A-Z (Title) Challenge - 2013

[Trisha]

This seems to be a pretty popular challenge, so I will throw it out there for our group. Lets see how long it takes to read a book whose title starts with each letter of the alphabet. Start a post for yourself and keep adding to it throughout the year, you can even start with the book you are reading right now! Lets see how many people can finish this challenge!

[Trisha]

A:
B:
C: "The Constant Princess" - Phillipa Gregory
D:
E:"Everneath" - Brodi Ashton
F:
G:
H: "Howard's End" E.M. Forster
I:
J:
K:"The Time Keeper" - Mitch Albom
L:
M: "Mr. Penumbra's 24 Hr Bookstore" - Robin Slone
N:
O: "The Other Boleyn Girl" - Philippa Gregory
P: "Palimpsest" - Catherynne Valente
Q:
R: "The Remains of the Day" - Kazuo Ishiguro
S: "The Selection" - Kiera Cass
T: "A Tale Dark and Grimm" - Adam Gidwitz
U:
V:"The Casual Vacancy" - J.K. Rowling
W: "The Perks of Being a Wallflower"
X:
Y:
Z:

[Katy, Quarterly Long Reads]

Okay this sounds good, I'm in.



A: Another Piece of My Heart
B: The Black Prism
C: The Cloud Roads
D: Dreamfever
E: The Splendid Table's How to Eat Supper
F: Surely You're Joking, Mr. Feynman!
G: 10 Great Souls I Want to Meet in Heaven
H: The Story of Holly and Ivy
I: Increase In Learning - Spiritual Patterns For Obtaining Your Own Answers
J: Thomas Jefferson: The Art of Power
K: Keeping the Castle
L: The Life of Our Lord: Written for His Children During the Years 1846 to 1849
M: The Man Who Loved Only Numbers: The Story of Paul Erdös and the Search for Mathematical Truth
N: LEFT Neglected
O: The Ocean at the End of the Lane
P: Princess of the Silver Woods
Q: Beauty Queens
R: To Ride Hell’s Chasm
S: The Secret Keeper
T: The True Story of Hansel and Gretel
U: UnSouled
V: Code Name Verity
W: Wool Omnibus
X: Xingu
Y: Young Miles
Z: The Blue Zones: Lessons for Living Longer From the People Who've Lived the Longest

[Bob, Short Story Classics]

OK!
I'm in too, (gulp)
Mine won't be all classics and I will use the second letter of the title when the first is (The) Fair?

A: *The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho Finished 2/6/13
B: *The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath Finished 5/1/13
C: *Cat’s Cradle by Kurt VonnegutFinished 2/3/13
D: *The Dead Secret by Wilkie Collins Finished 4/7/13
E: *Ethan Frome by Edith Wharton Finished 1/23/13
F: *Farewell, My Lovely by Raymond Chandler Finished 1/27/13
G: *The Giver by Lois Lowry Finished 2/16/13
H: The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien Finished 1/6/13
I: *The Imperial Cruise: A Secret History of Empire and War by James Bradley Finished 4/9/13
J: Journey to the Center of the Earth by Jules Verne Finished 6/23/13
K: *King Leopold's Ghost: A Story of Greed, Terror and Heroism in Colonial Africa by Adam Hochschild Finished 4/28/13
L: *The Last Stand: Custer, Sitting Bull, and the Battle of the Little Bighorn by Nathaniel Philbrick Finished 5/7/13
M: *Major Pettigrew's Last Stand by Helen Simonson Finished 3/31/13
N: Not a Penny More, Not a Penny Less by Jeffrey Archer Finished 11/16/13
O: *One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest by Ken Kesey Finished 1/11/13
P: Pied Piper by Nevil Shute Finished 6/13/13
Q: The Quickie by James Patterson Finsihed 5/19/13
R: *The Road by Cormac McCarthy Finished 2/15/13
S: * The Scarlet Pimpernel by Emmuska Orczy Finished 1/19/13
T: *Tobacco Road by Erskine Caldwell Finished 2/18/13
U: Up at the Villa by W. Somerset Maugham Finished 1/30/13
V: Valhalla Rising by Clive Cussler Finished 5/31/13
W: *With Wings Like Eagles: A History of the Battle of Britain by Michael Korda Finished 2/11/13
X: Xingu by Edith Wharton Finished 12/28/13
Y: The Yellow Claw by Sax Rohmer Finished 12/17/13
Z: Doctor Zhivago by Boris Pasternak Finished 7/4/13

