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Caleb's 2015 Challenge Thread
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Page Count ChallengeThis year I'm looking to complete 21,000 pages of reading. This is 3,000 more than usual, but with the amount of public transport time I have I think it's quite reasonable (I read over 26,000 pages in 2014).
I have no page limit on individual books and novels, novellas and short stories will all contribute to the total.
I use a combination of paperback pages, pages advertised in Goodreads/Amazon or calculated pages in Calibre to determine the size of each book/story.
The Books:
1.
- The Iron King - by Maurice Druon. 340 pages.2.
- Gunwitch: The Witch Hunts - by David Michael. 304 pages.3.
- The Broken Shore - by Peter Temple. 352 pages.4.
- Sand - Omnibus - by Hugh Howey. 336 pages.5.
- Holding the Man - by Timothy Conigrave. 320 pages.6.
- Frozen Sky 2: Betrayed - by Jeff Carlson. 190 pages.7.
- Ready Player One - by Ernest Cline. 374 pages.8.
- The Lathe of Heaven - by Ursula K. Le Guin. 183 pages.9.
- Revenge - by Chris Ward. 371 pages.10.
- Fugitive Pieces - by Anne Michaels. 304 pages.11.
- Feersum Endjinn - by Iain M. Banks. 279 pages.12.
- The Age of Innocence - by Edith Wharton. 305 pages.13.
- Watchmen - by Alan Moore. 200 pages.14.
- The Carpet Makers - by Andreas Eschbach. 297 pages.15.
- A Song of Stone - by Iain Banks. 280 pages.16.
- Loki - by Mike Vasich. 378 pages.17.
- Gone South - by Robert McCammon. 392 pages.18.
- Forever Free - by Joe Haldeman. 277 pages.19.
- When on High - by Marcin Wrona. 285 pages.20.
- More Tales of the City - by Armistead Maupin. 288 pages.21.
- Pines - by Blake Crouch. 305 pages.22.
- Silk - by Alessandro Baricco. 87 pages.23.
- Cannery Row - by John Steinback. 133 pages.24.
- The Master - by Colm Tóibín. 339 pages.25.
- Arkadium Rising - by Glen Krisch. 284 pages.26.
- The Waste Lands - by Stephen King. 584 pages.27.
- Never Let Me Go - by Kazuo Ishiguro. 288 pages.28.
- Unwrapped Sky - by Rjurik Davidson. 430 pages.29.
- The Shuddering - by Ania Ahlborn. 283 pages.30.
- Who Goes There? - by John W. Campbell. 73 pages.31.
- Ragtime - by E. L. Doctorow. 270 pages.32.
- Who Fears Death - by Nnedi Okorafor. 386 pages.33.
- Out Man in Havana - by Graham Greene. 225 pages.34.
- Blackout - by Connie Willis. 491 pages.35.
- The Old Man and the Sea - by Ernest Hemingway. 88 pages.36.
- A Drink Before the War - by Dennis Lehane. 282 pages.37.
- Brideshead Revisited - by Evenlyn Waugh. 417 pages.38.
- Fevre Dream - by George R. R. Martin. 461 pages.39.
- No Night is Too Long - by Barbara Vine. 326 pages.40.
- The Slap - by Christos Tsiolkas. 485 pages.41.
- The Three-Body Problem - by Cixin Liu. 400 pages.42.
- The Plague - by Albert Camus. 238 pages.43.
- Ossard's Hope - by Colin Taber. 373 pages.44.
- Out of the Silent Planet - by C. S. Lewis. 224 pages.45.
- Tirra Lirra by the River - by Jessica Anderson. 202 pages.46.
- The Fall of Hyperion - by Dan Simmons. 517 pages.47.
- Live and Let Die - by Ian Flemming. 230 pages.48.
- The Lieutenant - by Kate Grenville. 307 pages.49.
- Murder on the Links - by Agatha Christie. 249 pages.50.
- The Stove-Junker - by S.K. Kalsi. 338 pages.51.
- Candide - by Voltaire. 116 pages.52.
- Lunar Park - by Bret Easton Ellis. 308 pages.53.
- The Martian - by Andy Weir. 368 pages.54.
