Showing posts with label 2016 challenges. Show all posts
Showing posts with label 2016 challenges. Show all posts

Friday, July 01, 2016

2016 Challenges: Paris in July

Paris in July
Host: Thyme for Tea (sign up)
Duration: July 2016
My goal: 5 posts

What I Watch:
 1) Cyrano de Bergerac in French with English Subtitles (1990)

What I Listen To:
1) BBC Radio 3 Cyrano de Bergerac 
2) Cyrano de Bergerac soundtrack by Jean Claude Petit 
3) Paris in July Playlist, my top three French composers

What I Read:
1) Cyrano de Bergerac. Edmond Rostand. Translated by Lowell Blair. 1897. 240 pages. [Source: Library]
2)  Twenty and Ten. Claire Huchet Bishop. Illustrated by William Pene du Bois. 1952/1978. 76 pages. [Source: Bought]'
3) The Grand Mosque of Paris: A Story of How Muslims Saved Jews During the Holocaust. Karen Gray Ruelle. Illustrated by Deborah Durland DeSaix. 2009. Holiday House. 40 pages. [Source: Library]
4) Cyrano. Geraldine McCaughrean. 2006. HMH. 128 pages. [Source: Review copy]
5) The Journey That Saved Curious George. Louise Borden. 2016. HMH. 96 pages. [Source: Review copy]



© 2016 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Friday, June 17, 2016

2016 Challenges: COYER Summer Vacation

COYER Summer Vacation
Hosted by Berls @ Fantasy is More Fun, Michelle @ Because Reading & Stormi @ Books, Movies, Reviews. Oh My!
Link Reviews Here ; sign up here
June 18 - September 2nd
# of Books: My goal is 12

What I've Read:

1) The Joy Project. Tony Reinke. 2015. Desiring God. 122 pages. [Source: Bought]
2) Five Points: Towards a Deeper Experience of God's Grace. John Piper. 2013. 94 pages. [Source: Bought]
3) How To Enjoy Reading Your Bible. Keith Ferrin. 2015. Bethany House. 176 pages. [Source: Bought]

I plan to read a mix of books: fiction and nonfiction, review copy and books I've bought.



© 2016 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Saturday, June 11, 2016

Big Book Summer Challenge

Big Book Summer Challenge
Host: Sue of Book by Book (sign up)
Dates: May 27-September 5
# of books: My goal is 3

What I've Read:
Return of the King. J.R.R. Tolkien. 1955. 590 pages. [Source: Bought]
Bleak House. Charles Dickens. 1852-1853. 912 pages.  [Source: Bought]
War of Two. John Sedgwick. 2015. Berkley. 432 pages. [Source: Library]

What I'm Planning on Reading:

War of Two: Alexander Hamilton, Aaron Burr, and the Duel that Stunned the Nation by John Sedgwick
Showtime A History of the Broadway Musical Theater by Larry Stempel 
Alexander Hamilton by Ron Chernow (I've got it on hold, I hope it comes in relatively soon so I can read it in time)

What I May Reread:

The Knife of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness
The Ask and the Answer by Patrick Ness
Monsters of Men by Patrick Ness

© 2016 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Monday, May 30, 2016

Completed Challenge: Back to The Classics

Back to the Classics 2016 Reading Challenge
Books and Chocolate (sign up)
January - December 2016
# of Books at least six

What I Read for the Challenge:

1. A Volume of Classic Short Stories: Silent Nights. Edited by Martin Edwards. 2015. Poisoned Pen Press. 298 pages. [Source: Review copy]
2. A classic by a woman author: North and South. Elizabeth Gaskell. 1854-1855. 452 pages. [Source: Bought]
3. A fantasy, science fiction, or dystopian classic. Alas, Babylon. Pat Frank. 1959/2005. Harper Perennial Modern Classics. 323 pages. [Source: Bought]
4. A 19th Century Classic. Joan of Arc. Mark Twain. 1895/1896. 452 pages. [Source: Library] HISTORICAL (Adult)
5. A classic which has been banned or censored.  Fahrenheit 451. Ray Bradbury. 1953/1991. Del Rey. 179 pages. [Source: Bought] *This one wasn't "banned" but censored in some editions--with certain words taken out.
6. A classic which includes the name of a place in the title. The Pastures of Heaven. John Steinbeck. 1932. 207 pages. [Source: Library] [short stories]
7. A classic in translation.   Doctor Zhivago. Boris Pasternak. Translated by John Bayley. 1957. 592 pages. [Source: Library]
8. An adventure classic. The Children's Homer. Padraic Colum. 1918/1982. 256 pages. [Source: Bought]
9. A 20th Century Classic: The Fellowship of the Ring. J.R.R. Tolkien. 1954/1965. Houghton Mifflin. 423 pages. [Source: Bought]
10. Classic detective novel: Murder in the Museum. John Rowland. 1938. Poisoned Pen Press. 250 pages. [Source: Review copy]
11. Classic by a non-white author. The Complete Poems of Paul Laurence Dunbar. Paul Laurence Dunbar. 290 pages. [Source: Library]
12. Re-read a classic you read in school (high school or college). The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Mark Twain. 1884. 327 pages. [Source: Library]


