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I'm honestly hoping to "bump" the number up, but 30 seemed like a reasonable amount when I was considering the challenge. At first, I did 10 -- but I quickly surpassed that amount just reading while bored at work.

For my list, I am avoiding adding anything I read for a class. Also, a large part of my list will be YA literature that I somehow missed reading while growing up that I am returning to, because while I legitimately enjoy YA literature, but I am also "filling in the blanks" so that I can teach my future students better.

Already Read:
1. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
2. Eragon
3. Where the Red Fern Grows
4. Eldest
5. Animal Farm
6. The Boy in the Striped Pajamas
7. The Five People You Meet in Heaven
8. Night
9. Catch-22
10. Furiously Happy: A Funny Book About Horrible Things
11. Brisingr
12. Pride and Prejudice
13. Messenger
14. Son
15. InheritanceFight Club
16. Red Rising
17. The Neverending Story
18. The Game-Players of Titan
19. Middlesex
20. Choke
21. The Book Thief
22. Fight Club
23. Bloody Jack: Being an Account of the Curious Adventures of Mary "Jacky" Faber, Ship's Boy (re-read)
24. Curse of the Blue Tattoo: Being an Account of the Misadventures of Jacky Faber, Midshipman and Fine Lady (re-read)
25. Under the Jolly Roger: Being an Account of the Further Nautical Adventures of Jacky Faber (re-read)
26. In the Belly of the Bloodhound: Being an Account of a Particularly Peculiar Adventure in the Life of Jacky Faber (re-read)
27. Mississippi Jack: Being an Account of the Further Waterborne Adventures of Jacky Faber, Midshipman, Fine Lady, and Lily of the West (re-read)

Currently Reading:
28. The Road

Opinions so far:

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn: (view spoiler)[I think I definitely preferred The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain. The first two-thirds of the book was pretty good, in my opinion, but I struggled to get through the ending because it stopped being as coherent to me. (hide spoiler)]

Eragon and Eldest: (view spoiler)[I'm reading the Inheritance cycle because they are books I wanted to read as a teenager, but was never able to get my hands on. I really enjoyed Eragon, but Eldest was a bit of a drag and was subject to less interesting, slower parts. I'm currently reading Brisingr, which is also subject to these slower parts, but the slower parts are full of more political intrigue that actually interests me. (hide spoiler)]

Where the Red Fern Grows: (view spoiler)[This book was one of those reads that was purely in case one of my future students wants to talk about it. This books ending was horribly depressing, but I think I was just angry at the logic of "God took them away so that we could really stay a family" in terms of the death of the narrator's two dogs. Honestly, if were teaching young children, the book isn't something that I would keep off of the shelf, but it isn't something I would assign for class reading, either. It's a little indoctrinating in terms of religion, and I feel like there are books that are much more relatable. There were good messages about determination and working hard, which is why I would keep it on a general reading shelf, but it's kind of a moot point since I will be teaching children in high school, not elementary or middle school. (hide spoiler)]

Animal Farm:(view spoiler)[ It's a classic allegory for a reason! I'm a little disappointed that it took me so long to read this, as both an English major and someone who owned the book growing up (it was the combination Animal Farm and 1984 book). While I don't often always enjoy books marked as 'classics' - having to read so many of them is probably why my reading list has been stunted for so long - I was legitimately interested in this one. Remember, all animals are equal, but some are more equal than others! (hide spoiler)]

The Boy in the Striped Pajamas: (view spoiler)[I need to watch the movie for this book to see how it compares. While the book is another one that is written for a younger audience, it is really interesting to see WWII from the perspective of a child with things like "Out-With" (or maybe Auf-Mit since they are actually speaking German) instead of Auschwitz. Before reading this book, I think teachers would need to be certain that they have a firm understanding of what is going on in the book. The book's ending seems like it would be awesome for discussion as well. (hide spoiler)]

The Five People You Meet in Heaven: (view spoiler)[This book is narrated beautifully and gives such a satisfying view on Heaven as being a place for you to find answers about your life -- kind of like afterlife therapy. It's a beautiful book, and gives a wonderfully full view of a man's life. I love how the author makes a seemingly insignificant man's story so vivid, and argues with something within everyone that no one person is truly insignificant. I also still need to watch the movie. (hide spoiler)]

