What An Animal Reading Challenge VI

 

This challenge is being hosted by Socrates' Book Reviews Blog

 

Here are the details copied from Socrates's Book Review Blog:

The What an Animal Reading Challenge V ends on February 28, 2013. I'm starting the new challenge a bit earlier because I want the begin and end dates to be the same as my other challenges (it's easier for me to remember). So, the What An Animal Reading Challenge V will still end in February, so if you haven't completed it, you still have time. However, for anyone who wants to start the next animal reading challenge, What An Animal Reading Challenge VI will begin on January 1st. Read on for more details...

 RULES:

✰ Read at least 6 books that have any of the following requirements:


✰ there is an animal in the title of the book

✰  there is an animal on the cover of the book

✰ an animal plays a major role in the book

✰ a main character is (or turns into) an animal (define that however you'd like).

✰ The animal can be any type of animal (real or fictitious)--dog, cat, monkey, wolf, snake, insect, hedgehog, aardvark...dragon, mermaid, centaur, vampire, werewolf...you get the idea...


✰ Challenge runs from Januar 1, 2013 to December 31, 2013. That’s a full year to read at least 6 books (you can read more if you’d like). 


4. Books can be fiction or nonfiction.


✰ You may make a list of books at the beginning of the challenge or you can just list them as you find them.


✰ Book titles may be swapped out at anytime (assuming you made a list to begin with).


✰ Crossovers with other challenges are permitted and encouraged.


✰ You don't have to have a blog or write a review, but you can if you want to.
 If you don't have a blog, just post in the comment section that you'd like to join. You can post your books in there.

✰ Books can be in any format of your choice (print, audio, ebooks)

If you'd like to sign up CLICK HERE

 

I'm planning on reading 5 books for this challenge but if I can read more than that I will.

 

 

 

2013 Historical Fiction Reading Challenge

 

This challenge is being hosted by Historical Tapestry

Here are the details copied from Historical Tapestry's Blog:

 

 

We are excited to announce that the we will again be hosting the Historical Fiction Reading Challenge in 2013, and we hope that you are all excited at the prospect of joining in.

The challenge will run in the same way as it has over the last couple of years that we have hosted the challenge. The only thing that has changed is the names of the categories.

Here are the details:

Each month, a new post dedicated to the HF Challenge will be created. To participate, you only have to follow the rules:

✰Everyone can participate, even those who don't have a blog (you can add your book title and thoughts in the comment section if you wish)
✰Add the link(s) of your review(s) including your name and book title to the Mister Linky we’ll be adding to our monthly post (please, do not add your blog link, but the correct address that will guide us directly to your review)
✰ Any kind of historical fiction is accepted (HF fantasy, HF young adult,...)

During these following 12 months you can choose one of the different reading levels:

20th century reader - 2 books
Victorian reader - 5 books
Renaissance Reader - 10 books
Medieval - 15 books
Ancient History -25+ books
You can tailor the challenge to suit you in whichever way you like! For example, I know of one participant who over the last couple of years has only read historical mysteries as it suits their own reading tastes!

To join the challenge you only need to make a post about it, grab the button below if you like and leave your link in Mr Linky below or just leave a link to your blog if you are not yet ready to post about it yet. If you don't have a blog you can just leave a comment for this post saying that you are joining.

The challenge runs from 1 January to 31 December 2013.

We look forward to having you join us in reading and enjoying the best in historical fiction over the next year.

 

I plan on doing the Medieval level for this reading challenge which means I will be reading 15 historical fiction novels.

 

Have you signed up for this challenge yet? If you haven't what are you waiting for!? If you have, how many books are you planning to read?

2013 Mystery/Crime Reading Challenge

 

This challenge is being hosted by Amy from The Crafty Book Nerd!

Here are the details copied from Amy's blog:

 

2013 Mystery/Crime Reading Challenge

✰The challenge starts January 1, 2013 and ends December 31, 2013.

✰ You can read any novel, short story or author just so that the genre is mystery/crime.

✰  1 novel counts as 1 novel( 1 novel is anything over 100 pages) of course but you will have to read 5 short stories to count as 1 novel.

✰There will be a monthly post for you to add a link or links to your post showing the progress that you have made so far.

✰  Each month there will be a drawing for those that linked up their participation in the challenge for that month the prize is a $25 gift card to Barnes and Noble.


If you don't have a blog you can also link up through GoodReads or Flickr (for Flickr just keep track by having a picture of the novel and then numbering them in the description so I know where you are at in the challenge).

If you read a certain number of novels you receive a rank at the end I will award a secret prize to the person who reads the most books:

5 books= Detective

10 books = Sergeant

15 books = Lieutenant

20 books = Captain

25 books = Chief

30+ books = Sherlock Holmes

 

For this challenge I think I'm going to go for 10 books but I may increase this as the year goes on.

 

Have you signed up for this challenge? If you did how many books are you planning to read? If not, what are you waiting for?

 

 

2013 European Reading Challenge

 

This challenge is being hosted by Rose City Reader!

Here are the details copied from Rose City Reader's blog:

 

Welcome to the 2013 European Reading Challenge – where participants tour Europe through books. And have a chance to win a prize. Please join me for the Grand Tour!

The gist: The idea is to read books by European authors or books set in European countries (no matter where the author comes from). The books can be anything – novels, short stories, memoirs, travel guides, cookbooks, biography, poetry, or any other genre. You can participate at different levels, but each book must be by a different author and set in a different country – it's supposed to be a tour. (See note about the UK, below)

What counts as "Europe"? For this challenge, we will use the list of 50 sovereign states that fall (at least partially) within the geographic territory of the continent of Europe and/or enjoy membership in international European organizations such as the Council of Europe. This list includes the obvious (the UK, France, Germany, Spain, and Italy), the really huge Russia, the tiny Vatican City, and the mixed bag of Baltic, Balkan, and former Soviet states.

Note: Technically, the United Kingdom is one country that includes England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland. So one book from any one of these four should count as your one book for that one country. I'm not going to be a stickler about it because challenges should be about fun not about rules. However, when it comes to winning the Jet Setter prize, only one book from one of the UK countries will count.

Here is the list, in alphabetical order: Albania, Andorra, Armenia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Kazakhstan, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Moldova, Monaco, Montenegro, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Republic of Macedonia, Romania, Russia, San Marino, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, Ukraine, United Kingdom, and Vatican City.

LEVELS OF PARTICIPATION

Five Star (Deluxe Entourage): Read at least five books by different European authors or books set in different European countries.

Four Star (Honeymooner): Read four qualifying books.

Three Star (Business Traveler): Read three qualifying books.

Two Star (Adventurer): Read two qualifying books.

One Star (Pensione Weekender): Read just one qualifying book.

NOTE: For 2013, we are abandoning the "Alternate Arrangements" categories we tried in 2012. The idea was to choose books for the challenge according to particular themes: Agritourisimo (food books); Youth Hostel (YA books); and Culture Vulture (prize winners). These weren't popular, so we'll stick with the basic package tour this year.

JET SETTER PRIZE

The participant who reads and reviews the greatest number of qualifying books (more than five) will get a $25 gift card to Powell's Books (can be used in store or on line). Participants living in Europe (or anywhere else Book Depository goes) will get a $25-equivalent gift card to Book Depository. If you live in a country where neither Powell's nor Book Depository will work, then sorry, you are out of luck.

Each book must be by a different author and set in a different country. This means that only one book from one of the four UK countries will count. Only books reviewed count towards the prize.

OFFICIAL RULES

✰Read all books between January 1, 2013 and January 31, 2014. I like having 13 months so there is extra time to finish after the holidays.

✰Sign up here using Mr. Linky under the "PARTICIPANTS" heading below. Please use a link to your challenge post, not your blog home page.   

✰If you do not have a blog, please leave a comment below with the level you are signing up for, and your list of books if you want to name them now, and I will add you to the list.

✰You do not have to commit to your choices now; you can change your mind about books at any time.

✰Overlap with other challenges is allowed -- and encouraged! Have ideas for good overlapping challenge opportunities? Please leave links in comments.

✰Re-reads count. Audiobooks count. E-books count. Self-published books count.

✰As you progress, please link to your reviews on the review list page. Reviews are not necessary, unless you are going for the prize, in which case only books reviewed count. If you do not have a blog, put your reviews or reports in a comment on this post. When you finish, please link to your wrap-up posts on the wrap-up page.

