An's Comprehensive Overview of Reading Projects in 2015

[An]

Time to commit to a few reading challenges. So far I've been thinking about these:

1) #TBR20

I have made a list of 20 ebooks and 20 physical books that have been lingering on my shelves far too long. The idea is to read these 40 books (starting January 1) and not buy or borrow any new books before they are finished.

ebook TBR20:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/list...

Progress: 20/20 ✓

physical TBR20: https://www.goodreads.com/review/list...

Progress: 20/20 ✓

I've also joined the Mount TBR 2015 group to help achieve this: https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/...

Progress: 1/20


2) Around the world

I enjoyed my 'Around the world in 52 books' challenge in 2014. For 2015 I want to read books focusing on 5 countries. Three for each country, preferrably approaching a certain theme from different angles (for example, three books around the theme "Finnish civil war", a fiction book, a non-fiction book and a memoir).

Link to "An Reads the World" :
https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

Progress: 7/17

3) Classics

I would like to read a few classics this year. In 2015 I'll focus on these countries, of wich I'll read three classiscs each, in their original language. The list is in message 7 below

Progress:
Sweden: 0/3
Belgium / NL: 0/3
UK: 1/3
France: 2/3
US: 2/3

4) Ik lees Nederlands (I read Dutch)

Shelf: https://www.goodreads.com/review/list...

Progress: 13/20

[Marina]

I like your challenges, An, good luck with them! If you want support in reading off your TBR list, you might want to join this group: https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/149504.

By the way, I've seen you are from Belgium, that's cool! I lived in the Grand-Duchy of Luxembourg for two years and I had the occasion to visit Belgium (Charleroi, Bruxelles, Ghent, Brugge...) and I really liked it!

[An]

Marina wrote: "I like your challenges, An, good luck with them! If you want support in reading off your TBR list, you might want to join this group: https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/....

By the way, I've ..."

Hi Marina! Thank you for alerting me to the Mount TBR group! I'll join, looks cool.

Indeed I am from Belgium. I live in a small town between Antwerp and Brussels. How nice you enjoyed your visits to Belgium. I think it's often overlooked as a tourist destination. Cities like Ghent, Brughes, Antwerp are all perfect for visiting. I like Luxembourg, too. Used to visit quite often as a child. And of course Italy is beautiful (I noticed that is where you live now).
Happy New Year to you, and good luck with your reading challenges :-)

[Marina]

Thanks An, Happy New Year to you too and happy readings!
(Yes, I am from Italy - glad you like my country!)

[An]

First update of the year. First book read (Birk by Dutch author Jaap Robben) and what a great book it was. This bodes well for reading in 2015.

Ik lees Nederlands / I read Dutch: 1/20

[An]

I had fun reading Cold Earth by Sarah Moss for my #TBR20 challenge. It had lingered on my shelf for about a year. Not too long, but it was time I read it. Really enjoyed it, too. A good start to this clearing-the-to-be-read-pile project.

[An]

I've decided which classics I want to read for my classics challenge. I will tick them off here as I go along.

Sweden:
Hj. Söderberg : Doktor Glas.
Nils Holgerssons underbara resa genom Sverige
Gösta Berling's Saga

UK:
Middlemarch by George Eliot ✓
Villette
A Christmas Carol

Belgium / the Netherlands:
De verwondering
Kaas
Heren van de thee

France:
Balzac: Le Pere Goriot ✓
L'amant by Marguerite Duras ✓
Zola-E Germinal

US:
Franny and Zooey
To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee ✓
Travels with Charley: In Search of America by John Steinbeck ✓

[An]

Physical TBR-pile: 2/20 read: Night Waking

[An]

I read Dutch / Ik lees Nederlands: book 2/20 read (Het vlindereffect by Belgian author Margot Vanderstraeten. The book focuses on the 2008 terror attacks in Mumbai. Quite haunting.

[An]

The Raw Shark Texts: book 3/20 of the physical TBR pile.

[An]

I read Dutch 3/20: Roxy. I think Esther Gerritsen's work is in process of being translated. Recommended!

[An]

I spent the weekend reading Granta 129, number 4 of 20 of my physical TBR pile. I am now going to start My Salinger Year and alongside it read Granta 110: Sex.

[An]

Ebook TBR20: 1/20 (My Salinger Year)

[An]

physical TBR20: 5/20 The Flame Alphabet

[An]

Another book of the TBR pile read: Granta 110: Sex. The Adam Foulds story made it completely worthwhile. (book 6/20)

[An]

Paper TBR20 Book 7/20 The Good Children

[An]

For the past few weeks I've been listening to Geert Mak's Reizen zonder John: op zoek naar Amerika. Interesting. I bought Dogging Steinbeck: How I Went in Search of John Steinbeck's America, Found My Own America, and Exposed the Truth about 'Travels with Charley' to get a second opinion, so to say. I'll also read Travels with Charley: In Search of America of course. Anyway, Geert Mak was book 4/20 for the I read Dutch challenge.

