Late Bloomers Quiz

February 2, 2010February 2, 201015 Comments

Answers to last week’s Common Thread Quiz here.

Someday I hope to publish a book. As I see 40 on the horizon I hope to take heart in those authors who published their first novel when they were 40 or older. If you know the late bloomer leave the number and name. No googling – that’s cheating and no fun! Good luck!

1. He retired from the Coast guard before he wrote his first novel, loosely based on his family history, but was dogged by claims of plagiarism. The millions who watched the mini series on tv didn’t care. He was in his 50’s when this first novel was published. Alex Haley (Wrighty)

2. This Chile born novelist penned one of my favorite books, magical realism at its best, in 1982. She was 40. Isabel Allende (Margie)

3. This author was 52 when he penned one of my favorites. The life of rabbits in the warren are forever of interest to me. Richard Adams (Susan)

4. This classic about a man shipwrecked on an island was written when the author was 59. Daniel Defoe (Susan)

5. This author wrote a series of books about her life with her pioneer family when she was in her 60’s, as her family was facing financial difficulty due to the Great Depression. I remember watching Pa and Ma every week when I was growing up. Laura Ingalls Wilder (Wrighty)

6. This author was 42 when his story about Dolores was published. Oprah chose it for her book club five years later. Wally Lamb (Bermudaonion)

7. This author was 51 when he turned to writing after being fired as a vice-president of an oil syndicate. His first private detective mystery was immortalized by Humphrey Bogart on the big screen. Raymond Chandler (Nise)

8. This author was 47 when she wrote this coming of age story about Francie and her family struggling against poverty in New York. Betty Smith (Susan)

9. This author was 74 when she published the National Book Award winner that year for first work of fiction. Harriet Doerr (Margie)

10. This English novelist first published children’s books in her 50’s and her first adult book when she was 71. She went on to write nine more novels. Mary Wesley (Margie)

Is there a late bloomer I’m missing? Leave a comment and further inspire us 🙂

Martin Luther King Quotes Quiz

January 19, 2010January 19, 201010 Comments

I love quotes and it’s been awhile since I featured any, so to celebrate the life of Martin Luther King Jr. this will be a fill-in the famous MLK quotes quiz. Leave me the # and the word or words missing. If you are the first to get it right you will earn an extra entry in TWO book giveaways. No googling – that’s cheating and no fun. But guesses are always encouraged. Get to guessing and good luck.

1. Let no man pull you low enough to hate him. (Veens)

2. We must learn to live together as brothers or perish together as fools. (Durao)

3. Our scientific power has outrun our spiritual power. We have guided missles and misguided men. (Durao)

4. Faith is taking the first step, even when you don’t see the whole staircase. (Durao)

5. Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter. (Sarah E)

6. Returning violence for violence multiplies violence, adding deeper darkness to a night already devoid of stars. (Durao)

7. Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. (Sarah E)

8. The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy. (Dr Strangelove)

9. I submit to you that if a man hasn’t discovered something he will die for, he isn’t fit to live. (Kathy)

10. Now, I say to you today my friends, even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream. I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: – ‘We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal.’ (Sarah E)

Answers to last week’s quiz here.

Writers Lost in 2009 Quiz

January 12, 2010January 18, 201016 Comments

Here’s how to play…Identify the author and leave a comment with the # and the name and I’ll cross it off the list. No Googling, that’s cheating and no fun! These authors wrote their final chapters in 2009. If you are the first one to get it right it will earn you an extra entry for Beautiful Creatures by Tracy Chevalier (details here).

1. This Pulitzer Prize winner is best known for his Rabbit series. John Updike, 1/27/09 (Susan)

2. This epic fantasy novelist took us to Belgariad and Malloreon. David Eddings, 6/2/09 (Strangelove)

3. This children and young adult author won the Newbery Medal in the late 1980’s. My favorite was about a girl named Trissy. Norma Fox Mazer, 10/17/09 (Em)

4. This science fiction writer’s young life was best represented in his autobiographical novel (and later a movie starring a young Christian Bale) set in Shanghai where he was born in the International settlement and interred during World War II. JG Ballard, 4/19/09 (Strangelove)

5. This Florida writer was best known for her Suspicion series. Barbara Parker, 3/7/09 (Kay)

6. This gay African-American man authored 10 consecutive New York Times bestsellers. E Lynn Harris, 7/23/09 (CeeCee)

7. A long time syndicated political columnist for the New York Times and a contributor to On Language in the New York Times magazine. William Safire, 7/23/09 (Hannah)

8. The 1977 feminist novel The Women’s Room is perhaps her best known work. Marilyn French, 5/2/09 (Strangelove)

9. Although best know as a politician from a very political family his memoir was published after his death. Ted Kennedy, 8/25/09 (Debbie)