✰You can copy and paste the button. Or, if you want me to send you the code, please leave a comment with an email and I will. I cannot figure out the fancy ways of giving button instructions.

 For this 2013 reading challenge I will be going for the Five Star (Deluxe Entourage) but I plan on reading at least 10 novels for this challenge!

Have you signed up for this challenge yet? If you haven't what are you waiting for!? If you have, how many books are you planning to read?

 

The Raft by S.A. Bodeen

Summary:
Robie, 15, lives with her family on the Midway atoll, a group of islands in the middle of the Pacific. Her parents are scientists; it’s an isolated life. Robie enjoys visiting her aunt in Hawaii—she gets back and forth on a cargo plane that brings supplies to Midway.

During a visit, her aunt is called to the mainland for a work emergency, leaving Robie to get home on her own. On her flight back to Midway the cargo plane hits nasty weather, and goes down. It’s just Robie, the pilot, and Max, a co-pilot she’s never met till this flight, on board. Robie is pulled aboard a raft by Max, who is injured and slipping in and out of consciousness. They have a bag of candy and very little water between them. When they finally reach an island that seems abandoned, Robie hopes they’ll be found quickly. But she’s not sure she was even on the flight manifest. Her parents must be looking for her... aren’t they?

In The Raft, S.A. Bodeen creates a hair-raising suspense story that will have readers agonizing over the same question as Robie—how long can they survive?
Summary taken from Goodreads.com
Length: 231 pages
Source: NetGalley ARC
Publication Date: August 21st 2012

So there I was on March 3rd, sitting on my couch all stuffed up with a box of kleenex at my side thinking I should really get started on my RCC Challenge, but what book was I going to read? This one of course!

I've been wanting to give this author a try for ages so when I saw that the good people over at NetGalley had this one by her listed I had to request it! Luckily I got approved and spent an hour and a half occupying my time with Robie, on a life raft floating in the middle of the ocean after her plain went down on her way back home to Midway.

I love, love, love survivalist fiction. It was one of my favourite genres when I was but a wee little bookworm, and though I don't often read books in the genre it still has a special place in my heart. I really enjoyed reading the hair raising tale of a 15 year old girl who's trying to survive on a life raft.

I found the story to be well written with a big twist about 3/4 of the way through (though I kind of saw it ahead of time). It was fast paced, and really makes you wonder what it would be like if you were left adrift in the middle of the ocean with no food, water or protection from the elements with a co-pilot named Max, whose story will become clear later on in the book.

Somehow, Robie finds it inside herself that she CANNOT under any circumstances give up despite being starved, lonely and emotionally fatigued. I love the way that the author wrote the book. She managed to make Robie seem very real and for me it felt as if I was really there inside the raft with her while she was trying to stay alive.

 S.A. Bodeen wrote a dramatic tale of survival and in my opinion she made a successful book out of it. Robie came accross as very real, her character wasn't forced and I found no real flaws with her. The only problem I had with this book was that it seemed as though the beginning was a little rushed and not as well thought out. I wish we had gotten to know more about Robie than we did. But like I said it was a successful book and I highly recommend reading it to fans of YA and pretty much everyone else.

To pre-order this book from Amazon CLICK HERE

To visit the author's website CLICK HERE

*I received a copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for my free and honest review.

★ ★ ★ ★ 1/2

The Beautiful Between by Alyssa B. Sheinmel

Click here to see other books I'm reading for this challenge.

Summary:

If high school were a fairy-tale kingdom, Connelly Sternin would be Rapunzel, locked not in a tower by a wicked witch but in a high-rise apartment building by the SATs and college applications—and by the secrets she keeps. Connelly's few friends think that her parents are divorced—but they're not. Connelly's father died when she was two, and she doesn't know how.

If Connelly is the Rapunzel of her school, Jeremy Cole is the crown prince, son of a great and rich New York City family. So when he sits down next to her at lunch one day, Connelly couldn't be more surprised. But Jeremy has a tragic secret of his own, and Connelly is the only one he can turn to for help. Together they form a council of two, helping each other with their homework and sharing secrets. As the pair's friendship grows, Connelly learns that it's the truth, not the secrets, that one must guard and protect. And that between friends, the truth, however harsh, is also beautiful.

