ExQUIZite Summer of Reading
The first round has 10 questions, with each answer worth 1 point each. And the remaining 4 categories have 5 questions, worth 1 point each. There’s also a special bonus round, worth 19* points. How many can you get?
*Not a typo… just a little nod to all the Constant Readers out there!
5-word plot synopsis
Name the title AND author of the works (fiction or non-fiction) summarised below. (If you can only remember either the title or author, give yourself half a point.)
1. Chief Brody is a landlubber.
2. The author recounts (almost) all.
3. Old folks solve crimes, weekly.
4. Shepherd embarks on epic quest.
5. Wickham is a cad throughout.
6. Lenny, George, and the rabbits.
7. He survives by growing potatoes.
8. A fireman starts to read.
9. Diary of a junior doctor.
10. Grumpy Englishman learns ultimate answer.
Word games
1. Which word for a branch of mathematics began its life meaning ‘bone-setting surgery’?
2. In 1871’s Through the Looking Glass, Lewis Carroll was the first refer to blended words as what?
3. In Old English, ‘man’ was a gender-neutral term for both men and women. What 2 words did the language use to differentiate between them?
4. Precisely how long did a ‘moment’ last when the word entered the English language in the late 14th century?
5. Today, we know ‘tiddlywinks’ as a game with counters, but what was the word slang for in Victorian times?
Graphic content warning
1. Name Dream’s siblings in The Sandman graphic novel series by Neil Gaiman?
2. Miss Quinzella Thiskwin Penniquiqul Thistle Crumpet’s Camp for Hardcore Lady Types is the setting for which series of comics?
3. The Umbrella Academy series was written by the lead singer of which band?
4. Knives Chau is a character if which series of Canadian graphic novels?
5. Which classic 80s cartoon was revived in graphic novel format in 2015?
Authors articulate
Name the authors who wrote/said the following about books.
1. Books are a form of political action. Books are knowledge. Books are reflection. Books change your mind.
2. Books are mirrors: you only see in them what you already have inside of you.
3. Some books are so familiar that reading them is like being home again.
4. There is no such thing as a moral or an immoral book. Books are well written, or badly written.
5. A word after a word after a word is power.
Déjà vu
The following movies are based on printed works of fiction. Can you name the title and author of the inspirational work?
1. Clueless
2. Blade Runner
3. 10 Things I Hate About You
4. Scrooged
5. Arrietty
A kingly bonus
Put these titles by Stephen King into publication date order, from earliest to latest.
1. Insomnia
2. IT
3. The Institute
4. 11/22/63
5. The Shining
6. Pet Sematary
7. Cujo
8. The Stand: Complete and Uncut Edition
9. Revival
10. The Dark Tower: Wizard and Glass