Night: (view spoiler)[Read this one because during my high school observations, the entirety of the ninth grade at my school was required to read this. It's a very interesting, visceral tale about WWII, full of anger towards God and humanity. With the horrors that Eliezer sees, I can't particularly blame him, either. There is a lot of speculation about whether this actually happened to Elie Wiesel, and he's not personally clear on it, either, but I do believe the important thing is that, to summarize Wiesel himself, the story is someone's story, and that everything in the book is a perfectly plausible narrative of something that could have happened. (hide spoiler)]

Furiously Happy: A Funny Book About Horrible Things: (view spoiler)[ At first, this book was hilarious. Then there were a few sections where the comedy stopped feeling special to me -- possibly because there were too many comical sections in a row -- and it kind of dragged on. However, after a few sections, particularly the ones about her therapy sessions and her mental health, I was hooked again. This book is very touching, and I even sent a PDF copy to my close friend who struggles with anxiety and depression. (hide spoiler)]

Catch-22: (view spoiler)[I really loved this book! It definitely teeters between ridiculous and deadly serious. Books rarely put me into a state of actual shock, but I reread the chapter where Kid Sampson dies a *few* times because I wanted to be sure that what happened really happened. Sometimes the book "lost" me, but mostly in places where you are supposed to be lost, I think -- Milo's talk about sales and purchasing left me befuddled!

All in all, I think it's a great book. I almost wish it had continued just a little bit farther instead of ending where it did, but Yossarian is one of those characters that I truly think will stick with me for a long, LONG time. (hide spoiler)]

Brisingr: (view spoiler)[ This was my favorite book of the Inheritance cycle so far. I like that Paolini expanded his descriptions of the races by going more in-depth about Urgals and Dragons, and I feel like there are enough interesting turns in the novel that helped propel me through the repetitive or unnecessary scenes. Truthfully, I feel that Paolini sometimes devolves into too much detail, and that he could do with quite a bit of condensing, but the story is interesting besides. Other than that, my main issue with the book series is the reoccuring theme of people being doomed to follow in their parent's footsteps, but perhaps the last book, Inheritance, will break the cycle. (hide spoiler)]

Pride and Prejudice: (view spoiler)[Admittedly, it took me a while to get interested in this novel. Jane Austen's writing style is very good, but because it was written in 1819, the style is extremely formal and feels dry to modern readers. The first hundred or so pages drag on a little bit, and the book had to outright say what was wrong with Elizabeth's family for me to understand why their family was regarded to be so low-bred.

However, the book truly picks up speed about halfway through, and the book that had taken me over a week to read the first half of was finished in less than two days. Austen's characters are interesting and well-developed, particularly Elizabeth herself, and Austen does a fantastic job of showing her thought process throughout the novel as she learns more and more about her love interest. (hide spoiler)]

Messenger: (view spoiler)[This book is a really interesting continuation of the Giver Quartet, and finally, the characters are starting to come together and their stories are interweaving. Lowry's world intersects in a completely new location in this book, and the way that each of the main characters from the previous two books know each other, as well as their interactions, is truly fascinating. (hide spoiler)]

Son: (view spoiler)[This is a great ending to the Giver quartet, and Lois Lowry very carefully ties each main character to each other. The book's climax was a little short-lived, but otherwise, it was a very satisfying book. (hide spoiler)]

Inheritance: (view spoiler)[This book is a fantastic finish to the series. Paolini puts as much thought into the book's resolution as he does the actual climax of the novel. The book finishes in a way that shows how compromises, pacts, relationships, and politics will shape the future of the country and the relationships between races, and Paolini puts just as much thought into races such as the Urgals as he does the humans and elves. The book also shows the a very thoughtful conclusion to the prophecy written in the first book of the series. Paolini successfully manages to give the world a feeling of openness -- that while this section of history is done, new things are going to be happening, and there is a LOT of space for expanding the series and world without encroaching on 'ruining' the series.

