Matt's 2018 Old & New Challenge

[Matt]

I'm going to give this challenge a try.

I tried to stick to the group's bookshelf as much as possible. Here are my selections:

OLD
DONE 1. The Portrait of a Lady by Henry James
DONE 2. Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy
3. Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë

NEW
DONE 4. The Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov
DONE 5. The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
6. Lady Chatterley's Lover by D.H. Lawrence

WILDCARDS
DONE 7. The Divine Comedy by Dante Alighieri
DONE 8. Nicholas Nickleby by Charles Dickens
DONE 9. Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
DONE 10. The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath
DONE 11. To the Lighthouse by Virginia Woolf
12. The Death of Ivan Ilych & Other Stories by Leo Tolstoy

ALTERNATES
DONE Angels and Demons by Dan Brown
DONE Candide by Voltaire

Good luck to everyone doing this challenge! I look forward to seeing everyone's updates!

Updated 2/3/18 I've completed 4 books for the 2018 Old and New Challenge in January. Not too bad of a start. I have some long books to read coming up so my progress will slow, but I'm steadily working toward finishing this list and my A-Z author list. I'm enjoying my reading year so far!

Updated 6/29/18 I’m still working toward finishing this challenge. I hope the 2nd half of my reading year is as good as the first - I’m most looking forward to a re-read of Anna Karenina.

[Rosemarie]

You have some great titles on there, Matt. I really liked The Great Gatsby and Nicholas Nickleby, among others.

[Petra]

Nice list, Matt!
I really enjoyed Wuthering Heights but it isn't a romance, as I expected that it would be.
Also enjoyed The Great Gatsby, Nicholas Nickleby, Dante's series (the Inferno is the best, I thought).

Looking forward to your thoughts through the year.

[Matt]

Thanks, Rosemarie and Petra! I’m looking forward to working on this challenge!

[Brina]

Great list, Matt. Anna K was one of my favorites of this year so I hope you enjoy it v

[MJ]

This is a great list!
I think 2018 is the year that I will finally read something by Virginia Woolf.
I hope you enjoy the Tolstoy and James. Anna Karenina was the first classic I ever picked up voluntarily. I've read it twice and probably will read it a third time. Some day.

Happy holidays and happy reading!

[Matt]

Thanks Brina and MJ! AK will actually be a re-read for me. I read it about 4-5 years ago, and I got the Penguin Clothbound version during my visit to Biltmore Estate earlier this year. I’m so looking forward to reading it again!

I tried reading To the Lighthouse last year but unfortunately didn’t finish it. So, that one will be a bit challenging for me, but that is why the call this a “challenge”, right? ; )

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Matt

[Bat-Cat]

Really nice list Matt. You have some on there that I want to read too... some day. ;-) Best of luck in completely it.

[Renee]

Great list Matt! A few I've read, and some I want to read. The Bell Jar was on my list for this year, but I never got around to it, so hopefully I will next year. I listened to the audiobook of To the Lighthouse this year, and while it wasn't my favourite book of the year (that honour goes to The Count of Monte Cristo!) I think I ended up giving it 3 stars. It was good, but I didn't enjoy it as much as some people did. I hope you have better luck with it this year. Good luck with your challenge!

[Rosemarie]

When I first started The Bell Jar I almost gave up on it, but I am so glad I didn't. It was a very worthwhile read.

[Veronique]

Nice list Matt!
Best of luck with it :O)

[Sara, Old School Classics]

Great list, Matt. I've read a number of them, so I know you have some good reading ahead.

[Matt]

Thank you, Sara! This is my first year to do this challenge and I am looking forward to it.

[Kathleen]

I think you can't lose with this wonderful list of classics, Matt! I look forward to seeing how you get along with The Inferno--I'm a little afraid of that one. But Wuthering Heights and The Great Gatsby are big favorites of mine. Hope you enjoy them all.

[Melanti]

Good luck with the challenge! It looks like a good list.

We do have a thread for the Divine Comedy as a whole in the buddy reads folder if you want to see what people thought of translations, etc.

[Matt]

Thanks for the info Melanti. I will check all those comments out. I plan to read The Inferno first in 2018.

[Vicki]

An inspiring list. I have read a few on the list, but there are some that I will have to add to my TBR list.

[Matt]

I’m going to come up one book short for my old/new challenge. I tried, but just ran out of time. I’ll probably try this challenge again.

[Sara, Old School Classics]

Sorry you came up one short, but the purpose of the challenge was served by those that you read. See you in next year's challenge, Matt.