Take It or Leave It Challenge - January 2023 - Page 1
Talk 75 Books Challenge for 2023
Join LibraryThing to post.
1SqueakyChu
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.
...logo by cyderry
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My older son is going to make his first post-pandemic pleasure trip to Japan in January, 2023. His planned stops on this trip will be Tokyo, Hiroshima, Okasa, Kyoto, and Numazu. I wish him safe travels while I wish all of you a fun reading month.
For January, 2023, your TIOLI challenge will be to
***************************
Read a book (F or NF) set in Tokyo, Hiroshima, Osaka, Kyoto, or Numazu.
******************************
P.S. Okay. I admit I found only one book at all set in the Japanese city of Numazu. LOL!
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Other Fun Stuff (not part of the TIOLI challenge):
1. @FAMeulstee's 2023 TIOLI Sweeplette Meter
2. @FAMeulstee's Our TIOLI Sweeps
3. Morphidae's List of Previous TIOLI Challenges (2010-2016) - A reference (Do a control-F scan) to avoid repeating a previous challenge. If your idea is similar to a previous challenge, make it unique by adding a new "twist" to it.
4. The January 2023 TIOLI Meter - Optional page on which you may track your TIOLI reading. Not competitive--- just fun!
...logo by cyderry
---------------------------------------------------------------
My older son is going to make his first post-pandemic pleasure trip to Japan in January, 2023. His planned stops on this trip will be Tokyo, Hiroshima, Okasa, Kyoto, and Numazu. I wish him safe travels while I wish all of you a fun reading month.
For January, 2023, your TIOLI challenge will be to
***************************
Read a book (F or NF) set in Tokyo, Hiroshima, Osaka, Kyoto, or Numazu.
******************************
P.S. Okay. I admit I found only one book at all set in the Japanese city of Numazu. LOL!
---------------------------------------------------------
Other Fun Stuff (not part of the TIOLI challenge):
1. @FAMeulstee's 2023 TIOLI Sweeplette Meter
2. @FAMeulstee's Our TIOLI Sweeps
3. Morphidae's List of Previous TIOLI Challenges (2010-2016) - A reference (Do a control-F scan) to avoid repeating a previous challenge. If your idea is similar to a previous challenge, make it unique by adding a new "twist" to it.
4. The January 2023 TIOLI Meter - Optional page on which you may track your TIOLI reading. Not competitive--- just fun!
2SqueakyChu
Index of Challenges:
Challenges #1-6
1. Read a book (F or NF) set in Tokyo, Hiroshima, Osaka, Kyoto, or Numazu - msg #1
2. Read a book in the public domain - msg #3
3. Read a book that came into your possession in 2022 - msg #4
4. Read a book with a character who gardens or loves plants - msg #5
5. Read or Skim a reference book - msg #6
6. Read a book listed on the Millions "most anticipated" lists during the pandemic years (2020-2022) - msg #8
Challenges #7-12
7. Read a book where the author uses initials instead of a first and second name - msg #9
8. Read a book with the name of a famous leader in the title or author's name - msg #11
9. Read a book where at least TWO title words and/or author names start with R - msg #15
10. Read a book for the Life Balance Wheel Semi-Rolling Challenge - msg #10
11. Read a book set in, or about, the 1920s - msg #20
12. Read a book on a best of 2022 list - msg #22
Challenges #13-18
13. Read a book of swashbuckling adventure - msg #22
14. Read the first, second, and/or third book of a trilogy- msg #39
15. Read a book by an author in 2023 who you read a book written by in 2022 - msg #41
16. Read a book with the three letters of "one" in the title and/or the author's name - msg #44
17. Read a work of fiction by an author born in North Africa - msg #52
18. Read a book related to ending - msg #53
Please hold your challenge until the Febrary 2023 challenge isposted. Thank you so much!
Challenges #1-6
1. Read a book (F or NF) set in Tokyo, Hiroshima, Osaka, Kyoto, or Numazu - msg #1
2. Read a book in the public domain - msg #3
3. Read a book that came into your possession in 2022 - msg #4
4. Read a book with a character who gardens or loves plants - msg #5
5. Read or Skim a reference book - msg #6
6. Read a book listed on the Millions "most anticipated" lists during the pandemic years (2020-2022) - msg #8
Challenges #7-12
7. Read a book where the author uses initials instead of a first and second name - msg #9
8. Read a book with the name of a famous leader in the title or author's name - msg #11
9. Read a book where at least TWO title words and/or author names start with R - msg #15
10. Read a book for the Life Balance Wheel Semi-Rolling Challenge - msg #10
11. Read a book set in, or about, the 1920s - msg #20
12. Read a book on a best of 2022 list - msg #22
Challenges #13-18
13. Read a book of swashbuckling adventure - msg #22
14. Read the first, second, and/or third book of a trilogy- msg #39
15. Read a book by an author in 2023 who you read a book written by in 2022 - msg #41
16. Read a book with the three letters of "one" in the title and/or the author's name - msg #44
17. Read a work of fiction by an author born in North Africa - msg #52
18. Read a book related to ending - msg #53
Please hold your challenge until the Febrary 2023 challenge isposted. Thank you so much!
3cbl_tn
Challenge #2: Read a book in the public domain
On January 1, books first published in the U.S. in 1927 will enter the public domain. This is an opportunity to read books new to the public domain, such as To the Lighthouse or Death Comes for the Archbishop. Any book in the public domain will work for this challenge, though!
On January 1, books first published in the U.S. in 1927 will enter the public domain. This is an opportunity to read books new to the public domain, such as To the Lighthouse or Death Comes for the Archbishop. Any book in the public domain will work for this challenge, though!
4Helenliz
ha! Found you. 2023, here we come.
Madeline, the thread that you link to in post one, with the links to threads & wiki, doesn't seem to have the links to this thread or the wiki in it.
Challenge #3: Read a book that came into your possession in 2022
I admit that I got a bit sidetracked in my reading challenge in 2022, such that I have build up rather a large backlog of books and library books that I need to get to. So a purely self serving challenge to read a book that came into your possession in 2022. It can be anytime in 2022, so all those winter festival presents count as well as the ones that have been languishing on the pile for longer.
I might be going for the opposite of a sweep. gulp.
Madeline, the thread that you link to in post one, with the links to threads & wiki, doesn't seem to have the links to this thread or the wiki in it.
Challenge #3: Read a book that came into your possession in 2022
I admit that I got a bit sidetracked in my reading challenge in 2022, such that I have build up rather a large backlog of books and library books that I need to get to. So a purely self serving challenge to read a book that came into your possession in 2022. It can be anytime in 2022, so all those winter festival presents count as well as the ones that have been languishing on the pile for longer.
I might be going for the opposite of a sweep. gulp.
5antqueen
Challenge #4: Read a book with a character who gardens or loves plants
In memory of my mother, who passed away in December. She always kept the house full of plants and the patio full of flowers, and one of the first things she did once she couldn't take care of them herself was to make sure we wouldn't leave them for my father to forget to water.
In memory of my mother, who passed away in December. She always kept the house full of plants and the patio full of flowers, and one of the first things she did once she couldn't take care of them herself was to make sure we wouldn't leave them for my father to forget to water.
6countrylife
Challenge #5: Read or Skim a reference book
For this challenge, you do not have to read every word of the book. But you want to get a decent understanding of the content.
Example:
What Paintings Say: 100 Masterpieces in Detail by Rose-Marie & Rainer Hagen
(767 pages of very tight print, along with photographs of paintings)
For this challenge, you do not have to read every word of the book. But you want to get a decent understanding of the content.
Example:
What Paintings Say: 100 Masterpieces in Detail by Rose-Marie & Rainer Hagen
(767 pages of very tight print, along with photographs of paintings)
7SqueakyChu
>4 Helenliz: Fixed. Thanks!
8Chatterbox
Challenge #6: Read a book from one of the "most anticipated" lists published by The Millions during the pandemic years
For the purpose of this challenge, I'm defining the pandemic years as 2020-2022 (even though it started in China in 2019...) "The Millions" has been a great resource to introduce me both to new books by authors I like, and to new books by new-to-me authors, and so I'd like to encourage more folks to discover the lists.
Here they are for the periods in question:
https://themillions.com/2020/01/draft-most-anticipated-the-great-first-half-2020...
https://themillions.com/2020/07/most-anticipated-the-great-second-half-2020-book...
https://themillions.com/2021/01/most-anticipated-the-great-first-half-2021-book-...
https://themillions.com/2021/07/most-anticipated-the-great-second-half-2021-book...
https://themillions.com/2022/01/most-anticipated-the-great-first-half-2022-book-...
https://themillions.com/2022/07/most-anticipated-the-great-second-half-2022-book...
The first half list for 2023 should appear sometime early in January; feel free to draw on that one as well!
Pick any book, but note which list it appears on OR the month/year of publication.
For the purpose of this challenge, I'm defining the pandemic years as 2020-2022 (even though it started in China in 2019...) "The Millions" has been a great resource to introduce me both to new books by authors I like, and to new books by new-to-me authors, and so I'd like to encourage more folks to discover the lists.
Here they are for the periods in question:
https://themillions.com/2020/01/draft-most-anticipated-the-great-first-half-2020...
https://themillions.com/2020/07/most-anticipated-the-great-second-half-2020-book...
https://themillions.com/2021/01/most-anticipated-the-great-first-half-2021-book-...
https://themillions.com/2021/07/most-anticipated-the-great-second-half-2021-book...
https://themillions.com/2022/01/most-anticipated-the-great-first-half-2022-book-...
https://themillions.com/2022/07/most-anticipated-the-great-second-half-2022-book...
The first half list for 2023 should appear sometime early in January; feel free to draw on that one as well!
Pick any book, but note which list it appears on OR the month/year of publication.
9DeltaQueen50
And we are off on another year of fun filled challenges!
Challenge #7: Author uses initials instead of a first and second name.
Both the first and second names must be seen as an initial.
Some examples of authors are: C. S. Lewis, J. K. Rowling, P. G. Wodehouse and E. L. Doctorow
Challenge #7: Author uses initials instead of a first and second name.
Both the first and second names must be seen as an initial.
Some examples of authors are: C. S. Lewis, J. K. Rowling, P. G. Wodehouse and E. L. Doctorow
10Chatterbox
>1 SqueakyChu: Why on earth Numazu?? That said, if he's there, he absolutely should go to Hakone. It's a wondrous place to visit in the winter, especially if there is snow. And there are 'onsen' -- hot springs -- which are great fun in winter, as well.
In Kyoto -- Kiyomizu-dera is probably my fave temple or shrine, although Ginkakuji also is fab. I used to stay at the Three Sisters ryokan, although one memorable winter trip with a Japanese friend I ended up staying in a Buddhist temple which was... cold! But unique.
Osaka I don't know at all; Hiroshima has one or two obvious places to visit, but strongly recommend Miyajima, the island with the much photographed torii gate. Tokyo -- well, it's probably been too long since I've spent time there. But the Inakaya restaurant (technically in Akasaka, but just a short walk from the Roppongi subway station) is still around, and is/was a great fave of mine for a tremendously fun dinner experience. Good mix of Japanese and gaijin (foreigners). If he's interested in Japanese art, he could drop by the Tolman Gallery (modern Japanese prints; near the Tokyo Tower) and if the owners/founders are around, drop my name (i've been buying from them when I can since the early 1980s, and their daughter Allison is a friend of mine.)
In Kyoto -- Kiyomizu-dera is probably my fave temple or shrine, although Ginkakuji also is fab. I used to stay at the Three Sisters ryokan, although one memorable winter trip with a Japanese friend I ended up staying in a Buddhist temple which was... cold! But unique.
Osaka I don't know at all; Hiroshima has one or two obvious places to visit, but strongly recommend Miyajima, the island with the much photographed torii gate. Tokyo -- well, it's probably been too long since I've spent time there. But the Inakaya restaurant (technically in Akasaka, but just a short walk from the Roppongi subway station) is still around, and is/was a great fave of mine for a tremendously fun dinner experience. Good mix of Japanese and gaijin (foreigners). If he's interested in Japanese art, he could drop by the Tolman Gallery (modern Japanese prints; near the Tokyo Tower) and if the owners/founders are around, drop my name (i've been buying from them when I can since the early 1980s, and their daughter Allison is a friend of mine.)
