Monthly Challenges discussion

April 2025 Tasks

One Point Tasks

1.1 April: 4th Month of the Year
Choose ONE of the following:

a. Read a book published in April (any year)
b. Read a book with 4 in it's page count.
c. Read a book published in a year with 4 (e.g. 2014, 2024 etc.. ) STATE YEAR.

1.2 Celebrate the Author: HIM VS HER
This month's Authors are: William Kent Krueger VS Ruth Ware
Read a book by one of these Authors.

1.3 April Showers Colors
Read a book with a predominantly BLUE • GRAY • SILVER cover (65%+) Show cover.

1.4 Main Page Genre (MPG)
Choose One:
a. April 12, 1861 begun the American Civil War.
Read a book with MPG: WAR. State which war.

b. American Attorney Clarence Darrow was born April 18, 1857.
Read a book with MPG: LEGAL THRILLER

1.5 Read the Alphabet: LETTER P
Read a book that starts with the LETTER P (exclude A, An, or The) -Or- Author's FIRST/ LAST name that starts with the LETTER P.
BONUS POINT: Title & Author's FIRST/LAST name both
have LETTER P.

1.6 Going Green
Choose one:

a. Earth Day (April 22)
Read a book whose Author Last name begins with a letter in E•A•R•T•H.

b. Arbor Day (April 25)
Read a book with trees on the cover. (show cover)

1.7 (Bethany's task) My Brigade Music Came Out Today!
The last couple of years, I've been lucky to sing at Treble Harmony Brigade. Music comes out April 1st, we learn and practice through the spring, then have a crazy weekend of performing in August.
To celebrate, choose a task below:

a. Main page genre of MUSIC

b. The songs are arranged in 4 part harmony. Read a book with AT LEAST 4 main characters.

c. The 1st letter of the title starts in BRIGADE

1.8 (Amber's Task) National Find A Rainbow Day
April 3rd is Find A Rainbow Day

Read a book with at least 2 colors of the rainbow in the cover (show cover)Tell us which 2 colors are being used. Link will help you remember the colors if you need.
https://www.geeksforgeeks.org/7-colou...
😑 Website is not working --- 🌈
• the colors of a rainbow in order are: RED, ORANGE, YELLOW, GREEN, BLUE, INDIGO, and VIOLET.

1.9 (Tessa's Task) WE SOLD OUR HOUSE!
Read a book with a house on the cover. This should clearly be a stand-alone residential property. BONUS point if there is a flower garden visible (MORE than just a pot of flowers on the porch); the garden photos I took last year helped sell our house in February!

1.10 (Bethany's Task) My Brain Hurts
My kid kept me up all night and my brain hurts after thinking up the last task. And from listening to 10 songs on repeat for 24 hours.
Read a book. Enjoy it. Don't overthink things for this task.

Two Point Tasks

2.1 The Lottery
Read 2 Books

GO to THE LOTTERY task for details. This is a TIME-LIMITED task.

2.2 Motley Reading Challenge 2025.
Read 2 Books

1. Read a book whose Author you have read at less 2 times before. (STATE) the other 2 books you have read from this author.
2. Read a book published in the year of the snake. (1929, 1941, 1953, 1965, 1977, 1989, 2013, 2025)

2.3 (Pat's Task) NATIONAL POETRY MONTH
Launched by the Academy of American Poets in April 1996, National Poetry Month is a special occasion that celebrates poets’ integral role in our culture and that poetry matters. Over the years, it has become the largest literary celebration in the world, with tens of millions of readers, students, teachers, librarians, booksellers, literary events curators, publishers, families, and poets, marking poetry’s important place in our lives.

Choose two from the tasks below to celebrate this annual celebration!

TASK A ~ Inaugural Poets
An inaugural poet is a poet who reads a poem as part of the presidential inauguration ceremonies. While poetry isn't necessarily a partisan activity, there have been six inaugural poets selected by four presidents, all of whom have been Democrats (Kennedy, Bill Clinton, Barack Obama, and Biden). Interestingly, Robert Frost wrote a poem specifically for the inauguration that he was unable to read because of the sunlight reflecting off the paper. So he improvised and recited his poem "The Gift Outright" from memory.
READ: a poetry collection by one of these Inaugural Poets.
The book needs to be a poetry collection, not an autobiography or novel (some of these poets have done both).

