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Happy New Year everyone! I set my goal for 50 books this year, but I might up it to 75 later on. I didn't join any challenges last year, but I'm going to try to this year! I'll post monthly updates of books I've read here!

I decided to up my goal to 75 after all! I'm also going to join the 1st Quarter Challenge: The Chinese Zodiac for January-March (6 out of the 12 "categories").

January Update:

Started off my 2014 challenge with some good reads- completed books include:
The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde
Tales of the Jazz Age
Saving Francesca
The Island of Lost Maps: A True Story of Cartographic Crime
Brave New World

My favorite of that group is definitely Brave New World- absolutely loved it! I gave Tenth of December a try this month and couldn't get through it, it just wasn't my style. It's counted on my book tracker, but I'm not counting it towards my goal of 75. Another book on there I'm not counting based on size of book is Underdogs to Wonderdogs: Fresno State's Road to Omaha and the College World Series Championship- it was just a fun short read for me (my alma mater's run for the College World Series). I am also taking part in two challenges- I will post those and books I'm counting towards them right now.

1. The Horse. On January 31, 2014, it becomes the Year of the Horse! Horses like being the center of attention. Read a book where the main character is famous OR read a memoir about or a biography of a celebrity.

2. The Goat. Home is where Goats feel the most comfortable. Read a book that takes place in the country you were born in.

3. The Monkey. Monkeys are the masters of practical jokes. Read a humorous book.

4. The Rooster. Roosters tend to "tell it like it is." Read a non-fiction book.

5. The Dog. While loyal and faithful, Dogs have trouble finding mates. Read a book that contains a troubled romance.

6. The Pig. Pigs love to have fun but tend to prefer spending to saving. Read a book you have purchased (rather than borrowed).

7. The Rat. Constantly seeking knowledge, Rats are curious and clever. Read a book that teaches you something. The Island of Lost Maps: A True Story of Cartographic Crime

8. The Ox. Oxen aren't very sociable and prefer life-long friendships to casual acquaintances. Read a book in which the main character could be described as an introvert.

9. The Tiger. Tigers love to be challenged. Read a book you find challenging in some way maybe because of its length, style, or subject matter. Brave New World

10. The Rabbit. Rabbits tend to enjoy meeting people from different places and learning about different cultures. Read a book about a culture not your own.

11. The Dragon. The Dragon is often considered to be the strongest sign, and the only one that is a mythical animal. Read a book that contains a mythical or paranormal creature.

12. The Snake. Snakes work hard but tend to be easily bored. To prevent boredom, read a short book (i.e., one with fewer than 100 pages). Underdogs to Wonderdogs: Fresno State's Road to Omaha and the College World Series Championship

3 of 6 completed as of 1/31/14

RECOMMENDED BY READING CHALLENGERS
Duration: January 1 - December 31, 2014

Our group has its very own Listopia! Each member can add up to five books to the list but can vote for as many already on the list as he or she would like. Note: if a book is not the first in a series and requires that one read the previous book(s) first, please do not add it to the list. Books read for group reads will automatically be added.

For this challenge, set a goal for how many of these books you would like to read. You know they'll be good because your fellow reading challengers have recommended them!

Potential books for this challenge:

The Hunger Games
The Book Thief
Room
1984
Fahrenheit 451
Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore
Neverwhere 2/7/14
Divergent 6/26/14
The Cuckoo's Calling
Les Misérables
Tell the Wolves I'm Home
The Little Lady Agency
Atonement
Saving Francesca 1/20/14
How I Came to Sparkle Again 6/19/14
Dark Places 6/17/14
Sarah's Key
The Elegance of the Hedgehog
The Time Traveler's Wife
The Thirteenth Tale
The Lovely Bones
Catch-22


5 of 8 completed as of 1/31/14

February update:

Slow month for reading :( I only got two books finished and both were for book clubs that I'm a part of. I finished Neverwhere and The World's Strongest Librarian: A Memoir of Tourette's, Faith, Strength, and the Power of Family- they were okay reads. I enjoyed The World's Strongest Librarian more than I did Neverwhere- I just couldn't get into the urban fantasy world of Neverwhere.

