 for my boyfriend's birthday

Task 5.8 Baby it's cold outside. Shakespeare's Christmas

Books Read: 5
Pages Read: 1384
Tasks Completed: 4
Total Points: 85

I finished 5.4, Winning Decade with:
The Blue Edge Of Midnight
Edgar Award for Best First Novel (2003)

+5
Total 165

25.5 Abiagail's task - odd man out.
The Lathe of Heaven
I cna't find any 5/10/15 point tasks I could use this for.

i completed challenge 5.1 for 5 points.
i read princess in pink by meg cabot. it related to the princess diaries

Finished 35.2 Donna Jo's task by reading Born in Fire (Born In trilogy #1) and Death of a Cozy Writer A St. Just Mystery. I gave Born in Fire 4*. I really enjoyed listening to this. The reader had a nice Irish Brogue. It was a nice story of a glass maker who is sought out by a broker to sell her glass. It is a nice story. Death of a Cozy Writer I gave 2*. It was a quick read but I was disappointed in the ending.


This brings me to 65 points.

25.2 GINA'S TASK-FEBRUARY IS INTERNATIONAL FRIENDSHIP MONTH-I read The Myth of You and Me A Novel by Leah Stewart. I gave this book 4 stars.

What Friendship Means to Me:

Reading this book made me think about to friends that I had when I was younger. Those friendships were always the ones where you told each other everything and even if your friend told you something embarrassing about herself you accepted her for it anyway, even if it was something you couldn't fathom. Friendship to me means having someone that you can turn to when you really need to turn somewhere. You have different friends for different areas of your life, but they are all special in some way. A friend is someone that you trust and respect no matter what happens. This book made me reflect on friendships that I've had and lost. The memories are still there and they still make me smile, even though the friendship has grown apart.

25 points.

Total points: 75

Task 30.9 - Newberry Award - For 2009 I read The Graveyard Book and Savvy. I preferred Savvy - The Graveyard Book was a bit on the dark side for my taste. Savvy was intriguing and overall an interesting read.

Points for Task: 30
Tasks: 3
Books: 4
Total points: 40
Nicki STL

Finished Task 35.3

The Book of Dead Days by Marcus Sedgwick

I finished 15.6 by reading Girl with a Pearl Earring by Tracy Chevalier. When I was younger, my grandma gave me some of her earrings. They are one of my favorite gifts, because my grandma died of cancer and I like knowing I have something from her.

I also donated some money this month to the local Vietnam veterans charity.

That makes my total 45 points.

Time to start posting.

I finished 30.8 Kari's task - Lewis and Clark by reading:

Undaunted Courage by Stephen Ambrose and
O Pioneers! by Willa Cather

Both were excellent. I read Undaunted Courage because it was recommended by my hubbie's heart doctor as he was putting a stent in - two days before we left for an AMTRAK trip to Seattle. Was ordained -had to read it.

Undaunted Courage- An excellent epic saga of the expedition of Lewis and Clark. Based heavily on the journals and writings of the two explorers, the book was wonderful in helping to understand not only the wilderness but also the politics of the times. The vision of Thomas Jefferson was amazing in being able to foresee the need for more land and being willing to commit an expedition against the current political climate. The audiobook form gave the feeling of living history despite the book being very long. (5 stars)

O' Pioneers was a classic - I had not read in 40 years - was glad for the opportunity to reread and enjoy again. (4 stars)

Definitely would not have liked to live during that time - I like hot water, electricity, warm beds and my Keurig coffee-maker way too much!!

POINTS 30
TASKS 1
BOOKS 2
PAGES 901

Also completed 20.3 Group Read by reading and commenting on discussion board:

The Stupidest Angel A Heartwarming Tale of Christmas Terror, Version 2.0 by Christopher Moore.

