Mount TBR 2013 Reading Challenge discussion
Level 5: Mt. Kilamanjaro (60)
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YAY! A girl after my own heart! Even though I'm not specifically tackling my TBL queues for this challenge, I love audiobooks and have quite a backlist of my own!
I listened to Odd Thomas a few years ago and really liked it! I first I was wary of trying a Dean Koontz novel as I had gotten the impression that he was into horror schlock, but I was pleasantly surprised to encounter a genuinely engaging story :-) David Aaron Baker is the perfect example of a narrator embodying the character so completely that I can't imagine anyone else taking on the series! I really liked Forever Odd and Brother Odd as well, but I admit that Odd Hours was such a disappointment to me that I haven't bothered with Odd Apocalypse and probably won't continue with the series. I felt that with Odd Hours, Koontz got a little too enigmatic and that he had abandoned the core or essence of who Odd was. And too, David Aaron Baker couldn't quite meet the challenge of creating new character voices so he recycled some of the ones from the first three books and; there were a few noticeable mispronunciations of common words. :-/
The Dead Trilogy (by Adrian McKinty) was in my Personal Pantheon of All-Time Great Audiobooks for years! Of the three, the first one Dead I Well May Be is the strongest, but ultimately the whole is greater than the sum of its parts! If you're wondering, The Dead Trilogy got bumped out of my Pantheon by another one of Gerard Doyle's narrations, The Ghosts of Belfast (a.k.a. The Twelve in the U.K.) by Stuart Neville.
Oooh, and Shantaram! That one is still in my Pantheon! I'm in love with Humphrey Bower/Lin! I have to admit that that book spoiled me for any other book set in India, even those written by native Southeast Asians! Shantaram was long, but I didn't want it to ever end!
For myself, today I'm wrapping up Splendors and Glooms (by Laura Amy Schlitz; narrated by Davina Porter) and "After the Fall" (by Arthur Miller; performed by a full cast starring Anthony Lapaglia and Amy Brenneman) and then next week I'll start Bangkok Tattoo (second in the Sonchai Jitpleecheep series by John Burdett; narrated by Paul Boehmer.) :-)
Looking forward to tracking your progress up Mount Kilamanjaro
I listened to Odd Thomas a few years ago and really liked it! I first I was wary of trying a Dean Koontz novel as I had gotten the impression that he was into horror schlock, but I was pleasantly surprised to encounter a genuinely engaging story :-) David Aaron Baker is the perfect example of a narrator embodying the character so completely that I can't imagine anyone else taking on the series! I really liked Forever Odd and Brother Odd as well, but I admit that Odd Hours was such a disappointment to me that I haven't bothered with Odd Apocalypse and probably won't continue with the series. I felt that with Odd Hours, Koontz got a little too enigmatic and that he had abandoned the core or essence of who Odd was. And too, David Aaron Baker couldn't quite meet the challenge of creating new character voices so he recycled some of the ones from the first three books and; there were a few noticeable mispronunciations of common words. :-/
The Dead Trilogy (by Adrian McKinty) was in my Personal Pantheon of All-Time Great Audiobooks for years! Of the three, the first one Dead I Well May Be is the strongest, but ultimately the whole is greater than the sum of its parts! If you're wondering, The Dead Trilogy got bumped out of my Pantheon by another one of Gerard Doyle's narrations, The Ghosts of Belfast (a.k.a. The Twelve in the U.K.) by Stuart Neville.
Oooh, and Shantaram! That one is still in my Pantheon! I'm in love with Humphrey Bower/Lin! I have to admit that that book spoiled me for any other book set in India, even those written by native Southeast Asians! Shantaram was long, but I didn't want it to ever end!