I’m not sure this is the way most people have planned to work this challenge, but I thought I would list my books first. I will post the date read as I read them. The ones with “*” are books I already planned on reading before this challenge was listed. The other are books to fill the alphabet, will need to find one for X.

[Katy, Quarterly Long Reads]

Bob wrote: "OK!
I'm in too, (gulp)
Mine won't be all classics and I will use the second letter of the title when the first is (The) Fair?
:..."

Good Point, I think that is fair and might be necessary. What's the ruling on this Trisha?

[Larisa]

I'm in too! Should we go in order?
A:
B:
C:
D:
E:
F:
G:
H:
I:
J:
K:
L:
M:
N:
O:
P:
Q:
R:
S:
T:
U:
V:
W:
X:
Y:
Z:

[Annina]

I'm in too!!

A: Appointment with Death by Agatha Christie
B: Brida by Paulo Coelho
C: The Cuckoo's Calling by Robert Galbraith
D: Death in Venice by Thomas Mann
E: This is How it Ends by Kathleen MacMahon
F: Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins
G: Goodbye to Berlin by Christopher Isherwood
H: The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
I: Ilonen talo by Kreetta Onkeli
J: Ja vuoret kaikuvat (finnish tittle) ( And the Mountains Echoed by Khaled Hosseini )
K: Kuplissa : novelleja by Claire Castillon
L:
M: Moominpappa at Sea by Tove Jansson
N: The Name of the Rose by Umberto Eco
O: Onnen tunti by Anna-Leena Härkönen
P:Pekka Töpöhäntä by Gösta Knutsson
Q:
R: The Reader by Bernhard Schlink
S: Snow by Orhan Pamuk
T: The Boy in the Striped Pajamas by John Boyne
U:
V: The Casual Vacancy by J.K. Rowling
W:
X:
Y:
Z: Z by Vassilis Vassilikos

[Silver]

I have tried one these beofre in another group. I usually never finish but they are fun.


A:
B: The Book of the Dun Cow
C:
D:
E:
F:
G:
H:
I:
J:
K:
L:
M: Mary Barton
N: Nefertiti
O:
P: The Perks of Being a Wallflower
Q:
R: Ragtime
S: Snow
T: Ten Years Later
U:
V:
W: Wise Blood
X:
Y:
Z:

[Trisha]

It's great to see that so many people are interested! Here are the rules:
- The books do not all have to be classics
- You don't have to count words like A, An, As, The, etc...
-And...to help out with those tricky letters, you can use the first letter of any of the words in the title. For example: "The Constant Princess", you cold use T, C, or P. happy reading everyone!

[Trisha]

Oh yeah, you don't have to go in order :-)

[Jenny]

A: The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes 03/22/13
B: A Big Hand For The Doctor 02/03/13
C: A Christmas Carol 12/25/12
D: Dead and Gone 04/12/13
E: An Election 02/27/13
F: Flagrant Conduct: The Story of Lawrence v. Texas 01/04/13
G: Gods of Risk 04/11/13
H: How I Proposed to My Wife: An Alien Sex Story 05/19/13
I:
J: Judge Sn Goes Golfing 05/18/13
K:
L: The Long Dark Tea-Time of the Soul 05/09/13
M: Moon Over Soho 03/30/13
N:
O: The Old Man and the Sea 01/03/13
P: Paradise Lost 12/28/12
Q:
R: The Roots of Evil 04/23/13
S: Soulless 02/09/13
T: Twist and Shout 03/23/13
U:
V:
W: Wool Omnibus 01/09/13
X:
Y: Yellow Card Man 05/17/13
Z:

[Barbara]

I'll give it a go, but don't really expect to complete it.

