Dailies Summer Reading Challenge – Complete
The challenge was to read two books from each of the following categories:
Well, I read a bit more than that….
Challenge One:
Challenge Two: Themes
Challenge Three: Anything I want. COMPLETED – at this point have read several books on my own, but they are also based on some of the other challenges.
**Books in this color are are two or more “book lists”
5 pre-chosen
This book surprised me. I have a built in avoidenced of Steven King and was loath to read anything by him. I really enjoyed this book; the sci-fi at the end seemed misplaced after everything else, but it also fit in it’s own way. Everyone has their own place where they escape to when life gets in the way or becomes too much….
Okay, this was my favorite book of the summer reading challenges. I like travel books, reading about adventures in other places, and throw in some personal growth and I am fairly happy. I am much more interested in reading about other places than a person’s personal enlightenment – but her writing style was something that I greatly appreciated. Now if I can find time to go see the film…..
I normally have not liked mystery/thrillers when I have read them, and I had a really hard time getting into this book because of how it started with the trial and a lot on business investigation (that part still seems to me entirely random and thrown in) But I greatly enjoyed this book. Right now I am starting the next novel, and am going to read all three – probably by the end of September if I have time.
I had high hopes for this, but felt let down. I did enjoy the novel and the history information was very interesting and surprisingly accurate (yay for having access to a family member who’s history studies specialize in the times of the crusades). But I felt disappointed with the ending. It seems like I was reading one of my student’s attempts, where the idea is grand and fairly well executed, but the ending is lost and abrupt. Too much was left out, and I was hoping the other books would fill in the blanks, but come to find out they are in the same strain, but not following the same characters… Oh well.
Okay, I just cannot read books like this anymore it seems. I felt cheated by the end, where all these people who were strong and trying to find their own path were cut down by others trying to force them to be happy in faith only…..That’s all I will say on the matter as I would probably write a long essay on why this pisses me off.
Challenge: Themes
1. Pick a book from the Rory Gilmore Book List.
I re-read this book as I had read it years ago. I found nothing else interesting on this book list that I wanted to read that I had not already. Something might catch my eye in the future, and a few have piqued my interest recently.
2. Pick a book from the LOST book List.
I actually read this because I had never done so as a child, and I wanted to re-read Wicked. I didn’t care for it much.
I read these two together in one book. Again, they are stories I never read as a child but had known, so I wanted to read them.
These were on my bucket list to read and they happen to be on the Lost Book List as well, so they get listed here for a short review. Mostly I wanted to re-read these because I had never read the last book as a child. Now I wish I hadn’t. As when I was a child, I loved the first 6 books – they were easy and enjoyable. The last book just pissed me right the hell off.
3. Pick a book from the 1001 books to read before you die list.
I have since found the up-dated 2010 version of this list, and have been going through it and picking out books to read
I had never read the book before, and had watched the film with some of my students and thought it would be interesting. I greatly enjoyed it – and now I have to read the rest of the books…
4. Pick a book from a Dailies Book Club Challenge that you didn’t finish or get to and read it!
This was very interesting, but I have a hard time reading pure history. It was a text book, historical study into Grace O’Mally, and while it was facinating information, it was VERY hard to read for me. I’m at a point where I get to read for enjoyment, not research – and that is what I felt I was doing.
5. Roll a Die to determine the type of book you’ll read. – 2 Books
***For how this was figure out, go to the entry and read the description.
Roll One: 2 – Graphic Novel
Roll Two: 5 – Historical Fiction
Boy had been trying to get me to read this, and then I say for two days and did nothing else. I read the whole series, and greatly enjoyed it. The story was interesting and the art style was beautiful done, and it was interesting to see how it changed from book to book.
Another series that Boy has been trying to get me to read – and I really enjoyed the first book. It is a historical fiction set in a made-up world, based on feudal Japan. I found it easy to understand because of my own interest in history – but I also know I had to set my own knowledge of historical accuracy aside and remind myself it is historical
fiction.
5 books that are anything you want.
You’re such a reader! I also saw 1001 Books to read before you die list and chose Kazuo Ishiguro’s NEVER LET ME GO. I finished it last week. It was a great novel. I’m planning to read more classics this time around.
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