11lyzard
Happy (premature) New Year, everyone! :)
Challenge #8:
Read a book with the name of a famous leader in the title or author's name
For "leader" I will accept a monarch, a politician, a military figure or a tyrant, but it should be someone you can reasonably expect others to know. You can use just a first name if that is appropriate, e.g. "Alexander" for "Alexander the Great", but please note your leader on the wiki.
Hope that's clear. Happy to debate. :)
Challenge #8:
Read a book with the name of a famous leader in the title or author's name
For "leader" I will accept a monarch, a politician, a military figure or a tyrant, but it should be someone you can reasonably expect others to know. You can use just a first name if that is appropriate, e.g. "Alexander" for "Alexander the Great", but please note your leader on the wiki.
Hope that's clear. Happy to debate. :)
13Helenliz
>12 lyzard: Yes, I am completely agnostic as to format.
15susanna.fraser
Challenge #9: A little R&R: Read a book where at least TWO title words and/or author names start with R
I'm scheduled for surgery on Jan. 16 (specifically, breast reduction surgery, in hopes it will cure or at least mitigate my chronic upper back, neck, and shoulder pain). I therefore expect to spend the second half of the month plus the beginning of February on R&R--rest and relaxation, plus recovery and recuperation. Join my R&R by reading a book where at least two words in the title and/or parts of the author's name start with R.
I'm scheduled for surgery on Jan. 16 (specifically, breast reduction surgery, in hopes it will cure or at least mitigate my chronic upper back, neck, and shoulder pain). I therefore expect to spend the second half of the month plus the beginning of February on R&R--rest and relaxation, plus recovery and recuperation. Join my R&R by reading a book where at least two words in the title and/or parts of the author's name start with R.
16SqueakyChu
>10 Chatterbox: He’s a gamer and a follower of Love Live! He has been to hot springs and stayed at a ryokan with a hot tub and hot springs once before but elsewhere. I’ll give him your suggestions. Thank you so much!
He has friends in Japan and is thrilled to be able to go back to visit them again finally. He’ll be attending a gaming convention, attending a concert, hanging out with friends, and touring.
He has friends in Japan and is thrilled to be able to go back to visit them again finally. He’ll be attending a gaming convention, attending a concert, hanging out with friends, and touring.
17Morphidae
Challenge #10: Read a book for the Life Balance Wheel semi-rolling challenge
READ ME FIRST:
Please hold all questions until I have the thread up. I will try to do it later today. I (and MrMorphy) are very sick (possibly Covid) and I (we) keep falling asleep.
You can add books at your own risk until the thread is up with full explanations. While most of you are pretty good at guessing, others are more, ah, creative. 😄
*************
Read a book that has one of the life goal themes below as a MAIN/SIGNIFICANT theme or is in the title, author's name, on the cover or in the first level tags (don't click on show all.)
PLEASE include short description of how it fits the challenge.
1. Relationships (partner(s), first degree relative(s), "best friend")
2. Social (everyone else)
3. Health/Fitness
4. Finances
5. Career/Business
6. Volunteering/Giving Back/Legacy
7. Creativity (art, music, crafts)
8. Spiritual/Moral
9. Fun and Joy (reading, movies, collecting)
10. Travel and Adventure (sports)
11. Self Development/Personal Growth/Learning (Education)
12. Home and Pets
INFO:
This challenge will be easy in one way - it covers all the parts of life. Most books should fit *somewhere* in the challenge. The tricky part will be getting that particular spot before someone else.
I prefer semi-rolling to strict rolling challenges, so each set of twelve can be filled in any order.
Another set can be opened when 10/12 have been filled. There can't be more than 3 open sets at a time.
*************
Examples and additional information can be found here .
READ ME FIRST:
Please hold all questions until I have the thread up. I will try to do it later today. I (and MrMorphy) are very sick (possibly Covid) and I (we) keep falling asleep.
You can add books at your own risk until the thread is up with full explanations. While most of you are pretty good at guessing, others are more, ah, creative. 😄
*************
Read a book that has one of the life goal themes below as a MAIN/SIGNIFICANT theme or is in the title, author's name, on the cover or in the first level tags (don't click on show all.)
PLEASE include short description of how it fits the challenge.
1. Relationships (partner(s), first degree relative(s), "best friend")
2. Social (everyone else)
3. Health/Fitness
4. Finances
5. Career/Business
6. Volunteering/Giving Back/Legacy
7. Creativity (art, music, crafts)
8. Spiritual/Moral
9. Fun and Joy (reading, movies, collecting)
10. Travel and Adventure (sports)
11. Self Development/Personal Growth/Learning (Education)
12. Home and Pets
INFO:
This challenge will be easy in one way - it covers all the parts of life. Most books should fit *somewhere* in the challenge. The tricky part will be getting that particular spot before someone else.
I prefer semi-rolling to strict rolling challenges, so each set of twelve can be filled in any order.
Another set can be opened when 10/12 have been filled. There can't be more than 3 open sets at a time.
*************
Examples and additional information can be found here .
18SqueakyChu
>17 Morphidae: Oh.no! Feel better soon, Morphy and Mr. Norphy!
The great challenge for us now is going to be to see who guesses what your challenge will accept and then gets to leave his/her book title on your list! Ha!
The great challenge for us now is going to be to see who guesses what your challenge will accept and then gets to leave his/her book title on your list! Ha!
19Morphidae
>18 SqueakyChu: It would help the Great Challenge if I set up the challenge in the first place. Oh, yes, indeedy it would.
Now off to see if I can hold two brain cells together long enough to set up the thread...
Now off to see if I can hold two brain cells together long enough to set up the thread...
20lindapanzo
Challenge #11: Read a book set in, or about, the 1920's
It can be fiction or nonfiction.
It can be fiction or nonfiction.
21Citizenjoyce
My usual first of the year challenge which I have been too busy to even think about so I'd best get with finding lists.
Challenge 12: Read a book from a best of 2022 list
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/b/?ie=UTF8&node=16857165011&tag=googhydr-20&h...
Atlantic: https://www.theatlantic.com/books/archive/2022/12/best-books-2022-hua-hsu-gabrie...
Book Riot: https://bookriot.com/bestbooks2022/
Boston.com
Readers' choice: https://www.boston.com/community/readers-say/we-asked-for-your-favorite-reads-of...
Critics' choice: https://www.boston.com/culture/books/2022/12/19/best-books-2022/
Five Books: https://fivebooks.com/best-books/award-winning-nonfiction-books-of-2022-sophie-r...
DC Public Library: https://dcist.com/story/22/12/27/dc-library-most-popular-books-2022/
Goodreads most read: https://booksofbrilliance.com/2022/12/05/goodreads-most-read-books-of-2022/
The Guardian: https://www.theguardian.com/books/series/best-books-2022
History and Politics: https://www.theguardian.com/books/2022/dec/03/the-best-history-and-politics-book...
Kahani: https://bestkahani.com/web-stories/must-read-books-2022/
Literary Hub: https://lithub.com/the-award-winning-novels-of-2022/
New York Post: https://nypost.com/web-stories/top-5-best-books-of-2022/
https://nypost.com/2022/12/17/best-books-of-2022-top-30-must-read-titles-of-the-...
New York Times:
Best Historical Fiction 2022 https://www.nytimes.com/2022/12/04/books/review/the-best-historical-fiction-of-2...
Critic Picks: https://www.nytimes.com/2022/12/08/books/review/2022-reading-picks-from-times-st...
Sixty and Me: https://sixtyandme.com/list-favorite-books/
Slate: https://slate.com/culture/2022/12/best-books-2022-slate-book-critic-fiction-nonf...
Tictoc: https://bookriot.com/tiktok-book-recommendations-2022/
Time: https://time.com/6238663/best-fiction-books-2022/
Time Best 100: https://time.com/collection/must-read-books-2022/?utm_medium=social-paid&utm...
Vanity Fair: https://www.vanityfair.com/style/photos/2022/12/best-books-of-2022
Vogue: https://www.vogue.com/article/best-books-2022
Washington Post: https://www.washingtonpost.com/books/2022/11/17/best-books/
Best Nonfiction: https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/best-nonfiction-of-2022-great-books-that...
Challenge 12: Read a book from a best of 2022 list
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/b/?ie=UTF8&node=16857165011&tag=googhydr-20&h...
Atlantic: https://www.theatlantic.com/books/archive/2022/12/best-books-2022-hua-hsu-gabrie...
Book Riot: https://bookriot.com/bestbooks2022/
Boston.com
Readers' choice: https://www.boston.com/community/readers-say/we-asked-for-your-favorite-reads-of...
Critics' choice: https://www.boston.com/culture/books/2022/12/19/best-books-2022/
Five Books: https://fivebooks.com/best-books/award-winning-nonfiction-books-of-2022-sophie-r...
DC Public Library: https://dcist.com/story/22/12/27/dc-library-most-popular-books-2022/
Goodreads most read: https://booksofbrilliance.com/2022/12/05/goodreads-most-read-books-of-2022/
The Guardian: https://www.theguardian.com/books/series/best-books-2022
History and Politics: https://www.theguardian.com/books/2022/dec/03/the-best-history-and-politics-book...
Kahani: https://bestkahani.com/web-stories/must-read-books-2022/
Literary Hub: https://lithub.com/the-award-winning-novels-of-2022/
New York Post: https://nypost.com/web-stories/top-5-best-books-of-2022/
https://nypost.com/2022/12/17/best-books-of-2022-top-30-must-read-titles-of-the-...
New York Times:
Best Historical Fiction 2022 https://www.nytimes.com/2022/12/04/books/review/the-best-historical-fiction-of-2...
Critic Picks: https://www.nytimes.com/2022/12/08/books/review/2022-reading-picks-from-times-st...
Sixty and Me: https://sixtyandme.com/list-favorite-books/
Slate: https://slate.com/culture/2022/12/best-books-2022-slate-book-critic-fiction-nonf...
Tictoc: https://bookriot.com/tiktok-book-recommendations-2022/
Time: https://time.com/6238663/best-fiction-books-2022/
Time Best 100: https://time.com/collection/must-read-books-2022/?utm_medium=social-paid&utm...
Vanity Fair: https://www.vanityfair.com/style/photos/2022/12/best-books-of-2022
Vogue: https://www.vogue.com/article/best-books-2022
Washington Post: https://www.washingtonpost.com/books/2022/11/17/best-books/
Best Nonfiction: https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/best-nonfiction-of-2022-great-books-that...
22avatiakh
I'm up for an adventure -
#13: Read a book of swashbuckling adventure
From wikipedia: 'A swashbuckler is a genre of European adventure literature that focuses on a heroic protagonist stock character who is skilled in swordsmanship, acrobatics, guile and possesses chivalrous ideals. A "swashbuckler" protagonist is heroic, daring, and idealistic: he rescues damsels in distress, protects the downtrodden, and uses duels to defend his honor or that of a lady or to avenge a comrade.'
I'm happy to accept fantasy and scifi reads as well as the usual classic heroes and pirates.
https://www.librarything.com/tag/swashbuckling
#13: Read a book of swashbuckling adventure
From wikipedia: 'A swashbuckler is a genre of European adventure literature that focuses on a heroic protagonist stock character who is skilled in swordsmanship, acrobatics, guile and possesses chivalrous ideals. A "swashbuckler" protagonist is heroic, daring, and idealistic: he rescues damsels in distress, protects the downtrodden, and uses duels to defend his honor or that of a lady or to avenge a comrade.'
I'm happy to accept fantasy and scifi reads as well as the usual classic heroes and pirates.
https://www.librarything.com/tag/swashbuckling
23Citizenjoyce
>22 avatiakh: Don't forget to post your challenge on the wiki, I have a book for it.
