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25.7 - Stesse's Task - Read My Nightstand!
I had a bad cold the weekend after I finished the Fall challenge (not related, I swear!). So in between epic naps and blearily attempting to read catalogues (you know it is a bad one when you don’t have the concentration to read catalogues!), I noticed that my nightstand says a lot about me. So for this task, you will “read� my nightstand.

Pick 2 of the following options and read a book for each. You cannot do the same one twice. REQUIRED: State which options you chose in your post.

A. On the top of the precariously leaning pile of books is my newest, Young House Love: 243 Ways to Paint, Craft, Update & Show Your Home Some Love. I love their blog ( in case you’re interested) so I had to buy their book. Read a book written by a blogger. Many authors have blogs, but the essence of this task is to read a book written by someone who started as a blogger and then wrote a book. Some of my favorites include: Jen Lancaster, The Smitten Kitchen Cookbook, Jen of People I Want to Punch in the Throat,
Confessions of a Scary Mommy: An Honest and Irreverent Look at Motherhood: The Good, The Bad, and the Scary, Jenny Lawson(a/k/a The Blogess).

REQUIRED: Include a link to the blog in your post.

B. Just under that home decorating tome lies my journal, Q and A a Day: 5-Year Journal. I’m notoriously bad about starting journals and then abandoning them, but this one has kept my attention for a whole year now. The format of this book is interesting in that for each day of the year, you answer one question. Over 5 years, it’ll be interesting to go back and see how I responded and where my mind was! One question was, “On a scale of one to ten, how happy are you?� so please read a book with a happy ending. By happy, I mean something like chick lit or romance where the girl gets the guy in the end, or a heartwarming animal story (where the dog doesn’t die in the end), etc. Something like The Book of Awesome: Snow Days, Bakery Air, Finding Money in Your Pocket, and OtherSimple, Brilliant Things

For ideas, check out some of the lists here. Not all of these lists will work, and, as always, not every book on a list will work, but this may help you get you started.

C. At the very bottom of the pile sits Enamored With Place: As Woman + As Architect which was a gift from my mother earlier this year. I’m slowly going through it but I admit I got sidetracked by a bunch of other books. Read a book that you’ve been meaning to read all year (2012) but haven’t gotten around to it, or haven’t found a task to fit it.

D. There’s a copy of What to Expect When You're Expecting in the pile too. Read a non-fiction book about something you’re expecting to do next year � maybe retire (What Color Is Your Parachute? for Retirement: Practical Planning for Money, Health, and Happiness), take a vacation (read up on the history of your destination) or remodel your house (Building a Home with My Husband: A Journey Through the Renovation of Love)?
REQUIRED: State in your post what you're expecting to do next year.

E. Finally, there’s a lot of cold related paraphernalia on that cluttered little nightstand: tissue box, chapstick, water, tea cups, chicken soup bowls, vitamin C� Read a book with one of the following words in the title or subtitle: “tissue,� “tea,� “chicken soup,� or “orange juice.� In the case of “chicken soup� and “orange juice,� BOTH words must be in the title, such as, Squeezed: What You Don't Know About Orange Juice or (of course) Chicken Soup for the Soul

And may 2013 bring you good health and a tidy nightstand!

Hold for Stesse

Hold for Stesse

This thread is now open!

For C, could that be a book from the TBR - either put on it before 2012 or entered during 1/2012?

For A, does the person JUST have a blog, or can a blog be a larger part of what they use their site for? For example, 5 Very Good Reasons to Punch a Dolphin in the Mouth and Other Useful Guides is written by a guy who has a site with all sorts of funny lists, cartoons, and also a blog. Would it qualify?

Bea wrote: "For C, could that be a book from the TBR - either put on it before 2012 or entered during 1/2012?"

Hi Bea! The intent was more that it was a book that has been on your mind... I've got like 800 books on my TBR and I keep forgetting about most of them, but that's just me! I was thinking more specifically of a book you maybe tried to fit into one of the challenges this year but couldn't, or one that's been hanging around your nightstand all year gathering dust. I will accept if you added it to your TBR during 2012, that's fine too, as I know everyone has a different way of organizing their reading lives!

