You'll love this one...!! A book club & more discussion

I had a miserable time finding time for reading the last half of 2023.

I'm ready to start fresh in 2024, got new boots and everything !




Main Challenge Thread

Challenge Rules

Tracking Thread Guidelines

I will be using this thread to track my progress. Janice will not be tracking until I request a badge. (She will be snooping through my individual threads.)

☒Start my own reporting thread in this folder to track my progress.
☐Track my own books.
☐Report my success and completion in the set up thread on the main forum folder.
☐In order to receive my badge, I must request it in the request thread.
☐Repeat for the next hike.


There will be 6 identified stops within each hike- Start, 4 checkstops, and the Finish.
There is a task for each stop, and in between each stop I will need to read two additional books - the first connected to the task and the second connected to that book (essentially chaining the books together)

I must read each book IN ORDER. We're on a hike and I am not allowed to jump back and forth. Follow the trail to its conclusion.

SEQUENCE

Start - Book 1 Task
Book 2 - My choice, but connected in some way to Book 1.
Book 3 - My choice, but connected in some way to Book 2.
(Personal goal is to close this loop or to connect to the next book in this hike)

(reset)
Reset means you may break the linked books if you chose. If you are a gluten for punishment, you may connect them all.

Badge 1 ~ Frodo and Sam's Route Through Middle Earth
16 books

Start - Bag End Hobbiton
Task: Read a book with home, homeward, or homebound in the title.
River Sing Me Home by Eleanor Shearer
Read ~ 1.8.24
Pages ~ 322
Required ~ HOME is in title
Rating ~ ★★★★


Book 1 ~ Connect to Task Book
The River We Remember by William Kent Krueger
Read ~ 1.17.24
Pages ~ 421
Connection ~ Connected by word in title (RIVER)
Rating ~ ★★★★★


Book 2 ~ Connect to Book 1
Remember Me? by Sophie Kinsella
Read ~
Pages ~ 352
Connection ~ Connected by word in title (REMEMBER)
Rating ~ ★★★★


Close The Loop ~ Home - River - Remember - Me

Checkpoint 1 - Bree

Task - Read a book that is the 1st book of a series of 4 (that represents Frodo, Sam, Merry & Pippin).

The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman
Read ~ 2.18.24
Pages ~ 377
Required ~ Thursday Murder Club series, Book #1 of 4
Rating ~ ★★★★


Book 1 ~ Connect to Task Book
Saturday Night at the Lakeside Supper Club by J. Ryan Stradal
Read ~ 4.26.24
Pages ~ 340
Connection ~ Day of the Week and the word club in both titles
Rating ~ ★★★★
I wouldn't have even found this book were it not for this challenge, and that would have been a sad thing, because I really loved this story.


Book 2 ~ Connect to Book 1
The Sunday Philosophy Club by Alexander McCall Smith
Read ~ 4.26.24
Pages ~ 272
Series ~ Isabel Dalhousie #1
Connection ~ Day of the Week + club
Rating ~ ★★
This one was "preachy." MC was a very nosy busy-body type, and I found her irritating and boorish.


Close The Loop ~ Book #3 is connected to Book #1 - Weekday Word + club + both are #1 in a new series to me.

Checkpoint 2 - Rivendell

Task: Read a book with "Sanctuary" or "Valley" in the title, or subtitle.
In the Shadow of the Valley: A Memoir by Bobi Conn
Read ~
Pages ~
Requirement ~ VALLEY as word in title
Rating ~

Review ~

Book 1 ~ Connect to Task Book
Book 2 ~ Connect to Book 1

Checkpoint 3 - Moria

Task: Read a book with a cover that is 75% black.

Read ~
Pages ~
Rationale ~
Rating ~

Review ~


Book 1 ~ Connect to Task Book
Book 2 ~ Connect to Book 1

Checkpoint 4 - Black Gate

Task: Read a book with "Iron" in the title.

Read ~
Pages ~
Rationale ~
Rating ~

Review ~


Book 1 ~ Connect to Task Book
Book 2 ~ Connect to Book 1

Finish - Mount Doom

Task: Read a book that is between 400 and 450 pages.

Read ~
Pages ~
Rationale ~
Rating ~

Review ~




That's 16 Books
Read and Done
So You Are Ready
To Request Badge One


Look! I made a poem!

I'm so happy to see you're going to do the 2024 challenge. I missed you.

I've missed being here! I'm so happy to be back.

I'm still here! I was just struggling to find a connection for the book I picked out for the first checkpoint task. I'm over the hump and should be on my way again fairly quickly.... after I stop for second breakfast, of course.

What about third breakfast? You don't want to miss that.

Janice wrote: "What about third breakfast? You don't want to miss that."

Oh for sure. And first lunch, and second lunch... and second midnight snack.

I'm getting hungry. It must be time for first supper.