A: All but a few, by Joan Aiken. 12/01/2013
B: Bring up the Bodies, by Hilary Mantel
C: Making the cat laugh, by Lynne Truss. 16/01/2013
D: My Dear, I wanted to tell you, by Louisa Young. March 2013
E: The Pinhoe egg, by Diana Wynne Jones. 08/01/2013
F: Flight Behaviour, by Barbara Kingsolver. June 2013
G: The Garden of Evening Mists: Tan Twan Eng 30/01/2013
H:
I:The Ice Queen, by Alice Hoffman. Started 07/02/2013
J: The Trip to Jerusalem, by Edward Marston.
K:
L:
M:Matilda, by Roald Dahl (21/12/12)
N:
O:
P:Problema en Pollensa, by Agatha Christie (19/12/12 - UK style date)
Q: The Man in the Queue, by Josephine Tey.
R: Toby's Room, by Pat Barker
S: The Singing Sands, by Josephine Tey.
T: Un territorio Oscuro, by Val McDermid. March 2013
U: The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry, by Rachel Joyce. July 2013
V:
W: Wild island, by Antonia Fraser. March 2013
X:
Y:
Z:

[Kat]

I've never done this before. Sounds fun. Bring on the books!


A: Adventures of the Scarlet Pimpernel- Baroness Emmuska Orczy (12/25/13)
B: The Big Game-Sandy Schofield (3/11/13)
C: A Child of the Revolution-Baroness Emmuska Orczy (4/17/13)
D: Devil in the Sky- Greg Cox (4/13/13)
E: El Dorado: Further Adventures of the Scarlet Pimpernel-Baroness Emmuska Orczy (12/14/12)
F: The First Sir Percy-Baroness Emmuska Orczy (5/30/13)
G: The Gallant Pimpernel-Baroness Emmuska Orczy (4/17/13)
H: The Heart of the Warrior-John Betancourt (4/30/23)
I: I Will Repay -Baroness Emmusksa Orczy (12/20/12)
J: Jordan: A Hashemite Legacy-Beverly Edwards (10/16/13)
K: King Hussein and the Challenge of Arab Radicalism-Uriel Dann (10/8/13)
L: Lord Tony's Wife-Baroness Emmuska Orczy (12/31/12)
M: The Making of Jordan: Tribes, Colonialism and the Modern State-Yoav Alon (6/8/13)
N: Nineteen Eighty-Four-George Orwell (8/28/13)
O: Our Last Best Chance: The Pursuit of Peace in a Time of Peril-King Abdullah II (6/21/13)
P: Proud Helios-Melissa Scott (4/8/13)
Q: Q-Squared-Peter David (10/14/13)
R: Robinson Crusoe-Daniel Defoe (8/25/13)
S: Sir Percy Leads the Band-Baroness Emmuska Orczy (12/16/12)
T: The Triumph Of The Scarlet Pimpernel-Baroness Emmuska Orczy (4/16/13)
U: Unearthly-Cynthia Hand (9/14/13)
V: Valhalla-Nathan Archer (4/11/13)
W: Way Of The Scarlet Pimpernel-Baroness Emmuska Orczy (1/4/13)
X: Xoe: or Vampires, and Werewolves, and Demons, Oh My!-Sara Roethle (10/15/13)
Y: Youth-J.M. Coetzee (9/16/13)
Z: Zero Sum Game-David Mack (9/11/13)

[Emily]

I'm in too! I've wanted to do this challenge before, but the time lines are always too short - I think a year should be sufficient :-)

A -
B - Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life
C
D - Doomsday Book
E
F
G
H - The Hobbit
I
J - Jane Eyre
K
L - Lone Wolf
M - Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore
N
O - The Omnivore's Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals
P - The Perks of Being a Wallflower
Q
R
S - Stardust
T
U
V
W
X
Y
Z

[Trisha]

Good luck everyone!!

[Bob, Short Story Classics]

Any ideas for the letter X?

[Katy, Quarterly Long Reads]

Bob wrote: "Any ideas for the letter X?"