24Citizenjoyce
My planned reads to start the new year:
Challenge #1: Read a book (F or NF) set in Tokyo, Hiroshima, Osaka, Kyoto, or Numazu - started by SqueakyChu
*✔Hiroshima - John Hersey (5)
*Hiroshima Diary - Michihiko Hachiya
Challenge #2: Read a book in the public domain - started by cbl_tn
✔The Bridge of San Luis Rey Thornton Wilder (3)
Challenge #3: Read a book that came into your possession in 2022 - started by helenliz
The Cloisters - Katy Hays
*✔The Old Woman with a Knife - Gu Byeong-Mo (4)
✔Saint X - Alexis Schaitkin (3)
Challenge #4: Read a book with a character who gardens or loves plants - started by antqueen
* ✔The Flowers of Vashnoi by Lois McMaster Bujold (3.5)
Challenge #5: Read or Skim a reference book - started by countrylife
✔What Darwin Didn't Know: The Modern Science of Evolution - Scott Solomon (5)
Challenge #6: Read a book listed on the Millions "most anticipated" lists during the pandemic years (2020-2022) - started by Chatterbox
*✔Night of the Living Rez- Morgan Talty (3.5)
Shit Cassandra Saw: Stories - Gwen E. Kirby
Challenge #7: Read a book where the author uses initials instead of a first and second name - started by DeltaQueen
*✔The Library of the Dead - T. L. Huchu (3.5)
Challenge #8: Read a book with the name of a famous leader in the title or author's name - started by lyzard
*✔The Ride of Her Life - Elizabeth Letts (5)
✔Spare - Prince Harry Duke of Sussex (3.5)
Challenge #9: A little R&R: Read a book where at least TWO title words and/or author names start with R - started by susanna.fraser
✔In the Days of Rain - Rebecca Stott (4)
Challenge #10 Read a book for the Life Balance Wheel Semi-Rolling Challenge - started by Morphidae
The Making of Her: A Novel - Bernadette Jiwa
✔These Is My Words - Nancy E. Turner (5)
Challenge #11: Read a book set in, or about, the 1920's - started by lindapanzo
✔The Second Coming of the KKK: The Ku Klux Klan of the 1920s and the American Political Tradition - Linda Gordon (4)
Challenge #12: Read a book on a best of 2022 list - started by Citizenjoyce
✔The Book Eaters - Sunyi Dean (4)
Disorientation- Elaine Hsieh Chou
Her Majesty's Royal Coven - Juno Dawson
How Far the Light Reaches: A Life in Ten Sea Creatures - Sabrina Imbler
✔I Must Betray You- Ruta Sepetys (4.5)
The Invisible Kingdom: Reimagining Chronic Illness - Meghan O'Rourke
Iona Iverson's Rules for Commuting: A Novel - Clare Pooley
✔Loss of Memory Is Only Temporary: Stories- Johanna Kaplan (4)
✔The Rabbit Hutch) - Tess Gunty (3.5)
Rogues: True Stories of Grifters, Killers, Rebels and Crooks - Patrick Radden Keefe
The Shore - Katie Runde
✔The Social Graces - Renée Rosen (4)
The Swimmers - Julie Otsuka
✔Unlikely Animals - Annie Hartnett (4.5)
We All Want Impossible Things - Catherine Newman
You Made a Fool of Death with Your Beauty: A Novel - Akwaeke Emezi
Challenge #13: Read a book of swashbuckling adventure - started by avatiakh
*✔Liberation - Imogen Kealey (4)
Challenge 14: The "Welcome 2023 Challenge - Let's Read 3" - Read the first, second, and/or third book of a trilogy" - started by AlcottAcre
✔What Angels Fear - C. S. Harris (4)
Challenge 15: 'I liked that author" - Read a book by an author in 2023 who you read a book written by in 2022? - started by raidergirl3
✔ Lucy by the Sea - Elizabeth Strout (4)
Challenge #16: Read a book with the three letters of "one" in the title and/or the author's name - started by FAMeulstee
Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing: A Memoir - Matthew Perry - Citizenjoyce
✔The One and Only Bob - Katherine Applegate (3)
Challenge #17: Read a work of fiction by an author born in North Africa - started by PaulCranswick
✔Palace of Desire by Naguib Mahfouz (3)
✔Palace Walk -Naguib Mahfouz (3)
✔Sugar Street by Naguib Mahfouz (3)
Challenge #18: The last of the first: Read a book related to ending - started by quondame
✔In Love: A Memoir of Love and Loss- Amy Bloom (5)
Challenge #1: Read a book (F or NF) set in Tokyo, Hiroshima, Osaka, Kyoto, or Numazu - started by SqueakyChu
*✔Hiroshima - John Hersey (5)
*Hiroshima Diary - Michihiko Hachiya
Challenge #2: Read a book in the public domain - started by cbl_tn
✔The Bridge of San Luis Rey Thornton Wilder (3)
Challenge #3: Read a book that came into your possession in 2022 - started by helenliz
The Cloisters - Katy Hays
*✔The Old Woman with a Knife - Gu Byeong-Mo (4)
✔Saint X - Alexis Schaitkin (3)
Challenge #4: Read a book with a character who gardens or loves plants - started by antqueen
* ✔The Flowers of Vashnoi by Lois McMaster Bujold (3.5)
Challenge #5: Read or Skim a reference book - started by countrylife
✔What Darwin Didn't Know: The Modern Science of Evolution - Scott Solomon (5)
Challenge #6: Read a book listed on the Millions "most anticipated" lists during the pandemic years (2020-2022) - started by Chatterbox
*✔Night of the Living Rez- Morgan Talty (3.5)
Shit Cassandra Saw: Stories - Gwen E. Kirby
Challenge #7: Read a book where the author uses initials instead of a first and second name - started by DeltaQueen
*✔The Library of the Dead - T. L. Huchu (3.5)
Challenge #8: Read a book with the name of a famous leader in the title or author's name - started by lyzard
*✔The Ride of Her Life - Elizabeth Letts (5)
✔Spare - Prince Harry Duke of Sussex (3.5)
Challenge #9: A little R&R: Read a book where at least TWO title words and/or author names start with R - started by susanna.fraser
✔In the Days of Rain - Rebecca Stott (4)
Challenge #10 Read a book for the Life Balance Wheel Semi-Rolling Challenge - started by Morphidae
The Making of Her: A Novel - Bernadette Jiwa
✔These Is My Words - Nancy E. Turner (5)
Challenge #11: Read a book set in, or about, the 1920's - started by lindapanzo
✔The Second Coming of the KKK: The Ku Klux Klan of the 1920s and the American Political Tradition - Linda Gordon (4)
Challenge #12: Read a book on a best of 2022 list - started by Citizenjoyce
✔The Book Eaters - Sunyi Dean (4)
Disorientation- Elaine Hsieh Chou
Her Majesty's Royal Coven - Juno Dawson
How Far the Light Reaches: A Life in Ten Sea Creatures - Sabrina Imbler
✔I Must Betray You- Ruta Sepetys (4.5)
The Invisible Kingdom: Reimagining Chronic Illness - Meghan O'Rourke
Iona Iverson's Rules for Commuting: A Novel - Clare Pooley
✔Loss of Memory Is Only Temporary: Stories- Johanna Kaplan (4)
✔The Rabbit Hutch) - Tess Gunty (3.5)
Rogues: True Stories of Grifters, Killers, Rebels and Crooks - Patrick Radden Keefe
The Shore - Katie Runde
✔The Social Graces - Renée Rosen (4)
The Swimmers - Julie Otsuka
✔Unlikely Animals - Annie Hartnett (4.5)
We All Want Impossible Things - Catherine Newman
You Made a Fool of Death with Your Beauty: A Novel - Akwaeke Emezi
Challenge #13: Read a book of swashbuckling adventure - started by avatiakh
*✔Liberation - Imogen Kealey (4)
Challenge 14: The "Welcome 2023 Challenge - Let's Read 3" - Read the first, second, and/or third book of a trilogy" - started by AlcottAcre
✔What Angels Fear - C. S. Harris (4)
Challenge 15: 'I liked that author" - Read a book by an author in 2023 who you read a book written by in 2022? - started by raidergirl3
✔ Lucy by the Sea - Elizabeth Strout (4)
Challenge #16: Read a book with the three letters of "one" in the title and/or the author's name - started by FAMeulstee
Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing: A Memoir - Matthew Perry - Citizenjoyce
✔The One and Only Bob - Katherine Applegate (3)
Challenge #17: Read a work of fiction by an author born in North Africa - started by PaulCranswick
✔Palace of Desire by Naguib Mahfouz (3)
✔Palace Walk -Naguib Mahfouz (3)
✔Sugar Street by Naguib Mahfouz (3)
Challenge #18: The last of the first: Read a book related to ending - started by quondame
✔In Love: A Memoir of Love and Loss- Amy Bloom (5)
25raidergirl3
>21 Citizenjoyce: Is there a place to find the NY Times best of books? I am not a subscriber and when I tried to look them up, it said I had reached my monthly limit? Not that I need more lists of books to look at, lol.
26Citizenjoyce
>25 raidergirl3: If you google New York Times Best Books of 2022 it takes you to Amazon which shows the best selling books, not necessarily the best books.
27Citizenjoyce
>1 SqueakyChu: On the wiki if you hit #13-18 it takes you back to #7-12. That's why I thought >22 avatiakh: hadn't posted her challenge.
28avatiakh
>27 Citizenjoyce: Yes, this happened to me too but I got there in the end.
29SqueakyChu
<26 >27 Citizenjoyce: Oh, brother! Fixed. Thanks.
30Citizenjoyce
>29 SqueakyChu: No, it’s still not fixed.
31SqueakyChu
>30 Citizenjoyce: Try it now.
32Citizenjoyce
>31 SqueakyChu: Success!
33wandering_star
Wow - there are so many books within these categories that I want to read that I don't think I will post my own challenge for this month.
Lots of great options in >8 Chatterbox: (The Searcher, The Office of Historical Corrections, Land of Big Numbers), but I would like to put in a particular recommendation for Likes by Sarah Shun-Lien Bynum - I thought this was great and it didn't get as much buzz as others on the list.
The book I am reading at the moment, The Change by Kirsten Miller, would also work for the character who loves plants/gardening.
Lots of great options in >8 Chatterbox: (The Searcher, The Office of Historical Corrections, Land of Big Numbers), but I would like to put in a particular recommendation for Likes by Sarah Shun-Lien Bynum - I thought this was great and it didn't get as much buzz as others on the list.
The book I am reading at the moment, The Change by Kirsten Miller, would also work for the character who loves plants/gardening.
35lindapanzo
>4 Helenliz: I could probably spend the whole month and then some just reading 2022 book acquisitions.
36elkiedee
If I read nothing else, I could probably get through of what I've borrowed in print from libraries this year and still have out on loan (not counting the return pile which is now 5 books I've read and one that I wanted to buy at some point anyway, only out in hardback about 3 months ago and already a Kindle offer so now among my 2022 acquisitions). And some but not all of my digital loans as well.
But I suspect that all the Kindle and charity shop acquisitions from this year that I've not read already would take me several years on their own, and then there's the Netgalleys. These TBR categories aren't totally exclusive as I regularly borrow books or get review ecopies and then buy charity shop and/or Kindle copies. And yes, I use Kindle deals to replace books I own in paperback or hardback and pass those on.
And of course, I have no intention of not borrowing or acquiring anything new.
But I suspect that all the Kindle and charity shop acquisitions from this year that I've not read already would take me several years on their own, and then there's the Netgalleys. These TBR categories aren't totally exclusive as I regularly borrow books or get review ecopies and then buy charity shop and/or Kindle copies. And yes, I use Kindle deals to replace books I own in paperback or hardback and pass those on.
And of course, I have no intention of not borrowing or acquiring anything new.
37kaida46
>1 SqueakyChu: I wish your son a wonderful trip! I've been twice, I made a dear life long friend when a Japanese exchange student attended my high school years ago and we, along with our children have traded visits over the years. My granddaughter has a graduation trip planned in June there, and my son lived in the Kobe/Osaka/Kyoto area for a few years. In Osaka he must visit 'number one bun'! 551 which can be easily found in the train station- its an only found in Osaka deilcacy!
Fushimi Inari (Fox Shrine) with its hundreds of bright orange torii gates and the Zen garden at Ryoanji is pretty amazing as well.
Fushimi Inari (Fox Shrine) with its hundreds of bright orange torii gates and the Zen garden at Ryoanji is pretty amazing as well.
38SqueakyChu
>37 kaida46: I'll share your message with him. Prior to pandemic, he used to visit Japan at least once yearly...purely for pleasure trips and meeting up with friends who either live and work there or who also travel there for anime or gaming conventions. He is so happy to be able to return.