I also finished another book from the paper TBR: A Brief Stop on the Road from Auschwitz (8/20 paper TBR)

[An]

Paper TBR 9/20 Selected Stories: Text Classics

[An]

E-book TBR 20 2/20: Not That Kind of Girl: A Young Woman Tells You What She's "Learned" by Lena Dunham.

[An]

Finished 10/20 of the paper TBR pile and added 3 books for the classics challenge.

[An]

TBR20 11/20 : One Day by David Nicholls. Wondeful book.

[An]

Another ebook read for my TBR20 challenge (3/20): Stone Mattress: Nine Tales by Margaret Atwood. I'll read 60 books of my TBR pile this year (books purchased before 2015) and this is 14/60. Going well, but I'm starting to long for other books now.

[An]

One of my reading resolutions last year was to read more books originally written in Dutch. Paddenkoppenland by Flemish singer - and so also author - Luc De Vos was my fifth Dutch book this year. De vos died late 2014, aged 52. The book conveys quite a negative view of the world and especially of Flanders and the Flemish. It has been done before (is that a Flemish thing? This self-hate? I don't know) and in my view it has been done much better (Dimitri Verhulst for example).

[An]

For the Around the World challenge I finished my first book on South Africa, Disgrace by J.M. Coetzee. I'll move on to the second, Agaat by Marlene van Niekerk.

[An]

Two more TBR books read: Ring for Jeeves by P.G. wodehouse and En storm kom från paradiset by Johannes Anyuru

[An]

Agaat by Marlene Van Niekerk had been lingering on my TBR pile for a while. I'm glad I finally read it. It's also the second book I've read on South Africa for my Around the World challenge.

[Kara]

Great job with your challenges so far, An!

[An]

Another book from the TBR pile finished (Sizzling Sixteen - 15/20) and a Dutch audiobook which is 6/20 for my I read Dutch challenge. Otherwise I'm in a bit of a reading slump...

[Alison]

To Kill a Mockingbird is one of my favorites! I hope you like it when you get to it! I only read it once about 13 years ago and it has stuck with me!

[An]

Alison wrote: "To Kill a Mockingbird is one of my favorites! I hope you like it when you get to it! I only read it once about 13 years ago and it has stuck with me!"

Good to hear. Definitely one I look forward to reading this year!

[An]

I've been in a bit or a reading slump, which resulted in the first abandoned #TBR20 book (book 16/20). Now back on track I hope.

I did finish Zeik by Herman Brusselmans, which is book 7/20 of the I read Dutch challenge.

[An]

A Sense of Direction: Pilgrimage for the Restless and the Hopeful got me back on track (ebook TBR 4/20). I really enjoyed this funny, insightful book about pilgrimage.

On to a Swedish book, Mannen som föll i glömska, which I nearly abandoned after 20 pages but I'm glad I didn't, because I'm loving it now. It's about a guy everyone is starting to forget - even his wife and his mother don't recognize him anymore. Can't wait to see how it ends. - Reading slump over -

[An]

I need a replacement French classic because half of Les Liaisons Dangereuses was plenty. I'll think about it.

[An]

My TBR20 challenge is coming along nicely. One of Our Thursdays Is Missing was book 19/20. Last one is Middlemarch.

[An]

It took me a while but I finally finished Middlemarch and thus also my paper TBR20 challenge. Phew. It's also the first of my Classics reading project, by the way.

[An]

The Sound of Things Falling by Juan Gabriel Vasquez (book 5/20 of my ebook TBR20 challenge) was brilliant. Probably one of the best books I'll read this year.

[An]

Longbourn by Jo Baker, book 6/20 of my ebook TBR20 challenge. Beautiful! Much more than just a look behind the scenes of Pride and Prejudice. A very good story in its own right.

[An]

I've been reading my #TBR20 ebooks. Almost there! Three to go. I'm actually quite looking forward to finishing this list, as I have many, many other books lined up to read. So I'm behind with all my reading projects. Still time to catch up though :-)

[An]

Finally finished my ebook #TBR20 list. Together with the physical list that makes 40 books read which I already owned.

I need to hurry up and get reading for my Around the World project! Library books have however piled up while I was busy reading books from my shelves, and as the library doesn't fool around with fines (sort of), I want to read those first.

[An]

No way I'm going to finish all these reading projects this year but no matter, I'll just continue next year. I'm having fun with them though, and thanks to my choices for the Around the World challenge, I discovered John Steinbeck and his wonderful book Cannery Row. In the meantime I've also read Travels with Charley: In Search of America and Bill Steigerwald's Dogging Steinbeck: How I Went in Search of John Steinbeck's America, Found My Own America, and Exposed the Truth about 'Travels with Charley'.

[An]

Another classic finished, Père Goriot. I struggled a bit with this book. I read and read and didn't seem to get anywhere.

[An]

Time for Christmas reading! The best part of the year. Maybe I can get a little bit further with my 2015 reading challenges. If not, there's always next year.