Comprehensive list of my reading challenges

If I spent as much time reading as I do organizing these challenges, I'd be halfway done by now! But here is the comprehensive list of the challenges I plan on undertaking. If I already posted the book list in a previous blog, I did not repost.

Series Challenge (began Dec. 1 2007; ends May 31 2008)http://cozymurders.blogspot.com/2007/09/series-challenge.html

Read a series of your choice.
I will be reading the Shannara series by Terry Brooks, of which two are also on my TBR alternate list.


TBR Challenge 2008 (begins Jan. 1, 2008; ends Dec. 31 2008)
www.tbrchallenge.blogspot.com
Read 12 books on your TBR list in 12 months. (Already posted list)

Decades Challenge (begins Jan. 1 2008; ends Dec. 31 2008)
http://1morechapter.com/decades
Read 8 books in 8 consecutive decades (Already posted list)
Note: I am doing this a little differently, because I misunderstood the challenge. Rather than reading books WRITTEN in 8 consecutive decades, mine are SET in 8 consecutive decades. I plan on keeping it this way even though it was a mistake because I think it sounds fun!


Young Adult Challenge (begins Jan. 1 2008; ends Dec. 31 2008)http://thoughtsofjoyblog.blogspot.com/2007/10/sweet-and-simple-choose-12-young-adult.html
Read 12 young adult novels (Already posted list)

2 New 2 You Challenge (begins Feb 1, 2008; ends May 1 2008)
http://bookish08.wordpress.com/2007/09/07/2new2u-challenge/
Read 2 books out of your comfort zone or by authors you've never read.

Your Writing Coach--Jurgen Wolff (TBR)
The Sound and the Fury--William Faulkner (TBR)

Ongoing Challenges (No time limit or lists for these, but I will post as I fill in the blanks with books):
Book Around the States (Read 50 books from 50 states, + DC)
Read It Again (Re-read some of your favorite books)

Young Adult Challenge

This challenge completed as of 12/21/08!

***I really enjoy reading young adult literature, plus it is important to me to be able to keep up with what my students are reading, and recommend books to them. I read some great books this year for this challenge, although there were some disappointments, notably The Afterlife and Tithe. Slam was one of the best books I've read all year, and Abarat surprised me with how good it was. I've already posted my list for next year's Young Adult Challenge--thanks to J. Kaye for hosting!***

Here is my list for the Young Adult Challenge, most of which are on my bookshelf at school. Click on the title to read my review.

Fallen Angels--Walter Dean Myers (finished 3/21/08)
The Afterlife--Gary Soto (finished Jan. 08)
Arabat--Clive Barker(finished 12/21/08)
Armageddon Summer--Jane Yolen and Bruce Coville (finished 5/27/08)
The Giver--Lois Lowry (finished 9/16/08)
Holes--Louis Sachar (finished 8/1/08)
I Am Mordred--Nancy Springer (finished 10/6/08)
Give a Boy a Gun--Todd Strasser (finished 3/20/08)
Scorpions--Walter Dean Myers (finished 9/28/08)
Tithe: A Modern Fairy Tale--Holly Black (finished 6/14/08)
Slam--Nick Hornby (finished 2/7/08)
You Don't Know Me--David Klass (finished 10/3/08)

Decades Challenge

THIS CHALLENGE COMPLETED AS OF 11/26/08!

***I misunderstood this challenge, and rather than choosing books published in 8 consecutive decades, I picked books that were set in 8 consecutive decades. I'm sure I enjoyed the challenge just as much as I would have otherwise. The best books read on this challenge were Water For Elephants, I am Legend, and All the Pretty Horses, but most of them were good reads. The Sound and the Fury was one of the most difficult reads ever, but in the end I enjoyed it. I have already created my list for this years Decades Challenge, and am excited to get started!***


Here is my list for the Decades Challenge. Click on the titles to see my reviews.

1910s: Tortilla Flat--John Steinbeck (finished 11/5/08)
1920s: The Sound and the Fury--William Faulkner (finished 11/26/08)
1930s: Water for Elephants--Sara Gruen (finished 3/19/08)
1940s: All the Pretty Horses--Cormac McCarthy (finished 1/7/08)
1950s: Franny and Zooey--J.D. Salinger (finished 6/18/08)
1960s: Dolores Claiborne--Stephen King (finished 11/12/08)
1970s: I Am Legend--William Matthieson (finished 1/13/08)
1980s: The Bean Trees--Barbara Kingsolver (finished 10/15/08)

TBR 2008!!!!

Completed as of 12/26/08!!!



***This challenge was quite a success for me. I read some fantastic books that had been just laying around my apartment, like The Poisonwood Bible, and some that had been loaned to me and never picked up, like Water For Elephants. Both of those are five star books IMO, and are on my list of ten best books read this year. I also found some great random books on my shelves, like Meely LaBauve. The only book that wasn't really worth reading was Blue Light. I have already posted my list for next year, (which includes many of the unread alternates from this year) and can't wait to begin!! Thanks to Jenn at TBR for hosting!***

OK, this is my FINAL list for 2008's TBR Challenge. Click on the titles to see the reviews of those I've finished.

Main List:
Franny and Zooey--J.D. Salinger (finished 6/18/08)
Wuthering Heights--Emily Bronte (finished 12/26/08)
Sundog--Jim Harrison (finished 11/2/08)
Blue Light--Walter Mosely (finished 12/3/08)
Fallen Angels--Walter Dean Myers (finished 3/21/08)
Middlesex--Jeffret Eugenides (finished 5/20/08)
Poisonwood Bible--Barbara Kingsolver (finished 8/21/08)
Dolores Clairborne--Stephen King (finished 11/12/08)
Smashed: Story of a Drunken Girlhood--Koren Zailckas (finished 1/24/08)
Water For Elephants--Sara Gruen (finished 3/19/08)
Meely LaBauve--Ken Wells (finished 2/20/08)
Dragon Wing--Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman (finished 12/1/08)


Alternates:
Your Writing Coach--Jurgen Wolff
The Sword of Shannara and The Elfstone of Shannara--Terry Brooks
Issac Bashevis Singer's Collected Works
The Lord of the Rings Trilogy
The Sound and the Fury by Faulkner (finished 11/26/08)
All the Pretty Horses--Cormac McCarthy (finished 1/7/08)
The Giver--Lois Lowry (finished 9/16/08)
The Stone War--Madeleine E. Robins (finished 3/24/08)

And I finished TBR 2007! I am still reading though. Right now I'm reading The Mermaid Chair from my alternate list, and still hoping to get through Myths to Live By.