Take It or Leave It Challenge - April 2011 - Page 1

For those new to this challenge: More info and monthly index can be found in post #1 of this thread or this TIOLI FAQS wiki.

Simple directions for posting to the wiki can be found at the bottom of each month's wiki page.


...logo by cyderry

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For the month of April, I challenge you to Read a Book with Striking Cover Art. You may choose whichever book you like, but it should be one over which, when you first saw the book, you thought to yourself how special the cover art was. If one such book has already jumped to mind, that’s the book to choose for this challenge.

In addition, I’m asking that each person who participates in this challenge PLEASE post a picture of your chosen book (unless someone else has already posted it) in the separate thread which is associated with this challenge. In a link from that thread, you will learn how to get the graphic image of your book cover to appear.

It would also be helpful to know who created the cover art. So often, the credit for cover art is hidden on an inconspicuous place in the book. Let’s recognize and cheer for those who create striking cover art. Please include a few thoughts as to what made the cover art of your chosen book stand out for you.

In summary, here’s what to do:
1. List your book on the wiki as usual.
2. Post an image of your book cover on the separate thread.
3. Name the person who created the cover art.
4. Tell why you like the cover art.
5. Start again with item #1 above.
6. Have fun!

Further clarification: In the event that you are matching a chosen book, do not post a second picture of the same book in the separate thread. You may, however, contribute your own comments about the book’s cover art there.

”Judging books by their covers may be wrong, but it's oh so much fun.” (norabelle414)

The question remains…can you judge a book by its cover? Let’s go find out!

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Other Fun Stuff (not part of the TIOLI challenge):
1. The April 2011 TIOLI Meter - Some challengers use this page to track which challenges they're doing.
2. I Know I'm a TIOLI Addict When... - Frog Logo is on this page!

Wiki Index

Challenges 1-7
1. Read a book with striking cover art - thread
2. Read a book whose title is a prepositional phrase (FYI: list of prepositions)
3. Read a book which takes place in Paris, France....Or Paris, anywhere - thread
4. Read a book from the tag mirror of the person listed below you in the sign-up thread - discussion thread
5. Read the 4th book in a series or by an author
6. Read a book that has won the Alex Award
7. Read a book with the word "spring" in the title

Challenges 8-14
8. Read a book by a Japanese author or that takes place in Japan
9. Read a book with a title starting with Who, What, Where, Why, When -- or How
10. Read a book which has been made into a movie
11. Read a book on the 2011 Orange Prize longlist - thread
12. Read a book about autism
13. Read a book that was published before you were born
14. Read a book with a flower or a place you would find flowers in the title

Challenges 15-20
15. Read a book written by Diana Wynne Jones
16. Read an autobiography or diary of a writer
17. Read a non-fiction or fiction book about Passover or Easter
18. Read a book for National Poetry Month - thread
19. Read a book with nested narratives - thread
20. Read a Book Set in New York or New Jersey

OMG am I first?
This is a first ever for me. I guess my timing is rght though and that never happens. So Challenge #2 is to Read a Book Whose Ttle is a Prepositional Phrase. Now the title must be only a preposition phrase, not a prepositional phrase that's part of a longer title. The only exception would be a prepositional phrase followed by another prepositional phrase.

I have several on my shelf to choose from including Through Black Spruce by Joseph Boyden, Behind the Scenes at the Museum by Kate Atkinson (actually two prepositional phrases in a row), Into Thin Air by Jon Krakauer, After the War by Richard Marius, Under the Skin by Michael Faber, In the Heart of the Sea by Nathaniel Philbrick, and To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee.

You're first, Bonnie! Welcome to April's challenge. :)

The only exception would be a prepositional phrase followed by another prepositional phrase.

LOL!!

My challenge is to Read a book from the tag mirror of the person below you. I'll be starting a separate thread where people can "sign up" for this challenge, so that we know who's "below" us!

What is the tag mirror? You can find a "tag mirror" link on each person's profile, in the Clouds section. This shows the person's books as tagged by other people. Here's mine. Click on a tag to see which books the person has in that category.

The size of the tags indicates how many of that sort of book there are, and boldness indicates tags that are especially important for that user. Pretty much every tag mirror will have a big "fiction" tag, but that's not particularly meaningful.

So, here's what you have to do for this challenge:
1. List your name on the sign-up thread (coming).
2. Go to the tag mirror of the person who posts after you.
3. Look at their bold tags only. Avoid series tags (e.g.: Babysitter's Little Sister); they almost always end up bold just because no one would apply those tags to books not in the series.
4. Choose a book from the user's list for one of the bold tags. You're encouraged to ask the user for suggestions. For example, if Madeline posted after me, I might see that some of her bold tags are "Israel" and "food politics" but not have any idea which of her books to start with. Since she's an "expert" on these topics, she could help me choose a good book. This will help you get to know the other user and also come up with some good reading ideas!

One additional rule: Shared reads are always allowed. So you can read a book that someone else has already posted even if you wouldn't have qualified to post it yourself.

Is this confusing enough? ;)

Woo Hoo, I've just added Challenge #3. April in Paris: Read a book which takes place in Paris, France or Paris, Texas or Paris, etc, etc. etc. Good luck everyone!

ETA: My challenge sound boringly simple compared to #2 and #4 :}

Is this confusing enough? ;)

If you're the last person to sign up, how do you know who's going to post after you?

*confused*

For example, if Madeline posted after me, I might see that some of her bold tags are "Israel" and "food politics" but not have any idea which of her books to start with. Since she's an "expert" on these topics,

LOL!! Glad you think I'm an expert on "food politics". What I'm really an expert on is eating. :D

Okay, here's the sign-up thread for the Tag Mirror challenge (to see who's "after" you), and here's the discussion thread.

>7 SqueakyChu: If 24 hours pass without any new sign-ups, it goes back to the top :). If someone eventually signs up after that, you have a choice of two people!

> 9

Wouldn't it make more sense to have people do the tag mirror of the person "before them" (with only *you*) doing the person "after them"? I think that might make your challenge run more smoothly and you'd get more takers. MHO.

Zoe! You're doing as much work setting up your own challenge as I am doing setting up this whole April TIOLI challenge thing!! :)

>10 SqueakyChu: Nope, I don't want people to have a choice of what sort of books they read! If they knew who they were getting, they could say "hmm, those books don't look like the sort of thing I usually like; maybe I'll just wait for the next person...."

Of course, I may have to revise my plans if no one signs up ;)

>11 SqueakyChu: Heh, I think I'm done now! :D

Oh dear. Well, I'll take the plunge. If the rule changes, I'll still be on the list, so what the heck?

> 12

Nope, I don't want people to have a choice of what sort of books they read

Makes sense.

Of course, I may have to revise my plans if no one signs up

Hey! That's the fun factor. The not knowing... :)

I think I have this challenge up in its entirety now (except for adding challenges as they come in). Please let me know if I'm missing any links.

In honor of the 4th month of the year, I would like to propose challenge #5: Read the 4th book in a series or by an author. This should be similar to MikeBriggs' challenge from February, in that if you can find a reason for the book to be 4th, then it is.

#17 Norabelle, I've just added the 4th in the Shardlake series by C J Sansom to the wiki. I have 400 pages to read in the 3rd still, but they are so good!

Will try to get my head round the tag mirror one soon... sounds fun.

I'd like to recommend the book The Piano Shop on the Left Bank: Discovering a Forgotten Passion in a Paris Atelier by Thad Carhart for the challenge to read a book about Paris. It's a nonfiction quite nice little book!

I just proposed Challenge# 6 -- Read a book that has won the YALSA Alex Award. You can find lists for all the years here .

> 20

The link you posted above looks as if it's pointing just to the 2009 Alex Awards.

#7 Read a book that has been made into a movie

I doubled checked to make sure this hasn't been done before and I was surprised to see it had not. Can someone let me know if it has and I missed it?

Otherwise, read a book that has been made into a movie. Extra credit if you see the movie AFTER reading the book.

This does NOT include novelizations of movies. The book needs to come first.

For Challenge #8, I'd like to suggest: Read a Book by a Japanese Author or that takes place in Japan

I think my motivation for this one is pretty obvious...

Some interesting challenges up there. I'll come back and look closer. Just wanted to make sure I caught this thread earlier than later for once... and it looks like I finally managed! Woo hoo!

eta: Madeline, I should say that as a person who especially appreciates great design, I quite like your challenge this month.

For my challenge (#7), in honor of the season, please read a book with the word "spring" in the title.

It can be part of a larger word, such as Dusty Springfield: The Untold Story. It can even be embedded across two words, such as Wasp Ring.

22: At time of posting, this would be challenge 10 - you need to get it in! I don't remember it being done before but it doesn't totally matter if it has.

Sorry for all the confusion about challenge numbers. I always put my challenge in first and then post about it.

Hope that's correct.

