Challenge Wrap-Up: 2015 Women's Fiction

Women's Fiction Reading Challenge 2015

Hosted by: Kathryn T @ Book Date

Dates: January 1 - December 31, 2015

I signed up at the "Motivated" Level (read 1-5 books)and read two books that would seem to qualify for the challenge, but only got one reviewed:

The Anger Meridian. Kaylie Jones (see review)
What We Keep. Elizabeth Berg

Not sure why I never got the Berg book reviewed, since it was one of my favorites among all the books I read this year.

Even though I had a bit of a problem with the challenge, I did enjoy it. So now I'm trying to decide whether or not to sign up for the 2016 edition (sign-up here for Women's Fiction 2016).

Challenge Wrap-Up: 2015 New Authors Reading Challenge

The 2015 New Authors Reading Challenge was hosted by Literary Escapism. I wanted to read at least 15 new authors, and actually doubled that goal. Didn't get them all reviewed, but here's the list:

1. Michael Phillip Cash: The After House 
2. Glenn Cooper: The Resurrection Maker 
3. Jonas Karlsson: The Room 
4. Erika Swyler: The Book of Speculation 
5. Charles Todd: A Fine Summer's Day (Inspector Rutledge #17)
6. Elizabeth Hand: Wylding Hall 
7. Damien Boyd: As the Crow Flies (DI Nick Dixon #1)
8. Becky Masterman: Fear the Darkness (Brigid Quinn Thriller #2) 
9. Alan Hunter: Gently Does It (Inspector George Gently #1)
10. Martha Ockley: A Saintly Killing (Faith Morgan #3) 
11. Brian Harvey: Beethoven's Tenth (Frank Ryan #1)
12. S.K. Tremayne: The Ice Twins 
13. Jonathan Aycliffe: The Silence of Ghosts 
14. Pierre Boileau (and Thomas Narcejac): Vertigo 
15. Blake Crouch: Pines (Wayward Pines #1) 
16. Kate DiCamillo: The Tale of Despereaux 
17. Paul Tremblay: A Head Full of Ghosts
18. Sascha Arango: The Truth and Other Lies 
19. Anne Perry: The Angel Court Affair (Charlotte & Thomas Pitt #30) 
20. Rebecca Stead: Goodbye Stranger 
21. Jill Morrow: Newport: A Novel 
22. Elizabeth Edmondson: A Man of Some Repute (A Very English Mystery #1)
23. Lauren Owen: The Quick  
24. David Mitchell: Slade House 
25. Jennifer McMahon: The Night Sister 
26. Kaylie Jones: The Anger Meridian 
27. Haruki Murakami: South of the Border, West of the Sun 
28. Elizabeth Berg: What We Keep 
29. Marty Wingate: Between a Rock and a Hard Place 
30. Jean-Pierre Alaux (and Noël Balen): Backstabbing in Beaujolais 

Many thanks to the challenge host -- this is always one of my favorite challenges.

Challenge Wrap-Up: Historical Fiction 2015

The 2015 Historical Fiction Reading Challenge was hosted by Amy @ Passages to the Past. (Thanks so much, Amy!) I had five books as my goal ("Victorian Reader" level), and actually read eight -- although I didn't manage to get them all reviewed. A pretty successful result, I think.

Here's what I read:

1. As Chimney Sweepers Come to Dust (Flavia de Luce #7). Alan Bradley (published 2015 / set around 1950)
2. The Witch of Painted Sorrows. M.J. Rose (published 2015 / set in 19th Century France)
3. A Fine Summer's Day (Inspector Ian Rutledge #17). Charles Todd (published 2015 / set in 1914)
4. The Silence of Ghosts. Jonathan Aycliffe (first published 2013 / set during World War II)
5. The Angel Court Affair (Charlotte and Thomas Pitt #30). Anne Perry (published 2015 / set in Victorian England) 
6. Newport. Jill Morrow (published 2015 / set in 1921) 
7. The Quick. Lauren Owen (published 2014 / set in late 19th Century England) 
8. A Man of Some Repute. Elizabeth Edmondson (published 2015 / set in 1953) 

Challenge Wrap-Up: 2015 Cloak and Dagger Reading Challenge

The 2015 Cloak & Dagger Reading Challenge was originally hosted by Amy @ A Bookish Girl, and later handed over to Elizabeth @ Thoughts of an Evil Overlord. Lately, Elizabeth has been having some health problems, so she's taking a little break from blogging. Could this challenge be bringing bad luck? Hmmmm....

Anyway. I signed up at Level Three ("Flavia de Luce" - read 15 books), and didn't have any problem meeting that goal. Here's what I read:

1. The Red House Mystery. A.A. Milne
2. As Chimney Sweepers Come to Dust (Flavia de Luce #7). Alan Bradley
3. The Case of the Velvet Claws (Perry Mason #1). Erle Stanley Gardner
4. Let Sleeping Dogs Lie ("Sister" Jane #9). Rita Mae Brown
5. A Fine Summer's Day (Inspector Ian Rutledge #17). Charles Todd
6. As the Crow Flies (DI Nick Dixon #1). Damien Boyd
7. Fear the Darkness (Brigid Quinn Thriller #2). Becky Masterman
8. Gently Does It (Inspector George Gently #1). Alan Hunter 
9. A Saintly Killing (Faith Morgan Mystery #3). Martha Ockley 
10. Beethoven's Tenth (Frank Ryan #1). Brian Harvey 
11. Vertigo. Pierre Boileau and Thomas Narcejac 
12. Tail Gait (Mrs. Murphy #23). Rita Mae Brown
13. The Angel Court Affair (Thomas & Charlotte Pitt #30). Anne Perry 
14. The Forgotten Room (Jeremy Logan #4). Lincoln Child 
15. In the Dark Places (Inspector Banks #22). Peter Robinson 
16. A Man of Some Repute. Elizabeth Edmondson
17. The Postman Always Rings Twice. James M. Cain 
18. Champagne For One (Nero Wolfe #31). Rex Stout 
19. The Maltese Falcon. Dashiell Hammett 
20. Between a Rock and a Hard Place (Potting Shed Mystery #3). Marty Wingate
21. Backstabbing in Beaujolais. Jean-Pierre Alaux, Noël Balen; trans. by Anne Trager 

The 2016 Cloak and Dagger Challenge is being co-hosted by Stormi @ Books, Movies, Reviews! Oh My!, and Barb @ Booker T's Farm.

Challenge Wrap-Up: I Love Picture Books 2015

Many thanks to Gina @ Book Dragon's Lair for hosting the 2015 I Love Picture Books Reading Challenge. I do love picture books, and I loved this challenge. I set myself a goal of twelve books, and didn't have any trouble at all reaching that goal. Here's what I read:

1. Corduroy. Don Freeman. 1948 / 32 pages
2. The Little House. Virginia Lee Burton. 1942 / 40 pages / 1943 Caldecott Medal
3. Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel. Virginia Lee Burton. 1938 / 56 pages 
4. Katy and the Big Snow. Virginia Lee Burton. 1943 / 40 pages
5. A Camping Spree with Mr. Magee. Chris Van Dusen. 2003 / 36 pages
6. Stella and Charlie, Friends Forever. Bernadette Peters; illus. by Liz Murphy. 2015 / 40 pages
7. Little Bird, Be Quiet! Kirsten Hall; illus. by Sabina Gibson. 2015 / 36 pages
8. Anatole. Eve Titus; illus. by Paul Galdone. 1956 / 40 pages / 1957 Caldecott Honor Book
9. Harry the Dirty Dog. Gene Zion; illus. by Margaret Bloy Graham. 1956 / 32 pages
10. Harry and the Lady Next Door. Gene Zion; illus. by Margaret Bloy Graham. 1960 / 64 pages
11. One Morning in Maine. Robert McCloskey. 1952 / 62 pages / 1953 Caldecott Honor Book
12. The Bees (Down in the Garden #1). DC Swain; illus. by Anna Bonita. 2015 / 24 pages

For 2016, Gina has passed the challenge hosting duties over to Bea's Book Nook. Haven't signed up yet, but I'm very tempted -- there are still lots of picture books I'd love to read.

2015 Challenge Wrap-Ups: European, Foodies, and Nonfiction

Three more challenge wrap-ups for 2015. Didn't do terribly well with all of these, even though I did enjoy the books I read for them (mostly). And I want to say a huge thank-you to all the hosts!

The 2015 European Reading Challenge was hosted by Gillian @ Rose City Reader. One of my favorite challenges. I signed up at the Three-star "Business Traveler" level (read 1-3 books), and actually read four books:

1. The Third Man. Graham Greene (Vienna, Austria) 
2. The Room. Jonas Karlsson (Sweden)
3. The Witch of Painted Sorrows. M.J. Rose (Paris, France)
4. The Fifth Gospel. Ian Caldwell (Vatican City, Rome, Italy)

No reviews -- I might add one or two in the next few days. Or maybe not.

Foodies Read 2015 was hosted by Vicki @ I'd Rather Be At the Beach. I signed up at the first level, "Short Order Cook" (read 1-3 books), and just read one book that would qualify:

• Backstabbing in Beaujolais. by Jean-Pierre Alaux, Noël Balen (trans. by Anne Trager)

Obviously, I'm not much of a cook, even if the orders are very short.

The Nonfiction Reading Challenge was hosted by Jen @ The Introverted Reader. I had high hopes for this one -- I really do want to try to read more nonfiction. But in 2015, I read only one book that would qualify as nonfiction:

• Last Man Standing: Tales from Tinseltown. Roger Moore

Waiting to see if this challenge will be repeated in 2016. If it is, I might have to give it another go.

More wrap-ups to come....

2015 Challenge Wrap-ups: Books in Translation, Chunkster, and Outdo Yourself Challenges

Although 2015 was a pretty good reading year for me, I didn't do terribly well when it comes to reviewing or linking up the reviews I did write. I've been sort of holding off on challenge wrap-ups, hoping to get a few more reviews posted, but that's really a little doubtful at this point. The rest of the year is looking pretty busy right now -- not a lot of time for reading or reviewing. So I think it's time to go ahead and start wrapping up my challenges for 2015 and get ready for new challenges in 2016. Here go the first three....

I think this challenge gets my award for the best "button" of the year. Isn't that gorgeous?

Many thanks to Vassily for hosting the 2015 Chunkster Challenge. I set myself a goal of two chunksters for the challenge, but only managed one: The Quick, by Lauren Owen. I think my days of reading really long books might be over. Too many books, not enough years left.

The Books in Translation Reading Challenge was hosted by Jen @ The Introverted Reader. (Thank you, Jen!) I signed up at the Beginner Level (1-3 books), and read four books that would qualify. (Only one review so far -- possibly more to come in the next couple of days.)

1. Vertigo. Pierre Boileau and Thomas Narcejac (trans. from the French by Geoffrey Sainsbury)
2. The Truth and Other Lies. Sascha Arango (trans. from the German by Imogen Taylor)
3. South of the Border, West of the Sun. Haruki Murakami (trans. from the Japanese by Philip Gabriel)
4. Backstabbing in Beaujolais. Jean-Pierre Alaux, Noël Balen (trans. from the French by Anne Trager  

I'm not sure what happened to this year's Outdo Yourself Reading Challenge after The Book Vixen gave up on blogging. Every time I've tried to reach her old blog, my computer hangs up and then shuts everything down. So, anyway -- I did outdo myself: in 2015 I read at least five more books than I read in 2014, depending on how I count it (I read several children's picture books that I'm lumping together). If you're curious, you can see the list of this year's reads over on my challenge blog (HERE).

October Wrap-up and a Look Ahead

So . . . November already. This year just keeps chugging right along, does it not? Time for a little stock-taking.

October was a surprisingly good reading month for me. "Surprising" because it was a very busy month in general, with lots of STUFF going on -- and I really didn't think I'd get that much reading done; but I still managed to finish six books:

• The Postman Always Rings Twice. James M. Cain
• Champagne For One (Nero Wolfe #31). Rex Stout
• The Maltese Falcon. Dashiell Hammett
• The Night Sister. Jennifer McMahon
• Slade House. David Mitchell
• The Anger Meridian. Kaylie Jones

As usual, I'm way behind on reviews, but hope to get all of these done sometime this week. I enjoyed all of the books, which is probably why I was able to get through all of them so quickly.

This week, I'm finishing up one book:

Between a Rock and a Hard Place,
by Marty Wingate

and getting started on another:

The Last September,
by Nina de Gramont

Also doing a little planning for the rest of 2015, figuring out what I still need to read to complete a few of the reading challenges I've been working on this year.