Try this list

http://www.goodreads.com/list/show/69...

[Trisha]

Kathy wrote: "Bob wrote: "Any ideas for the letter X?"

Try this list

http://www.goodreads.com/list/show/69..."

Thanks Kathy, that's awesome! A list of nothing but "X" titles!

[Brenda]

I'll give this a try.

A:
B:
C: The Crossbones by Patrick Carmen

D:
E:
F:
G:
H:
I:
J:
K:
L:
M:
N:
O:
P:
Q:
R:
S:
T:
U:
V:
W:
X:
Y:
Z:

[Trisha]

How is everyone doing on their challenge? I see quite a few lists filling up fast!

[Sara]

Updated 12/17/13
A:nna Karenina
B:efore I Go To Sleep
C:abin Fever
D:avid Copperfield
E:
F:rankenstein
G:irl, Interrupted
H:ate List
I:nto The Woods
J:
K:
L:ittle Women
M:r.Brown Can Moo Can You?
N:
O:
P:ope Joan
Q:
R:oots by Alex Haley
S:witchcraft
T:he Thorn Birds by Colleen McCullough
U:nion:Gotham City Sirens
V:alley of the Dolls
W:
X:
Y:
Z:

[Mary Ellen]

I'm getting a late start on this, but here goes:


A: Appointment with Death by Agatha Christie
B: The Book Thief by Markus Zusak 3/26/2013
C: Hercule Poirot's Christmas by Agatha Christie 2/27/2013
D: Dubliners by James Joyce
E:
F: Full Dark House by Christopher Fowler 2/18/2013
G:
H: A Short History of the Mass by Alfred McBride
I: The True Icon by Paul Badde
J: The Jewel of Seven Stars by Bram Stoker
K: The Brothers Karamazov by Fyodor Dostoyevsky
L: A Land More Kind than Home by Wiley Cash 2/22/2013
M: A Man Lay Dead by Ngaio Marsh 3/26/2013
N: Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen
O: One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich by Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn 1/29/2013
P: Persuasion by Jane Austen
Q: Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes
R: Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier 4/12/2013
S: The Sun Also Rises by Ernest Hemingway 1/27/2013
T: Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens
U:
V:
W: The Ballad of the White Horse by G.K. Chesterton
X: Xanadu by John Man
Y:
Z:

[Katy, Quarterly Long Reads]

I am getting closer! Only N, O, U, V, X, Y, and Z left.

[Kat]

Great work Kathy!

I have forgotten about mine, haha. Maybe I can go back and fill in the ones I've read if I can find the exact date.

[Trisha]

How's everyone doing on this challenge? I just went back to add the last few books I've read and I see quite a few lists filling up!!

[Mary Ellen]

18 more books to read. I think I need to look over my list again....

[Bob, Short Story Classics]

Finished number 16 yesterday and plan on starting number 17, The Bell Jar tonight.

[Katy, Quarterly Long Reads]

Okay, I've been stuck with the same missing letters for a while now; time to get back on track.

Saw the previews for World War Z with Brad Pitt the other day. Must read the book before I see the movie -- trust me the family will be taking me to that one.

That will be my Z book.

by Max Brooks

http://www.worldwarzmovie.com

[Bob, Short Story Classics]

Twenty Three letters complete, only N, X, and Y left.

[Katy, Quarterly Long Reads]

Bob, how are you doing now?

I've still got N, U, V, X, Y, and Z left.
Picked up my Z book, World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War, but never started it yet.

[Maddie]

Goodness, late in the year but let's see how I did so far:


A
B: The Lovely Bones (Alice Sebold)
C: The Catcher in the Rye (J.D.Salinger)
D
E
F: Frankenstein (Mary Shelley)
G: A Game of Thrones (George R.R. Martin)
H: Here on Earth (Alice Hoffman)
I: Instructions for a Heatwave (Maggie O' Farrell)
J: Journey to the Center of the Earth (Jules Verne)
K
L: Lord of the Flies (William Golding)
M: Manuscript Found in Accra (Paulo Coelho)
N: Neverwhere (Neil Gaiman)
O: Of Mice and Men (John Steinbeck)
P: The Pact (Jodi Picoult)
Q (The Shadow Queen)
R: Rebecca (Daphne du Maurier)
S: Slaughterhouse-Five (Kurt Vonnegut)
T: The Third Angel (Alice Hoffman)
U: A Short History of Tractors in Ukrainian (Marina Lewycka)
V
W: Lone Wolf (Jodi Picoult)
X
Y (The Ysabel Kid)
Z (The Zahir)

Still missing A D E K Q V X Y Z (9). Progress...