#22-24 I'm not sure what just happened there. I picked #8 for my challenge because Morphidae above decided to do #7. When I went to the wiki, challenge #7 wasn't filled in yet, but I thought I should leave that slot open for Morphidae. But then, I see Linda went for that spot after all. Is it first come first serve on the wiki? Just asking so I know for next time.

eta: sorry to add to the confusion with my question. Guess I was typing it up while the other two above me got posted! My question still remains.

I've added Morphidae's book to movie challenge (# 10) and my own challenge (# 11):

Read a book on the 2011 Orange Prize longlist - this is a really interesting looking list of 20 books this year

The shortlist will be announced on 12 April and the winner on 8 June, so if you're quick you can speculate on whether your choice of book will get shortlisted! Or you can wait and choose a shorlisted title later in the month.

Here's a link to the Orange Prize website:

http://bookclub.orange.co.uk/prize/prize.html

Yes, the challenge goes on the wiki first -- then post here to be sure your challenge ends up with the correct #. I've been sideswiped in exactly the same way, so I now always go straight to the wiki.

My challenge: Ask questions, be curious!!

Read a book whose title begins with one of the questions we ask ourselves all the time -- Who? What? Where? When? Why? and, of course, How? It doesn't need to end in a question mark, but MUST begin with that word, not simply contain the word. I've included some of my TBR list to show the variety of options that exist...

>21 SqueakyChu: I edited the link in message 20 for the Alex Awards. I hope it is correct now. The correct link for the awards is here .

I had three challenges in mind this month. Kind of funny that norabelle414 beat me to the punch on the one (4th book) and then Suz suggested the third one I was considering.

As always, a lot of great challenges, once again.

I have never managed to successfully post graphics to this site -- even my tech guy can't do it, following all the directions. Does this mean I'm disqualified from entering the first challenge, since I can't post the cover? I'm assuming that someone could click on the link and go to the book's page to see the art...??

I added the challenge to the wiki at #7 and double checked it before posting here. What happened?

I don't know, but maybe it didn't save correctly. I've added it for you at #10.

#33 -- perhaps it didn't save the first time, or people were making changes while you were posting? That has happened to me in the past.

To clarify #32 -- More instructions will NOT help. People have provided me with endless reams of instructions in the past and nobody has managed to make my computer do this, including a guy whose full-time job is tech. I don't have this issue with other sites, but I really don't want to waste any more of my time trying to figure it out. So just a yea or nay on whether being able to post the cover art on the discussion page is an absolute requirement would be appreciated...

I probably won't do the first challenge because of the need to upload cover art and also because it's something I can't copy off people in other countries because the cover art is different.

> 22

Extra credit

What did you have in mind for extra credit? I don't give extra TIOLI points.

I love watching TIOLI frenzy! :)

> 23

Thanks, Ilana. I'd meant to do this challenge a while ago. With you being an artist, I'll be looking forward to hearing your comments on the separate thread for the striking cover art challenge.

> 26

Sorry for all the confusion about challenge numbers. I always put my challenge in first and then post about it.

It doesn't matter where or when you post it. It does not get counted until it's on the wiki, though. It's from there that I transcribe the challenges to the main thread.

Botttom line: You have no need to post a challenge number on the main thread.

> 27

Is it first come first serve on the wiki? Just asking so I know for next time.

It is. Add your challenge to the wiki after the last posted challenge. Do not post challenge numbers to the main thread, or you'll just end up confusing everyone else. Thanks!

> 28

I've added Morphidae's book to movie challenge (# 10)

Lucy, why is Morphidae not adding her own challenge to the wiki? Each person proposing a counter-chllenge should be adding it *himself/herself* to the wiki. If anyone does not know how to do so, then it's important that they ask and learn.

Thanks!

ETA: I think I know what happened. Perhaps Morphidae's post was simply not saved. When adding a post to the wiki, please press SHOW PREVIEW first. Be sure it looks okay. Then press SAVE PAGE. Again, go back and be sure it looks okay before leaving the wiki.

If too many people are trying to save at the same time, sometimes the wiki goes beserk. Simply try again.

>37 SqueakyChu: They get a virtual cookie.

>42 SqueakyChu: I know perfectly well how to add one. Lucy added it out of courtesy because something went kerflooey and it didn't save even though I double checked it before posting here.

Posting a graphic is not hard. Print out these directions and do it one step at a time.

Here is the code:
{IMG SRC="XXXXXXXXXX"}

HOWEVER, instead of { and } just use the pointed brackets (which are located on top of the comma and period key of your keyboard).

1. Go to the work page of the book.
2. Right click on the image.
3. Click on "properties".
4. Now see where it says Address (URL)? Copy that URL (begins with http://). You can copy and paste it, so just take it and subsitute it for the XXXXXXXXXX above.
5. That's it!

43: thanks, that's it exactly. I was adding my own challenge too, and somehow it feels rude not to put other challenges which people have attempted to add first....

I nearly always end up saving twice so the explanation of what went wrong makes sense to me too.

#44 -- yes, I've done that in the past, Madeline. I've had my own tech guy on the phone with an LT expert -- and it still has not worked. So I've got no plans to invest still further effort to do this; I've invested the best part of a full working day over the past several months to try and do this, with exactly the same instructions provided above, as well as alternatives provided by several other kind people, to NO avail. So my question isn't how to post graphics, it remains: does the inability of the system to interact with my PC to accomplish this mean that I can't participate in this challenge?

People! What's happening?!

Joyce, I moved your challenge to page 2 of the wiki because I'm only taking a maximum of 7 challenges per page. I'm doing so because, if the wiki gets too long, it will not be able to save.

By the way, I was really, really hoping you'd do that autism challenge this month...so a huge thanks!

> 43

They get a virtual cookie.

Sounds good to me. Do we get to see their virtual cookie? I wanna; I wanna!

> 43

Lucy added it out of courtesy

Thanks, Lucy. I just want to be sure everyone has the opportunity to learn new things here on the TIOLI challenges.

Weird things happening this month.

Zoe, I love your tag mirror challenge. I wasn't aware of what these are or even that we had them.

I've been checking out bell7's tag mirror and thought I'd pick out a book which Mary read that I'd never heard of. I put Candyfreak: A Journey Through the Chocolate Underbelly of America on the wiki only to notice that Suz had already put it under the Alex Award.

Back to the drawing board on bell7's books, not that I'm complaining. This challenge is fun!!

#48

>50 lindapanzo: I'm glad you're enjoying it! I'm having fun looking at bohemima's books too, and I haven't yet been able to choose just one.

> 46

Suz,

Attempt to follow my directions just ONE time. Ask any questions you want. If it doesn't work, I'll post your graphic and you post the comments. Do not spend more than 20 minutes trying to do this. If it doesn't work, private message me the work and cover art you want me to post.

> 51

Oh, yum! Those Peanut Butter Blossoms are my my husband's family's favorite cookies, too! Anyone want the recipe? I've got it. I make those every year at holiday time.

FYI: If you have a hard time saving to the wiki, have patience. It takes a long time to save now because tons of people are tring to update the wiki at once!!

Hint: If you're adding a book rather than a challenge, click the edit button for that challenge rather than editing the whole page.

I'm refining my old brain anomaly challenge to the more specific Read a book about autism because I had so many books I didn't get to on that challenge. I'll be reading at least some of these:
Be Different: Adventures of a Free-Range Aspergian with Practical Advice for Aspergians, Misfits, Families & Teachers (too new to have a touchstone, I guess) John Elder Robison
Born on A Blue Day - Daniel Tammet
How Can I Talk If My Lips Don't Move - Tito Rajarshi Mukhopadhay
The Ride Together: A Brother and Sister's Memoir of Autism in the Family - Paul and Judy Karasik
A Road Through the Mountains - Elizabeth McGregor
The Truth Out There - Celia Rees
Unstrange Minds: Remapping the World of Autism - Roy Richard Grinker
and there's always the ever popular Marcelo In the Real World

> 57

Born on A Blue Day by Daniel Tammet is excellent, Joyce. That's the book that got me started in reading more books about autism and Asperger's syndrome.

>46 Chatterbox: Suz, if you would like, I would be happy to post a cover for you in the appropriate thread if you are having computer troubles.

Norabelle, thanks -- I really don't want to embark on an exercise in futility here. If I had a working scanner, I might be able to scan the cover, but posting it just isn't working.

It's the cover to Venice by Peter Ackroyd. Many thanks!!!

For challenge #10 (read a book made into a movie), does mini-series count?

>61 dsstukes: It's a TV movie, so sure. But an on-going series such as The Dresden Files for Storm Front would NOT count.

Ok, I am going to add Game of Thrones and John Adams which are HBO mini-series. Thanks.

Well, I was torn about where to put Fingersmith because it could fit into the striking cover art, but I didn't know if folk would think it striking enough, so I went with made into a movie. The BBC miniseries was where I first encountered it, this will be my first time with the book. It will be such a treat, even though I won't have the fun of shocking discovery.

