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Candiss's Corner - 2016
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AROUND THE WORLD IN BOOKSDuration: January 1 - December 31, 2016
Goal: Read books written by authors from as many different countries as you can. The authors can have either been born there or lived there. My goal is 12 books.
All but a few are taken from my own home bookshelves. I am not counting the United States, as I live there.
1. Australia: Ransom - David Malouf
2. Austria: The Wall - Marlen Haushofer
3. Canada:
4. China:
5. England:
6. Finland:
7. Japan:
8. Serbia:
9. South Korea:
10.Ukraine:
11.
12.
Total read: 8/12
* Potential alternates and additions:
- Owned:
Algeria: The Plague - Albert Camus
Australia: Inland - Gerald Murnane
Belgium: Memoirs of Hadrian - Marguerite Yourcenar
Dominican Republic: The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao - Junot Diaz
Egypt: Cairo Modern - Naguib Mahfouz
France: The Belly of Paris - Émile Zola
France: The Black Tulip - Alexandre Dumas
Germany: The Artificial Silk Girl - Irmgard Keun
Haiti: Krik? Krak! - Edwidge Danticat
Ireland: In the Woods - Tana French
Norway: Sophie's World - Jostein Gaarder
Peru: The House of the Spirits - Isabel Allende
Portugal: The Book of Disquiet - Fernando Pessoa
Russia: The Master and Margarita - Mikhail Bulgakov (reread)
South Africa: The Shining Girls - Lauren Beukes
South Africa: Moxyland - Lauren Beukes
Switzerland: Lives of the Monster Dogs - Kirsten Bakis
Vietnam: The Sorrow of War: A Novel of North Vietnam- Bảo Ninh
Zimbabwe/South Rhodesia: The Golden Notebook - Doris Lessing
- Library:
Brazil: Epitaph of a Small Winner - Machado de Assis
Czech Republic (then known as Bohemia, Austria–Hungary): The Trial - Franz Kafka
Germany: Three Bags Full - Leonie Swann
Hungary: The Door - Magda Szabó
Iceland: LoveStar - Andri Snær Magnason
Israel: The World of the End - by Ofir Touche Gafla
Nigeria: Americanah - Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Portugal: The Double - José Saramago
South Africa: Elizabeth Costello - J. M. Coetzee
Sweden: The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo - Stieg Larsson
Vietnam (born): The Sympathizer by Viet Thanh Nguyen
I also have about a half dozen other options to swap in from Japan, a few others from China, and a stack from the UK, as well as a bunch of public domain classics from around the world, should I need them.
THE EVERY YEAR CHALLENGEDuration: January 1 - December 31, 2016
Goal: Read one book per year, starting with a year significant to you in some way. I'll be using 1995, the year I moved to the Pacific Northwest. (My birth year, 1970, and graduation year, 1989, are simply too many years/books for me!) This makes my goal 22 books.
As with my other challenges this year, most of these are books I own - about 75% of them, in this case.
1995:
1999:
2001:
2009: Ransom - David Malouf
Read: 18/22
Possibilities:
1995: The Diamond Age: or, A Young Lady's Illustrated Primer - Neal Stephenson
1999: My Year of Meats - Ruth Ozeki
2001: The Kappa Child - Hiromi Goto
FROM FICTION TO REALITYDuration: January 1 - December 31, 2016
Goal: Read pairs of related books - 1 fiction & 1 nonfiction. My starting goal is 12 books (6 pairs.)
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Read: 10/10
Finished!
THE TBR RANDOMISER CHALLENGEDuration: January 1 - December 31, 2016
Goal: Read a random selection of books from one of your shelves. My goal is 3 random books.
I want to get a few more classics in this year, but I can't decide which to add to those I'm already reading for other challenges, so I randomized three from my classics project shelf.
1.
2.
3.
Read: 3/3
Finished!
THE LISTOPIA CHALLENGEDuration: January 1 - December 31, 2016
Goal: Choose lists from Listopia from which to read. My goal is 30 books.
Quality Dark Fiction (*a)
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12. Ransom - David Malouf
13. The Wall - Marlen Haushofer
14. Dune by Frank Herbert
Great Women Authors (*b)
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
The Readercon Slipstream Canon (*c)
1.
2.
3. The Woman Warrior - Maxine Hong Kingston
NPR's Best Books of 2015 (*d)
1.