For myself, today I'm wrapping up Splendors and Glooms (by Laura Amy Schlitz; narrated by Davina Porter) and "After the Fall" (by Arthur Miller; performed by a full cast starring Anthony Lapaglia and Amy Brenneman) and then next week I'll start Bangkok Tattoo (second in the Sonchai Jitpleecheep series by John Burdett; narrated by Paul Boehmer.) :-)
Looking forward to tracking your progress up Mount Kilamanjaro
Tanya/dog eared copy wrote: "The Dead Trilogy got bumped out of my Pantheon by another one of Gerard Doyle's narrations, The Ghosts of Belfast (a.k.a. The Twelve in the U.K.) by Stuart Neville. "Oh yes! The Ghosts of Belfast is another great book. Very similar to The Dead Trilogy .
Tanya/dog eared copy wrote: "YAY! A girl after my own heart! Even though I'm not specifically tackling my TBL queues for this challenge, I love audiobooks and have quite a backlist of my own!I listened to Odd Thomas a few ye..."
Tanya and Stephanie - Thanks for your messages.
I hadn't seen the acronym "TBL" before. : )
I listened to Odd Thomas earlier this year - but it was a book acquired before 2013 so I am counting it. I am trying desperately to tackle my acquired books this year but I am so distractible... Hopefully this challenge will help me to keep my focus.
Odd Thomas was recommended to me by my Mother-in-Law and by a whole host of other people and I enjoyed it... but I didn't LOVE it enough to commit to the series. Perhaps I read it at the wrong time for me? As I think about it now, I can't actually remember it at all well.
I am thoroughly enjoying Dead I Well May Be and I own the series so I am already committed to it. I recently finished Shantaram and am struck by the similarities of the prison escape and near-death experiences that the characters in both of these books face. I would not have imagined the books would be akin.
The narrator of Dead has such a matter-of-fact way of speaking. It's particularly well-suited for the cheekier lines in this story.
So much for shrinking my TBR list... I'm adding the Ghosts of Belfast now.:-/
Kimberly wrote: "So much for shrinking my TBR list... I'm adding the Ghosts of Belfast now.:-/"
Aw well... its a happy habit!
I'm starting Upstaged: A Gus Legarde Mystery today. It's an after-acquired book so I'm not counting it towards my climb up Kilamanjaro - but I'm feeling pleased with my progress so far!
Finished another after-acquired book yesterday: The Silver Linings PlaybookI'm back to tackling my TBR today.
I'm officially half way up Mount Kilimanjaro!
I'm going to read 2 after-acquired books this month so my progress will slow...
I DID IT!!! I'M DONE!!! WAHOOOOOOO!I'm definitely in for next year. : )
Christine wrote: "Kimberly wrote: "I DID IT!!! I'M DONE!!! WAHOOOOOOO!I'm definitely in for next year. : )"
Wow, great going ...."
Thanks! : )
message 15:
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C. (Never msg. Just comment! Email if private.)
(last edited Nov 03, 2013 09:00AM)
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It feels good, doesn't it? This is higher than I thought I'd rise but I proceeded to summit Mount El Toro as well. Keep counting those novels.
Thank you Susan and C - I'll keep counting here as I rise into the atmosphere above Kilimanjaro. I don't have enough pre-acquired books to build Mt Toro.
message 17:
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C. (Never msg. Just comment! Email if private.)
(last edited Nov 03, 2013 01:43PM)
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Do call me Carolyn. :) In one of my threads, I'm going to invite snapshots of people's physical stashes. You'll get a kick out of we who have.... um.... unread material exceeding 75!
Mod
I'm definitely in for next year. : )"
Congratulations! Wahoooooo, indeed!!
Mount TBR 2013 Reading Challenge
Books mentioned in this topic
Snow Flower and the Secret Fan (other topics)What Is the What (other topics)
A Breath of Snow and Ashes (other topics)
The Fiery Cross (other topics)
Drums of Autumn (other topics)
More...
I think I've finally located and catalogued all my books so I should be done adding to my committed TBR list.
(I NEED this challenge!)