[MK]

Hmm, neat. Well, I'll jump in. I'll use the titles I've read in the last few weeks, and build from there.

Editing to update recent reads:
... update, 12/23/2013 - COMPLETE! :-D

A: Around the World in 80 Days*, by Jules Verne - Dec 6, 2013
B: Brave New World*, by Alduous Huxley - Dec 10, 2013
C: Catch-22*, by Joseph Heller - Dec 4, 2013 *Amazon/Audible Whispersync pair
D: Dust, by Hugh Howey - Oct 4, 2013
E: East of Eden, by John Steinbeck - Dec 29, 2013
F: Frankenstein*, by Mary Shelley - Nov 5, 2013
G: Galaxi, Atlantic Island Chronicles 1, by Frederic Shernoff - Dec 12, 2013
H: The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn**, by Mark Twain - Nov 3, 2013
I: An Imperfect Witch, by Debora Geary - Sept 25, 2013
J: The Journey, by J Adams - Dec 12, 2013
K: Kissing Under The Mistletoe, by Bella Andre - Oct 5, 2013
L: Let Me Be The One: The Sullivans, by Bella Andre - mid Sept, 2013
M: Mind Reader, by Vicki Hinze - Dec 13, 2013
N: Northanger Abbey*, by Jane Austen - Dec 10, 2013
O: Orphan Train, by Christina Baker Kline - Sept 24, 2013
P: The Picture of Dorian Gray*, by Oscar Wilde - Dec 26, 2013
Q: The Quill Pen, Michelle Isenhoff - Dec 15, 2013
R: The Riddle of Prague, by Laura DeBruce - Dec 16, 2013
S: Shift Omnibus Edition (Silo, #2), by Hugh Howey - Oct 2, 3013
T: The Turn of the Screw*, by Henry James - Dec 23, 2013
U: The Uncertainty Principle, by Peter Michael Rosenberg - Dec 21, 2013
V: Village Books, by Craig McLay - Dec 19, 2013
W: Wool Omnibus, by Hugh Howey - end Sept, 2013
X: The XY Axis, by Karin Bishop - Dec 19, 2013
Y: The Yellow House, by Patricia Falvey - Dec 23, 2013
Z: Zero Sight, by B. Justin Shier - Dec 18, 2013

*Amazon/Audible Whispersync immersion reading pair
**Audible audio book

[MK]

Done! :-)
Might try to finish The Turn of the Screw, The Picture of Dorian Gray, and East of Eden, swapping out the already read T, P, and E titles ...


12/23 - (0) y
12/21 - (1) u
12/19 - (2) x, v
12/18 - (4) z
12/16 - (5) r
12/15 - (6) q
12/13 - (7) m
12/12 - (8) g, j
12/11 - (10) e
12/10 - (11) n
11/3 - (12) h, p
10/12 - (14) to go

[Katy, Quarterly Long Reads]

Cool. u, v, x, y, and z are the tricky ones.
I actually have ideas for each of them, but just haven't made myself read them yet.

And I am still missing N. Doesn't seem like that should be a hard title letter.

[MK]

I just checked my cloud, I have options available for all those, except Z. There's a Wills Catha Y title :-).

[MK]

Willa*

[Sara]

I have E:J:K:N:O:Q:W:X:Y:Z:[9] to go

x and z are the hardest. I do not have any x or z books.T and A are the most overused letters in book titles.

[Kat]

Finished.

[Katy, Quarterly Long Reads]

Kat wrote: "Finished."

Great job. I am impressed.

