It's time to go back to the Prairie....

An Armchair by the Sea and Smoke & Mirrors are hosting this year long Little House Read-a-Long!

I've been wanting to re-read these for quite some time now...ever since I started acquiring the books at library sales over the years. I'll admit that I really only remember reading the first and second book when I was a girl so this will be my chance to read the entire series. I'm excited!

Schedule
January - Little House in the Big Woods
February - Little House on the Prairie
March - Farmer Boy
April - On the Banks of Plum Creek
May - By the Shores of Silver Lake
June - The Long Winter
July - Little Town on the Prairie
August - These Happy Golden Years
September - The First Four Years
October - On the Way Home
November - West from Home
December - Pioneer Girl/ A Wilder Rose by Susan Wittig Albert (we are going to read one each of these and then both if we have time. You are welcome to choose either one or any other book related to Laura Ingalls Wilder)

Are you joining in?

 

Never miss a post!

Announcing The Mega Perpetual Challenge Read-a-Long!

I'm almost as excited as Tom Hiddleston!

In order to increase interaction and participation within four of the perpetual reading challenges I host, I've decided to host this MEGA read-a-long event. Although this event was designed around the four respective reading challenges, you do not have to sign up for any of them to join in on the read-a-longs (although I would welcome anyone to sign up).

The hub for the entire event will be here at The True Book Addict, but the individual read-a-longs will be hosted at their respective blogs (I will list those below) and The Fantasy Project read-a-long will be dually hosted at its blog and at its Goodreads group. As the hub for the event, I will create a page listing all the reading schedules and links to the blogs which can be accessed in the menu bar at the top of the blog.

Here is the awesome button I created for the event:

<div class="the-true-book-addict-button" style="width: 350px; margin: 0 auto;"> <a href="http://www.truebookaddict.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> <img src="http://i519.photobucket.com/albums/u359/miller4plusmore/mega%20read-a-long%20challenge_zpsvzwjs1lf.jpg" alt="The True Book Addict" width="350" height="206" /> </a> </div>

So, here is the schedule of read-a-longs and their respective blog urls:

June 2015: A Great and Terrible Beauty by Libba Bray - hosted at Goodreads group and at http://101fantasychallenge.blogspot.com/

July/August 2015: The Covenant by James A. Michener - hosted at http://themichenerchallenge.blogspot.com

September 2015: The Wolf Gift by Anne Rice - hosted at https://annericeneverends.wordpress.com/

October 2015: Salem's Lot by Stephen King - hosted at http://skchallenge.blogspot.com/

Stay tuned. I will be posting the read-a-long schedules in the menu page up top in a few days.

I hope you will join me for one, or all, of the read-a-longs!

Spring Events Abound...Bloggiesta and Once Upon a Time and more...Oh My!

Bloggiesta is here (has actually already started) and I'm not sure how much I will accomplish since it's the end of the month for work and I'm always slammed, but I'll still try to get some things done. Not sure if I'll have time for mini-challenges, but might make a chat...or two.

Goals

• Make button and create sign up post for my Spring into Horror read-a-thon in April.
• Finally make a decision on when I will host my next Sit Down and Write Write-a-Thon (create button).
• create sign-up post for The Strain read-a-long, coming to Castle Macabre in May/June.
• Update reading challenge stats

These next two items I always put on the list, but usually never get around to. Maybe this time?

• start listing books on my library blog.
• update my books read list and start linking to reviews

*****************

Once Upon a Time VIII and Spring into a Good Book

I signed up for these at my Challenge blog. Click the links above or images below to see what I'm reading.

Hosted at ebook classics and Cedar Station

Since this is on my Classics Club list, I thought I would sign up. Hope I can keep up!

Posting schedule:

Part One – April 10, 2014

Part Two – April 20, 2014

Part Three – April 30, 2014

Twitter hashtag:  #MadameBovary2014

#TuesBookTalk February/March Selection: Outlander by Diana Gabaldon

TuesBookTalk Read-a-Longs on Twitter (#tuesbooktalk) and on Goodreads will be reading Outlander by Diana Gabaldon in February and March. Our first discussion will be on Tuesday, February 4. Our chats take place on Twitter at 9:30pm ET/8:30pm CT on Tuesday nights (see hashtag above). If you can't join us on Twitter, feel free to share your thoughts in the Goodreads group. The reading schedule is available in the Goodreads group here. Hope you will join us!

Middlesex Read-a-Long at Unputdownables

I love Wallace's read-a-longs and for her next one, she has chosen a book I've been wanting to read for years....Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides! And I put it on my TBR Challenge list earlier this month too. What a happy coincidence!

The read-a-long lasts through February and March so low pressure. Yay! If you would like to join in, check out the sign up post at Unputdownables here.