- Remembering Babylon - by David Malouf. 200 pages.55.
- Kidnapped - by Robert Louis Stevenson. 288 pages.56.
- The Cold Commands - by Richard K Morgan. 493 pages.57.
- Railsea - by China Miéville. 376 pages.58.
- Catching Fire - by Suzanne Collins. 391 pages.59.
- Annihilation - by Jeff VanderMeer. 195 pages.60.
- Wylding Hall - by Elizabeth Hand. 176 pages.61.
- Absolom Rex - by K.L. Coones. 165 pages.62.
- Gardens of Night - by Greg F. Gifune. 196 pages.63.
- Solaris - by Stanislaw Lem. 224 pages.64.
- The Lovely Bones - by Alice Sebold. 328 pages.65.
- The Untouchable - by John Banville. 367 pages.66.
- The Shadow Eater - by A. A. Attanasio. 373 pages.Note: Adding the pages read as part of my Short-cuts challenge. 1,385 pages.
Total: 21,316 of 21,000 pages. (100% complete)
CHALLENGE COMPLETE!
Indie Read & ReviewThis year I'm looking at reading and reviewing 12 indie works.
I had been very ambitious in this category in the past. However, I've calmed down a bit and want to make indie authors another part of my reading rather than a dominant part. At least one a month with a written review seems much more do-able.
This is also my opportunity to get my lazy a** writing reviews again.
This is restricted to novels and novella-length works in accordance with my review policies of my review site: http://papyrus.calebblake.net/
The Books:
1.
- Gunwitch: The Witch Hunts - by David Michael. Review2.
- Sand - Omnibus - by Hugh Howey. Review 3.
- Frozen Sky 2: Betrayed - by Jeff Carlson. Review4.
- Revenge - by Chris Ward. {Review}5.
- Loki - by Mike Vasich. {Review}6.
- When on High - by Marcin Wrona. {Review}7.
- Arkadium Rising - by Glen Krisch. {Review}8.
- Absolom Rex - by K.L. Coones. {Review}9.
- Gardens of Night - by Greg F. Gifune.Total: 9 of 12 books. (75% complete)
Book BonfireThis year I'm attempting to read 12 books that exist as paperbacks or hardbacks on my bookshelves.
The Books:
1.
- Holding the Man - by Timothy Conigrave.2.
- Feersum Endjinn - by Iain M. Banks.3.
- Watchmen - by Alan Moore.4.
- A Song of Stone - by Iain Banks.5.
- Gone South - by Robert McCammon.6.
- Forever Free - by Joe Haldeman. 7.
- More Tales of the City - by Armistead Maupin.8.
- Cannery Row - by John Steinback. 9.
- The Waste Lands - by Stephen King.10.
- Who Fears Death - by Nnedi Okorafor.11.
- Blackout - by Connie Willis.12.
- No Night is Too Long - by Barbara Vine. Total: 12 of 12 books. (100% complete)
CHALLENGE COMPLETE!!!
Extra books:
13.
- The Slap - by Christos Tsiolkas.14.
- Ossard's Hope - by Colin Taber.15.
- The Fall of Hyperion - by Dan Simmons.16.
- Lunar Park - by Bret Easton Ellis.18.
- Remembering Babylon - by David Malouf.19.
- The Shadow Eater - by A. A. Attanasio.
Gimme the PrizeThis year I'm attempting to read 10 prize winning books. The prizes can vary from literary prizes such as the Pulitzer, through genre-based awards such as the Hugo and even to independent awards such as the IPPY.
The Books:
1.
- The Broken Shore - by Peter Temple. The Crime Writers' Association Gold Dagger (2007)2.
- The Lathe of Heaven - by Ursula K. Le Guin. Locus Award for Best Novel (1972)3.
- Fugitive Pieces - by Anne Michaels. Orange Prize for Fiction (1997)4.
- The Age of Innocence - by Edith Wharton. Pulitzer Prize for Novel (1921)5.
- Watchmen - by Alan Moore. Hugo Award for Other Forms (1988)6.
- The Carpet Makers - by Andreas Eschbach. Deutscher Science Fiction Preis (1996)7.