This lovely and memorable debut by Alyssa B. Sheinmel contains many of the hallmark themes found in young adult literature—friendship, coming of age, finding a place to belong, and overcoming the death of a loved one. Emotionally moving from start to finish, The Beautiful Between introduces a strong new voice to the genre, a voice with a long future ahead of it.

Summary taken from Goodreads.com

So this book to me to the great old US of A on my Around the World challenge. To be more specific I went to New York. This book is another one of the books that I got on my wanderings into the teen section of the library a few days ago when I found myself immediately drawn to the cover which I love!

Thankfully this was not one of those cases where the cover was beautiful and the story was blah. I actually liked Connelly most of the time but there were a few times where I thought she was an annoying little *beep* because of her attitude and her woe to me attitude.

At first when I read the back I thought it would be like a fairy tale retelling but unfortunately the more I read of the book I realized that it wasn't which was diappointing. But all in all I enjoyed this book. It had all the regular teenaged angst that seems to come hand in hand with YA books but this one didn't seem over done.

My only critisms of this book are that sometimes for a couple pages here and there the story would drag on a wee little bit and that the characters came off a little whiney in some parts and made me want to smack them for it.

This is author Alyssa B. Sheinmel's first book and I thought it was a great start to a hopefully long career in writing because she was able to make a book that was only 182 pages long seem much longer. I thought that the plot was interesting as well as the writing which I felt was quiet stong. I hope she continues writing because I think she's a talented young new author who I highly recommend others checking out.

As in go check it out right now.

Seriously.

Now.

★ ★ ★ ★

Earth and Ashes by Atiq Rahimi

Click here to see a list of the other books I'm reading for this challenge

Summary:

"You know, father, sorrow can turn to water and spill from your eyes, or it can sharpen your tongue into a sword, or it can become a time bomb that, one day, will explode and destroy you"

Earth and Ashes is the spare, powerful story of an Afghan man, Dastaguir, trying desperately to reach his son Murad, who has left his village to earn a living working at a mine. In the meantime the village has been bombed by the Russian army, and Dastaguir, with his newly-deaf grandson Yassin in tow, must reach Murad to tell him of the carnage. The old man is beset on all sides by sorrow, that of his grandson, who cannot understand, that of his son, who does not yet know, and his own, made even crueler by the message he must deliver.

Atiq Rahimi, whose reputation for writing war stories of immense drama and intimacy began with this, his first novel, has managed to condense centuries of Afghan history into a short tale of three very different generations. But he has also created a universal story about fathers and sons, and the terrible strain inflicted on those bonds of family during the unpredictable carnage of war.

Summary taken from Goodreads.com

For me this was another case of the book not being for me despite the beautiful cover. This book was already out of my comfort zone because we all know that short books are not usually books I like. I mean honestly this book is only 84 pages long and I only read it a few days ago but I don't remember a thing!

Well thats not true. This is what I remember:

Man and grandson survive village being destroyed.

Man and grandson wait for transport to Man's son and child's father.

Car came.

Man couldn't talk to son.

The end.

SERIOUSLY I'm not lying thats all I can remember. I think that this is also because the story was very jumbled. The story went from looking at events happening in the present tense to him slipping back into his mind and his dreams when he slept.

To me it was as though the author was trying too hard in terms of the writing and making it overly smart. If that makes any sense at all. It just seemed like the author tried too hard and in my opinion failed and failed miserably at that.

★

Around the World in 52 Books Challenge List

List is complete but subject to change

1. Afghanistan
Earth and Ashes by Atiq Rahimi (Library)
2. Algiers
My Battle of Algiers: A Memoir by Ted Morgan  (library)
3.Antarctica
Surviving Antarctica: Reality TV 2083 by Andrea White (Library)
and/or
Ice Bound: A Doctor's Incredible Battle for Survival at the  South Pole by Jerri  Nielsen (Own)
4. Australia
Rabbit-Proof Fence: The True Story of One of the Greatest Escapes of  All Time by Doris Pilkington Garimara (Library)
5. Botswana
Botswana Time by Will Randall  (library)
and/or
The Limpopo Academy of Private Detection by :Alexander McCall Smith (library)
5. Burkina Faso
The Outlaw by Stephen Davies (library)
6. Canada

