Take It or Leave It Challenge - May 2015 - 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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Your challenge for May, 2015, is to…

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Read a book whose title has at least three words starting with the same letter
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Rules:
1. Use of subtitle is optional.
2. You may use added qualifiers such as “A Novel” or “Stories”, but use these only if the book’s title is listed the same way on LT.
3. You may use small words such as “the”, “it”, or “of”.
4. Only pick one letter, not multiple letters, in a title.

Here are a few books (and how they’re to be listed) to get you started:

Bachelor Brothers’ Bed & Breakfast Pillow Book (5B) – Bill Richardson
Comfort Me with Apples: More Adventures at the Table (3A) – Ruth Reichl
Dance, Dance, Dance (3D) - Haruki Murakami
The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society (3P) – Mary Ann Shaffer
Living to Tell the Tale (4T) – Gabriel Garcia Marquez
The New Wild: Why Invasive Species will be Nature's Salvation (3W) – Fred Pearce

You now know what to do…so go choose your books.

Have fun!

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Other Fun Stuff (not part of the TIOLI challenge):

1. The May 2015 TIOLI Meter - Optional page on which you may track your TIOLI reading. FYI: This is not meant to be competitive - only fun!
2. Morphidae's List of Previous TIOLI Challenges - You may use this reference (Do a control-F scan) to avoid repeating a previous challenge. If your idea is similar to a previous challenge, just make it unique by adding a new "twist" to it. (Updated 09/23/14)

Wiki Index of Challenges:

Challenges #1-6
1. Read a book whose title has at least three words starting with the same letter - msg #1
2. Read the next book in a series - msg #3
3. Read a work about/in which a volcano plays a significant role - msg #6
4. Read a book set in a city, region or country that you haven't visited yet but would like to - msg #7
5. Read a book with a sentimental dedication - msg #5 - thread
6. Read a book with a list of characters at the front - msg #8

Challenges #7-12
7. Read a regional novel - msg #11
8. Read a book that has a word in the title that means a female - msg #15
9. Read a book that you started in April, 2015, but did not finish - msg #18
10. Read a book whose author is of a different gender and ethnicity than you are - msg #27
11. Read a book where the author's last name is one of the 50 most popular languages - msg #28
12. Read a book by an author who shares a name with your mother or grandmother - msg #32

Challenges #13-18
13. Read a book written by an author from a country you've never been to - msg #34
14. Read a book about systemic oppression - msg #37
15. Read a book that involves 'aliens' - msg #43
16. Read a book with the word "us" in the title, subtitle, or author's name - msg #45
17. Read a book that's been published as a Penguin Modern Classic - msg #46
18. Read a book by an author whose first name starts with a J, or whose surname starts with a D - msg #47

Challenge #19-23
19. Read a book which starts off with a coffee - msg #56
20. Read a book which has the word May in the title or author's name - msg #59
21. Read a book you think will make you laugh (even if it doesn't) - msg #79
22. Read a book with a creepy atmosphere - msg #86
23. Read a book purchased at an independent bookstore - msg #88

Hold any further challenges until the June TIOLI challenges are posted. Thank you!

reserved for meowing

Challenge #2: Series Next Challenge - started by Lexxi
Read the next book in a series: An attempt to dip back into series long ago given up, barely touched, or actively pursuing.

Note: if you've read the second book in the series you can read the 3rd. You cannot read book 1 for this challenge nor any other book in the series. Exceptions apply*.

For each series that you read for the challenge, you can only read one work (book, short story, etc), *unless you read one book in this challenge, another in some other challenge then come back for the next. i.e., Read book 3 this challenge, book 4 some other challenge, book 5 this challenge.

If you have read books 1-5 and the current released book in the series is book 8, you cannot read book 8 for this challenge. You have to read the next book in the series, i.e., book 6.

hmm. apparently strike-out code does not work. mmphs.

eta:
hmm. Noting, somewhere how long ago you read a book in the series . . hmms . . to add or not to add, that is the question. Or a question.

eta2:
Last time I read a Deborah Knott Mystery was in 1997. So, Shooting at Loons, book 3, will be attempted 18 years after the second book in the series.

eta3: Hungry, Hungry, Hoodoo by Liz Schulte was a possible challenge 2 read. Read book one at beginning of last year. Fits perfectly with challenge 1, though.

Kindness Goes Unpunished belongs to a series I started this year.

The Only Good Priest also belongs to a series I started this year, but works for a different challenge, 4, as I've had a desire to visit Chicago. Been to Illinois numerous times. But never been to the big city of Illinois.

eta4: Last time I read a book in McCay's Stargate series was also 18 years ago. I think.
Stargate: Reconnaissance - Bill McCay - Stargate #4

:)

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Challenge #5 : Read a Book with a Sentimental Dedication
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The mother of my girlhood best friend passed away last week. She was an Alzheimers patient, cared for at home by her husband for the last ten years, along with hospice care and various of their children coming in to help. The whole family gathered as her time drew near. There was singing around her bed - her favorite songs. And a lovely, sentimental remembering of their childhood and the kind of mother she was, so dedicated to her children. In remembering Billie, I offer this challenge to read a book with a sentimental dedication.

Each can interpret sentimentality as they choose, but it must be more than "My Wife, Rose" and the like.

The dedication shan't need to be spelled out on the wiki, but I will start a separate thread for those who wish to post their book's dedication. (eta: thread for dedications: http://www.librarything.com/topic/190561 )

Examples:

A Plague on Both Your Houses - Susanna Gregory
"To my husband for his encouragement and enthusiasm."

Short Nights of the Shadow Catcher - Timothy Egan
"In memory of Joan Patricia Lynch Egan, mother of seven, who filled us with the Irish love of the underdog and of the written word. She was sustained by books until the very end."

The Shepherd of the Hills - Harold Bell Wright
"To Frances, my wife, in memory of that beautiful summer in the Ozark Hills, when, so often, we followed the Old Trail around the rim of Mutton Hollow - the trail that is nobody knows how old - and from Sammy's Lookout watched the day go over the western ridges."

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Challenge #3 -- Read a work about / in which a volcano plays a significant role.
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May is Volcano Awareness month in the state of Washington (it’s observed in January in Hawaii). Given that a new, second, very large magma chamber has just been discovered under Yellowstone and Chile’s Calbuco volcano has erupted twice in recent weeks, I thought it might be timely to do a little more reading about volcanoes.
Both fiction and nonfiction are fine. The work doesn’t have to be about a volcanic eruption, but a volcano needs to be part of the plot.

Here are a few of the many possibilities:

Fiction:
Ashes to Dust: A Thriller by Yrsa Sigurdardottir
Ashfall by Mike Mullin (first in a YA trilogy)
Bet Your Bones by Jeanne Matthews (mystery)
The Black Opera: A Novel of Opera, Volcanoes and the Mind of God by Mary Gentle (historical fantasy/alternate history)
The Golden Volcano by Jules Verne
Gone to the Forest: A Novel by Katie M. Kitamura
Journey to the Center of the Earth by Jules Verne
Landing Gear: A Novel by Kate Pullinger
The Last Girls of Pompeii by Kathryn Lasky (historical YA)
Pompeii by Robert Harris
Robinson by Muriel Spark
Under the Volcano by Malcolm Lawry (on many best/must read lists)
The Violins of Saint-Jacques: A Tale of the Antilles by Patrick Leigh Fermor
Volcano: A Novel by Endo Shusaku
The Volcano Lover: A Romance by Susan Sontag

Nonfiction:
Chasing Lava: A Geologist’s Adventures at the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory by Wendell A. Duffield
Dangerous Neighbors: Volcanoes and Cities by Grant Heiken
Fire in the Sea: The Santorini Volcano: Natural History and the Legend of Atlantis by Walter W. Friedrich and Alexander R. McBirney
Island on Fire: The Extraordinary Story of a Forgotten Volcano that Changed the World by Alexandra Witze and Jeff Kanipe
Krakatoa: The Day the World Exploded: August 27th, 1883 by Simon Winchester
The Parting of the Sea: How Volcanoes, Earthquakes, and Plagues Shaped the Story of Exodus by Barbara J. Sivertsen
Rising Fire: Volcanoes and Our Inner Lives by John Calderazzo
Super Volcano: The Ticking Time Bomb Under Yellowstone National Park by Greg Breining
Tambora: The Eruption that Changed the World by Gillen D’Arcy Wood
Volcanoes in Human History: The Far Reaching Effects of Major Eruptions by Jelle Zeilinga de Boer
Vulcan’s Fury: Man Against the Volcano by Alwyn Scarth
The Year Without Summer: 1816 and the Volcano that Darkened the World and Changed History by William K. Klingaman and Nicholas P. Klingaman

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Challenge #4: Holiday! Celebrate! Read a book set in a city, region or country that you haven't visited yet but would like to
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Summer is fast approaching, and many of us are making or have made plans for summer holidays. So, with that in mind (and with apologies to the disco group Change and its 1980 song A Lover's Holiday (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sZLGCAn9ot0)), my challenge is to read a book that is set in a place that you haven't visited yet, but either want to or have plans to do so. I'll visit Amsterdam and Utrecht for the first time in late June, and I plan to travel to the interior of Spain and Portugal in October, so my planned books will mainly reflect those locations.

