One Last Contentment Reading Challenge Post!

The year 2011 is coming to an end. So before we begin the countdown to 2012, let's wrap up the Contentment Reading Challenge 2011! The winner of her choice of a Kindle e-book copy of one of the books in the "Legacy of the King's Pirates" series by MaryLu Tyndall is...

Katie!

Congratulations, Katie! (Since you said you wanted a copy of The Restitution, I'll get that e-mailed out to you ASAP!)

And yes, that means that this series is now available through Kindle!!

Thank you again to everyone who participated in the challenge! And don't forget to sign up for the Contentment Reading Challenge 2012 over at Katie's blog if you want to join in the re-reading fun!

Contentment Reading Challenge: December (Giveaway and News!)

The Contentment Reading Challenge 2011 is coming to an end - but don't worry! Our dear friend Katie from Legacy of a Writer is hosting the Contentment Reading Challenge 2012. So if you didn't re-read as much as you would like this year, or if you would just enjoy challenging yourself to continue to re-read this next year, I do hope you'll go visit Katie! Here's a look at the blog button for 2012:

Didn't Katie do a lovely job?

I re-read a grand total of 3 fiction books in 2011. I didn't even make it to the first level of my own challenge! *Blush* But I did read a lot of wonderful new books and kept busy with reading for school and such.

I think, if anything, this challenge has reminded me of how much I have to be grateful for and how very much I have yet to learn about contentment. It's a humbling reality, and I know I still have a long way to go. I have been blessed with an abundant reading supply, and yet I'm constantly thinking about what's next. I need to enjoy what I'm reading right now and be thankful for the stories that have blessed me in the past - and maybe re-visit more of those dear friends!

Well, those 3 fiction books I re-read were the 3 books in MaryLu Tyndall's debut series - "Legacy of the King's Pirates." They enchanted me the first time I read them, and it was great to be swept away by them again! You can read my review of the third book, The Restitution, on the Radiant Lit site.

This series is going to be back in print and released in e-book format soon, as well! So to thank those of you who joined me in participating in the Contentment Reading Challenge this past year, I'm holding a giveaway of winner's choice of 1 of these 3 e-books - just for you! And if you're not already convinced that this is a series you'll want to read, check out this new trailer for the first book, The Redemption:

Such a fun trailer, and I love the music!

So if you participated in the Contentment Reading Challenge 2011, fill out the form below and enter for a chance to win a Kindle copy of your choice of The Redemption, The Reliance, or The Restitution!

*A winner has been chosen, so this form has been deleted.*

Thank you for joining me on this journey! Hope you enjoyed the experience!

Note: The winner might have to wait for a few weeks or so to receive the prize until the books officially release through Kindle. If for some reason the books don't release through Kindle as soon as I hope, I will e-mail the winner a $10 Amazon.com gift card instead. But...let's just hope those Kindle books release soon, because it's a wonderful series! =)

Contentment Reading Challenge: November (Book Swap!)

We've got about 2 months left to finish up this challenge for 2011, and only one more monthly update after this! I'll have to cook up something special for the occasion. ;) I haven't re-read any books since the last update, so let's just move right along to today's activity... (But feel free to chime in with any of your own totals from the past month!)

Today, back by popular demand (again!), let's welcome another round of the Contentment Reading Challenge Book Swap! To save me a bit of time, as well as to make sure we're all on the same page, I'm just going to repeat the book swap guidelines from the last two swaps (in March and in June).

Here are some guidelines:

• You don't have to be a participant in the Contentment Reading Challenge in order to get involved in the book swap.

• If you are participating in the challenge and you end up getting a book through the book swap, feel free to count it to your total if you would like. It can be a re-read or a first-time read. You don't have to count it, though, if you only want to count re-reads. I'm just giving you permission if you'd like to. ;)

• There are no guarantees that everyone will get to participate. It's all up to you whether or not you end up connecting with another reader and finding some commonalities in your lists. (I'll explain that in just a moment.)