Ms Anderson wrote: "For A, does the person JUST have a blog, or can a blog be a larger part of what they use their site for? For example, 5 Very Good Reasons to Punch a Dolphin in the Mouth and Other Useful Guides is ..."

Hi Ms. A! I've been meaning to read his book, How to Tell if Your Cat is Plotting to Kill You... I'm pretty convinced that Big Gray is not pleased with his diet food... :)

Since both his books were published after he started blogging (2009) I think you're safe with him. Enjoy!

Stesse wrote: "Ms Anderson wrote: "For A, does the person JUST have a blog, or can a blog be a larger part of what they use their site for? For example, 5 Very Good Reasons to Punch a Dolphin in the Mouth and Oth..."

YES! Thank you so much! I picked it up as a present for a friend, and I've been dying to read it and have it count (and I'm so freakishly OCD when it comes to my books, I know he'll never be able to tell I read it first). I love his stuff--he's so funny!

Also, I hope you're feeling better!

Would this work for B? The Saving Graces

I found it under my nightstand.

Bea wrote: "Would this work for B? The Saving Graces

I found it under my nightstand."

Sounds good! Enjoy!

Stesse wrote: "Bea wrote: "Would this work for B? The Saving Graces

I found it under my nightstand."

Sounds good! Enjoy!"

Thanks Stesse.

Would Reached work for B? It is not chick lit, but I just read it (hoping to find a place for it later) and I thought the ending was rather good.

Erin (NY) wrote: "Would Reached work for B? It is not chick lit, but I just read it (hoping to find a place for it later) and I thought the ending was rather good."

If it left you with warm and fuzzies, then it's fine. I actually just finished it too, and didn't have that reaction, but that's what's so great about books - they have different results with each reader! Approved (provided you have warm and fuzzies).

Can I read Witchy, Witchy - Penelope King for Option B?

Here is a suggestion for A. Her blog is and she wrote The Pioneer Woman: Black Heels to Tractor Wheels as well as a couple of cookbooks and children's books after she started her blog. I read Black Heels and it was pretty good. It is about how she met her husband and decided to change her whole life to become a rancher's wife.

Fiona (Titch) wrote: "Can I read Witchy, Witchy - Penelope King for Option B?"

I can't tell from the GR description but I assume she gets her man in the end and it ends on a happy note... if that's the case, then sure! Looks like a cute book!

Deanna wrote: "Here is a suggestion for A. Her blog is and she wrote The Pioneer Woman: Black Heels to Tractor Wheels as well as a couple of cookbooks and children's books after she st..."

Exactly, great suggestion! I enjoy her blog too!

Will this fit Option A?

Sarah Jio writes a blog at Glamour magazine:

Her debut novel has nothing whatsoever to do with her blog:
The Violets of March

She did start as a blogger and then wrote a book -- my copy of The Violets of March says that (1) it is her debut novel and (2) that she has been blogging for three years for Glamour magazine

So, will The Violets of March fit the requirements of Option A?

Thanks!

Deedee wrote: "Will this fit Option A?

Sarah Jio writes a blog at Glamour magazine:

Her debut novel has nothing whatsoever to do with her blog:
The Violets of March
..."

It appears that she started blogging in at least 2009 and her book was published in 2011, so it looks like it works! The book looks interesting; I'll have to add it to my TBR list!

Stesse wrote: "Deedee wrote: "Will this fit Option A?

Sarah Jio writes a blog at Glamour magazine:

Her debut novel has nothing whatsoever to do with her blog:
The Vi..."

Great, thanks!

I'm almost done with the novel now. I like it; it's a pleasant but not silly novel.

I'd like to do Julie and Julia: 365 Days, 524 Recipes, 1 Tiny Apartment Kitchen for A, but I cannot find the blog. This is the book the movie is based on. Can I use it, or should I find something else?

Maria wrote: "I'd like to do Julie and Julia: 365 Days, 524 Recipes, 1 Tiny Apartment Kitchen for A, but I cannot find the blog. This is the book the movie is based on. Can I use it, or should I find something ..."

I would agree that this is based on her blog and the blog came first. I believe she mentions that in the forward to the book. I'll accept it. Enjoy!