A-Z Title Challenge 2017

[Brina]

6 to go and next 3 I read is for this challenge. Was easier choosing books for this challenge than I thought, and many are books I wouldn't have otherwise read.

[Brina]

Decided on Zorba for my Z read this year and tabling Zazie and Zelda for further years. Hard enough to find one Z book. 4 to go in challenge-- F, K, T, Z.

[Katy, Quarterly Long Reads]

Brina wrote: "Decided on Zorba for my Z read this year and tabling Zazie and Zelda for further years. Hard enough to find one Z book. 4 to go in challenge-- F, K, T, Z."

Wow you are really moving along with the challenge.

[Brina]

I actually had all but 8 read before I joined and have been focusing on finishing this challenge first.

[Sarah]

A-Z Title Challenge
Jan 1- Dec 31, 2017

A: And Every Morning the Way Home Gets Longer and Longer by Fredrik Backman (3/17)
B: The Bookshop by Penelope Fitzgerald (5/16)
C: Child of God by Cormac McCarthy (9/29)
D: Dear Ijeawele, or a Feminist Manifesto in Fifteen Suggestions by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie (3/15)
E: Everything, Everything by Nicola Yoon (10/3)
F: The Fairy-Tale Detectives by Michael Buckley (7/7)
G: The Good Girl by Mary Kubica (1/20)
H: Hunger: A Memoir of (My) Body by Roxane Gay (6/16)
I: In the Time of the Butterflies by Julia Alvarez (4/28)
J: Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare (10/4)
K: The Killer Angels by Michael Shaara (10/13)
L: Lincoln in the Bardo by George Saunders (10/1)
M: The Mark on the Wall by Virginia Woolf (4/3)
N: Never a City So Real: A Walk in Chicago by Alex Kotlowitz (3/22)
O: An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge by Ambrose Bierce (4/3)
P: The Princess Diarist by Carrie Fisher (6/26)
Q: Queen of the Falls by Chris Van Allsburg (7/9)
R: The Rules Do Not Apply by Ariel Levy (4/20)
S: The Silence of the Lambs by Thomas Harris (4/30)
T: Two or Three Things I Know for Sure by Dorothy Allison (9/24)
U: Under the Sunset by Bram Stoker (9/29)
V: Vinegar Girl by Anne Tyler (6/17)
W: We Should All Be Feminists by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie (3/15)
X: X-ing a Paragrab by Edgar Allan Poe (5/26)
Y: You Will Not Have My Hate by Antoine Leiris (4/13)
Z: Zeitoun by Dave Eggers (5/24)

26/26 completed.

DONE!

[Katy, Quarterly Long Reads]

Only three title letters left to read for the challenge. https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

I still need U, X, & Y
I'll take recommendations -- I've read Xingu and Xenocide in previous years, so I'd like something different for X.

[Sarah]

Katy wrote: "Only three title letters left to read for the challenge. https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

I still need U, X, & Y
I'll take recommendations -..."

I can't personally recommend anything for X...2000+ books on my GR lists and only one X book...The Xmas Factor, which I used for a similar A-Z challenge and found mediocre but readable. A friend of mine read X for the same challenge and liked it, but I haven't read it. For something classic-y (which I also have not yet read), Edgar Allan Poe apparently has a story called X-ing a Paragrab: https://www.eapoe.org/works/tales/xin....

[Kathleen]

Katy wrote: "Only three title letters left to read for the challenge. https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

I still need U, X, & Y
I'll take recommendations -..."

I have no good ideas for X, but I read The Uncommon Reader recently and it was fun, and I will be reading The Year of Magical Thinking sometime soon, which won't be fun but will be very good I'm sure.

[Michelle]

Xone of Contention by Piers Anthony or X by Sue Grafton are what pop into my head. Neither would be considered a classic , though, if you are trying to stick with those.

[Pink]

U- Under the Greenwood Tree or Ulysses
X- The Autobiography of Malcolm X (slightly cheating)
Y- The Yearling or You Only Live Twice

[Katy, Quarterly Long Reads]

Pink wrote: "..
X- The Autobiography of Malcolm X (slightly cheating)
..."

For those tricky letters, I don't count that as cheating. And I think this might just be the book to read. I have it on my shelf & haven't read it yet. Thanks

[Pink]

No problem, I loved it and found it much more readable than I was expecting.

[Francisca]

Apparently today is the day I finally decided to dive into all of the challenges... we'll see how this goes! I'm letting these challenges develop somewhat fortuitously. :)

A-Z Title Challenge
Jan 1- Dec 31, 2017
23/26 Completed

A An Artist of the Floating World by Kazuo Ishiguro
B Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
C Challenger Deep by Neal Shusterman
D A Doll's House by Henrik Ibsen
E Emma by Jane Austen
F Five Children and It by E Nesbit
G Gilead by Marilynne Robinson
H Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis by JD Vance
I The Illustrated Man by Ray Bradbury
J The Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling
K King Lear by William Shakespeare
L The Law and the Lady by Wilkie Collins
M Memory Wall by Anthony Doerr
N Norse Mythology by Neil Gaiman
O Othello
P The Princess and the Goblin by George MacDonald
Q The Queen of Attolia by Megan Whalen Turner
R The Rithmatist by Brandon Sanderson
S Station Eleven by Emily St John Mandel
T A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith
U The Undoing Project by Michael Lewis
V A Vindication of the Rights of Woman by Mary Wollstonecraft
W The Westing Game by Ellen Raskin
X
Y
Z

[Petrichor]

I've got a question:

I'm thinking about taking on this challenge,(although I'm quite sure I won't manage the difficult letters). In case I do, how should I handle titles in different languages? I read both English and German books (my mother tongue is German).

Should I always include the title in the language I read them? Or should I use the original title no matter what language I read it in? (in which case Spanish and possibly other languages will join in)

Consistently using the English titles is not always an option, as there isn't always an English translation/version (as in this case: Treffen sich zwei Moleküle im Labor)

I'd just like to ask in advance, so that the way I go with is not considered as cheating later on. ;-)

[Pink]

I think it's fine to include whatever title you want, whether the original or the language you read it in. It's about having fun, so we won't be nitpicking over your choices :)

[Katy, Quarterly Long Reads]

What Pink said. We really set up the challenges for fun -- so choose what works for you.

[Petrichor]

Cool! :-)
In that case:

A-Z Title Challenge
Jan 1- Dec 31, 2017
26/26 Completed

American Gods (Neil Gaiman)
Blink (Malcolm Gladwell)
The Canterville Ghost (Oscar Wilde)
The Dead (James Joyce)
The Epic of Gilgamesh (Anonymous)
Fahrenheit 451 (Ray Bradbury)
The Godfather (Mario Puzo)
The Hunger Games (Suzanne Collins)
It Can't Happen Here (Sinclair Lewis)
Jugend ohne Gott (en: Youth Without God, Ödön von Horváth)
Die kleine Seejungfrau (en: The Little Mermaid, Hans Christian Andersen)
Like Water for Chocolate (Laura Esquivel)
Moonwalking with Einstein (Joshua Foer)
Narziß und Goldmund (Hermann Hesse)
One Hundred Years of Solitude (Gabriel García Márquez)
Die Physiker (en: The Physicists, Friedrich Dürrenmatt)
Quiet, Please (Kevin Scott)
Rooftops of Tehran (Mahbod Seraji)
Satisfaction Guaranteed (Isaac Asimov)
Treffen sich zwei Moleküle im Labor (Martin Moder)
Das Urteil (en: The Judgement, Franz Kafka)
Der Vorleser (en: The Reader, Bernhard Schlink)
Wuthering Heights (Emily Brontë)
X-ing a Paragrab (Edgar Allan Poe)
The Yellow Wallpaper (Charlotte Perkins Gilman)
Zorba the Greek (Nikos Kazantzakis)

my A-Z challenge bookshelf

I used the titles of the books in the language I read them.

[Pink]

Looks good already!

[Brina]

Completed 5-20-17!!

[Pink]

Brina wrote: "Completed 5-20-17!!"

Took me a second to realise that's the date! Looks all back to front to me ;)

Well done for finishing this challenge!!

[Brina]

I know, we Americans are backwards ;). This challenge in the end wasn't all that tricky. And it lead me to books I wouldn't have otherwise read. Safe to say I'll do it again next year.

[Brina]

Another Z title is Zorro by Isabel Allende. I'm excited to read it but will save it for next year so I can use it in the challenge.

[Pink]

Oh look at you, saving choices already for next year! I still have Zelda lined up for my Z choice, but won't get to it yet.

[Brina]

Zorba happened to be better than expected if you end up reading it instead. I read about 3-4 Allende books a year so I might as well save Zorro for next year rather than wracking my brain for a Z book. X is hard enough ;)

[Katy, Quarterly Long Reads]

Oh yes, those tricky letters. I sometimes safe those titles for the next year too rather than reading two X books in a year.

And well done on finishing the challenge Brina.

[Brina]

Thanks, Kathy. And you're right, as tempting as Zorro sounds, I'm going to save it for next year.

[Jan]

A. Abby Geni - "The Lightkeepers" - 2/20/17
B. Lilian Jackson Braun - "The Cat Who Played Brahms (Cat Who . . ., #5)" - 2/24/17
C. Robin Cook - "Cell" - 5/15/17
D. Stephanie Dray - "America's First Daughter" - 4/7/17
E. Ernest Hemingway - "The Sun Also Rises" - 1/3/17
F. Athol Fugard - "Tsotsi" - 5/25/17
G. William C. Gordon - "The Chinese Jars" - 1/23/17
H. Virginia Hamilton - "M.C. Higgins, the Great" - 5/13/17
I.
J. Judy Collins - "Sweet Judy Blue Eyes: My Life in Music" - 5/9/17
K. Laurie R. King - "The Beekeeper's Apprentice (Mary Russell #1)" - 2/5/17
L. Janice Y.K. Lee - "The Piano Teacher" 5/15/17
M. Robin Maxwell - "The Wild Irish: A Novel of Elizabeth I and the Pirate O'Malley" - 2/15/17
N. Tig Notaro - "I'm Just a Person" - 5/7/17
O. Leslie O'Kane - "Play Dead" - 5/3/17
P. Patricia McLinn - "Sign Off (Caught Dead in Wyoming #1)" - 3/4/17
Q.
R. Edward Rutherford - "Princes of Ireland (The Dublin Saga #1)" - 1/22/17
S. Shan Sa - "Empress" - 2/25/17
T.
U.
V. J. D. Vance - "Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of Family and Culture in Crisis" - 5/23/17
W. Colson Whitehead - "The Underground Railroad" - 5/11/17
X.
Y.
Z.

[siriusedward]

A-Z Title Challenge
Jan 1- Dec 31, 2017

19/26 Completed

A A Worn Path by Eudora Welty
B Bartleby the Scrivener by Herman Melville
C The Curious Case of Benjamin Button by F. Scott Fitzgerald
D
E Emily Dickinson Poems: First and Second Series
F False Colours by Georgette Heyer
G The Gift of the Magi
H The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood
I The Importance of Being Earnest by Oscar Wilde
J Joanna Baillie: A Selection of Plays and Poems
K
L Les Misérables by Victor Hugo
M The Mill on the Floss by George Eliot
N North and South by Elizabeth Gaskell
O The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway
P The Pearl by John Steinbeck
Q All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque
R Rilla of Ingleside by L.M. Montgomery
S The Sisters by James Joyce
T The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas
U
V The Vampyre; A Tale by John William Polidori
W The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum
X
Y
Z

[Francisca]

July Update:
B Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
I The Illustrated Man by Ray Bradbury
N Norse Mythology by Neil Gaiman
O Othello
T A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith

I'm missing the hardest letters, but I'm going to try and keep this mostly fortuitous...

