Take It or Leave It Challenge - November 2024 - Page 1

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


...logo by cyderry

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Your challenge for November, 2024, is to

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Read a book with a two-word title, with at least one of its title words beginning with the same letter as one of the two beginning letters of the previously listed book title
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Rules:

1. Disregard any subtitle.
2. You can choose either or both beginning letters from the previously listed title.
3. Disregard whether or not it’s the first or second word of the title for each separate listing.
4. You may list back-to-back books
5. Please show the qualifying letter(s).
6. Shared reads are acceptable.

Example:
Human Acts - Han Kang
Amnesia Moon (A) - Jonathan Lethem
Missing Pieces (M) - Joy Fielding
Mrs. Mike (M) - Benedict Freedman
Blood Memory (M) - Greg Iles
Big Picture (B) - Percival Everett
The Beach (B) - Alex Garland

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Other Stuff (not part of the TIOLI challenge):
1. @FAMeulstee's 2024 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. (Exception: Any challenge previously entered by FAMeulstee)
4. The November 2024 TIOLI Meter - Optional page on which you may track your TIOLI reading. Not competitive--- just fun!

Index of Challenges:

Challenges #1-6
1. Read a book with a two-word title, with at least one of its title words beginning with the same letter as one of the two beginning letters of the previously listed book title - msg #1
2. Anita Memorial Reads: 2000s, 2010s, and 2020s - msg #3
3. Read a book by an author you've read before but in a series you've never read - msg #4
4. Inspired by Anita. Read a book by a female author that has a female main character - msg #7
5. Read a book with something fragile, liquid, or perishable in the title - msg #8
6. Read a book with a connection to chivalry - msg #11

Challenges #7-12
7. Read a book for the Zodiac challenge (Scorpio) - msg #13
8. Read a book where the title contains a musical term - msg #15
9. Get back into (or restart) a book you started before the end of August this year - msg #16
10. Read a book about the Jewish American Experience (Fiction or Nonfiction)- msg #14
11. Read a book about the "Great War" - msg #29
12. Read a book with "silver" or "gold" or a name that refers to silver or gold in the title - msg #29

Challenge #13-17
13. Read a book with a geographical term in the title or author's name - msg #31
14. Read a book about a government agency, specify the agency - msg #33
15. Read a book that makes you "well-read" - msg #36
16. Read a book (F/NF) about a December holiday that you haven’t celebrated in the past - msg #44
17. Read a book with a negative in the title - msg #96

Please hold your challenge until the December, 2024, TIOLI challenges are posted. Thank you!

Challenge #2: Anita Memorial Reads: 2000s, 2010s, and 2020s

Our memorial reads for Anita will continue through the end of the year and I am hoping everyone gets a chance to participate as they can. For September, we are using the 2000s, 2010s, and 2020s books from her wiki: https://wiki.librarything.com/index.php/User:FAMeulstee (Please note that this is a link to the original and should not be edited by us. See below. . .)

Nina has created a duplicate of Anita’s list which she copied and pasted elsewhere after Anita’s sudden death to encourage LTers to list their matching reads onto the duplicate list without changing anything on Anita’s original list. (For all of us, this should be the place where we actually list our shared reads…in other words…our “work page”.)
https://wiki.librarything.com/index.php/User_talk:FAMeulstee

According to Madeline, this is the way it works:

The way you would enter your name and date (DD/MM/YYYY). in the book list would be to

1. Find the book you read on the wiki.
2. Click the “edit” button on the right.
2. Go to the end of the book’s line and hit the enter button on your keyboard which will open up and start a line under the book.
3. Type #(whatever your username is) and the date read
4. Scroll down to “I’m not a robot”. Click that little box.
5. Click “Save changes”.

Please update the wiki as you are reading books in Anita's memory! I think this is a wonderful way to memorialize her and my hat's off to Nina for thinking of it!!

Challenge #3: Read a book by an author you've read before but in a series you've never read

This should be self-explanatory. For instance, suppose you've read a dozen Hercule Poirot books by Agatha Christie but nothing in her Miss Marple series. Reading a Miss Marple book would be ok, but reading a Hercule Poirot book would not be OK.

Indicate what other series you've read by that author.

>4 lindapanzo: I am assuming that if it is the first book in a brand new series it would count even though there are no other entries in said series? I know that Richard Osman has started a new series aside from his Thursday Murder Club one so I was thinking of reading the first book in that new series, We Solve Murders. I just want to be sure that is OK.

>5 alcottacre: Yes, that's fine. In fact, the book I just started is the first in a new series by an author I've read only once. As usual, self-serving as I'm looking for new to me mystery series. I'm also thinking of reading the Richard Osman book in the new series. It does have to be a new series, though, and not a new standalone.

Challenge #4: Inspired by Anita. Read a book by a female author that has a female main character.

Anita set this challenge in March of 2017.

Challenge #5: Read a book with something fragile, liquid, or perishable in the title

It's getting toward the time of the year when we go to the post office to ship gifts to family and friends, and the postal clerk, at least in the U.S., will ask if our package contains anything fragile, liquid, or perishable. Your challenge is to read a book with such an item in the title. It's fine to be metaphorical about it--an ego or a democracy can be fragile, hopes and dreams can be perishable--but if you pick anything TOO out there I may call you to defend your choice.

>6 lindapanzo: Thanks for the clarification, Linda. We Solve Murders is the first book in his new series, I know for sure.

>8 susanna.fraser: Can the word be embedded? I am slated to read The Painted Veil in November and 'paint' can be liquid, so I wondered if I can use that?

Challenge #6: Read a book with a connection to chivalry

The age of "chivalry" in Western Europe ran roughly from 1170 CE to 1470 CE. The concept of chivalry was multifold, but part of it was heraldry, so you can read a book that has a title with a heraldic term in the title.