- Silk - by Alessandro Baricco. Prix des libraires du Québec for Lauréats hors Québec (1998)8.
- The Master - by Colm Tóibín. International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award (2006)9.
- Who Goes There? - by John W. Campbell. Hugo Award for Best Novella (1939)10.
- Ragtime - by E. L. Doctorow. National Book Critics Circle Award (1975)Total: 10 of 10 books. (100% complete)
CHALLENGE COMPLETE!!!
Extra Books:
11.
- Who Fears Death - by Nnedi Okorafor. World Fantasy Award for Best Novel (2011)12.
- Blackout - by Connie Willis. Nebula Award for Best Novel (2010)13.
- The Old Man and the Sea - by Ernest Hemingway. Pulitzer Prize for Fiction (1953)14.
- A Drink Before the War - by Dennis Lehane. Shamus Award for Best First PI Novel (1995)15.
- The Slap - by Christos Tsiolkas. Commonwealth Writers' Prize for Best Book Overall (2009)16.
- Tirra Lirra by the River - by Jessica Anderson. Miles Franklin Literary Award (1978)17.
- The Fall of Hyperion - by Dan Simmons. British Science Fiction Association Award for Novel (1991)18.
- Annihilation - by Jeff VanderMeer. Shirley Jackson Award for Novel (2014)19.
- The Lovely Bones - by Alice Sebold. Bram Stoker Award for Best First Novel (2002)
Short-cutsThis year I'm aiming to read as many short stories as I read novels/novellas. My basic approach is going to be that I read a short story between each novel during the year. We'll see if I keep up with that.
The Stories:
