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Book a Week in 2015 - Happy New Year


Robin M
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Happy New Year, My lovelies.   Welcome to the our quest to read 52 Books in 52 weeks.  Welcome back to all our readers, to all those who are just joining in and to all who are following our progress. Mr. Linky is all set up on the 52 Books blog to link to your reviews. The link is below in my signature.

 

52 Books Blog - A Merry New Reading Year:  Happy New Year and welcome to a merry new reading year at Read 52 Books in 52 Weeks.  Welcome back to all who are joining me for another round and to those joining in for the first time.  

The rules are very simple. Read 52 Books. That's it. How you get there is up to you.  We have several optional challenges listed in the link bar above to stimulate your imagination and help you on your reading journeys.  In addition to the perpetual A to Z, Well Educated Mind challenge, Dusty/Chunky books, and another journey Around the World,  we will be having some readalongs, an Author Flavor of the Month as well as monthly themes to tickle your reading taste buds.  I'll be throwing in mini challenges here and there such as pick a book with a color or number or season in the title, or pick a book written in your birth year.

To start off our mind voyage for the year, this month's theme is January Journeys - rambling jaunts and walks, translated and transformed.    We'll be packing up our backpacks, replacing those old thread worn walking shoes for a new pair, and sailing (or flying if you prefer)  out across the Pacific toward the far eastern shores of the continent of Asia.  Where you go from there is up to you.  We'll be rambling and roving around reading translated books, exploring and examining different cultures and delving into the present as well as the past. 

We'll be starting out with a year long read of Susan Wise Bauer's History of the Medieval World. The goal is to finish by the end of the year so we will aim for one to two chapters a week.  Let's start with Chapter one this week and then we'll alternate two chapters every other week. 

Our Author Flavor of the Month is Haruki Murakami (born 1/12/49) and I'll be diving into Hard Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World while a few other gals are choosing to delve into Kafka on the Shore.  I thoroughly enjoyed reading 1Q84  and still contemplating the strangeness of A Wind Up Bird Chronicle. Check out one of his books this month if you choose. 

I have found several resources for translated books and if you know of any I haven't mentioned, please let me know and we'll add it to the list. 

3% - A resource for international books by the University of Rochester.  I ended up exploring many rabbit trails through this site. 

Archipelago Books - Thanks to this company, I currently have Blinding and The Great Weaver of Kashmir in my backpack.

Glagoslav Publications - Translations from Russia, Ukraine and Belarus for English and Dutch readers.  

Europa Editions has now created World Noir specializing in international crime fiction. 

Our first week is going to run from today through Saturday, January 10th so enjoy, relax and have fun exploring.  I look forward to hearing all about your finds and plans for the new reading year.

 

 

 

 

 

Link to week 52 2014 wrap up

 

 

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A new year is always exciting with all our fresh plans and goals in the works:  Here's my book shelfie of current books planning to read

 

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On the Nightstand is Hard Boiled Wonderland by Haruki Murakami and ebook Archangels Storm by Nalini Singh.

 

 

 Instead of a 5/5/5 read, changing it up to 3/5/15 which is 3 books in 5 categories in the year 2015.  

 

Categories are: Dusty, Chunky, Translated, Centuries, and Study of St Luke

 

I'm Committing to another year long Bible read but will probably concentrate on the New Testament.

Writing Wise I'm involved in a writing workshop studying Alice LaPlantes The Making of a Story and doing Chapter 6 this month. 

 

 

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I like the idea of a challenge. I think I'll add to my list a book that I've owned but not read yet - Crime and Punishment - to add something from the eastern part of the world. I'll probably work through it fairly slowly (definitely will take longer than a week), but I'm looking forward to it.

 

I also want to work on history a bit, but don't want to buy a new book at the moment. So, I'll be reading history as well, but instead of SWB I'll read Big History by Cynthia Stokes Brown.

 

Current Books:

  • The 10X Rule by Grant Cardone
  • One Simple Idea by Stephen Key
  • Psycho-Cybernetics by Maxwell Maltz
  • Starting Strength by Mark Rippetoe
  • Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoevsky
  • Big History by Cynthia Stokes Brown

Goal is to finish The 10X Rule, One Simple Idea and Psycho-Cybernetics this week, read CaP a little every night, and 2 chapters of Big History.

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This is my delayed summary of my 2014 challenges. With Robin's indulgence and absolution, I like to group mine as Violet Crown's Post-Hoc Challenges.

