Task 1: Write a book wish list to St. Nick.

Task 2: You are King / Queen for the day and can have 3 ‘wishes’: one for yourself, one for your community (any version) and one for the world: What are they?

Task 3: If your holiday family traditions should include bowls or plates filled with gingerbread, cookies, oranges / tangerines, chocolate, nuts and the like, share a photo with us!

Task 4: List your 3 favorite books involving children being rescued from serious peril.

Book: with an orange or red cover or with nuts, chocolate or coins on the cover, set in The Netherlands or Germany, by a Dutch or German author, or with canals or beer on the cover.

Task 1: Book hunt for human rights: Search your shelves for books with titles containing human rights words such as: hope, friendship, equality, justice, love, liberty, etc. Put them in a stack and take a picture for posting. (5 book minimum).

Task 2: This year is the 70th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Find 3 books on your shelves with protagonists or other key characters who are -- or can reasonably be assumed to be -- 70 years or older.

Task 3: The symbol of Human Rights Day is the dove, which in its incarnation as a homing pigeon is also renowned for its navigational skills. – Tell us: Did you ever get so thoroughly lost (either in the days before GPS or because GPS, for whatever reason, was of no use to you) that you wished you had a homing pigeon to guide you?

Task 4: Human Rights Day was declared by the U.N. General Assembly, whose seat is in New York City. Treat yourself to a Manhattan (classic recipe; virgin [non-alcoholic] recipes: https://www.anallievent.com/virgin-manhattan/, http://www.1001cocktails.com/recipes/mixed-drinks/800238/cocktail-virgin-manhattan.html and https://www.liquor.com/recipes/not-manhattan/) or to a bagel or pastrami sandwich and share a photo with us.

Book: Read any book with strong female characters, or written by an author from any minority group; any story about a minority overcoming their oppressors either individually or as a group. OR: A book set in New York City.

Task 1: In honor of the Icelandic Jólabókaflóðið / Yule Book Flood tradition, create a (virtual or physical) “book flood” and post a picture of it.

Task 2: Bake a Swedish lussebulle (saffron bun – instructions and recipe) or prepare some other dish containing saffron.

Task 3: Create a “crown of light” from book covers prominently featuring a lighted candle.

Task 4: Guess (scout’s honor, NO GOOGLING!): Did the Gävle Goat survive this year?

For background: The Gävle Goat is a straw effigy erected in Gävle, Sweden, every year at the beginning of Advent. It is infamous for being burned down ahead of time, which as of Advent 2017 has happened in 37 of the 51 years of the tradition’s existence. – The Yule goat lore in turn goes back all the way to the Norse myths, where the god Thor rode a chariot drawn by two goats, and to ancient Indo-European and proto-Slavic beliefs according to which the harvest god appeared in the shape of a goat. Possibly, it is also linked with Santa Claus and his reindeer-driven sled.

Book: Set in Scandinavia / Northern Europe, or by a Northern European / Nordic author, or a book newly released in November or December of this year.

Winter Solstice / Yuletide (December 21):

Task 1: Bibliomancy: Grab one of your larger books and flip to the indicated page and line number to answer the following questions - then post those answers for us:

A. Will I read all the books on my TBR? (page 378, line 29)
B. Will any of my 2019 reads be 5 stars? (page 227, line 31)
C. Will I discover a new favorite book / author / series? (page 309, line 23)
D. Will I discover that a major twist (hopefully, for the [even] better) has occurred in one of my favorite series? (page 459, line 16)
E. Will I finish all of my reading challenges in 2019? (page 69, line 7)
F. Will I stay within my book budget in 2019? (page 98, line 5)

Task 2: Tell us: What book did you read this year that felt like it was never going to end?

Task 3: Round up a herd of reindeer on book covers and in book illustrations.

Task 4: Treat yourself to a bûche de Noel (French Yule log cake) – if you want to try and make it yourself, see recipe here: https://www.bonappetit.com/recipe/buche-de-noel-recipe.

Book: Any book that takes place in December or with ice or snow on the cover, revolving around the (summer or winter) equinox, or a collection of poetry by Hafez.