[Kat]

I don't recommend the "X" book I read, it was really stupid-but the rest were good.

[Katy, Quarterly Long Reads]

Bummer, I still need a readable x.

[Maddie]

I have a question. Will a graphic novel count for this challenge?

[Connie]

Just joined but here is my list from 2013:

A: My Antonia by Willa Cather. June 11/13
B: The Boy in the Striped Pajamas by John Boyne Nov. 7/13
C: Catcher in the Rye by J. D. Salinger May 23/13
D: Digging to America by Anne Tyler July 21/13
E: The English Patient by Michael Ondaatje Jan. 19/13
F:Friend of my Youth by Alice Munro May 4/13
G: Gone With the Wind by Margaret Mitchell March 23/13
H: Half-Blood Blues by Esi Edugyan July 29/13
I: Inferno by Dan Brown Oct.26/13
J: Lucky Jim by Kingsley Amis March 5/13
K: A Complicated Kindness by Miriam Toews May 31/13
L: the Life of Pi by Yann Martel Jan. 5/13
M: The Moon is Down by John Steinbeck July 10/13
N: Fear Nothing by Dean Koontz Aug.6/13
O: The Orphan Master's Son by Adam Johnson Aug. 23/13
P: Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoevsky Oct. 12/13
Q:
R: The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein Oct. 13/13
S: Someplace to be Flying by Charles de Lint March 11/13
T: A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith March 17/13
U: The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry by Rachel Joyce Oct. 4/13
V:
W: Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel April 30/13
X:
Y: Yarrow by Charles de Lint Jan.12/13
Z:
Missing a few- will be looking at other lists for ideas. This was a fun challenge. I am glad I joined the group. Can't wait for more challenges!

[Vincent]

I'll throw down my list of books from this year. Next year I'll provide a more substantial list during next year's challenge.

A:And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie
B:Bronze Age Warfare by Richard Osgood
C:Camilla by Fanny Burney
D:The Diary and Letters of Madame D'Arblay, Volume I by Fanny Burney
E:
F:Fiddler on the Roof by Joseph Stein
G:The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson
H:How We Decide by Jonah Lehrer
I:
J:Jane Austen - Her Life and Letters - A Family Record by William Austen-Leigh
K:
L:Lord of the Flies by William Golding
M:The Manufacturers Of Literature: Writing And The Literary Marketplace In Eighteenth Century England by George Justice
N:Next by Michael Crichton
O:
P:
Q:
R:
S:Smallpox and the Literary Imagination, 1660 1820 by David E. Shuttleton
T:Timeline by Michael Crichton
U:
V:
W:The Wanderer: or, Female Difficulties by Fanny Burney
X:
Y:
Z:

[Nadia]

A: A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled
B:
C:
D:
E: East of Eden by Steinbeck
F:
G: Gone Girl by Flynn
H:
I:
J:
K: The Kite Runner by Khaled
L:
M: Me Before You by Moyes
N: 1984 by Orwell
O: Orphan Train by Kline
P:
Q:
R: The Road by McCarthy
S:
T: Tinkers by Harding
U:
V:
W:
X:
Y:
Z: The Zahir by Coelho

[Katy, Quarterly Long Reads]

So close, only 5 more books. I am not giving up yet.

[Katy, Quarterly Long Reads]

Only "Z" left. I can do this!

[MK]

Maggie, I'd count it! :-)
Kathy, go go go go! :-)

[Bob, Short Story Classics]

I have completed 25 of 26. Just finished the letter Y and that leaves the letter X. I don't think I will have enough time to find and read a book for the letter X. I'll be short by one book of complete, will try again next year.

[Katy, Quarterly Long Reads]

Bob wrote: "I have completed 25 of 26. Just finished the letter Y and that leaves the letter X. I don't think I will have enough time to find and read a book for the letter X. I'll be short by one book of c..."

Try Xingu. It is really just a novella.

I am reading my Z The Blue Zones: Lessons for Living Longer From the People Who've Lived the Longest book now. Last letter that I need. Next year I am going to try and do the hard letters first off! Already planning my v, x, and z books for 2014.