I didn't know if folk would think it striking enough

Your book choice should be what *you* think is striking art. Everyone's opinion about "striking" art will differ.

So I have a question: can you do a challenge more the once? Like for instance, last month I read two books for the challenge read a book from LT's top 50 wishlisted books, but I only listed one, because I thought you can only do a challenge once.

> 66

You can do as many challenges as you'd like as many times as you'd like or none at all. Your choice!

Many people keep track of which challenges they do on the TIOLI meter.

66: Yes, you can and most people do. Some people prefer to try and do as many of the challenges as they can, some of us prefer to read more than one in a particular area, for example this month I've been interested in reading books set in the Middle East, and next month I will probably try to read several of the 14 Orange Prize longlist books I haven't already read (I'd like to try and read them all at some point, but I'll start with the 3 I own and the one I've ordered).

OK then. Make that a mental note for next time.

Some very interesting challenges this month! I am going to have to postpone going through my TBR piles to match up books with challenges until later this week but I wanted to add a challenge before they were all gone!

Challenge #15: Read a book by Diana Wynne Jones, a fantastic author of children's and young adult books who very sadly died at the beginning of this week.

> 70

before they were all gone!

They're never "all gone". You have through the fifth day of the month to post your own counter challenge.

You *do* need to add it to the wiki, though. Go ahead and add it to page 3 of the wiki since the first two wiki pages are full.

As it stands right now, there are two #15s, one on 7-14 and one on 15 on.

> 70 Oops...I should have checked here before posting on the wiki. But please feel free to move my challenge down to #16.

In any case, my challenge is to Read an Autobiography or Diary of a Writer.

I'm starting off with Margaret Laurence's autobiography Dance on Earth and the diaries of playwright Joe Orton.

> 72 Duly moved.

#73 No, my mistake. I definitely posted my challenge and saved twice and then went back to add a book but now it's gone..

And now it's back! And now it's gone again! This is really confusing...

Since this is a month when Jews are observing Passover and Christians celebrating Easter:

Challenge #15 17 - Passover/Easter Challenge - Read a non-fiction or fiction book about Passover or Easter.

Another problem, I think. In one place, when I click on 15 and on, I get two challenges. In another place, I get one different challenge (from the other two).

Looks like duelling challenges, or maybe a rivalry perhaps?

> 72

There cannot be a #15 on a "#7-14" page. Let me go move whichever one is posted in error.

#78 I think that one is fixed now (someone moved theirs to 15+ thread) but the rival threads problem was still there, last I looked.

To clarify, if I click on the Challenges 15 on link in message two, I get one challenge (Easter/Passover). If I click on the Challenges 15 on in the navigator, I get two different challenges (Diana Wynne Jones diary of a writer).

Oops - there's still something wrong. At the top of this page, the challenges don't match what is on page 3. (I had posted a #15 challenge there earlier.) Apparently when you moved the challenges, you updated this page but not the other or else something isn't working correctly.

Okay - now my challenge is gone and the page says "do not use."

#81 I think it's good now. You're under challenge #17. Madeline must've fixed it.

Madeline, do you realize that when you post your new month's challenge that you pretty much wipe out a whole day for those of the obsessed TIOLI's amongst us?

While all of you were complaining about disappearing challenges, I was fixing the issue. The problem was that there was one page created in error, and I didn't realize that there were still links leading to it. I am going to delete the page that was created in error so that no one uses it. Please let me know if there are still issues.

> 83

I pretty much wiped out a whole day for myself, Joyce. Taxes will just have to wait. TIOLI is *much* more important. Don't you think?!

Trying to link up this whole TIOLI challenge is sheer madness!

>83 Citizenjoyce: LOL! It's so true. I've spent entirely too much time at work today coming up with ideas for books for the various challenges. Hope no one in our IT group is monitoring my internet usage today...

>84 SqueakyChu:, Taxes, shmaxes, we need to concentrate on what's important.

As usual there are so many excellent challenges that it's hard to choose. My husband has been laughing at me running all over the house to check different book shelves and then scurrying back to the computer. I've signed up for eight so far.

> 89

My husband has been laughing at me running all over the house to check different book shelves and then scurrying back to the computer

LOL!! I'm sure he thinks we're all nuts!

Whereas I've been feeling helpless today. I don't even have my Kindle with me.

Once I get home, I'll start rummaging around/scurrying around, too.

>3 brenzi: Would The Underneath work even though it's a preposition acting like a noun? :)

>73 wisechild: Wisechild - is a memoir by a writer acceptable, or does it have to be a full-on autobiography?

Thanks, Heather! I was really hoping someone would make a Diana Wynne Jones challenge.

I love new TIOLI day.

I was hoping someone would make a DWJ challenge too, though I was thinking of Howl's Moving Castle for #10. At this time, it's good to see how many other people share our feeling of sadness and loss, isn't it?

>92 katiekrug: Memoir is definitely acceptable! Anything in the vein of writer's writing about their life or their writing life.

wisechild, would letters also qualify? I'm thinking of Rainer Maria Rilke's letters, which kind of combine as memoir, diary, etc, but are written in the form of letters?

Since April is National Poetry Month in the US, my challenge (#18) will be to Read a Book for National Poetry Month. I think I submitted the same challenge for last April, but there are a lot of talented poets around the world who don't gain much attention. Participants will be encouraged to post an excerpt from a poem on the Read a Book for National Poetry Month thread, which can be found here.

Since there are a few joint reads going on in Challenge #3 April in Paris, I have dedicated a thread for those who would like to discuss the books they have chosen. It's right here.

I think I must be officially stupid. How are people accessing the wiki for April? It's not yet linked to the thread or the FAQ. I'm feeling really clueless (which is not foreign territory).

I have been accessing it from the links provided in Message 2 of this thread. For instance, the blue "Challenges 1-7" will take you the wiki for those challenges.

>99 lahochstetler: You'll find the links to each page of the wiki in Message 2 above - the blue link of "Challenges 1-7" is to the first page of the wiki, and so on with each heading. :)

I'm really excited about all the great challenges for this month! I want to get started right away, but first I have to read Gods and Generals by JeffSharra for a Library Book Group that meets next week, and it doesn't fit into any of the challenges. So I won't be able to participate in as many as I would like to this month. But I knew immediately what my choice is for Challenge #1 -- Clara and Mr. Tiffany by Susan Vreeland -- so that's what I'll be reading next!

If you need help finding a suitable book for the prepositions challenge, here's a list, of prepositions that is:

http://www.englishclub.com/grammar/prepositions-list.htm

As I understand it, the title must be a prepositional phrase, not just that it has a preposition in it, correct?

So, Of Mice and Men would qualify but Land of the Free and Home of the Brave would not, correct?

>103 lindapanzo: Also for a book that's been turned into a movie. Man, who's the director to that movie, because he made that pretty good.

Question... Would Quietly in their Sleep qualify for the Preposition phrase challenge since Quietly as an adverb is describing the Prepostional phrase?

>103 lindapanzo: Linda, I understood the challenge to be as you described it. The title is a prepositional phrase and nothing else. Last I looked, there were a few entries on the wiki under that challenge that I wouldn't think would qualify...

#106 That's what I was thinking, too, but I wasn't sure.

103/106/107: That's one of the problems that I've found as a newbie to this group. While those counter challenges are explained well enough in this humongous thread, the full instructions don't make it to the challenge wiki, so we're left guessing whether our book will fit the challenge or not. Or else getting frustrated trying to go back through the whole thread trying to find the instructions that you'd expect to find on the wiki where, after all, you're going to be doing the actual posting. (Although for that particular one, I think you're all correct; for once I remembered the rules of one!)

Hear ye, hear ye. I guess I need to clarify my Prepositional Phrase Challenge: The title must be a prepositional phrase or two prepositional phrases in a row. Therefore, Land of the Free and Home of the Brave would not count even though it does contain a prepositional phrase (actually two). Neither would Quietly in their Sleep. Through Black Spruce counts because the entire title is a prepositional phrase. Behind the Scenes at the Museum counts because it contains two prepositional phrases in a row. Right now there are a couple of titles listed that do not fulfill the challenge and I will mark them so that the people who included them can remove them.

I hope that clears it up :)

#109 Thanks. That's what I thought but don't want to be the arbiter on someone else's challenge.

It's usually hard enough to referee my own, though probably not this month's.

>96 Chatterbox: Yes I think writer's letters should count, especially if they act as kind of a diary or journal. I have no problems with interpreting autobiography fairly broadly. As I said, if it relates to a writer writing about their own life or work, then it counts.

What isn't included, however, is straight biography, so the book on Cleopatra needs to be removed. Sorry brenzi!