• If you choose to participate in the book swap, you will have to pay your own shipping to send your book(s) to another person. (This probably means that most of the "swappers" will be U.S. residents, but if a couple of people from another, same country find each other here, then that would be great!)
  

So, now I'll tell you how this is actually going to work! You'll need to put together two lists:

1. A list of books you are willing to send (swap) to another person.
2. A list of books you are interested in receiving through the swap, whether books you don't have that you want to re-read, or books you've never read before.
   

In the comments section post your two lists along with your e-mail address. If you see someone whose list matches up to yours in some way, someone you want to trade/swap with (etc.), then contact that person by e-mail and set up a swap! Or wait and see if anyone contacts you.

To get us started (and to give you an example), I'm just going to post my two lists here:

Books Available for Swapping:

• A Whisper of Peace by Kim Vogel Sawyer
• I Still Believe by Jeremy Camp (non-fiction) *Taken*
  
• To Have and to Hold by Tracie Peterson and Judith Miller
• Fairer Than Morning by Rosslyn Elliott
• A Lancaster County Christmas by Suzanne Woods Fisher
• Hello, Hollywood! by Janice Thompson
• Captive Trail by Susan Page Davis
• Love on the Line by Deeanne Gist (ARC)
• Out of Control by Mary Connealy
  

Books I'm Interested In:

• Doctor in Petticoats, Montana Rose, or Deep Trouble by Mary Connealy
• How Sweet It Is by Alice J. Wisler *Taken*
  
• The Jewel of His Heart by Maggie Brendan
• Moon Over Tokyo or The Cubicle Next Door by Siri Mitchell
• Nothing But Trouble or Double Trouble by Susan May Warren
  

If you're interested in swapping with me, e-mail me at: stokes.a@suddenlink.net

I'm willing to be flexible, so feel free to just let me know if one of my books sounds good to you, and we can go from there. =) And go ahead and post your lists and see if there's anyone you want to swap with!

Note: If you don't have a U.S. mailing address, be sure to let others know that in your comment. There might be someone from your country willing to swap with you! (As for me personally, I can only swap with those in the U.S. due to shipping costs.)

Contentment Reading Challenge: October

Can you believe we're already halfway through October? Fall sure is a busy season, and the days just keep flying by! I have nothing new to report for this challenge, unfortunately - I've been reading plenty of books, but they've either been new ones for review or textbooks and such for school. Hopefully I'll be able to squeeze in another re-read or two before the year ends!

For this month's update, I have a few questions for you:

• How are you doing on this challenge? Have you been able to re-read any books since the last update?

• Do you have any ideas for a possible end-of-year celebration for this challenge, whether we completed the level we aimed for or not? What would you like to see here on the blog to commemorate our re-reading - giveaways? author interviews? games? prizes? (Not sure yet what I'll be able to put together, but I'd love to hear your thoughts!)

• Is this something you would like to participate in for 2012? If for some reason I'm not able to commit to hosting the challenge, is there someone who would be interested in taking over for next year?

Thank you for any input!

P.S. Is there anybody out there with a talent for making buttons that might be willing to help me? I'm gearing up for the "Love Finds You" blog party I'll be hosting in December, and I'd love to have a button for the occasion! (Renee Ann did such a fabulous job with the button last year!) No worries if you're too busy - believe me, I know how that goes! ;) Just thought I'd ask!

Contentment Reading Challenge: September

Well, no re-reading for me since my last update! Right now I'm mostly occupied with reading books for review. Unfortunately I have this nasty inability to say "no" to book review options... ;) I guess sometimes I actually do decline/ignore requests, but there are just so many great new releases I'm having a hard time passing many books by! Anybody else in the same boat??

As many of you know, I contribute on Mondays to The Borrowed Book blog. This last Monday I posted a children's book review if you're interested in taking a look! And in the next few weeks I'll hopefully be posting a non-fiction book review and a YA book review over there, so come on by if you have the time! I'd love to chat books with you there, as well as here. =)

So how are you all doing for the Contentment Reading Challenge? We still have a few months left! (Doesn't it seem like 2011 just started, though??)

