2020 AlphaKIT Main Thread

I'm planning on running the AlphaKIT for 2020, so anyone who enjoys it please join us.

For newbies, there are really no rules. Each month we have two assigned letters which can be used in any way to select a book or books to read that month. Creative selections are welcomed!

I'll put up the letters once our friend @cyderry selects the letters. Thanks Chèli.

Here are the letters for 2020:
A & U January - thread: https://www.librarything.com/topic/313912
F & B February - thread: https://www.librarything.com/topic/315585
G & C March - thread: https://www.librarything.com/topic/316729
S & T April - thread: https://www.librarything.com/topic/317656
L & P May - thread: https://www.librarything.com/topic/318917
K & Y June - thread: https://www.librarything.com/topic/320294
J & R July - thread: https://www.librarything.com/topic/321372
O & H August - thread: https://www.librarything.com/topic/322335
M & E September - thread: https://www.librarything.com/topic/323251
D & V October thread: https://www.librarything.com/topic/324373
I & Q November thread: https://www.librarything.com/topic/325353
W & N December thread: https://www.librarything.com/topic/326285

Yearlong letters: X and Z - thread: https://www.librarything.com/topic/313968

The wiki for 2020 is: https://wiki.librarything.com/index.php/2020_AlphaKIT#2020_AlphaKIT

Hurrah!
I enjoy this and seeing how inventive everyone gets with their letters.

I have planned a category for this in my 2020 challenge - looking forward to it!

So happy to see this KIT! Thank you majkia!

I don't think I could function without the ALPHAKit!!!

I always do this one. It helps me (sometimes) get to books that are harder to get to, as I often choose based on tags. Some books don't have any or have very few tags.

Thanks for doing this.

I will be participating and in fact want to try to be even more intentional next year.

This has proven to be the most successful kit for me personally in terms of organizing my reading!
It forces me to take a good hard look at my stacks and has often moved to the top a book that I had forgotten about! Thank you for hosting this again :-)

I will definitely participate. This is one of my fave challenges.

The Letter combos for 2020 are:

AU January
FB February
GC March
ST April
LP May
KY June
JR July
OH August
ME September
DV October
IQ November
WN December

I've updated the IP. Thanks so much Cheli.

YAY! Let the stacking and lists-making begin! :-D

We're away on vacation so I'll have to wait til I get home to my spreadsheets to start my list.

>11 cyderry: These letter combos just crack me up! Gold (periodic table Au), football, Gold Coast, street, liquid propane or long play, Kentucky, Junior, Ohio, Maine or myself, daily value, intelligence quotient, What's new. (Just my creative mind working overtime!)

>15 LadyoftheLodge: Great alternative take on the letters!

>15 LadyoftheLodge: Gold for Australia!

>17 pamelad: Aussie, Aussie, Aussie - Oi, Oi, Oi!!!

P.S. I am SO not a sports fan, but it is such an Aussie thing to do! Although I will be watching the Olympics. Too bad AU wasn't in July or August; it might have helped us win some gold in Tokyo!

Thanks for organising. Now time to start looking through my shelves.

I owned a travel agency in Texas years ago and the code for Southwest Airlines is WN.
I am going to write the letters on my calendar now.
Thanks for the hard work from the organizers.

The letters just came out that way.

I never thought oF AU for gold but I did see FB = Facebook, ST for street, LP for old vinyl records,. It seems like every year there are a few combos that really have a life of their own!

I'm afraid KY for Kentucky was not the first thing that sprang to mind... but them my brain is usually in an inappropriate place. *dirty laugh*

>21 Helenliz: I hate to say that I thought of that too. My husband is from Kentucky, so that jumped to mind first though.

>21 Helenliz: I had that same thought for KY ****same dirty laugh*****
I also thought it was a bit odd it hit in June too.

>20 cyderry: Yeah, that LP stands for long play (vinyl records). I wonder how many people remember those??? My sisters had tons of them!

>24 LadyoftheLodge:, me, I am old enough to remember. I had my own collection of LPs.

IQ, intelligence quota

JR made me think of that TV show, Dallas, that my mum used to watch. Big hair and big sleeves on the dresses is all I remember!
ME could also be me - lots of books with me in the title.
ST could be the abbreviation for saint or street.

I am trying to stop myself from making too many lists in advance next year, but I just can't stop myself wanting to!

>27 JayneCM: I am glad to know I am not the only one who saw those letter combos! Great minds and all that! I had not thought of JR related to that TV show, good one!

>28 LadyoftheLodge: I have had Dallas 1963 on my TBR pile for so long, so I am taking a bit of a stretch to get there!
JR = J.R. Ewing = Dallas TV show = Dallas 1963
Maybe we need to see how many degrees of separation we can get to make a book fit the letters - that would be a fun challenge!

Well, since there are no rules for AlphaKIT, degrees of separation sounds like a great idea to expand our options!

>29 JayneCM: I remember that Dallas craze, although I did not watch the TV shows at all.

I am wondering if we could use the letter combos to make reading selections?? I know there are no rules, but is that stretching it too far? Such as titles that have "me" in them for September?