Here is a list of the inaugural poets, the presidents who selected them, and their poems:
1961: Robert Frost read "The Gift Outright" for John F. Kennedy's inauguration
1993: Maya Angelou read "On the Pulse of Morning" for Bill Clinton's first inauguration
1997: Miller Williams read "Of History and Hope" for Bill Clinton's second inauguration
2009: Elizabeth Alexander read "Praise Song for the Day" for Barack Obama's first inauguration
2013: Richard Blanco read "One Today" for Barack Obama's second inauguration
2021: Amanda Gorman read "The Hill We Climb" for Joe Biden's inauguration


TASK B ~ The 3 Rs of Poetry
The three main features of poetry are Rhyme, Rhythm and Repetition.
READ: a book that has all the letters of one of these words in the title/subtitle. Letters must appear at least as many times as in the word you choose. (More times is ok, less is not)


TASK C ~ Lyrics as Poetry
There is no question that song lyrics are classified as poetry. For this task, pick one of your favorite songs and
READ:
(A) a book by an author who shares the same initials (first & last) as either the song writer or the singer
OR
(B) a book where the number of words in the song title matches the number of words in the book title
Post with your song title and the singer or songwriter.


BONUS POINT OFFER ~ While hunting for inspiration for this task, I ran across this site. It's called Poem-A-Day, and it bills itself as the only daily poetry series publishing new work by today’s poets.
To get the bonus point,
1. Read the Poem of the Day for the month of April. (It only takes a couple of minutes each day, and some of them are REALLY good.)
2. On April 30, post the title of the poem you liked best, along with the name of the poet, and the date the poem was posted on the site.
https://poets.org/poem-a-day

2.4 (Pat's Task) APRIL SHOWERS
I live in Oklahoma, where it's pretty much dry from December to March. It's not unusual for us to have a pretty serious fire season, which we did this past March. At one point, we had 150 fires going on at the same time in the state, with many of my neighbors losing their homes. Understandably, I'm grateful for the first week of April which has, so far, brought 3 days of rain and cooler temperatures. Celebrate this wet season with me!

Read two books ~
Book 1 ~ A book where drought is an important element of the story.
Book 2 ~ Book that has all the letters of RAIN in the title.

Three Point Tasks

3.1 (Linda C's Task) SPRING CLEANING
Read 3 Books

1. Clean away some of those hanging series.
Read the next volume in any series you have started.
Tell us the series and #.

2. Clean a bit from your TBR pile.
Read a book that has been on your pile a long time.
Tell us when it was added. Must at least be prior to 2023.

3. Collecting dust bunnies.
Read a book from the oldest year – i.e. the first year you added books to GR, not the publication date of the book. Tell us what year. For me that would be things I added in 2012, the year I joined GR (Yes, I still haven’t read all of those!)

3.2 (Linda C's Task) ) SPRING CLEANING 2.0 – let’s move some books out!
Read 3 Books – Repeat task 3.1

1. Clean away some of those hanging series.
Read the next volume in any series you have started.
Tell us the series and #.

2. Clean a bit from your TBR pile.
Read a book that has been on your pile a long time.
Tell us when it was added. Must at least be prior to 2023.

3. Collecting dust bunnies.
Read a book from the oldest year – i.e. the first year you added books to GR, not the publication date of the book. Tell us what year. For me that would be things I added in 2012, the year I joined GR (Yes, I still haven’t read all of those!)

5.1 April Showers Bring May Flowers
Read 5 Books

Spell-out one of the ALL-CAPPED Flowers below:
DAISY
ROSES
TULIP
ASTER
LOTUS
LILAC
VINCA
PANSY
POPPY

• one book per letter
• 1st letter in Title (exclude A, An, or The)
• 1st letter of Author's FIRST/LAST name

For example: Spell-out: PANSY

P - The Pretender by Jo Harkin
A - Abby Jimenez's Say You'll Remember Me
N - Nita Prose's The Maid's Secret
S - Shipman, Viola - The Page Turner
Y - You Belong to Me by Hayley Krischer

Don't forget dates & page counts

April Winners

Most Points
3.1 - Linda C
2.3 - Pat
1.7 - Bethany

Most Pages
3.2 - Linda C
2.4 - Pat
1.8 - Amber

Reading Jar
1.9 - Tessa
1.10 - Bethany

Please please your Tasks down below.They will be added to main later. Thank you 🤓

2.3 (Pat's Task) ~ NATIONAL POETRY MONTH
Launched by the Academy of American Poets in April 1996, National Poetry Month is a special occasion that celebrates poets’ integral role in our culture and that poetry matters. Over the years, it has become the largest literary celebration in the world, with tens of millions of readers, students, teachers, librarians, booksellers, literary events curators, publishers, families, and poets, marking poetry’s important place in our lives.

Choose two from the tasks below to celebrate this annual celebration!

TASK A ~ Inaugural Poets
An inaugural poet is a poet who reads a poem as part of the presidential inauguration ceremonies. While poetry isn't necessarily a partisan activity, there have been six inaugural poets selected by four presidents, all of whom have been Democrats (Kennedy, Bill Clinton, Barack Obama, and Biden). Interestingly, Robert Frost wrote a poem specifically for the inauguration that he was unable to read because of the sunlight reflecting off the paper. So he improvised and recited his poem "The Gift Outright" from memory.
READ: a poetry collection by one of these Inaugural Poets.
The book needs to be a poetry collection, not an autobiography or novel (some of these poets have done both).