For the Vintage Mystery Bingo Reading Challenge, I need to read one more book -- something with a method of murder in the title. Still looking for that one.

For the Chunkster Reading Challenge, I need one more book over 450 pages to complete the challenge. I suppose I could be wrong, but it's not looking good for this one.

For the 2015 Category Challenge at Library Thing, I'd still like to read at least one book for each of these categories:

• General American Fiction, pre-2000
• International Literature (other than Britain or Europe)
• Science Fiction
• Nonfiction

I have a lot of possibilities, just need to get started on them.

And so far, I haven't read anything at all for the Foodies Reading Challenge -- so I'd like to gobble up at least one food-related read before year's end.

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? is now hosted by Kathryn at Book Date. If you want to let the world know what you're going to be reading this week, head on over to her blog and leave your link. It's also a great way to discover new books and new blogs.

R.eaders I.mbibing P.eril (RIP) X

Art work for RIP/X provided by Abigail Larson

Well, I can't honestly say autumn is in the air. Even though tomorrow is the first day of September, today is sunny, hot and humid. Definitely still summertime here in central Texas. Not even a hint of cool, crisp fall-ish weather.

But ... September 1st is almost here. And that means (ta-da!) it's time for another edition of R(eaders) I(mbibing) P(eril) (RIP for short), the reading challenge/event begun and hosted annually by Carl V. Anderson over at Stainless Steel Droppings. This year Carl is taking a little break from hosting (a well-deserved break, after nine years of being a wonderful host) and passing the duties over to Andi and Heather, of the Estella Society.

RIP is one of my favorite reading events every year. Typically I begin stalking Carl's blog around the middle of August, making regular daily visits to see if the announcement page has gone up yet. It's my idea of the perfect reading challenge event -- hardly any rules, and it encourages me to read books from all my favorite genres (Mystery, Suspense, Thriller, Dark Fantasy, Gothic, Horror, and Supernatural). You can read all about the challenge and sign up by visiting the Estella Society's announcement page.

This year, I'm once again going for Peril the First -- read four books of any length that fit any of the RIP categories -- and Peril on the Screen as well.  I'm also toying with the idea of joining in on Peril of the Group Read: The chosen book will be Lauren Owen's The Quick, a book I've been wanting to read. But I'll have to wait and see about that one -- it's a long book, and I'm a very slow reader.

Haven't really made any firm decisions about what I'll read or watch yet, but I have a few possibilities in mind for the reading peril:

• Blue Labyrinth. Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child
• The Book of Lost Things. John Connolly 
• The Colony. F.G. Cottam
• The Girl on the Train. Paula Hawkins
• The Haunted Hotel. Wilkie Collins 
• The Midnight Side. Natasha Mostert
• The Night Sister. Jennifer McMahon
• A Shadow on the Wall. Jonathan Aycliffe
• Shadow Ritual. Eric Giacometti and Jacques Ravenne
• A Song of Shadows. John Connolly
• Tales of Men and Ghosts. Edith Wharton
• The Vanishment. Jonathan Aycliffe

I seem to  have a little shadow-thing going on here, don't I? Well, I guess that's appropriate.

I could definitely go on with the list, but I'll stop now. Over the two months, I'll be tracking my progress and keeping all my lists over on my challenge blog (HERE).  So, here we go again....

Once Upon a Time IX

All artwork for the challenge by Kimberly Kincaid

Ya think winter is FINALLY over? Got my fingers crossed.  Even though this was supposedly the WARMEST winter on record for the whole planet, around here it was cold, wet and nasty.  And much too looooong!

But spring must be here because Carl, over at Stainless Steel Droppings, has announced the beginning of this year's Once Upon a Time reading challenge/event (number 9!) -- something I've been looking forward to for weeks now. The "challenge" runs from March 21 to June 21, and you can read all about it and sign up over on the challenge announcement page. There are very few rules.

I love this challenge, even though I never manage to read or review as many books as I'd like.  It has a lovely symbolism that lifts my spirits, and it gives me a reason to indulge in some of my favorite literary genres.

Once again, I'll be signing up at the Journey level which means reading just one book. But as usual, I'll be hoping to read more than that.

I might also try to do the Screen Quest this year, although I think I sort of wiped out on that last year. So that's a little tentative right now.

