Books

This is my second year for this fun challenge and I’ve finished it up. It’s a fun one and thanks to Bev at MyReadersBlock for hosting.

1. A book with “Blue” or any shade of Blue: Deep Blue by Jennifer Donnelly
2. A book with “Red” or any shade of Red: Rose Harbor in Bloom by Debbie Macomber, A Wilder Rose by Susan Wittig Albert, The Rose Garden by Susannah Kearsley
3. A book with “Yellow” or any shade of Yellow: The Golden Fleece and the Heroes Who Lived Before Achilles, by Padraic Colum
4. A book with “Green” or any shade of Green: Emerald Green by Kerstin Gier
5. A book with “Brown” or any shade of Brown: The Chocolate War by Robert Cormier
6. A book with “Black” or any shade of Black: Bellman & Black by Diane Setterfield
7. A book with “White” or any shade of White: Surviving the Applewhites by Stephanie S. Tolan
8. A book with any other color in the title: The Peach Keeper by Sarah Addison Allen
9. A book with a word that implies color: Lizzie Bright and the Buckminster Boy by Gary D. Schmidt

Update: June 23 I finished this challenge! Here’s my post with my books.

Thanks to Bev at My Reader’s Block, I’ve been tempted by a super fun challenge-Book Monopoly.

I’ve joined the group that sponsors this at goodreads @ Crazy Challenge Connection and I’m ready to play.  I’ll update this post with my rolls and the book I read for each turn. [Read more…] about Monopoly perpetual reading challenge

I had an invite from RIEDEL Fascination to join one of her new reading challenges and I’m always game for a new one.  These go February 1st, 2014 – February 28th, 2015 so we’re not spending the holidays finishing books and posting wrap-up posts.  Great idea!  Also she’s not big on lots of picky rules so they are fairly straightforward.

I am joining Gentle Spectrums and choosing option (B) GENTLE SUBJECTS

Fit one book title into each category.

(1) PLANTS
Trees, flowers, grass, gardening & crop-sowing references.

(2) STRUCTURES
A building, rooms, a room or building’s parts.

(3) NATIONS
Culture names, locations ~ lakes, towns, famous spots.

(4) STONES
Synonyms, gems, ruins, geological formations.

(5) FAMILIES
Types of relatives, last names, full names.

(6) QUINTUPLED
A title of 5+ words (articles are fine).

(7) CHEESY
Lame puns or quotations, outrageous, silly; actual cheeses!

(8) ENCHANTING
Mystical, eerie (enchanting content fulfills title; no debunked ending).

(9) WEATHER
Any words approximating weather or seasons.

(10) CHEERFUL
Positive messages, conveys pleasant images!

 

Once I again I focused on my TBE (to be read) stack and managed to release 48 books to other readers, but I got more than that at thrift stores or on bookmooch.com, so it was a net gain.  Hmmm.  So I am repeating the Mount TBR Reading Challenge and hoping to equal my 48 and be more restrained about acquisition.  I’ve been utilizing the library more, so maybe…  Here are my statistics for 2013 from my book journal:

Books read: 150
Pages read: 47936

Of the books read:

• Non-fiction: 7
• New-to-me authors: 29
• Continuing series books: 25
• Re-reads: 32
• Audio-books: 49
• Various book club reads: 15
• Challenges completed: 6 of 6
• Ongoing tally of Newbery winners: 64 of 92
• 5 star ratings by me: 33

2012:
196 books; 56,851 pages; 11 non-fiction; 55 new-to-me novelists; 95 series; 25 re-reads; 25 audio-books; 6 of 6 challenges completed; 64 of 91 Newbery
2011:
132 books; 39,641 pages; 15 non-fiction; 42 new-to-me novelists; 54 series; 12 re-reads; 33 audio-books; 0 of 0 challenges completed; 59 of 90 Newbery
2010:
152 books; 46,899 pages; 3 non-fiction; 37 new-to-me novelists; 25 series; 19 re-reads; 28 audio-books; 5 of 5 challenges completed; 50 of 89 Newbery
2009:
73 books; 23,576 pages; 3 non-fiction; 31 new-to-me novelists; 36 series; 5 re-reads; 48 of 88 Newbery
2008:
79 books; 32,031 pages; 8 non-fiction; 15 new-to-me novelists; 31 series; 19 re-reads; 42 of 87 Newbery
2007:
44 books; 17,069 pages; 3 non-fiction; 8 new-to-me novelists; 15 series; 13 re-reads; 38 of 86 Newbery

My second year for this challenge.