39alcottacre
Challenge 14: The "Welcome 2023 Challenge - Let's Read 3" - Read the first, second, and/or third book of a trilogy" This is a rolling challenge.
40Helenliz
>39 alcottacre: Just checking, we don't need to read all three? >;-)
41raidergirl3
Challenge 15: 'I liked that author" - Read a book by an author in 2023 who you read a book written by in 2022
Whether it was a new author who caught your fancy, or an old favourite, pick a book in January by an author you read in 2022.
Whether it was a new author who caught your fancy, or an old favourite, pick a book in January by an author you read in 2022.
42avatiakh
>41 raidergirl3: I've added Sally Gardner's The Weather Woman as I read her The Beauty of the Wolf earlier this year which she wrote under her pen name Wray Delaney. Both books link to Sally Gardner on the LT authors page.
43alcottacre
>40 Helenliz: No, Helen, you do not need to read all 3 - although you can if you like!
44FAMeulstee
Challenge #16: Read a book with the three letters of "one" in the title and/or the author's name
The letters "o", "n", and "e" may occur in the title, the author's name, or across both, and don't have to be in order.
The letters "o", "n", and "e" may occur in the title, the author's name, or across both, and don't have to be in order.
45kaida46
I will be reading Convenience Store Woman for the January TIOLI (this also satisfied Challenge # 16 for the letters o, n, and e, in the title.
46SqueakyChu
>45 kaida46: I really enjoyed that book, Deb. I hope you like it as well.
47SqueakyChu
>45 kaida46: i really enjoyed that book, Deb. I hope you like it as much as I did.
48Morphidae
>17 Morphidae: FINALLY got the thread open. YAY!
If I could get some help with a quick survey of it, I'd appreciate it. I have the first five (1 - 5) themes completed including numerous theme examples, acceptable words for the title/author's name, allowed cover images, and tags to look for.
Is that too much? My thought is that I'm expanding the themes to give people ideas to slot their books in *and* I'm concerned that yet again I'm being too wordy and confusing.
If you could put your thoughts, if any, on that thread, I'd appreciate it.
(I didn't mean to do "it" again! 😳 It was supposed to be an "easy" one and sort of... got away from me! 😄
New rule! Only one multi-page explanation challenge per quarter for me! I'm not allowed another until April. If you see one, call me out!
🤣🤣🤣)
If I could get some help with a quick survey of it, I'd appreciate it. I have the first five (1 - 5) themes completed including numerous theme examples, acceptable words for the title/author's name, allowed cover images, and tags to look for.
Is that too much? My thought is that I'm expanding the themes to give people ideas to slot their books in *and* I'm concerned that yet again I'm being too wordy and confusing.
If you could put your thoughts, if any, on that thread, I'd appreciate it.
(I didn't mean to do "it" again! 😳 It was supposed to be an "easy" one and sort of... got away from me! 😄
New rule! Only one multi-page explanation challenge per quarter for me! I'm not allowed another until April. If you see one, call me out!
🤣🤣🤣)
49cbl_tn
Hey Madeline, the TIOLI meter link on Challenges 13-18 points to the September 2021 TIOLI meter instead of the January 2023 meter.
50FAMeulstee
>49 cbl_tn: The link is linking to the right page now.
51cbl_tn
>50 FAMeulstee: Great!
52PaulCranswick
Challenge #17 - Read a work of fiction by an author born in North Africa
This is in parallel with the inaugural African Novel Challenge and in the context North Africa is to include:
Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya and Egypt.
This is in parallel with the inaugural African Novel Challenge and in the context North Africa is to include:
Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya and Egypt.
53quondame
#18: The last of the first: Read a book related to ending
The title, the subject, the last work of an author, the last book in a series (for now) all qualify. If not obvious, be compact in stating the connection.
The title, the subject, the last work of an author, the last book in a series (for now) all qualify. If not obvious, be compact in stating the connection.
54PaulCranswick
I am doing quite well so far this year with 8 books (I am going to include the 1001 Books first edition as I am constantly skimming it) done in 7 days. Way ahead of my normal pace.
55alcottacre
>54 PaulCranswick: Starting off strong, Paul! Good going!
56SqueakyChu
Stats for TIOLI in year 2022!
This is a comparison of our yearly TIOLI stats from 2022 to previous years:
We had an average of 18 challenges a month. That's the best since 2018.
We had an average of 374 books read a month, That's the best since 2018.
We had an average 74 shared reads a month. That's the best since 2018.
We had an average 20% of shared reads. That's the best since 2018.
We had an average of 40 TIOLI points a month. That's the best since 2018.
We had a final YTD total of 439 TIOLI points. That's the best since 2019.
This shows that we as a group have been much more active this past year than in the previous three years. I think some of this has to do with the recent return of some of our veteran members this past year.
I will follow this shortly with the monthly stats from December, 2022.
We love stats! La La La!! :D
This is a comparison of our yearly TIOLI stats from 2022 to previous years:
We had an average of 18 challenges a month. That's the best since 2018.
We had an average of 374 books read a month, That's the best since 2018.
We had an average 74 shared reads a month. That's the best since 2018.
We had an average 20% of shared reads. That's the best since 2018.
We had an average of 40 TIOLI points a month. That's the best since 2018.
We had a final YTD total of 439 TIOLI points. That's the best since 2019.
This shows that we as a group have been much more active this past year than in the previous three years. I think some of this has to do with the recent return of some of our veteran members this past year.
I will follow this shortly with the monthly stats from December, 2022.
We love stats! La La La!! :D
57labfs39
>56 SqueakyChu: Ooh, thank you for this. I do love stats. I wonder if people are reading or participating more after the lockdown stress?
58SqueakyChu
>57 labfs39: For sure people are reading more now that lockdown stress is over, but we had fewer participants/reading already back in 2019 which was before the pandemic started (March, 2020).
59PaulCranswick
>56 SqueakyChu: We do indeed love stats, Madeline. Thanks for those. xx
60SqueakyChu
>59 PaulCranswick:. I have no doubt you, of all people, love stats! I got into your African challenge this month! Yay! …and I’m intrigued by the book I picked. :)
61alcottacre
>56 SqueakyChu: Those are wonderful numbers to see, Madeline. Thank you for sharing them!
62SqueakyChu
>61 alcottacre: Hey. I was happy to share them!!
63PaulCranswick
>60 SqueakyChu: I am also one of the ones who reconnected with this fabulous challenge again last year after a hiatus that was longer than I intended. It is a great resource for determining which of my books I really need to read next!
Pleased to see that the African Novel Challenge is hitting the spot. x
Pleased to see that the African Novel Challenge is hitting the spot. x
64Citizenjoyce
>56 SqueakyChu: Wow, love those stats.
65SqueakyChu
>64 Citizenjoyce: Me, too! Yay!!
66SqueakyChu
TIOLI Stats for December, 2022
In December, 2022, we had 17 challenges in which we read a total of 368 books. Of these, 59 (16%) were shared reads. We collected 30 TIOLI points, leaving us with with a YTD total of 475...which was also the year's total.
The most popular book, read by six challengers, was A World of Curiosities by Louise Penny.
The most popular challenge, with 88 books read, was the one by @DeltaQueen50 to read a book with a 4 plus letter word embedded in the title.
The challenge with the most TIOLI points (seven) was also the one by @DeltaQueen50 to read a book with a 4 plus letter word embedded in the title.
Good work, everyone! I hope you enjoyed your reads of 2022.
In December, 2022, we had 17 challenges in which we read a total of 368 books. Of these, 59 (16%) were shared reads. We collected 30 TIOLI points, leaving us with with a YTD total of 475...which was also the year's total.
The most popular book, read by six challengers, was A World of Curiosities by Louise Penny.
The most popular challenge, with 88 books read, was the one by @DeltaQueen50 to read a book with a 4 plus letter word embedded in the title.
The challenge with the most TIOLI points (seven) was also the one by @DeltaQueen50 to read a book with a 4 plus letter word embedded in the title.
Good work, everyone! I hope you enjoyed your reads of 2022.
67alcottacre
>66 SqueakyChu: I had a great time reading along with everyone in 2022 and am very much looking forward to wonderful times in 2023.
Congratulations, Judy, on such a popular challenge! Congratulations to Louise Penny (who I am sure will read this) on making everyone love Three Pines!
Congratulations, Judy, on such a popular challenge! Congratulations to Louise Penny (who I am sure will read this) on making everyone love Three Pines!
69alcottacre
>68 SqueakyChu: I thought that might get a laugh out of you :)
70SqueakyChu
>69 alcottacre: That was the funniest line I’ve read today, Stasia!
71alcottacre
>70 SqueakyChu: So, not much reading today, huh?
72SqueakyChu
>72 SqueakyChu: Actually, today was a pretty good reading day…just about more serious stuff. Hiroshima. Alzheimer’s Disease.
73DeltaQueen50
Hooray for the Stats! I love the TIOLIs and I am looking forward to the fun and challenges of 2023! And thanks Stasia - I don't often see both my name and Louise Penny mentioned in the same sentence!
74alcottacre
>72 SqueakyChu: Yep, definitely more serious!
>73 DeltaQueen50: Hey, Louise Penny should take notice of us given how many 75ers are fans of the Three Pines series. You should get some credit for giving us a challenge that allows us to read more of her, Judy :)
>73 DeltaQueen50: Hey, Louise Penny should take notice of us given how many 75ers are fans of the Three Pines series. You should get some credit for giving us a challenge that allows us to read more of her, Judy :)
75SqueakyChu
Just a quick note about my older son Josh's trip to Japan. He landed safely in Tokyo on January 11. He hung out with friends for a couple of days, then started to travel elsewhere as a tourist. He has been in Osaka for two days. The first day he visited the Okasa Castle, one of Japan's most famous landmarks, and today he visited Dotonbori, the festive area of Osaka with its restaurants, clubs, bars, hotels, and its broad canal. Next he will be headed to Himeji and then Hiroshima. It will be his first visit to Hiroshima.
I finished my read of Hiroshima by John Hersey tonight. I'll be interested to hear about his reaction to visiting that city. I'll share his reactions with you. Thank you all for joining us on this journey.
Here in the area in which I live, a museum (an extention of the National Air and Space Museum) has the Enola Gay on display. This was the first aircraft to drop an atomic bomb in warfare (on Hiroshima). I saw it a few years ago. It was a certainly a weird feeling to see that plane in person. It was just hanging there limply and benignly, while at the same time I was thinking of all the devastation and death it caused.
I finished my read of Hiroshima by John Hersey tonight. I'll be interested to hear about his reaction to visiting that city. I'll share his reactions with you. Thank you all for joining us on this journey.
Here in the area in which I live, a museum (an extention of the National Air and Space Museum) has the Enola Gay on display. This was the first aircraft to drop an atomic bomb in warfare (on Hiroshima). I saw it a few years ago. It was a certainly a weird feeling to see that plane in person. It was just hanging there limply and benignly, while at the same time I was thinking of all the devastation and death it caused.
76Citizenjoyce
>75 SqueakyChu: I also finished my reading of Hiroshima tonight. It's amazing that the city has so completely recovered.
77lyzard
Well, that's annoying:
In The Garden Murder Case we have a family called 'Garden' and a murder that takes place in a garden but no actual gardening.
Fortunately it was written by someone who used initials. :D
In The Garden Murder Case we have a family called 'Garden' and a murder that takes place in a garden but no actual gardening.
Fortunately it was written by someone who used initials. :D
78SqueakyChu
About 12 hours ago, my son Josh posted the following message from Japan: "Well, the past few days have been cool, interesting things. The next one is basically reliving the holocaust museum. I've wanted to visit this area for a really long time and glad I'm here, but the hesitation is real." (in Hiroshima)
A special thank you to those of you who are now reading or have completed books that were set in Hiroshima. Those books for sure are not easy reading. However, I think books such as those set in Hiroshima are necessary as we try to understand the world and the relationship of one human being to another better.
A special thank you to those of you who are now reading or have completed books that were set in Hiroshima. Those books for sure are not easy reading. However, I think books such as those set in Hiroshima are necessary as we try to understand the world and the relationship of one human being to another better.
79elkiedee
I need to add my reads so far this month and work out how to fit them in.