The books can be of any genre (fiction, nonfiction, travel guides, travel literature, poetry, etc.). Please list the city, region or country where the book is set in your post. Books set in multiple locations are acceptable, as long as there is one that you haven't visited.

Amsterdam: A Brief Life of the City by Geert Mak (Amsterdam)
A Brief History of Seven Killings by Marlon James (Jamaica)
Fear and Loathing in La Liga: Barcelona vs Real Madrid by Sid Lowe (Madrid)
A God in Every Stone by Kamila Shamsie (Turkey)
The Ministry of Pain by Dubravka Ugrešić (Amsterdam)
Obabakoak by Bernardo Atxaga (Basque Region of Spain)
Roads to Santiago by Cees Nooteboom (various cities in the interior of Spain including Madrid)

ETA: Shared reads are allowed.

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Challenge #6 : Read a book with a list of characters at the front
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I'm afraid this is one of those months where I pick a challenge that fits a book I have to read! (it's borrowed and I've been hanging on to it for much too long). But the first half-dozen challenges I thought of had all been done previously - dates in the title, books by authors you haven't read before but where you have two or more of their books on your wishlist, books with maps, and so on... I was surprised that this one hasn't been done before, but also quite relieved!

See Post 28 Challenge #11

Just a reminder that challenges should be listed on the wiki before they are posted on the thread! :)

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Challenge #7: Read a regional novel

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A regional novel has been defined as one "describing the people and landscape of an actual locality outside the metropolis". In a regional novel, a real area and its people are integral to the story. A "region" may be a particular, distinct geographical area; it may be a conceptual territory (e.g. "the Midwest"); it may even be an entire country, if another country is considered "the norm".

For example, Walter Scott's novels set in Scotland may be considered regional, as they "sold" Scotland to English readers. Other examples are the Wessex novels of Thomas Hardy, or the Poldark series of Winston Graham, set in Cornwall. There are also authors who are considered "regional", including William Faulkner and Willa Cather.

For this challenge, the boundaries are fairly loose. If a novel feels regional to you, then it qualifies. Please list your region on the wiki.

>6 Dejah_Thoris: Just this afternoon I was thinking about what to read for the natural disaster book on my Category Challenge group Bingo card. It turns out I have The Mysterious Island waiting on my e-reader. I'm not sure how a volcano fits into the plot, but it comes up when I do a tag mash. I'll try to get to it by the end of the month.

>12 cbl_tn: How perfect, Carrie! Volcano or some variant coming up in the tags is perfectly acceptable to qualify for this Challenge. It's not the broadest of Challenges, so I have no intention of being too picky.

I love this time of the month!

I have been lurking about waiting for May's challenges!

My challenge this month is:

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Challenge #8: Read A Book That Has a Word In the Title That Means a Female

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I am looking for words that indicate a female of the species. Words like lady, dame, wife/daughter/sister, woman, her & she would all work. Miss or Mrs would work but please note that stand-alone proper names and/or embedded words are not acceptable for this challenge. A name can be in the title as long as it's not the word being used to qualify for the challenge.

(eg) Lulu would not be acceptable
Aunt Lulu would be acceptable

Shared reads are definitely welcome.

Examples of acceptable reads:

Mrs. Dalloway
Her Fearful Symmetry
Cleopatra’s Sister
Little Women

Folks, please don't rearrange the challenge numbers on the wiki. Thank you!

>9 Carmenere: Change your challenge number to match the number of the challenge when you post it on the wiki. Don't forget to post it there! I can't skip challenges there because I'm trying to get the information down only once. I take the challenge information DIRECTLY from the wiki (and not from the thread). Thanks so much!

>16 SqueakyChu: Madeline, I started at the wiki and listed my challenge as #7, then realised that there was a #7 on the thread already and went back to the wiki to change mine to #8 - leaving a spot for Carmenere. But whichever way you prefer to sort this out is okay with me.

Challenge #9: Read a book that you started in April, 2015, but did not finish

Pretty self explanatory. You have to have started a book this month and not have finished it by the end of April.

>17 lyzard:

Liz, I prefer we not skip any wiki numbers. I need one source from which to take my index, and I choose the wiki. You are correct that all challenges should be posted on the wiki first, but, if they are not, those posted on the thread cannot claim a challenge number. A challenge number is obtained only from a challenge posted on the wiki in sequential order

By the way, Liz, someone put a copy of The Monk into my Little Free Library this week. I am now registering it on BookCrossing. When I go to release it, I will link the book to our tutored read thread here on LT about The Monk.

P.S. If anyone here wants to mooch any of my tutored read books via BookMooch, I'd be glad to send then out...but within the USA only because otherwise postage is too steep. If so, just send me a private message.

>18 lindapanzo: this will be useful, I'm trying to finish a couple of novels by the end of April and not looking great for at least one of them.

>18 lindapanzo: It's looking more and more like I may not finish either of my current reads. I'm not even halfway through either of them. I should be able to finish off my current audiobook, though, and it will be a shared read!

>21 cbl_tn: I was going to put Main Street under my challenge, Carrie, but I notice that you put it elsewhere, which is fine.

Lately, I have been starting a lot of books but not finishing many.

>3 Lexxi: Lexxi, regarding Challenge #2 - can the book in question be part of a trilogy, instead of a series, as long as it isn't the first?

>19 SqueakyChu:

Okay, sorry! Trying to help and making things worse, as usual. :)

I hope The Monk finds a good home!

>22 lindapanzo: I think I listed it before you posted your challenge. It's the book I've chosen for the May AAC. I started it once years ago but didn't finish it. I'm not as excited about it as some of the other books I have planned for May, so I could end up abandoning it again...

>24 lyzard:

Oh, Liz. Things are fine...and will remain fine! I'm having fun setting up the new challenges. Everyone's excited about a new month.

Even though I register the books I release on BookCrossing, relatively few people actually journal them. I, too, hope that The Monk goes to an appreciative reader.

Challenge #10: Read a book whose author is of a different gender and ethnicity than you are

Inspired by various blog posts and discussions urging readers to seek out different perspectives than their own. Define ethnicity and gender however you generally do. Also, shared reads are allowed.

In honor of quickly approaching vacations lets consider the languages spoken throughout the world soooooo.....

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Challenge #11: Read a book where the author's last name is one of the 50 most popular languages
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Use this link to help you out http://www.photius.com/rankings/languages2.html

Examples: Nicci French
Mary English

>9 Carmenere: Sorry Madeline, I was in a hurry to get to my son's band concert at his school and though I knew I forgot something, I just didn't have the time to think about what it was. I think all is fixed now.

>29 Carmenere: Thanks, Lynda! How was the concert?

>30 SqueakyChu: Well, not that I'm bias or anything like that, Madeline, but one of the selections they played was Rhapsody in Blue. They hit the ball out of the park! It was fabulous. Thanks for asking :0)

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Challenge #12 - Read a book by an author who shares a name with your mother or grandmother
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May is when we in the U.S. celebrate Mother's Day*. For this challenge, read a book whose author shares a name with your mother or one of your grandmothers. It can be a first name, a middle name, or a nickname. Your mother's first name could be the author's last name. For example, my mother's middle name was Kay, so I could count a book by Elizabeth Kay. The author doesn't have to be female, he or she just has to share a name with your mother or grandmother. If you have a grandma Evelyn, you can read a book by Evelyn Waugh.

Examples:
The Little Stranger - Sarah Waters (grandmother ) - cbl_tn
The Peppered Moth - Margaret Drabble (grandmother) - cbl_tn
The Return of the Soldier - Rebecca West (mother) - cbl_tn

*When I lived in England I had to buy my cards in March and remember where I put them when it was time to mail them!

>31 Carmenere: That sounds fabulous! I'm always so proud of our kids when they do performances like that. My oldest son was in marching band when he was in high school. He played the saxophone in our city's Memorial Day parade. I don't know how much he liked it, but I was very proud of him marching along. He had a black and gold uniform (school colors). He said he looked like a bumble bee! :D

Challenge #13: Read a book written by an author from a country you've never been to

Stops in mass transit centers (e. g. airports) count as having been in that country.

