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Tuesday, February 27, 2007

Classics Challenge Update

I have finally decided on prizes. It would be wonderful if all could receive a prize, but alas, I am not the richest person in the world. Hopefully, the biggest prize will be the joy of reading 5 classics. I know that's one of my rewards. I will draw for prizes on Sunday, March 4. That gives a few days to get your reviews written.

First prize
A copy of The Illustrated Jane Eyre.
Illustrated by Dame Darcy. I have to say that I don't love most of Dame Darcy's artwork, but I do like the art in this book.









Second prize
A miniature sheet of British Jane Eyre postage stamps. These stamps were issued on the 150th death anniversary of Charlotte Bronte who died in March 1855.

I know these two prizes are both based on only one author and only one classic. My excuse - Jane Eyre is one of my favorite books and I was able to find 2 interesting prizes connected to it. I hope those who win them will appreciate them.

Third Prize
A key ring I bought when visiting the Manse (home of Ralph Waldo Emerson) in Concord, Massachusetts during the summer of 2001. It's a little silver book with Emerson's name engraved on the front. This quote by Emerson is engraved on the back: "...A friend may well be reckoned the masterpiece of nature."

Fourth and Fifth Prizes
One of my favorite 'Last Line' bookmarks. I first found these bookmarks at Books A Million while visiting my daughter in Texas. I have tried to find them online, but with no success. Also, some book darts. 'Last Line' and book darts are two of my favorite book tools. If you are wanting to buy book darts they are carried by lots of stores, but I suggest buying them from the source which is located in Hood River, Oregon. These people send out the product very quickly and usually include a few extras. Two names will be drawn for prizes 4 and 5.

These people have already finished the classics challenge. I'm not one of them! I still have 1 more to go. I'm determined to finish, though. It's most unfortunate that Feb is a short month because I could use the extra days. Speaking of days - there are only 7 days left to finish the challenge.

(((((APPLAUSE for those who have finished)))))
3M - 3M's Challenges
Alyson - Fifty Books
Bellezza - Dolce Bellezza
Bookfool - Bookfoolery and Babble
Bookish Lore - Literary Craving
Booklogged - That's me!
Brandie - A Journey of 1000 Stitches
Caligula03 - Puss Reboots
DJ - Minute Marginalia
Eva - A Striped Armchair
Framed - Framed and Booked
Heidijane - Adventures in Bookland
Henk - Masterpieces
Janet - Joyful Jottings
Joy - Thoughts of Joy
Literary Feline - Musings of a Bookish Kitty
Lotus - Lotus Reads
Mary - Mary's Library
Melanie - The Indextrious Reader
Nessie - The Biblio Files
Orange Blossom - The Library Ladder
Paula - On a Rainy Night
Raidergirl - Book of Books
Rjam - Links and Things
Sarala - Blogaway
Sfp - Pages Turned
Susan - My Reading Adventures
SuzieQoregon - Blogging My Books
Tony - Storyteller's World
Wendy - Caribousmom
(((((APPLAUSE)))))

Those who have finished 4 classics will also be included in the drawing for the bookmark and bookdarts. So if you have read 4 classics, please leave a comment. People who have read 5 will be included in all drawings.

As you finish your five books please add your name in the comments. Or if you are finished and I haven't already added you to the list of those who have completed, please make a comment.

It's been lots of fun sponsoring this challenge. I was overwhelmed by how many joined. I'm considering hosting this challenge again next year, but I don't think it will be in Jan & Feb. I need to read suspenseful and cozy mysteries during the winter. It was extremely hard for me to face up to a classic this time of year. Did anyone else have that same problem? I do know that I wouldn't have read 5 classics without the challenge egging me on.

49 comments:

Lotus Reads said...

I feel sad the challenge is almost at an end..you've done such a terrific job hosting it,booklogged! I owe you a big debt of gratitude because your challenge has helped me fall in love with the classics all over again! I love that you might be considering another one next year, do color me interested! :)

Those are just AMAZING prizes! You have put together an irresistable selection! Good luck to everyone and thank you, booklogged!

Joy said...

Thank you for sponsoring this Classics Challenge. If it weren't for you, I would NOT have read them. Even though I didn't enjoy any of my reads (all chosen for specific reasons), I am so glad that I took the time to read them for this challenge. :) Now I can relate and respond from my own personal experience when any of my five are commented upon (which is often). That was one of my goal.

Again...thank you, Booklogged!

Anonymous said...

What an amazing group of prizes! I didn't do this for the prizes...I did it because my classics reading had really slumped. Thank you for hosting this challenge (and glad you will do it again!). Without the motivation of a challenge, I would not have read the great classics I did...and it has renewed my desire to read more :)

Brandie said...

I didn't even know there were "prizes" I thought it truely was just reading the books!
You have done such a great job with this challenge. I truely would not have read the 5 books I did without this challenge ... it's one of those things, I always want to read classics but so many other books call my name that they get pushed out of the way - so I really needed this!
thank you =) Thank you =) And thank you! =)

Eva said...

like Brandie, I didn't know that there were actual prizes!

Thanks for hosting the challenge-it was a lot of fun to pick out my books, and then read the reviews by other bloggers who had read the same thing! It was pretty awesome of you to put together the spreadsheet, etc.! Thanks again.

raidergirl3 said...

Seriously? Prizes? I've so enjoyed reading these books and it has been fun rediscovering many stories that I somehow missed in my earlier life. I think I would be an English major if I went back to school so I could be exposed to these books at a scholastic level. I have my own mental list of classics I still want to read - Madame Bovary and Jane Eyre, especially, so I'll definately be back.
Thank you so much. I read books, set up a book blog, and met some interesting people. All round great time!

Anonymous said...

Wow, what a lot of great prizes! Jane Eyre is one of my favorite books as well, so I'm especially partial to the first two - what spiffy stamps! Too bad I didn't have time to participate in what sounds like a wonderful challenge - kudos to you for hosting it. :)

SuziQoregon said...

You've already got me on the list but I had to stop by to say

I'm finished !

and I had a great time! Thanks for sponsoring this. I'm glad to see you're considering sponsoring it again next year. My only change will be to pick some shorter classics. Because I had both Les Miserables and The Three Musketeers on my list, I had no breaks from classics in order to get 5 done within the two month time frame.

Oh - and please take my name out of the prize drawing. I didn't do this for a prize. It was FUN!

jenclair said...

Aren't those stamps great?

Lover of Books said...

Well I have 3 more books to read and not sure I will in time. It has been crazy around here. Thanks for the wonderful challenge bummer I won't finish but I will try. :)

Kailana said...

I crashed and burned at this challenge, but congrats to everyone that completed it (and will complete it).

Anonymous said...

I've finished four of the books, and am hoping to finish the fifth soon. But again, did it for the enjoyment and rediscovery rather than prizes and fame and fortune...

lazy cow said...

It was such a great idea, and you organised it all so well. I'm just sorry that I only finished 2 books, and didn't even have time to review them. Jan/Feb are just too hot down here to concentrate on reading anything too heavy, and with the start of the school year, it's all just too chaotic. I'm planning on reading the other three at some stage this year.

karen! said...

I love the idea of this challenge.
I really wanted to participate, but I knew that my Jan-Feb schedule wouldn't allow me to.

Great prizes, btw. I love that Illustrated Jane Eyre. I made my husband buy it for me for my birthday. I'm hoping that I'll be able to sit down and really experience it in the relatively near future.

bookish lore said...

Dearest booklogged, thank you so very much for this wonderful oportunity you've given us.
Classics are always there, beckoning me over, but somehow I never quite manage to read them.
Prize or no prize (and they are amazing!), I'm really happy for having joined in.
I'll be waiting eagerly for the next!

Anonymous said...

Thank you *so much* for sponsoring this challenge. I combined books from my TBR pile with it, and I wouldn't have read them without it.

I didn't find it a difficult time to read classics, exactly--just a difficult time to read! It was a busy time at work.

It would have been easier for me, I think, if this challenge had gone on for three months instead of two.

That said, I didn't make it any easier on myself by picking one book that belonged in the Chunkster Challenge (Don Quixote).

I still have a few days to go, so we'll see if I finish.

Bellezza said...

