Monday 28 September 2015

Reading Challenge: Another Update

It's been a couple of months since I last shared my 2015 Reading Challenge list so I figured it's time for another update to show how I'm getting on.

I'm still trying to stick to reading at least one book a week, normally starting the next one on Thursday though I'm not worrying too much if I'm a little bit late starting. At the start of the year I was really religious about following the list exactly and starting and finishing each week running Thursday to Thursday. I've relaxed a bit now because there's no fun in reading under pressure; some books need to be read slowly and savoured, some can be whizzed through dead quick.

If you're not sure what Challenge I'm talking about, it's this one:

From Popsugar.
A list of fifty genres or prompts, totalling fifty-two books; one for each week of the year. I'm using it to try and become acquainted with more of the 'classics' and other books that I've not read before (though I'm not getting too hung up on avoiding rereads if they match that week's criteria).

Instead of just listing them, as I did before, I'm breaking them down by number of stars. Just to be different.

1 Star
Nothing yet

1.5 Stars
Filth by Irvine Welsh (a book with a one-word title) 1st time read

2 Stars
Cold Mountain by Charles Frazier (a book set in another country) 1st time read

2.5 Stars
Miramont's Ghost by Elizabeth Hall (a book published this year) 1st time read
The Game
by Laurie R. King (a book by a female author) 1st time read
The Ragged Trousered Philanthropists
by Robert Tressell (a book more than 100 years old) 1st time read
Her Majesty's Wizard
by Christopher Stasheff (a book published the year you were born) 1st time read

3 Stars
Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen (a classic romance) 1st time read
20,000 Leagues Under the Sea
by Jules Verne (a book with a number in the title) 1st time read
Frankenstein
by Mary Wollstonecroft Shelley (a book by an author under the age of 30) 1st time read
The Pickwick Papers
by Charles Dickens (a popular author's first book) 1st time read
Unfinished Tales
by J.R.R. Tolkien (a book from an author you love that you haven't read yet) 1st time read
A Strange Eventful History
by Michael Holroyd (a book based on a true story) 1st time read
Terrifying Tales
by Edgar Allan Poe (a book that scares you) 1st time read
Becoming Bindy Mackenzie
by Jaclyn Moriarty (a book based entirely on its cover) 1st time read
Tess of the d'Urbervilles by Thomas Hardy (a book you should've read in school) Reread/1st time read

3.5 Stars
Tales of Terror and Mystery by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (a mystery or thriller) 1st time read
Gone Girl
by Gillian Flynn (a book a friend recommended) 1st time read
Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood
by Rebecca Wells (a book from the bottom of your to-read list) 1st time read
Vet Behind the Ears
by Christopher Timothy (a memoir) 1st time read
The Death and Life of Charlie St. Cloud
by Ben Sherwood (a book with antonyms in the title) 1st time read
The Awakening and Selected Short Stories
by Kate Chopin (a book with bad reviews) 1st time read
The Time Machine
by H.G. Wells (a book set in the future) 1st time read

4 Stars
Emma by Jane Austen (a book with over 500 pages) 1st time read
Roverandom
by J.R.R. Tolkien (a book with a non-human character) Reread
The Island
by Victoria Hislop (a book your mum loves) 1st time read
How a Ghastly Story Was Brought to Light by a Common or Garden Butcher's Dog
by Johann Peter Hebel (a book you can finish in a day) 1st time read
The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel
by Deborah Moggach (a book set in a country you've always wanted to visit) 1st time read
The Fellowship of the Ring
by J.R.R. Tolkien (a trilogy) Reread
The Two Towers
by J.R.R. Tolkien (a trilogy) Reread
The BFG
by Roald Dahl (a book from your childhood) Reread
Never Let Me Go
by Kazuo Ishiguro (a book with a love triangle) Reread
The Perks of Being a Wallflower
by Stephen Chbosky (a book set in high school) Reread

4.5 Stars
The Importance of Being Earnest by Oscar Wilde (a funny book) 1st time read
The Tales of Beedle the Bard
by J.K. Rowling (a book of short stories) Reread
The Return of the King
by J.R.R. Tolkien (a trilogy) Reread

5 Stars
The Book Thief by Markus Zusak (a book that became a movie) Reread
To Kill A Mockingbird
by Harper Lee (a Pulitzer Prize-winning book) Reread

As you can see, I'm doing well and I'm generally reviewing my books pretty favourably. I'm down to the last few weeks now. It's been fun working my way through all these books, especially as there are so many that I've never read before. I'm discovering new authors and being reminded of some old favourites.


Next week I'll share some of the books I'm planning to read during the rest of the year.

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