L.S. Engler

Tea & Books Reading Challenge.

L.S. Engler

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Grace over at the fabulous Books Without Any Pictures has lead me to a new challenge, and you all know how much I adore challenges. Found over at The Book Garden, the Tea & Books Reading Challenge easily combines two of my favorite things and I knew I would have to be a part of it. It was even inspired by a quote from one of my favorite authors, too, so it’s a bit difficult to not think that this challenge was absolutely made for me.

The challenge suggests that you make sure that cup of tea is a big one, but the challenge is specifically to read a certain amount of books that are 700 pages or more. Only novels. No anthologies or short stories or large print nonsense. Just good old fashioned books big enough to kill a man if you hit him at the right angle with one. Naturally, I’ll still be doing my 100 Books next year, but this will be a little mini-challenge within the challenge for me, making at least 8 of those books to be 700+ ones.

Yup, I’m getting out the big guns. The challenge you pick is based on a type of tea, and I’m going all out and going with the big old Sencha Connoisseur of 8 books or more! When you’re reading 100 books all together, making at least 8 of them to be 700 pages or more seems pretty do-able.


Mmmmmmm, Gyokuro Imperial from Teavana.com!

There are many different levels of the challenge, each with a tea, from the Sencha I’m tackling to Chamomile Lovers with two books under their belt. If you’re up for a fun challenge that combines both books and tea (what more could you want?), hop on over to the Book Garden and check it out! I think it’s going to be a lot of fun, so I think the New Year needs to get here so I can get started!

Since we do have a few weeks before the start of the new year, though, I’m curious if anyone has any suggestions. What books 700 pages or more would you suggest for this challenge? I know I have a bunch floating around….I can make it easily even by sticking to just Game of Thrones or Wheel of Time books, but I’d love to spice it up a bit and I’d love to hear what others might suggest. So throw ’em at me! Which 700+ page books should I read?

4 responses to “Tea & Books Reading Challenge.”

  1. Birgit Avatar
    Birgit

    Books big enough to kill a man if you hit him at the right angle … oh my God, I love that line!!! And of course a warm welcome to the second Sencha Connoisseur in the challenge! Most seem to level in on the Chamomile Lover, but that’s ok, we’re going to show ’em how it’s done 😉 !
    As to recommendations, let’s see! Someone mentioned War & Peace (Tolstoy) and that one can probably kill a man even if you get the angle all wrong, ha. Personally I already know my first two books – The Passage (Cronin) and Under the Dome (King) – but I’m not sure yet about the rest (still got plenty of tomes in my TBR piles though).

    Reply
    1. L.S. Engler Avatar
      L.S. Engler

      War & Peace was definitely the first thing that came to mind when I saw this challenge, especially since I haven’t even read it yet, so I think that might be one of the first books I pick up next year! Under the Dome could be interesting, but I don’t know much about The Passage.

      My first is going to be No Matter How Much You Promise to Cook or Pay the Rent You Blew It Cauze Bill Bailey Ain’t Never Coming Home Again by Edgardo Vega Yunque, which has been sitting on my TBR pile for ages and this challenge seemed perfect to finally get to it. I can’t wait until January 1st to get going on it!

      Reply
  2. Fiona Avatar
    Fiona

    And I am the other Sencha Connoisseur, we are the mad ones. Eight really doesn’t sound so bad… apart from some of these bricks probably count for at least 2 or 3 normal sized books so in reality it’s the equivalent to 16 or 24 books. Okay, so now I’m a little concerned as to what I’ve signed up for!

    I would personally recommend We, the Drowned by Carsten Jensen BUT for the fact it’s 10 pages under 700 at 690 but maybe you can find an edition that’s a full 700 pages. I made a post on my blog about my favourite bricks (as I call them) if you want further suggestions.

    I have got so many bricks in my bookshelf I can’t wait to read them. I’ve been putting them off for a couple of years and they’ve been gathering.. This year my focus is going to be on classics, my TBR and page numbers.

    Reply
    1. L.S. Engler Avatar
      L.S. Engler

      It’s kind of funny, I never realized how big a 700+ page book is until I scoured my library trying to find all the ones I hadn’t read yet and could only find a few and most of the ones I thought were big enough were only about 500-600. Damn. Oh, well, guess I have to go buy more books! DARN. I mean, there’s plenty I’ve already read, too (hey, there, James Clavell, how you doin’? Robert Jordan, you good?), but those aren’t fun. I want them the be new!

      I love the term “bricks” for them. Highly appropriate, and I’ll keep an eye out for We, the Drowned! I love the title.

      Go team Sencha!

      Reply

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