 

500+ pages Chunkster Challenge:

 

St Hildegard de Bingen, Scivias

Thomas Mann, The Magic Mountain

Sir Walter Scott, Rob Roy

Boccaccio, The Decameron

Dmitri Merejkowski, The Romance of Leonardo da Vinci

James Boswell, The Life of Samuel Johnson

The Oxford Book of Ghost Stories

 

I have more long books in my TBR pile, which may be counted by volume so as to keep up my spirits.

 

Ye Banks and Braes Scottish Writer Challenge:

 

Nancy Brysson Morison, The Gowk Storm

Christopher Rush, Last Lesson of the Afternoon

R. L. Stevenson, The Merry Men and Other Stories

John Buchan, The Strange Adventures of Mr Andrew Hawthorn and Other Stories

John Buchan, The Thirty-Nine Steps

Sir Walter Scott, Rob Roy

Robin Jenkins, The Cone-Gatherers

James Hogg, The Private Memoirs and Confessions of a Justified Sinner

James Boswell, The Life of Samuel Johnson

Conan Doyle, The Exploits of Brigadier Gerard

 

I was pleased to discover Canongate Press, the Edinburgh publishing house that tries to keep Scottish literature in print. Dh is still reading and enjoying Canongate's long and increasingly bizarre cult novel Lanark.

 

Remember the Ladies Female Writer Challenge:

 

Jane Austen, Mansfield Park

Hildegard von Bingen, Scivias

Aphra Behn, Oroonoko, Or the Royal Slave

Colette, Music-Hall Sidelights

Colette, Gigi

Colette, Claudine at School

Nancy Brysson Morison, The Gowk Storm

Katherine Mansfield, in a German Pension

George Eliot, Silas Marner

Colette, The Innocent Libertine

Mary Shelley, The Last Man

 

Eleven out of 59 is almost certainly a record for me.

 

Plague Challenge:

 

Mary Shelley, The Last Man

Daniel Defoe, A Journal of the Plague Year

Boccaccio, The Decameron

 

I had more plague books planned; but my meta-self rebelled at my primary self's setting reading requirements for her. This is why I should stick to post-hoc challenges.

 

Love Me Some James Challenge:

 

Henry James, The Awkward Age

Henry James, The Bostonians

Henry James, Washington Square

 

New Year's resolution: more James!

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Happy New Year! 

 

As the fireworks went off (and what surely sounded like weaponry as well) last night at midnight, I was in bed next to my sick husband reading.  Soon thereafter, I finished M. L. Buchman's Full Blaze (Firehawks) which I enjoyed very much.  It's a contemporary romance with a suspense component.

 

"She's just jumped square into the heart of the blaze

 

When Australian helicopter pilot Jeannie Clark rescues wildfire photographer Cal Jackson from a raging burnover, she doesn't know she's bringing aboard a firebrand.  Cal is quickly recruited for MHA's covert operations that reach far beyond the flames. Together Jeannie and Cal are assigned to an overseas operation with a lot more at risk than burning trees. And they'll need all the skill, love, and trust they can muster if they're going to survive the heat of this jungle battle.

 

The second in M.L Buchman's firefighter romantic suspense series featuring a team of daredevil smokejumpers who fight more than fires. The elite fire experts of Mount Hood Aviation fly into places even the CIA can't penetrate."

 

 

This is about the tenth book that I've read by this author, and I've enjoyed them all.  I'd like to try some of his books in other genres as well.

 

Regards,

Kareni

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I have found several resources for translated books and if you know of any I haven't mentioned, please let me know and we'll add it to the list. 

 

 

Graywolf Press has a translations section in their catalog. I have Edward Hopper Poems: A Bilingual Edition on my to-read list.

 

This morning I started Ted Hughes's Crow: From the Life and Songs of the Crow , and I plan to start Kafka on the Shore sometime today. I also started Dynamic Characters by Nancy Kress to go along with a Writers' Village course. 

 

I ordered a copy of Shakespeare's Richard II for the Shakespeare portion of my 3/5/15 (or maybe still 5/5/15 - I'll have to think about it) and I am also now waiting for copies of One Zentangle a Day, as suggested by Shukriyya, and the Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain Workbook.

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Hello again everyone.

 

I'm starting the new year's reading by finishing up the old.  As of this morning, I had about 200 pages to go in HoAW, about 100 in Women's Work and 450 in the 650 page chunkster The Unicorn Hunt, the fifth book in Dorothy Dunnett's House of Niccolo series.  My goal is to have these three wrapped up by January 10 as well as read the first chapter in HoMW. 