>23 DeltaQueen50:
Yes.

>35 Lexxi: You have made my day, Lexxi! :)

Wow, I'm late to the party this time. Had a great day because my grandson hit a grand slam! It could have been greater if they'd won the game, but he accounted for 4 out of 8 of their runs, so it was a good day.

Challenge #14: Read a book about systemic oppression
I wanted to read Missoula: Rape and the Justice System in a College Town by Jon Krakauer so came up with a challenge to fit it.
The systemic oppression can be racism, slavery, colonialism, rape culture, etc. It should show a pattern of oppression not just one bad thing that happened to an individual.

My planned reads so far:
Challenge #1: Read a book whose title has at least three words starting with the same letter - started by SqueakyChu
*✔Less Medicine, More Health: 7 Assumptions That Drive Too Much Medical Care - H. Gilbert Welch (5)
Challenge #2: Series Next Challenge (Note series and #) - started by Lexxi
✔Early Warning: A novel - Jane Smiley E-Audiobook (4)
✔His Majesty's Hope - Susan Elia MacNeal - E-Audiobook (3.5)
Challenge #3: Read a work about/in which a volcano plays a significant role - started by Dejah_Thoris
Challenge #4: Holiday! Celebrate! Read a book set in a city, region or country that you haven't visited yet but would like to - started by kidzdoc
*✔Letters from Skye - Jessica Brockmole - E-Audiobook (2.5)
*✔A Tale for the Time Being - Ruth L. Ozeki - E-Audiobook Book club (5)
Challenge #5: Read a Book with a Sentimental Dedication - started by countrylife
*✔A Fatal Grace - Louise Penny E-Audiobook (4)
Challenge #6: Read a book with a list of characters at the front - started by wandering_star
*✔Blithe Spirit - Noel Coward - Audiobook (3.25)
Challenge #7: Read a regional novel - started by lyzard
Challenge #8: Read A Book That Has A Word In The Title That Means A Female - started by DeltaQueen
*✔Aunt Dimity and the Summer King - Nancy Atherton - E-Audiobook (3.25)
✔The Heretic's Daughter - Kathleen Kent - Audiobook (4)
✔The Secret History of Wonder Woman - Jill Lepore E-Book (5)
✔My Sister Lives on the Mantelpiece - Annabel Pitcher E-Audiobook (3.75)
Challenge #9: Read a book that you started in April, 2015, but did not finish - started by lindapanzo
*✔At the Water's Edge - Sarah Gruen (3.5)
*✔The Nightingale - Kristin Hannah - Audiobook (4.5)
*✔The Romanov Conspiracy - Glenn Meade E-Audiobook (3)
✔Unfamiliar Fishes - Sarah Vowel (3.5)
Challenge #10: Read a book whose author is of a different gender and ethnicity than you are - started by susanna.fraser
*✔Death by Black Hole: And Other Cosmic Quandaries - Neil deGrasse Tyson E_Audiobook (4)
Challenge #11: Read a book where the author's last name is one of the 50 most popular languages
- started by Carmenere
*✔Secret Smile - Nicci French Audiobook (4.5)
Challenge #12: Read a book by an author who shares a name with your mother or grandmother - started by cbl_tn
✔Afterimage - Helen Humphreys (4)
Challenge #13: Read a book written by an author from a country you've never been to - started by aunticlio
*✔The Alphabet House- Jussi Adler-Olsen (4)
Challenge #14: Read a book about systemic oppression - started by Citizenjoyce
*✔Missoula: Rape and the Justice System in a College Town - Jon Krakauer (5)
Challenge #15: In Honor of Star Wars Day and Towel Day read a book that involves 'aliens' - started by majkia
✔Shards of Honor - Lois McMaster Bujold E-Audiobook (3.5)
Challenge #16: Read a book with the word "us" in the title, subtitle, or author's name - started by JeanneD
Challenge #17: Read a book that's been published as a Penguin Modern Classic - started by avatiakh
Challenge #18: Read a book by an author whose first name starts with a J, or whose surname starts with a D - started by Chatterbox
Challenge #19: Read a book which starts off with a coffee - Started by paulstalder
Challenge #20: Read a book which has the word May in the title or author's name - started by fuzzi
Challenge #21: Read a book you think will make you laugh (even if it doesn't) - started by dallenbaugh
✔Make Way: 200 Years of American Women in Cartoons - Monika Franzen - (4)
Challenge #22: Read a book with a creepy atmosphere - started by lahochstetler

>11 lyzard: Would you accept a collection of linked short stories by the same author for this challenge? I plan to read Why the Devil Chose New England For His Work and would like to use it for your challenge.

>37 Citizenjoyce:

he accounted for 4 out of 8 of their runs

Hurray for your grandson, Joyce! It sounds as if you had a "party day" anyhow.

>37 Citizenjoyce: I'm currently reading Missoula since I live in the area. I won't be finished in April, so I'll be joining you in your challenge. It's a big deal here, so I'll look forward to seeing thoughts by someone living outside of ground zero.

>40 SqueakyChu: yes indeed.
>41 streamsong: good to have company

The Merry Month of May has two of the GREATEST days of the year!

No, I'm not talking about my birthday and my hubby's birthday.

I'm talking about Star Wars Day (May 4 - May the Fourth be With YOU!) and Towel Day (May 25th Grab Your Towel, Hitchhikers!)

******* Challenge #15 - Read a Book that involves Aliens ********

>39 LoisB:

Yes, that's fine, Lois.

In fact, I'll be glad to have you mix it up a bit. I thought I'd pick up one or two Sinclair Lewis readers this month, but phew! :D

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Challenge #16: Because we're all in this together, read a book with the word 'us' in the title, subtitle, or author's name
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Embedded or not.

For this challenge, I'll be reading The Human Age: The World Shaped by Us by Diane Ackerman and Trust Your Eyes by Linwood Barclay.

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Challenge #17: Read a book that's been published as a Penguin Modern Classic
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You don't need to be reading that exact edition, any edition of the book is fine. I can't find a definitive list anywhere so will link to this GR list.
https://www.goodreads.com/shelf/show/penguin-modern-classics

Add the year it was first published to wiki

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Challenge #18: Read a book by an author whose first name begins with J, or whose surname begins with D
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In memory of a much-loved friend with those initials, who adored his books even more than I did, quite possibly, and who died suddenly last week. Fairly self explanatory. If someone has two first names, either of the first names can be the "J". If it's a double-barreled-surname (eg hyphenated), the first of those surnames gets the nod. If it's a non-hyphenated surname, go for the latter of the two and treat the first part of the surname as if it were a middle name.

That's it.

Here are my planned reads for May 2015:

Challenge #2: Read the next book in a series
The Chalice, by Nancy Bilyeau: the continuing adventures of aristocratic Dominican nun Joanna Stafford, embroiled in both Tudor court intrigue and mystical prophecies

Challenge #4: Read a book set in a city, region or country that you haven't visited yet but would like to
The God of Chaos, by Tom Bradby: short-listed for the 2005 Ellis Peters Historical Dagger Award, the backdrop for this murder-mystery is Cairo as Rommel advances toward the city in June 1942

Challenge #5: Read a book with a sentimental dedication
Maya’s Notebook, by Isabel Allende: teenager in hiding on a remote Chilean island

Challenge #9: Read a book that you started in April, 2015, but did not finish
Now You See Me, by S. J. Bolton: DI Lacey Flint finds herself in the midst of the hunt for a Jack-the-Ripper wannabe
Type2, by Alicia Hendley: in this YA dystopian novel, a group of teens seek to bring down the evil Association of Psychologists and put an end to their practice of Typology without being Ended themselves

Challenge #13: Read a book written by an author from a country you've never been to
Panic in a Suitcase, by Yelena Akhtiorskaya: an immigration comedy, from Odessa (Ukraine) to Brighton Beach (USA) and back again, maybe

Challenge #16: Read a book with the word "us" in the title, subtitle, or author's name
The Human Age: The World Shaped by Us, by Diane Ackerman: a (mostly hopeful) look at humans and our new role as the primary agents of change on Planet Earth
Trust Your Eyes, by Linwood Barclay: two brothers, one a map-obsessed schizophrenic who believes he’s working for the CIA and former president Bill Clinton, get caught up in a web of political intrigue and murder

I am quite excited: Type2 is my Early Reviewers debut!

On the other hand, I’m a bit bummed that I don’t have any shared reads this month (breaking a 5-month streak), so I’m hoping that either (a) these little blurbs I’ve written will entice someone to join me or (b) I’ll finish this list early enough to be able to join someone else in one of their reads. (I'm taking a break from Miéville this month, so it could happen!)