Darn! I wonder what I was thinking?? Thinking too much about prepositions I guess;-)

#29 Suz, quick question about your question challenge: must it begin with who, what etc?

Would Trollope's Can You Forgive Her? fit?

> 106

there were a few entries on the wiki under that challenge that I wouldn't think would qualify...

Linda, go in and add a request to the wiki that the books that don't qualify be removed.

Example:

People of the Book - Geraldine Brooks - SqueakyChu

> 108

else getting frustrated trying to go back through the whole thread

I understand your frustration, but I need to keep the wiki simple and uncluttered.

Perhaps those who post explanations in the main thread can use a bolded topic heading in their post here with numbered rules to clarify. These would stand out from regular conversation. An example follows.

Rules for the Prepositional Challenge
1. Use a book title that is only a prepositional phrase (or more than one)
2. Here is a link (add link of prepositions) of prepositions.
3. No other words may be in the book title.

> 108

Alternatively, you can always start a separate thread. There you can hash out what constitutes apprpriate entries to your own challenge. Please keep an eye on your own challenges as people post their entries to be sure it's what you want. If not, a "gentle reminder arrow" (as I noted above) is fine to post on the wiki. However, do let the original poster remove or change his/her own entry.

I guess I thought Read a Book Whose Title Is a Prepositional Phrase was self-explanatory. It doesn't say that the title should start with a preposition but rather the title should be a prepositional phrase.

Oh, Bonnie! By now you must know that, no matter how clearly you explain something, there will always be someone who won't understand exactly what you mean. :)

Especially when it comes to grammatical terms... I had to think twice about what a prepositional phrase is! Not something I've really pondered since grade 9 or 10. Do I use them? Absolutely -- but they are like gerunds. I know they exist; I use them correctly 98% of the time, but defining one? *shudder*

There are still some entries on my March challenge that don't meet it -- the "break it down" challenge, where I specified that all words must be used in the order they appear to make up new words. There are at least two books that readers haven't removed from the list. I would feel like a TIOLI cop going in there and doing it.

> 119

I would feel like a TIOLI cop going in there and doing it.

Just leave them marked as "not fitting the challenge". When the challenger(s) who originally posted any such book(s) comes at the end of the month to do updates (which hopefully everyone does - Ha!), those entries should be removed by that person (or those people).

If I find an inappropriate challenge (even if it is COMPLETED) when I do the mid-month stats, I'll remove it if it doesn't meet the challenge and has a notice stating that it doesn't qualify. By the time I do the mid-month stats, hardly anyone looks back. It's not as if I'm awarding lottery money for prizes or anything. By then, we're all on to new and different challenges.

In other words, you do the alerts. I'll do the deletions.

ETA: I'm cold-hearted and ruthless.

>118 SqueakyChu: I should have linked a list of prepositions. I'm a former teacher and around classrooms all day so I pretty much know my prepositions but should not have assumed everybody still remembers them from high school.

I just added To the End of the Land by David Grossman to the prepositional phrase challenge; please let me know if it doesn't qualify.

Bonnie, I was pretty sure I'd end up messing up on that one. I am completely clueless when it comes to grammar. I was raised between two continents in three languages and then somehow ended up missing most of the grammar lessons in two out of three of those languages. So... I had NO IDEA what a prepositional phrase was. But I went to several sites to try to learn about them. Guess that didn't work out so well.

Please, and this goes for everyone; I know most LT members are English speakers from the US, but do not assume that ALL members are from the same culture and have had the same kind of schooling as you have.

(feeling deeply embarrassed and ashamed)

{{{Hugs to Ilana}}}

We don't want you to feel upset. We do want you to enjoy playing along with us. Please don't be afraid to ask if you don't understand something. I personally think it's much nicer to have people here of all ages, backgrounds, and cultures. I'd hate to think that we were too elitist to just all have fun together.

Ah, SqueakyChu - you're the best! Thank you for making us all feel so welcome in this group! And I like your ideas at 115 and 116 to help find the correct rules that go with each challenge. That'll make it easier to work with.

#123 No need for shame and embarrassment in here!
To avoid the Prepositional Phrase Problem I just doubled up with someone else. (And I still don't know what the PP is.)

I've created an Orange Longlist thread, please come and play. I see the link has already been added above.

Never in a million years did I think the prepositional phrase challenge would create so much difficulty. I apologize to anyone whose sensibilities were infringed upon. The next challenge I post will have absolutely nothing to do with grammar in any way, shape or form. Mea culpa.

>128 brenzi: For the record, I like grammar! And it certainly doesn't hurt for TIOLI to be educational :)

I love grammar!

Here's a prepositions-related quiz:

http://www.sporcle.com/games/sproutcm/prepositions

You shouldn't feel embarrassed or ashamed, Ilana. I couldn't have told you what a preposition was either, and I had to do a Google search to (re)learn what a prepositional phrase was.

Having said that, I'm glad that Bonnie chose this challenge, and I hope that she reconsiders and posts future challenges based on grammatical rules.

#131 I agree, Darryl. Perhaps, one day in the future, she will choose a challenge requiring a title with a condition contrary to fact or some such.

>131 kidzdoc: I agree too. If anyone should be embarassed, I should be -- an English major & former English teacher, who had to check that "among" is a preposition. I think it's a great challenge!

Edited to correct grammatical error!!!!!

Ilana, I really don't think you have any reason to be ashamed of your level of English, it always seems fine to me! I'm the same age as you and I don't remember learning much grammar in English at school - there was a point when we were meant to be learning it but I don't remember as much then as I do from learning other languages and then from a business writing part of a secretarial course (actually quite a challenging course).

I wasn't quite sure what a prepositional phrase was when I first read the challenge, and I don't think I would choose a book for it rather than choosing one which I already knew to qualify.

Hey, look what I found! A list of prepositional phrases!

http://www.advanced-english-grammar.com/list-of-prepositional-phrases.html
right here

One of these days, I'll get the html right the third time, at least.

I am not ashamed to say that I also needed to Google prepositional phrases as well. Thanks, Bonnie for waking up my brain and dusting off little used information from the file cabinets of my mind. Keep 'em coming, Bonnie!!

>135 ffortsa: That's pretty good Judy but this one on Wikipedia is much more inclusive. Matter of fact I can't think of a single one that isn't included on this list :)

excellent.

> 133

Edited to correct grammatical error!!!!!

LOL at our English major & former English teacher, ivyd!!

> 137

but this one on Wikipedia is much more inclusive

Thanks, Bonnie. I added that link to the wiki list in message #2. Hope that helps!

I'd been wondering about the word "about". No pun intended. Ha!

We are having a COMPETITION for Challenge #1 - striking cover art. We are going to vote for our favourite covers. The link to the thread is just next to the challenge, on the top of this page. See #82 on that thread for THE RULES!!!

Just checking in. Some interesting challenges - I might actually be able to do challenge 1 this month (something I aimed for every month last year, but haven't managed this year)

A tip on prepositions that I learned in grade 9, on how to recognize one. If a word fits into the blank in the following sentence and the sentence makes sense, it is a preposition:

"Snoopy flew (BLANK) the clouds."

Hey, it's worked for me all these decades...

Thanks everyone for your encouraging words. I really appreciate it. I guess I should just have gotten over my initial hangup about not knowing my grammar and asked Bonnie if she'd mind explaining PPs to me.

And Bonnie, please, I hope you won't abstain from that kind of challenge in future on my account! I guess I was feeling sensitive yesterday and seeing all those arrows next to my books made me feel bad, when really, it's not a big deal, that's all.

#143 I'll try to remember that trick, thanks for sharing!

#143 HELP! If that's the case, I need to take off Of Mice and Men because "Snoopy flew OF the clouds" doesn't fly, so to speak. Is that correct?

>145 Carmenere: "Of" is a preposition (and I'm not just saying that because I have Of Human Bondage on the wiki!).

Would it make sense to say that if a word does make sense in the blank, it is a preposition but it doesn't necessarily follow that any word that does not make sense in the blank is not? :)

#145,146 I was just about to post the same reply - A word that fits that blank IS a preposition, but a word that does not fit is not necessarily NOT a preposition!

#146, 147

> 148

LOL at now bug-eyed Lynda!!

*amazed at all the things we learn here on LT - up to, and including English grammar!*

Stick around, ye of other cultures and languages!!

Of Mice and Men is a prepositional phrase. #146 is a rule that would work. Snoopy flew at the clouds wouldn't make much sense but it would be a prepositional phrase.

>150 brenzi: And it's also a movie, so you have two options there.

Bah. I just thought of a probably good challenge, but we've already got 18 this month. I guess I'm going to have to keep an eagle eye out for May's TIOLI post to wedge it in there...

You people post way too fast! It's not even April yet! ;)

No one said the phrase had to make sense -- LOL! Logically, there is no reason for Snoopy to be flying in, around, above, below, alongside, clouds whatsoever, but it's a fun test. Yes, it's a bit like the I after E, except after C spelling rule -- there are a tiny handful of exceptions but with the vast majority of prepositions it does work. (Of course, an easier way is to look in the dictionary...)