#TuesBookTalk January Selection: Possession by A.S. Byatt

TuesBookTalk Read-a-Longs on Twitter (@tuesbooktalk #tuesbooktalk) and on Goodreads will be reading the 1990 winner of the Booker Prize, Possession by A.S. Byatt, in January. Our first discussion will be on Tuesday, January 7. Our chats take place on Twitter at 9:30pm ET/8:30pm CT on Tuesday nights (see hashtag above). If you can't join us on Twitter, feel free to share your thoughts in the Goodreads group. The reading schedule is available in the Goodreads group here. Hope you will join us!

#TuesBookTalk December Selection: Winter Solstice by Rosamunde Pilcher

TuesBookTalk Read-a-Longs on Twitter (@tuesbooktalk #tuesbooktalk) and on Goodreads will be reading, Winter Solstice by Rosamunde Pilcher, in December. Our first discussion will be this Tuesday, December 3. Our chats take place on Twitter at 9:30pm ET/8:30pm CT on Tuesday nights (see hashtag above). If you can't join us on Twitter, feel free to share your thoughts in the Goodreads group. The reading schedule is available in the Goodreads group here. Hope you will join us!

#TuesBookTalk November Selection: The Red Queen by Philippa Gregory

TuesBookTalk Read-a-Longs on Twitter (@tuesbooktalk #tuesbooktalk) and on Goodreads will be reading, The Red Queen by Philippa Gregory, in November. Our first discussion will be on Tuesday, November 5. Our chats take place on Twitter at 9:30pm ET/8:30pm CT on Tuesday nights (see hashtag above). If you can't join us on Twitter, feel free to share your thoughts in the Goodreads group. The reading schedule will be posted in the group. Hope you will join us!

#TuesBookTalk October Selection: Joyland by Stephen King

TuesBookTalk Read-a-Longs on Twitter (@tuesbooktalk #tuesbooktalk) and on Goodreads will be reading, Joyland by Stephen King, in October. Our first discussion will be on Tuesday, October 8. Our chats take place on Twitter at 9:30pm ET/8:30pm CT on Tuesday nights (see hashtag above). If you can't join us on Twitter, feel free to share your thoughts in the Goodreads group. Get the full reading schedule HERE. Hope you will join us!

#TuesBookTalk September Selection: Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell

TuesBookTalk Read-a-Longs on Twitter (@tuesbooktalk #tuesbooktalk) and on Goodreads will be reading, Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell, in September. Our first discussion will be on Tuesday, September 3. Our chats take place on Twitter at 9:30pm ET/8:30pm CT on Tuesday nights (see hashtag above). If you can't join us on Twitter, feel free to share your thoughts in the Goodreads group. Get the full reading schedule HERE. Hope you will join us!

#TuesBookTalk August Selection: Far from the Madding Crowd by Thomas Hardy

TuesBookTalk Read-a-Longs on Twitter (@tuesbooktalk #tuesbooktalk) and on Goodreads will be reading, Far from the Madding Crowd by Thomas Hardy, in August. Our first discussion will be on Tuesday, August 6. Our chats take place on Twitter at 9:30pm ET/8:30pm CT on Tuesday nights (see hashtag above). If you can't join us on Twitter, feel free to share your thoughts in the Goodreads group. Get the full reading schedule HERE. Hope you will join us!

#TuesBookTalk July Selection: The White Queen by Philippa Gregory

TuesBookTalk Read-a-Longs on Twitter (@tuesbooktalk  #tuesbooktalk) and on Goodreads will be reading, The White Queen by Philippa Gregory, in July. Our first discussion will be on Tuesday, July 2.  Our chats take place on Twitter at 9:30pm ET/8:30pm CT on Tuesday nights (see hashtag above).  If you can't join us on Twitter, feel free to share your thoughts in the Goodreads group.  Get the full reading schedule HERE.  Hope you will join us!

Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro--Read-a-Long Wrap-Up and Final Review #cceventsched

This is the end of the Post-2000 "Modern Classic" Read-a-Long of Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro. I hope you enjoyed the book and I look forward to your thoughts on it. I'm going to share my final thoughts in a kind of analysis/book review style.

What does it really mean to be human? Are we human only if we were born to other humans, or can we also be considered to be human if we were created in a laboratory from another's DNA. This book confronts this question in a radical way. What if, in the future, clones were created for the sole purpose of saving the lives of the sick, i.e. via organ donation? In Never Let Me Go, the clones are created and educated as "students" in boarding school type institutions. At Hailsham, where much of the story takes place, a certain emphasis is made on the artistic endeavors of these students. What we later find out is that these students are, in fact, clones and when they leave their schools, they will go out into the world first as "Carers", those who take care of the donor clones as they go through their various donations, and then as donors. Upon donation number four, we learn they complete, or die, which basically means that a life giving organ was taken. However, sometimes the donors complete before donation four due to complications which is not surprising. The importance of Hailsham in all of this is that the way they educated the "students" and emphasized their artistic qualities was their way of proving to the world that these children (and later adults) do indeed have souls and so are human. What we learn through Ishiguro's masterful storytelling is that these people are very human...that they do possess souls. Which makes it all the more tragic.