>43 majkia: Do "cyborgs" qualify as "aliens" ?

#49 by @LoisB> sure! Humans do to, on a strange world.

>50 majkia: How about Discworldians?

>50 majkia: Thanks - that may be my inspiration to read Cinder: Book One of the Lunar Chronicles which is on my TBR list.

#51 by @streamsong> Of course!

Here is what I'm planning for May 2015:

COMPLETED 5/8/2015 1. Read a book whose title has at least three words starting with the same letter
10% Happier: How I Tamed the Voice in My Head, Reduced Stress, Without Losing My Edge, And Found Self-Help That Actually Works A True Story

COMPLETED 5/25/20152. Read the next book in a series
Murder At Midnight

COMPLETED 5/31/2015>4. Read a book set in a city, region or country that you haven't visited yet but would like to
If You Lived Here, I'd Know Your Name

COMPLETED 5/30/2015>7. Read a regional novel
Ross Poldark

COMPLETED 5/23/2015 8. Read a book that has a word in the title that means a female
The Girls of Atomic City

COMPLETED 5/16/2015 9. Read a book that you started in April, 2015, but did not finish.
American Gods

COMPLETED 5/29/2015 10. Read a book whose author is of a different gender and ethnicity than you are The Alchemist

COMPLETED 5/10/2015 13. Read a book written by an author from a country you've never been to
A Week in Winter

Eight books is doable. I've started the Gaiman so it is the first book for the month. I skipped April for some grazing but am happy with this list for May. The challenges always help me find books that I had forgotten about or not even considered.

5/25/2015: Three to go...guess eight was a little ambitious with all the gardening that needs to be done!
5/29/2015: I might just make it!
5/31/2015: I did it! And read some excellent books!

Madeline, the TIOLI Meter seems to be pointing to May 2014. :)

Challenge #19: Read a book which starts off with a coffee

Read a book wherein the first sentence starts with coffee being made, grounded, poured, drunk, slurped, spilled, ...
It must be explicitly mentioned that something is done to or with the coffee. The simple mentioning of a coffee shop or coffee brown skin or coffee mug does not qualify.
Indicate the action

Darky Green : Roman by Adrian Plass (Am Mittwoch um fünf Uhr nachmittags trinkt Vaughn Macey schwarzen Kaffee in seiner Wohnung über der Drogerie in Lipsham.) -> (drinks)

does not count:
Everyone Is Beautiful by Katherine Center (The day I decided to change my life, I was wearing sweatpants and an old oxford of Peter's with a coffee stain down the front.)

edited to add: you may also look for latte, cappuccino, macchiato, espresso, decaf, ristretto, mélange, ....

>32 cbl_tn:
Challenge #12 - Read a book by an author who shares a name with your mother or grandmother

I'll be reading a book by Paulo Coelho this month. My grandmother's maiden name was Paul. Can this count as a match?

>56 paulstalder: I like this idea...now, I just need to find a book that matches...

*****Challenge #20: Read a book which has the word May in the title or author's name*****

Self-explanatory! :)

>57 AuntieClio: It needs to be a first name, middle name, or nickname. If she used her maiden name as her middle name after her marriage (which is common in the southern U.S.) it would work.

>55 lyzard: Fixed. Thanks!

>56 paulstalder:

Haha! This is true, Paul. I fixed the TIOLI meter link, got up to make a fresh cup of hot coffee, sat down with it at my computer, and jumped right to your challenge. :D

>56 paulstalder: Read a book which starts off with a coffee

How are we supposed to find these books?

>11 lyzard: - For challenge 7, I would like to read Small Mercies which is set on Staten Island, one of the boroughs of New York City but the one with the most distinct and different "feel." It's more suburban than urban and many of the communities have a small town sense of community about them. But it is still technically part of the city, so I'm wondering if it qualifies.

>63 SqueakyChu: I usually look at the Wiki, and see if there are any books there I can read.

Maybe go to google.com and choose the "books" option, searching for "coffee"?

Google books usually gives you the first page to read, as amazon.com does, too...sometimes.

>63 SqueakyChu: >65 fuzzi:

A list of suggested books would help us. Hint! Hint! :)

>63 SqueakyChu: I'm not sure if it is searchable or not, but the "Common Knowledge" field in LibraryThing has an option for the first line.

>67 thornton37814: I was just going to suggest that! You can search it by going to >Zeitgeist > Common Knowlegde and selecting First words from the drop down list of fields next to the search box.

>66 SqueakyChu: I checked out the novel The coffee trader and the first sentence is all about coffee though I don't think it quite meets the criteria unless 'rippled' counts as an action.

>67 thornton37814: >68 cbl_tn:

Fair enough!

By the way, any suggestions for this challenge would be much appreciated. :)

A few titles that I think would fit the coffee challenge:

Mr. White's Confession (drinking coffee)
Stone Cold (made coffee)
Sonoma Rose (sipping coffee)

>69 avatiakh: Yes, that was what I was hoping to read for this challenge, and I'm not sure that it qualifies, either. Paul, could you rule on this?

Otherwise, I think I'll probably pass on this challenge. This requires so much effort simply to identify the book, and there is such a small group of books that might even qualify (not just the first page, but the first sentence? active verb, not just a reference?) that it's frustrating. Usually it's fun to see what you can do to find a book that will work, and even push your comfort boundaries (space operas...) but this is so hyper-specific as to exclude even a novel that is all about coffee, and whose first scene involves sipping coffee? Sigh. Some challenges are incredibly broad; others are incredibly narrow. Then....

some suggestions of/to start with coffee:
Stone Cold by David Baldacci (make)
Vater unser : Thriller by Jilliane Hoffman (leeren - finish)
Rumpole and the Reign of Terror by John Mortimer (consume)
Tea from an Empty Cup by Pat Cadigan (sip)
A Small Sacrifice by Ellen Hart (sip)
The Betsy by Harold Robbins (sip)
Liebe mit offenen Augen : Roman by Jorge Bucay (holen)
Riad an der Seine by Pierre Dragon (machen)
Yvette und andere Novellen by Guy de Maupassant (trinken)
Ein Haus in Cornwall : Roman by Marcia Willett (einschenken)
My Salinger Year by Joanna Rakoff (order)
An Imperfect Offering: Humanitarian Action for the Twenty-First Century by James Orbinski (have)
Awakening Heart by Melody Carlson (pour)
Daily Rituals: How Artists Work by Mason Currey (made)
The Third Gate by Lincoln Child (help to)
When the Killing's Done by T.C. Boyle (make)

or better still go to your library or bookshop and look up the beginning of each book - have fun

>69 avatiakh: >72 Chatterbox: I'm afraid that book doesn't qualify. The first words read: 'It rippled thickly in the bowl, dark and hot and uninviting.' I would accept the 'ripple' - but the sentence doesn't clearly state anything about coffee - it could be some broth, or soup, or blood. Sorry

The German reads: 'Dicker als Wasser oder Wein kräuselte sich die Flüssigkeit in der Schale, dunkel und heiss und wenig einladend.' That this should be coffee gets only clear a few paragraphs later.

>72 Chatterbox: and >73 paulstalder: Suzanne, have you read My Salinger Year? I know you didn' t like her novel, which I haven't yet read, but I enjoyed this memoir.

>73 paulstalder: Nice challenge, Paul! Thanks for that list of books, as it reminded me that I did want to read An Imperfect Offering: Humanitarian Action for the Twenty-First Century. I'll download the Kindle version of it now, and read it at the end of this month.

Keep those coffee book suggestions coming, folks, until we hit some that Chatterbox and others like. The issue is that these books need to be easily obtainable as well.

My coffee opener suggestion is the Turkish mystery, The Prophet Murders by Mehmet Murat Somer. Someone grabs a cup of coffee in the first sentence. May might be the month I finally get to this one.

I was intrigued once by a review calling the sleuth "Istanbul's Miss Marple." Of course, that's if Miss Marple was a transvestite. This series is campy, witty, and, fun. Now if I can just find my copy...

Challenge #21: Read a book you think will make you laugh (even if it doesn't) Tell us if it made you laugh.

This challenge is in honor of Jerome K Jerome's birthday born May 2nd, 1859, the author of Three Men in a Boat. Very funny! Connie Willis does a SF takeoff on the book entitled To Say Nothing of the Dog

Search under:

comedy or funny mystery or romantic comedy or funny science fiction, etc

Don't forget Bill Bryson for non-fiction.