ETA: Keristars, there's no reason at all not to post #19. Who knows, you may be posting one that would allow a bunch of very happy people to get some books of their TBR lists??

Keristars, go on, go for it. I won't promise to read something for your challenge, but I'm sure someone will be interested.

152 - I keep checking for additional challenges, and I'm sure I'm not alone, so I think you should definitely post it!

>152 keristars: I can't find a challenge for a couple of books that I want to read this month. I'd love to see more to chose from!

#149 Madeline, I get the feeling that the whole discussion about prepositional phrases would have occurred with or without my cry for help.

I know you weren't aiming that comment just at me, but for myself, I don't know if I'm of 'other' cultures and languages... English is ONE of my mother tongues, and I've always been strongly influenced by American, as well as with European cultures both, even though I didn't grow up in either of those places, so... yeah. Having a minor identity crisis all over again! (just kidding) :-)

#152 I keep looking out for new challenges too Kerri, there's no specification as to the AMOUNT of challenges we can suggest, as long as we do so within the 5-day deadline.

Okay, fine then. If no one picks this one up, then I reserve the right to modify it (slightly) and challenge again in May! ;)

Nested Narratives: read a book which has a story told within another story.

Examples: Frankenstein, Moon Over Manifest, The Monk, Cloud Atlas, Wuthering Heights, Revolution...

You can use the tags "nested narratives" (which is wonky, it looks like), "story within a story", "frame story", and other variations to see if you have a book that fits without spoiling yourself with reviews or reading the back of the book.

A nested narrative is one where you have a main story, or an outer story, and then another story is told inside it. For example, with Frankenstein, the main story is of Robert Walpole and his trip to the icy north. But within that story is the story of Dr Frankenstein. In Wuthering Heights, the main story is about whatshisname the guy who rents the house, and he is told the story of the Catherines and Heathcliffs. In Moon Over Manifest, the main story is about Abilene, but she hears a story about Jinx. In The Monk, there are two inside stories as well as poems, one of which is the tale of The Wandering Jew.

What "nested narrative" isn't is a flashback. The inner story is usually about a different person, even if it's related to the main story.

ETA: FWIW, you can view my "nested narratives" tag page. I only have 11 tagged right now, but I think I may have more that I missed.

#158 Keri, I'm guessing The Shadow of the Wind would fit in your challenge then, since the title is taken from the name of a book that is at the heart of the novel (one of my tags for it is "story within a story". That would really be great because it's currently in the March TIOLI, but I don't think I'll be able to finish it on time.

159> Judging by the size of the tag in the cloud, you're not the only one who thinks so. :) As long as the reader actually reads some of the story within, I think it counts. Otherwise it might count as a Book About Book(s).

#160 There is a description of the story, but not an actual reproduction of it.

What about The Thirteenth Tale? It's a story about someone telling a story.

Glad you posted this new challenge, Keri. I am looking forward to going home and perusing my shelves...

162> Yes! One of the reviews (and the tag "frame novel") makes it sound fairly explicitly like it falls within my nested narrative condition. And I think I want to look into it more...it might be something I want to read. :D

Sorry Kerri, I guess I should have formed my response in 161 as a question. Does my book qualify or not?

165> I'm going to say no - if it's just a description of the story and not the story itself, then it doesn't fit the nested narratives condition. (But that might be a good follow-up challenge in a few months - stories about stories that don't fit this challenge!)

>162 Morphidae:/164 - I've had The Thirteenth Tale on my TBR shelves for a few years now. This seems like the perfect opportunity to move it to the top of the Read NOW pile.

>120 SqueakyChu:: Wait! What?
We don't get lottery money? Dang...

Could someone please tell me if The Shadow of the Wind would fit the prepositional phrase challenge?

I think these books are nested stories (going by the suggestion that the characters in the different stories are not the same nor is it a flashback).

People of the Book by Geraldine Brooks
The 19th Wife by David Ebershoff

> 169

Ilana, it would not fit the challenge because the title of the book has to be *only* a prepositional phrase (with no other words).

For example, if the book were titled "Of the Wind", that would work. Since it's titled "The Shadow of the Wind", that would not work. The prepositional phrase in this case is the phrase that begins with the word "of".

I'll try to come back and list other examples. Look at the list of prepositions above (a link in message #2). Try to think of books with very short titles that begin with those words.

Some examples:
About a Boy by Nick Hornby
Beyond the Curve by Kōbō Abe
Under the Dome by Stephen King
After Dark by Haruki Murakami
Between Friends by Debbie Macomber

> 167

There are two people already reading The Thirteenth Tale, but in another challenge!

Re: Shadow of the Wind

I think that Shadow of the Wind has pretty striking cover art. That's where I would place it if I were planning to read it this month.

170> Yes, both of those look like they would count, judging from the review notes. Each has multiple story lines (narratives) within a larger story.

173> I thought the same thing of the cover when I saw it earlier this evening! At the very least, it makes me want to learn more about the book :D

I have just discovered that German prepositions are more easily retrieved from my brain files than English ones. Says a lot about my High School German teacher. You say preposition, I say: an, auf, hinter, in, neben, uber, unter, vor, zwischen. Just like a little machine.

Oh, and I can't find the April wiki. Help?

The links are in message #2 above.

> 158, 170

I'm moving People of the Book to your challenge then, Keri. I'm tired of looking at "tag mirror" in challenge #4 to see what font size the topics are. They're all starting to look alike to me. They're even dancing all over the screen! ;)

#177 - Thanks.

I'm going to join in the Paris obsession (#3) with both The Paris Wife and A Moveable Feast which have been on my TBR list for a while.
I am also going to read The Seven Wonders of Sassafrass Springs for #7 and The House of Many Ways for remembering Diana Wynne Jones (#15). We'll see what else I get to. However, this will get 2 books read off my shelves, which is good!

You're welcome!

By the way, I am going to continue in the future to use the second message of each month's TIOLI thread to link to the wikis. It's an easy place to find them and a good place to keep a current list of all the challenges, including on which wiki pages each individual challenge can be found.

#173 Of course! What a great suggestion, thanks! I had actually thought of it yesterday, when I put it down just before going to sleep, and completely forgot about it by this morning. My cover is different, but equally beautiful. I'll go add it to the thread after I've scanned and done colour correcting!

I like that idea- it makes everything easier to find with less clicking through.

On the story within a story, I believe The Lake Shore Limited by Sue Miller would work too. I'll see if I can think of any others.

>175 nittnut:: English is my mother tongue, but we didn't learn much grammar at school. The only reason I know my future tense from my conditional, or what an ablative is (not that I remember now, so don't ask) is because I studied other languages. Still trying to remember what a preposition is ....

(Will look into it more deeply once I get a chance to hit the bookshelves.)

Me too - I can't really tell you much about prepositions, but I can rattle them off quite rapidly in German. Talk about closet skills. I think it belongs on the shelf with identifying roadkill (side effect of Zoology degree). Interesting, but not terribly useful.

I notice from the wiki that there's three of us so far who have signed up for both A Moveable Feast and The Paris Wife. Would be interesting to compare notes!

>20 chinquapin:: chinquapin - trying the Alex Awards link (on my phone), but it's not going through.

I don't know why the link would not go through on your phone...whether that would make a difference or not. I just checked the link and got there from my laptop. Here is the URL, if that helps any:

http://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/yalsa/booklistsawards/alexawards/alexawards.cf...

You can also do a tag search on LT with "alex award".

Laura

Excellent idea for a challenge, Keristars! I'm going to sign up for The 19th Wife, which just arrived from Paperbackswap today, as well as The Great Lover by Jill Dawson, which I've been wanting to read for a while. There's a dual story there -- the embedded one is about Rupert Brooke; the "cover" story is by a former housemaid who was a witness to Brooke's romantic misadventures. Very creative challenge...

ETA: Historical fiction fans looking for books for this challenge might take a look at A Secret Alchemy or The Mathematics of Love, both by Emma Darwin. I really enjoyed both of these novels, which pair linked contemporary and historical narratives. It's funny, I never realized there was a name for this category before!

ETA once more: mystery fans can find books for this category by Sophie Hannah -- all of hers have twin narratives, from different perspectives, with the crime victim's one serving as the "embedded" one, a backdrop to the investigation. There is also The Grave Tattoo by Val McDermid, which embeds a historical narrative related to Fletcher Christian & the Bounty.

A final addition: A Town Like Alice by Nevil Shute would work. It starts out with the protagonist receiving a legacy and traveling to Malaysia to do something with it -- there is then the "flashback story" of her WW2 experiences, before the main story moves onward to Australia.

I'll add Erasure and The manuscript found in Saragossa...