May I add the five classics I have finished this winter? It was a GREAT Challenge, since Classic literature is my most favorite genre. Thanks for hosting this fabulous idea!

1. A Tale of Two Cities by Dickens
2. Crime and Punishment by Dosteyevsky
3. Doctor Zhivago by Pasternak
4. Anna Karenina by Tolstoy
5. Main Street by Sinclair Lewis

(I'll be sure to formally announce these on my blog.)

Melissa said...

I've finished four!! And I'm 1/3 of the way through the last, so there's still hope. Though I think I'd like the book darts and bookmarks best... :) (I could be crass and say I did it for the prizes, but I didn't. I did it because it sounded like fun.)

Bellezza said...

Amendment: Cross off Anna Karenina, that was a mistake. I meant to put A Bell For Adano, Pulitzer Prize winning novel from a few decades ago, recommended by the California Teacher Guy. I wrote a post in my blog, but will do a final, encapsulated summary, for the Classic Challenge wrap up.

By the way, the prizes you have chosen are absolutely mouth watering. Did you happen to catch the PBS version of Jane Eyre a few weeks ago? I was hooked! Now I need to read it myself.

Anonymous said...

My review of The Mystery of Lilac Inn, one of my favorite Nancy Drew mysteries, has been posted.

I've read the last book in my challenge. I'll post on it tomorrow.

md

Anonymous said...

I'm finished! I posted this morning about The Little Princess, the last of my classic children's books.

Thanks for the opportunity to re-read these gems. I've enjoyed this, my first challenge.

Mary

SuziQoregon said...

I'm going to add my support to Amy's comment about maybe making it a 3 month challenge next time around. 5 book over 3 months instead of 2 months would allow for other non-classics to be included in my reading mix.

theduckthief said...

I really thought I was just going to plow through my books but work got in the way. Just finished book two. You can read the review here.

http://greatewhitenorth.blogspot.com/2007/02/three-musketeers.html

1morechapter said...

Thanks so much for hosting the challenge--the prizes look really great.

Finished my 4th--The Woman in White. I was really nervous that I wouldn't be able to finish, but my next book is the fairly (fairlie--ha ha from the Woman in White) short Heart of Darkness. I think I'll make it! I think I can....I think I can.....


http://3mreviews.blogspot.com/2007/02/woman-in-white-by-wilkie-collins.html

Amy said...

I have finished my challenge! Thanks so much for hosting this. Without the challenge I would not have finally read these classics.

I agree with stretching it out to 3 months. I had to read classics exclusively in order to finish. Not a bad thing at all, but I do like to break it up a little. Thanks again!

I would post a link here to my completed challenge list..but the URL is long and I don't know how to make a link...sorry!

Melissa said...

We'll just have to leave it at four; I bailed on the fifth. Ah, well, C'est la vie.

Heather said...

This has been a lovely challenge for me! I'll be posting on the last day of February (hopefully I'll have finished my fifth classic).

Bookfool said...

I've read five, now, and I am so grateful to you for hosting this challenge! In years past, I've gone through classics phases, during which I tried to make up for not having read many classics as a student. But, I'd gotten away from them and the Classics Challenge was just a wonderful boost! I'm going to continue to read more of those classics I've put off. Thanks so much!!

SFP said...

I've finished!

Classics completed since Jan. 1:

1. In the Shadow of Young Girls in Flower. Marcel Proust (started in '06)

2. The Brothers Karamazov. Fyodor Dostoevsky (started in '06)

3. Six Characters in Search of an Author. Luigi Pirandello

4. "Ward No. 6." Anton Chekhov

5. The Return of the Native. Thomas Hardy

6. Waiting for Godot. Samuel Beckett

7. David Copperfield. Charles Dickens

SFP said...

I've finished!

Classics completed since Jan. 1:

1. In the Shadow of Young Girls in Flower. Marcel Proust (started in '06)

2. The Brothers Karamazov. Fyodor Dostoevsky (started in '06)

3. Six Characters in Search of an Author. Luigi Pirandello

4. "Ward No. 6." Anton Chekhov

5. The Return of the Native. Thomas Hardy

6. Waiting for Godot. Samuel Beckett

7. David Copperfield. Charles Dickens

verbivore said...