Here's a list to get you started. I'm planning to read The Eagle and the Hart by Helen Castor; both animals are heraldic and were featured in the badges of Richard II and his usurper, Henry IV. I may also re-read The Sunne in Splendor; the title refers to the badge adopted by Edward IV when he became king.

https://www.heraldsnet.org/saitou/parker/Jpglossa.htm

or

https://www.heraldryandcrests.com/pages/heraldic-symbolism-a-z?srsltid=AfmBOopNl...

embedded words are fine.

You can also use a term that would have been related to chivalry: eg knight, shield, lance, joust, quest, etc.

Alternatively: You can read any work of history or historical fiction set in this era and in Western Europe -- biography, fiction, etc. etc.

No Arthurian tales or fantasy novels unless there's a title word that fits!!

>8 susanna.fraser: & >10 alcottacre: I am also interested in whether The Painted Veil will fit Challenge #5. Also I have another book, Bloodhounds that could possibly fit as well.

AI crystal art image created by Morphidae

Two more months of the year!

Challenge #7: Read a book with a word or phrase on page 1 or page 8 from the list built from the description of a Scorpio's personality below. (Scorpio is the eighth sign.)

Embedded words are fine. Variations are not fine. 😄 Please use the words or phrases exactly as is.

Or read a book with the author's first or last name of Liz or Greene. The name must be exact. (They are also on the word list.)

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Scorpio
scorpion
solitary
“under stones”/“under stone”
dangerous
aggressive
harm
“plenty of time”
time
think
deeply/deep
feel
quiet
shy
sensitive
secrets/secret
intensely/intense
seeing
“good and bad”
self
understanding
“not afraid”
help
learn
advantage
injured/injure
justice
unfairly/unfair
punished/punish
wiser/wise
“do something”
deep
thought
psychology
doctors/doctor
surgeons/surgeon
mysteries/mystery
heal
water
“special gifts”/“special gift”
insight
sensitivity
will
achieve
astrology
Liz
Greene

For those that need it, there's an alphabetized link at:

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/134NqvOcGweo3RbtxzikPK0n17lALZuuWL_eLe00z...

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Extraneous info:

The scorpion is a solitary little animal which likes to hide under stones. He can be dangerous, but he is never aggressive by himself and will only harm someone if he is disturbed.

Astrologers think that the scorpion is a good symbol to represent those born under this sign because Scorpio people usually need plenty of time by themselves to think deeply about things they feel.

Scorpio people are sometimes very quiet, shy and sensitive and like to keep secrets. They can feel things very intensely. Scorpio people are also often very good at seeing the good and bad points in other people. The most important thing for Scorpio is self-understanding.

They are not afraid to try things other people are frightened of, if it will help them to learn more about themselves. At the same time, they do not like to be taken advantage of or injured, and many Scorpio people have a very strong sense of justice. This can make life difficult for Scorpio children if they think they are being unfairly punished. Scorpio children are often much wiser and more understanding than other children, so they should always be given reasons when they are told to do something.

Many Scorpio people are good at things which require deep thought and understanding, like psychology. Some of them become fine doctors and surgeons, because they are interested in the mysteries of life and like to heal.

Scorpio is a water sign, like Cancer and Pisces. If you are a Scorpio, your special gifts are your insight and sensitivity, and your strength of will, which can achieve anything in life.

Excerpt from "First steps in Astrology" by Liz Greene, 1977

>13 Morphidae: Looking forward to seeing what you come up with for November, Morphy!

Challenge #8: Read a book where the title contains a musical term

Should be fairly easy. The title needs to contain a musical term. They can be embedded. It can be a style of music (Jazz, Pop etc), a technical term (Concerto, opera etc) or a part of music (bar, rest, note etc).

Challenge #9: to clear the decks before the end of the year, this is a challenge to pick up a book that you are stalled on.

I'm going to define this as books you started before the end of August this year - but really this should be one of those books which is sitting on your bedside table but where the bookmark hasn't moved for some time (or the e-equivalent). If you are carefully working through something a chapter a week, that is outside the spirit of this challenge!

You can either pick up again from where you left off or even start the book again.

>16 wandering_star: Well, that would be most of the books I'm reading (or am supposed to be reading) right now.

>7 DeltaQueen50: I feel sure this will be a yes, can this be non-fiction?

>18 Helenliz: Yes, non-fiction works fine. In fact, one of my books listed - The Egg and I is a memoir.

>19 DeltaQueen50: thanks >:-)

>10 alcottacre: Yes, embedded words are fine.

>21 susanna.fraser: Thank you so much, Susanna!

Just a quick note: Due to the number of issues with the wiki in October, I am allowing an extra day for people to make corrections and get caught up on the wiki, so do not look for the prizes for sweeps, sweeplettes, and mini-sweeplettes until Saturday, the 2nd.

Challenge #10: Read a book about the Jewish American Experience (Fiction or Nonfiction)

>24 Kristelh: Being a Jewish American myself, I'd be happy to answer any questions you may have while reading a book for Kristel's challenge.

Kristel, what led you to present this challenge?

>25 SqueakyChu: The American Author Challenge is to read a Jewish American Author in November. So I wanted to tie that to the TIOLI. I participate in the JBC over on GR. The recent protests here in the US and attacks in Israel makes this a very important challenge. Plus there are many great Jewish American authors.

>26 Kristelh: Kudos. I appreciate your help in educating others about Jewish-Americans, Kristel.

>27 SqueakyChu:, Thank you Madeline

Challenge #11: Read a book about "the Great War"

It is 110 years since the start of the First World War - the war to end all wars but unfortunately didn't do so.