Between both books I've been reading The Power of One, a very powerful, insightful novel. I highly recommend it for anyone looking for a great read. It's very lengthy (although it doesn't seem long when you read it). I didn't enjoy having to put it down to read my book club picks, but am happy to have finally returned to it!

Not much has changed on my challenges- again, because I got held up reading The Power of One and my book club picks, and studying for the CSET- I haven't been able to accomplish as much reading as I would have liked, but hopefully that all changes in March! Happy reading everyone!

March update:

The month of March was pretty good as far as reading goes- started off by finally finishing The Power of One! It took me about two and half weeks to get through this one between book club picks and just being busy overall but was so pleased with it! It is now one of my all time favorite books! Aside from that book, I added The Choice, I Am the Messenger, Daring Greatly: How the Courage to Be Vulnerable Transforms the Way We Live, Love, Parent, and Lead, Lady Susan, and Disaster! The Great San Francisco Earthquake and Fire of 1906 to my "Read" list. It was a lot of fun to read about the 1906 earthquake/fire of San Francisco- the author (Dan Kurzman) did a great job of bringing everything to life throughout the book. This brings my total to 13 for the year (of 75).

As far as challenges go, I finished the Chinese Zodiac (1st Quarter) challenge with a few days to spare. Haven't made any headway on the Yearly Challenge but plan to get to that once summer hits. I also joined the #readwomen2014 quarterly challenge that will run until the end of June- plan to find 6 new female authors for that challenge. Happy reading everyone!

Started a few lengthy reads this past month, so another short set for April, but some really great reads starting with Stones from the River by Ursula Hegi- absolutely fantastic read! Anyone looking for a World War 2/Holocaust book should check this one out- by far one of the best in that genre I've read! I also finished Easy on the Eyes, Scarlett, and Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet. Hotel was a really great read- I really enjoyed the Pacific side of WW2 and the Asian views on the time period.

I've only added one author to my #readwomen2014 challenge (Ursula Hegi- Stones from the River), but have some good authors set aside for that challenge once I get through Ronald Reagan's Autobiography.

The month of May gave me a chance to finish one lengthy read and get some smaller novels done. This month I finished The Swiss Family Robinson, The Paris Architect, An American Life, The Secret Rescue: An Untold Story of American Nurses and Medics Behind Nazi Lines, Dash & Lily's Book of Dares, The Art Forger, Deception Point, and The Secret Holocaust Diaries: The Untold Story of Nonna Bannister. All in all, this puts me at 25 of 75 for the year!

Still at work on those challenges- haven't gotten much done with the Yearly Challenge (Recommended by Readers) but will get some good ones done this summer. I have found 7 so far for the #readwomen2014 (aiming for 15 new female authors- might bump it up later), we have the option to make this a yearly challenge so I went ahead with that.

Hope you all are finding some good reads out there!

Yay for summer reading time! I got to a few great books this month and got back on track for my goal of 75 books this year. This month I read The Professor, The Namesake, American Wife, Dark Places, How I Came to Sparkle Again, Enchantment: The Life of Audrey Hepburn, Divergent, Insurgent, and Allegiant. I'm now at 34 of 75.

I was really looking forward to reading the Divergent series after seeing the preview for the movie (need to watch the movie now that I've read the books). As a whole, I thought the series was really interesting- it was a different concept with the different factions based on personality distinctions and it was neat how each faction had its own role in society (government, education, peace, security, innovation). The books by themselves though were a bit weak for me- I don't know if it was the teenage angst that bothered me or the vague answers that weren't really covered until the last book- but as a whole I thought the series was quite good.

I got up to 11 new female authors I believe in the #readwomen2014 challenge. This one started out as a quarterly challenge but they are now making it a yearly challenge. Some of my favorites so far have been Ursula Hegi, Melina Marchetta, and Kaya McLaren.