Contentment Reading Challenge: August

I am pleased to say that I actually re-read a couple of books this past month! ;) My total for the challenge so far is...3. But it's better than nothing, and I still have four more months to go!

Back in February I re-read The Redemption, the first book in the "Legacy of the King's Pirates" series by MaryLu Tyndall. In the past few weeks I re-read the other two books in the series - The Reliance and The Restitution. This whole series is just wonderful, and so powerful! I highly recommend it!

Now, MaryLu is this month's featured author over at Radiant Lit, and my reviews of The Reliance and The Restitution should be posting sometime soon! If you have a moment be sure to head on over there. And while you're there you can check out:

• Renee's review of The Falcon and the Sparrow
• Renee's bio, Katie's bio, and my bio on the reviewers page

So, how are you all doing on this challenge? I'd love to hear what you've been re-reading!

Contentment Reading Challenge: July

For this month's challenge update, I want to start by giving ya'll a glimpse at some summer events that are coming up here at "Seasons of Humility." I did some brainstorming while I was on vacation, and I'm excited to put these plans to action!

July 18-22, Mystery Week: Because it's the PBS Masterpiece Mystery season, this will be a week dedicated to reviews of several of the shows, as well as some mystery book reviews. Maybe we can get some good discussions going!

July 25-29, Christmas in July: 'Tis the season to be jolly! Grab a cup of hot chocolate and join us for a fun Christmas celebration--a little cool reminiscing in the midst of the hot days of summer. ;) Be on the lookout for some fun Christmas themed posts (including the pickle ornament hunt!), as well as a fun giveaway!

August 15-19, County Fair Week: Greasy food, flashy rides, exciting games, and fun competitions...it's time for the county fair! Get ready for a judged competition, shared stories, and maybe some Amish book reviews in honor of this community event.

August 21-27, End of Summer Bash: This is the place to be when the end of August rolls around! We're throwing a big party here at "Seasons of Humility" with the help of some dear author friends, including MaryLu Tyndall, Sarah Sundin, and Laura Frantz--to name a few! Great giveaways and summer-themed interviews should make this a bash to remember!

~ ~ ~

Let me know what you think of these plans! I've done these themed weeks before, but this is a new year with new fun scheduled!

As far as re-reading goes, well...I don't really have anything to report. I read two books from last month's book swap (Love Starts with Elle and Chateau of Echoes, both from Casey), but I haven't re-read any more books. (Let me just say that I LOVED Chateau of Echoes! Thanks for the chance to read those books, Casey!) However, during the "Christmas in July" week, I plan on re-reading a couple of books, so hopefully the August update will be a little more positive. ;)

I'd love to know how you all are doing!

Contentment Reading Challenge: June (Book Swap!)

Back by popular demand, let's welcome another round of the Contentment Reading Challenge Book Swap! ;) To save me a bit of time, as well as to make sure we're all on the same page, I'm just going to repeat the book swap guidelines from the last swap (in March).

Here are some guidelines:

• You don't have to be a participant in the Contentment Reading Challenge in order to get involved in the book swap.

• If you are participating in the challenge and you end up getting a book through the book swap, feel free to count it to your total if you would like. It can be a re-read or a first-time read. You don't have to count it, though, if you only want to count re-reads. I'm just giving you permission if you'd like to. ;)

• There are no guarantees that everyone will get to participate. It's all up to you whether or not you end up connecting with another reader and finding some commonalities in your lists. (I'll explain that in just a moment.)

• If you choose to participate in the book swap, you will have to pay your own shipping to send your book(s) to another person. (This probably means that most of the "swappers" will be U.S. residents, but if a couple of people from another, same country find each other here, then that would be great!)
  