188> ooh, several suggestions! I'm so excited, because multiple narratives in a single book is one of my favorite things. It's so neat to see how two different stories intertwine and bring to light elements of each other, or play off each other. I recall that Chatterton and The Satanic Verses were really cool with the playing the narratives off each other, but I don't recall exactly if Chatterton would work or not, because I think it's more of a time traveling story (it's been a while since I read it, and it was crazy complicated).

I know there are probably several terms for this narrative device, but I settled on "nested" because it encompasses a wider variety than "frame story" while still specifically saying there are more than one narratives - and usually there is at least one story that is the biggest matryoshka doll and ties the two (or more) narratives together.

Would people be interested in a separate thread for this, to keep touchstones together especially? I'm probably going to keep a list for myself in a text file anyway...

Why not create a separate thread?

Some more ideas:
Without Charity and A Place in the Hills would qualify (for UK readers, mostly), and quite possible Madame Proust and the Kosher Kitchen where a contemporary researcher's investigations into the Proust papers is the overarching narrative containing two others, one by Mme Proust (in diary format) and a second one as well. Kate Taylor is a Canadian author. Maybe also The Swan Thieves by Elizabeth Kostova, and certainly The Historian by the same author.

I never manage to keep up with the TIOLI main thread (*sigh*)

...anyway, thank you Heather (#70) for setting up a DWJ challenge - I'm planning on re-reading everything she's written in publication order for the rest of the year...

Here's my line up for the month so far:

1) Read a book with striking cover art): - thread
I'll take a look this weekend
8) Read a book by a Japanese author/takes place in Japan:
The Sailor Who Fell From Grace With the Sea - Yukio Mishima
11) Read a book on the Orange 2011 longlist: - thread
Again, I'll take a look this weekend.
13) Read a book published before you were born
South Riding - Winifred Holtby - seeing as I didn't finish it last month!
15) Read a book by Diana Wynne Jones
I'll see how many I get through! To start with:
Changeover (1970)

I need a rules clarification for Challenge 13. @DragonFreak: must the actual physical book we're reading have been published before we were born? Or if it's a translation or new edition, but the original was written before our birth, will it still count?

I'm reading Cheese by Willem Elsschot right now. It was originally published in the Netherlands (in Flemish?) in 1933 but of course I'm reading an English translation. The copyright date on my flyleaf is 2002.

Walking through the nearby Barnes and Noble store near my office yesterday, I was struck by how many books have noun titles. I never noticed that before, so that's a sort of bonus perception caused by that prepositional challenge.

> 186, 187

I added the link to message #2 above and also to the wiki title. Just makin' it easier to find books to choose!

> 160

Keri, would The Gargoyle by Andrew Davidson work? It *is* a flashback, but I've noticed that others (3 people, to be exact!) have tagged it "story within a story". I didn't care for that book so much, but my husband loved it!

Anyway, I don't cusually care for nested stories, but I've alreay started People of the Book and am too far into the story now to stop reading it. So, it looks as if it will be the first challenge I'll finish this month - and in the very last challenge presented! :)

> 190

Definitely create a separate thread, Keri! It would be a great place to throw together a list of suggested reads and to talk about what books qualify (or do not qualify) for your challenge.

#158 Atwood's The Blind Assassin might be another good one for this. One of the tags is 'novel within a novel'.

Thread! for discussion and whatnot. I included both my explanatory posts and tweaked a bit in the first post, so hopefully that'll help some.

Also, sorry Ilana that so many don't work, but flashbacks don't count for the purpose of the challenge! The main character needs to be different (though shared characters can be the same, like in Wuthering Heights).

>187 chinquapin: : Thanks, Laura, this link works. Found some interesting looking books on there, if I can only read fast enough!

No worries Keri. I was just looking for a challenge to fit Shadow of the Wind into, since I'd started it for March and didn't finish it on time with just a quarter of the book to go. I finally added it to Madeline's cover art challenge, so all is well. :-)

I've just finished Nerilka's Story & The Coelura by Anne McCaffrey.
Though I can't fit 'The Coelura' into this month's TIOLI challenges, I wanted to mention this book as a good Quick Read for anyone into fantasy. The first novella is about 133 pages long, and the second about 50 pages.

Is anyone still reading Pride and Prejudice? it could go into challenge 10 or 13 (I'm not that old!)

Yep - I never got round to P&P last month. I wasn't in the mood. I think I will put it in #13.

I'm about 2/3 through P&P so will add it wherever others do this month.

I was trying to finish 1984 by George Orwell to before the end of March to fit it into the Top 50 Wishlist Challenge. Unfortunately I just didn't get it finished. Then I came over to the April TIOLI, and found out that it would fit nicely into challenge #13, as it was published before I was born. Yay!

I then discovered that The 19th Wife, which I borrowed from my mum and I really should be returning soon, fits into challenge #19. Excellent!

I hadn't even thought of that - anyone else still reading Portrait of a Lady? - that was published before any of us were born.

>205 Ricey: 1984 is a great book.

>206 elkiedee: I don't believe so.

I just got done reading Firedrake by Richard Knaak for challenge #1. You know, it seems like last months books always fit in better with this months books. Is that usually the case, because it sure is for me.

There's a 75 Books Challenge group readathon this weekend so grab your April TIOLI challenge books...and "Let's read!!"

I was reading Howl's Moving Castle for the March YA Challenge but now I'll move it to the April DWJ challenge. Convenient, eh?

> 203, 204 : Oh -I'd just decided on challenge 10, because I loved the Jennifer Ehle / Colin Firth screen version, and because my book copy was published rather after I was born. No matter - where ever it gets most points. (would that be wherever or whereever)?

210 - I am not picky, I can put it either place. Question - I thought we were working with the original publication date? Does the actual book have to be that old? If so, I must move to the movie one. I wish I had a 1st edition of P&P lol.

>211 nittnut:. I had the same question about Challenge #13. I want to use Cheese by Willem Elsschot which he wrote in 1933, but my English translation is from 2002.

DragonFreak, we need your answer to the question posed in messages 210, 211, and 212...

I finished reading The Shadow of the Wind last night. Great story. I'll have to read it again sometime, because my attention was so much taken up by Portrait of a Lady while I was reading it, but I highly recommend it. Will review it soon enough.

>210 humouress:-12 OK, I think I'll let the original publication date be accepted. Because it's still the same book, only a different edition. Let me know if that answers all of your questions or you still have some.

I finished and reviewed the 2008 Giller Prize winner Through Black Spruce by Joseph Boyden. Terrific read! That was for the Prepositional Phrase Challenge.

Next up is Swamplandia by Karen Russell for the Orange Prize Challenge.

Hmmm.... interesting set of challenges this month.
I'm going to read In the Country of Men by Hisham Matar for the Prepositional Phrase Challenge.
Swamplandia! by Karen Russell for the Orange Prize Challenge.

Not sure about the striking cover challenge. I saw an ad for The Dry Grass of August by Anna Jean Mayhew in this week's New Yorker and the picture of the cover *struck* me.... anyone read that and know anything about it?

>215 DragonFreak:. Yes, thanks, DragonFreak. I added my Challenge 13 book to the wiki. (and wow: your book is from 1990!)

and wow: your book is from 1990

I noticed that as well. Some of us are older than others. :)

Well, I'm just a little older than that, depending of course on your definition of little.

I've been enjoying the leapfrog 'books read' TIOLI meter. When I read one of the 75er's posts this morning - I think it was souloftherose - where they mentioned that they read about 6,000 pages last month, it made me think that a TIOLI leapfrog meter of pages read might be fun, too. For myself, I run about 3-4,000 pages a month, so it would be cool to see how many others top that 6,000.

It warms my heart to see so many people reading Jasper Fforde books this month :-)

I've added My Man Jeeves to the wiki for challenge #13 (published before I was born). I am reading this on my Kindle and got it off Project Gutenberg for free, so I am not entirely sure I have the same edition as on LT but I figure it's close enough!

>218 Megi53: You welcome. In fact, I think any edition of a book will be acceptable, but I bet it'll be easiest if it's the oldest version. I'm not that old. Never have been, probably will be later.

I finished the audio for Mildred Pierce this evening. I had only seen the movie version with Joan Crawford before and so was quite surprised by how different the endings were between the book and the movie. Currently watching the HBO miniseries with Kate Winslet. So far, quite true to the novel and Winslet is a much more convincing Mildred than Crawford was.

I just finished reading The 19th Wife by David Ebershoff for challenge #19. I think this is the fastest I have ever read a 600 page book. I was just so fascinated with the story.

I'm going to read The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold for challenge #10 next.

> 221

I don't want to create another frog-meter for pages read, but I don't see any reason why you can't add this information to the line with your name (and its stats) on the current frog-meter. The information may not be in numerical order regarding pages read, but it will be "out there" for you and others to see.