It caused as well as huge numbers of casualties, an outpouring of literature - novels, memoirs, histories, poetry. This challenge has only one criterion it should be about the "Great War".

Challenge #12: Read a book that has "silver" or "gold" or a name that MEANS "silver" or "gold" in the title

A little bit of a spin on a challenge I think we may have had in the past. Not only is "silver" or "gold" acceptable, but names that mean it like "Aurelius", "Aurelia", or "Argent", for example.

Challenge #13: Read a book with a geographical term in the title or author's name

There's a list of geographical terms here but don't be limited by the list either -
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glossary_of_geography_terms_(A%E2%80%93M)

Examples:
How green was my valley
Village of Secrets by Caroline Moorehead
A Man Melting by Craig Cliff
The Cry of the Icemark by Stuart Hill

Embedded words are acceptable.

>31 avatiakh: Kerry, can the geographical term be embedded in the title or author's name?

Challenge #14: Read a book about a government agency. Specify the agency
It can be any level of government: world, federal to city. I'll be reading Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI by David Grann

>4 lindapanzo: Can we read a book in a new series that is an offshoot of a previous series we've read? I've read The Folk of the Air series by Holly Black. The Stolen Heir is both a continuation of that series and the beginning of its own series.

>32 DeltaQueen50: Yes, that's fine too.

Challenge #15: Read a book that makes you "well-read"

This is meant to be a fairly open challenge but is primary meant for either classics (which can be old or a bit more modern) or non-fiction that is either considered a classic and/or on a subject that deepens a reader's general knowledge of the world. Both of these are open to interpretation, but I will not accept recent "trendy novels" or non-fiction on subjects that are on very niche subjects. Also, no self-help books unless you can give me a very good argument. Some examples below of what would work.

Fiction (including poetry and drama)
The Stranger by Albert Camus
The Aeneid by Virgil
Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury
Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
Hamlet by William Shakespeare
The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde
The Call of the Wild by Jack London
Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest by Ken Kesey
The Color Purple by Alice Walker
A Separate Peace by John Fowles

Non-fiction
Guns, Germs and Steel by Jared Diamond
The Prince by Niccolo Machiavelli
The Human Condition by Hannah Arendt
A Brief History of Time by Stephen Hawking
Silent Spring by Rachel Carson
Women Who Run With the Wolves by Clarissa Pinkola Estes
The Meditations by Marcus Aurelius

I'm aware that this list is very west-focused but if you have examples of books that are classics in other parts of the world, that would be more than okay.
Please feel free to ask if you have questions!

>34 Citizenjoyce: yes, as long as it’s a new series.

I read the Victoria Houston mysteries. Same characters but the one series featured one of the characters as the amateur sleuth but the new, offshoot series has the local sheriff, the amateur’s girlfriend, as the sleuth. If I hadn’t already read all of the offshoot series books, I would’ve included the first one I’d read in this challenge.

>37 lindapanzo: Thanks.

>36 PawsforThought: Would children's classics count for your challenge, Paws?

>36 PawsforThought: Yes, children's classics work.

My planned reads:
Challenge #1: Read a book with a two-word title, with at least one of its title words beginning with the same letter as one of the two beginning letters of the previously listed book title - started by SqueakyChu
✔The Glassmaker - Tracy Chevalier (4)
Challenge #2: Anita Memorial Reads: 2000s, 2010s, and 2020s - started by AlcottAcre
*✔Love That Dog - Sharon Creech (4)
Woman at 1,000 Degrees by Hallgrímur Helgason
Challenge #3: Read a book by an author you've read before but in a series you've never read - started by lindapanzo
✔Grave Sight - Charlaine Harris (4)
✔The Stolen Heir - Holly Black (3.5)
Challenge #4: Inspired by Anita. Read a book by a female author that has a female main character - started by DeltaQueen
✔The Blue Hour by Paula Hawkins (4)
✔Definitely Dead - Charlaine Harris (4)
✔A Grim Reaper's Guide to Catching a Killer by Maxie Dara (3.5)
Masquerade - O.O. Sangoyomi
✔The Sequel - Jean Hanff Korelitz (4.5)
Sorcerer to the Crown by Zen Cho
✔Summon the Keeper by Tanya Huff (3)
Challenge #5: Read a book with something fragile, liquid, or perishable in the title - started by susanna.fraser
*✔Before the Coffee Gets Cold - Toshikazu Kawaguchi (4)
Challenge #6: Read a book with a connection to chivalry (see main thread) - started by Chatterbox
✔The Full Moon Coffee Shop - Mai Mochizuki (3.5)
Challenge #7: Read a book for the Zodiac challenge (Scorpio - TBA later today) - started by - Morphidae
✔Fries and Alibis- Trixie Silvertale (4)
Challenge #8: Read a book where the title contains a musical term - started by helenliz
✔Intermezzo - Sally Rooney (3.5)
Song of Silver, Flame Like Night - Amélie Wen Zhao
Challenge #9: Get back into (or restart) a book you started before the end of August this year- started by wandering_star
*#10004;The Secret Lives of Colour - Kassia St. Clair (5)
Challenge #10: Read a book about the Jewish American Experience (Fiction or Nonfiction) - started by Kristelh
✔The Unwanted: America, Auschwitz, and a Village Caught In Between - Michael Dobbs (4)
Challenge #11: Read a book about the "Great War" - started by PaulCranswick
✔Canary Girls: A Novel - Jennifer Chiaverini (4.5)
Challenge #12: Read a book with "silver" or "gold" or a name that means silver or gold in the title - started by bell7
✔The Gilded Hour - Sara Donati (4.5)
Challenge #13: Read a book with a geographical term in the title or author's name - started by avatiakh
✔Death Valley - Melissa Broder (3)
Challenge #14: Read a book about a government agency, specify the agency - started by Citizenjoyce
✔Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI - David Grann (5)
Challenge #15: Read a book that makes you "well-read" - started by PawsforThought
The Human Condition - Hannah Arendt
*✔I Contain Multitudes - Ed Yong (5)
✔Opus: The Cult of Dark Money, Human Trafficking, and Right-Wing Conspiracy inside the Catholic Church by Gareth Gore (5)
✔Orbital by Samantha Harvey (4)
✔Patriot: A Memoir by Alexei Navalny (5)
✔She Persisted: Wilma Mankiller by Traci Sorell (4)
Challenge #16: Read a book (F/NF) about a December holiday that you haven’t celebrated in the past - started by dallenbaugh
✔Vandals and Yule Scandals: Paranormal Cozy Mystery - Trixie Silvertale (2)
hallenge #17: Read a book with a negative in the title - started by quondame
✔It's Not Hysteria: Everything You Need to Know About Your Reproductive Health but Were Never Told - Karen Tang (5)