So, now I'll tell you how this is actually going to work! You'll need to put together two lists:

1. A list of books you are willing to send (swap) to another person.
2. A list of books you are interested in receiving through the swap, whether books you don't have that you want to re-read, or books you've never read before.
   

In the comments section post your two lists along with your e-mail address. If you see someone whose list matches up to yours in some way, someone you want to trade/swap with (etc.), then contact that person by e-mail and set up a swap! Or wait and see if anyone contacts you.

To get us started (and to give you an example), I'm just going to post my two lists here:

Books I'm Willing to Part With:

• Love is Grand by Annalisa Daughety
• Angel Song by Sheila Walsh and Kathryn Cushman
• Just Jane by Nancy Moser
• If Tomorrow Never Comes by Marlo Schalesky
• Bathsheba by Jill Eileen Smith
• Where Hearts are Free by Golden Keyes Parsons
• Love Finds You in Poetry, Texas by Janice Hanna
• Quite a few Karen Kingsbury and Dee Henderson books
  

And much more! Now that I'm home for the summer, I have access to my bookshelves--and let me tell you, they are loaded! If you have a book I'm interested in (listed below), then I just might have one to interest you, too. ;)

Books I'm Interested In:

• Waterfall or Cascade by Lisa T. Bergren
  
• Bridge of Peace by Cindy Woodsmall
• Anna Finch and the Hired Gun by Kathleen Y'Barbo
• Doctor in Petticoats, Montana Rose, or Deep Trouble by Mary Connealy
• How Sweet It Is by Alice J. Wisler
• A Distant Melody by Sarah Sundin
  
• The Jewel of His Heart by Maggie Brendan
• Bound By Guilt by C.J. Darlington
  

If you're interested in swapping with me, e-mail me at: stokes.a@suddenlink.net

I can add more to these lists, and I'm willing to be a bit flexible. ;) So go ahead and post your lists and see if there's anyone you want to swap with!

Note: If you don't have a U.S. mailing address, be sure to let others know that in your comment. There might be someone from your country willing to swap with you!

Contentment Reading Challenge: May

I could start this post off with a lengthy description of how I'm failing this challenge so far, but I think that would be far from the contented attitude this challenge is supposed to foster. So let's just say I have every reason to be thankful when it comes to reading material, because my supply seems to be endless! ;) I haven't re-read any books since last month's update, and to be honest I'm not sure if I will by the time next month rolls around, as we're already halfway through this one. But sometime this summer I do hope to revisit some of my old friends!

In the meantime, I have been really blessed with a lot of wonderful new books, many of them ones I get to review for authors/publishers. Currently I'm reading To Win Her Heart by Karen Witemeyer, which I hope to be reviewing for Radiant Lit sometime. I'm also reading Pompeii: City on Fire by T.L. Higley and Shadowed in Silk by Christine Lindsay (an ebook), both of which I plan on reviewing soon here on this blog. After that...I have a ton of books to choose from! ;)

How are you doing on this challenge so far? Do you have any updates since April?

Also, I think it would be fun if we could do another event for this challenge in July. Maybe another bookswap? Or perhaps we could combine last year's "Christmas in July" theme and do a mini re-reading challenge of some of our favorite Christmas books? Let me know what you would like to do!

Contentment Reading Challenge: April

It's April, which means only one more month until summer vacation! And summer vacation = more reading time! ;)

Again, I haven't made too much progress on the challenge so far. Since last month's update I've read one book from the book swap I hosted last month (Leather and Lace by Diann Mills). I'll post my review of Leather and Lace soon!

But, thanks to the book swap and blogging friend, Kait, I now have the 3-in-1 "Yukon Quest" series book by Tracie Peterson! I read this series when I was in elementary school, and I loved it, so I'm eager to re-read it!

Here's the blurb for the first book, Treasures of the North, which I've started re-reading:

"Driven by desperation, Grace Hawkins must forsake the affluent comfort of her upbringing to save herself from an arranged marriage. Disillusioned by her father's insistence, she forges a daring plan to escape the sinister hand of her intended.