2.
3.
4.
*plus as many others as it takes to make 30 across all lists*
Read: 25/30
(*a) Possible additions:
- Owned:
The Diamond Age - Neal Stephenson
Lives of the Monster Dogs - Kirsten Bakis
Errantry - Elizabeth Hand
Lives of the Monster Dogs - Kirsten Bakis
The Sundial - Shirley Jackson
The Sinner - K. Trap Jones
In the Woods - Tana French
1Q84 - Haruki Murakami
The Family Fang - Kevin Wilson
Unwind - Neal Shusterman
The Steel Seraglio - Mike Carey, Linda Carey, Louise Carey
- Not owned:
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo - Stieg Larsson
The Martian Chronicles - Ray Bradbury
(*b) Possible alts/additions:
- Owned:
My Year of Meats - Ruth Ozeki
The Last Samurai - Helen DeWitt
The End of Mr. Y - Scarlett Thomas
Written on the Body - Jeanette Winterson
The Year of the Flood - Margaret Atwood
The Poisonwood Bible - Barbara Kingsolver
Bel Canto - Ann Patchett
Foxfire - Joyce Carol Oates
The Heart is a Lonely Hunter - Carson McCullers
The Blindfold - Siri Hustvedt
In the Woods - Tana French
Once Upon a River - Bonnie Jo Campbell
The Woman Warrior - Maxine Hong Kingston
The History of Love - Nicole Krauss
The Blind Assassin - Margaret Atwood
The Left Hand of Darkness - Ursula K. Le Guin
Orlando - Virginia Woolf
Mrs. Dalloway - Virginia Woolf
The Golden Notebook - Doris Lessing
The Shipping News - Annie Proulx
The House of the Spirits - Isabel Allende
The House on the Strand - Daphne du Maurier
The Artificial Silk Girl - Irmgard Keun
The Joy Luck Club - Amy Tan (reread)
- Not owned:
Under the Sea Wind - Rachel Carson
Americanah - Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
The Door - Magda Szabo
The Woman Upstairs - Claire Messud
Out - Natsuo Kirino
Three Bags Full - Leonie Swann
Moon Tiger - Penelope Lively
Bloodchild and Other Stories - Octavia E. Butler
A Tale for the Time Being - Ruth Ozeki
The Quick and the Dead - Joy Williams
The Song of Achilles - Madeline Miller
Housekeeping - Marilynne Robinson
The Bell - Iris Murdoch
The Girl in the Flammable Skirt - Aimee Bender
(*c) Possible alts/additions:
- Owned:
The Kappa Child - Hiromi Goto
Dhalgren - Samuel R. Delany
House of the Spirits - Isabel Allende
Sarah Canary - Karen Joy Fowler
Towing Jehovah - James Morrow
The Lottery and Other Stories - Shirley Jackson (reread)
Orlando - Virginia Woolf
The Trial - Franz Kafka
- Not owned:
Chimera - John Barth
(*d) Potential additions:
Undermajordomo Minor - Patrick deWitt
Vermilion - Molly Tanzer (owned)
Gutshot: Stories - Amelia Gray (owned)
Half an Inch of Water - Percival Everett
The Water Knife - Paolo Bacigalupi
The Sandman: Overture - Neil Gaiman
The Thrilling Adventures of Lovelace and Babbage - Sydney Padua
Step Aside, Pops - Kate Beaton
GROUP READS CHALLENGE
Duration: January 1 - March 31, 2016
Goal: Read books from the group's previous group reads. I'll be reading 3.
THIS WAS A BUST!
------------------------------------------------------------
BOX SETS CHALLENGE
Duration: January 1 - March 31, 2016
Goal: Create and name "box sets" of thematic books. I'll try for a total of 9 books.