The Story Girl by L.M. Montgomery (library)
7. Cambodia
Children of Cambodia's Killing Fields: Memoirs by Survivors by Dith Pran
8. Central African Republic
Malaria Dreams: An African Adventure by Stuart Stevens (library)
9. Congo
Bonobo Handshake: A Memoir of Love and Adventure in the Congo by Vanessa Woods (library)
10. Côte d'Ivoire
Nine Hills to Nambonkaha: Two Years in the Heart of an African Village by Sarah Erdman (own)
11. Denmark
Winter's Tales by Karen Blixen (own)
12.Egypt
I Want to Get Married!: One Wannabe Bride's Misadventures with Handsome Houdinis, Technicolor Grooms, Morality Police, and Other Mr. Not Quite Rights by غادة عبدالعال(library)
and
Priestess of the Nile by Veronica Scott (own)
13. Equitorial Guinea
Shadows of Your Black Memory by Donato Ndongo (library)
14. Eritrea
My Father's Daughter by Hannah Pool (library)
15. Ethiopia
Cry of the Giraffe by Judie Oron (library)
16. England
Katherine by Anya Seton (library)
17. Finland
Wilderness by Roddy Doyle (library)
18. France
My Life in France by :Julia Child (library)
19. Gabon
Travels in West Africa by Mary H Kingsley  (library)
and/or
African Silences by Peter Matthiessen  (library)
20. Gambia
Reading the Ceiling by Dayo Forster (library)
21. Ghana
Somebody's Heart Is Burning: A Woman Wanderer in Africa by Tanya Shaffer (library)
22. Guinea
The Dark Child by Camara Laye (library)
23.Greece
The Messenger of Athens by Anne Zouroudi  (library)
24. Germany
The Book Thief by Markus Zusak (own)
25. Greenland
Cold Earth by Sarah Moss (library)
26. Hungary
Valeria's Last Stand by Marc Fitten (library)
27. Iceland
Last Rituals by Yrsa Sigurðardóttir (library)
28. India
Beneath a Marble Sky by John Shors (library)
29. Iran
Reading Lolita in Tehran by Azar Nafisi (own)
30. Ireland
Daughter of the Forest by Juliet Marillier (own)
31. Italy
Daughters of Rome by Kate Quinn (library)
32. Jordan
Married to a Bedouin by Marguerite Van Geldermalsen (library)
33. Kenya
My Pride and Joy: An Autobiography by George Adamson (library)
34. Lesotho
She Plays with the Darkness by Zakes Mda (library)
35. Liberia
This Child Will Be Great: Memoir of a Remarkable Life by Africa's First Woman President by Ellen Johnson Sirleaf (library)
36. Madagascar
Muddling through in Madagascar by Dervla Murphy (library)
37. Namibia
Cry of the Kalahari by Mark J. Owens (library)
38. Nigeria
Half of a Yellow Sun by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie (library)
39. Netherlands
A Young Wife by Pam Lewis (library)
40. Norway
Wolfsangel by M.D. Lachlan (library)
41. New Zealand
The Whale Rider by Witi Ihimaera (library)
42.Papua New Guinea
Four Corners: A Journey into the Heart of Papua New Guinea by Kira Salak (library)
43. Romania
Wildwood Dancing by Juliet Marillier (library)
44. Rwanda
Baking Cakes in Kigali by Gaile Parkin (library)
45. South Africa
My Traitor's Heart: A South African Exile Returns to Face His Country, His Tribe, and His Conscience by Rian Malan (library)
and
It Rains In February A Wife's Memoir of Love and Loss by Leila Summers (own)
46. Scotland
Dragonfly in Amber by Diana Gabaldon (own)
47. Swaziland
Zoo Story: Life in the Garden of Captives by Thomas French (library)
48. Somalia
Infidel by Ayaan Hirsi Ali (own)
49. Tanzania
Through a Window by Jane Goodall (library)
50. Uganda
Kisses from Katie by Katie J. Davis (to buy)
51. Zimbabwe
Nehanda by Yvonne Vera (library)
52.Zambia
 The Man-Eaters of Tsavo by John Henry Patterson (library)