Friday, January 2, 2009

2009 Challenges

I have signed up for a crazy amount of challenges this year. My goal is to finish at least 60% of them by the end of the year. Books crossed out have been read. All challenges unless states otherwise are year-round. Wish me luck.

Personal Reading Challenges

  • I Suck at Challenges - post several updates a year on my progress with my challenges
  • To not buy another book until July. I can swap books as long as I don't buy the credits.

1. 100 Shots of Short. The goal is to read 100 short stories.

2. Essay Reading. 20 essays

3. A to Z (by author's last name)

  • A: Adams, Douglas
  • B: Becker, Bonnie
  • C: Crowley, Joy
  • D: Dickinson, Emily
  • E: Engle, Margarita
  • F: Frazee, Marla
  • G: Gifford, Peggy
  • H: Hyman, Trina Schmart
  • I
  • J
  • K
  • L: Leibovitz, Annie
  • M
  • N
  • O: O' Shea, Samara
  • P: Pearle, Ida
  • Q
  • R: Ransom, Candice
  • S: Smith, Keri
  • T
  • U
  • V
  • W: Weisner, David
  • X
  • Y
  • Z: Zambra, Alejandro

4. Young Adult (12 books)

  • Paper Towns - John Green
  • An Abundance of Katherines - John Green
  • Looking for Alaska - John Green
  • The Poet Slave of Cuba - Margarita Engle
  • Freak Show - James St. James
  • Eggs - Jerry Spinelli
  • Monster - Walter Dean Meyers
  • Tender Morsels - Margo Lanagan
  • Tigerheart - Peter David
  • The Teashop Girls - Laura Schaefer
  • The Plain Janes - Cecil Castellucci

5. Steinbeck Mini-Challenge

  • The Grapes of Wrath
  • Winter of Our Discontent

6. Dewey's Books (6 books)

  • Looking for Alaska - John Green
  • Kockroach -Tyler Knox
  • Exit Wounds - Rutu Moran
  • Ismael - Daniel Quinn
  • Monster - Walter Dean Myers
  • The Color Purple - Alice Walker
  • The Elegance of the Hedgehog - Muriel Barbery
  • The Grapes of Wrath - John Steinbeck
  • Gossamer - Lois Lowry
  • The Graveyard Book - Neil Gaiman
  • Peter Pan - J.M. Barrie
  • Glacial Period - Nicolas De Crecy
  • Thirteen Moons - Charles Frazier
  • Bonk - Mary Roach
  • Life as we knew it - Susan Beth Pfeffer
  • The Book that Changed my Life - Roxanne J. Coady
  • The Little Prince - Antoine de Saint Exupery
  • The Saturdays - Elizabeth Enright
  • Freak Show - James St. James
  • People of the Book - Geraldine Brooks
  • The Plain Janes - C. Castellucci
  • The Secret of Lost Things - Sheridan Hay
  • We Need to Talk about Kevin - Lionel Shriver

7. Year of Reading Dangerously

  • The Black Book of Colors January
  • The Poet Slave of Cuba by Maragrita Engle February
  • Topdog/Underdog - Suzan-Lori Parks April
  • The Color Purple - Alice Walker
  • Her Blue Body Everything We Know - Alice Walker
  • The Grapes of Wrath - John Steinbeck
  • This Blinding Absence of Light - Tahar Ben Jelloun

8. A Novel Group's Mini-Challenges

  1. Collection of short stories- The Book of the Unknown: Tales of the Thirty-Six - Jonathon Keats (4/7/19)
  2. Play: Topdog/Underdog - Suzan-Lori Parks (4/19/09)
  3. Nonfiction book: The Shiniest Jewel - Marian Henley
  4. Two essays:
  5. Book event:
  6. Library book: Notes to Self - Samara O' Shea
  7. New to you author:
  8. Donation: First Book.org in January
  9. Promote literacy: donated Flygirl by Sherrie L. Smith to local library
  10. Buddy read/Group discussion:
  11. Book or genre outside comfort zone:
  12. Classic:

9. Read Your Own Books (30 Books)

  • A River of Words - Jen Bryant
  • How to be an explorer of the world - Keri Smith
  • The Book that Changed my Life
  • The Shiniest Jewel - Marian Henley
  • Gods Behaving Badly- Marie Phillips
  • The Rights of the reader - Daniel Pennac
  • Without Blood - Alessandro Barrico

10. In Their Shoes

  • The Shiniest Jewel by Marian Henley
  • A River of Words - Jen Bryant
  • The Wall: Growing Up Behind the Iron Curtain - Peter Sis

11. Book Awards (10 award winners, from at least 5 different awards)

  • Looking for Alaska - John Green (Printz 2006)
  • The Graveyard Book - Neil Gaiman (Newbery 2009)
  • The Color Purple - Alice Walker (1983 Pulitzer and National Book Award)
  • Saturday - Ian McEwan (James Tait Black Memorial 2005)
  • Angels in America - Tony Kushner (1993 Pulitzer in Drama)
  • Castle Waiting - Linda Medley (1998 Eisner Award)
  • Topdog/Underdog - Suzan-Lori Parks (2002 Pultizer for Drama)
  • Beloved - Toni Morrison (1986 Pulitzer for Fiction)
  • Cockroach - Raw Hage (2008 Giller Prize)
  • This Blinding Absence of Light - Tahar Ben Jelloun (2004 Impac Dublin)
  • Out Stealing Horses - Per Petterson (2007 Impac Dublin)
  • various volumes from the Fables series - Bill Willingham (Eisner Award)
  • Doubt: a play by Patrick Shenely (Pulitzer for Drama)

12. Jewish Lit.

  • Angel of Forgetfulness - Steve Stern
  • The World to Come - Dara Horn
  • The Book of the Unknown: Tales of the Thirty-Six by Jonathon Keats
  • Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist - Rachel Cohn

13. Unshelved Reading (Feb 1st - June 1st) 3 books req.

  1. Mouseguard: Fall 1152 - David Peterson
  2. The Lighting Thief - Rick Riordan
  3. The Gargoyle - Andrew Davidson
  4. The Confessions of Max Tivoli - Andre Sean Greer
  5. The Art of Racing in the Rain - Garth Stein

14. 9 Books for 2009

  • Free: The Shiniest Jewel -Marion Henley. Received it as an ARC.
  • Dusty
  • Used
  • Letter
  • Strange
  • Distance
  • Alive or Not
  • Cover

15. Year of Readers

  • Supporting 826National.org and First Book

16. Childhood Favourites

  • Daphne's Book - Mary Downing Hahn
  • Where the wild things are - Maurice Sendak
  • The Secret Garden - Frances Hodgson Burnett


17. Graphic Novels (24 books required)

  1. The Shiniest Jewel - Marian Henley
  2. Fables Vol. 1: Legends in Exile - Bill Willingham
  3. Fables Vol. 7: Arabian Nights - Bill Willingham
  4. Fables Vol. 2: Animal Farm - Bill Willingham
  5. Fables Vol. 3: Storybook Love - Bill Willingham
  6. Fables Vol. 4: March of the Wooden Soldiers - Bill Willingham
  7. Fables Vol. 6: Homelands - Bill Willingham
  8. Fables Vol. 8: Wolves - Bill Willingham
  9. Fables Vol. 9: Sons of the Empire - Bill Willingham
  10. Fables Vol. 10: The Good Prince - Bill Willingham
  11. Faboles Vol. 11: War and Pieces - Bill Willingham
  12. The Plain Janes - Cecil Castellucci

18. Lost in Translation (6 books)

  • The girl with the dragon tattoo - Steig Larson
  • Living to tell the tale - Garbriel Garcia Marquez
  • Death with Interruptions - Jose Saramago
  • Shadow of the Wind - Carlos Ruiz Zafron
  • After the Quake - Haruki Murakami
  • 40 Stories - Anton Chekhov
  • Perfume: The story of a murderer - Patrick Suskind
  • 2666 - Roberto Bolano
  • The Elegance of the Hedgehog - Muriel Barbery
  • The Little Prince - Antoine de Exupery
  • Out Stealing Horses - Per Petterson
  • Memory - Philippe Grimbert
  • Waiting for Godot - Samuel Beckett
  • The Lost Daughter - Elena Ferrante
  • Without Blood - Alessandro Barrico
  • The Black Book of Colors
  • The Butcher and Other Erotica - Alina Reyes
  • The Elementary Particles - Michael Houellebeccq
  • Bonsai - Alejandro Zambra
  • The Devil and Miss Prym - Paulo Coelho
  • The Savage Detectives - Roberto Bolano
  • The Rights of the Reader - Daniel Pennac

19. World Citizen

20. Dream King (Acolyte level: 3 works and 1 movie)

  • The Graveyard Book audio and book
  • Fragile Things
  • Neverwhere
  • Coraline the movie

21. Martel-Harper

22. 42 Challenge

  • The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy - Douglas Adams
  • Battleship Galactica Disc 1

23. Orbis Terrarum

  • The Elegance of the Hedgehog - Muriel Barbery (France)
  • Bonsai - Alejandro Zambra (Chile)
  • The Rights of the Reader - Daniel Pennac (France)
  • Without Blood - Alessando Barrico


24. Classics Challenge (April 1- October 31, 2009) 4 Books

  • Jane Eyre - Charlotte Bronte
  • Peter Pan - J.M. Barrie
  • ?
  • Moby Dick - Herman Melville
  • New Classic: Hunger Games -Suzanne Collins

25. Banned Books Challenge Feb. 22nd - June 30th

  • Annie on My Mind - Nancy Garden
  • The Perks of Being a Wallflower - Stephen Chbosky
  • The House of the Spirits - Isabel Allende
  • Forever - Judy Blume
  • Stones from the River - Ursula Hegi
  • It - Stephen King
  • A Day No Pigs Would Die - Robert Peck
  • Beloved - Toni Morrison
  • The Lorax - Dr. Seuss
  • The Grapes of Wrath - John Steinbeck
  • The Color Purple- Alice Walker
  • Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
  • The Complete Grimm's Fairy Tales
  • Fahrenheit 451 - Ray Bradbury
  • Of Mice and Men - John Steinbeck
  • A Prayer for Owen Meany - John Irving

26. Spring Reading Challenge (ends March 20th - June 20th)

  1. Sweet Hearts - Melanie Rae Thon
  2. The Water Will Hold You: A Skeptic Learns to Pray - Lindsey Crittenden
  3. Unearned Pleasures - Ursula Hegi
  4. I am no one you know - Joyce Carol Oates
  5. The Grapes of Wrath - John Steinbeck
  6. Tender Morsels - Margo Lanagan
  7. Delicate Edible Birds - Lauren Groff
  8. The Gargoyle - Andrew Davidson
  9. The Shadow of the Wind - Carlos Ruiz Zafron
  10. Tales of Burning Love - Louise Erdrich
  11. Repair - C.K. Williams
  12. Sinners Welcome - Mary Karr
  13. Heliopolis - James Scudamore
  14. Nocturnes - John Conolly
  15. Cries of the Spirit - Marilyn Sewell
  16. The Bloody Chamber - Angela Carter
  17. Lullabies for Little Criminals - Heather O'Neil
  18. Blue Highways - William Least Heat-Moon

27. Once Upon a Time Challenge (potential reads)

  1. Tender Morsels - Margo Lanagan
  2. The Shadow of the Wind - Carlos Ruiz Zafron
  3. A Midsummer Night's Dream - Shakespeare
  4. The Dark Hills Divide - Patrick Carman
  5. The Book of the Unknown - Jonathon Keats
  6. Peter Pan - J.M. Barrie
  7. Tigerheart - Peter David
  8. Fables series - Bill Willingham
  9. The Bloody Chamber - Angela Carter
  10. Nights at the Circus - Angela Carter
  11. The Shadow of the Wind - Carlos Ruiz Zafron
  12. Nocturnes - John Connolly
  13. The Eyre Affair - Jasper Fforde
  14. A Curse Dark as Gold - Elizabeth C. Bunce
  15. Hansel and Gretel - Cynthia Rylant
  16. The War of the Worlds - H.G. Wells
  17. Perfume - Patrick Suskind
  18. Hansel and Gretel - Cynthia Rylant
  19. East - Edith Pattou
  20. Dandelion Wine - Ray Bardbury

28. Diversity Rocks

  1. The Black Book of Colors - Menena Cottin (Latino author)
  2. The Poet Slave of Cuba - Margarita Engle (Cuban author)
  3. Ellington was not a street- Ntzake Shange (Black author)
  4. The Elegance of the Hedgehog - Muriel Barbery (French)
  5. The Rights of the Reader - Daniel Pennac (French)
  6. Bonsai - Alejandro Zambra (Chilean)
  7. The Wall: Growing up behind the Iron Curtain - Peter Sis (Czech)
  8. The Book of the Unknown: Tales of the Unknown - Jonathon Keats (Jewish)
  9. Topdog/Underdog - Suzan-Lori Parks

29. Herding Cats Challenge April 1,2009 - December 31, 2009

  1. Tender Morsels - Margo Lanagan (Nymeth)
  2. The Secret of Lost Things - Sheridan Hay (3m & Puss Reboots)
  3. Tortilla Flat - John Steinbeck (Becky)
  4. The Housekeeper and the Professor - Yoko Ogawa (3m)
  5. Beat the Reaper - (Raidergirl3)
  6. We have always lived in the castle - Shirley Jackson (Mem)
  7. Norwegian Wood - Haruki Murakami (Chris)
  8. Life as we know it - (Raidergirl3)
  9. Danny the Champion of the World - Roald Dahl (?)
  10. This Blinding Absence of Light - Tahar Ben Jalloun (Raidergirl3)
  11. The Library at Night - Alberto Manguel (Gavin)
  12. The Merchant and the Alchemist's Gate - Ted Chiang (Gavin)


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