By the Numbers
City Slickers
City of Glass - Paul Auster
City of Glass - Paul Karasik (graphic novel of the above book)
Kneel Down
The Diamond Age: or, A Young Lady's Illustrated Primer - Neal Stephenson
Unwind - Neal Shusterman
The Sandman: Overture - Neil Gaiman
Read: 4/9
AWARD WINNING BOOKS
Duration: April 1 - June 30, 2016
Goal: Read books that have won awards. I'll be reading 6.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6. *
Read: 5/6
* Possible additions, owned:
- Ransom by David Malouf - Criticos Prize (2009), Australian Literature Society Gold Medal (2009)
- The Maid's Version by Daniel Woodrell - Chicago Tribune Heartland Prize for Fiction (2014)
- A Wild Sheep Chase by Haruki Murakami - Noma Literary New Face Prize (1982)
- The Kappa Child by Hiromi Goto - James Tiptree Jr. Award (2001)
- The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K. Le Guin - Nebula Award for Best Novel (1969) & Hugo Award for Best Novel (1970)
- The Diamond Age by Neal Stephenson - Hugo Award for Best Novel (1996), Locus Award for Best Science Fiction Novel (1996)
- Cairo Modern by Naguib Mahfouz - Nobel Laureate for Literature (1988)
- The Wee Free Men by Terry Pratchett - Locus Award for Best Young Adult Novel (2004) & Parenting Book of the Year Award (2003)
- White Teeth by Zadie Smith - James Tait Black Memorial Prize for Fiction (2000), Whitbread Award for First Novel (2000), Guardian First Book Award (2000), Puddly Award for Debut Novel (2001), Commonwealth Writers' Prize for Best First Book Overall (2001)
- The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot Díaz - Pulitzer Prize for Fiction (2008), National Book Critic's Circle Award for Fiction (2007)
Chloe's Ten Challenge
Duration: July 1 - September 30, 2016
Goal: Read books from your shelf sorted 10 different ways. I'll be aiming for 7 to start, rolled from my first-priority TBR shelf.
In ascending order:
1.
2.
4. Date Added/10th book down - Written on the Body by Jeanette Winterson
In descending order:
7. Author/10th book down - The End of Mr. Y by Scarlett Thomas
8. Average rating/10th book down -
10.
Read: 7/7 COMPLETED!
4TH QUARTER CHALLENGERACE TO THE FINISH
Duration: October 1, 2016 - December 31, 2016
Goal: Finish up books for our other challenges/projects and/or our yearly reading goal.
I still want to complete several yearly challenges.
From Fiction to Reality - Read: 9/10
Around the World in Books - Read: 8/12
The Every Year Challenge - Read: 15/22
The Listopia Challenge - Read: 18/30
The TBR Randomizer Challenge - Read: 2/3
Because of nit-picky cross-referencing, I can get most of the way to finished on each of these by reading under a dozen books; then I need to choose a few more that fill in the gaps.
It's probably just out of reach for me with my current schedule and reading speed, but I'll try!
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8. Ransom by David Malouf
9. The Wall by Marlen Haushofer
10. Dune by Frank Herbert (re-read)
Read: 7
1. Maud Martha - Gwendlyn Brooks
2. Around the World in Seventy-Two Days - Nellie Bly
3. Twenty Fragments of a Ravenous Youth - Xiaolu Guo
4. Tainaron: Mail from Another City - Leena Krohn
5. Ōoku: The Inner Chambers, Vol. 1 - Fumi Yoshinaga
6. Here - Richard McGuire
7. Locke & Key, Vol. 1: Welcome to Lovecraft - Joe Hill
8. Garlic and Sapphires: The Secret Life of a Critic in Disguise - Ruth Reichl (audio)
Read: 8/8 COMPLETED!
I am starting with a goal of 2 and will increase if I can. I am only re-reading from books that I own. I am hosting this challenge.
1.
2. Fahrenheit 451 - Ray Bradbury
Read: 1/2
Goal: "For this challenge we would like you to explore women writers and pick books only written by women." I am aiming to complete 3 tasks from the list.
1.
Task: Read a graphic novel written by...
2.
Task: Read a book by an author that is not White.
3.
Read: 2/3
Potential reads:
- The Labyrinth - Catherynne M. Valente, fits tasks:
Read a book written by an author under 30.
Read a sci-fi/fantasy book.
- The Kappa Child - Hiromi Goto, fits tasks:
Read a sci-fi/fantasy book.
Read a book by an author that is not White.
- The Artificial Silk Girl - Irmgard Keun, fits tasks:
Read a book written by an author under 30.
- In Other Worlds - Margaret Atwood, fits tasks:
Read a book of essays.
Monthly challenge - April: Earth Month ChallengeGoal: Read books that fit the theme's tasks. I am starting with a goal of 1 book.