[Katy, Quarterly Long Reads]

Best way to work on this challenge I think Francisca. It is always the last few that are hard.

[Anetq]

I just realised that my crime fiction summer reading had given me at Q without me noticing it (!), just reading up on long-listed prize nominees for the McIlvanney Price: The Quiet Death of Thomas Quaid - When does that ever happen in this challenge?! (good book too)
It also made me realise I'd forgotten to update this, and it turnes out I had filled in a few more blanks - so it's down to U V and Z now. AND I'm halfway through books beginning with U and V - and have Zombieland lined up for the last one (doubles as Greenland in another challenge!).
This is like the opposite of what normally happens: "Well I've read 75 books they must fit in somewhere... Hmmm all beginning with T S and A?"

[Katy, Quarterly Long Reads]

Anetq wrote: "I just realised that my crime fiction summer reading had given me at Q without me noticing it (!), just reading up on long-listed prize nominees for the McIlvanney Price: [book:The Quiet Death of T..."

Okay that is very nice!

I have X and Y left -- I have only one idea for X that I haven't already read and a few ideas for Y - so I should be able to finish this challenge this year.

[Petrichor]

I'm proud to say that I just finished my 2017 A-Z challenge!! :-D

Here is the link to my original comment with all the books
Here is the link to my a-z challenge book shelf

There were definitely books that I only started because of the first character in their title. Some of which I absolutely loved (e.g. Zorba the Greek, Rooftops of Tehran, The Godfather), some of which I didn't (e.g. Quiet, Please).

With only two exceptions (X-ing a Paragrab and Treffen sich zwei Moleküle im Labor) I completed the challenge entirely in audiobooks.

Thank you for this challenge! It was fun to watch the list fill up. I think next year I will try to do a challenge again, maybe one of the Bingo challenges.

[Pink]

Well done!

[Petrichor]

Pink wrote: "Well done!"

Thank you! ^^
My first challenge, but not my last. :-)

[Anetq]

Good selection Petrichor! Will take note of the Rooftops.. Any good newer German titles to recommend?

[Petrichor]

Anetq wrote: "Good selection Petrichor! Will take note of the Rooftops.."

Thanks! :-) And absolutely do. I found that book very touching and interesting at the same time.

Any good newer German titles to recommend?"
Sorry, not really. I'm mostly reading already famous stuff to polish my knowledge. You can check my book shelf for German literature (i.e. stuff originally written in German, not necessarily in Germany). Something German that I can absolutely recommend, but that is not new is the Schachnovelle by Stefan Zweig. I'll admit it has some slow stretches, but those are a small enough price to pay.

[Anetq]

Petrichor wrote: "Something German that I can absolutely recommend, but that is not new is the Schachnovelle by Stefan Zweig. I'll admit it has some slow stretches, but those are a small enough price to pay"
Thanks I've read Zweig - but I'll check your shelf :)

[Kathleen]

I've been filling these in as I go (message 17), but just read a great Q story, if anyone is looking for one. The Quicksand by Edith Wharton. It's available on Project Gutenberg. I loved it.

Thank you Edith for giving us Xingu and this, to help us with those difficult letters. :-)

[Pink]

Oh that's great, I wonder if she has a Z book too?!

[Dawn]

A-Z Title Challenge
Jan 1- Dec 31, 2017

A - The Age of Innocence
B -The Book Thief
C - The Count of Monte Cristo
D - Dorothy Must Die
E -
F -
G - The Great Gatsby
H - Harry Potter: The Prequel
I - It
J-Just Say Nu: Yiddish for Every Occasion
K-
L-Leonard: My Fifty-Year Friendship with a Remarkable Man
M- March: Book One
N -
O-
P - The Pit and the Pendulum
Q-
R - Rebecca
S - Shadow of Oz
T -10 Days in a Madhouse
U-The Ultimate Harry Potter and Philosophy: Hogwarts for Muggles
V-
W- Who Thought This Was a Good Idea?: And Other Questions You Should Have Answers to When You Work in the White House
X -
Y- You Have the Right to Remain Innocent
Z-

[Zoe]

Slowly getting there.

18/26 Completed

A The Age of Innocence - Edith Wharton
B Blindness by José Saramago
C
D Dubliners by James Joyce
E
F Flatland: A Romance of Many Dimensions by Edwin A. Abbott
G Guantánamo Diary by Mohamedou Ould Slahi
H Homage to Catalonia by George Orwell
I Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl by Harriet Jacobs
J
K
L
M Middlemarch by George Eliot
N
O One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest by Ken Kesey
P Potiki by Patricia Grace
Q The Queue by Basma Abdel Aziz
R
S The Sellout by Paul Beatty
T The Trial by Franz Kafka
U The Unabridged Journals of Sylvia Plath by Sylvia Plath
V
W We Wish to Inform You That Tomorrow We Will Be Killed with Our Families by Philip Gourevitch
X Xala by Ousmane Sembène
Y The Year of Magical Thinking by Joan Didion
Z Zorba the Greek by Nikos Kazantzakis

[Petrichor]

Nice lists!
@Dawn: we seem to have similar tastes :-)

[Dawn]

Petrichor wrote: "Nice lists!
@Dawn: we seem to have similar tastes :-)"

:-) Just scrolled through older posts and saw you're completed already. Congrats on finishing your challenge!

[Petrichor]

Dawn wrote: "Congrats on finishing your challenge!"

Thank you! ^^
Good luck with yours!
Are there any letters you need help with finding something (short)?

[Julie]

All done (message 7) :-)

[Pink]

Julie wrote: "All done (message 7) :-)"

Well done!

[Anetq]

Finished! Here’s my list:

A And After Many Days by Jowhor Ile
B The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath
C The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger
D Desertion by Abdulrazak Gurnah
E The Epic of Askia Mohammed by Nouhou Malio
F The Face: Cartography of the Void by Chris Abani
G "Gul Marguerit" aka. Maru by Bessie Head
H The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood
I I Contain Multitudes: The Microbes Within Us and a Grander View of Life by Ed Yong
J jagten på den skjulte elefant by Tor Åge Bringsværd
K Karnak Café by Naguib Mahfouz
L Love Is a Mix Tape by Rob Sheffield
M M Train by Patti Smith
N Nytårsfest by Lu Xun
O Out of Bounds by Val McDermid
P Paper Girls, Vol. 2 by Brian K. Vaughan
Q The Quiet Death of Thomas Quaid by Craig Russell
R Robotterne kommer: Om en fremtid uden arbejde by Martin Ford
S Season of Migration to the North by Tayeb Salih
T Tram 83 by Fiston Mwanza Mujila
U Under Huden - alt om vores største organ aka Under the skin by Yael Adler
V Vide verden - Istanbul
W Water: New Short Story Fiction from Africa: An Anthology from Short Story Day Africa
X X'ed out #3 Sugar Skull by Charles Burns
Y Y: The Last Man - The Deluxe Edition Book One by Brian K. Vaughan
Z Zombieland by Sørine Steenholdt

[Pink]

Anetq wrote: "Finished! Here’s my list:

A And After Many Days by Jowhor Ile
B The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath
C The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger
D [book:Desertion|778..."

Well done! Looks like a great list :)

[Zoe]

Anetq wrote: "Finished! Here’s my list:

A And After Many Days by Jowhor Ile
B The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath
C The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger
D [book:Desertion|778..."

Congrats :)