Peter Colton sees the Alaskan gold rush as an opportunity to establish his family's fledgling shipping business. An unexpected partnership enables him to pursue those dreams and opens the door to an acquaintance with Grace, who has purchased passage North.

Drawn together by need and circumstance, Grace and Peter form a faltering friendship. But when her deserted fiancé continues to manipulate her loved ones, can she find peace in the wake of his wrath?"

And after my week-long blogoversary celebration last week, I'm eager to re-read some of the books by the authors I hosted again (like Ruby's Slippers by Leanna Ellis). Summer--I am ready when you are! ;)

So what have you been re-reading recently?

(Note: I recently added a feature in the sidebar that will allow you to follow my blog by e-mail. There's a "sign-up" below the normal Follower feature, if you're interested. Hopefully it works!)

Contentment Reading Challenge: March (Book Swap!)

I have been hearing such wonderful things from participants in the Contentment Reading Challenge about how much they've re-read! You all are doing such a great job!

If you're participating in the challenge and haven't re-read as much as you had hoped to so far, though, you're not alone. I have been reading so many new books for review and such that I have only re-read one book for this challenge (which I mentioned in February's update).

I think by choosing to go all the way ("Diving" level--20 books), I've overwhelmed myself. Yes, it is "my" challenge, in a sense, so I feel bad for not challenging myself more, but I think I'm going to jump back a couple of levels. I think I need to do some "Wading" before I attempt any "Diving!" ;) I'm sorry for not being a better example, though, and I do hope I can still learn from this challenge.

Anyway, today is a very special update post: I'm hosting a book swap! Here are some guidelines:

• You don't have to be a participant in the Contentment Reading Challenge in order to get involved in the book swap.
• If you are participating in the challenge and you end up getting a book through the book swap, feel free to count it to your total if you would like. It can be a re-read or a first-time read. You don't have to count it, though, if you only want to count re-reads. I'm just giving you permission if you'd like to. ;)
• There are no guarantees that everyone will get to participate. It's all up to you whether or not you end up connecting with another reader and finding some commonalities in your lists. (I'll explain that in just a moment.)
• If you choose to participate in the book swap, you will have to pay your own shipping to send your book to another person. (This probably means that most of the "swappers" will be U.S. residents, but if a couple of people from another, same country find each other here, then that would be great!)
  

So, now I'll tell you how this is actually going to work! You'll need to put together two lists:

1. A list of books you are willing to send (swap) to another person.
   
2. A list of books you are interested in receiving through the swap, whether books you don't have that you want to re-read, or books you've never read before.

(I recommend just swapping one book for one book with another person, but honestly, that is up to the two "swappers" to decide.)

In the comments section post your two lists along with your e-mail address. If you see someone whose list matches up to yours in some way, someone you want to trade/swap with (etc.), then contact that person by e-mail and set up a swap! Or wait and see if anyone contacts you.

I've never hosted a book swap before, so I hope this works! ;) I'll go first by posting my two lists in the comments section. Also, feel free to post your update for the Contentment Reading Challenge here, as well. Just remember to specify if you're wanting to participate in the swap!

Contentment Reading Challenge: February

Welcome to the second month of the Contentment Reading Challenge 2011! If my counting is correct, I think we have 16 people now who have officially joined the challenge! But anyone is still welcome to join at any time, so if you're interested or want to learn more, click HERE.

As far as this challenge goes, I re-read one book in January, so I should probably pick up the pace somewhat soon! ;) I've still been keeping busy with new review books, as well as books for school. (I have to tell you, though, that I just finished Jane Eyre for my 19th-20th Century English Literature class for the first time ever!)

The first book I re-read for this challenge was The Redemption by MaryLu Tyndall. It was wonderful to re-visit this book! It was the first one I read by Tyndall, and I was so blessed to have all three of the books in the series at one time (which I received as gifts from my parents for Christmas one year, I believe), so I could just go from one to the other. Trust me--once you read The Redemption, you'll be very eager to pick up The Reliance, and then The Restitution!