During the course of the challenge, I'll be tracking my progress and making my lists over on my challenge blog (HERE). Haven't yet decided exactly what book/books I'll read, but here are some I'm considering:

• Beastkeeper, by Cat Hellisen. A re-imagining of the beauty-and-the-beast tale for young readers, that's been getting a lot of positive reviews lately.
• Elidor, and/or The Moon of Gomrath, by Alan Garner.  I read The Weirdstone of Brisingamen, by Garner, many years ago. It's the first book in a trilogy (Tales of Alderley) and I've been meaning to read the second book (Gomrath) ever since.
• Five Children and It, by E. Nesbit. Can't believe I've never read any of Nesbit's books.
• The Mabinogion, by Gwyn Jones. There are many editions and compilations of the traditional Welsh tales and legends. I think this is the version I've got on the Kindle. So much literature is based on these stories.
• Magic or Not? and The Well-Wishers, by Edward Eager. Two books in his classic Tales of Magic series from the 1950s. I've read lots of Eager's books and loved every one of them.
• The Mists of Avalon, by Marion Zimmer Bradley. Every year I say this will be the year I finally read this one, and every year it's just too much for me. Maybe this year?
• Silver on the Tree, by Susan Cooper. The fifth and final book in her Dark is Rising series. Read the first four novels for past Once Upon a Time challenges. 
• The Wind in the Willows, by Kenneth Grahame. Another of the many classic children's books I never read as a child -- or adult.

2015 Historical Fiction Reading Challenges

I've discovered a couple more irresistible reading challenges for 2015.  OK -- I admit it -- just about ALL reading challenges are pretty irresistible to me. So here are another couple I'm signing up for.

Historical Fiction Reading Challenge 2015

Hosted by: Amy Bruno @ Passages to the Past

Dates: January 1 - December 31, 2015

My goal: "Victorian Reader" (5 books)

See the announcement/sign-up post for guidelines

2015 "Reading Through Time" Historical Fiction Reading Challenge 

Hosted by: Amy Yingling @ A Bookish Girl

Dates: January 6 - December 31, 2015

My Goal: "Anthony Doerr" (5 books)

See the announcement/sign-up post for guidelines

At the moment, I'm feeling very brave and the year is new and I'm not bogged down just yet, so I'm thinking I'll try to read different books for each of these. But, in reality, I'll probably be doing some crossing over. Just have to see what develops. As the year goes along, I'll be tracking my progress over on my challenge blog (HERE).

Vintage Mystery Bingo 2015

Vintage Mystery Bingo 2015

Hosted by: Bev @ My Reader's Block

Dates: January 1 - December 31, 2015

I hesitated a little about this challenge, since I did such a pathetic job with the 2014 version. But I definitely want to give it another go. I'm signing up for the Gold Edition again, books published before 1960. Here's the card with all the possible categories:

I'll list the books as I read them:

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Mystery Readers / Reporter's Challenge 2015

2015 Reporter's Challenge

Hosted by: Ellie Oberth (see her Dead Herring blog)
Dates: January 1 - December 31, 2015
Sign ups: GoodReads group - The Challenge Factory

Levels:

• Cub reporter: 5 books (1 from each category)
• Columnist: 10 books (2 from each category)
• News Anchor: 15 books (3 from each category)
• Editor: 20 books (4 from each category)
• Newspaper Mogul: 25 books

I'm signing up at the Cub Reporter level, so I'll be reading one book from each of the five categories (Who? What? Where? When? How? Why?):

LIST OF CATEGORIES 

WHO

1. Protagonist is a librarian 
2. Protagonist is a government agent 
3. Protagonist is a ghost 
4. Protagonist works with animals (vet, dog walker, zoo, etc) 
5. Protagonist is a crook 

WHAT

1. Holiday in the title 
2. Animal in the title 
3. Weather in the title 
4. Poison in the title 
5. Title starts with the same letter as your last name 

WHERE

1. Set in England 
2. NOT set on land (cruise ship, boat, airplane, spaceship, etc) 
3. Set on an Island 
4. Set on foreign soil (not America or England) 
5. Historical novel 

WHEN

1. One book set during any holiday 
2. One that centers around a convention or conference 
3. One Dark & Stormy night – bad weather plays big role in story 
4. One where the protagonist has to beat the clock (time is crucial to solving mystery) One set during a vacation 

HOW (Method of Murder)

1. Poison is murder weapon 
2. Knife/stabbing is murder weapon 
3. Gun/shooting is murder weapon 
4. Blunt object is murder weapon 
5. Rope/strangulation is murder weapon 

2015 Chunkster Challenge

2015 Chunkster Challenge

Hosted by: Vasilly

Dates: throughout 2015

OK, I probably really shouldn't be signing up for yet another reading challenge, but Vasilly has made this one so easy -- no levels, read as many or as few weighty tomes as you please. To read all about the challenge and sign up, see the announcement page.