Here is a list of the inaugural poets, the presidents who selected them, and their poems:
1961: Robert Frost read "The Gift Outright" for John F. Kennedy's inauguration
1993: Maya Angelou read "On the Pulse of Morning" for Bill Clinton's first inauguration
1997: Miller Williams read "Of History and Hope" for Bill Clinton's second inauguration
2009: Elizabeth Alexander read "Praise Song for the Day" for Barack Obama's first inauguration
2013: Richard Blanco read "One Today" for Barack Obama's second inauguration
2021: Amanda Gorman read "The Hill We Climb" for Joe Biden's inauguration


TASK B ~ The 3 Rs of Poetry
The three main features of poetry are Rhyme, Rhythm and Repetition.
READ: a book that has all the letters of one of these words in the title/subtitle. Letters must appear at least as many times as in the word you choose. (More times is ok, less is not)


TASK C ~ Lyrics as Poetry
There is no question that song lyrics are classified as poetry. For this task, pick one of your favorite songs and
READ:
(A) a book by an author who shares the same initials (first & last) as either the song writer or the singer
OR
(B) a book where the number of words in the song title matches the number of words in the book title
Post with your song title and the singer or songwriter.


BONUS POINT OFFER ~ While hunting for inspiration for this task, I ran across this site. It's called Poem-A-Day, and it bills itself as the only daily poetry series publishing new work by today’s poets.
To get the bonus point,
1. Read the Poem of the Day for the month of April. (It only takes a couple of minutes each day, and some of them are REALLY good.)
2. On April 30, post the title of the poem you liked best, along with the name of the poet, and the date the poem was posted on the site.
https://poets.org/poem-a-day

Task 1.7 My Brigade Music Came Out Today!
The last couple of years, I've been lucky to sing at Treble Harmony Brigade. Music comes out April 1st, we learn and practice through the spring, then have a crazy weekend of performing in August.
To celebrate, choose a task below:
a. Main page genre of MUSIC
b. The songs are arranged in 4 part harmony. Read a book with AT LEAST 4 main characters.
c. The 1st letter of the title starts in BRIGADE

Task 1.10: My Brain Hurts
My kid kept me up all night and my brain hurts after thinking up the last task. And from listening to 10 songs on repeat for 24 hours.
Read a book. Enjoy it. Don't overthink things for this task.

3.1 (Linda C's Task) SPRING CLEANING
Read 3 Books

1. Clean away some of those hanging series.
Read the next volume in any series you have started.
Tell us the series and #.

2. Clean a bit from your TBR pile.
Read a book that has been on your pile a long time.
Tell us when it was added. Must at least be prior to 2023.

3. Collecting dust bunnies.
Read a book from the oldest year – i.e. the first year you added books to GR, not the publication date of the book. Tell us what year. For me that would be things I added in 2012, the year I joined GR (Yes, I still haven’t read all of those!)



3.2 (Linda C's task) SPRING CLEANING 2.0 – let’s move some books out!
Read 3 Books – Repeat task 3.1

1. Clean away some of those hanging series.
Read the next volume in any series you have started.
Tell us the series and #.

2. Clean a bit from your TBR pile.
Read a book that has been on your pile a long time.
Tell us when it was added. Must at least be prior to 2023.

3. Collecting dust bunnies.
Read a book from the oldest year – i.e. the first year you added books to GR, not the publication date of the book. Tell us what year. For me that would be things I added in 2012, the year I joined GR (Yes, I still haven’t read all of those!)

2.4 (Pat's Task) ~ APRIL SHOWERS
I live in Oklahoma, where it's pretty much dry from December to March. It's not unusual for us to have a pretty serious fire season, which we did this past March. At one point, we had 150 fires going on at the same time in the state, with many of my neighbors losing their homes. Understandably, I'm grateful for the first week of April which has, so far, brought 3 days of rain and cooler temperatures. Celebrate this wet season with me!

Read two books ~
Book 1 ~ A book where drought is an important element of the story.
Book 2 ~ Book that has all the letters of RAIN in the title.

TESSA

Task 1.9 - Reading Jar - Tessa - WE SOLD OUR HOUSE!
Read a book with a house on the cover. This should clearly be a stand-alone residential property. BONUS point if there is a flower garden visible (MORE than just a pot of flowers on the porch); the garden photos I took last year helped sell our house in February!

1.8 (Amber's Task) National Find A Rainbow Day
April 3rd is Find A Rainbow Day
Read a book with at least 2 colors of the rainbow in the cover (show cover)Tell us which 2 colors are being used. Link will help you remember the colors if you need.
https://www.geeksforgeeks.org/7-colou...

Amber wrote: "1.8 (Amber's Task) National Find A Rainbow Day
April 3rd is Find A Rainbow Day
Read a book with at least 2 colors of the rainbow in the cover (show cover)Tell us which 2 colors are being used. Link..."

Your link doesn't work, Amber.