10. He became a regular contributor to Vanity Fair after his daughter was murdered. He hosted his own tv series on Court tv (truTV) about justice and celebrities. Dominick Dunne, 8/26/09 (Debbie)

11. This Canadian author wrote a series of archaeological mystery novels, one of which I read last year because it began with an X. Lyn Hamilton, 9/10/09 (Jenners)

12. He wrote the screenplays for some of the best movies of the 1980’s. Does Sixteen Candles or Planes, Trains, and Automobiles ring a bell? John Hughes, 8/6/09 (Stranglove)

13. This English model and photographer also wrote more than a dozen glitzy romance novels. Pat Booth, (Sarah E)

14. This conservative columnist, journalist, and author died of brain cancer. Robert Novak, 8-18-09 (jb)

15. Best known as an actor and dancer, he wrote this memoir with his wife before losing his battle with cancer. Patrick Swayze, 9/14/09 (Debbie)

First Ladies Quiz & Possible Giveaway

January 5, 2010January 6, 201018 Comments

Guessing Closed. I’ll draw a winner for the book tomorrow.

I read this book on the First Ladies and now I’m going to see if you can match up these women with one fun piece of trivia from the book. These are hard, so if you all as a group guess all 38 (only goes through Clinton) I will randomly draw one of the 38 and I’ll send that person this book for free (the guesser not the First Lady!). Leave a comment with the # and the name(s) of the First Lady. Guesses are encouraged 🙂

1. The year of her husband’s death she began a 6 year term as a delegate to the United Nations. Eleanor Roosevelt (Susan)

2. She exchanged 1400 love letters with her husband. She died of Bright’s disease in the White House. Ellen Wilson (Heather)

3. She served as president of the Girl Scouts before her death. Lou Hoover (Em)

4. She started the library at the White House. Abigail Fillmore (Nise’)

5. She got her nickname because she was born on the eve of St. Patrick’s Day. Pat Nixon (Linda B)

6. She supported herself as a model before her marriage. Betty Ford (Susan)

7. She was the only First Lady to be born abroad. Louisa Adams (Kate)

8. Spent much of her White House time in mourning over the loss of her 3 sons. Jane Pierce (Heather)

9. First president-general of The Daughters of the American Revolution. Died of TB in the White House. Caroline Harrison (Joy)

10. By the time she was 30 she was an invalid who would be confined to a chair for the rest of her life. Ida McKinley (Heather)

11. Married in the first White House wedding of a President. Frances Cleveland (Em)

12. Met her husband when she was sent to interview him for the Washington Times Herald. Jackie Kennedy (Susan)

13. 1st First Lady to possess a college degree. Lucy Hayes (Nise‘)

14. Taught at the Clarke School for the Deaf until she married. Grace Coolidge (Heather)

15. 1st First Lady to die during her husband’s term in office. Letitia Tyler (Nise’)

16. She was 30 years her husband’s junior. Julie Tyler (Heather)

17. Suffered from a heart problem and Meniere’s disease. Mamie Eisenhower (Heather)

18. Performed in 11 films. Nancy Reagan (Susan)

19. Opened her home to the wounded and the refugees of the Revolutionary War. Abigail Adams (Heather)

20. Transformed a $30,000 radio & tv investment into a $5 million enterprise. Lady Bird Johnson (Linda B)

21. Graduate of Yale Law School. Hillary Clinton (Susan)

22. Prone to headaches & mood swings. In her later years her son had her institutionalized. Mary Lincoln (Linda B)

23. Taught her husband to read & write after they were married. Eliza Johnson (Nise’)

24. Helped arrange widowed President’s social engagements (not her husband). Dolley Madison (Kate)

25. 1st First Lady who was on her second marriage. Martha Washington (Nise’)

26. served as the President’s personal emissary to Latin American countries. Rosalyn Carter (Heather)

27. At her request the original walls of the White House were saved for reconstruction. Elizabeth Truman (Heather)

28. Hosted lavish dinners of 20-30 courses at the White House. Julia Grant (Kate)

29. Contracted malaria and was away recovering when her husband was shot. Lucretia Garfield (Nise’)

30. Met & married her husband at 17. Elizabeth Monroe (Kate)

31. Over her family’s objections she eloped with the future President. Anna Harrison (Heather)

32. When the President suffered 2 strokes she became the official acting president. Edith Wilson (Linda B)

33. At her instigation the first social secretary was hired, allowing her more time with her family. Edith Roosevelt (Heather)

34. Abandoned by her first husband she sought a divorce, a bold decision for the time. Florence Harding (Nise‘)

35. Her religious beliefs put an end to dancing, drinking, and card-playing in the White House. Sarah Polk (Heather)

36. Was in her 60’s when she moved into the White House and her poor health kept her mainly confined to her rooms. Margaret Taylor (Heather)

37. Suffered a stroke 2 months after inauguration, but recovered. Helen Taft (Nise‘)

38. Her son’s dyslexia encouraged her to make literacy a national issue. Barbara Bush (Heather)

Some ladies may fit with more than one, but I think they will only all be chosen once in one way. Good luck! Answers to my last quiz here.