>36 PawsforThought: Would Nexus by Yuval Noah Harari work for your challenge? It’s about the history and dangers of AI.

Challenge #16: Read a book F/NF about a December holiday that you haven’t celebrated in the past

Here are some ideas about other December holidays:
https://time.com/6242283/december-global-holidays-christmas-hanukkah-yule/

If it is not obvious, tell us what holiday you are reading about.

>43 SqueakyChu: I’ve never heard of that one and can’t see it on any list of classics or must reads. If you can find it on any such type of list I’ll allow it.

>45 PawsforThought: Okay. It’s newly published so it might not have made one of those lists (yet!). LOL!

>46 SqueakyChu: Oh, hang on! Your touchstone led to a different book, which seems to be fiction. Fiction needs to be some form of classic, but a non-fiction doesn’t have to be. It should be okay, as long as it’s letting you learn something new and “expanding your view”.

>35 avatiakh: Thank you!

>41 PawsforThought: Thank you so much!

>44 dallenbaugh: What a great idea for a challenge at this time of the year!

>47 PawsforThought: Nonfiction does not need to be a classic? I am already reading I Contain Multitudes this month about a subject I know little about (microbes) so the book sounds like it would qualify!

>49 alcottacre: No, non-fiction doesn’t have to be a classic, but it should be a book that makes you more well read. Meaning, it should make you more knowledgeable, especially in a field that you might not be super-knowledgeable already. So your book would work for you but not for someone who’s a microbiologist or something similar.

I couldn’t read books about linguistics for my challenge because studied that at uni, but I could read about Nepalese history because I know zilch about that.

>50 PawsforThought: Thanks for the additional input, Paws!

>47 PawsforThought: There was a problem with the touchstones. It’s nonfiction Nexus by Yuval Noah Harari. Harari is an amazing author who has already expanded my views by two previous books of his I’ve read. I highly recommend reading anything he writes! I’ll use this book for your challenge then. Thanks!

My chosen book is about AI and I’m going to try to learn as much about it as I can because it is something that I once thought was “neat”, but more recently have found it scary. It lies!!! It actually lied to me twice!! Now I know why my techie son said never to use ChatGPT which I do use…if only to learn about AI.

>52 SqueakyChu: AI is a blessing and a curse. It can be used for so many great things (finding cancerous growths) but it can also be used for foul things and the lack of jurisdiction around it makes tech people run wild.
I work with a research program that focuses on AI and it’s possibilities and dangers and I’m amazed and terrified in equal measure every day.

>52 SqueakyChu:,Did it lie on purpose or because of faulty information that it was browsing.

>13 Morphidae: >14 alcottacre: That was a really long "day." Heh.

The challenge has been updated. Enjoy!

>54 Kristelh: I don't know. Here are the two situations from ChatGPT.

1. I asked it why Aaron Herrera (my favorite DC United soccer player) was not playing in a particular game I was watching. It said he either was out on injury or had a red card (which means he's is eliminated from the current game and a future game for a foul). It then asked me if I wanted more information...so I said yes. Then it told me he was out on a red card. The second half, he was subbed in...meaning he was definitely NOT out on a red card.

2. For a TIOLI challenge, I asked it to name twenty books with a seven-letter title. It did give me some books with seven-letter titles, but it also gave me titles with more or less than seven letters.

Now I just ask it for menu suggestions! :D

AI hallucinations (that’s what they’re called) are a real and common thing, when AI simply makes up things that aren’t true, didn’t happen, are exaggerated, etc. it can be either because of wrong data or something to do with the processing. It happens A LOT (a good 25% of the time in some areas). This is partly why you shouldn’t trust things like ChatGPT too much.

>57 PawsforThought: Just those two incidents made me realize not to trust it at all and just to use it for opinions. What I worry about is that websites like Google also use AI to answer questions. I’m now going to be asking my questions to more reliable sources of information!

>58 SqueakyChu: As Mr. Weasley once said: “Never trust something that can think for itself if you can't see where it keeps its brain”

I’d already posted a challenge for November, on Monday, so I won’t change it. But my father passed away on Wednesday, at age 88, after a 5 year battle with dementia. He lived in a memory care home for the past 2 years and received hospice care there for the past year or so.

I’ll think of a way to honor him next month.

>60 lindapanzo: Thinking of you, Linda.

>60 lindapanzo: It's been a hard 2 years for your family. My thoughts are with you.

>60 lindapanzo:, my thoughts are with you Linda. It's hard to lose our parents even though you really already had lost him with the dementia.