© 2016 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Sunday, March 20, 2016

2016 Challenges: Classic Children's Lit Event

Name: Classic Children's Lit Event
Host: Simpler Pastimes (sign up here)
Duration: All of April
# of Books: I'm hoping for 4

What I Read:

1.
2.
3.
4.

© 2016 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

2016 Challenges: Once Upon a Time X

Name: Once Upon a Time X
Host: Stainless Steel Droppings (sign up here)
Dates: March 21-June 21 2016
# of Books: Signing up for Quest the First; five books from any of these categories (fantasy, folklore, fairy tales, mythology)
All reviews should be linked to the review site.

So excited to sign up for this. I've participated since 2007!

Here's what I actually read and reviewed:

1) The Silver Chair. (Chronicles of Narnia #4) C.S. Lewis. 1953. HarperCollins. 243 pages. [Source: Bought] [fantasy, children's classic]
2) The Fellowship of the Ring. J.R.R. Tolkien. 1954/1965. Houghton Mifflin. 423 pages. [Source: Bought] [YA/Adult fantasy]
3) The Two Towers. J.R.R. Tolkien. 1954/1965. Houghton Mifflin. 352 pages. [Source: Bought] [YA/Adult fantasy]
4) Return of the King. J.R.R. Tolkien. 1955. 590 pages. [Source: Bought]
5) The Girl in the Tower. Lisa Schroeder. 2016. Henry Holt. 256 pages. [Source: Library] [Middle grade fantasy]
6) The Toymaker's Apprentice. Sherri L. Smith. 2015. 400 pages. [Source: Library] [MG/YA Fantasy]
7) The Children's Homer. Padraic Colum. 1918/1982. 256 pages. [Source: Bought] [MG Fantasy, Children's Classic]
8) Mary Poppins. P.L. Travers. Illustrated by Mary Shepard. 1934/2015. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. 224 pages. [Source: Review Copy] [J/MG Children's Fantasy; Children's Classic]
9) The World of Winnie the Pooh. A.A. Milne. Illustrated by Ernest Shepard. 1926. 353 pages. [Source: Library]
10) A Midsummer Night's Dream. William Shakespeare. 1596. 181 pages. [Source: Library]
11) James and the Giant Peach. Roald Dahl. Illustrated by Quentin Blake. 1961. 146 pages. [Source: Library]
12) Fantastic Mr. Fox. Roald Dahl. Illustrated by Quentin Blake. 1970. 96 pages. [Source: Library]
13)  The BFG. Roald Dahl. Illustrated by Quentin Blake. 1982. 199 pages. [Source: Library]
14) Gudgekin, The Thistle Girl. John Gardner. 1976. 55 pages. [Source: Bought]
15)  Socks. Beverly Cleary. 1973. 160 pages. [Source: Library]


Since this is the TENTH year for the challenge. I thought I would do a top ten list for books I've read and would recommend:

From 2015: The Cottage in the Woods. Katherine Coville. 2015. Random House. 400 pages. [Source: Library]
From 2014: The False Prince. Jennifer A. Nielsen. 2012. Scholastic. 342 pages. [Source: Review copy] also the two sequels The Runaway King and The Shadow Throne.
From 2013: The Annotated Hobbit. Revised and Expanded Edition. J.R.R. Tolkien. Annotated by Douglas A. Anderson. 2002. (1937, original Hobbit pub. date). Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. 416 pages.
From 2012: The Light Princess. George MacDonald. 1864. 110 pages.
From 2011: The Rise and Fall of Mount Majestic. Jennifer Trafton. With illustrations by Brett Helquist. 2010. Penguin. 352 pages.
From 2010: Mirror Mirror: A Book of Reversible Verse. Marilyn Singer. Illustrated by Josee Masse. 2010. Penguin. March 2010. 32 pages.
From 2009: Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones. 1986. 329 pages. [Source: Library]
From 2008: Dragon Flight. Jessica Day George. Bloomsbury USA. 272 pages. [Source: Library]
From 2007: Cupid. Julius Lester. 2007. HMH. 208 pages. [Source: Library]
Best (Qualifying) Book Not Read for the Challenge: The Castle Behind Thorns. Merrie Haskell. 2014. HarperCollins. 336 pages. [Source: Library]


© 2016 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews