Readers Dozen – May 2022

This May, celebrate Mother’s Day and complete our latest Readers Dozen challenge by reading a book beloved by your Mom or Grandma. Maybe you can remember a book they kept dog-eared on the nightstand or one they quoted all the time, or even one they kept trying to convince you to borrow. Well, this month you should take their advice and read one of their favorites. Then, enter the book in our Readers Dozen form by June 7.

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In case you need something to spark your memory, here are:

• Lists of children’s classics read during the 20th Century, from the website What We Do All Day.
• New York Times Best Sellers from 1931 to the present, from the Hawes Publications website.

April 2022 Readers Dozen

We’re heading into April – are you ready for a new Readers Dozen challenge?

This month, we’re asking you to read a book by an author who is the same age as you. Whatever genre or subject, you’re sure to find some common ground – and maybe even memories! We know it’s not always easy to search by birth date, but we have a couple of tricks for you to try.

First, you can check with Wikipedia. For the 20th and 21st centuries, Wikipedia has a page dedicated to each year, listing not only publications, but births and deaths as well. Here’s a link to “1984 in Literature” – notice the other years listed on the right – to get you started.

Next, you can try a search in our catalog. Instead of searching with a name in the author field, try the year of your birth. This won’t always result in an exact match (it could pull up death dates or publication dates), but it does give you a ton of authors who aren’t listed on Wikipedia. When you get the results page, be sure to narrow your search for just “books” on the left.

Once you’ve read your book, don’t forget to enter it in our April form by May 7th to be eligible for the 2022 Final Prize! We wish you good reading!

March Readers Dozen

This month, we’re reading legal thrillers. While there are plenty of thrillers out there – political, military, psychological – we’re asking you to concentrate on one that deals with the ins and outs of the justice system (think: John Grisham or Scott Turow). Don’t forget to enter your choice when you’re done – the form is here: https://forms.gle/US9zXmc1ZUj5jwR8A. Complete this by April 7 and you’ll be eligible for our 2022 grand prize!

Need some ideas? Here are a few lists:

The Best Legal Thrillers (That Aren’t by John Grisham) from Bookriot

Legal Thrillers from Goodreads

Recommended Reads: Legal Thrillers from NoveList Plus

Legal Thrillers Booklist and Legal Thrillers Series from TFPL

Readers Dozen – February

It’s February and to honor the month of love, we’re celebrating something that humans have loved for centuries (and even longer!) – jewels. Whether they’re used to express undying emotion or just worn to show off their sparkle, gemstones of all kinds have graced the fingers, necks, and other body parts of people all over the world since the beginning of time. This month, we’re asking you to find another place to admire them – on the cover of a book.

Need some ideas? Here are a few lists to help you “unearth” a good read. Also, check out our display next time you’re in the Library! Don’t forget to read your book by Mar 7 and then fill out the entry form.

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Jewellery – Diamonds, Stones, and Gold on Covers (Goodreads)

Best Jewel Thief Novels (Goodreads)

Jewels and Gemstones (Goodreads)

All That Sparkles – Romances (Goodreads)

Jewelry (Goodreads)

January 2022 – Readers Dozen

Happy New Year, Readers! Kick 2022 off with a bang – or at least with the goal of tackling your resolution to read more. We have 12 great monthly challenges for you – complete one each month and you’re eligible for a grand prize.

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This month, we’re asking you to read a book with a 2-word title, including the word “the”. Then, fill out this form by Feb 7. That’s it – that’s all you have to do!

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Enjoy your book – and a sense of accomplishment!

Readers Dozen 2022!

If you’re in a reading rut, spice up your life with the TFPL READERS DOZEN 2022 challenge! Each month, we offer a different reading task – you choose a book that fits, read it by the end of the month. and fill out a simple form. Do this for the entire year and you’ll win one of our fabulous Final Prizes – and come away with a sense of accomplishment! Contact the Adult Services/Reference Dept for questions (tfpl@tfpl.org or 208-733-2964 ext 200).

Here’s what we’re challenging you to take on in 2022:

Staff Favorites 2021

Staff Favorites for 2021

The Staff here at TFPL is thankful for another great year for books! We hope that even with all the uncertainty around us, everyone was able to escape reality just a little with a good read. In case you’re looking for something to get you through the rest of the month (or winter!), here are books we love and recommend!

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Favorites Published in 2021

100 Boyfriends by Brontez Purnell (CJ)

Bloodline by Will Wight (Jason)

Boys Run the Riot by Keito Gaku (Jude)

Broken (in the Best Possible Way) by Jenny Lawson (Sabrina)

Cloud Cuckoo Land by Anthony Doerr (Jessica)

Friends Forever by Shannon Hale (Jude)

Fugitive Telemetry by Martha Wells (Jason)

The Guncle by Steven Rowley (CJ)

Hardly Haunted by Jessie Sima (Sabrina)

Harlem Shuffle by Colson Whitehead (Jennifer)

Hooked by Sutton Foster (Erica)

If the Shoe Fits by Julie Murphy (Erica)

Indentured Students by Elizabeth Tandy Shermer (Melody)

Lore of the Wild: Folklore and Wisdom from Nature by Claire Cock-Starkey (Kasi)

Reaper by Will Wight (Jason)

A Tapestry of Light by Kimberly Duffy (Grace)

Triple Chocolate Cheesecake Murder by Joanne Fluke (Kathleen)

What the Devil Knows by C.S. Harris (Jennifer)

Yellow Wife by Sadeqa Johnson (Justine)

You’d Be Home Now by Kathleen Glasgow (Abby)

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Favorites Published Before This Year

All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Marie Remarque (Maverick)

And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie (Abby)

The Art of Drag by Jake Hall (CJ)

Black Sun by Rebecca Roanhorse (Jennifer)

The Book Thief by Markus Zusak (Abby)

Cell by Stephen King (Jude)

Chainsaw Man by Tatsuki Fujimoto (Jude)

Cry Wolf by Patricia Briggs (Sabrina)

Followed by Frost by Charlie Holmberg (Jessica)

The Giver by Lois Lowry (Grace)

The Giver of Stars by Jojo Moyes (Erica)

Heroes of Olympus series by Rick Riordan (Maverick)

House of Light by Mary Oliver (Kasi)

If I Were You by Lynn Austin (Justine)

The Last Kingdom by Bernard Cornwell (Melody)

The Legend of Rock, Paper, Scissors by Drew Daywalt (Katie)

The Magician’s Guild by Trudy Canavan (Jason)

Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia (Jennifer)

The Misinformation Age by Caitlin O’Connor (Melody)

The Moonshiner’s Daughter by Donna Everhart (Justine)

Not Even Bones by Rebecca Schaeffer (Sabrina)

The Promise of Blood by Brian McClellan (Maverick)

The Selection by Kiera Cass (Grace)

The Sirens of Titan by Kurt Vonnegut (CJ)

This Alien Shore by C.S. Friedman (Jason)

With the Fire on High by Elizabeth Acevedo (Erica)

Readers Dozen – December

Since the nights are so long, we figure December is a great month to take on a creepy tale. Our Readers Dozen challenge this month is to read a ghost story.

Though the Victorians didn’t invent ghost stories, who can think of Christmas and specters without bringing to mind A Christmas Carol, a perfect book to end the year with – short and with enough of the holiday spirit to convince a humbug to change his attitude (plus, did we mention a ghost or two?).

Need some more ideas? Check out the following lists – and then don’t forget to enter your book by Jan 7.

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Best Ghost Novels of All Time (Douglas County Libraries)

Ghost Stories (Goodreads)

18 Horror Novels About Ghosts (Buzzfeed)

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And – keep your eyes posted for a treat in mid-December when we’ll announce the Readers Dozen challenges for 2022!

Readers Dozen – November 2021

It’s a good time to get in the way-forward machine and take a trip into the unknown: this month’s Readers Dozen challenge is to read a book set in the future. Whether it’s dystopian, science-fiction, or pure speculation, futuristic books offer a look at a possible world to come. Need some ideas? Check out these sites:

Future Fiction Books (Goodreads)

21 Futuristic Books (Epic Reads)

20 Good Nonfiction Books About the Future (Mal Warwick on Books)

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Looking ahead, don’t forget to get your book read and entered before Dec 7 to enter the prize drawing. Happy Reading!

Readers Dozen – October

Get ready for an exciting October! If ghosts and ghouls aren’t thrilling enough, take on our Readers Dozen Challenge, which is to read a book about a natural disaster. Of course, you can always find a book about tornados or tsunamis, earthquakes or eruptions (just throw one of those terms into the TFPL catalog for tons of results), but don’t forget about some of the truly bizarre, like:

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The Year Without Summer – William Klingaman

Death in the Air – Kate Winkler Dawson

The Children’s Blizzard – David Laskin

or

Dark Tide: The Great Boston Molasses Flood of 1919 – Stephen Puleo

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If you need more ideas, look at Natural Disaster Books (Goodreads) or Books About a Natural Disaster (Book Riot: Read Harder). And don’t forget you have until Nov 7 to get your entry in (here’s the form)!