 

Nonfiction is always slower going for me.  So in about a week I may need some boardies to tell me to get off the Internet and get cracking on this personal challenge.

 

As noted previously, I want to spend the rest of January and possibly February reducing the size of the dusty stacks.  Then I'll think about library lists...or so she claims.

 

A knitting note:  I subscribe to the historical/ethnographic needlework magazine Piecework. The January/February edition arrived yesterday and it touched me deeply.  The first issue of the year focuses on historical knitting.  In 2014, this January/February issue had an article with pattern for "A Tribute Baby Sweater".  The author, Heatherly Walker, went to Auschwitz-Birkenau and was deeply moved by the exhibit in Block 5 of Everyday Lives, an exhibit that features items brought to the camp.  There was a baby's sweater which Walker reproduced, a labor that she said was one of the hardest things she had ever done.

 

In the 2015 Historical Knitting issue, the editors share photos of several Tribute sweaters knitted by fellow readers of Piecework.  One woman knitted it for her granddaugher.  Another noted "This was a sobering piece to knit."

 

I was so moved by the 2015 update that I pulled out my 2014 issue to reread Heatherly Walker's article.

 

It was a beautiful way to end 2014, a tribute to the past as I cherish today--and move forward.

 

 

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Happy New Year!!!!!

 

Starting out with a reread of Jane Eyre. Soooo very good. Roughly a quarter of the way through but think I will concentrate on it so that my first book of the year is positive to look back upon.

 

 

Also reading Ben Aaronvitch's Broken Homes in preparation for the realease in a few days of Foxglove Summer.

 

Finally, plan to read a chapter or two of Kafka on the Shore tonight.

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I've lurked a bit on your threads over the past year, but I want to join this year! I like the idea of reading History of the Medieval World together.  I have a few middle ages books I want to read this year, starting with Memoirs of a Medieval Woman and The Prince.

 

On my current stack are The Case of Comrade Tulayev, by Victor Serge - I'm reading that for a Great Books reading group I belong to.  I've neglected that group over the past year but want to recommit to it for 2015.  I'm also reading Science As A Way of Knowing by John Moore, and The March of Folly by Barbara Tuchman.  I like to have about 4 books going at a time.  I will pull HotMW off the shelf and add it to the stack!

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I've lurked a bit on your threads over the past year, but I want to join this year! I like the idea of reading History of the Medieval World together.  I have a few middle ages books I want to read this year, starting with Memoirs of a Medieval Woman and The Prince.

 

On my current stack are The Case of Comrade Tulayev, by Victor Serge - I'm reading that for a Great Books reading group I belong to.  I've neglected that group over the past year but want to recommit to it for 2015.  I'm also reading Science As A Way of Knowing by John Moore, and The March of Folly by Barbara Tuchman.  I like to have about 4 books going at a time.  I will pull HotMW off the shelf and add it to the stack!

So glad you decided to join in.

 

And so much for multquoting.

 

 

 

Fiona - Dostoyevsky has been in my stacks forever. Maybe this will be the year.

 

Violet Crown - Maybe this will be the year I'll delve into Henry James as well.  Great list of books!   Maybe we should add Henry James as a Author Flavor of the Month????

 

Kareni - added to my wishlist

 

 

Robyn - I have Kress's Character, Emotion and Viewpoint.  Will check out Greywolf Press

 

Jane - Didn't know you weren't done with HotAW.  If anyone else is still plugging away, we can delay the start of Medieval World for a couple weeks. 

 

Happy New Year Mum!

 

 

 

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So glad you decided to join in.

 

And so much for multquoting.

 

 

 

Fiona - Dostoyevsky has been in my stacks forever. Maybe this will be the year.

 

Violet Crown - Maybe this will be the year I'll delve into Henry James as well.  Great list of books!   Maybe we should add Henry James as a Author Flavor of the Month????

 

Kareni - added to my wishlist

 

 

Robyn - I have Kress's Character, Emotion and Viewpoint.  Will check out Greywolf Press

 

Jane - Didn't know you weren't done with HotAW.  If anyone else is still plugging away, we can delay the start of Medieval World for a couple weeks. 

 

Happy New Year Mum!

 

Robin--please don't hold up the group on my account.  I am determined more than ever to finish HoAW!

 

I love the idea of a James challenge!  He was not among my favs when I read him in my college days/twenties.  I wonder what I would think of his work now.

 

 

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Week 52 Ă¢â‚¬â€œ Wrap UP!

 

How many books did I read?  56

and Did I meet my personal goal? Yes!  I had wanted to make it to 52 this year, and I did!