>60 lindapanzo: I am so sorry to hear the news, Linda. ((Hugs)) My thoughts and prayers are with you and your family.

>59 PawsforThought: Mr. Weasley was right!

>60 lindapanzo: So sad to hear the news. Despite any illness, it's tough to lose a dad at any age. I hold you in my heart, Linda.

It has not been a good week for me either. My husband lost a 38-year-old great-nephew yesterday, and my son-in-law lost a 43-year-old cousin yesterday.

Too much sorrow, for sure.

>60 lindapanzo: So sorry about your dad, Linda.

>65 SqueakyChu: Oh, how sad! And such young people, too.

>60 lindapanzo: I'm so very sorry, Linda; my thoughts are with you...

>65 SqueakyChu: Yes, a bad week. A friend of mine lost the love of her life to cancer yesterday. He was a few weeks younger than I am.

What the heck is it with death this week?

My PCA unexpectedly lost her uncle to a heart attack at work on Monday. He was in his mid-fifties. He was the sole caregiver for their aunt who is homebound and dying from cancer.

It's a bad situation.

>68 Morphidae: You know, in the course of my life, I've noticed stretches of "bad times" and "good times". I like the good times better.

The bad things for some reason always seem to cluster together. I've heard and many times experienced that old saying that "death comes in threes", but this week was the first time I've experienced two deaths for totally different reasons on the same day for people close to me. Our great nephew's death was very tragic as he was diagnosed with a virulent type of cancer just seven weeks ago and was the sole caretaker of his two children. One has to ask why these innocent souls are victim to this and some truly evil people just coast along, healthy and happy as can be. Life is not fair.

This is for @matke. I see that you are going to read The Castle of Otranto for the chivalry challenge. For a really fun experience, follow this thread as you do it.
https://www.librarything.com/topic/131508

When I read that book, I was tutored by @lyzard (who has now disappeared from LT and I don't know why). She was the perfect tutor for me at that time.

A shared read by others with you could also be fun with them using that tutored read thread as well.

>68 Morphidae: What the heck is it with death this week?

I wish I knew! My husband Kerry just lost one of his favorite uncles, Robert, yesterday. Robert's death was not unexpected, but still.

HELP! I am trying to compile the prizes for last month's reads, but there is an unclaimed completed read, Beyond the Sky and the Earth by Jamie Zeppa. I have no idea who read this one and I want to give credit where credit is due. Please let me know so that I can finish up the prizes list. Thanks!

ETA: If I have not received a reply by the end of day tomorrow, I will go ahead and compile with what I have.

>60 lindapanzo: So sorry to hear of your loss. Losing a parent is never easy.

Thanks for all of your condolences. The support of family and friends has been a tremendous help and we are really happy to be hearing remembrances. For instance, one man at work had never told me but he ran into my father at a 5K race, when Dad was still running before dementia and my friend at work "still had legs" as he said and was telling me about it. Some of the staff at the memory care home are taking this hard as well and, in tears.

It does seem like others have died recently. I was thinking of how, in my group of current and former co-workers/friends, almost everyone has lost one or both parents in the past two years.

>15 Helenliz: Can the musical term be two words? I'm thinking of Down Beat. The book I have in mind involves the murder of the conductor during a symphony performance.

>75 lindapanzo: if the title you have includes both parts of the term then yes, I'd allow that.

>74 lindapanzo: It's so lovely to hear stories about one's dad that you never heard before. I remember attending a funeral for one of my dad's sisters. My dad was already dead at that time. The young man told me how much he admired my dad (who was a Jewish refugee from Nazi Germany and would visit in his U.S. Army uniform). I also love now when people remember my dad and mention him although next year it will be 49 years since he died. It seems like just yesterday, though.

{{{Hugs}}}, Linda.

>15 Helenliz:, I would like to use Bell Tolls for my music term. Will you allow that?

>77 SqueakyChu: that’s so nice to hear.

I know the caregivers and others at his home really loved him (and us). Since they were with him more often, we loved hearing their stories.

The home’s hair stylist has sent me several texts about how much she loved taking care of him and also included the last photo she took of him at his last haircut. That is an instant family treasure since he looked so much better three weeks ago than he did during his last few days.

>76 Helenliz: Thanks, I’ll add that one in.

>79 lindapanzo: That is so nice, Linda. Treasure those photos. (I'm sure you do!)

>78 Kristelh: I wasn't thinking that musical instruments would count as they're not a musical term. So I'd not allow bells on its own. However you're not asking for that in it's own right, you have a phrase that could be described as tangentially musical.
I think you're probably right on the fence, but OK, yes to that one.

As a bell ringer myself, I'm now massively intrigued as to what you're about to read!

>30 bell7: Would Gilda qualify?

>82 quondame: yes, one of the meanings is "golden", so that's perfectly within the intended parameters.

>60 lindapanzo: and >65 SqueakyChu: My thoughts are with you both. I’m very sorry for your losses.

>70 SqueakyChu: Thank you! I’d forgotten that Liz tutored this book. I miss her very much here at LT. I took part (sometimes silently) in many of her group reads, especially the ones featuring an Anthony Trollope novel.

I think of Liz often. She was one of my favorite LTers; someone whose thread I would read first.

>71 alcottacre: Did Robert live in Minnesota? If not, that's an eerie coincidence. (It was my PCA's uncle's name. )

>71 alcottacre: No, Robert lived in Michigan.

>84 Matke: I tried to find out what happened to @lyzard, but I was unable to get any information in my search and gave up. I hope she just dropped out of LT and is okay. She was amazing and worked on tutored reads with me for several years. It was a wonderful experience. (However, she could never, ever convince me to love Jane Austen! :)

>87 SqueakyChu: I miss her too. Her threads are always among my favourites to visit (even though I’m terrible at visiting threads nowadays). I hope she’s okay and can return soon.