I am going to add a challenge later tonight. Can't now as on phone. I have been relocated to New York. So the challenge would involve New York/New Jersey. BHUTAN (how did NJ autocorrect to Bhutan?).

Right, was going to say NJ was one of the places I looked to live while working in NY.

Note: so far using 4G phone as hotspot, so far, good enough to use laptop.

>226 Ricey: The Lovely Bones is one of the very few books that I haven't read and this particular friend of mine has. It's about a girl who dies by rape and comes back as a ghost, right. I always though it was a too creepy of a concept to read, but I hope that you like it.

>226 Ricey: I have to admit I don't really know what it is about. The blurb says that she is murdered and then watches over her family from her place in heaven, etc, etc. My mum loaned me a heap of books one day, and this was one of them. I figured it's probably time to give the books back to her, and this one happened to fit into one of this month's challenges. I'll let you know what I think of it when I am finished with it.

I loved The Lovely Bones but it seems people either love it or hate it. I hope you fall in the former group. Just don't see the film - I thought it was seriously bad.

Per The Lovely Bones, I am in the camp of "too Creepy for me". I didn't hate it, but I didn't love it either. Objectively, I would lean toward well-written but not my cup of tea.

Jenn, then you really wouldn't like the true story of her rape, Lucky which was not really creepy, more like devastating because true. I loved it, but not for everyone.

Ok, I put it up.

Challenge #20: Set in New York or New Jersey

Hopefully I'll find the challenge interesting. Must "learn" about my new home. I suppose I have wiggle room to remove the New Jersey part until tomorrow/or until someone adds a New Jersey book. A Jersey book is on there, though. The Coben book.

>233 Citizenjoyce: - I thought Lucky was very good, too. I have her second novel, The Almost Moon, on my TBR shelves.

Mike, I think you should leave the challenge as listed - someone might be desperate for the chance to add a Stephanie Plum book.

Is The Cranberry Queen set in New Jersey?

I finished my 3rd book of the month but my first TIOLI one this evening - Flambards was published 2 years before I was born.

(Very) tentative reading list:

TIOLI 1 (cover) and Women of Fantasy - Prospero Lost by L. Jagi Lamplighter
TIOLI 2 (preposition) - In Cold Blood by Truman Capote
TIOLI 3 (Paris) - Perfume by Patrick Susekind
TIOLI 4 (tag mirror) - Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood by Rebecca Wells
TIOLI 5 (4th) - Rapture in Death by J. D. Robb
TIOLI 6 (Alex) - Daughter of the Forest by Juliet Marillier
TIOLI 7 (Spring) - Silent Spring by Rachel Carson
TIOLI 8 (Japan) - The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet by David Mitchell
TIOLI 9 (Who) - Who Moved My Cheese? by Spencer Johnson
TIOLI 10 (Movie) - A Thousand Acres by Jane Smiley
TIOLI 11 (Orange) - Room by Emma Donoghue
TIOLI 12 (autism) - Marcelo in the Real World by Francisco Stork
TIOLI 13 (b4 born) - Tao Te Ching by Lao Tzu
TIOLI 14 (flower) - Peony in Love by Lisa See
TIOLI 15 (DWJ) - Howl's Moving Castle by Dianna Wynne Jones
TIOLI 16 (writer) - Travels with Charlie by John Steinbeck

#231 I saw the movie version of The Lovely Bones a few months ago and thought it was really good, and it actually made me want to read the book, though I admit I'd probably have to be in the right frame of mind.

#237 That's a great reading list! And I'm impressed that you've entered one book for each and every one of challenges 1-16. Good going, and good luck with that! :-)

Shamelessly copying Morphidae's idea:

TIOLI 1 (cover): The Collaborator by Mirza Waheed
TIOL1 2 (preposition): To the End of the Land by David Grossman
TIOLI 3 (Paris): Parisians: An Adventure History of Paris by Graham Robb
TIOLI 10 (book to movie): Soldiers of Salamis by Javier Cercas (movie: Soldados de Salamina)
TIOLI 11 (Orange Prize longlist): Annabel by Kathleen Winter; The Memory of Love by Aminatta Forna; Swamplandia! by Karen Russell
TIOLI 12 (autism): Thinking in Pictures: My Life with Autism by Temple Grandin
TIOLI 13 (book published before you were born): The Street of Crocodiles and Other Stories by Bruno Schulz (1934)
TIOLI 18 (National Poetry Month): Lighthead by Terrance Hayes; A Murder of Crows by Larry D. Thomas; One With Others by C.D. Wright; White Egrets by Derek Walcott

#234 Mike, I have a recommendation for your Challenge #20--Set in New York or New Jersey: Gone to New York: Adventures in the City by Ian Frazier. It's a collection of essays about Frazier's experiences living mostly in NYC but also in NJ and Ohio. Very quirky and entertaining.

I always plan for far, far more than I could ever read (21 books shown here whereas I read, at most, 15 or 16, but here's what I hope for in April, at least. (Love Morphidae's idea/format)

TIOLI 1: COVER ART: Starting Out in the Evening - Brian Morton
TIOLI 2: PREPOSITIONAL PHRASE: For the Thrill of It - Simon Baatz
TIOLI 3: Paris: Eiffel's Tower - Jill Jonnes
Murder in the Marais - Cara Black
TIOLI 4: TAG MIRROR: The Broken Teaglass - Emily Arsenault
TIOLI 5: 4TH IN SERIES: Buffalo West Wing - Julie Hyzy
The Clockwork Teddy - John J. Lamb
An Irish Country Girl - Patrick Taylor
A Stranger in Mayfair - Charles Finch
TIOLI 6: ALEX AWARD: Candyfreak: A Journey Through the Chocolate Underbelly of America - Steve Almond
TIOLI 7: SPRING: The Beginning of Spring - Penelope Fitzgerald
Chasing Spring: An American Journey Through a Changing Season - Bruce Stutz
TIOLI 8: JAPAN: The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet - David Mitchell
TIOLI 9: WHO, WHAT, WHERE, WHEN, WHY OR HOW: How We Got Here: The 70's: The Decade That Brought You Modern Life--For Better or Worse - David Frum
TIOLI 10: BOOK INTO MOVIE: Water for Elephants - Sara Gruen
TIOLI 13: BOOK BEFORE I WAS BORN: The Layton Court Mystery (1925) - Anthony Berkeley
TIOLI 14: GARDEN/FLOWER: Murder on Gramercy Park - Victoria Thompson
A Walk in the Woods - Bill Bryson
TIOLI 16: WRITER: Travels with Charley: In Search of America - John Steinbeck
TIOLI 18: POETRY: Chicago Poems - Carl Sandburg
TIOLI 20: NY/NJ BOOK: Treachery in Death - J.D. Robb

We have some heavy reading planned here.
I've just, finally, finished Special Topics in Calamity Physics, but, alas, no where to put it this month. Hated the style, loved the story. I also finished Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing, liked parts of it, overall wasn't thrilled. Little Fudge is quite the precocious kid. Neither of my children spoke nearly so well at 2-3 years.
Now I'll start Born on a Blue Day for the autism challenge, and Enchanted Glass for the DWJ challenge.

240> Thanks, I'll have to look for that book. :)

I just finished reading The Invention of Hugo Cabret. A most delightful book.

eta: I had put it in the Cover Art challenge because of course the cover is stunning, but now I'm just wondering whether it would have been better to put it in the Paris challenge, since that's where the story is set and I'm also thinking someone else who might want to read it this month might be more likely to look for it there... feedback is most welcome!

I have to say, I miss having the links to the other wiki pages right below the books on the wiki. I'm finding it slow to browse through and see what people are reading, which I like to do fairly often.

> 245

I miss having the links to the other wiki pages right below the books on the wiki.

They're still there ...just a tiny bit lower. Look at the bottom of each wiki page. See where it says "Navigation"? There they are!

Oh, I know! But the added scrolling makes the process much less smooth.

Okay, I'll move it up higher.

Thanks :). I hope other people don't mind. I wouldn't mind having it in two places if some people prefer it at the bottom.

Nope. Changed my mind. I'm leaving it at the bottom mostly for my selfish reasons. It's too hard to do all the links when setting up threads if they're not at the bottom where I can easily jump to them.

Instead of scrolling, Zoe, just hit "control-end". In other words, hold down the "control" button and also press the "end" button. That will jump you to the Navigation section immediately. Would that work for you?

I do not want it in two places. I need to make the way it's set up easy for me as I'm the one who has to create it and make it all link together in the right way. I also want to keep it as simple as I can.

Do you think I should move the TIOLI information off of the wiki now?

On the other hand, do you think it's important to keep that information there because newbies continue to join us each month?

Oh well, I'll live.

I think it would be okay to put the TIOLI information on another page, as long as there's a link.

> 253

Oh well, I'll live.

Phew!