 

Rereads:  11.  I only mention this because normally at least half of my books are rereads.  I like to revisit my friends, LOL.  I think this low number can be attributed to you all broadening my horizons!

 

Most thrilling, oh my goodness, I want to read it again, unputdownable book:   Probably Catching Fire.  I read it in under 24 hours.  I had four other books that I marked as unable to put down:  Speaking from Among the Bones, Imprudent Lady, The Sugar Queen, and The Lost Sisterhood.

 

Top 5 favorite stories:  IĂ¢â‚¬â„¢m sorry, I canĂ¢â‚¬â„¢t pick just 5!  Out of 56 books I had nine that I rated 5 stars:  Imprudent Lady, The Dead in their Vaulted Arches, The Last Battle, The Sugar Queen, The Grandy Sophy, The Lost Sisterhood, Little Women, Catching Fire, and Sylvester: Or the Wicked Uncle.

 

Least favorite book:  I had three 2 star books.  The Mark of Athena was definitely my least favorite!!  I did enjoy the original Percy Jackson books but not these.  Slaughterhouse Five and The HitchhikerĂ¢â‚¬â„¢s Guide to the Galaxy are the other two.  Though I am at least glad I read both of those.  If Slaughterhouse Five had not been so crude then it would have gotten a better rating, it at least made me think! 

 

Biggest waste of my time:  The Mark of Athena

 

Most disturbing:  Agenda 21

 

Most anticipated but totally and completely let me down book:  Blackmoore!  After thoroughly enjoying Julianne DonaldsonĂ¢â‚¬â„¢s first book, this fell so far flat I couldnĂ¢â‚¬â„¢t believe it!   

 

New author discovery:  Richard Paul Evans, Gail Carriger, and Joan Smith

New genre discovery:  Cozy Mysteries and Steampunk

 

What countries did I explore:  Israel, USA, Peru, England, Wales, Turkey, Denmark, Italy, Scotland, Costa Rica, Algeria, Greece, Crete, Finland, Germany, Taiwan, and Narnia.

 

What centuries did I explore: 1st, 9th, 11th, 12th, 14th, 19th, 20th, 21st

 

Favorite Place to visit:  Flufferton Abbey

 

Favorite character:  Flavia de Luce, Aslan, Sophy (from The Grand Sophy), Ian Malcom, the Nac Mac FeegleĂ¢â‚¬â„¢s, Marmee, and Peeta

 

Least favorite character:  Tris from Divergent

 

Favorite story:  DonĂ¢â‚¬â„¢t know if I can pick, though in my notes I have Sylvester down as one of my favorite stories.

 

Favorite quote:  Well, I canĂ¢â‚¬â„¢t choose just one (of course lol).  Probably my favorite (from The Sugar Queen): Â Ă¢â‚¬Å“Books can be possessive, canĂ¢â‚¬â„¢t they?  YouĂ¢â‚¬â„¢re walking around in a bookstore and a certain one will jump out at you like it had moved there on its own, just to get your attention.  Sometimes whatĂ¢â‚¬â„¢s inside will change your life, but sometimes you donĂ¢â‚¬â„¢t even have to read it.  Sometimes itĂ¢â‚¬â„¢s a comfort just to have a book around.Ă¢â‚¬Â 

 

From Jurassic Park:  Ă¢â‚¬Å“Scientists are actually preoccupied with accomplishment.  So they are focused on whether they can do something.  They never stop to ask if they should do something.Ă¢â‚¬

 

From The Graveyard Book:  Ă¢â‚¬Å“ItĂ¢â‚¬â„¢s like the people who believe theyĂ¢â‚¬â„¢ll be happy if they go and live somewhere else, but who learn it doesnĂ¢â‚¬â„¢t work that way.  Wherever you go, you take yourself with you.  If you see what I mean.Ă¢â‚¬Â 

 

And two from The Rise and Fall of Mount Majestic:  Ă¢â‚¬Å“Perhaps there are some things that we are not meant to understand.  Without a few mysteries and a few giants, life would be a very small thing, after all.Ă¢â‚¬Â  And Ă¢â‚¬Å“Life is a mess and a miracle.Ă¢â‚¬

 

One book that touched me Ă¢â‚¬â€œ made me laugh, cry, sing or dance:  Not a book but a chapter from The MagicianĂ¢â‚¬â„¢s Nephew!  The chapter that contained the creation of Narnia.  This is what I have written in my notes:  Ă¢â‚¬Å“I am still amazed at how the description of Aslan creating Narnia touched me.  I told Aly that it made my soul sing.  I couldn't help but envision God creating the heavens and the earth.  Did the angels sing as he spoke?  What did the words he spoke sound like?  Did it sound like a beautiful song as C.S. Lewis had Aslan singing?  It would have had to be beautiful as we can't help but look around and see the beauty in every piece of His Creation.  I was really just bowled over by how I connected to this part of the book.Ă¢â‚¬

 

Favorite mini challenges:  Spooky October and Reading through the Centuries (though I didnĂ¢â‚¬â„¢t make it!)