What Christmas Book is That Quiz?

November 30, 2009December 7, 200914 Comments

Answers to last week’s Thanksgiving Movies Quiz here.

Can you identify these books by their censored titles? Leave a comment with the number, title and author or authors.

1. MURDER IN THE AIR BY ELLEN HART

2. CHRISTMAS JOURNAL BY MARY ENGELBREIT

3. The Night Before Christmas – Wrighty’s Reads

4. THE CHRISTMAS BOX BY RICHARD PAUL EVANS

5. Searching for Santa by Janet Dailey – Nise’

6. The Christmas Thief by Mary Higgins Clark & Carol Higgins Calrk – Nise’

7. THE SNOW BRIDE BY DEBBIE MACOMBER

8. Deck the Halls by MaryHiggins Clark & Carol Higgins Clark – Wrighty’s Reads

9. WHEN CHRISTMAS COMES BY DEBBIE MACOMBER

10. Skipping Christmas by John Grisham – Wrighty’s Reads

Thanksgiving Movies Quiz

November 23, 2009November 30, 200915 Comments

Answers to last week’s Renee Zellweger quiz here.

Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday and one of my favorite movies is about one man’s struggle to get home for Thanksgiving (it’s #1). So, I thought I’d feature some other movies that featured the day for giving thanks. See if you can identify these movies by their quotes or stills. Leave the # and your answer. No googling. That’s cheating and no fun!

1. Planes, Trains, & Automobiles – Wrighty’s Reads

Neal: What’s the flight situation?
Del: Simple. There’s no way on earth we’re going to get out of here tonight. We’d have more luck playing pickup sticks with our butt-cheeks than we will getting a flight out of here before daybreak.
Neal: I guess we’ll find out soon enough.
Del: Yeah, but by the time the airline cancels this flight, which they will sooner or later, you’d have more of a chance to find a three-legged ballerina than you would a hotel room.
Neal: Are you saying I could be *stuck* in Wichita?
Del: I’m saying you *are* stuck in Wichita.

2. HOME FOR THE HOLIDAYS

Adele: I’m giving thanks that we don’t have to go through this for another year. Except we do, because those bastards went and put Christmas right in the middle, just to punish us. (picture Anne Bancroft saying this)

3. Pieces of April – Calila

April: [discussing old-fashioned turkey shaped salt and pepper shakers that Bobby bought] We had these when I was a kid.
[pause] The one time Joy let me hold them she said, “Be careful, they’re worth more than you are.”
Bobby: Well, that’s terrible.
April: Next year they were gone.
Bobby: So, what happened?
April: A hammer I was holding fell on them.
(picture Mrs. Tom Cruise)

4. A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving – Wrighty’s Reads

5. HOUSE OF YES

6. TADPOLE

(Miss Sigourney Weaver and Bebe Neuwirth are showing us their backs)

7. WHAT’S COOKING?

8. HANNAH & HER SISTERS

Mickey: I had a great evening; it was like the Nuremberg Trials.

(picture Woody Allen)

9. Dutch – ‘Nise

Dutch: Listen you little son of a bitch, you could’ve killed someone with a stunt like that. That poor bastard was on his way home to see his family and because you wanted to play some kind of a spoiled brat prank, you put his life in jeopardy. Now what gives you the right to do that?
Doyle: I guess I didn’t think about that.
Dutch: Well you better start thinking about a little something else besides your own spoiled ass! I took on this idiotic assignment because I love your mother. I gotta wonder how nuts I am. Man I’ve met some scum in my life but you beat all, man, you are absolutely worthless. You know what, this is a full blown mission, you’re not gonna beat me. I’ve had my head split open, my nose mashed, I’ve been kicked and beat and left for dead, and when I set you on your mama’s doorstep, you’re gonna be one whipped little puppy.

(picture Ed O’Neil)

10. Son-In-Law – Calila

Walter: Lets chow down and munch on some grindage!

(picture Lane Smith. Don’t know him? Pauley Shore is also in this one)

Renee Zellweger Was In That? Quiz

November 16, 2009November 23, 200918 Comments

On Friday I mentioned that I thought Bridget Jones Diary was my favorite Zellweger movie, so I decided to take a look. I’ve seen 11 of her movies and Bridget Jones’s Diary was my favorite and since I’ve just told it would be #1 that one is a given. I’ve listed her characters in the order that I like the movies best. Can you identify the movie? Leave a comment telling me the # and the name of the movie. No Googling – that’s cheating and no fun!