Shortcut for Carrie's suggestion:

https://www.librarything.com/commonknowledge/search.php?q=coffee&f=25

From these results I can recommend:
The Killer Inside Me by Jim Thompson
The Spy Who Came In From the Cold by John LeCarré
Fuzzy Sapiens by H. Beam Piper

I haven't read The Road to Wellville but it's been on my list forever. Maybe this month ...

>78 lindapanzo: Go ahead with that one - grabbing is as good as making or getting a coffee (even better than spilling...)

>79 dallenbaugh: that's the way

>81 paulstalder: Now I just need to find it.

Cleo Coyle has a series of coffeeshop mysteries. You'd think at some point someone in the first sentence would be making or drinking or even spilling coffee but I haven't checked.

>64 katiekrug:

I guess that would qualify as long as the book itself features that "distinct and different feel" - you'll have to make the call on that. :)

>75 elkiedee: Nope, I didn't feel like bothering with the memoir, which is a genre I have only about 50/50 success with, given my dislike for the novel. Especially since the elements of that novel that I didn't like -- I found it very "first world problems by over-privileged early millennials" in nature -- might be reflected in the tone of the memoir. If I were a die-hard Salinger cult figure, I might sample it. But -- too many books, too little time. There's too much else to read.

>60 cbl_tn: Thanks for the clarification.

Challenge 22: Read a book with a creepy atmosphere
Everyone's doing bright and springy challenges, so I'm here to darken the mood.

> 6 Great volcano list. Thanks

Challenge 23: Read a book purchased at an independent bookstore

It's Authors For Indies day here in Canada. Authors are helping independent bookstores celebrate and support their existence!

I work in an indie so please, support your local bookseller this month.

(If you purchased your book from an independent prior to this month, that's fine. Shared reads whatever their provenance are also fine).

Today is also the first Independent Bookstore Day (formerly California Bookstore Day) in the U.S.!

(I work at an indie too - wishing I'd thought of this. Great challenge Jen! :)

I note that challenges 3, 4, 9, 10, 12, 13 and 23 are all personal in some way to each TIOLI reader. What's the position with shared reads in these challenges? I could probably find a book for each challenge if I get to it, but people have listed several books I'd really like to read but don't fit the criteria for me, especially in challenges 9 and 10.

>90 elkiedee: I thimk the usual policy is that shared reads are allowed unless the person who posts the challlenge states otherwise. Shared reads are acceptable for my challenge (12).

>91 cbl_tn:

the usual policy is that shared reads are allowed unless the person who posts the challenge states otherwise

Correct.

>11 lyzard: I highly recommend the Poldark books! They are best read in order, but can be read otherwise if you can't find them at the library or through ILL. It took me a few months, but I finally found and bought them all, in VG condition, and without breaking the bank. :)

>90 elkiedee: Shared reads are also fine with mine (10).

>90 elkiedee: Shared reads are fine with mine (#9) as long as the original poster started the book in April.

>90 elkiedee: I mentioned at the bottom of my post in >7 kidzdoc: that shared reads are allowed.

>88 JenMDB: It's probably stretching the definition quite a bit, but I buy lots of my books from Abe booksellers who are small and often family-owner businesses without or without brick and mortar shops (in this case, not indicated, but I would guess not). Would that fit your challenge? The book I have in mind could fit into other challenges, but I'm trying to spread out as much as possible this month.

>47 Chatterbox: Suz, would Daphne Du Maurier fit into your challenge?

>88 JenMDB: would an independent used bookstore qualify for your challenge?

I just finished the wonderful Missoula: Rape and the Justice System in a College Town by Jon Krakauer and was extra happy to see an interview with the author:

https://medium.com/galleys/jon-krakauer-if-you-re-not-a-feminist-then-you-re-a-p...

Probably you shouldn't read it unless you've finished the book or know what happened. I must have been living under a rock because I hadn't heard about the whole "Missoula is the rape capital of America" thing. When I was in college (in the days of the dinosaurs) Boulder, Colorado had that distinction. This is one of my favorite types of books, one that takes complex ideas and makes them understandable. Non-stranger rape, in these days of "real" rape and "honest" rape is a concept that is hard for people to understand. The studies cited really are as surprising as Montana politics.

>87 JenMDB: Thanks! There are a lot of volcano books out there - in fact I was shocked to see how many children's and YA books with volcanoes I found, although I listed very few of them.

There's been another eruption - actually, two. Calbuco in Chile erupted for a third time and an undersea volcano has been erupting 300 miles off the coast of Oregon. And Kilauea is still going.....

>100 Citizenjoyce: "Missoula is the rape capital of America" thing. Yeah, that's what Missoulians and officials of the U of M are afraid will be the take away, even though Krakauer himself says in the book that the rapes per capita are similar or even lower than other college towns. It's just that in Missoula, rape has a dismally low level of being charged and prosecuted with problems with both the police and the DA's office, and as he said, the townspeople taking the side of football players no matter what the evidence, up to and including confession. (Go to Ammy, check the "Look inside this book" and search on 'Capital'.)

I feel the book is pretty well balanced

Thanks for posting the interview link. He's a very thoughtful guy. I had no idea he had grown up in the area.

I'm thinking about going to Krakauer's talk in Missoula tomorrow. My fear is that it will be so overcrowded it will be a total waste of town to drive down there.

>102 streamsong: Considering the reverence for football, do you think the talk will be disrupted by Grizzlies? I think it helpful that he compared Missoula to other college towns. Football is football everywhere, it seems.

>103 Citizenjoyce:. No. I imagine the coaches have threatened the athletes with dire consequences and made them aware that the best way to discredit Krakauer would be to be complete gentlemen and perhaps even to stay away altogether. But you're right, If there is a disruption, it may possibly come from community fans. However I suspect there will be off duty cops there to hear what the man has to say, and probably other security as well.

>98 Smiler69: Yes, I think so. I've seen her books shelved under "D" in libraries and bookshelves.

I've started reading How to Start a Fire by Lisa Lutz for the humorous novel challenge, since eveyone says it's supposed to be quirky and make you laugh. Hasn't happened for me yet, I confess, but here's hoping.

I've started reading Nicci French's Secret Smile for challenge #11. I've read, and very much liked, a couple of her other books, but this one is so creepy I can take it for just short periods. Ick. I can't imagine how it's going to end, but I already want to shoot someone.

>105 Chatterbox: Lisa Lutz has a new book out? Her book, Heads You Lose was hilarious to me and I loved her Spellman books.

>107 raidergirl3: It's an ARC; the publication date is next week. I just finished it, and while I'd call all the characters quirky (and most are very dysfunctional), little of it was funny. There are some isolated funny moments, but it's actually quite a dark novel. I hadn't read anything by her before.

>86 lahochstetler: Can you define "creepy" a bit for me? I'm reading a novel involving espionage in Nazi-occupied France -- it's eerie, it's dark, but it's not spooky, in the sense of haunted, if that's what you were aiming at. Do you think this would fit or not?

>109 Chatterbox:- anything that creeps you out is fine.

>110 lahochstetler: Well, it's suspenseful enough to give me the cold shivers?

yeah, I would say Nazis can definitely count as creepy.

Oh, good, a book has found a home.

I just put Gateway in the alien challenge. We never meet any of hte Heechee, but they are key to the story for the artifacts and navigation complex they left behind.

Well, we've got almost a third of the month gone already, but I thought I'd still post my (overly ambitious) reading plans in case anyone is interested in a shared read:

TIOLI #1: Title has at least three words starting with the same letter
The Lost City of Z: A Tale of Deadly Obsession in the Amazon by David Grann - Listening

TIOLI #2: Series Next Challenge
L'Affaire Saint-Fiacre / Maigret Goes Home #13 by Georges Simenon

TIOLI #4: set in a city, region or country that you haven't visited yet but would like to
The Farm by Tom Rob Smith
Hungry Hill by Daphne du Maurier
Maigret chez les Flamands / Maigret and the Flemish Shop #14 by Georges Simenon

TIOLI #5: Read a Book with a Sentimental Dedication
All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr

TIOLI #6: A book with a list of characters at the front
The Iron King by Maurice Druon

TIOLI #7: Read a regional novel
Castle Rackrent by Maria Edgeworth - Reading
Ross Poldark Winston Graham
Babbitt by Sinclair Lewis
Elmer Gantry by Sinclair Lewis

TIOLI #8: A word in the title that means a Female
The Red Queen by Margaret Drabble

TIOLI #9: A book that you started in April
Catharine and Other Writings by Jane Austen - Reading
Men at Arms: Discworld, Book 15 by Terry Pratchett

TIOLI #10: Author is of a different gender and ethnicity than you are
The Leopard by Guisepe Di Lampedusa

TIOLI #11: Author's last name is one of the 50 most popular languages
The Likeness by Tana French

TIOLI #12: An author who shares a name with your mother or grandmother
A Dubious Legacy by Mary Wesleye
The Circular Staircase by Mary Roberts Rinehart

TIOLI #13: Written by an author from a country you've never been to
Alphabet House by Jussi Adler-Olsen

TIOLI #14: A book about systemic oppression
The Zone of Interest by Martin Amis

TIOLI #15: A book that involves 'aliens'
A Princess of Mars by Edgar Rice Burroughs

TIOLI #16: Read a book with the word "us" in the title, subtitle, or author's name
A Red Herring Without Mustard by Alan Bradley

TIOLI #17: A book that's been published as a Penguin Modern Classic
The Garden Party and Other Stories by Katherine Mansfield

TIOLI #18: By an author whose first name starts with a J, or whose surname starts with a D
Fifth Business by Robertson Davies

TIOLI #21: Read a book you think will make you laugh
The Grand Sophy by Georgette Heyer - Listening

TIOLI #22: Read a book with a creepy atmosphere
Child 44 by Tom Rob Smith

TIOLI #23: Read a book purchased at an independent bookstore
Euphoria by Lily King

>115 Smiler69: love, love, LOVE the Poldark books!