The Redemption is a beautiful book full of great descriptions of the sea (you can find some examples HERE), adventure, romance, and reminders of God's love. I highly recommend it!

As for what I'm going to re-read next, I'm still thinking about that. I think it would be good to just go ahead and re-read The Reliance, but I'm also eager to re-read this amazing series by Jane Kirkpatrick soon about the Oregon Trail. I'd prefer to re-read that series sooner rather than later as we will soon be discussing the Oregon Trail in my Literature of the American West class. (Which is one of my favorite classes ever, I think!) ;) I just love the West!

So, now you know where I stand so far. How about you? If you've joined this challenge, have you made some progress yet? Are you enjoying re-reading some of your old favorites?

Also, before I conclude this month's update, I just wanted to ask which you would be most interested in to go along with next month's update: a special author interview with one of the authors whose books I'm re-reading, or a book discussion about a book many of us are interested in re-reading? I'd love to hear your thoughts!

Contentment Reading Challenge: January

Welcome to the first month of the Contentment Reading Challenge 2011! So far, we have 12 people "officially" signed up (counting myself), but it's not too late to join! If you'd like to learn more about the challenge, feel free to visit the challenge's page HERE.

Today I'd love to discuss some ideas with you for this next year, and see what books you're planning on re-reading first!

In the coming year I'd like to make this challenge much more than a checklist. I think it would be fun to have different activities throughout the year for those participating in the challenge. Here are some possibilities:

• Book discussions of some books many of us are re-reading
  
• Book swaps with fellow challenge-followers
  
• Author interviews with some of our favorites authors (whose books we are re-reading)
• Post updates for simply chatting about what we've been re-reading

Also, I'm sure we'll have to have a big party at the end of the year!

Let me know which of these activities sound fun to you! And let me know if you have any suggestions for what we can do to encourage one another.

As for my progress so far, I confess I've been keeping busy with new books and have not yet started re-reading any books. I am planning on going all the way and "Diving" (re-reading 20 books) this year, so I've got a lot of reading to do! ;) I'm hoping to start after I get back to school with "The Legacy of the King's Pirates" series (The Redemption, The Reliance, and The Restitution) by M.L. Tyndall. I absolutely love this author's seafaring books, and since I'm now part of her "Motley Crew" (spreading the word about her books this year), I think re-reading some of her books would be a good idea. I enjoyed them the first time around, and I can't wait to revisit these inspirational, romantic adventures!

For those of you who have joined the challenge, what books are you going to re-read first?

Contentment Reading Challenge 2011

I know it's not quite 2011 yet, but in preparation for the coming year I have decided to put together my own reading challenge. I'm really excited about it, and I would love for you to join me!

I don't know if there are any rules for creating reading challenges, and I don't know if my reading challenge is really that unique, but the "Contentment Reading Challenge" I'm hosting is one that is based on something I need to work on in my life--being content with what I have. It's a struggle for sure, but I truly have so much to be thankful for! In light of eternity, all of the "stuff" I have has no lasting value in and of itself. If the stories I read turn me to God and remind me of His truths, then they have value in that sense.

But I digress. ;) The point is that I have so many wonderful books, but I'm constantly thinking about what new books I can get my hands on. So the "Contentment Reading Challenge" is one where I (and anyone who cares to join me) will be re-reading some of the books that I already own. I'm looking forward to re-visiting some of my favorite books!

If you'd like to join the challenge or just read more about it, click on the "Contentment Reading Challenge" page link in my sidebar. I've enabled comments for that page so anyone can join, ask questions, or just leave feedback about the challenge. Hope you get a chance to check it out!

Also, throughout the year I'm hoping to have posts dedicated to this reading challenge. It would be great if we could make this a fun, group effort! This challenge officially starts on January 1, 2011. Can't wait to hear what you think!