1. Bridget Jones – Bridget Jones’s Diary

2. Tami (blink and you’ll miss her) – Reality Bites – Strangelove

3. Roxie Hart – Chicago – Literary Feline

4. Ruby Thewes – Cold Mountain – Wrighty Reads

5. Dorothy Boyd – Jerry Maguire – Wrighty Reads

6. Bridget Jones – Bridget Jones Edge of Reason – Wrighty Reads

7. Anne Arden – The Bachelor – Life in the Thumb

8. Buckle Bunny – 8 Seconds

9. Lexie Littleton – Leatherheads – Word Lily

10. Betty Sizemore- Nurse Betty – Wrighty Reads

11. Irene – Me, Muself & Irene – Bermudaonion

Is there a great Zellweger film I’ve missed seeing? Let me know.

Answers to last week’s Veteran quiz are up here.

Hug a Veteran Quiz

November 9, 2009November 15, 200921 Comments

Thanks to everyone who mentioned not only my veterans, but your own.

My father is a Vietnam veteran and my husband served his time in the Navy, and Wednesday is the day to make sure we thank them and every other veteran for their service to America. That’s the theme of this week’s quiz. Leave the number and the answer and no googling – that’s cheating and no fun. All books are FICTION.

1. All this Civil War vet wanted to do is return home to North Carolina and the love of his life, but the journey was a difficult one. He was played by Jude Law in the movie version. Cold Mountain by Charles Frazier – Bags, Books & Bon Jovi

2. Lee Child has written a thriller series based on this ex-military cop. Jack Reacher – Bags, Books & Bon Jovi

3. Two men return home from war in 1946 Mississippi. This book won the 2006 Bellwether Prize (recognizing social responsibility). MUDBOUND BY HILLARY JORDAN

4. A Vietnam soldier decides to go AWOL and walk to France. This won the National Book Award for fiction in 1979. GOING AFTER CACCIATO BY TIM O’BRIEN

5. This recent publication is a novel based loosely on the author’s life as a classmate of George W. Bush, marine in Vietnam, and the first Vietnam veteran to attend Harvard. LOON – A MARINE STORY BY JACK MCLEAN

6. This is the debut novel of the man who brought us Forest Gump. This is about an officer in the Vietnam War. Better Times Than These by Winston Groom – Bermudaonion

7. A son investigates his father’s life as a soldier in WWII. A surprising look at war from an author who writes bestselling legal thrillers. Ordinary Heroes by Scott Turow – Under the Boardwalk

8. This series by Robyn Carr always features a military veteran as hero of the story. – The Virgin River series – Bookfan

And a few notable veteran authors

9. This highly decorated Vietnam veteran is a current Virginia senator and says this about his writing, “I’ve written for a living all my life, so writing is as much a part of me as working out.” Senator Jim Webb – Linda B

10. This author of The Painted Veil served as a secret agent for the British during WWI. W Somerset Maugham – Fleurfisher

What Book Is That? Quiz

October 19, 2009November 2, 200925 Comments

Lat week’s quiz here. Still time to participate.

Can you identify these books by their censored titles? Leave a comment with the number, title and author. If you get the correct answer first you will be entered to win a free book from me Details here.

I don’t usually do this two weeks in a row, but this doubles as a look at my Dewey’s 24 Hour Read-a-Thon pile and as a way to use the gorgeous leaves in my yeard 🙂

oct 19 blog 1

1. THE DIVING BELL & THE BUTTERFLY by Jean-Dominique Bauby

2. The Housekeeper & the Professor by Yoko Ogawa – Wordlily

3. SAM”S LETTERS TO JENNIFER by James Patterson

4. The Funny Thing Is by Ellen Degeneres – Wordlily

5. TRUE TO FORM by Elizabeth Berg

oct 19 blog 2

6. DAMAGE by Josephine Hart

7. A GRACIOUS PLENTY by Sheri Reynolds

8. The Bean Trees by Barbara Kingsolver – Julie H.

9. Gift from the Sea by Anne Morrow Lindbergh – Julie H.

10. The Postman Always Rings Twice by James Cain – Strangelove

What Book is That? Quiz

October 12, 2009November 5, 200916 Comments

Answers to last week’s First Lines Quiz here.

blog oct 09 1

1. AUDREY HEPBURN”S NECK by Alan Brown

2. Still Life by AS Byatt – Jackie

3. Summer in the City by Robyn Sisman – Strangelove

4. Good in Bed by Jennifer Weiner – Wrighty

5. I Do (But I Don’t) by Cara Lockwood – ‘Nise

blog oct 09 2

6. LORD JOHN & THE HAND OD DEVIL’S by Diana Gabaldon

7. THE SLEEPING DOLL by Jeffery Deaver

8. The Husband by Dean Koontz – Wrighty

9. Dear John by Nicholas Sparks – Thoughts of Joy

10. WAR & PEACE by Leo Tolstoy

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