FINISHED
Kate Spencer, In a New York Minute
Anna Hope, The White Rock
Helen McCarthy, Double Lives: A History of Working Motherhood
Jennifer Egan, The Candy House
Ben Aaronovitch, Rivers of London
Michelle Magorian, A Spoonful of Jam
Georgina Clarke, The Dazzle of the Light
Penelope Mortimer, Saturday Lunch With the Brownings
Jarvis Cocker, Good Pop, Bad Pop
Patrick Gale, Mother's Boy
Ann Petry, The Street
Jennifer E Smith, The Unsinkable Greta James
Brendan King, Beryl Bainbridge, Love By All Sorts of Means: A Biography
Richard Osman, The Thursday Murder Club
Joseph O'Connor (editor), New Irish Short Stories
Joe Thomas, White Riot
Leila Slimani, The Country of Others
Jilly Gagnon, The Murder Weekend
Lucy Adlington, Summerland
Angela Hui, Takeaway
Elizabeth Strout, My Name is Lucy Barton
Paulina Bren, The Barbizon: The New York Hotel That Set Women Free
Marina Lewycka, We Are All Made of Glue
Helle Helle, This Should Be Written in the Present Tense
Elizabeth McCracken, The Souvenir Museum
Elizabeth J Church, The Atomic Weight of Love
CURRENT
Katy Watson, The Three Dahlias
Meg Rosoff, Friends Like These
Ruth Ware, The It Girl
Jonathan Coe, Bournville
Audrey Magee, The Colony
Lauren Groff, Matrix
Jenny Uglow, The Pinecone
Rowan Coleman, After Ever After
Barbara Comyns, The Vet's Daughter
Gill Hornby, Miss Austen
NEXT UP
Sara Paretsky, Best Crime Stories of the Year, Volume 2
Robin Stevens, Arsenic for Tea
Ann Petry, The Narrows
Jane Smiley, A Dangerous Business*
* It's quite likely that I'm going to have to delay reading this one until later in the year, as it is very new and a library book. I got in first in the queue when it arrived but there are other holds in the queue waiting. There are other holds for Bournville but there are more copies about.
FINISHED
Kate Spencer, In a New York Minute
Anna Hope, The White Rock
Helen McCarthy, Double Lives: A History of Working Motherhood
Jennifer Egan, The Candy House
Ben Aaronovitch, Rivers of London
Michelle Magorian, A Spoonful of Jam
Georgina Clarke, The Dazzle of the Light
Penelope Mortimer, Saturday Lunch With the Brownings
Jarvis Cocker, Good Pop, Bad Pop
Patrick Gale, Mother's Boy
Ann Petry, The Street
Jennifer E Smith, The Unsinkable Greta James
Brendan King, Beryl Bainbridge, Love By All Sorts of Means: A Biography
Richard Osman, The Thursday Murder Club
Joseph O'Connor (editor), New Irish Short Stories
Joe Thomas, White Riot
Leila Slimani, The Country of Others
Jilly Gagnon, The Murder Weekend
Lucy Adlington, Summerland
Angela Hui, Takeaway
Elizabeth Strout, My Name is Lucy Barton
Paulina Bren, The Barbizon: The New York Hotel That Set Women Free
Marina Lewycka, We Are All Made of Glue
Helle Helle, This Should Be Written in the Present Tense
Elizabeth McCracken, The Souvenir Museum
Elizabeth J Church, The Atomic Weight of Love
CURRENT
Katy Watson, The Three Dahlias
Meg Rosoff, Friends Like These
Ruth Ware, The It Girl
Jonathan Coe, Bournville
Audrey Magee, The Colony
Lauren Groff, Matrix
Jenny Uglow, The Pinecone
Rowan Coleman, After Ever After
Barbara Comyns, The Vet's Daughter
Gill Hornby, Miss Austen
NEXT UP
Sara Paretsky, Best Crime Stories of the Year, Volume 2
Robin Stevens, Arsenic for Tea
Ann Petry, The Narrows
Jane Smiley, A Dangerous Business*
* It's quite likely that I'm going to have to delay reading this one until later in the year, as it is very new and a library book. I got in first in the queue when it arrived but there are other holds in the queue waiting. There are other holds for Bournville but there are more copies about.
80Citizenjoyce
>78 SqueakyChu: I was amazed in the book Hiroshima at the explanations had for the cause of all the devastation since they didn't know that one atomic bomb had caused it. They thought the US had dropped magnesium powder that their electrical use had caused to set fire to the city. That was pretty clever. When they found it was one bomb they, and we were amazed that it could produce such ruination. The picture of those survivors will never leave my mind.
81SqueakyChu
>80 Citizenjoyce: It was amazing because no one knew what had happened. Nothing like that had ever happened before so there was no frame of reference.
My feeling after reading the book Hiroshima was that I hoped this experience was enough to warn humanity to never do this again. That doesn't seem to be the direction in which the world is headed. I also noticed that, throughout the book, the author kept mentioning the nuclear testing that happened after the two atomic bombs had been dropped. That's scary indeed.
Today my son Josh is visiting the Peace Memorial Park in Hiroshima. I asked him about his thoughts at being at that site. He said that he didn't have any insightful thoughts about it. I wonder if that might change.
I want to mention that I also in the past read Black Rain, a novel about the time the atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima. I had been given that book by a friend of Josh's, an American who moved to Japan a few years ago. I highly recommend that book (fiction) if anyone wants to do a shared read of it with @Chatterbox.
My feeling after reading the book Hiroshima was that I hoped this experience was enough to warn humanity to never do this again. That doesn't seem to be the direction in which the world is headed. I also noticed that, throughout the book, the author kept mentioning the nuclear testing that happened after the two atomic bombs had been dropped. That's scary indeed.
Today my son Josh is visiting the Peace Memorial Park in Hiroshima. I asked him about his thoughts at being at that site. He said that he didn't have any insightful thoughts about it. I wonder if that might change.
I want to mention that I also in the past read Black Rain, a novel about the time the atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima. I had been given that book by a friend of Josh's, an American who moved to Japan a few years ago. I highly recommend that book (fiction) if anyone wants to do a shared read of it with @Chatterbox.
82Chatterbox
>78 SqueakyChu: >81 SqueakyChu: I first started reading Ibuse's Black Rain after I visited Hiroshima for the first time in 1981. At that time, there were still plenty of hibakusha living in Hiroshima (survivors of the bomb), readily distinguishable by keloid scars and other problems. I didn't finish the novel then because I found it too difficult. Later, in 1984, I returned to Hiroshima with Japanese friends to attend the commemoration ceremonies on August 6. In between then (in 1983) I had written a column for the daily paper in Canada on which I was interning about the fact that our most iconic image of the Hiroshima bomb was of the mushroom cloud -- NOT of the devastation at 'ground zero'. There's no way that I could ever excuse the atrocities the Japanese perpetrated throughout SE Asia and China in the 1930s and into the war years, but throughout my adult life I have remained troubled by the awareness that a decent part of the reason for dropping the bomb was geopolitical -- to send a signal to the Soviet Union that the US had nuclear capabilities. Another reason? The lives of US military were deemed more 'valuable' than those of Japanese civilians. We can never know what a home islands invasion would have required, but I know from people who survived the fire bombings of Tokyo and other cities that the ability to resist was de minimis at that point, and from my postgrad studies in Japan, I'm aware of the peace faction within the Japanese government that even prior to the bombs was beginning to undermine the military's insistence on resisting to the last man/woman/child. FWIW.
Also FWIW, for Madeline's challenge, I'm reading the new graphic novel about Iva Toguri, aka "Tokyo Rose". This is even more personal, as one of my closest friendships in my final year or two in Japan was with a lovely older man named Phil d'Aquino. Phil was stateless, and of mixed ancestry (Japanese, Chinese, Filipino). During the war, he was stuck in Japan, and was married to Iva Toguri. Their child died in the final months of the war. When she was arrested, deported and put on trial, he was refused permission to join her in the US. She essentially was forced to divorce him. The US never granted him a visa to travel to see her again; I don't know whether Iva ever got a passport but I know Phil had been told by the Japanese government authorities that she would never be allowed back into the country. Phil and I were both copy editors at the Japan Times in Tokyo; me in the early years of my career, he, toward the end of his. He never remarried.
Also FWIW, for Madeline's challenge, I'm reading the new graphic novel about Iva Toguri, aka "Tokyo Rose". This is even more personal, as one of my closest friendships in my final year or two in Japan was with a lovely older man named Phil d'Aquino. Phil was stateless, and of mixed ancestry (Japanese, Chinese, Filipino). During the war, he was stuck in Japan, and was married to Iva Toguri. Their child died in the final months of the war. When she was arrested, deported and put on trial, he was refused permission to join her in the US. She essentially was forced to divorce him. The US never granted him a visa to travel to see her again; I don't know whether Iva ever got a passport but I know Phil had been told by the Japanese government authorities that she would never be allowed back into the country. Phil and I were both copy editors at the Japan Times in Tokyo; me in the early years of my career, he, toward the end of his. He never remarried.
83Chatterbox
On a completely separate note, the most-anticipated list for the first half of 2023 has been published by the Millions, and books on it also qualify for my challenge #6.
Here's the link.
https://themillions.com/2023/01/most-anticipated-the-great-2023a-book-preview.ht...
I've added The Half-Known Life by Pico Iyer to the challenge; I'm a fan of his writing AND I first discovered his books just after I returned from living in Asia (where he now spends half his time...)
Here's the link.
https://themillions.com/2023/01/most-anticipated-the-great-2023a-book-preview.ht...
I've added The Half-Known Life by Pico Iyer to the challenge; I'm a fan of his writing AND I first discovered his books just after I returned from living in Asia (where he now spends half his time...)
84SqueakyChu
>82 Chatterbox: Wow, Suz. Thank you for sharing this information with all of us, as painful as it is. I'll try to get hold of the GN "Tokyo Rose".
85avatiakh
>78 SqueakyChu: I've just finished reading The Last Cherry Blossom which is based on the experiences of the writer's mother who was just twelve years old and living in Hiroshima in 1945. It's a children's book and written after Burkinshaw had shared her mother's story with students of local schools for several years.
86elkiedee
>85 avatiakh: I'm probably not going to get to reread this month, but when I was a kid, I borrowed a book from the library which made a huge impression on me, a novel about a girl who grows up in Hiroshima and survives the bombing, as do her parents. But there is more to come a few years later.
It's not, as I thought, Myeko's Gift, though - that seems to be a story about a Japanese-American child. I guess it's some years since I read them.
It's not, as I thought, Myeko's Gift, though - that seems to be a story about a Japanese-American child. I guess it's some years since I read them.
87FAMeulstee
The most impressive reads about Hiroshima were for me Black Rain, and Barefoot Gen: A Cartoon Story of Hiroshima, Volume 1 by Keiji Nakazawa (first in a graphic novel series about his experiences).
89cbl_tn
>89 cbl_tn: Welcome! Yes, each month has a new set of challenges. Sometime in the last week of the month, while nobody is looking, Madeline will sneak in the Februrary TIOLI thread.
90lindapanzo
>88 msf59: Hi Mark, so glad you're getting involved with TIOLI. Yes, the challenges are different every month and you can do some or all (which is a sweep) or even all in one group, such as challenges 1 to 6, which is a sweeplette.
91Helenliz
>88 msf59: yes, a different set of challenges to try and twist into something that fits your reading every month. Some are more elastic than others.
Some people aim to spread their reading out, at other times it all ends up in just a few categories. Either is fine & dandy.
Sweeps are not obligatory - I aspire - one day...
Some people aim to spread their reading out, at other times it all ends up in just a few categories. Either is fine & dandy.
Sweeps are not obligatory - I aspire - one day...
92Chatterbox
>88 msf59: Mark, hello!! I rejoined TIOLI in part because it pushes me to push my reading boundaries every month, and that's something that (usually) is rewarding as well as (sometimes) being a bit frustrating or irritating.
93SqueakyChu
>85 avatiakh: I'd like to find and read The Last Cherry Blossom as well.
>87 FAMeulstee: I'd like to read Barefoot Gen: A Cartoon Story of Hiroshima, Volume 1 as well.