1. Something Sweet - by Megan Derr. 15 pages.
2. Parking Lot Hero - by J. M. Snyder. 15 pages.
3. Good Breeding - by J. L. Merrow. 18 pages.
4. Gay Lovin' at the Cluck-N-Bun - by Jere Haken. 18 pages.
5. Sunshine and Buttercups - by Danni Keane. 15 pages.
6. Desert Foxes Live in Concern - by G. R. Richards. 15 pages.
7. Life for Rent - by Robert Bell. 18 pages.
8. Embryo, a Yáxtor Brandan Story - by Rodolfo Martínez. 35 pages.
9. Nazareth - by Bernard Schaffer. 10 pages.
10. The End is No End - by Bernard Schaffer. 20 pages.
11. The Machine Stops - by E. M. Forster. 40 pages.
12. Three Strikes - by Piper Vaughn. 5 pages.
13. Yours - by Kim Alan. 15 pages.
14. Drain Me Dry - by Leigh Wilder. 18 pages.
15. Weekend With My Boss - by Mona Lottze. 18 pages.
16. The Wretched Tales 1.1 - by BLMorticia. 18 pages.
17. The Wretched Tales 1.2 - by BLMorticia. 20 pages.
18. The Wretched Tales 1.3 - by BLMorticia. 18 pages.
19. The Wretched Tales 1.4 - by BLMorticia. 18 pages.
19. The Wretched Tales 1.5 - by BLMorticia. 18 pages.
21. A Reluctant Death - by Bernard Schaffer. 15 pages.
22. Scrum - by P. D. Singer. 25 pages.
23. Bonded - by Sara York. 40 pages.
24. Dust in the Whirlwind - by Michael Galloway. 5 pages.
25. Stargazer - by Cedar Sanderson. 5 pages.
26. The Man with a White Face - by Micah Ackerman. 12 pages.
27. The War at the End of the World - by Heidi Belleau & Violetta Vane. 20 pages.
28. Raw - by Max Andrew Dubinsky. 14 pages.
29. Tortured Souls - by Clive Barker. 40 pages.
30. The Merchant and the Alchemist's Gate - by Ted Chiang. 30 pages.
31. Mounting the Fat Lady - by Donald R. Broyles. 10 pages.
32. The Sky Pirates of Gur - by Donald R. Broyles. 15 pages.
33. Jungle Law - by S.L. Armstrong & K. Piet. 24 pages.
34. Voyage East - by Tom Williams. 20 pages.
35. Fortunately, the Milk - by Neil Gaiman. 20 pages.
36. The Skull - by Philip K. Dick. 30 pages
37. All You Zombies - by Robert Heinlein. 13 pages.
38. Speech Sounds - by Octavia E. Butler. 10 pages.
39. Beyond Lies the Wub - by Philip K. Dick. 10 pages.
40. Sacrificed - by Alex Anders. 30 pages.
41. Master - by Dulce Dennison. 7 pages.
42. Belinda in the Pool - by Douglas Clegg. 18 pages.
43. Over the Walls of Eden - by Jay Lake. 8 pages.
44. More Than Friends - by Aria Grace. 35 pages.
45. A Favorite Son - by Uvi Poznansky. 40 pages.
46. Killing Harvey - by Curtis Hox. 8 pages.
47. Finding Harmon - by Isaac Hooke. 8 pages.
48. The Gun - by Philip K. Dick. 18 pages.
49. Ulemet and the Jaguar God - by Lyndon Perry. 28 pages.
50. N. - by Stephen King. 25 pages.
51. The Blizzard - by Erin M. Leaf. 10 pages.
52. The Way to Will - by Drew Hunt. 18 pages.
53. Jealousy - by Katey Hawthorne. 18 pages.
54. Of Ants and Dinosaurs - by Cixin Liu. 55 pages.
55. Insanity - by David Michael. 10 pages.
56. Hunger for Truth - by Tabitha Levin. 15 pages.
57. Anansi Island - by Christian Cantrell. 20 pages.
58. The Micro-Age - by Cixin Liu. 30 pages.
59. Bloodchild - by Octavia E. Butler. 25 pages.
60. The Wandering Earth - by Cixin Liu. 50 pages.
61. The Crystal Crypt - by Philip K. Dick. 18 pages.
62. Soy Sauce Face - by Sedonia Guillone. 80 pages.
63. Santa Toy Boy - by Andy McAllister. 18 pages.
64. The Wallbanger - by Renee George. 18 pages.
65. New America: Utopia Calling - by Jeremy Bates. 20 pages.
66. A Small Price to Pay for Birdsong - by K. J. Parker. 30 pages.
Total: 66 stories. (1,385 pages)
Status: CHALLENGE COMPLETE!
Dear AuthorDear Author is not a challenge as such. This is just a place where I dump my list of authors I would like to cover during the year and crossing them off as I go.
It's a good way for me to monitor whom I'm reading and whom I'm still not getting to.
The Authors:
Sergei Lukyanenko
Stephen Hunt
Lauren Beukes
Benjamin Kane Ethridge
Ann Leckie
Kameron Hurley
Joe Hill
Neal Stephenson
Peter Straub
Hubert Selby Jr.
John Ajvide Lindqvist
Koji Suzuki
Stephen R Donaldson
Joseph Robert Lewis
The Great Aussie Reading ListThis challenge is really a reminder to myself to keep some focus on local authors. The books can be either contemporary or classics and there isn't a specific target.
The Books:
1.
- The Broken Shore - by Peter Temple.2.
- Holding the Man - by Timothy Conigrave.3.
- The Slap - by Christos Tsiolkas.4.
- Ossard's Hope - by Colin Taber.5.
- Tirra Lirra by the River - by Jessica Anderson.6.
- The Lieutenant - by Kate Grenville.7.
- Remembering Babylon - by David Malouf.Total: 7 books.
Suggestions:
Tim Winton
The Harp In The South - by Ruth Park
Jasper Jones - by Craig Silvey
Helen Garner
The Getting of Wisdom - by Handel Richardson
Eucalyptus - by Murray Bail
We Of The Never Never - by Jeannie Gunn
Gould's Book of Fish: A Novel in Twelve Fish - by Richard Flanagan
White Earth - by Andrew McGahan
Dog Boy - by Eva Hornung
A Fortunate Life - by A. B. Facey
All That I Am - by Anna Funder
Shirley Hazzard
Wake In Fright - by Kenneth Cook
My Brilliant Career - by Miles Franklin
Romulus, My Father - by Raimond Gaita
Carpentaria - by Alexis Wright
First! :DWow - what an impressive and ambitious list of categories!
Cool. I look forward to seeing what shows up on the Great Aussie Reading List and the Gimme the Prize reads.
