All the books of Pern Challenge 2012 - finished

All the Books of Pern Challenge 2012

Details:
•    Runs January 1, 2012 to December 31, 2012, join in anytime.
•    You can join anytime but only count Pern books you have read this year.
•    Books can be any format.
•    Crossovers with other challenges are allowed.
•    Track progress here, on your blog, on goodreads or LibraryThing. Anywhere really just let me    know where you are posting.
•    When you sign up remember your level of participation can go up but it can’t go down.
•    We’ll be keeping track of progress and prizes, etc. on this page.
•    Sign up using Mr Linky at the end of the post.

Levels:
•    Green– The original trilogy (or any 3)
•    Blue- The original trilogy plus the Harper Hall trilogy (or any 6)
•    Brown– Everything with Ms. McCaffrey as sole author (17)
•    Bronze– Everything except the ones written by Todd alone (22)
•    Gold – The whole lot of them (24-25)

I have chosen the level of Blue to read the original trilogy plus the Harper Hall trilogy. I have them as paperback but just this December I actually bought the original trilogy for my Kindle so that is the edition I will be reading.

All the posts for this challenge can be found HERE

1. Dragonflight by Anne McCaffrey (kindle edition)
2. Dragonquest by Anne McCaffrey (kindle edition)
3. The White Dragon by Anne McCaffrey (kindle edition)
4. Harpersong by Anne McCaffrey (paperback edition)
5. Harpersinger by Anne McCaffrey (paperback edition)
6. Harperdrums by Anne McCaffrey (paperback edition) 

I have now finished the Blue level I set myself as my goal for this challenge. I think I might be back at a later date this year and have a go at the Brown level but we'll see. I enjoyed this challenge and it was a good reason to go back to the Pern Series

Harper Hall Trilogy by Anne McCaffrey

Anne McCaffrey's Harper Hall Trilogy kicks off with this riveting and poetic first installment, in which Menolly -- a gifted musician who dreams of becoming a Harper -- meets a band of fire lizards and becomes their teacher. The beginning to an entrancing fantasy series that McCaffrey fans (as well as Tamora Pierce and Marion Zimmer Bradley lovers) won't want to miss. From Goodreads

In this second breathtaking fantasy in Anne McCaffrey's Harper Hall Trilogy, Menolly develops her studies to become a Harper as well as her relationship with the nine fire-lizards. From Goodreads

When his boy soprano voice begins to change, Piemur is drafted by Masterharper Robinton to help with political work and is sent on missions that lead him into unusual and sometimes dangerous adventures. From Goodreads

I reread these 3 books within 2 days, yesterday and today, well into the night, so I have decided to review them together. Having meet Menolly in the first trilogy from Pern, this is her trilogy telling about how she became a harper. I, like last time I read them, enjoyed these books very much and there was a lot I had totally forgotten so it was new to me again. There is not a lot of dragons in these books but lots about the fire lizards and I really like them.

The White Dragon by Anne McCaffrey

 Never had there been as close a bonding as the one that existed between the daring and adventurous young Lord Jaxom and his extraordinary white dragon, Ruth. Pure white and incredibly agile, Ruth was a dragon of many talents, though almost everyone on Pern thought he was a runt that would never amount to anything. But Jaxom knew better, knew he could teach his dragon to fly and to destroy the deadly silver Threads that fell from the sky. Disobeying all rules, Jaxom and Ruth trained in secret. Their illicit flights seemed but a minor disobedience-- until they found themselves in the path of danger and in a position to prevent the biggest disaster of all! From Goodreads

This is my favourite book of the three first book in the Pern series. I like the way Jaxom is maturing and trying to find out who and what he is. But as the title suggest the main character is The White Dragon Ruth. I enjoy reading about Ruth and seeing how different he is to the other dragons and he knows so much more than them. It seems like he is a lot more intelligent than the other dragons in the sense that he is not so controlled by feelings but then he is also described as asexual so he does not react when the queens and greens get ready to fly.

This book qualifies for:  
100 books in a year Reading Challenge 2012, 
Goodreads 2012 Reading Challenge, 
2012 Ebook Challenge
All the Books of Pern Challenge 2012

Dragonquest by Anne McCaffrey

Another Turn, and the deadly silver Threads began falling again. So the bold dragonriders took to the air once more and their magnificent flying dragons swirled and swooped, belching flames that destroyed the shimmering strands before they reached the ground. But F'lar knew he had to find a better way to protect his beloved Pern, and he had to find it before the rebellious Oldtimers could breed any more dissent ... before his brother F'nor would be foolhardy enough to launch another suicide mission ... and before those dratted fire-lizards could stir up any more trouble! From Goodreads

Another book read and only about 24 hours after the last. Well what can I say, I tend to keep reading when I get started and forget everything around me. This book is the second in the first trilogy of the Pern books.  It is a continuation of the first, set 7 years later and a lot of animosity has arisen between the different Weyrs, the Holds and among themselves. What I actually like about this one is that it is still a extremely patriarchal society but the Weyrwomen have so much power or rather what they do effects everything around them. This book shows how much can be destroyed from just one woman's actions. My problem is that it is "only" about 4 years since I read the series for the first time. I keep anticipating things at the same time as I have forgotten a lot of the details in the books.

This book qualifies for:  
100 books in a year Reading Challenge 2012, 
Goodreads 2012 Reading Challenge, 
2012 Ebook Challenge
All the Books of Pern Challenge 2012

Dragonflight by Anne McCaffrey

HOW CAN ONE GIRL SAVE AN ENTIRE WORLD?
Lessa seems nothing but a ragged kitchen girl. For most of her life she has survived by serving those who betrayed her family and took over their lands. Now the time has come for Lessa to shed her disguise—and take back her stolen birthright.
But everything changes when she meets a queen dragon. The bond they share will be deep and last forever. It will protect them when, for the first time in centuries, Lessa’s world is threatened by Thread, an evil substance that falls like rain and destroys everything it touches. Dragons and their Riders once protected the planet from Thread, but there are very few of them left these days. Now brave Lessa must risk her life, and the life of her beloved dragon, to save her beautiful world... From Goodreads.

I was introduced to the Pern series about 4 years ago and I think I bought most of them (only the ones written by Anne McCaffrey alone) as fast as I could get them delivered. I am now reading some of them again for  All the Books of Pern Challenge 2012
I enjoyed reading it again and find it a very interesting story. I like Lessa who is quite a strong woman but by no means a saint as she with her power has hurt a lot of people in order to get her revenge. It is a patriarchal society and women are treated badly to say the least but there are some women who are very strong in their own way.

This book qualifies for:  
100 books in a year Reading Challenge 2012, 
Goodreads 2012 Reading Challenge, 
2012 Ebook Challenge
All the Books of Pern Challenge 2012

All the Books of Pern Challenge 2012

All the Books of Pern Challenge 2012.

It is only a few years ago I was introduced to Anne McCaffrey and her Pern Books. I loved them from the start and I think I have got most of them.

The levels of this challenge are:

• Green– The original trilogy (or any 3)
• Blue- The original trilogy plus the Harper Hall trilogy (or any 6)
• Brown– Everything with Ms. McCaffrey as sole author (17)
• Bronze– Everything except the ones written by Todd alone (22)
• Gold – The whole lot of them (24-25)

As I by now have chosen to take part in quite a few challenges I will go with:  Blue- The original trilogy plus the Harper Hall trilogy (or any 6) and maybe go up a level later.

My progress can be followed HERE

And all the posts are HERE