>88 msf59: Welcome, Mark! It's so nice you've discovered us and want to join our challenges. Every month I present a new challenge. At that time each of our participants may present an optional challenge only up to and including the fourth day of the month. The way it works is that you have to discover (because I don't announce it) next month's challenge (which I post toward the end of the month). If you wish to add a challenge, post it first on the wiki and afterward add information about your challenge to the main thread. If you do not wish to offer your own challenge, that's okay. You may just list (or unlist) books at random. Feel free to talk about what you read here on this main thread. Jump in now! This month is still young! :)
>89 cbl_tn:Sometime in the last week of the month, while nobody is looking, Madeline will sneak in the Februrary TIOLI thread.
LOL!
>87 FAMeulstee: I'd like to read Barefoot Gen: A Cartoon Story of Hiroshima, Volume 1 as well.
>88 msf59: Welcome, Mark! It's so nice you've discovered us and want to join our challenges. Every month I present a new challenge. At that time each of our participants may present an optional challenge only up to and including the fourth day of the month. The way it works is that you have to discover (because I don't announce it) next month's challenge (which I post toward the end of the month). If you wish to add a challenge, post it first on the wiki and afterward add information about your challenge to the main thread. If you do not wish to offer your own challenge, that's okay. You may just list (or unlist) books at random. Feel free to talk about what you read here on this main thread. Jump in now! This month is still young! :)
>89 cbl_tn:Sometime in the last week of the month, while nobody is looking, Madeline will sneak in the Februrary TIOLI thread.
LOL!
94avatiakh
>86 elkiedee: That almost sounds like one of the books about Sadako and her paper cranes.
>87 FAMeulstee: My library has vols 2-10 of Barefoot Gen but vol. 1 is no longer available, so I'll have to find a copy. Black Rain is on my tbr list.
>93 SqueakyChu: I had requested The Last Cherry Blossom from the library before your challenge went up, not sure why now but I must have seen mention of it somewhere.
I've started noticing my copy of The Girl with the White Flag on one of my tbr piles so should pull it out and read it.
I remember as a child that my grandmother refused to buy anything that was 'made in Japan'. During the early part of the war, most of our soldiers were fighting in North Africa which left Australia and New Zealand open to an easy invasion which thankfully never happened.
A delightful book set in Tokyo is Tetsuko Kuroyanagi's childhood memoir Totto-Chan: The Little Girl at the Window, about her time in Sosaku Kobayashi's alternative school, with railway carriages as classrooms where freedom of expression was encouraged.
>87 FAMeulstee: My library has vols 2-10 of Barefoot Gen but vol. 1 is no longer available, so I'll have to find a copy. Black Rain is on my tbr list.
>93 SqueakyChu: I had requested The Last Cherry Blossom from the library before your challenge went up, not sure why now but I must have seen mention of it somewhere.
I've started noticing my copy of The Girl with the White Flag on one of my tbr piles so should pull it out and read it.
I remember as a child that my grandmother refused to buy anything that was 'made in Japan'. During the early part of the war, most of our soldiers were fighting in North Africa which left Australia and New Zealand open to an easy invasion which thankfully never happened.
A delightful book set in Tokyo is Tetsuko Kuroyanagi's childhood memoir Totto-Chan: The Little Girl at the Window, about her time in Sosaku Kobayashi's alternative school, with railway carriages as classrooms where freedom of expression was encouraged.
95labfs39
I'll join the chorus of shoutouts for Barefoot Gen, Hiroshima, and Black Rain. Last year I read The Crazy iris and other stories of the atomic aftermath edited by Kenzaburo Oe, and would highly recommend that as well. It's a collection of short works mainly by survivors. It was eye-opening, and Oe's introduction is great. One of the things I learned was about the US gag on the press about the bomb and the aftermath. Avaland has recommended Fallout : the Hiroshima cover-up and the reporter who revealed it to the world for more information on that topic. I have Hiroshima diary : the journal of a Japanese physician, August 6-September 30, 1945 on my table.
96Chatterbox
>95 labfs39: I'll add a vigorous "ABSOLUTELY" to the recommendation to read Fallout by Lesley M.M. Blume. It was a five-star book for me and a "best of the year".
97labfs39
>96 Chatterbox: ok, then! That settles it, I'll look for a copy.
98SqueakyChu
Thank you, everyone, for your suggestions about further reading about Hiroshima.
My son Josh took two separate trips today (which to me in the US is actually tomorrow!). First he went to to the Hiroshima A-bomb Dome and peace museum (as I described above) and second to Miyajima (Itsukishima). He said that the the images at the peace museum pretty much spoke for themselves. He said the ferry to Miyajima mentioned the Ootorii (a seemingly "floating" shrine) as being one of Japan's top three most scenic views, although it wasn't revealed what the others were. Both Hiroshima and Miyajima were places he had wanted to visit for a long time, but he felt he had put them off for too long. He's heading for Kyoto tomorrow night.
My son Josh took two separate trips today (which to me in the US is actually tomorrow!). First he went to to the Hiroshima A-bomb Dome and peace museum (as I described above) and second to Miyajima (Itsukishima). He said that the the images at the peace museum pretty much spoke for themselves. He said the ferry to Miyajima mentioned the Ootorii (a seemingly "floating" shrine) as being one of Japan's top three most scenic views, although it wasn't revealed what the others were. Both Hiroshima and Miyajima were places he had wanted to visit for a long time, but he felt he had put them off for too long. He's heading for Kyoto tomorrow night.
99benitastrnad
Read the first, second, and/or third book of a trilogy
I have actually read two for this challenge this month. I read Memory of Souls by Jenn Lyons. This is book 3 in the Chorus of Dragons epic fantasy series.
There are 5 books in the series, but this one is book three. Does that count? Earlier this weekend I finished Countdown City by Ben H. Winters. This is book two in the Last Policeman trilogy.
I am currently working on challenge # 18 Read a book related to ending. The book is Beginning or the End: How Hollywood - and America - Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb by Greg Mitchell. This book is about the making of the MGM movie about the Manhattan Project and how this movie, that started out as an anti-bomb, antiwar movie ended up being pro-bomb drivel. The review of this one caught my eye because I read books about Hollywood movies and personalities from time-to-time. This one has Louis B. Mayer, Donna Reed, and Ayn Rand in it, so I requested it from our Inter-Library Loan department and now I need to get it read before March 1. I think it fits this category because it according to the dust jacket flaps, it illustrates how an anti-bomb movie became a pro-bomb movie ending Hollywood opposition to the use of the atomic bomb until recently. It should be an interesting journey into the mindset of that era and if it doesn't fit this category, I think I can make a case for it moving to another category.
I have actually read two for this challenge this month. I read Memory of Souls by Jenn Lyons. This is book 3 in the Chorus of Dragons epic fantasy series.
There are 5 books in the series, but this one is book three. Does that count? Earlier this weekend I finished Countdown City by Ben H. Winters. This is book two in the Last Policeman trilogy.
I am currently working on challenge # 18 Read a book related to ending. The book is Beginning or the End: How Hollywood - and America - Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb by Greg Mitchell. This book is about the making of the MGM movie about the Manhattan Project and how this movie, that started out as an anti-bomb, antiwar movie ended up being pro-bomb drivel. The review of this one caught my eye because I read books about Hollywood movies and personalities from time-to-time. This one has Louis B. Mayer, Donna Reed, and Ayn Rand in it, so I requested it from our Inter-Library Loan department and now I need to get it read before March 1. I think it fits this category because it according to the dust jacket flaps, it illustrates how an anti-bomb movie became a pro-bomb movie ending Hollywood opposition to the use of the atomic bomb until recently. It should be an interesting journey into the mindset of that era and if it doesn't fit this category, I think I can make a case for it moving to another category.
100msf59
>93 SqueakyChu: Thank you and everyone else for the warm welcome. I plan on using this challenge and the AlphaKit challenge to assist me in selecting books. My goal is to read 3-5 OTS books a month. I did pretty well last year on my own but I was looking for more creative ways to do it.
I read my first- Challenge 12: Demon Copperhead My first 5 star read of the year.
Next up- Challenge 7: Wild Child: and other Stories by T.C. Boyle
I read my first- Challenge 12: Demon Copperhead My first 5 star read of the year.
Next up- Challenge 7: Wild Child: and other Stories by T.C. Boyle
101SqueakyChu
>100 msf59: We have a lot of fun here choosing books, Mark. We can be pretty creative, even a bit nuts, when creating some of our challenges. LOL!
You cannot list one book for more than one challenge at the same time. However you can move one book from one challenge to a different challenge at any time.
Everyone seems to love Demon Copperhead. I haven’t read books by T.C. Boyle in what seems like forever. I liked his short stories the best.
You cannot list one book for more than one challenge at the same time. However you can move one book from one challenge to a different challenge at any time.
Everyone seems to love Demon Copperhead. I haven’t read books by T.C. Boyle in what seems like forever. I liked his short stories the best.
102SqueakyChu
TIOLI Question of the MONTH:
So it's a new year! What's your #1 New Year's resolution regarding books! :D
So it's a new year! What's your #1 New Year's resolution regarding books! :D
103alcottacre
>102 SqueakyChu: Mine is to read less this year. Last year, I read 455 books. I have a lot of house things I want to do this year, so it means less reading. I am only shooting for 300 books this year.
104SqueakyChu
>130 Citizenjoyce: I am only shooting for 300 books this year.
Do you know how many YEARS it would take me to read 300 books, Stasia?! LOL!
Do you know how many YEARS it would take me to read 300 books, Stasia?! LOL!
105SqueakyChu
>102 SqueakyChu: My book resolution is to get my TBR pile down significantly (whatever that means!). It's 404 books to date. I don't even have to read them all. I just have to weed through them and decide which ones to read and which ones to release into my Little Free Library unread. The only problem is that, as I do this, other books keep coming in that I want to stash back into the same pile I want to decrease. :(
106Morphidae
>102 SqueakyChu: >103 alcottacre: Whereas mine is to read more. I read seven books last year.
S-E-V-E-N.
That's less than 3% of what I used to read. I've read a book already. Whoo hoo! So at this rate, I'll read 24 books this year (ugh, just ugh.)
It hurts to have lost this part of me, so I'll be working to get back in balance here. My Goodreads goal is 50. Nowhere near what I used to read, however better than last year.
- - - - - - -
>101 SqueakyChu: "...even a bit nuts, when creating some of our challenges. LOL!"
Hey! Hey! I resemble that remark!
S-E-V-E-N.
That's less than 3% of what I used to read. I've read a book already. Whoo hoo! So at this rate, I'll read 24 books this year (ugh, just ugh.)
It hurts to have lost this part of me, so I'll be working to get back in balance here. My Goodreads goal is 50. Nowhere near what I used to read, however better than last year.
- - - - - - -
>101 SqueakyChu: "...even a bit nuts, when creating some of our challenges. LOL!"
Hey! Hey! I resemble that remark!
107cbl_tn
>102 SqueakyChu: I don't do New Year's resolutions. My goal this year is the same as every year - read more books from my shelves than I add to my shelves.
108DeltaQueen50
Like many of us here my book shelves have grown mightily since I joined Library Thing. My reading goal this year is to focus on the older books on my shelves, Kindles and library lists.
109Helenliz
I aim to read the library books I have out and the books received more quickly. I fell a long way behind last year, what with other challenge reading.
I also want to read fewer books, but my reason is I want to read some more chunkies. Same amount of reading, differently distributed. Jerusalem stalled somewhere in book 2 in 2021, I want to get back to that again. And , who know, this might be the year I read War & Peace.
I also want to read fewer books, but my reason is I want to read some more chunkies. Same amount of reading, differently distributed. Jerusalem stalled somewhere in book 2 in 2021, I want to get back to that again. And , who know, this might be the year I read War & Peace.
110FAMeulstee
>106 Morphidae: Did you get new or other medication, Morphy?
I could barely read for years when I was on Paxil. It was a not very well known side effect. When I changed to Effexor I could read again. In 2015 I could wean of the antidepressants and my reading soared after that.
I could barely read for years when I was on Paxil. It was a not very well known side effect. When I changed to Effexor I could read again. In 2015 I could wean of the antidepressants and my reading soared after that.
111dallenbaugh
>106 Morphidae: As I grow older and now deal with a chronic disease my concentration has done a nose dive, so my resolution is to stick with series I have loved in the past and haven't finished. Maybe I will also concentrate on books that give me some hope for our struggling world.