Nyssa wrote: "First! :DWow - what an impressive and ambitious list of categories!"
damn.
OK - I'm basically ready for the new year now. Bring it on!
Not to say that I've been waiting, but I'VE BEEN WAITING.
Homeinmyshoes wrote: "Not to say that I've been waiting, but I'VE BEEN WAITING."LOL
This is so good.
:-D
After a whole year, I've finally put another review up on my site. Here's to a 2015 where I actually do what I plan to do.The review is for Gunwitch: The Witch Hunts and can be found here: http://papyrus.calebblake.net/2015/01/24/gunwitch-the-witch-hunts-by-david-michael/.
I'm probably late to the party, but I just finished Ready Player One.There were probably heaps of problematic plot elements, but the whole book was so super cool, that I didn't notice. I had a blast - but then again, I'm an 80s child.
Just posted a new review on my site. This time, it's Hugh Howey's Sand Omnibus.Review is here: http://papyrus.calebblake.net/2015/02/01/sand-omnibus-by-hugh-howey/
Caleb wrote: "I'm probably late to the party, but I just finished Ready Player One.There were probably heaps of problematic plot elements, but the whole book was so super cool, that I didn't no..."
Not as late as me. :)
Caleb wrote: "I'm probably late to the party, but I just finished Ready Player One.There were probably heaps of problematic plot elements, but the whole book was so super cool, that I didn't no..."
That book is pure Awesome!! lol I loved everything about it!
(I'm also an 80s child, by way of the 70s - I choose to claim both decades since I was born in one and started double digits in the other.) :D
Nyssa wrote: "(I'm also an 80s child, by way of the 70s - I choose to claim both decades since I was born in one and started double digits in the other.) :D "You are seeming to be born in the same year as me.
If I remember your Birthday Challenge correctly, you are a year younger than me. :)
1970. A good year. Makes calculating my age easy.
Ah, then no you're older than me by 3 years. :)
OK - another review complete.This review is for the fantastic Frozen Sky 2: Betrayed.
Here it is: Review
So after the first quarter, I seem to be easily on track.With over 6,400 pages read (and nicely averaging about 330 pages per book), I'm sailing quite nicely to towards my 21,000 page target.
I've already 6 out of 12 targeted indie books, but only posted 3 reviews. However, that gets me over a quarter through the challenge. So, I'm on track.
My Book Bonfire challenge looks effortless at the moment with 7 out of 12 books read. However, as I've piled many more than 12 physical books in my library that I expect to read this year, this was not unexpected.
I've reached the halfway point on my prize-winner challenge, so I'm well ahead of where I need to be.
34 short stories have been consumed and although I don't have a particular figure in mind for this challenge, the idea was that I should read as many short stories as novels/novellas - so I'm killing it.
I've only read 2 books from my Great Aussie Reading List which is mildly disappointing. However, I know I have a few books from the Great Downunder on my pile yet. I'm expecting 5-6 read by the end of the year.
And my Goodreads challenge of 70 books looks well within reach with 20 books already read.
So it's been a pretty productive first quarter for me.
Caleb wrote: "So after the first quarter, I seem to be easily on track.With over 6,400 pages read (and nicely averaging about 330 pages per book), I'm sailing quite nicely to towards my 21,000 page target.
I'..."
That's great!
oh, and "pfffffffffffft!"
(that's the sound of jealousy ;)
Caleb wrote: "So after the first quarter...I've only read 2 books from my Great Aussie Reading List which is mildly disappointing. However, I know I have a few books from the Great Downunder on my pile yet. I'm expecting 5-6 read by the end of the year.
..."
I am totally killing you on that one. 9 Canadian books so far. Where's your patriotism?!? :)
My world challenge on the other hand is in complete burnout mode this year.
OK - I've completed one of my challenges. Gimme the Prize is now complete with 10 prize-winners read.The List
That's great! Congrats Caleb!!
I've been meaning to read Gunwitch but keep not.I've been meaning to read a lot of things...
Caleb wrote: "OK - I've completed one of my challenges. Gimme the Prize is now complete with 10 prize-winners read.The List"
woooooo!