A wonderful satire on Christmas. Well-written, amazingly eccentric characters and just plain fun. Definitely 5 stars

POINTS 50
TASKS 2
BOOKS 3
PAGES 1221

30.7 Jan's Task: Multi-Tasking
(Fits 5.10 - Dirty Job and 10.7 Alliteration)

Band of Brothers E Company, 506th Regiment, 101st Airborne from Normandy to Hitler's Eagle's Nest
Excellent book. 5 Stars. Glad to have finally read the novel after watching the TV miniseries numerously!

Total Points: 50
http://spreadsheets.google.com/pub?ke...

I finally completed my second task:)

30.4 SANDRA'S TASK - WORLD AIDS DAY: The Strain by Guillermo Del Toro and Chuck Hogan (401 pages) – 4 stars

The Strain is a good read. I love books that are apocalyptic and books about vampires. This book has both. It is the end of the world as we know it. A vampiric virus is spreading throughout NYC. This book was definitely written to make you fear vampires again (just as Salem’s Lot, Dracula and Carmilla did when I read those books). These vampires are not like those in The Vampire Diaries, Twilight, Southern Vampire or Black Dagger Brotherhood Series. There is no romance here. These vampires are dirty, evil, demonic and just downright gross. I will definitely read the other two books in the trilogy when they are published.

30.7 JAN THE GRYPHON’S TASK - MULTI-TASKING: The Road (fits 15.5 - Linnea from Myanmar, 10.4 - Diane, 5.4 (the winning decade), 5.5 (Librarian recommendation) and Bonnie’s Task)- 12/1/09 (287 pages) – 5 stars

I loved this book. Again, I love apocalyptic/post-apocalyptic literature. The relationship between father and soon is so wonderfully crafted. You really began to feel for them both throughout their journey on the road. Also, I like that we don’t know who, what, when, or how. We don’t know what events have occurred to create the world that they live in. It makes it all the more believable. We really need to think about what we can do to make the future better.


Total Points: 60
Pages read: 688
Books read: 2
Tasks completed: 2

Finished : 10.5 I was born in May so I read
Brooklyn by Colm Toibin.
Following WWII, Eilis is unable to find work as a bookkeeper in Ireland, so at the urging of a visiting American priest she moves to America, where she meets Tony, the son of Italian immigrants. She is pulled between the needs of her widowed mother in Ireland and her growing life in New York. I gave it 3.5

4th challenge done

Tittle: Max the Mighty
Author: Rodman Philbrick
Points:30
Task-7
Two tasks this book fits are #10 5 points and #4 10 points. For task #4 10 points the person that this book is one of there 5 star books is Wendy.

Total points:65

Alright, I have finished my first ever tasks.

5.10 The Allure of Alliteration Whitethorn Woods

10.4 Winners Choice The Forgotten Garden 5* book from BJ Rose - Great choice I also give 5*

Total Points:15
Pages read:1077
Books read:2
Tasks completed:2

Task 30.7 - Multi-tasking - I have completed Handbags and Homicide which would have worked for the alliteration task and the cozy mystery task.

Task points: 30
Total Points: 70
Total Books: 5
Nicki STL

Another completion today - I rounded out 35.2 (Donna Jo's Winter Vacation task, for which I chose "Tropical Island") with Henry Miller's Tropic of Cancer and Andrea Levy's Small Island A Novel. In case anyone's curious, both of these books are also candidates for multitasking, since they are both on the 1001 Books list.

Current Total: 95 points

Nicki wrote: "Task 30.9 - Newberry Award - For 2009 I read The Graveyard Book and Savvy. I preferred Savvy - The Graveyard Book was a bit on the dark side for my taste. Savvy was ..."

That's interesting - I too read both of those books for a Children's Lit class last summer & I felt the same way you do. So many people love The Graveyard Book & it was just okay for me.

I completed 15.4 by reading The Desert King's Bejeweled Bride by Sabrina Philips and playing Bejeweled for an hour. Not bad for a book I picked solely for the title!

This brings me to 100 points, I believe.