>31 LadyoftheLodge: I was also thinking the letter combos might be a good idea, especially with so many combos this time around that could actually mean something!

ETA: AU - title with silver in it... the ones that are the short forms for states maybe could be set in those states... etc.

>32 LibraryCin: >32 LibraryCin: I would love to have the "combo letters connections" as an option.

>32 LibraryCin: Au is gold, not silver, but I'm sure we got the idea.

There are no rules, so if that is the way you want to use it, why not? I know I use it quite strictly, the letters have to be initials of the author's name and the book has to have been listed for the orange Prize - but all of that is my self imposed rules. I say it's entirely up to each person how they choose to play it.

I think it is great to expand the idea to everyone's different interpretations - lots of fun!

Be as imaginative and innovative as you guys like. Go for it!

>34 Helenliz: LOL! Oops! Yes, my mistake!

The wiki for 2020 is here: https://wiki.librarything.com/index.php/2020_AlphaKIT#2020_AlphaKIT

>38 majkia:. Many thanks Majkia for setting up the wiki so promptly.

There was considerable discussion in the thread about using the letters together also such as au for gold, st for saint or street, etc. Are we going to do this?

>39 sallylou61: I think the option of the combo letters (e.g. AU for gold, etc.) is entirely optional. It certainly is an interesting twist of interpretation! :-)

I guess I started the whole thing when my mind began rolling in those letter combo tracks. I think it should be optional.

I think if you guys decide to use the letter combinations, just put a note when you enter the books to say so. I don't think we'll need a separate list for them.

Thanks to >1 majkia: and > 11 for setting this up. I may try to include some of the combinations just to change it up and broaden the KIT. I like it when everybody does it their own way, but shares their way on the thread--Fun!

I think this is a good idea.

Thanks for setting this up.

Putting the ampersand in made me think of Food and Beverage rather than Facebook

>46 Robertgreaves: Love that! It is a good idea and works for me.

This will be my first time doing the AlphaKIT. I'm hoping it will help me work my way through some of the books on my shelves. Haha. Thanks for hosting, majkia!

>48 EBT1002: Welcome to the AlphaKIT! Hope it helps clear off those bookshelves.

>48 EBT1002: glad to have you! AlphaKIT has helped me read my own books probably more than any other challenge.

Since we are combining if we wish I am posting this:

In which film did a Rolls Royce have the license plate number "AU1"?
22%
GoldenEye
52%
Correct Answer - Goldfinger
20%
The Man with the Golden Gun
6%
Moonraker

% is what people voted.

This was on a site I use, InboxDollars. I think I may find a James Bond book as I have never read one.

January Thread is up: https://www.librarything.com/topic/313912

Yearlong X and Z thread is up: https://www.librarything.com/topic/313968

I am again trying to do both letters in one book this year and am basing them on author names. Eg. For K and Y, I have Yasmina Khadra.

I have found an author for all of them except the month where we have I and Q. If anyone knows of any author whose name contains both letters, I would really appreciate it!
Instead, I am going for a title with both letters at the moment - either IQ84 or Quiet: The Power of Introverts In A World That Can't Stop Talking.

>54 JayneCM: Indy Quillen writes the Fox Walker series. It is a mystery series and the main character is a Native American tracker. I have not read them but the three books released so far have good ratings. They are available on Kindle.

>55 Zozette: Thanks!

>54 JayneCM: - I may try that next year.

>54 JayneCM: I started doing this about mid-2019. It injects a bit more randomness to my planned reading and has been fun.

I have Uranium for U and a mystery by Anne Perry for A. The book on uranium is also good for Z for the author’s last name.

>59 hailelib: And for the periodic table element in the Bingo card!

February thread is up: https://www.librarything.com/topic/315585#

>54 JayneCM: For another option to fit that bill, you could read IQ by Joe Ide. I haven't read it yet but my sister recommended it to me and I'll read absolutely anything she recommends. I'll probably save it for November because it will fit so very nicely. :-)

>62 EBT1002: Thanks! I'll take a look.

April thread is up: https://www.librarything.com/topic/317656

May thread is up: https://www.librarything.com/topic/318917

>65 majkia: thank you!

June thread is up: https://www.librarything.com/topic/320294

July thread is up: https://www.librarything.com/topic/321372

>68 majkia: I appreciate your faithfulness in setting up the threads and wiki!

>69 fuzzi: I try!

August thread is up: https://www.librarything.com/topic/322335

>71 majkia: wow, Johnny-on-the-Spot!

September thread is up: https://www.librarything.com/topic/323251

>73 majkia: thanks, have fun!

I might need some help with "V"

>75 EBT1002: Would it help to interpret it as a Roman 5?

>76 Robertgreaves: Now there is a thought. I like it.

October Thread: https://www.librarything.com/topic/324373

>75 EBT1002: Good idea!

November thread is up: https://www.librarything.com/topic/325353

>79 majkia: thank you!

December thread is up: https://www.librarything.com/topic/326285

Don't for get to watch out for the 2021 AlphaKITs.

>81 majkia: thanks!