I was only going to do an alphabet authors challenge but I figured it wouldn't be much harder to log both and see how an alphabet title challenge went.

- No time limit.
- No order.
- A, an, and the don't count.
- A book can be counted for both it's title and author.

Message edited by its author, Aug 27, 2009, 8:06pm.

Alphabet Authors Challenge

A

B

C

D is for Debeljak, Erica Johnson - Forbidden Bread #23

E

F

G

H is for Hunter, Jillian - The Seduction of an English Scoundrel

I

J is for James, Samantha - The Seduction of an Unknown Lady #24

K

L

M is for McCullers, Carson - The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter

N

O

P

Q

R

S is for Steinbeck, John - The Red Pony #22

T

U

V

W

X

Y

Z

Pages: 1,414

Message edited by its author, Nov 10, 2009, 1:59am.

Alphabet Titles Challenge

A

B

C

D

E

F is for Forbidden Bread by Erica Johnson Debeljak #23

G

H is for The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter by Carson McCullers

I

J

K

L

M

N

O

P is for The Pearl by John Steinbeck #25

Q

R is for The Red Pony by John Steinbeck #22 S is for The Seduction of an Unknown Lady by Samantha James #24

T

U

V

W

X

Y

Z

Pages: 1,130

Message edited by its author, Nov 10, 2009, 2:02am.

For now, I am not going to post my reviews in this thread. Just a few short lines about the book and my opinion of it. My reviews are on my 50 Book Challenge, which I'll put a link to at the bottom of this post. The number after the books in the alphabet list is the number of the review on my 50 Book Challenge. The latest book posted is usually the last review.

http://www.librarything.com/topic/54635

On Sunday, I finished The Red Pony. Jody Tiftin is a 10 year old boy growing up on a ranch in the west many years ago. The book is four short stories featuring Jody. The simple stories are well-written and truly give the feel of what it was like to be a 10 year old living on a ranch back then.

S is for Steinbeck, John

and

R is for The Red Pony.

#5 I seem to be picking up quite a lot of childrens classics this year that I've never read - I've added this one to the list. Nice review.

Thank you Sandy (I hope I got the name right, I remember seeing it in the "I finished the 999" thread but I'm not going back to check). The Red Pony was a short book and an enjoyable leisurely (to savor the atmosphere of "being" Jody) read. I would recommend it. I remember hating Steinbeck in high school but look forward to reading more by him now. I read this book (and will be reading The Pearl in the next week) because a women I enjoy reading and discussing with in my online book club is a Steinbeck (and McCarthy) fan and has been reading several Steinbecks a year as group side reads. These two were short so I decided to join in. I learned on Wikipedia that Steinbeck has written more than 20 novels and short story collections.

#7 Yes, that's me. I sometimes wonder how I became literate at all - it seems I haven't read any "classic" works. I think my school must not have been a very good one. No wonder I was ranked as high in my class as I was!

Now I'm curious, what did you read in high school?

#9 We read Animal Farm and 1984 by George Orwell, Merchant of Venice and Julius Ceasar by William Shakespeare, Castle of Otranto by Horace Walpole, Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, and Alive - the story of the soccer(?) team members who survived a plane crash in the Andes. Maybe some other stuff, but I don't remember any of it. Nothing like the reading my kids have done in their high school. And now I'm curious - what did you read in high school?

We did Animal Farm and 1984 (and Brave New World) in 8th grade. Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn were in junior high too, I think 6th or 7th grade.

9th grade was a lot of grammer. We read A Tale of Two Cities, Romeo and Juliet, A Farewell to Arms, and several others I don't remember.

10th grade we read the Steinbecks I mentioned, Their Eyes were Watching God, short story selections, some by famous writers, from our school text. We wrote a lot of timed, in-class essays preparing for AP Englishes the next two years. (I should also mention that all of these classes are honors classes.)

I also took a senior/junior world lit class that year. The teacher was the same as my 9th grade year. One of my favorite teachers ever. My BFF and I were favorites of the 9th grade class so she signed us into this class. I imagine if I haven't moved I would have found a way to take a class by her each year. We had a huge text, Norton, I believe, with lots of ancient writings and short stories.

11th grade we did Beowulf, Canterbury Tales, and Hamlet, among others I don't remember and more short stories. I must have done Hamlet in 9th or 10th because I remember this being the second time I did Hamlet due to switching schools.

12th grade, which was AP, we read The Waste Land, One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich, The Death of Ivan Illyich, The Awakening, more poetry and short stories.

We also did Anthem and something(s) by Dickens at some point.

Sorry that this list is incomplete. I'm sure we read probably double what I listed. I always remember having reading for school.