*wipes brow*

#244 Ilana, I think The Invention of Hugo Cabret would be better in the Paris Challenge and the book deserves as many readers as possible. (Of course, it's also being made into a film to be released later this year but that fact only complicates matters further.)

>256 phebj: Can't it in both at the same time?

> 257

Nope. One book must only be listed under one challenge, although it can be moved to a different challenge at any time (for example, if you want to try to increase the TIOLI points for shared books).

> 253

I'm going to be moving the TIOLI information slowly to the FAQs page. After a while, the Navigation will show up pretty close to the bottom of the challlenges. All in due time, however. :)

Check it out now, Zoe. I think you'll like the new cleaner look of the wiki pages. The information from the bottom of the page has been moved to the FAQs page which is linked in the Navigation section.

I can't resist the opportunity to make a list, so I too am stealing Morphidae's idea.

I'll never get to all of these but I'll wait till at least mid-month before I start deleting them from the wiki.

TIOLI 1: STRIKING COVER ART: Aunt Julia and the Scriptwriter-Mario Vargas Llosa, Anything Goes: A Biography of the Roaring Twenties-Lucy Moore
TIOLI 2: PREPOSITIONAL PHRASE: In the Country of Men-Hisham Matar
TIOLI 3: PARIS: The Black Tower-Louis Bayard
TIOLI 4: TAG MIRROR: Gilead-Marulynne Robinson
TIOLI 5: 4TH BOOK: Tar Baby-Toni Morrison, On the Banks of Plum Creek-Laura Ingalls Wilder
TIOLI 6: ALEX AWARD: The Time Traveler's Wife-Audrey Niffenegger
TIOLI 7: SPRING: Silent Spring - Rachel Carson
TIOLI 8: JAPAN: Across the Nightingale Floor-Lian Hearn
TIOLI 9: WHO, WHAT, WHERE, WHEN, WHY OR HOW: Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?-Edward Albee
TIOLI 10: BOOK INTO MOVIE: Jane Eyre-Charlotte Bronte, The Age of Innocence-Edith Wharton, The Road, Cormac McCarthy
TIOLI 11: ORANGE LONGLIST: The Tiger's Wife-Tea Obreht, The Invisible Bridge-Julie Orringer, Annabel-Kathleen Winter, Great House-Nicole Krauss
TIOLI 12: AUTISM: Marcelo in the Real World-Francisco X. Stork
TIOLI 13: PUBLISHED BEFORE I WAS BORN: Great Expectations-Charles Dickens, The Return of the Native-Thomas Hardy
TIOLI 14: GARDEN/FLOWER: A Sea of Poppies-Amitav Ghosh,A Walk in the Woods - Bill Bryson
TIOLI 16: AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A WRITER: Lit: A Memoir-Mary Karr
TIOLI 18: POETRY: Human Chain-Seamus Heaney
TIOLI 20: NY/NJ BOOK: The Reluctant Fundamentalist-Mohsin Hamid

#256 I wish ALL my selected reads were causing this problem: "where, oh where shall I list my book now with so many choices??"

But yes, I think I'll move it to the Paris challenge. I know of course that I can't enter it in more than one challenge, but at least I've already got the cover for Hugo Cabret gracing the already very inspiring Cover Art thread.

>261 AnneDC: Great potential reads, Anne. I could probably match about half of them and earn some TIOLI points, but I know I won't read even half that number!

>260 SqueakyChu: Yup, I like it! Thanks!

So how many people add books to the wiki before reading them?

Personally, I don't post a book until after I read it. Heck, for last month, I didn't add any of them until 4/4.

> 264

You're welcome.

I was meaning to do something like this all along. I just needed your nudge, Zoe. I'll also be moving the info at the top of the page to the FAQs page...in due time.

> 265

You can add books to the wiki before you read them. The ideal is to list the books that you think that you can reasonably finish within a month.

The reason for this is that, by pre-listing books on the wiki, you're apt to hook others into reading the same book. It's a whole lot easier to see (and remember) what others are reading on the wiki than on the main thread. The asterisk which denotes shared books on the wiki is an additional "hook" to grab others into reading those shared books.

If you don't finish some books before the end of the month (i.e. 12 midnight of the last day of the month), they must be removed. If those "removed" books fit a challenge for the coming month, they may then be re-entered into the following month's challenges.

...and related to post # 267

To the contrary, if you know by late in the month that you'll never get to some listed books, just remove them. Even shared books. Remove them without guilt! That's how we play this game.

Late-in-the-month TIOLI challengers who want to up the TIOLI point score can suggest or read "Quickie Reads" (See FAQ linked in message #1).

Interesting Stats:

Here are the TIOLI point totals for all of the months of 2010.

Jan - 18
Feb - 12
Mar - 23
Apr - 22
May - 28
Jun - 53
Jul - 80
Aug - 102
Sep - 62
Oct - 100
Nov - 75
Dec - 64

August 2010 still remains the month/year with the record number of TIOLI points. Can we beat that this year? We'll see!

Hehe! February 2010 was a month with only 12 TIOLI points!! Not many people had discovered us at that "point" - no pun intended, of course! :)

I don't read as fast as many others, and this is the month when I've attempted the most books: six, wowee. I'm listing them so I can take the opportunity to note that I didn't update the point count for Challenge 15 when I added a shared read -- not quite sure I understand whether it needed to go up one or not (ETA: same with Challenge 4 after I added Mistborn).

TIOLI 1: STRIKING COVER ART: 30 Days in Sydney - Peter Carey
TIOLI 2: PREPOSITIONAL PHRASE: To Visit the Queen - Diane Duane (hey -- the UK title, On Her Majesty's Wizardly Service is a prepositional phrase as well!)
TIOLI 4: TAG MIRROR: A Chicago Tavern: A Goat, a Curse, and the American Dream - Rick Kogan, Mistborn - Brandon Sanderson
TIOLI 13: PUBLISHED BEFORE I WAS BORN: Cheese by Willem Elsschot (no touchstone for this 1001 book that I could find among the 100+ choices that popped up)
TIOLI 15: DIANA WYNNE JONES: Howl's Moving Castle

#269 Thanks. It's interesting to see how we've grown. I'll have to look back at August and October and see what books contributed to such a high TIOLI point total.

> 271

I'll have to look back at

When you look back, the points were counted differently along the way. During one of the months, we began counting only books that had been marked as COMPLETED at the end of the month. Before that, all books listed had been counted.

>265 Morphidae: I usually add the books I plan to read before I read them, partly to encourage a shared read and partly to encourage myself to keep up with the plan. I also have a bag by my chair in the living room filled with books planned for the month. This idea of planning my reads for the month is new and all due to you, Madeline. My daughter thinks it's crazy, but so far I'm enjoying it.

I plan my reads for the month, too, Joyce, and then change my mind! :D

Well, yeah, but at least we start with a plan. 8D

Hi all, I'm fairly new to LT and this is the first month that I am taking part in the TIOLI challenge. I may be being a little optimistic with 7 books, as I am not an overly fast reader, but here goes.

TIOLI 2: PRESPOSITIONAL PHRASE: Of Mice And Men by John Steinbeck
TIOLI 10: A BOOK THAT HAS BEEN MADE INTO A MOVIE: The Road by Cormac McCarthy
TIOLI 10: A BOOK THAT HAS BEEN MADE INTO A MOVIE: The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson
TIOLI 11: ORANGE PRIZE LONGLIST: Annabel by Kathleen Winter
TIOLI 13: A BOOK THAT WAS PUBLISHED BEFORE I WAS BORN: Slaughterhouse-Five (1969) by Kurt Vonnegut
TIOLI 16: Autobiography, Diary or Memoir: Teacher Man by Frank McCourt
TIOLI 18: POETRY: In Cannon Cave by Carole Glasser Langille

Hi, Jon!

Welcome to LibraryThing and to the TIOLI challenges. I hope you find both greatly entertaining.

I've really liked some of the books you've listed for this month (i.e. The Road, Slaughterhouse-Five, and Teacher Man. Enjoy!!

Let's escape from the Thread Police! Follow me to this thread.

I've finished The Homeward Bounders By Diana Wynne Jones and am just about to add it to the Wiki. Haven't added any yet as I haven't really planned my reading for this month at all...

I completed The Subtle Knife last night, and Apollo's Angels: A History of Ballet tonight, both for the cover art challenge. I've clearly marked all my books in that attached thread as completed.

Apollo's Angels was a fascinating read, but it ends on a sad (though unfortunately all too true) note. Ballet was my first love, and my first heartbreak too, so I guess that's fitting.

> 280

Speaking of ballet, have you ever read The Book of Proper Names by Amélie Nothomb? If not, I think you might enjoy it, Ilana. It's about a young girl who was an aspiring ballerina. It's more of a strange read than a directly straightforward novel, but I think you'd like it.

By the way, this book is 132 pages long and set in Paris. Just sayin'. :D