15.7. JAN THE GRYPHON’S TASK - MULTI-TASKING
Read A Book That Will Fit Two Or More Other Tasks In The Winter 2009-2010 Challenge. List The Other Tasks It Will Fit
The Girl She used to be by Christofano 5.8 and 15.9
15 points
105 total

Finished my task--

35.4--THIN WOOD WALLS by David Patneaude

Story of a family interred in Seattle after Pearl Harbor, seen from the eyes of their young son. These stories always get to me as I cannot believe we did this to people who were born in the US.
&

THE SKINNY by Melissa Clark

I would highly reccomend this book if you are looking to lose weight in a healthy way. Most of the "tips" are common sense--eat fruit or veggies instead of sugary items, stop as you start to feel full. The part I liked was the hints of options to replace eating along with the recipes and 2-week start up diet at the end. They also are of the opinion that if you want something you should eat it, just be careful how much.

This brings me to 415 points!!

Okey doke, first points posted for the Winter challenge!!

Task 20.2: Cheryl ME's Civil Rights task, read The Help by Kathryn Stockett.

I'm SO glad this book finally came in from the library for me. I read it in about 3 days. Wonderful, wonderful!!

Total Points: 20

Kathryn wrote: "Rebecca wrote: "YAY!! First task completed for my first challenge =)

15.1 Black Comedy/Satire

I read Nightlight A Parody and watched Chicago.

Now excuse me while I go and burn th..."

I just found it ridiculous and not funny at all. But don't let me sway you. Just because I didn't like it doesn't mean that you won't enjoy it =).

First task for this challenge done!

For 5.4, I read Life of Pi by Yann Martel, which won the Man Booker in 2002. It was definitely different than I expected.

5 points for me! :)

25.6 The Duchess of Bloomsbury Street by Helene Hanff

This was the sequel to 84, Charing Cross Road, in which Hanff finally gets to visit London and meets some of the people she had corresponded with. I was so happy that she got to go there after all!

total points: 265

I have finished reading Baking Cakes in Kigali by Gaile Parkin. I am claiming 10 points for this as a Winners Choice read. It is one of PJReads 5 star books.

Previous Reads
20.3 Group Reads - The Stupidest Angel by Christopher Moore

25.5 Odd Task Out - American Tabloid by James Ellroy

30.7 Mulitasking - Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass by Lewis Carrol



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I completed 25.10 (Emily's Task):

A. I love the artwork on this cover. The detail in the wings is very realistic; it gives the effect that if you touch the feathers they won't be just paper, they will feel soft beneath your fingertips The author, Melissa Marr, is a Goodreads author.

B. I enjoy the story in this graphic novel, but did not particularly care for the artwork style.

10.7 SMALL SCREEN STORIES

My Favorite show is Castle so I read the book the character wrote Heat Wave.

Finished 30.7 Multitasking this morning by reading Chocolate Chip Cookie Murder by Joanne Fluke which I gave 3*. It was a nice cozy mystery. This book also fits task 5.8 Cozy Mystery, 5.10 Alliteration, 15.3 Female Author/Main Character, 15.7 Food/Family/Fun, 15.9 Author I have never read and 25.3 Clue (yellow cover). Now if only I could claim points for all of those.


This brings my total to 95 points.

Time to claim some more points!

First, I want to say how jealous I am of all of you reading The Stupidest Angel... I can't find a copy and can't justify ordering a brand new book from amazon this close to Christmas. :( Sounds like it is a lot of fun, but I get the feeling I'll be re-reading Princess Bride for the group challenge... not that that would be exactly a hardship either. :)

So, completed tasks:

10.4 Winner's Choice: I chose The Grass Dancer by Susan Power, from pjreads' list. I really enjoyed it. This past summer our family drove through South Dakota so I already had some small sense of the area, and it was nice to re-capture that sense of place. The story and characters were complex and many-layered, and I loved how it kind of unraveled backwards through the individual histories. To me the story was more fulfilling - more fleshed out - than Louise Erdrich's books, to whom I could not help but compare. I have rated it 4 stars, and have been trying to figure out why I do not give it 5 stars... I think just because I usually reserve 5 stars for books I feel I can read over and over again, or things that really resonate with me. As much as I enjoyed it, I don't feel like I would read this over and over again; but as time passes I may yet find it stays with me.