>33 Citizenjoyce: Does the book specifically have to be about the agency, or can it be fictional but have characters that work in the agency? I'm thinking of a Louise Penny, Inspector Gamache, Sûreté du Québec

>89 jeanned: Yes, that sounds ok.

>72 alcottacre: Sorry, Stacia. I read Beyond the Sky and the Earth: A Journey Into Bhutan. It was wonderful! I'd highly recommend it.

>91 streamsong: Nice to hear it was a good book! Thanks for letting me know, Janet. I am working on the "prize" list now.

You got it! It is that time of the month again - PRIZE TIME!!




Mini-Sweeplettes in October:
AnneDC for challenges 8-10
DeltaQueen for challenges 8-10
raidergirl3 for challenges 8-10
susanna.fraser for challenges 10-12
JeanneD for challenges 13-15
Kristelh for challenges 13-16

Sweeplettes in October:
bell7 for challenges 1-6
DeltaQueen for challenges 1-6
Kristelh for challenges 1-6

Sweeps in October:
AlcottAcre
Chatterbox
Citizenjoyce
Quondame

Congratulations to all our prize winners!! I was very happy to see people getting both mini-sweeplettes and sweeplettes accomplished last month last month!

I am loving that November already has 16 challenges with the possibility of more before the end of the day!

>90 Citizenjoyce: Thank you. There are so many tempting books to jump in on as shared reads, I might not get to that one this month, but just in case....

>93 alcottacre: Congratulations, all!

Challenge #17: Read a book with a negative in the title

Because it's important to know when to say no

>96 quondame: Yay! We made it to 17! Thanks, Susan. We haven't had this many challenges since one year ago!

NOVEMBER 2024

READ

Tracy Farr, The Life and Loves of Lena Gaunt
Angela Carter, Nights at the Circus
Roxane Gay, Graceful Burdens
Christy McKellen, About Last Night
Christine Dwyer Hickey, Our London Lives
Xiaolu Guo, A Lover's Discourse
Craig Cabell, Ian Rankin and Inspector Rebus
Stephanie Butland, Lost for Words
Diane Abbott, A Woman Like Me: A Memoir
Katy Watson, A Lively Midwinter Murder
Pat Barker, The Voyage Home
Sally Bayley, The Green Lady
Rowan Coleman, River Deep
J Courtney Sullivan, The Cliffs
Emma Smith, Portable Magic: A History of Books and Their Readers
Caoilinn Hughes, The Alternatives
Lindsey Davis, A Dying Light in Corduba
Langston Hughes, Not Without Laughter

CURRENT

Beth O'Leary, Swept Away
Elif Shafak, There are Rivers in the Sky
Michelle Magorian, Impossible!
Jocelyn Playfair, A House in the Country
Scott Turow & Otto Penzler (editors), The Best American Mystery Stories 2006
Tony Travers, London's Boroughs at 50
John Fowles, The French Lieutenant's Woman
Jenny Colgan, The Christmas Book Hunt - novella
Isabella Hammad, The Parisian
Richard Osman, We Solve Murders
Elvis Costello, Unfaithful Music & Disappearing Ink
Abi Daré, And So I Roar
Lily King, Writers & Lovers
Sarah Hall, How to Paint a Dead Man
Coco Mellors, Blue Sisters
Mary Cadogan, Mary Carries On
Charles Dickens, A Tale of Two Cities

Can I check; is everyone who has tried able to update the wiki? I'm trying to update Anita's Memorial wiki but I just get a spinning Captcha wheel when I try to save.

>99 humouress: I updated the November TIOLI wiki and had no problems, Nina.

>100 alcottacre: Thanks Stasia. Maybe it's just me then :0(

>101 humouress: Sorry. Hopefully it is fixed for you by now.

>102 alcottacre: Thanks. The LT staff tried something but I still can't edit the wiki.

>103 humouress: Sorry, Nina. I wish there was something I could do to help.

>104 alcottacre: No worries. It seems to happen periodically, especially on weekends. It's annoying but I'm getting resigned :0)

>60 lindapanzo: and >65 SqueakyChu: Sorry for your losses, Linda and Madeline.

My dad and his younger brother, both in their 80s, are now affected by dementia - my uncle became ill earlier. I'm so sad for my dad's frustration at what he's not able to do, and for dad's partner and Uncle Pete's daughter who are struggling with all the issues of care day to day.

>106 elkiedee: Thank you.

The funeral was on Wednesday and the private burial was on Thursday. For a mid-week, mid-day funeral service, there was a fairly large group of family and friends in attendance. So very comforting for my mother, my younger sister, and me.

The eulogy was more of a challenge for me than writing the obituary. I hate public speaking, but it was for my Dad. All the people were supportive family and friends. I was afraid I'd cry my way through it and/or fall while giving it (I'm using a walker now). The deacon and FH director brought over a podium/lectern, which eliminated my fear of falling and my sister was closest to me and ready to jump in if I needed assistance. I cried at the beginning and at the end but the rest went well.

Since the burial, I've had two straight nights where I had a good night's sleep, the first time in several weeks. I'm reading again and listening to Christmas music, which I find comforting. Mom and I are doing our best to create a new normal.

>107 lindapanzo: I hope you find many things to comfort you and help you deal with your grief in the coming months.

>107 lindapanzo: I attended the memorial service yesterday for my husband's great nephew. It was hard because he was one of our "kids", although he himself was father of two. It was indeed comforting to have so many family and friends around for support. My heart grieves for you, Linda, as you go through this new episode in your life. May time ease your most acute grief.

