Pick-a-Shelf discussion

A traditional English hopscotch game involves a magpie rhyme. There are a number of variety but the one I’ve chose to use is below.

As you know, the game of hopscotch requires that you play individually, to go in order of the numbers, if you touch the line (etc) you’re out of the game and the next person is up. This is a little bit hard to simulate so instead we are going to play / read in a relay type of game.



One for Sorrow,
Two for Joy,
Three for a Girl,
Four for a Boy,
Five for Silver,
Six for Gold,
Seven for a Secret Never to be Told,
Eight for a Wish,
Home for a Kiss!

Let’s race HOME…

Qualified books will be:
1 sad book (you’d have to confess to shedding tears or using up a whole box of tissues)
2 funny books (those humorous ones that make you laughed out loud)
3 female MC books (one POV only)
4 male MC books (one POV only)
5 award nominated books (any awards but cannot be the winning books and it cannot have won any awards)
6 award winning books
7 under-rated books (books with less than 500 ratings BUT not a recent release –ie. books must have been released for more than 6 months at time of reading)
8 new release books (2014 publication only)
HOME (with a total of 36 books read)

How to:
The easiest way to explain will be by example:
1st reader will read 1 sad book (eg. The Notebook etc)
When finished reading, post completed read on the thread to tag the next reader
2nd reader will read 1 funny book (eg. Me Talk Pretty One Day etc)
When finished reading, post completed read on the thread to tag the next reader
3rd reader will read 1 funny book (eg. Bridget Jones Diary etc)
When finished reading, post completed read on the thread to tag the next reader
4th reader will read 1 book with female MC (eg. Divergent etc)
…
36th reader will read the final book which is a new release (eg. The Invention of Wings etc)
And… we’re home!

1. Express your interest here by 7th Feb
2. If there are more than 10 people then I’ll divide into 2 teams and we can race too ;) Otherwise, it’d be fun just to play along as we won’t know when we’ll be tagged exactly
3. The order of reader will be determined by random drawing (which I will do around 7th Feb)
4. Short story, novellas, and picture books excluded*
5. The plan is for this challenge to be completed by 30 April 2014
6. If above (5) is achieved, each participant (if a ScatterShelves participant) will receive 2 additional skips (one Shelf and one Category)

Simple, right?! So who’s in?!

*Clarification: for this challenge, anything 200 pages and over is 'full novel'

Readers by turn

1.Lyn M -read 02/15
2.Kathaleeya -read 02/25
3.Dee -read 03/05
4.Amy
5.Grace
6.Debi
7.Tien
8.Dionisia

reserved

reserved

So, if on a team of 10, we would read a total of 3-4 books through the cycle? If less than 10, it would be 4 or more?

yup, that's it, Bea.

Sounds fun! I wish I could join in, but through mid-March my life is going to be way too hectic to add this in. What a good game plan, though.

I agree with LynnB. It sounds fun, but my life in the next too months is going to be way too much for another game. Sorry that I will miss this one.

I'm doing Scattershelves and the SRC, so adding this game likely won't be a problem. With all of the books I need to read already, I'm sure there will be some overlapping choices that won't require me to add to the existing pile. Sounds like fun as usual!

I'm interested, but for example for Sad - could we say use a listopia...only because I can't literally count on one-hand the times that I have cried in a book - even books that ppl call tear-jerkers rarely are for me

Aww, sorry you're not joining in, LynnB & Bea but I understand :)

Yay, Amy! I'm sure you'll find some crossover, no problem!

@Dee, yep, we can use a listopia, if you prefer. I know I also find it hard for a really funny book -maybe I just have a different sort of humour!

Tien wrote: "Aww, sorry you're not joining in, LynnB & Bea but I understand :)

Yay, Amy! I'm sure you'll find some crossover, no problem!

@Dee, yep, we can use a listopia, if you prefer. I know I also find ..."

Me too...I can find a tearjerker easily enough, but few books make me laugh. The early Evanovich books were the exception.

I think I'd better pass on this one. I'm uncomfortable with the idea that the rest of the group would be waiting for me to finish my assigned book, and couldn't move on until I did.

Have fun, everyone!

I'm in. I need to start reading more this year. Last year I experienced a drought of good books.

Susan wrote: "I think I'd better pass on this one. I'm uncomfortable with the idea that the rest of the group would be waiting for me to finish my assigned book, and couldn't move on until I did.

Have fun, ever..."

aw... surely you know us well enough by now that this shouldn't be a discomfort...
I did consider to making this an individual challenge but 36 books ...a lot of commitment by one person!

Tien wrote: I did consider to making this an individual challenge but 36 books ...a lot of commitment by one person! ..."

No, I think it's a neat group challenge. I'm just worried about not holding up my end.

I'd like to play!