My major critique of the book is that there are some sections that would have been better summarized than completely written out, as some of the minor battles had a lot of blow-by-blow action that was unnecessary. For me, the politics are the most interesting part of the book, so the beginning and the ending went by a lot quicker than the middle of the book did. (hide spoiler)]

Red Rising: (view spoiler)[I had some issues with this book. For one, I have to suspend my disbelief at their society to enjoy the book. For another, I don't feel that Brown does the beginning of the book justice, and you definitely feel like you're slogging through the first section of the book as much as Brown probably slogged through writing it. The rest of the book, the part that reads as being Hunger Games-y, is legitimately interesting and worth reading. I'm interested to read the rest of the series, but I hope that it keeps the momentum of where the first book leaves off. (hide spoiler)]

The Neverending Story: (view spoiler)[The Neverending Story was one of my favorite movies as a child, and I was hyped up to read the parts of the book that weren't covered by the movie. However, it seems that the writer of the movie script did a really good job of ending the story before the novelty and intrigue wears off. There is so much happening at the end of the book that mostly contributes to the overall feeling of Fantastica, rather than the actual plot, that I found myself skimming through much of the last fourth of the novel. I feel as if Ende could have gone into more detail about less of the book, and it would have held my interest a little more.

I did enjoy reading the parts that were in the movie in greater detail, particularly in terms of learning more about the races that the movie only shows visually but never gets to fully describe. Ende is certainly very creative, but just a tad long-winded. (hide spoiler)]

Middlesex: (view spoiler)[I really adored this book. Eugenides' main character, Cal, has a great way of romancing the past and present, and the narrator tells the story beautifully. So many passages stick out in my brain, and way the story is told somehow makes even the darker themes of the novel beautiful and deeply affecting. My one critique is that I wish that this book was a little longer and spent more time on Cal redefining his identity. (hide spoiler)]

The Book Thief: (view spoiler)[In a novel where so much emphasis is put on the power, beauty, and horror of words, one would expect the narration to be absolutely top notch. The Book Thief certainly delivers with a narrator that is a humanized spirit of Death who lovingly describes the world of the living. The book is compelling and touching, depressing and hopeful all at the same time. It's very character-driven, and Zusak creates people who are interesting despite being mundane. (hide spoiler)]

Choke: (view spoiler)[Palahniuk combines sex addiction, kidnapping, and insanity in a very compelling way. Palahniuk has a unique style of description, and his writing is definitely very solid, aside from a few terms. However, a few things prevent me from thinking that this is a truly "good" novel. Sometimes, it's the language ("dog," really?). That aside, larger part is the implausibility of the main character's lifestyle that bother me a bit.

First off, he scams people by pretending to choke to death in public, and then the saviors kindly continuously donate money to him when he writes that he needs money? I could believe that this kind of a scam would work a handful of times, but not for any truly substantial amount of money. I feel like in a real world application, the "overhead" would be wayyy more than what he'd be getting back -- truthfully, I expect more "I saved your life and now you're begging me for money on top of that??" responses than the kindly grandparents routine he seems to get instead.

The other factor of implausibility comes from the constant string of women lining up to have sex with him -- sure, I could see it at the sex-a-holics meetings. I could see it at his work. But how attractive is this guy that he gets so many strangers in so many places just begging for sex with him? How many sex-a-holics can logistically be in the one area that he lives in? (hide spoiler)]

Fight Club: (view spoiler)[Though I enjoyed the book, this is one of the very few times where I think that it's almost negligible -- up until the ending scene, at least. Honestly, you could watch the movie, pause it in the last five-ten minutes, read the last two chapters, and you would probably have about the same experience as if you had just read the book all the way through. The director did an excellent job, but I prefer the book's ending. There were probably some lines that didn't make it in the movie from the book, but most of the really iconic ones are in both.

That being said, the book is a little more "responsible" about it's ending than the movie. I prefer the book to the movie in that regard, because the movie gives you an epilogue -- you know he's haunted by the violent machismo of Tyler Durden, and you can feel that the author doesn't agree. It's ominous and horrific that people that Tyler trained are out in this novel's world, carrying out Project Mayhem. (hide spoiler)]