I'm just going to commit to two chunksters for now, but I've got many, many more on my TBR list.  During the year, I'll be tracking my progress on my challenge blog, and here too (if I can remember). 

Books read:
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Newbery Reading Challenge 2015

Newbery Reading Challenge 2015 

Hosted by: Julie @ Smiling Shelves 

Dates: January 1- December 31, 2015

This was one of my favorite challenges in 2014, and I really thought I'd already signed up for the 2015 edition. But apparently not, so I'm doing it now! Once again, I'm going for the "L'Engle" level, and I'll be tracking my progress over on my challenge blog.

2015 Nonfiction Reading Challenge

2015 Nonfiction Reading Challenge

Hosted by: The Introverted Reader

Dates: January 1 - December 31, 2015

See the announcement post to read all the guidelines and sign up.  There are several levels of participation to choose from:

• Dilettante -- Read 1-5 nonfiction books 
• Explorer -- Read 6-10 
• Seeker -- Read 11-15 
• Master -- Read 16-20

I'll be going for the Dilettante level again this year. I didn't do very well with the 2014 challenge, but I'm hoping for better behavior in 2015. During the year, I'll be tracking my progress over on my challenge blog.

Books in Translation Reading Challenge 2015

Books in Translation Reading Challenge 2015

Dates: January 1 - December 31, 2015

Hosted by: Jen @ The Introverted Reader

Somehow I managed to miss out on the 2014 edition of this challenge (if there was one?), but I've participated in the past and always enjoy it.

See the announcement page for all the info and levels.  I'm signing up at the "Beginner" level, and hope to read at least three books:
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I'll also be tracking my progress over on my challenge blog (HERE). 

Netgalley and Edelweiss Reading Challenge 2015

NetGalley & Edelweiss Reading Challenge 2015

Dates: January 1 - December 31, 2015

Hosted by: Falling For YA

I signed up for the 2014 edition of this challenge, and I think it really helped me get quite a few of my backlog of ARCs read. Unfortunately, I didn't manage to get many of the books reviewed on my blog, but I'm going to work very hard on improving that next year. Hoping to read at least ten books, so I'll be going for the Bronze Level.

See the challenge announcement page to sign up.  During the year, I'll be tracking my progress (and keeping my list of books to read) over on my challenge blog (HERE). 

I Love Picture Books Reading Challenge 2015

I Love Picture Books 2015

Dates: January 1 - December 31, 2015
Hosted by: Gina @ Book Dragon's Lair

I DO love picture books. Guess I never really grew up, but some of my favorite reads are still the lovely illustrated storybooks I first discovered as a child. But there are hundreds more I'd like to take a look at, so I'm signing up for the I Love Picture Books 2015 Reading Challenge.

As Gina says, this reading challenge is for "all of you who still love picture books but find they don't qualify for your other challenges. . . You know you're going to read them, they might as well count!"

Planning to read at least 12 books, but hoping to do better than that.

See the challenge announcement page for all the info and to sign up. During the year, I'll be tracking my progress over on my challenge blog. I'll also put my "hope-to-read" list there, if you're looking for ideas.

New Authors Challenge 2015

New Authors Challenge 2015

Dates: January 1 - December 31, 2015
Hosted by: Literary Escapism

This is always one of my favorite reading challenges, and I'm so happy to see it back for another year. The idea is to read books by authors who are new to you, not necessarily authors who are being published for the first time (although I suppose that's OK, too).

See the challenge announcement page for more info and to sign up. I'll be aiming to find at least 15 new authors, but of course hope to do a little better than that. I read more than 25 new authors in 2014, but didn't do so well with reviewing. Hope to improve in that area for 2015. During the year, I'll be tracking my progress over on my challenge blog -- and here too, if I can remember.

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