#11 Well, you've confirmed my belief about the quality of my school! The books you read in middle school, we didn't read until sophomore and junior years! Hopefully, since I was in school so long ago, the overall quality of education has come up - including what the kids are getting at my alma mater. Your reading list is closer to what my kids have had to read in HS than mine was. Every year I go to the parents' back to school night and the English teachers announce what the kids will be reading that year. And every year, almost without fail, my kid will be reading something I only just finished. This year it is Lord of the Flies - my son is a sophomore and it is to be their first novel of the year. I read it only last month for the first time! The bright side is that it makes it easier for me to talk with them about the book, since it is still fresh in my mind!

My education in central Florida was much better than my education in South Carolina on the whole. I moved mid-year during my 10th grade year. So I certainly think where you live as well as which school you go to matter as to the quality of education.

We read Lord of the Flies in 8th grade. I remember the classroom and that I didn't like the book at all.

Hi, I just dropped in to say that I remember reading The Red Pony in school and loving it. Isn't it funny how years later you can still remember certain books that you studied - both good and bad.

Indeed. Thanks for dropping in, Delta.

Today I finished Forbidden Bread by Erica Johnson Debeljak, a memoir. Erica falls in love with Ales (pronounced Alesh) while he is in American studying and moves to Slovenia to marry him. Life in Slovenia is very different from life in America. Overall, I found the parts of the book that were just the memoir interesting but the digressions into related but unnecessary information were a distraction from her story and sometimes hard to follow. Good

D is for Debeljak, Erica Johnson

and

F is for Forbidden Bread.

Message edited by its author, Sep 12, 2009, 12:58am.

Today I finished The Seduction of an Unknown Lady by Samantha James. Fionn Hawkes runs a bookshop, Every Book and Cranny, and she has two secrets. One, she is F.J. Sparrow, a popular author of erotic horror stories. Two, her mother is mad and lives in an asylum for the insane. She meets Lord Aiden McBride on one of her nightly walks after midnight. (Above average)

J is for James, Samantha

and

S is for The Seduction of an Unknown Lady.

Message edited by its author, Oct 14, 2009, 6:30pm.

I finished The Pearl by John Steinbeck mid-month and just hadn't posted yet. Kino, his wife Juana, and their son Coyotito live in the poor outskirts of a town on the seaside. Kino is a pearl diver. One day he finds a large beautiful pearl, which he knows he will get much money for and better his family's life. The pearl buyer's in the town offer him little so he sets off with his family to a big city followed by people who want to steal his pearl. (Good)

P is for The Pearl.

Hi, I just finished Travels With Charley by John Steinbeck and I was thinking about reading the pearl next. Glad you enjoyed it!

Claire ~~ I'd recommend The Red Pony over the The Pearl but I really haven't read much Steinbeck. Did you like Travels with Charley?

Message edited by its author, Oct 14, 2009, 3:05am.

Thanks for the recommendation, I will look for The Red Pony. It was also made into a film wasn't it?

I did enjoy Travels with Charley, partly because it's an interesting snapshot of 60s North America but it is also a great memoir (as all great travelogues should be!). Steinbeck does have a very forceful personality so it's not for everyone. Amazon UK has a excerpt: http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/01411...

I read the Red Pony this year for my 999 challenge. That was the first Steinbeck book I read and enjoyed it... I may look for more to read this year.

Claire ~~ I'm not sure whether The Red Pony was made into a film.

I wikipediaed:

Lewis Milestone produced and directed a 1949 motion picture of the same name for Republic Pictures in Technicolor, starring Myrna Loy and Robert Mitchum along with child actors Beau Bridges and Nino Tempo. The music for the movie was composed by Aaron Copland, who also arranged a suite for orchestra from the film score. Copland recorded this music for Columbia Records in London in 1975. Another film version was made for television in 1973, starring Henry Fonda and Maureen O'Hara.

Thanks for the link to the except. I've never read a travelogue before. I don't read much non-fiction.

Last Wednesday I finished The Seduction of an English Scoundrel by Jillian Hunter. Lady Jane Welsham has been left at the altar by Sir Nigel Boscastle. Shocking! But it is part of her secret plan with him. Best friends since childhood, they are not in love. She wants to marry for love and he is in love with his governess, whom he has eloped with. The wedding was to have been held in the chapel of Grayson Boscastle, the Marguess of Sedgecroft. A recent scoundrel made head of the family by his father's unexpected death, Sedgecroft is determined to save Lady Welsham's reputation. (Average)

H is for Hunter, Jillian.

Last Monday I finished The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter by Carson McCullers. Mute John Singer lived with his mute friend, Antonapoulos, until Antonapoulos was committed to a mental institution. Once he is living alone, four other lonely people come to visit with him weekly, each imposing on the mute their own impressions of him. Mick Kelly is a poor girl whose family owns the boarding house Singer lives in and who dreams of writing music. Biff Brannon runs the New York Cafe. Jake Blount believes he is one of the people who knows the truth about things. Doctor Benedict Mady Copeland is a negro physician who wants to advance the standing of his race. (Good)

M is for McCullers, Carson

and

H is for The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter.