What’s In a Name 6 Sign Up

This challenge is hosted by the amazing and wonderful Beth Fish Reads. I did this challenges a couple years ago, but skipped it last year. I thought it would be fun to read books on my to-read list that fit these categories! Here are the categories and my preliminary plans for what I want to read!

1. A book with up or down (or equivalent) in the title:  Tales of the Madman Underground or
2. A book with something you’d find in your kitchen in the title: Cards on the Table by Agatha Christie
3. A book with a party or celebration in the title: The Christmas Cookie Club
4. A book with fire (or equivalent) in the title: Circle of Fire, Wildefire
5. A book with an emotion in the title: Fear Nothing, Nothing to Envy
6. A book with lost or found (or equivalent) in the title: The Lost Girl, Found, A discovery of Witches

These all can (and probably will) change, especially as others start participating!

Are you participating?

The 2013 TBR Pile Challenge

I have tried (and failed) at this challenge for the last two years, but it is still a fun one so I am trying again in 2013!

This challenge is hosted by Adam at Roof Beam Reader.

Here are the rules – a little condensed.

1. Each of these 12 books must have been on your bookshelf or “To Be Read” list for AT LEAST one full year. This means the book cannot have a publication date of 1/1/2012 or later.  Caveat: Two (2) alternates are allowed, just in case one or two of the books end up in the “can’t get through” pile.

2.  To be eligible, you must sign-up with Mr. Linky and add updated links to each book’s review.  Every listed book must be completed and must be reviewed (doesn’t have to be too fancy) in order to count as completed.

3.  The link you post must be to your “master list”  This is where you will keep track of your books completed, crossing them out and/or dating them as you go along, and updating the list with the links to each review.

4. Leave comments on this post as you go along, to update your status. Come back if/when you complete this challenge and leave a comment indicating that you CONQUERED YOUR 2013 TBR LIST!  Every person who successfully reads his/her 12 books and/or alternates will be entered to win a $50 gift card from Amazon.com or The Book Depository!

5. Crossovers from other challenges are totally acceptable, as long as you have never read the book before and it was published pre-2012!

And her eis my list! To pick it, I went to the spreadsheet i have of my to-read books and had random.org give me 12 numbers, then made sure that none were published in 2012.

1. Evermore  by Alyson Noel
2. Yearbook by Ally Condie
3. The Walls of the Universe by Paul Melko
4. Bright Young Things by Anna Godbersen
5. My Lucky Life in and Out of Show Business by Dick Van Dyke
6.  How I Live Now by Meg Rosoff
7. Fever Pitch by Nick Hornby
8. Youth in Revolt by C.D. Payne
9. The Longest Trip Home by John Grogan
10. Amazing Gracie by Dan Dye
11. Lord of Misrule by Jaimy Gordon
12. Why We Suck by Denis Leary

Alts
1. Hate List by Jennifer Brown
2. Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi

1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die Challenge: 2012 Edition

Note, this is my personal sign up, to sign up  yourself for the actual challenge, go to this post.

I am super excited to be hosting and participating in this one this year. i need to do MUCH better since I read a whole 2 in 2011.

So I am going for…

The Bronze medal: 11-15 books from the list

I am not picking ahead of time and will just read what I like then post them here!

1. The Time Machine by H G Wells
2. Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen
3. Dracula by Bram Stoker
4. The Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov
5. The House of the Seven Gables by Nathaniel Hawthorne 
6. The Island of Dr. Moreau by H. G. Wells 
7. August is a Wicked Month by Edna O’Brien
8. Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency by Douglas Adams
9. The Long Dark Tea-Time of the Soul by Douglas Adams
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15

The 2012 TBR Challenge Sign Up

So I will try this again, since last year I failed miserably with only one book. Most of this list is just from last year, with a couple changes!

But first, here are the rules.

1. Each of these 12 books must have been on your bookshelf or “To Be Read” list for AT LEAST one full year. This means the book cannot have a publication date of 1/1/2011 or later (any book published in the year 2010 or earlier qualifies, as long as it has been on your TBR pile – I WILL be checking publication dates). Caveat: Two (2) alternates are allowed, just in case one or two of the books end up in the “can’t get through” pile.

2.  To be eligible, you must sign-up with Mr. Linky below – link to your list (so create it ahead of time!) and add updated links to each book’s review.  Every listed book must be completed and must be reviewed (doesn’t have to be too fancy) in order to count as completed.

3.  The link you post in the Mr. Linky below must be to your “master list” (see mine below).  This is where you will keep track of your books completed, crossing them out and/or dating them as you go along, and updating the list with the links to each review (so there’s one easy, convenient way to find your list and all your reviews for the challenge).  See THIS LINK for an idea of what I mean.  Your list must be completed by December 31st, 2011.

4. Leave comments on this post as you go along, to update us on your status. Come back here if/when you complete this challenge and leave a comment indicating that you CONQUERED YOUR 2012 TBR LIST!  Every person who successfully reads his/her 12 books and/or alternates (and who provides a working link to their list, which has links to the review locations) will be entered to win a $50 gift card from Amazon.com or The Book Depository!

5. Crossovers from other challenges are totally acceptable, as long as you have never read the book before and it was published pre-2011!

*Note – You can read the books on your list in any order; they do not need to be read in the order you have them listed. As you complete a book – review it, and go back to your original list and turn that title into a link to the review - that will keep the comments section here from getting ridiculously cluttered.  For an example of what I mean, Click Here.

1. The innocent Man by John Grisham
2. Youth in Revolt by C. D. Payne
3.  Stardust by Neil Gaiman
4. Plan B by Jenny O’Connell
5. A Proud Taste for Scarlet and Miniver by E.L. Konigsburg
6. Jester by James Patterson
7. 1921: The Great Novel of the Irish Civil War by Morgan Llywelyn
8. Generation Dead by Daniel Waters
9. Parrot and Oliver in America by Peter Carey
10. The Corrections by Johnathan Frazen
11. Barefoot: A Novel by Elin Hilderbrand
12. Bergendorf Blondes by Plum Skyes

Alternates

1. 1776 by David McCullough
2. The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold

TwentyEleven Challenge Completed

Well I waited until almost the last minute, but I completed the challenge! I ended up only reading one novella and one re-read, which wasn’t a surprise at all. I am in the middle of a novella and am very happy that I am reading it!

I found some AMAZING books through this challenge and am sad that I haven’t seen anything about there being one for next year.

Here is a reminder of the categories, and the books I read (with links to reviews)

1. To YA or not YA…
   Tend to read more Young Adult than Adult Fiction books then read one or two adult fiction titles
2. …With a Twist.
   This one focuses on sub-genres, read a lot of chick-lit, then try a paranormal romance!
3. Hot off the Presses.
   Read a book published in 2011.
4. It Wasn’t Me! (aka Bad Bloggers*)
   Books in this category, should be ones you’ve picked up purely on the recommendation of another blogger count for this category (any reviews you post should also link to the post that convinced you give the book ago
5. Show it Who is Boss!
   Tackle that overflowing T.B.R. pile! Books for this category must be already residents of your bookshelves as of 1/12/10.
6. Bablefish.
   Read books that are translated from a language that is not your own.
7. Will-Power? What Will-Power? (aka: The Henry Ward Beecher Memorial.)
   Bought a book NEW during 2011? Then it counts for this category. Second-hand books do not count for this one, but, for those on book-buying bans, books bought for you as gifts or won in a giveaway also count.
8. Mind the Gap.
   Need just one more book to compete that duology/trilogy/series then read it for this one!
   Because not everyone reads a series in order, this is for the last book you need to read, not necessarily the last book in the series…
9. Back in the Day.
   Re-read an old favourite or two for this category.
10. Way Back When.
    Read books that were published before you were born for this one, whether that be the day before or 100 years prior!
11. Slim-Pickings
    Got a novella you want to read? Then this one is the one for you! Any books between 90-150 pages count.

 

My Books

1. The Song of Susannah by Stephen King
1. Little Green Men by Christopher Buckley
2. Freedom by Jonathan Franzen
2. Velva Jean Learns to Drive by Jennifer Niven
3. Across the Universe by Beth Revis
3. Where She Went by Gayle Forman
4. If You Follow Me by Malena Watrous 
4. Pathfinder by Orson Scott Card
5. Uglies by Scott Westerfeld 
5. Nick & Norah’s Infinite Playlist by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan
6. Around the World in 80 Days by Jules Verne
6. Norwegian Wood by Haruki Murakami
7. Bossypants by Tina Fey
7. The Magicians by Lev Grossman
8. Forever Princess by Meg Cabot (Princess Diaries Series)
8. Extras by Scott Westerfeld
9. Boys and Girls Together by William Goldman
9.
10. Peril at End House by Agatha Christie
10. The Mysterious Affair at Styles by Agatha Christie
11. We the Animals by Justin Torres
11.

1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die Challenge Sign Up: 2012 Edition

This challenge was such a success last year (well, for a lot of people, I only read two…but still success!) that i am running it again and it will be new and improved!

Here is a run down of the origins of the challenge:

I got this book for Christmas a couple years ago and am slowly making my way through the list. I have discovered some amazing books and writers. I don’t expect to ever read all of the books – but I do want to make a dent in the list and want to open it up for other to join me! The list is so great because it has a huge variety! There are classics that you may have read in school, but there are also some great books we have all missed and some fantastic world literature.

The challenge is simple – read some books from the list! If you don’t own the actual book, you can find a simple list online. For the most basic, check out the Listology list. There are spreadsheets outs there that you can look at too that are more complex.

Sine this year is an Olympics year, I thought the structure would change…so here are the levels this year!

Levels:

Got to trials:  5 books from the list
Made the Olympic team: 6-10 books from the list
Bronze medal: 11-15 books from the list
Silver Medal: 16-20  books from the list:
Gold Medal: 21+ books from the list

Rules:

Challenge runs January 1 2012 – December 31 2012.

You don’t have to make a list beforehand. 

You DO need to choose your level at the beginning so you have a chance to win the prize!

You can use any version of the list, not just the current, since they update it every couple years. I figure, once a book is on the list, it is always on the list!

Books that cover other challenges are not only permitted, but encouraged!

**ADDED*** Non bloggers are welcome to participate! Just sign up and leave a comment on this post letting me know what you are going for. At the end, provide a list of what you read this year via shelfari, LibraryThing, goodreads, or just a list of books! But if you review anything on those sites, link to the review post so we can see what you thought!

You do NOT have to review every book you read for this challenge – it is an etra so that the rest of us can see what you thought!

You can link to your here on this post! 

Sign up in Mr Linky!

But wait, there is more! I will be posting a review post with another Mr Linky link, so if you want to link to any reviews of 1001 books you have read! And please do, I love seeing which books you all loved and I am sure I am not the only one.

And this year there will be a prize. One lucky person who reaches their goal will win a gift card to either Barnes and Noble, Books a Million, or The Book Depository. So now there is an incentive to finish!

Can’t wait to see what you are reading!

Any updates or links will be added to this post

If you are done, please head over to the completion post!

Challenge Wrap Up: What’s in a Name 4

 

I finished a challenge for the year! Here are the books that I went with. It was a lot of fun and I look forward to doing it next year!

1. A book with a number in the title: Perfect Fifths by Megan McCafferty
2. A book with jewelry of a gem in the title: Girl with a Pearl Earring by Tracy Chevalier
3. A book with a size in the title: Little Green Men by Christopher Buckley
4. A book with travel or movement: Across the Universe by Beth Revis
5. A book with evil: Peril at End House by Agatha Christie
6.  A book with a life stage:  Boys and Girls Together by William Goldman

 

Get Rid of Books Summer Challenge!

I am late to the news, but the WSJ article about YA is disgusting. Find out more about this by heading to twitter and going to #YAsaves. Also, check out this blog post by Nicole from Word For Teens – I could not say it better so I won’t bother .

 

So instead, this Sunday I will post about a new “challenge” I am doing.

I have too many books. Three shelves, with two of the double stacked, plus three stacks of arcs. At least two shelves are books that I will read once and then give away. I just need to read them! Lucky for me, there is now a challenge to help me!

It is hosted by Pop Culture Junkie

This is how it will work:

Starting today June 4th until September 4th do whatever you need to to get rid of some books, I don’t care where they go, donate them, sell them, pass them on, have a contest. Whatever you feel comfortable with (please don’t tell me if they go in the garbage though I might cry!) and keep track of the number of books that are no longer in your possession.

At the end of the challenge and give final tally, we will do this on the honor system. And whoever has gotten rid of the most books over the summer will win a book (Under $20 and something I can easily purchase in the US, and US only for shipping), yes totally against our point I know, but that’s how I roll!

So here is how I will do it. I will stop using my library other than the book i am currently reading and the three I have on hold.

I <3 my library, but it keeps me from reading what I have. So from now until the end of this challenge I will read my own books…and then give them away. Arcs will all be giveaways on here (unless they have been promised to others). Others will be a mix of giveaways, selling on Amazon, and donating to schools or other places.

My goal is to get rid of 35 books!

52-52-52 Challenge

Amanda over at The Zen Leaf has started this challenge and I am going to join!

Her e are the rules and goals.

The goal of the challenge is simple. It will go from June 1st, 2011 to June 1st, 2012 – 52 weeks. In those 52 weeks, challenge participants will try to 1) read one book each week and 2) lose one pound a week. If all goes well, a year’s challenge will lead to 52 books read and 52 pounds lost in 52 weeks. It’s that simple!

Five important notes on the challenge:

1. You don’t have to be a book blogger to join, or even a blogger at all. This challenge is open to anyone. Of course, having a blog or tumblr or any other place to write about your journey, while not required, is definitely helpful, both to you and to us all!
2. I know many book bloggers naturally read well over 52 books every year. You can always choose to challenge yourself to read two books a week, or three, or whatever works for your level. Make the challenge work for you! There are also book bloggers out there who struggle to read a book a week, though, so hopefully this will make a good challenge for them!
3. If you don’t have 52 pounds to lose, then you are free to adjust the challenge to work with your health needs. If you need to lose 10 or 20 pounds, great! Go for that! If you don’t need to lose weight at all and instead want to work for a specific health and fitness goal, that’s fine too! The main point of the goal is to help us all get healthier.
4. If you don’t lose a pound one week, that doesn’t mean you’ve failed the challenge or should give up! Even if you don’t lose as quickly, you can still lose. If, at the end of the challenge, you’ve lost 10 pounds instead of 52, you’ve still done something wonderful for your body. The pound-per-week is just something to try for, not a do-it-or-fail clause in this challenge.
5. You may join the challenge at any time. Of course, if you join next March, you can’t expect to lose 52 pounds by June 1st. The focus is instead on one book and one pound per week for the duration of the challenge

I don’t have 52 pounds to lose, so my goal is 20 pounds in a year.  I am going to use Sparkpeople.com to help, since it has been helping me for a while now with the community, the articles,a and raising my awareness.

I am really excited about this and hope to blog about how I am doing every couple weeks!

Thank you so much Amanda for hosting!

1001 Challenge Reviews

ONce you post a review, put the link into Mr Linky – can’t wait to get some recommendations!