>116 fuzzi: Yes, I've heard so much about them here on LT that I decided I must take the plunge!

>117 Smiler69: you won't be able to put them down...

TIOLI Question of the Month:

Did you start reading any book this month and decide not to finish it? If so, which book was it and why? Do you think you'll ever give that book a second chance?

>119 SqueakyChu:

The book I quit reading was Turtle Moon by Alice Hoffman. It had too many characters, and I got bored while trying to keep those characters straight. I like when characters interact from the beginning of a book, not when each character has his or her own chapter...and then later I have to remember who was who and wait until some distant time to see how they will interact.

I probably will not try that book again, although I'll give this author another chance. I've read one of hers I liked (Practical Magic) and one I didn't (Back Here on Earth). However, I will not be rushing back to read something else of hers.

>119 SqueakyChu: No, not this month. Not yet. I have 30 books on my "did not finish" shelf, though none this year. 8 on my paused shelf. Which includes two from this year, none from this month.

The books I've paused this year are Black Gun, Silver Star: The Life and Legend of Frontier Marshal Bass Reeves (tried in April) & Only Superhuman (tried in March).

Black Gun, Silver Star was a little too much of a "and then this happened. . . . and then this happened". It wasn't as bad as some reviews I'd seen of it, but somewhere along the way I paused. Plus I saw a version of the book I could read that had higher ratings and looked doable. Oh, and importantly, free. So I read that version. Immediately saw issues with what was being presentated in the short work and long work. Contradictions. I was going to make note of the contradictions, but then I never finished the Black Gun book, then I forgot specifics.

Only Superhuman, though, I'd paused because I couldn't stand the main character any longer. Or the main story line. Or any of the subplots. Or any of the subcharacters. hmms. I probably need to move that one to DNR.

>119 SqueakyChu: I started The Year Without Summer: 1816 and the Volcano That Darkened the World and Changed History for the volcano challenge. I didn't like the writing style. As Lexxi said above, it was "this happened ... and then this happened". I've renewed it at the library, so there's a slight chance I might get back to it, but it's not looking good.

>121 Lexxi: >122 LoisB:

It's really hard to get back to "paused" books, isn't it?! :)

I paused with No Graves As Yet by Anne Perry.
It didn't fit a challenge category this month and I have a pile of challenge books to finish.
I was liking Graves so I know I'll pick it up again.

>121 Lexxi: I felt the same way you did at the beginning of Black Gun, Silver Star and also was going to chuck it. In fact, I remember thinking at one time it was the worst book ever written, but since I devised a challenge just so I could read that specific book, I felt I had to press on. I'm glad I did. After a few chapters it was as if the author finally figured out how to write, and he was able to present an interesting and thought provoking history of black marshalls and their time. It's a book well worth reading, but it's a shame his editor didn't convince him to go back and rewrite the beginning.
The book I've abandoned this month was a big surprise to me, The Dream Lover by Elizabeth Berg. I've read and enjoyed several other books by Berg, so was expecting to feel the same about this one. The fact that the subject was the fascinating George Sand should have guaranteed my interest. But I found it not only boring in the extreme but apologetic for the choices Sand made in her life. I know she was a rebel, but rather than presenting her in that way it felt like Berg was trying to gloss over and minimalize major decisions in her life. I didn't even make it far enough to read about Chopin. Maybe some day I'll get back to it. Perhaps my disdain was just a function of my mood and another day, another time it will feel more meaningful.

I haven't dropped anything this month, but this year I dropped Station Eleven (twice), a book almost everyone else seemed to love. I read another book by St John Mandel and liked it and in general I like dystopian novels, but this book just didn't catch my interest. I may give it another try sometime since I stopped both times at the same point, so maybe if I read just a little further I would like it and finish it.

>119 SqueakyChu: not this month, but last month I gave up on The Lightning Thief after 100 pages. I have absolutely NO plans to ever again attempt to read anything written by Rick Riordan.

I'm in a slump, and have not read anything since Saturday. :(

>127 fuzzi:

Get out of your slump, fuzzi. Read Bram Stoker's Dracula. You'll really like it. I found that book on your ROOTS 2015 "To Read" list. :D

Rick Riordan is an author that visitors to my Little Free Library like. To each his own, I guess. :)

>128 SqueakyChu: LOL, thanks.

I have another ROOT book I was considering for tonight, The Pilgrim's Progress. I just have to get off the internet...

I haven't actually given up on any reads as yet though have several on slow read mode so might not finish them by the end of the month.

>119 SqueakyChu: : I abandoned my read for the American Author Challenge - Elmer Gantry by Sinclair Lewis. The more audiobooks I can find, the more I'm able to get "read". This audio, however, just rubbed me the wrong way. It was as if to instill the character with a slimy heart, the narrator went overboard. And I wasn't enjoying the story, either. So I have no plans to pick up this, or anything else, by Lewis. Thus ends my purist streak with AA.

Epitaph, a novel by Mary Doria Russell, about the gunfight at the OK Corral, has gotten great reviews but I'm just not in the mood for it right now so I've put it aside for awhile.

I did the same with my first Mary Doria Russell book a few months ago and, when I returned to it, I absolutely loved it.

I feel like I have a short attention span right now so I have a 160 page novel, Coventry going (need to find a TIOLI location for it though), as well as a quick read mystery, Dead Rapunzel.

I'm not in a reading slump, per se, but I've gotten so busy with getting ready for our big European trip next month and also with some personal writing projects that I've only finished two books all month. I know I'll read again eventually--quite possibly starting on our long plane ride from Seattle to London--and I decided that for now getting ready for the trip and writing while the words are flowing was more important than my wholly arbitrary goal of reading 150 books this year.

>118 fuzzi: Well, you were right about my first Poldark experience! I wasn't able to put the book down, somehow doubled my reading speed back to what it was like when a very young woman, and stayed up late late late into the nights to devour Ross Poldark. I've requested all following 11 books from the library as audiobooks (for the first 3) and ebooks, which suggestion they've approved, so now waiting impatiently to jump into Demelza! What a wonderful journey!

>119 SqueakyChu: To answer your question of the month Madeleine, there's one book I started and very much wanted to finish this month, but it was an audiobook I'd copied from a CD from the library, and somehow the tracks for The Iron King by Maurice Druon got shuffled around because of some mistake I made in the transfer. It took me a third of the book to realize it wasn't 'just me', and that the narrative was indeed all mixed up, which is why I couldn't make sense of the story, but the bits I did make out of this part of French history from the 14th century were fascinating, so now I'm just waiting for the CD from the library again so I can start all over. So in this case obviously, I temporarily dropped the book, but only to get back to it with greater interest still.

I do give up on books once in a while after I've given them a proper chance when they make me feel excessively depressed or annoyed, or generally brush me the wrong way, figuring life is too short, and my tbr too huge (currently standing at 1,865 titles!) for me to waste my time on books I'm not in any way enjoying or which are dragging me down excessively. Happily, this doesn't happen to often, as I like to think I'm fairly broad-minded.

Back in March, I dropped Perdido Street Station by China Mieville, which I strongly hesitated to do because I loved The City & The City so much and I was all too aware the story was developing into a fascinating one, but when it became evident that the details of the narrative too closely resembled my worst nightmares with descriptions of absolute freaks of nature (a theme often revisited by my subconscious, to my great distress), I decided it was probably kinder to my psyche and mental stability to just let it go...