I do have to admit feeling a bit irritated during much of the book. One of the characters (Ruth) is one of those people who would be absolutely exhausting to be friends with. And Kathy is so frustratingly complacent much of the time. I would have gone off on Ruth much more than Kathy, and even Tommy, ever did. I guess that's what made Kathy such an excellent Carer. Her ability to be understanding of other points of view, however frustrating or irritating. But this is just a little glitch in the reading of the book. Ultimately, I feel that each of the characters...Ruth, Kathy, and Tommy...behaved the way they did as their own special way of coping with what they knew was their inevitability. So very sad.

I must examine the moral implications of the idea behind this book. I used to think that cloning would be a good thing. That it would be good to have clones in case we got sick or our loved ones got sick. But when we are thinking such things, do we really consider that these clones are actually people? Even if they are genetic copies, they are made from the same stuff we are. Who says that you have to be born to be given a soul (if you believe in the human soul, as I do)? How do we know how we really get our souls in the first place?

Books that make me really think are my favorites to read. This doesn't change the fact that this book is very sad and I cried and cried at the end. Definitely well worth the read though.

So, what did you think? Share your thoughts in the comments or leave me a link to your blog post and I'll stop by. Thanks for reading along with me!

Upcoming Events in June

TuesBookTalk Read-a-Longs on Twitter (@tuesbooktalk  #tuesbooktalk) and on Goodreads will be reading, Watership Down by Richard Adams, in June. Our first discussion will be on Tuesday, June 4.  Our chats take place on Twitter at 9:30pm ET/8:30pm CT on Tuesday nights (see hashtag above).  If you can't join us on Twitter, feel free to share your thoughts in the Goodreads group.  Get the full reading schedule HERE.  Hope you will join us!

Hosted by Coffee and a Book Chick May 25 - July 27.

Show us your copy! Audio or print?

I don't feel like taking a pic since I don't have a smart phone so I have to hook up the USB cable to download a pic. Ugh! However, I will be reading this tome (and I do mean tome) in hardcover...my own copy.

Have you read Uncle Stevie before?

But, of course! He is one of my fave authors. My favorite SK book is Bag of Bones, but I really love all his books that I've read (except Christine and The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon). I love SK so much that I even host my own perpetual reading challenge, The Stephen King Challenge.

What are you familiar with about Under the Dome or Stephen King?

What I know about SK is a whole other blog post. I'm familiar with Under the Dome, as I started reading it last year so I'm already pretty far in. No catching up for me! Yay!

What are you looking forward to?

Finishing the book, or course. And definitely the miniseries!



From the blog:
The Wicked Wildfire Read-A-Thon is a time when we all get together to dedicate the days of June 7-14 to as much reading as possible. You read as much as you can in order to get yourself a little further through that huge to-read pile! We know real life gets in the way and even if you can’t participate more than one day, you’re welcome to join in on the fun!

In the meanwhile, we will be hosting book-related challenges where you can win some awesome prizes and have a Twitter party at the hashtag #WWReadathon! You can posts updates on your blog, Twitter, Goodreads or Facebook — as long as the profile is public and we all can enjoy your reading progress!

Click the button above to sign up!

From the blog:
Summer Solstice Read-a-thon is a 24 hr event taking place on the longest day of the year...June 21, 2013.

It was created by Rie @ Mission To Read and is cohosted by Melissa of Harley Bear Book Blog, Lindsay of The Novel Life, Kathrin of StackedNPainted, and Melina of The Pretty Nifty YA Reader.

The goal of this read-a-thon is to take advantage of all the extra daylight and read as much as you can! Mini challenges and a giveaway will be happening this day so make sure to check out any of the host's blog's the day of for more information.

Don't forget to chat with us at the twitter party 12pm CST #SSReadathon.

Click the button above to sign up!

What about you? Will you join us in reading Watership Down? Are you participating in any of these other events?

Post-2000 "Modern Classic" Read-a-Long--Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro #cceventsched

I'd like to invite you to join me this month in reading Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro, a Classics Club event. The book is fairly short (my edition: ISBN 1-4000-4339-5 is 288 pages) so I'm going to split the reading up like this:

• First section, Chapters 1 - 12--discussion date May 17
• Second section, Chapters 13 - end--discussion date May 31

Come back here on the above dates and I will have a discussion post up. You can share your thoughts in the comments, or link to your own post on your blog.

I hope you will join me!

TuesBookTalk May Selection: The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane by Katherine Howe

TuesBookTalk Read-a-Longs on Twitter (@tuesbooktalk  #tuesbooktalk) and on Goodreads will be reading, The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane by Katherine Howe, in May. Our first discussion will be on Tuesday, May 7.  Our chats take place on Twitter at 9:30pm ET/8:30pm CT on Tuesday nights (see hashtag above).  If you can't join us on Twitter, feel free to share your thoughts in the Goodreads group.  Get the full reading schedule HERE.  Hope you will join us!