10.6 Local Literature Lovers - I chose The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman (who is a Goodreads author) which was a 5-star book of someone who lives in my town. My daughter brought it home from her school library and I seized the opportunity! I really enjoyed this as well, but again I gave it only 4 stars because I was a little disappointed in the ending; I was hoping for more background on some of the secondary characters. Guess I am one of those who is just stingy with the 5-star ratings!

15.7 Food and Family: I read The Cereal Murders by Diane Mott Davidson, which is a cute little cozy mystery but I have a hard time with some of the decisions the main character makes. She is a caterer and the book includes several of the recipes featured in the story. I made Cereal Killer Cookies, which my son helped with. They tasted good but I don't think they turned out exactly like they were supposed to, they spread out really flat and were hard to get off the cookie sheet in one piece.

20.1 Task from the Past: I read The Lace Reader by Brunonia Barry, which fit Janice's Task 25.5 (Fortune-Telling) from the Fall 09 challenge. I thought it was a great use of the unreliable narrator; I admit I fell hook line and sinker for it. But it was dry and slow to get going; I didn't really feel invested in any of the characters until about halfway through.

That's another 55 points bringing me to 95 total. I have been pretty proud of myself for plowing through a lot of books so far (well, a lot for me!) I am trying to get a good head start while my routine holds before the holidays get here.

TOTAL POINTS = 30 + 10 + 25 = 65

New Tasks:

10.1 Circus: Flesh Circus by Lilith Saintcrow Not nearly as interesting as the previous ones in the series, although the author really did a good job at creating the demented circus with all senses (sight, hearing, smells, etc.).

25.5 Odd Man Out: Gourmet Rhapsody by Muriel Barbery Although this book had some lovely descriptions, as a novel I was disappointed and slightly bored.


Old Tasks:

5.1 Disney: (Beauty and the Beast) Beauty by Robin McKinley
25.2 Friendship: The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery

15.2 ADVENTURES WITH ALICE AND LEWIS
a --> Mrs. Wiggs Of The Cabbage Patch by Alice Hegan Rice
b --> So Long and Thanks For All the Fish by Douglas Adams


total points = 25

I finished 5.7, Year of the Tiger with
Wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson
Oct 23, 1961- year of the Ox

Wintergirls is an intense story of anorexia.

+5
total 170

Jen MO

Completed
5.8 Murder at the Vicarage by Agatha Christie

20.3 Classic: Alice...

Total 25

I finished Witch Way to Murder for tast 5.5

Books read: 1
Points: 5

I completed task 15.1 (Make 'Em Laugh) by reading Brave New World P S by Aldous Huxley which I loved and watching In Bruges which was great too - made me want to go to Belgium.

Total Points: 30
Total Pages: 811

9. BRIDGIT'S TASK - THE WORLD OF BOOKS
To Honor The Authors That Go Beyond Just The Written Word In Order To Fully Realize The World They Have Created, Lets Read…

A. Any Book That Has A Map Included (Real Or Imaginary). Under the Banner of Heaven A Story of Violent Faith- has more that one map throughout the book

AND

B. Any Book That Has Extra Content, Such As: A Timeline, Family Tree, Glossary Of Terms, List Of Characters, Drawings Or Symbols Within The Text (NOT ILLUSTRATIONS), OR Unusual Text Layouts/Formatting (Ex. House Of Leaves).-Into Thin Air A Personal Account of the Mt. Everest Disaster- has a list of characters ie. the people on Mt. Everest at the time of the disaster.

Tasks completed:1
PGS Read: 698
books read:2
Total points:25