>134 Smiler69: yes!!!!!!

Don't worry, it's a great addiction. You'll laugh, you'll cry, and kiss your life goodbye (until you finish the series). :D

>128 SqueakyChu: slump broken! A copy of Sink the Bismarck! arrived yesterday, and I delved into it last night. I should finish tonight.

None of my ROOTs appealed to me, I needed something new...

>136 fuzzi:

Once a book becomes a ROOT, it simply loses its appeal. *sigh*

>137 SqueakyChu: you are absolutely right...although sometimes they wind up appealing, at some point. My ROOTs all appealed to me at the beginning...

>136 fuzzi: >137 SqueakyChu: ROOTs?

>139 Smiler69: There's a ROOT group here so I assume they're referring to that. It stands for Reading Our Own Tomes. Basically, books we've owned for awhile.

>139 Smiler69:

Haha!
http://www.librarything.com/groups/2015rootchallengerea

>119 SqueakyChu: The Alchemist. No I will not give it a second chance. It's so poorly written I need to bleach my brain.

>142 AuntieClio:

The Alchemist. No I will not give it a second chance.

Haha! I hated that book. One of my friends presented that book to me as a gift and started to read it to me. In the meantime, I passed it along to someone else without telling my friend. I hope she never notices it's missing! Shhhh!

>142 AuntieClio:, >143 SqueakyChu: I also got that book as a Christmas present a few years ago. I have to admit I didn't even start it because I thought it was about spiritual life guidance and it didn't sound like anything that would appeal. I still have it though. I don't have your courage, Madeline.

>144 Citizenjoyce:

I didn't want to read it. I had it read to me until I distracted my friend from doing that. Shhh! :)

It's a fable. I really dislike reading fables. The last fable I forced myself through was The Richest Man in Babylon. I hope that will be the last fable I'll ever read. I only read that book because it was recommended by Michelle Singletary who writes the column "The Color of Money" for The Washington Post.

For my coffee challenge I read the short story by Tennessee Williams: Mama's old stucco house, which appeared in: Der fahrende Ritter und andere Erzählungen.

Another short story with coffee in the first line is George Saunders' "The Barber's Unhappiness" in his book Pastoralia. I found the whole short story in pdf form after googling the name of the short story.

This has been a really "bad" month for TIOLI for me...I've only gotten three done, and can't find books I want to read for most of the challenges.

I hope June is better! :(

For me, the end of every month has been a bit depressing. I enthusiastically add books to the challenge at the start of each month only to delete the majority of them at month's end. :O( This month, I've just discovered how enjoyable it is to finish a book and then find a challenge where I can place it. :O) I know, I know, not really how it's supposed to work but I'll try it this way for awhile and kiss depression goodbye.

May has been a slower month for me reading-wise and even though there is one more week to go, I can see that I am going to have to remove a few books from this month's challenges. :(

>119 SqueakyChu: TIOLI Question of the Month:

Did you start reading any book this month and decide not to finish it? If so, which book was it and why? Do you think you'll ever give that book a second chance?

I wasn't going to answer this question because I rarely abandon books. You must have jinxed me, Madeline, because I had two in a row that didn't appeal to me at all for various reasons, mostly because of my prudishness: The Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid and The Toughest Indian in the World. Both were by authors I've liked in the past. Bill Bryson grossed me out with too many fart jokes…and Sherman Alexie repelled me with a male (almost) rape scene in the second story. Both books are now on my trade-in pile. I am so sad that these were the only books I owned that would fit your challenge this month. I've been there for you since the first TIOLI challenge in January of 2011. You finally stumped me!!!

>151 Donna828:

So sorry about that, Donna. I must have know than this was going to happen...or why had I even asked that question!? :O

TIOLI Stats for April, 2015:

This was an interesting month since short poetry (works counting as books) figure into the stats. Here's what I found.

For the month of April, 2015, there were a total of 658 books read, of which 203 or 31% were shared reads. We reached a YTD total of 358 YTD TIOLI points - a new record. No other new records were set in any other parameter.

The most popular book was The Bloody Chamber by Angela Carter with 9 readers.

The most popular challenge was AnneDC's challenge to read a poem whose title starts with the next letter in the alphabetical series. There were 148 works (counting as books for stats purposes here) read.

The highest number of TIOLI points per challenge were 109 for AnneDC's challenge to read a poem whose title starts with the next letter in the alphabetical series.

Stay tuned for the April, 2015, TIOLI Awards yet to come...

>119 SqueakyChu: I don’t usually abandon many books, but I have put down three this month. Fire in the Sea: The Santorini Volcano: Natural History and the Legend of Atlantis sounded absolutely fascinating, but turned out to be incredibly dry. I’ve still got it out from the library and I might give it another shot (I read about 1/6 of it.) Another of my volcano books that I put down was The Black Opera, which is an alternate history / fantasy novel to which a volcano is central – in fact it opens with the eruption of Tambora in 1815. I’ll almost certainly finish this one – it just wasn’t working for me at the time.

Finally, I picked up Unbreakable, a military SF novel with a strong female heroine that a friend of mine loved. Unfortunately, this was the second time I tried it and I still just didn’t like it, although it’s of a genre I generally enjoy. I doubt I’ll ever pick this one up again.

>122 LoisB: I had to laugh when I read your post - The Year Without Summer was a bit of a slog at times, wasn’t it? I think the historian of the pair was so thrilled with every bit of evidence he found he simply had to add it all – and the result was miserably repetitive! It did improve in late chapters, but overall I was a little disappointed.

>153 SqueakyChu: Interesting stats, Madeline – and I’m looking forward to the Awards!

Aha! Here they are...

The April, 2015, TIOLI Awards!

The Er, What Was That Award goes to swynn for reading Money Shot for majkia's challenge to read a book where the cover, the author's name, or the title has something to do with "green". This award is derived from the explanation that "'green' is a metonymy for "money" in American English. I had to look up the word "metonymy...and learned a new word. That is a really good word to know. Thank you!

The You Could Have Fooled Me Award goes to Lexxi for reading アナザー・レッスン (Another Leason) - by 毛野 楊太郎 for lyzard's challenge to read a book whose narrator is the opposite sex from the author. Since I don't read Japanese, I have no idea what the sex of the author is by the name written in Japanese. I'm assuming this is Japanese since the book appears to be manga. Correct me if I'm wrong. Is the script kanji? Anyway I certainly have no idea of the author's sex...nor am I going to investigate it. Ha!

The There's One in Every Crowd Award goes to thornton37814 for reading Before You Plan Your Wedding . . . Plan Your Marriage for susanna.fraser's challenge to read a book with a four-letter word in the title. Not only did this challenger read a book with a four-letter word in the title, she read a book with four four-letter words in the title. Excellent!

The Ah! So Sweet Award goes to Chatterbox for reading The Perfume Garden for LizzieD's challenge to read a book that reminds you of an old Yardley scent: April Violets, Red Roses, English Lavender, or Lemon Verbena. This challenger, rather than pick one fragrance, chose to read a book whose title included them all. Very clever!

The Poetry Appreciation Award (Awwwww!) goes to AnneDC for her rolling challenge to read a poem whose title starts with the next letter in the alphabetical series. I think I'm the only challenger who didn't get to my designated poem, but others were very taken by this challenge, and many of you jumped on the chance to go back to read some fine poetry.

The You Can't See the Forest for the Trees Award goes to fuzzi for reading The Eighty-Dollar Champion: Snowman, The Horse That Inspired a Nation and to paulstalder for reading Der leichte Stein. Both of these challengers found trees in more than one word embedded in their book's title. Very good spying!

Congrats to our award winners!

>153 SqueakyChu: Thanks for the award Madeleine!

(I can see the challenge now: "Read a book whose title uses metonymy ... ")

>156 swynn:

I can see the challenge now: "Read a book whose title uses metonymy ... "

Don't laugh...

LOL!!

>155 SqueakyChu: hehe, thanks. Winning an award for reading erotica. hehe. I wouldn't know the sex by knowing the authors name in English or Japanese, heh. 毛野 楊太郎 or Keno Yantaroh. I looked it up at some point to learn that was a man. I can't look the name up on my work computer. heh. The main character, the narrator is a woman. Wait. I didn't remember the book until I looked up the description. I remember now. Maybe it's the other way around. Man main character, woman author. Bah. I had this information at some point but can't get at it at the moment.

Looked on my phone. All the websites I found were not helpful. I know there was one that gave me the information. hmms.