Festivus (December 23):

Task 1: It’s the annual airing of grievances! Time to list the top 5 books that disappointed you the most this year and let us know why!

Task 2: Take a picture of your Festivus Pole (and remember this is a family site).

Task 3: Have your household scales perform a feat of strength: Place 10 of your heaviest books in a stack on your scales and tell us what their total weight comes to.

Task 4: Google the word “Festivus” and tell us or take a screenshot of what you see at the left border of the results page.

Book: Read any comedy, parody, or satire.

Christmas (December 25):

Task 1: Post a picture of your Christmas decorations.

Task 2: Tell us: If you could share Christmas dinner with any author (dead or alive), who would it be?

Task 3: Watch a favorite Christmas movie.

Task 4: Create or recreate a short text relating to Christmas (poem, carol, wish list, season’s greetings, etc.) from the titles of books on your bookshelves.

Book: Um, Christmas books …

Task 1: “Africa” was originally the name of the Roman province originating from the North African empire of Carthage, which was mythologically founded by Queen Dido and blossomed into Ancient Rome’s only lasting opponent and nemesis (until it was finally conquered by Rome in the Punic Wars). So: who are your five favorite book heroes and their respective nemeses?

Task 2: In Umberto Eco’s The Name of the Rose, the “Finis Africae” is the hidden center of the labyrinth which constitutes the monastery’s library, protected by a number of intricate, misdirecting devices. Tell us: Where have you recently encountered clever misdirection or a labyrinthine plot in a book?

Task 3: Tell us: If you could travel to Africa (for those living on the African continent: to a part of Africa that you don’t know yet): Where would you want to go?

Task 4: Have a meal involving vegetables (= crops) and / or corn, or another form of traditional Kwanzaa dinner. Recipe suggestions here: https://kwanzaaculinarians.com/

Book: Read a book set in Africa or the Caribbean, or by an African, Caribbean, or African-American author, or a book with a green, red, or black cover.

Task 1: Your 2019 Book Goals: what are they?

Task 2: 2018 Reading Year in Review. Tell us about your year in books: happy? disappointed?

Task 3: New Year’s Book Lottery: Write the names of the first 5 books you’re planning to read in 2019 onto identical pieces of paper, fold them, place them in a bowl (or bucket, jar, box, etc.), and draw one to determine the very first book you’re going to start in the new year.

Task 4: Find a bakery that sells Krapfen (German deep-fried sweet dough dumplings) or make them yourself (recipe here) and enjoy with a glass of champagne or non-alcoholic bubbly drink – but first, take and post a photo of them!

Book: Read a book about endings, new starts, or any book where things go
B O O M !

Task 1: glingleglingleglingle – if you could wish any kind of god(dess) into existence, what would they be in charge of? Dusting? Weeding? We’re not aiming high here… tell us!

Task 2: Tell us: Did you or any kids you know ever have a funny or weird (the good sort of weird) encounter with a department store Santa, um, Hogfather?

Task 3: Which children’s myth / mythical character (Santa Claus, Tooth Fairy, Easter Bunny, etc.) did you never believe in even when you were little?

Task 4: Discworld features a number of inventions that mirror our world’s technology but work according to Discworld’s very own specifications; e.g., Hex, the ant-powered sapient thinking machine (computer) and a demon-powered picture box (camera). What other invention from our world would you have liked to see appearing in Discworld and how might it have worked there?

Book: Anything by Terry Pratchett.

Task 1: Tell us: What’s your favorite trilogy?

Task 2: Chalking the door is an Epiphany tradition in some places, to bless a home for the coming year. Different patterns exist, with different meanings. If you could create your own pattern to bless your house next year, what would it look like?

Task 3: Compile a post containing one image for every gift mentioned / added in each new verse of The Twelve Days of Christmas (lyrics here).

Task 4: Prepare your favorite spicy dish or holiday drink containing spices and share a photo. Also sharing the recipe is optional but welcome!

Book: Read a book with three main characters; books about traveling on a journey to a faraway place, a book that’s part of a trilogy, with a star on the cover, with the word “twelve” or “night” in the title, or concerning kings or spices.

And, that's a wrap! Have fun everyone!