>107 lindapanzo: Since the burial, I've had two straight nights where I had a good night's sleep, the first time in several weeks. I'm reading again and listening to Christmas music, which I find comforting. Mom and I are doing our best to create a new normal.

I am glad to hear that you and your mother can grieve and heal together. I am also glad to hear that you are sleeping well - I am sure your body and soul both need the rest.

>107 lindapanzo: It sounds like you and your mother are adjusting to a new normal. I'm glad you're sleeping.
I gave the eulogy at my sister's funeral. It was in a Mormon church. I was surprised they picked me since I'm an atheist, but it went very well. Every time I practiced it before the funeral I cried over the last paragraph, but when I did it for real I didn't.

One other note about funerals. I am hard of hearing and find it difficult to understand what people are saying with the echoes of being in a large chapel. The handout given at the funeral I attended two days ago had the eulogy printed on it. I appreciated that so much.

Eulogies are hard. One of my very good friends had me stand beside her on in front of the congregation because she didn't think that she could make it through the eulogy she wrote. She did.

Thanks Madeline, Joyce, Stasia, and Susan.

Things slowly returning to normal, though a sadder new normal. I finished a book this morning. We'll watch football today. Mom and I went out for pizza yesterday.

I hadn't thought about hard of hearing people though I really tried to project to the last row. One of my closest friends was in the last row or two and seemed especially attentive so I mostly looked at/spoke to her while talking. Except when I told a humorous story about my sister, then I looked at her. She's 6 years younger so it's allowed. At the luncheon at the Polish restaurant afterwards (we're Polish Americans as are all the relatives), my sister gave the toast and made a joke at my expense. Again, that sister thing so it's allowed.

Anyway, I had a small card with topics but I didn't refer to it at all as I spoke. I could've written it out.

I'm (drawing a line in the sand and) just catching up after a long while (I didn't keep up with the threads while on my long trip and now that I'm back there's just too much to catch up with). I'm so sorry for all your losses. I'm glad you have the support of friends and family to help you.

>29 PaulCranswick: Paul, would you accept The Hazelbourne Ladies Motorcycle and Flying Club for your challenge? It's historical fiction set in the summer of 1919 but the effects of the Great War and still very much being felt.

Question of the Month:

Tell us about something calming in any book you've read so far this month. What was it, and in which book did you find this? Please help me lower my anxiety level! Thanks!

>116 SqueakyChu: I just finished Tadek and the Princess this afternoon, and it is a totally sweet coming of age told in flashbacks story of a secondary character in A Taste of Gold and Iron.

>116 SqueakyChu: It may sound trite, but I am currently reading a book called Man Is Not Alone and I find the title in and of itself, calming.

>116 SqueakyChu: Most of my reading this month hasn't been especially calming, but Fake It Till You Bake It has the completely delightful setup of a bunch of NFL players who are investing in their post-football futures by starting a cupcake shop.

I have been struggling to find something calming as well, so turned to the wonderful juvenile series, Swallows and Amazons by Arthur Ransome. It's about the Walker children and their adventures every summer camping and sailing in England. Inspired by Ransome's experiences with his siblings, the stories reflect a time and place where children were taught skills then allowed to go out in nature and have adventures. Very soothing reading for me.

>116 SqueakyChu: I've read some pretty silly fluff lately because my mind can't stop screaming, but there is one strange thing that calms me down. When I'm in bed and can't sleep I turn on my recording of Alex Edelman Just For Us and fall asleep before it's over. I love it and think I have the whole thing memorized by now. Alex Edelman is a very Jewish comedian who has the bright idea to attend a meeting of white supremacists. This does not sound calming, and I don't know why he takes away all the seething lava in my brain, but he does. His bit about Christmas is priceless. The special is on Max if you want to see it. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qPsk1697UEo

I can’t say anything has been particularly comforting but of the books I read that left me with a good feeling having read would be The Chosen. Such a good book.

>116 SqueakyChu: I've been in desperate need of reading distraction so I turned, as usual, to cozy mysteries to take my mind off things. During the last week or so, I've been on quite a roll.

TIOLI Stats for October 2024

For October, 2024, we read a total of 293 books, of which 69 (or 24%) were shared reads. We accumulated 38 TIOLI points for an October YTD number of 349 TIOLI points. All of our stats were looking good for this month.

The most popular book, with five books read, was Death at the Sign of the Rook by Kate Atkinson.

The most popular challenge, with 54 books read, was this one by @Deltaqueen50: Inspired by Anita – Read a book that has an LT rating of 3.5 or more at the time of posting.

There were two challenges with the most (six) TIOLI points each:
---The one by me (@SqueakyChu) to read a book of short stories by a female author
---The one by @PawsforThought to read a book that is, is written by, or includes a favourite

Good reading, everyone!

>124 SqueakyChu: I love seeing the stats! Thanks for those, Madeline, and I am very glad that the stats for October were good ones!

>124 SqueakyChu: Oh, I’m so glad my challenge brought in so many points! Thanks everyone who joined my celebration!

Thanks for the stats, Madeline. And thanks to everyone for coming up with such challenging challenges.

>116 SqueakyChu: I just finished The Readers of Broken Wheel Recommend.
Diverse quirky characters in smalll town Iowa come together for a great cause. Heartwarming and comforting. It gave me that warm fuzzy feeling I don’t get very often.

>128 Carmenere: I read this book and another one by Bivald which I also liked The Murders in Great Diddling.

>129 dallenbaugh: I will have to look for that one. Thanks for the tip.

TIOLI Awards for October, 2024

The Long Time Award goes to @citizenjoyce for reading The Future for this challenger's own challenge to read a book about a measure of time. This award is presented because "the future" is the longest period of time mentioned in any of the book titles completed for this challenge.