Grace wrote: "I'd like to play!"

great to have you along, Grace :)

Is it too late to join? I'd like to play. :-)

ahh what the heck, sign me up...not like I have anything else to do ;)

tien - maybe a book shelved as humor or something? but yeah, i'm the same, I have a very dry sense of humor - monty python/black adder type humor which doesn't work in most books

Dee and Tien - I am the same with funny books. Many books make me smile, and I appreciate the humor in a lot of books, but I rarely actual laugh at a book. Alternately, I have found more books that make me cry, but they are not common either.

Not too late at all!

So, from above, we have the following participant...
Amy
Dee
Kathaleeya
Grace
Debi
Tien

Lyn M, are you playing too?

I need to go pack for our holiday but I'll try to check in again later today to determine the readers turns :)

I thought I had signed up, Tien, but I don't see my post. I must have thought I had, but got sidetracked.

readinghearts (Lyn M) wrote: "I thought I had signed up, Tien, but I don't see my post. I must have thought I had, but got sidetracked."

Great!

Okay, I've used the List Randomizer on random.org and it seems... Lyn M, you're to start! LOL -you'll need to find some humorous book ;)

1.Lyn M
2.Kathaleeya
3.Dee
4.Amy
5.Grace
6.Debi
7.Tien

Lol!

Doesn't Lyn need sad! I need humorous

*sighs* you're right, Dee... I'm too much in a rush

I really need to get off but it's hard once you're on, :p

I'll join in!

Never played a game before so trying to clarify this in my mind. Based on current 7 players, would #1 reader Lyn, read a sad book first then when it goes through participants list, read a (8) new release book when she is next tagged?

Tien wrote: "Okay, I've used the List Randomizer on random.org and it seems... Lyn M, you're to start! LOL -you'll need to find some humorous book ;)

1.Lyn M
2.Kathaleeya
3.Dee
4.Amy
5.Grace
6.Debi
7.Tien"

Oh joy, I get to go first, lol. Off to find a sad book!

Score one for me....I am going with Me Before You by Jojo Moyes

It fits Scattergories (M and reviewed-books)
It is on the thought-provoking shelf
It is on the tear-jerker list (that should make me cry!)
AND it fits the recommend me challenge in another group. :)

I'll let you all know when I am done.

I am only now realizing that I was a day late lol

Dionisia wrote: "I am only now realizing that I was a day late lol"

aw, Dionisia, since we've just started, I can slot you in for #8, if you like?

Really? Ok! Thank you :)

YAY, welcome aboard, Dionisia.

OK, I finished my book Me Before You by Jojo Moyes and it is definitely a tear jerker. I am giving it 5 stars, though. Excellent book and very thought provoking, too.

OK, Kathaleeya - You are up. Time for you to read a funny book.

I'm going to do The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams . It's on my LOST list anyways. I'll try to finish as soon as possible.

Finished.

Ok - got to find a funny book!

Question - what are we using as page count to determine difference between novel and novella? The book I'm looking at is 250odd pgs

Dee wrote: "Ok - got to find a funny book!"

I think 3rd book is a Female POV style. But I could be wrong.

Dee wrote: "Question - what are we using as page count to determine difference between novel and novella? The book I'm looking at is 250odd pgs"

Not sure what Tien thinks, Dee, but most things that I participate in consider a novella under 150 pages, so I would say 250 is good.

Debi wrote: "Dee wrote: "Ok - got to find a funny book!"

I think 3rd book is a Female POV style. But I could be wrong."

Actually, Debi, it is a bit different.

Here is how it plays out:
1 - sad
2 - funny
3 - funny
4 - female MC
5 - female MC
6 - female MC
7 - male MC

etc.

At first I thought you kept going through the list, too, but per Tien's HOW TO example in message 1, that is not the way.

readinghearts (Lyn M) wrote: "Debi wrote: "Dee wrote: "Ok - got to find a funny book!"

I think 3rd book is a Female POV style. But I could be wrong."

Actually, Debi, it is a bit different.

Here is how it plays out:
1 - s..."
Boy, am I glad you explained that! Hmmmm, better rethink my book for #6
Thank you

Debi wrote: "readinghearts (Lyn M) wrote: "Debi wrote: "Dee wrote: "Ok - got to find a funny book!"

I think 3rd book is a Female POV style. But I could be wrong."

Actually, Debi, it is a bit different.

Her..."

You are welcome. I was at a quandry for my next book, too, lol.

Yay, just figured out my stand alone book for March is also by MC Female POV book. That's a happy accident.

Found my book and it's like 300pgd - Neanderthal Seeks Human: A Smart Romance

Dee wrote: "Found my book and it's like 300pgd - Neanderthal Seeks Human: A Smart Romance"

OK, just the title of that one is enough to make me laugh.

Debi wrote: "Yay, just figured out my stand alone book for March is also by MC Female POV book. That's a happy accident."

I love when things work out that way. :)

The acknowledgments dedicate the book to her computer and spell check...