112wandering_star
Mine is to amass fewer recommendations, actually! I do of course want to read more of the books on my shelves, and to make more time for reading, but I think I sometimes add books to my wishlist just because someone says "this book is good" - so I am trying to only wishlist books if there is enough information about them in the recommendation for me to judge whether it sounds like a book I would enjoy. Maybe it’s silly that I don’t already do that, but I think deep down it comes from a desire to "Read ALL The Things"!
113Chatterbox
My resolution is to work my way through the stack of ARCs on my shelves. I love accumulating these advanced reading copies at ALA (American Library Association) shindigs, but it's embarrassing the extent to which I just toss them onto my shelves and postpone reading many of 'em for years. I have a knack of finding things very intriguing and then... (my reading eyes are bigger than my reading 'mouth'/capacity??) And when it comes to free books, well, I just can't say no. And there is ALWAYS something new and interesting. (An added problem for me is that reading ARCs means donning my reading glasses, which continue to give me problems; I'll be able to use insurance to get a new pair in May and I'm counting down the days!) This month, I'll be reading Members Only by Sameer Pandya for my own challenge (#6, books on the Millions 'most anticipated' lists), which I picked up at the ALA in Philadelphia only weeks before the pandemic lockdown. That was a great time and a great trip... If I get 10 of these off my shelves by May, I will allow myself to go to ALA in Chicago in June!
114labfs39
I have vague goals regarding the African Novel Challenge, etc, but I don't care so much whether the book comes off my shelves, off the library shelves, or my virtual e-reader shelves. It's all good!
115lindapanzo
My 2023 resolutions include getting caught up on reading Net Galleys (I tend to get caught up and then ask for more and so never truly get caught up). Another is to do more group reads. I've already done one, Demon Copperhead with Mark and Stasia and others.
As always, I aim to read 100+ books a year. In recent years, I've been just over that number.
As always, I aim to read 100+ books a year. In recent years, I've been just over that number.
116benitastrnad
I am going to try to read the 80 books I checked out from our library system in anticipation of my retirement on March 1, 2023. I want to read those 80 books this year. And not put any more from the library on my shelves.
117alcottacre
>104 SqueakyChu: Umm, no. . .
>105 SqueakyChu: I am doing too. I started last year, using the TIOLI challenges to help facilitate it. Trust me when I say that you do not want to know how big my TIOLI pile is, lol.
>106 Morphidae: You can do it, Morphy! I have faith!
Such a wide swath of goals we have! I wish everyone the greatest success!
>105 SqueakyChu: I am doing too. I started last year, using the TIOLI challenges to help facilitate it. Trust me when I say that you do not want to know how big my TIOLI pile is, lol.
>106 Morphidae: You can do it, Morphy! I have faith!
Such a wide swath of goals we have! I wish everyone the greatest success!
118quondame
>102 SqueakyChu: The only thing I can think of is to come up with a reading goal so I will have one in case someone requires it for a TIOLI. I usually just assemble my reads from browsing new books, LT reviews, $0.99 & $1.99 Amazon books.
119SilverWolf28
>103 alcottacre: You read 5 more books then I did last year! And one less then I did in 2021.
I don't have a goal for this year but I expect my reading numbers will be somewhere above 400 most likely.
I don't have a goal for this year but I expect my reading numbers will be somewhere above 400 most likely.
120Citizenjoyce
>11 lyzard: I want to read Spare by Prince Harry The Duke of Sussex. He didn't get to be a leader but Harry Truman was. What do you think?
Oops, never mind. It looks like it does.
Oops, never mind. It looks like it does.
121Citizenjoyce
>102 SqueakyChu: the only goal I have about reading is to continue to keep track of my reading through TIOLI. I have no goals about the number or kinds of books I read. I just want to keep reading books I enjoy.
122Kristelh
I don't have a particular resolution but I would like to become more active in TIOLI challenges this year. I am trying to be more flexible in my options this year.
123SqueakyChu
My son Josh’s whirlwind tour of Japan is winding down. Yesterday while in Kyoto, he visited the Fushimi Himari shrine and hiked the trail up to the mountaintop ("It's a HIKE", he said. "Another beautiful shrine, another beautiful day, and since it's midweek there weren't an oppressive number of people (side note: I saw more tourists in Kyoto than anywhere else so far). Fushimi Inari has thousands of torii gates. I don't even know how many, I haven't done any research! You don't need to climb the mountain to see most of them, the farther you go the fewer there are, but I had decided I wanted to climb all the way".
Today he's back in Tokyo for the GranBlu Fantasy Fest this weekend and a few days to leisurely hang out with friends before heading home next week. Thank you all for joining us in Japan in your reading.
Today he's back in Tokyo for the GranBlu Fantasy Fest this weekend and a few days to leisurely hang out with friends before heading home next week. Thank you all for joining us in Japan in your reading.
124alcottacre
>119 SilverWolf28: Yay for the 400+ 75ers! Lol
>123 SqueakyChu: I still have one more to read for that particular challenge. Looks like I need to get a move on.
>123 SqueakyChu: I still have one more to read for that particular challenge. Looks like I need to get a move on.
125AnneDC
>102 SqueakyChu: I think my reading goal for the year is to post more notes on my reading on my thread. I read an almost record number of books last year but posted comments on almost none of them, and I'd be happy with reading fewer books and slowing down to record more about them.
Oh, and I'd like to manage at least one TIOLI Sweep!
Oh, and I'd like to manage at least one TIOLI Sweep!
126lindapanzo
>125 AnneDC: That's a good idea about slowing down. I do an occasional review on LT but rarely post comments on my recently-finished books on my thread.
In 2022, I didn't have any sweeps or even sweeplettes. I'm trying to finish a sweeplette this month but a sweep might be too much to accomplish these days.
In 2022, I didn't have any sweeps or even sweeplettes. I'm trying to finish a sweeplette this month but a sweep might be too much to accomplish these days.
128FAMeulstee
>127 Kristelh:
A sweep: you read a book in all TIOLI challenges in a month.
A sweeplette: you read a book in the six TIOLI challenges on a page (1-6, or 7-12, and if there are enough challenges 13-18).
A sweep: you read a book in all TIOLI challenges in a month.
A sweeplette: you read a book in the six TIOLI challenges on a page (1-6, or 7-12, and if there are enough challenges 13-18).
129SqueakyChu
>127 Kristelh: >128 FAMeulstee: A sweeplette can actually be less than six book if the wiki page 3 lists less than six challenges! :)
130Citizenjoyce
>123 SqueakyChu: Whirlwind tour indeed. I'm exhausted just reading about it.
131avatiakh
>102 SqueakyChu: My reading goal for this year has to be reading from my shelves. I seem to tie myself up with library books when I have so many better reads gathering dust on my shelves.
>123 SqueakyChu: He's had a great trip by the sounds of it. I've been to Japan a few times as a stopover stay on trips to Europe. I haven't travelled around that much but have enjoyed the sights of Tokyo, Osaka and Kyoto. We enjoyed one stay in a Kyoto ryokan when our children were young. It was fun to roll out the futons each evening and sleep in a big group on the floor.
>123 SqueakyChu: He's had a great trip by the sounds of it. I've been to Japan a few times as a stopover stay on trips to Europe. I haven't travelled around that much but have enjoyed the sights of Tokyo, Osaka and Kyoto. We enjoyed one stay in a Kyoto ryokan when our children were young. It was fun to roll out the futons each evening and sleep in a big group on the floor.
132SqueakyChu
>131 avatiakh: Josh stayed in a ryokan on a past trip to Japan and enjoyed both the relaxation and the beautiful view from where he stayed (but I forget where that was!).
133elkiedee
>94 avatiakh: The book I was thinking of is about Sadako. In my memory the girl in the book was older than 2 in August 1945. The English translation copy I read, and I think I do have a copy upstairs, is called The Day of the Bomb by Karl Bruckner, but the original German title is Sadako Will Leben - Sadako wants to live. And I do remember the paper crane folding.
134benitastrnad
>133 elkiedee:
There is also Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes by Eleanor Coerr. This book was quite famous when I started teaching. It had a real impact on many school children in the 1980's.
Another children's book on the subject was Hiroshima No Pika which was somewhat controversial in schools due to the graphic style of the illustrations. However, I read it out loud to 5th and 6th graders and it had a big impact on that class.
There is also Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes by Eleanor Coerr. This book was quite famous when I started teaching. It had a real impact on many school children in the 1980's.
Another children's book on the subject was Hiroshima No Pika which was somewhat controversial in schools due to the graphic style of the illustrations. However, I read it out loud to 5th and 6th graders and it had a big impact on that class.
135susanna.fraser
>102 SqueakyChu: My resolutions this year are to read more of what's already on my shelves (physical and virtual), to read more from my public library "For Later" shelf, and to continue my goal from the last couple of years of reading at least three books a month by POC and/or LGBTQ writers.
136Citizenjoyce
>134 benitastrnad: I read that to my kids and couldn't stop crying.
137PawsforThought
>134 benitastrnad: I read Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes as a child (aged 8 or 9 I think) and loved it. Learned some origami as a result (because of course). I've also read it to a few classes of children when I was working in a primary school. They all liked it but of course found it incredibly sad.
138avatiakh
>134 benitastrnad: I was able to pickup my request for Hiroshima No Pika today, the edition is titled The Hiroshima Story but it is the same picturebook by Toshi Maruki. She is an artist first and foremost so I found the illustrations very effective.
The story came from a visitor to Maruki's exhibition of The Hiroshima Panels who became emotionally overwhelmed (was the mother in the story). https://marukigallery.jp/en/hiroshimapanels/
The story came from a visitor to Maruki's exhibition of The Hiroshima Panels who became emotionally overwhelmed (was the mother in the story). https://marukigallery.jp/en/hiroshimapanels/
139SqueakyChu
>138 avatiakh: Wow. The extent of the horror was unbelievable, sadly depicted in these panels and expressed with words. Thank you for sharing this, Kerry.
140Citizenjoyce
Thanks @cbl_tn for posting The Ride Of Her Life: The True Story of a Woman, Her Horse, and Their Last-Chance Journey Across America by Elizabeth Letts so I could join you in it What a great book about an amazingly brave woman. My only complaint about it is that it's a terrible thief of sleep.
141cbl_tn
>140 Citizenjoyce: I'm so glad you liked it! We had a really great book club discussion a couple of weeks ago. If you want to see Annie in the flesh, the You Bet Your Life episode she appeared in is available on YouTube.
142alcottacre
>140 Citizenjoyce: >141 cbl_tn: I have added that one to the BlackHole. It looks terrific.
143Citizenjoyce
>141 cbl_tn: Thanks. I'm dying to see her.
144Citizenjoyce
>141 cbl_tn: Unfortunately I couldn't find that You Bet Your Life episode, but I did find some great interviews with the author. I'm glad she changed the author's life, and I can certainly see how that could happen.
145cbl_tn
>144 Citizenjoyce: Here's the link: https://youtu.be/OlKWjmaerjY
Annie/Mesannie is one of the second pair of contestants.
Annie/Mesannie is one of the second pair of contestants.
146Citizenjoyce
>145 cbl_tn: Thanks. She'd obviously gussied herself up a bit and Groucho still made fun of her clothes. Oh well, he didn't know any better. It's hard to believe this calm woman was the same loner she started out.
147cbl_tn
>146 Citizenjoyce: I know! Isn't it fun to see and hear her after reading about her journey?!
148SqueakyChu
TIOLI Awards for December, 2022:
The Fruit of the Month Award goes to @streamsong for reading Don't Let the Goats Eat the Loquat Trees for the challenge by Carmenere to read a book with a word in the title that can be found on a charcuterie board. Even if I knew for sure what a charcuterie board were (or even knew how to spell it without looking), I'd be hard pressed to recognize a loquat! That fruit is new to me. Now I know why people give me a strange look when I start talking about the pawpaw tree in my own backyard! LOL!
The Two Many Award (Ha!) goes to @AlcottAcre for reading As It Is In Heaven for this challenger's own challenge to read a book that has multiple 2 letter words in the title. The title of this book had a total of four two-letter words in it. At least they were easy to count. :)
The Geography Teacher Award goes to @wandering_star for the challenge to read a book set between the Tropics of Cancer and Capricorn. Any challenge that has all of us going to study a map is a great challenge! Thank you for that!