1. A book with “Blue” or any shade of Blue (Turquoise, Aquamarine, Navy, etc) in the title.
2. A book with “Red” or any shade of Red (Scarlet, Crimson, Burgundy, etc) in the title.
3. A book with “Yellow” or any shade of Yellow (Gold, Lemon, Maize, etc.)in the title.
4. A book with “Green” or any shade of Green (Emerald, Lime, Jade, etc) in the title.
5. A book with “Brown” or any shade of Brown (Tan, Chocolate, Beige, etc) in the title.
6. A book with “Black” or any shade of Black (Jet, Ebony, Charcoal, etc) in the title.
7. A book with “White” or any shade of White (Ivory, Eggshell, Cream, etc)in the title.
8. A book with any other color in the title (Purple, Orange, Silver, Pink, Magenta, etc.).
9. A book with a word that implies color (Rainbow, Polka-dot, Plaid, Paisley, Stripe, etc.).

 

I did the Monthly Key Words in 2013, but the host has offered this new challenge and I like it!

MONTHLY MOTIFS: 

Jan– Around the World-Choose a book to read that takes place in a country different than the one you live in or choose a book written by an author that is from a country different than your own.

Feb– Award Winner-Read a book that has won recognition or a literary award.

Mar–  Fairy tales or Fairy Creatures-Read a fairy tale retelling or a book with fey/fairies in it.

Apr– Short & Sweet-Read a collection of short stories or anthologies.

May– Mystery, Murder, & Mayhem-Read a murder/mystery book, a book in which someone dies of mysterious causes, or a book in which a mystery must be solved.

June–  A Long Journey-Read a book in which the character(s) take a trip, go on a quest, or find themselves on a journey toward something, etc.

July– Assassins, Warriors, & Rebels-Read a book in which the main character is one of these things or fights against one of these things.

Aug– Alternate Reality-Read a book that’s set in the future, on another planet, in another dimension, or in an unknown world. A Dystopian book will count this month as well.

Sep– Book to Movie-Read a book that has a movie based off of it. For an extra challenge, see the movie as well.

Oct– The Witching Hour-There’s been a lot of zombies lately, but this year include a ‘witchy’ book in your scary reads- a book about a witch or a book that has witches in it.

Nov– An Oldie but a Goodie-Pick a book published before 2000 that you’ve always wanted to read, but just never got to. Or pick a book set in the past (before 2000).

Dec– That’s a Wrap-Finish a series you’ve been meaning to finish or read the next book in a series you started but never finished.

 

I have participated in #2, #3, #5, and #6, so here we go for the seventh time!

From January to December, choose a book from each of the following categories:

A reference to time
A position of royalty
A number written in letters
A forename or names
A type or element of weather

 

In 2013 I made Level 2 by April, so I’m going for broke and trying for Level 4 this year!

Level 1 – Snoop – Read at least 6 books
Level 2 – Investigator – Read 7-12 books
Level 3 – Super Sleuth – Read 13 or more books
Level 4 – Sleuth Extraordinaire – Read 20 or more

 

 

 

I think I can do it: Level 2!

Choose a level….

Level 1 – Complete 1 series.
Level 2 – Complete 2 series.
Level 3 – Complete 3 or more series.

 

 

A new challenge and it sounds like fun!  I’m going for The Highlander.

Read and review Scottish books -any genre, any form- written by a Scottish author (by birth or immigration) or about or set in Scotland.

Challenge levels:

Just A Keek (a little look): 1-4 books read
The Highlander: 5-8 books
The Hebridean: 9-12 books
Ben Nevis: 13+ books

 

I decided to join this challenge to jumpstart my perpetual challenge of reading all the winners.  I will go for the L’Engle level: 15-29 points.

Each book you read is worth points. You get:
3 points for a Newbery Medal Winner
2 points for a Newbery Honor Book
1 point for a Caldecott Medal Winner

In addition to that, you pick a level to aim for:
L’Engle: 15 – 29 points
Spinelli: 30 – 44 points
Avi: 45 – 59 points
Lowry: 60 – 74 points
Konigsburg: 75+ points

 

For my third year of this challenge, I’m going to try to repeat last year’s Mt. Ararat!

Challenge Levels:

Pike’s Peak: Read 12 books from your TBR pile/s
Mount Blanc: Read 24 books from your TBR pile/s
Mt. Vancouver: Read 36 books from your TBR pile/s
Mt. Ararat: Read 48 books from your TBR piles/s
Mt. Kilimanjaro: Read 60 books from your TBR pile/s
El Toro: Read 75 books from your TBR pile/s
Mt. Everest: Read 100 books from your TBR pile/s
Mount Olympus (Mars): Read 150+ books from your TBR pile/s