Duration: 1.1.13 - 31.12.13
Progress: 60/60 (100%) I DID IT!!!!!!
Read:
1. Easy (2/1/13) ★★★
2. Happy Ever After (5/1/13) ★★★
3. Crossed (7/1/13) ★★
4. What I Did for Love (15/1/13) ★★★
5. Just Kids (19/1/13) ★★★★
6. Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail (24/1/13) ★★★★
7. Odd Thomas (29/1/13) ★★★★
8. Defending Jacob (3/2/13) ★★★★
9. Me Before You (7/2/13) ★★★★★
10. Snow Flower and the Secret Fan (12/2/13) ★★★
11. The Future of Us (13/2/13) ★★★
12. Guts: The Endless Follies and Tiny Triumphs of a Giant Disaster (15/2/13) ★★★
13. Virgin River (17/2/13)★★★
14. What Is the What (25.2.13) ★★★★
15. Escape from Hat (in print) (19.4.13) ★★★
16. Shantaram (9.3.13) ★★★★
17. In the Woods (15.3.13) ★★★
18. Dead I Well May Be (19.3.13) ★★★★
19. Days of Blood & Starlight (23.3.13) ★★★
20. The Name of the Wind (2.4.13) ★★★★★
21. The Things They Carried (10.4.13) ★★★
21.5. This Is the Story of a Happy Marriage (15.4.13) (short, so counted as 1/2) ★★★★
22.5. Seriously...I'm Kidding (6.4.13) ★★
23.5. Tell the Wolves I'm Home (5.4.13)★★
24.5. And One Last Thing ... (8.4.13) ★★★
25. Mistletoe & Margaritas (15.4.13) (short, so counted as 1/2) ★★
26. Slammed (18.4.13) ★★★
27. Sh*t My Dad Says (19.4.13) ★★★★
28. Slaughterhouse-Five, or The Children's Crusade: A Duty Dance with Death (23.4.13) ★★★★
29. House Rules (4.5.13) ★★★★
30. The Book Thief (13.5.13) ★★★★★
31. I, Alex Cross (25.5.13) ★★★
32. Transfer of Power (20.5.13) ★★★
33. A Dog's Purpose (9.5.13) ★★★
34. Yours to Keep (22.5.13) ★★★
35. Drums of Autumn (10.6.13) ★★★★
36. On Target (14.6.13)★★★
37. Eragon (18.6.13) ★★
38. The Art of Fielding (30.6.13)★★★★
39. Northern Lights (22.6.13) ★★★
40. Heavier Than Heaven: A Biography of Kurt Cobain (27.6.13) ★★★★
41. Shelter Mountain (9.3.13) ★★★
42. A Summer in Sonoma (5.8.13) ★★★
43. The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society (4.7.13) ★★★
44. Ballistic (28.7.13) ★★★
45. Breathing Room (8.7.13) ★★
46. Uglies (19.8.13) ★★★
47. The Fiery Cross (19.9.13)★★★★
48. Life (29.10.13)
49. The Dead Yard (24.8.13) ★★★★
50. Chariots of the Gods (21.8.13) ★★★
51. Graceling (23.9.13) ★★★
52. The Bloomsday Dead (26.9.13) ★★★★
53. Just Breathe (22.10.13) ★★★
54. The Elephant Whisperer (8.10.13) ★★★★★
55. A Thousand Splendid Suns (18.10.13) ★★★★
56. Dead until Dark (15.10.13) ★★★
57. Still Life (13.10.13) ★★★
58. Flat-Out Love (28.9.13) ★★★★
59. First to Kill (2.11.13) ★★★
60. Perfect Chemistry (3.11.13) ★★★
Unread:
Plum Island
A Breath of Snow and Ashes
The Wise Man's Fear
Love in the Afternoon
Never Seduce a Scot
Living Dead in Dallas
A Grown-Up Kind of Pretty
Moon Over Manifest
How to Save a Life
Memoirs of an Imaginary Friend