The Book Bullet Award goes to @Citizenjoyce for reading Hollow Kingdom for the challenge by PaulCranswick to read a book you are reading because of a positive review for the book or author by a 75er Group Member. The book read by our award winner had been recommended on TIOLI 10/21 ("but I don't know by whom"). I'm so happy that the TIOLI challenges are sending out book bullets!
The Easiest Path Possible Award goes to @Kristelh for reading Fury for the challenge by quondame ro read a book with all title words 4 or more characters. Why bother looking for another title if one four-letter-word title fulfills all the parameters for this challenge?! :D
Congrats to our award winners!
I hope everyone's New Year is getting off to a fine start.
The Fruit of the Month Award goes to @streamsong for reading Don't Let the Goats Eat the Loquat Trees for the challenge by Carmenere to read a book with a word in the title that can be found on a charcuterie board. Even if I knew for sure what a charcuterie board were (or even knew how to spell it without looking), I'd be hard pressed to recognize a loquat! That fruit is new to me. Now I know why people give me a strange look when I start talking about the pawpaw tree in my own backyard! LOL!
The Two Many Award (Ha!) goes to @AlcottAcre for reading As It Is In Heaven for this challenger's own challenge to read a book that has multiple 2 letter words in the title. The title of this book had a total of four two-letter words in it. At least they were easy to count. :)
The Geography Teacher Award goes to @wandering_star for the challenge to read a book set between the Tropics of Cancer and Capricorn. Any challenge that has all of us going to study a map is a great challenge! Thank you for that!
The Book Bullet Award goes to @Citizenjoyce for reading Hollow Kingdom for the challenge by PaulCranswick to read a book you are reading because of a positive review for the book or author by a 75er Group Member. The book read by our award winner had been recommended on TIOLI 10/21 ("but I don't know by whom"). I'm so happy that the TIOLI challenges are sending out book bullets!
The Easiest Path Possible Award goes to @Kristelh for reading Fury for the challenge by quondame ro read a book with all title words 4 or more characters. Why bother looking for another title if one four-letter-word title fulfills all the parameters for this challenge?! :D
Congrats to our award winners!
I hope everyone's New Year is getting off to a fine start.
149SqueakyChu
Some final notes from my son Josh who is winding up his trip to Japan in two days.
"This trip has FLOWN by. I know I've said in the past that three weeks is too long (this was 15 days) but I've been so incredibly busy, and to be honest, exhausted, that this feels like it's been a week maybe. I fly home on Thursday happy with how much I've done, but sad at how much I've had to pass on. Hopefully I can do the Jan '24 trip for FF Fanfest Tokyo and NOT be bookended in the city. Either start or end with it. We'll see."
Thank you, everyone, for joining our Japan adventure with your reading this month. It's been fun!
"This trip has FLOWN by. I know I've said in the past that three weeks is too long (this was 15 days) but I've been so incredibly busy, and to be honest, exhausted, that this feels like it's been a week maybe. I fly home on Thursday happy with how much I've done, but sad at how much I've had to pass on. Hopefully I can do the Jan '24 trip for FF Fanfest Tokyo and NOT be bookended in the city. Either start or end with it. We'll see."
Thank you, everyone, for joining our Japan adventure with your reading this month. It's been fun!
150Citizenjoyce
>148 SqueakyChu: Thanks for the award. I get so many good recommendations from this group, what did I do without it before. Well, I know. I read far fewer books.
I'm so glad your son had such a fabulous vacation with sequels to come.
I'm so glad your son had such a fabulous vacation with sequels to come.
151labfs39
I just finished Hiroshima Diary and thought it was excellent. Less depressing than Hiroshima and Black Rain, because the diarist focuses on the triumph of life over death, despite the horrors that surrounded him. Highly recommended.
152Kristelh
>148 SqueakyChu: Thanks for the award!
153streamsong
>148 SqueakyChu: Thank you for the fruit of the month award. It made me smile on a tough day. Would it make you laugh more if I told you I did some googling to see if one might also find goat on a charcuterie board? I gave it up, but it was sooooooo tempting to imagine an elegant board with dried goat and loquats.
154alcottacre
>148 SqueakyChu: I appreciate the award too, Madeline, especially as I feel like I am failing at reading in January - traveling and CFS are definitely a hindrance this month!
155SqueakyChu
>153 streamsong: Dried goat doesn’t sound appealing to me as one of my very good friends is a volunteer in the goat corral at the Maryland Zoo in Baltimore. How about if a live goat just steps onto the the board? :)
>154 alcottacre: You’ll get back into reading. Be easy on yourself. Do what you can when you can.
>154 alcottacre: You’ll get back into reading. Be easy on yourself. Do what you can when you can.
156alcottacre
>155 SqueakyChu: Thanks for the encouraging words, Madeline. It is not that I am not getting no reading done, it is just the first time that I remember having to take multiple books off the TIOLI challenges. Normally 1, possibly 2, but not 5 or so like I have had to do this month.
157wandering_star
>148 SqueakyChu: thank you! I love maps so it's good to have a chance to encourage people to look at them
158SqueakyChu
Our son Josh is back at his home tonight, safe and sound...and exhausted! He had a wonderful trip, and I had fun vicariously traveling with him through pictures he sent me and the books I've been reading. I hope all of you enjoyed your Japan reading this month as well.
159Citizenjoyce
>158 SqueakyChu: Wow, that seemed so fast, but vacations always do.
160alcottacre
>158 SqueakyChu: Happy to hear that he has arrived back home safely and that he had a wonderful trip!
161lindapanzo
>158 SqueakyChu: That's great news!!
I finished my 5th book towards a 6-book sweeplette last night. I haven't had a sweeplette since December of 2021, according to Anita's sweeplette list, but now, I've got 5 days to read the last book.
I finished my 5th book towards a 6-book sweeplette last night. I haven't had a sweeplette since December of 2021, according to Anita's sweeplette list, but now, I've got 5 days to read the last book.
162SqueakyChu
>161 lindapanzo: Go, Linda! You can do this!!
163alcottacre
>161 lindapanzo: You got this, Linda! Congratulations!
164lindapanzo
>162 SqueakyChu: >163 alcottacre: Thanks. I'm about 20 percent through the sweeplette-clinching book and we may get an inch or two of snow on Saturday or else, maybe 8 inches plus. Either way, we cancelled our Saturday engagements. I'll just stay home and read and watch sports. What could be better?
165alcottacre
>164 lindapanzo: IMHO, nothing could be better!
166Citizenjoyce
>164 lindapanzo: Sounds like the universe is working with you toward a sweeplette. Enjoy your snowy day.
167benitastrnad
I am reading the book Beginning or the End: How Hollywood - and America - Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb by Greg Mitchell. It is not a book for the Hiroshima, Tokyo, Osaka, etc. challenge. Or - I thought it wasn't when I started it. The book is a history of the making of the film "Beginning of the End" that was made by MGM, with production starting in 1947. The movie started out with a request from the Manhattan Project scientists for a movie to reach the public with the horrible facts about the atomic bomb. It turned into a Rah! Rah! Gung Ho! militaristic movie that was the first anti-communist PR bullet in the Cold War. I like reading books about the making of Hollywood movies and thought this book would be one of those. It is that, but it is also more. There is a great deal of information regarding the philosophical stand of many of the scientists regarding the use of the Atomic Bomb. This results in some parts of the book dealing with the events in Hiroshima and the results of dropping that bomb. Right now I am reading about the controversy regarding the dropping of the second bomb on Nagasaki. Turns out that President Truman did not approve the dropping of the second bomb and was surprised that it was done without his approval. I also learned that Nagasaki wasn't the intended target. There was cloud cover over Kokura and so the plane went to the secondary target - Nagasaki. Also, the date was supposed to be August 10 instead of August 9. The date had been set for the 10th in order to give civilians time to leave the city. All of this on the orders of General Grover and not the President of the U. S. Nagasaki was first and only city bombed by automation, because once Hiroshima was bombed the rest of the orders went into effect and the U. S. Army didn't send out orders to stop it. Very interesting stuff. But the story about the movie - not so interesting.
168Citizenjoyce
>167 benitastrnad: Wow, frightening information.
169SqueakyChu
>167 benitastrnad: Wow. We've read some heavy stuff this month.
170lindapanzo
Last night, I finished A Season in the Sun, a Mickey Mantle biography by Randy Roberts, giving me my first sweeplette (books in challenges 7 to 12) since December of 2021.
171SqueakyChu
>170 lindapanzo: Hurray for Linda!
172FAMeulstee
>170 lindapanzo: Congratulations!
173Kristelh
>170 lindapanzo: Congratulations, Linda
174Citizenjoyce
>170 lindapanzo: Yahoo, sounds like an appropriate book for the win.
175lindapanzo
>171 SqueakyChu: >172 FAMeulstee: >173 Kristelh: >174 Citizenjoyce: Thanks.
The month or so before spring training starts is prime reading time for me about baseball, though I've been fascinated with EBUGs in hockey lately and was thrilled to find a new book on this very subject so I'm reading that for next month.
EBUGs are the Emergency Back Up Goalies who fill in when both of an NHL team's goalies are injured and they need a fill in to finish the game. Like my Blackhawks did a few years ago when they brought in an accountant who played goal for 14 minutes. League rules require each home team to have an EBUG ready in case either team needs one. Usually these guys hang out in the press box just watching the game. It's one of the most charming things about hockey, I think. And no, they don't randomly pick someone out of the crowd. The EBUG needs to have played goalie at some level.
The month or so before spring training starts is prime reading time for me about baseball, though I've been fascinated with EBUGs in hockey lately and was thrilled to find a new book on this very subject so I'm reading that for next month.
EBUGs are the Emergency Back Up Goalies who fill in when both of an NHL team's goalies are injured and they need a fill in to finish the game. Like my Blackhawks did a few years ago when they brought in an accountant who played goal for 14 minutes. League rules require each home team to have an EBUG ready in case either team needs one. Usually these guys hang out in the press box just watching the game. It's one of the most charming things about hockey, I think. And no, they don't randomly pick someone out of the crowd. The EBUG needs to have played goalie at some level.
176alcottacre
>170 lindapanzo: That is terrific, Linda!
177humouress
I've completed Seeress of Kell for challenge 18 but when I try to update the status, the CAPTCHA just keeps cycling. Would appreciate it if someone could do that for me please, if I don't manage to do it later.
179humouress
>178 FAMeulstee: Thanks Anita!
180Citizenjoyce
>175 lindapanzo: An account played for 14 minutes. OK, you have a movie of the week there.
181lindapanzo
>180 Citizenjoyce: As I get into the book, it appears that Scott Foster, the accountant, was a fairly long fill-in. Some of the EBUGs have "appeared" for only 15 or 20 seconds. It's more than you want to know, probably, but in the early days of the NHL, goalies had to serve their own penalties. A teammate would have to come in and could use goalie gloves and a goalie stick but not the goalie pads. Nowadays, and going back to when I started watching hockey in the 1960s and likely well before, another player would serve the goalie's penalty. Plus teams have to carry two dressed goalies (and now have an EBUG on hand ready to play for either team).
With the rise of women's hockey, I wonder if there'll ever be a woman EBUG. I know that Manon Rheaume played in several NHL preseason games in goal but there's never been a woman who played in a regular season NHL game (and, of course, my favorite female hockey player, Kendall Coyne Schofield competed in an NHL All-Stars Skills Competition a few years ago).
With the rise of women's hockey, I wonder if there'll ever be a woman EBUG. I know that Manon Rheaume played in several NHL preseason games in goal but there's never been a woman who played in a regular season NHL game (and, of course, my favorite female hockey player, Kendall Coyne Schofield competed in an NHL All-Stars Skills Competition a few years ago).
183SqueakyChu
Housekeeping Day!
Please remove from the wiki any book you do not finish by 12 midnight tonight (except for rolling challenges which may just be marked DNF. Thanks!
>182 lyzard: *sigh*
Please remove from the wiki any book you do not finish by 12 midnight tonight (except for rolling challenges which may just be marked DNF. Thanks!
>182 lyzard: *sigh*
184alcottacre
>177 humouress: I finished it the other day. It was a satisfying conclusion, was it not? Checking your thread for final thoughts on it, Nina.