I've finished by Book Bonfire challenge for the year. Although, I'm sure I'll read a few more of my paperbacks before the end of the year.The List
Congrats! You are so focused! I admire that. :)
Congratulations on finishing one of the challenges. I was focused at one time. Now, I'm quite fuzzy on the edges. And through the middle.
Homeinmyshoes wrote: "Congratulations on finishing one of the challenges. I was focused at one time. Now, I'm quite fuzzy on the edges. And through the middle.":D
OK - so I'm finishing up my year of challenges.I managed to inch over the finishing line with my Page Count challenge. An interesting statistic is that if I remove the pages read in my short stories, I averaged almost 302 pages per novel - which isn't too bad.
I've fallen away over the last couple of years with my indie author challenges as I've focused more on trying to get through other books I've owned. So, there was no surprise really that I failed to finish this one.
Book Bonfire and Gimme the Prize challenges were smashed this year as I expected they would be. These challenges somewhat represent my reading focus in the last couple of years and I believe this will continue into 2016.
My Short-cuts challenge kept pace with the number of novels read which was as intended, so I can consider that challenge successful for this year. Of course, most of the short stories I read were utter trash - but I didn't set a benchmark for quality in this challenge.
Dear Author showed me focusing reasonably well on the authors I had in mind over the year. This is pretty much as expected as the majority of my reading list is settled at the time these challenges are set.
I was quite happy with my Great Aussie Reading List challenge. This challenge exists so that I don't forget Australian authors in my ever-futile quest to read everything I can buy/borrow. 7 books is a respectable amount and represents just over 10% of my novel reading over the year.
Happy New Year everyone and I hope 2016 is bursting with fantastic reading material to enrich and entertain.
You had an excellent year! Congratulations on your many accomplishments and very best wishes for 2016!!
Nyssa wrote: "You had an excellent year! Congratulations on your many accomplishments and very best wishes for 2016!!"^this
Yes happy new year. I need to institute a no more than 30% United States/United Kingdom quota. Way too much of my reading is those countries. Those two still accounted for 46% of my reading despite my effort to read more countries and read more Canada. Sigh.
Homeinmyshoes wrote: "Yes happy new year. I need to institute a no more than 30% United States/United Kingdom quota. Way too much of my reading is those countries. Those two still accounted for 46% of my reading despite..."I just read what catches my fancy.
Maybe you should try (instead of country of origin) a different method? Maybe an attempt to visit each country in the world via book (setting)? I've heard there are some amazing Indian works.
Or maybe under-appreciated critical authors? Authors who win awards but no one knows them?
Ooooh, there's controversial award winners! I think one woman won the Book Award but when she was presented the award the host made a racial joke (author is African American). So her win became known for the host's insensitive joke rather than the book itself.
I also just read what catches my fancy. Because I speak only English it tends to be from the big English book producing countries (US, GB). I'm still going at the world, but it's a tough slog now in a lot of fairly unpopulated countries that don't write in English. :)I have found quite a few countries worth pursuing more from. India and Japan are two of my favorite countries to browse now. Although Japan is starting to be a time hog now as well.
Last year's multiple title countries:
United States: 17
United Kingdom: 16
Canada: 14
Japan: 7
Iceland: 2
Austria: 2
Canada was very respectable with 14. I'm hoping for a better spread this year, but that might be hard given my challenges. So much genre fiction I know is US/GB especially when it comes to the series I am reading.
I definitely need to rethink crime, thriller, mystery and romance. Those should be doable outside of the US/GB tandem.
I suck at being a world traveler. O_O
I'm pretty good at it and it has been the best thing I've done reading-wise. There's only a few more easy countries for me to knock off and then the pickings are pretty slim. 82 countries and 86% of the world's population now. Now it is starting to morph into reading more titles from places I enjoyed.Sorry Caleb, I've monopolized your thread with off-topic nonsense. I tend to do that. :)
MobileRead Book Challenges
Books mentioned in this topic
The Shadow Eater (other topics)The Shadow Eater (other topics)
The Untouchable (other topics)
The Lovely Bones (other topics)
The Lovely Bones (other topics)
More...
Page Count
Indie Read and Review
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Book Bonfire
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Gimme the Prize
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Short-cuts
66
The Great Aussie Reading List
7