The Most Important Object Award I will share with @elkiedee who read Why Women Read Fiction: The Stories of Our Lives. The book I read was Bookish People. This award is for the challenge by Morphidae to read a book for the Zodiac challenge (Libra) and list the object on the cover from the symbol list. We both listed our object as...book. Now what better object could we have for a reading challenge than... a book?! :)

The Well Liked Book Award goes to @dallenbaugh for reading Solito for the challenge by @DeltaQueen50 to read a book that has an LT rating of 3.5 or more at the time of posting (Inspired by Anita). This book had an LT rating of 4.47, indicating it was very well liked by LT members. I read this book as well in the past and agree that it was very moving and well written.

The Silent Speech Award goes to @kristelh for reading Speechless for the challenge by helenliz to read a book that includes a formal event where a character has to give a speech or propose a toast. I'm assuming that there was a speech in this book although the title of this book makes it sound quite the opposite! :D

The Which Is It Award goes to @AlcottAcre for reading Behind the Beautiful Forevers: Life, Death, and Hope in a Mumbai Undercity for the challenge by lindapanzo to read a book whose title includes the word "life" or "death" or both. Being undecided perhaps, this challenger read a book that contains both of these words! :D

The We Need You With Us Award goes to @citizenjoyce for reading Out of My Mind for the challenge by Chatterbox to read a book whose title makes a complete sentence when preceded by "I don't want to be....". This challenger is quite right! We need everyone to be here with us and in their right mind!

Congrats to our award winners. Feel free at this time to add an award of your own.

Congrats to all award winners!

Thank you for the award. Yes, he did give a talk at his cousin’s funeral but the sister who was “speechless” did also say something without words at her brother’s funeral. A good young adult story.

Congrats to all the award winners!

>131 SqueakyChu: Thanks for the award, Madeline. It was a good book.

>131 SqueakyChu: Congratulations to all the award winners - especially Joyce, who picked up 2 this month!

Wow, thanks for the awards. My view of the future is certainly different now than it was last month, and I'm not entirely sure I'm achieving the goal I posted in the don't want to be challenge.

>116 SqueakyChu: Patriot: A Memoir by Alexei Navalny isn't calming. It's at least infuriating and at most terrifying as Alexei Navalny describes his life before and during imprisonment in Russia as he fights against Putin's tyranny. He doesn't win. Putin succeeds in killing him, but he presents a picture of an actualized human who has a purpose, courage, intelligence, and a never-ending love of humanity. Knowing such people exist is uplifting, and maybe lifting is a component of calming.

The wiki appears to be down again. I have tried 3 times in the last 30 minutes to edit it, but get an error message every time. *sigh*

>139 alcottacre: It's down for me as well.

>139 alcottacre: Me three.

Same here

I haven't tried November TIOLI's wiki but did try the December one and it hasn't been working.

I was unable to access the November wiki to add my latest book.

Yikes! It's Housekeeping Day, but the wiki's not working. So...whenever the wiki comes back up, delete any books that you do not complete by 12 midnight tonight (or just mark any rolling challenges DNF).

Whoever accesses the wiki first...please let us know it's back. Thanks!

>145 SqueakyChu: I just tried ---- I'm not sure whether I entered anything for the month. I finished some things and some things I didn't, but I didn't write down TIOLI, so I need to get there if I'm to be accurate. Yikes!

I've currently only got my phone, so it will be Tuesday before I'll get November books added.

>147 Helenliz: That’s fine.

Have been trying to play catchup with final November books, but keep getting a 504 for the wiki, so no joy. Will try later this week, as/when I can...

I updated the Wiki for my November reads. I don't know who I thought I was entering books for, lol. I am mostly audiobooks now, and am lucky to complete 1 ebook/paper book in a month. And yet I signed up for 4 non audiobooks this month. I finished one, the shortest one I signed up for.

Updated my entries.

Very disappointed in my reading this month. I hope I read more in December.

There. Mine is done too.

I've updated as well. I was also overly ambitious this month.

Suzanne - I hope you enjoyed your reread of the Trease novel. I thought it was really good. I had to do an interlibrary loan as the book is scarce on the ground at this stage. Would be great if all these children's classics were either re-published or available as e-books.

Because the wiki has been down for several days, I am going to wait until the 4th to issue the list of prize winners for November. Hopefully that will give everyone plenty of time to update the wiki.

I will give everyone up through midnight December 4th to update their November wiki with books COMPLETED or DNFed.

Just a reminder that all changes to the November wiki need to be updated before midnight tonight so that Madeline can get her stuff done and I can compile the prize winners for the month. Thanks!

You got it! It is that time of the month again - PRIZE TIME!!




Mini-Sweeplettes in November:
AnneDC for challenges 1-3
antqueen for challenges 2-4
cbl_tn for challenges 2-4
susanna.fraser for challenges 3-5
avatiakh for challenges 4-6
countrylife for challenges 4-6
helenliz for challenges 4-6
JeanneD for challenges 4-6
Kristelh for challenges 4-6 and challenges 7-11

Sweeplettes in November:
DeltaQueen for challenges 1-6

Sweeps in November:
AlcottAcre
Chatterbox
Citizenjoyce
Quondame

Congratulations to all our prize winners!! I was very happy to see so many mini-sweeplettes last month!

I would also like to comment on the wide variety of books that were read last month. Good job, everyone!

>157 alcottacre: Thanks Stasia.

>157 alcottacre: Great list! So many Mini-Sweeplettes!! Congratulations to all.

>158 Kristelh: No problem, Kristel.

>159 SqueakyChu: Yes, I love seeing the mini-sweeplettes.