This was definitely a wonderful challenge! I finished four out of my five and am halfway through Lolita as of this writing. Reviews are up of the other four and I'm hoping to get Lolita up by the end of the week. Thanks so much, it's been wonderful to get back into some Classics.

Anonymous said...

Phew! Cutting it a bit fine, but I've managed to finish all five as of late last night. It was tought, but I got through it. Review will follow on my blog tomorrow.

Thanks a lot booklogged!

tanabata said...

I've just posted a wrap-up on my blog. I only managed to finish 4 but who knows when I would've even gotten to them. So a big thank you booklogged for hosting this challenge, and doing a fantastic job, btw. And I'm looking forward to next year's challenge! :P

Shauna said...

Well, I finished 4 books and have started the 5th but won't finish it by the end of the month.

Susan said...

I'm finished! I actually completed the challenge on Feb. 18th but havent' had time to write my last review or drop by your site for a visit until now. I know I wouldn't have picked up any classics this year if it wasn't for this challenge and now I'm hooked. I'm planning on finishing all of Jane Austen's novels and have just begun Jane Eyre. Thanks!

Heather said...

I finished the challenge!! Victory! I'll be posting my last review tonight when I get home from work and an update on the books I was going to read in comparison to the books I actually read.

nessie said...

Hi! I am back on from the dead~ all is explained on my blog... I have finished all five books and just posted on Dorian Gray. The last two posts are on its way. I have a good good reason why I havent posted. I had actually finished everything firstish week of Feb (thank god!)

Thanks a mill for hosting this. I love classics but I read these ones which I have owned for sometime now but never got around too. By 'forcing' to make a public announcement - for myself anyways- it has kept me on course for what I want to read. Thanks a million.

Henk van Kampen said...

I just finished the fifth classic, so I completed the challenge. I did not have time to post anything on my blog yet, but will do so in the next few days.
Thanks for hosting it, I hope to join again next year.

1morechapter said...

Thank you for hosting this challenge! I finished my 5th classic, Heart of Darkness. All five of my reviews can be found at this link:

http://3mchallenges.blogspot.com/2007/02/winter-classics-challenge.html

Unknown said...

I finished my last two books but I was waiting to say I had done the reviews. Well, the last two books are Life Studies/For the Union Dead by Robert Lowell and Metamorphosis and Other Stories by Franz Kafka (exact reference to follow). Book reviews to appear in next two days, but I just ran out of time. Thanks for sponsoring. It was great to get these 5 books read and worth the effort. The other three have already been posted and reviewed.

Alyson said...

I've finished my final book for the challenge and posted the review on my blog. Thanks for the motivatione to read 5 classics. I've really enjoyed this challenge!

Kucki68 said...

Well, first of March, it is official: I did not read a single book from the classics challenge. Sigh! Might have overreached and intimidated myself. New goal: read those 5 books in the remaining 10 months of 2007.

Thanks for the challenge, at least I had the plasterstones to the way to hell: good intentions.

rajm said...

I've finished all 5 - some of them were rather short though - amazing prizes - thanks for the encouragement to read those books!

Petunia said...

I've posted my review to my fourth book, A Room with a View. Wow! I still get to be part of the drawing? That's cool.

I did find reading the books very rewarding. I discovered a new author that I love(George Eliot) and found a Forster book that leaves me feeling happy. Thank you Booklogged.

http://educatingpetunia.blogspot.com/2007/03/review-room-with-view.html

nessie said...

Ok Yesterday I posted my 2 bonus reads (both Faulkner books) and am posting this evening on Tresure Island. Tomorrow's post on Ovid's Love Poem should bring me more then up to date in time for the drawing.

thanks soooo much!

nessie said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
nessie said...

ok Treasure Island is up!

Unknown said...

Book review #4 is posted. All that is left is one review; I'll have it up by tomorrow morning. Here is the link.
http://sharala.blogspot.com/2007/03/classics-challenge-book-4.html

maggie moran said...

I just wanted to say thanks for providing the challenge. I got one book read, and although it is a poor showing, I still got one book read! That's one book I would not have read w/out the challenge. Big Hug and Thanks Again! :D