Read: 1/1 COMPLETE
Goal: Choose a numerical goal and challenge yourself to read more during May. (This is a repeat of January's challenge, which was an actually-successful challenge for me.) I am aiming for 6 books to start, as we have company coming.
My reading stack for May:
1.
2. The Library at Mount Char by Scott Hawkins (group read in Beyond Reality)
3.
4.
5. The Pharos Gate: Griffin & Sabine's Lost Correspondence by Nick Bantock
6. Injection, Vol. 1 by Warren Ellis
Read: 3/6
- Possible additions/substitutions:
Topdog/Underdog by Suzan-Lori Parks
Steps Through the Mist: A Mosaic Novel
The Vegetarian - Han Kang
Slade House by David Mitchell
Ransom by David Malouf
The Maid's Version by Daniel Woodrell
Monthly challenge - October: Outside Your Comfort ZoneGoal: Read books from genres that never or rarely ever make it onto your reading list. (I am leading this challenge.)
I know I don't generally enjoy - and staunchly avoid - romance, "chick-lit," suburban family sagas, coming-of-age, spy/legal/corporate/medical thrillers, Westerns, and sports stories. Additionally, although I love science fiction and fantasy, I tend to avoid classic/Golden Age sci-fi, especially written by men, because I can't handle the frequency of casual racism and ubiquitous misogyny. The characterization of women is a main reason I also avoid classic "manly" noir/detective fiction, despite my love of noir in general.
I also am not a series reader, so I have avoided trying many well-loved series, just so that I don't become addicted to yet another cycle of books I can't "quit." So I may bite the bullet and (finally) try The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo or the first in Tana French's detective series. (These would also get me trying again with a genre I'm not in love with - detective thriller - or one I've never tried - Scandi-crime/Nordic noir.)
I will try for 2 books.
1.
2.
Read: 2/2 Finished!
*Possible reads:
Glaciers by Alexis M. Smith (romance, chick-lit)
The Martian Chronicles by Ray Bradbury (classic science fiction)
In the Woods by Tana French (detective thriller series)
We Were Liars by E. Lockhart (coming-of-age)
Everything I Never Told You by Celeste Ng (suburban family saga)
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson (crime thriller series)
Game Changers: The Unsung Heroines of Sports History by Molly Schiot (sports)
reserved for potential December challenges
2025 Reading Challenge
Books mentioned in this topic
The Woman Warrior: Memoirs of a Girlhood Among Ghosts (other topics)The Grownup (other topics)
Dune (other topics)
Dune (other topics)
The Maltese Falcon (other topics)
More...
I will be attempting to make room on my shelves by using mostly books I currently own (preferably in paper form, but I'll mix in a few e-books as needed) for challenges in 2016, with the remainder made up of library books.
Note to self - and this is very important for me to remember: THIS IS NOT A LEGAL DOCUMENT! No authority is making me read these books. I do not HAVE to finish all the books listed for all my challenges. These lists are a fun way of steering me towards different titles and genres, not a cage from which I am not allowed to emerge. This is a list to pull from, and if I don't finish all the books here - don't finish each challenge list - that's ok. I can read other books that catch my fancy and don't fit a challenge. THE CHALLENGES SHOULD NOT BE STRESS-CREATORS. They should be fun. Reading should be fun. Don't let 2016 stress you out over reading like 2015 (and 2014...and 2013...) did!
Now then:
Yearly Challenges
Around the World in Books - Read: 8/12
The Every Year Challenge - Read: 18/22
From Fiction to Reality - Read: 10/10 COMPLETE!
The TBR Randomiser Challenge - Read: 3/3 COMPLETE!
The Listopia Challenge - Read: 25/30
Quarterly Challenges
1st Quarter Challenge: Group Reads Challenge - Read: 0/31st Quarter Challenge: Box Sets Challenge - Read: 4/92nd Quarter Challenge: Award Winning Books - Read: 5/63rd Quarter Challenge: Chloe's Ten Challenge - Read: 7/7COMPLETE!4th Quarter Challenge: Race to the Finish - Read: 7/10
Monthly Challenges
January: Marathon - Read: 8/8February: Re-reading Favorites - Read: 1/2March: #readwomen 2016 - Read: 2/3April: Earth Month Challenge - Read: 1/1COMPLETE!May: Marathon May Style - Read: 3/6October: Outside Your Comfort Zone - Read: 2/2COMPLETE!