And yeah, that's manga. One of those Japanese graphic novels, written the opposite direction of American graphic novels. The Europeans and Japanese graphic novel markets seem to have a wide mainstream adult graphic novel market, while that almost doesn't exist in the USA. At least mainstream (there was a massive crack down on what can be seen/shown in graphic novels/comics in the USA on several levels in, roughly, the 1950s that continued somewhat until the '70s or thereabouts; and mainstream comic companies were still somewhat shellshocked going into the '80s, though things like Watchmen started appearing in the '80s; comics actually were a lot more broader in subject matter and reading level before the crackdown). With exceptions. And by adult, I mean by rating.

I do not normally read manga, though I do on occasion. If you ever saw Tom Cruise's "Edge of Tomorrow" that . . . hmm. I was going to say that started off as manga. But it didn't. It started off as a Japanese novel that got converted to a manga before the movie appeared. Titled, in English, "All You Need is Kill".

Highly unlikely to see "Another Leason" appear on US screens, though. Maybe if it was adapted by a European film company t hen imported. I mean, Fifty Shades of Grey was adapted and appeared on USA film screens, but any Japanese source material of similar genre being adapted seems unlikely.

Actually, I'm somewhat surprised All You Need is Kill got adapted into a US film off the novel. Most of the time the US adaptions of Japanese material seem to be made based off Japanese films. As in already converted to film. Makes me wonder if there's a Japanese film out there that appeared before Edge of Tomorrow appeared.

I have no idea why I'm rambling.

ETA: Oh, and "kanji?" - I do not know if it is kanji (Japanese using Chinese characters), or kana (Japanese using Japanese characters; or, if it is kana, if it is hiagana (ordinary syllabic script), katakana (fragmentary kana)). I just know that it isn't romaji (using Latin script to write Japanese). And unlikely to be Man'yōgana.

the same phrase:
Man'yōgana: 之乎路可良
Katakana: シヲヂカラ
Modern: 志雄路から
Romanized: Shioji kara

>155 SqueakyChu: thanks for the award! It wasn't an intentional read for that challenge: I'd decided to read the book already, when...there was the larch, looking at me from the title! :D

The Larch: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ug8nHaelWtc (first 35 seconds)

>158 Lexxi:

Maybe it's the other way around. Man main character, woman author.

If you're confused, it's no wonder why I was confused! Heh.

I'm very familiar with both manga and anime. My daughter was a huge manga fan in her high school days and often attended conventions as well as draw fan fiction. She was good, too! She's now giving away her manga. I've put them out in my Little Free Library although I saved her old Sailor Moon series as that was the first set of manga she ever collected. I'm just a sentimental mom.

My older son is a huge anime fan and still attends conventions and is super excited about a planned trip to Japan this winter. He's also a gamer so he'll be thrilled to be in Japan in person. My son actually started me in reading manga a long time ago with Sin City, citing its terrific graphics although it was violent in nature. He warned me. Now I'm more into mainstream graphic novels and don't read manga.

I have no idea why I'm rambling.

I enjoyed reading what you wrote.

>159 fuzzi:

Truthfully, I didn't even know before that the larch was a tree!

>160 SqueakyChu:
All You Need is Kill is probably the only mainstream manga I've read. I have apparently read 30 of them though. None of which I'd feel tremendously comfortable having someone below a certain age read. 29 for their erotic nature, 1 for violence. Didn't read any before December 2000. And most since 2014.

Didn't really begin reading graphic novels/comics until about 2004. Vast majority of which are mainstream.

>161 SqueakyChu: how did you manage to miss this? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H0zVsxUbbjM

>163 Helenoel:

I watched it now when fuzzi posted it, but before then I didn't know the larch was a tree.

True confession: I was never a Monty Python fan.

>162 Lexxi:

My daughter educated me when she showed me her manga that nudity was perfectly acceptable in those "comics". That was news to me at that time! Her first books were published in 1998 so she was either 11 or 12 at the time. Things are very different now. It's a whole new age.

>155 SqueakyChu: Wow! I had not won a TIOLI award in a long time. Thanks!

>166 thornton37814: It was my pleasure to award it to you! :)

>164 SqueakyChu: not a Monty Python fan...?

Blasphemy!!!

@Helenoel! Poke her with the soft cushions!!!!

Confession: I never knew the Larch was a tree until I saw that episode of M.P.

Congratulations to all the winners!

>155 SqueakyChu: Madeline, may I be a bit impertinent and add another award? I hope you don't mind.

I would like to give the Stay centered award to fuzzi for her reading of Dogs I Have Met and the People They Found for my challenge to read a book with the 'and' in the middle of the title, and fuzzi found such a 9-word-title with four words on each side. Great, congratulations

and thank you very much for my tree-award (Erle is alder in English).

>168 fuzzi: sorry to disappoint you, but I am not a Monty Python fan, either

>170 paulstalder:

Additional awards are always accepted and encouraged after I award my few each month. In fact, it's part of the TIOLI FAQs!

"On the day that the monthly awards are announced, any other challenger may make similar awards to others. It's all in fun!"

the Stay centered award

Haha!

Congratulations, fuzzi!

>170 paulstalder: aw, shucks. Thank you.

I forgive you not liking Monty Python. ;)

I don't like Seinfeld, which upsets people for some reason.

Well. 8,126 pages read so far this month, not counting roughly 10 short stories I haven't included over here on LT, about 4 or 5 graphic novels I haven't included over here, and 3 rereads. Not the most I've read. I only mention because 233 pages of that is from one book. A book titled "Daite." .

I started reading Daite, a book about a business woman in Japan, on May 9th. Completed it May 28th. That in itself would be odd. I don't normally take a month to read a book as short as 233 pages. Except . . . that's actually May 9th 2014, completion date of May 28th 2015. A period of 385 days and 6 minutes (strangely I started the book at 3:34 pm and ended it at 3:40 pm).

Of course there's a hidden little part I didn't include. I paused the book from 5/25/14 until today. Restarting reading today. It had actually been sitting on my DNF shelf for about a year. 41% of the book read in 2014. 59% read 2015.

Just an odd little thing that had occurred today.

>173 Lexxi: Well at least you were able to finish it eventually, Lexxi!

I ended up with a sweep after all, in May. If I hadn't read so many plays this month, I doubt I could possibly have done it. I'm pretty sure I will not sweep in June!

>174 Dejah_Thoris:

Congratulations on the sweep, Dejah_Thoris!

>174 Dejah_Thoris: Congrats. I love reading plays.

I didn't pick up that shared read for May, and I'll never get a sweep. But I did finish all of my planned reads, including my first nonfiction read of 2015.

>177 jeanned: TIOLI has really increased my reading of non-fiction. I even read Death By Black Hole: And Other Cosmic Quandaries by Neil deGrasse Tyson this month as part of a (failed, I think) shared read which I never otherwise would have picked up. I sure didn't understand it all, by it was quite the eye opener anyway.

I don't know if TIOLI has made a difference how much nonfiction I read. Sometimes I just get going down a certain track, like the year I read All the President's Men and then read all the books I could find by Kissinger, Nixon, Erlichman, Dean, and Carter.

While it's been a year since I finished The Book of Universes: Exploring the Limits of the Cosmos, I'm still thinking about whether our entire universe was created by some physics hacker in a lab....

Maybe a nice biography is in order.

Thanks for the congratulations, everyone.

>176 Citizenjoyce: I love reading plays, too, which makes it odd that I'll sometimes go for long stretches without picking one up. Interestingly, three of the plays I read in May were winners of the Pulitzer Prize for drama and another was written by a Nobel Laureate. That's a little more highbrow than I usually manage!

>179 jeanned: I'm a clumpy reader of nonfiction, too (volcano books, for example.) LT definitely increases the amount of nonfiction I'm reading simply because so many people are reading such interesting books!

>178 Citizenjoyce: I feel really bad about not getting to that Tyson book this month! What with getting ready for our big trip next month, my reading time has unfortunately plummeted lately.

>174 Dejah_Thoris: congratulations! I hit a slump in May, but reading an old favorite got me going again!

I've read 10 books this month, about average, and may finish 1 or 2 more, depending on my weekend. :)

Liane, you are my hero(ine). I don't know how you keep doing it, and it's an aspiration of mine to get a sweep someday, but meanwhile I'm content to watch you and others manage it!

>174 Dejah_Thoris: Congrats!

>181 susanna.fraser: If I were going on a big trip I'd probably put Tyson off until my return. The planning is half the fun.

Coming up...
Housekeeping Day!

Please remember to remove all books from the May wiki which you do not finish by midnight May 31, 2015. Thank you!

How exciting, a TIOLI award!! Thank you!

That poetry challenge was so much fun and I was so glad that others participated so enthusiastically. A special thank you to whoever it was who starting posting links to online versions of their poems, which made it super easy to click on and read more poems.