I'm also about half way done with the Recommended by Readers Challenge (yearly)- was able to get a few of those done this month to catch up with that one (see my 5th post for an update).

Happy reading everyone!

I had a very busy July in terms of finishing books, not necessarily good books but definitely added to my goal, which I need to alter my numbers- forgot that re-reads don't count :(

This month I was able to finish The Taming of the Shrew, The Orchardist, Catch-22, The Help, Sharp Objects, The Girls' Guide to Hunting and Fishing, A Hard Light, Teachers Have It Easy: The Big Sacrifices And Small Salaries Of America's Teachers, Romeo and Juliet, and Macbeth. Several of these were re-reads, and over the past 7 months I have quite a few re-reads, so instead of being 44 of 75 (as my ticker shows) I am 35 of 75.

Of the group of books for this month, my favorite would have to be Sharp Objects. Gillian Flynn is such a captivating writer. Her second novel- Dark Places- was a bit to gruesome/graphic for me, but her ability to write such suspenseful novels makes for a fun read! Catch-22 was a very difficult novel for me to get through, and I will admit I skimmed through quite a bit of it. It was difficult to get used to Heller's style of writing and the disjointed plot lines, but overall I enjoyed the parts that I was able to understand. I see why the books is so celebrated and am planning on attempting to read the book in full again in a few years.

At the end of August I will be starting a Teaching Credential program, so I'm sure I won't be able to get as much read as I've been able to, but hopefully I can still meet my goal of 75 books for the year! Hope everyone is doing well!

I got behind on my updates because of my Credential Program, so here is August and September! I didn't get to as many books in September as I did in August, but I got to read some quality books that I really enjoyed.

August: Jane Austen - Her Life and Letters - A Family Record, The Aviator's Wife, The Psychology of Harry Potter: An Unauthorized Examination Of The Boy Who Lived, The Cuckoo's Calling, Neil Armstrong: A Life of Flight, The Rosie Project, Behind the Beautiful Forevers: Life, Death, and Hope in a Mumbai Undercity, The Care and Handling of Roses with Thorns

September: To Kill a Mockingbird, Life After Life, The Sign of the Beaver, The Things They Carried

I finished the #readwomen2014 challenge and am still working on the Recommended by Readers challenge, I think I have one or two more to go. The credential program is keeping me busy but I'm still finding time to read!

October update:

Starting to get really busy with my credential program, but Thanksgiving break and winter break is right around the corner! If I can survive all that I need to get done, I will finally get some quality reading time back!

For this month, I completed Major Pettigrew's Last Stand, The Greatest Generation, Brain on Fire: My Month of Madness, and Madame Bovary.

I really enjoyed Brain on Fire , that was probably my favorite book of the month. This also completes my Recommended by Readers challenge, although I think I have a few more I can add to that challenge before the year is up.

November update:

I'm in the home stretch for the semester! One more week and I'll have a nice long break :)

For November, I actually got quite a bit done, considering I was busy with different papers and assignments. I finished When I Found You, Wonder, Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking, The Madman's Daughter, The Little Lady Agency, and Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore.

I had heard so many great things about Wonder, and I'm glad I moved it up on my TBR list- it was wonderful! Such a great read, and I know the students in my student teaching class (5th grade) really enjoyed it as well. Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore was also a fun read with a great message at the end of the book. Good month of reading in my book! Hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving!

Final update for 2014:

I didn't quite hit my goal, but I came so close!! For December I finished Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close, Dracula, The Thirteenth Tale, Inside of a Dog: What Dogs See, Smell, and Know, The Supremes at Earl's All-You-Can-Eat, Of Mice and Men, The Christmas Train, A Clockwork Orange, Chose the Wrong Guy, Gave Him the Wrong Finger, and Flowers for Algernon.

Of the books I completed, Dracula, The Thirteenth Tale, The Supremes at Earl's All-You-Can-Eat, and Flowers for Algernon were by far my favorites! While I read well over 75 books in 2024, I fell short of the books that I counted towards my goal and ended with 74! I'm looking forward to a great 2015 and wish you all the best in your challenges!