 

Am I ready to do it again:  YES!

 

Goals for 2015:  IĂ¢â‚¬â„¢ll keep my goal at 52 books.  I do have a few books that I plan/want to read, Mere Christianity, Surprised by Joy, and C.S. LewisĂ¢â‚¬â„¢s Sci Fi trilogy, reread the Harry Potter series (as we are planning a vacation to Orlando), more Shakespeare, and poetry.

 

I am so thankful that Robin keeps us focused and going!  And I'm glad that I've jumped in and participated more in the discussions this year.  It's been a great year!

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Yay, Robin, our first new thread of 2015!

My body experiences the New Year beginning as the light changes, on the Winter Solstice. I feel it as a kind of stricture and contraction leading up to the 21st or 22nd depending on when it falls that particular year. And then a long, slow outbreathing. My mind likes the tidy, linear Gregorian calendar as its place of re-beginning so with a foot in both worlds I'm wishing my BaW sisters a wonderful New Year complete with the blessings of the returning light of the Solstice and the open road of possibility inspired by a new calendar year.

I've got several books lined up this month, all books just to read for fun which makes me giddy with anticipation after putting my nose to the grindstone and shoulder to the wheel to finish my 5/5. In a bold setting-out into genres previously inaccessible to me, this month's roster includes Deerskin, Solstice Wood, Winter Rose a kind of Tam Lin re-imagining, and The Limits of Enchantment. Along with that are Book of Ages which I've started but I'm undecided about, ds's Xmas gift to me, Urchin and the Heartstone and HotMW plus a new-to-me poet, David Whyte. Well, I'm a little bit in love with his lens, his language, his way of seeing, truth be told, and I just bought this book and it's wonderful.

Robin, congratulations on being selected to participate as guide for your writing course!

Rose, welcome. I've often enjoyed your posts on the various education threads. I think you'll find things quite inspiring here.

Whoever mentioned The Artist's Way by Julia Cameron...I did that book-course a couple of decades ago and found it to impactful in very positive way.

Jane, I cannot imagine knitting such a contextual piece. Each stitch would be wet with tears or dry with the sobriety of the task. Thank you for sharing this story. You've mentioned Piecework in the past and I've been tempted to subscribe. I shall pop on over to the website for another look-see.

Drawers, scribblers and wannabes I'm anticipating an interesting exploration of this medium with you all. It's now buoyed up by a collective intention which was not present before. I'm curious to see where our pens and pencils take us. This poem by John O'Donohue seems a fitting way to begin...

For the Artist at the Start of the Day

May morning be astir with the harvest of night;
Your mind quickening to the eros of a new question,
Your eyes seduced by some unintended glimpse
That cut right through the surface to a source.

May this be a morning of innocent beginning,
When the gift within you slips clear
Of the sticky web of the personal
With its hurt and its hauntings,
And fixed fortress corners.

A morning when you become a pure vessel
For what wants to ascend from silence,

May your imagination know
The grace of perfect danger,

To reach beyond imitation,
And the wheel of repetition,

Deep into the call of all
The unfinished and unsolved.

Until the veil of the unknown yields
And something original begins
To stir toward your senses
And grow stronger in your heart

In order to come to birth
In a clean line of form,
That claims from time
A rhythm not yet heard,
That calls space to
A different shape.

May it be its own force field
And dwell uniquely
Between the heart and the light

To surprise the hungry eye
By how deftly it fits
About its secret loss.

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My final list, because I got way too wordy in my Wrap Up and couldn't fit it  :blush:

 

*1 Ă¢â‚¬â€œÂ The Women of Christmas by Liz Curtis Higgs (Isarel)

*2 Ă¢â‚¬â€œÂ Michael Vey: The Prisoner of Cell 25 by Richard Paul Evans (USA)

*3 Ă¢â‚¬â€œÂ The Silver Chair by C.S. Lewis (Dusty, Narnia, reread)

*4 Ă¢â‚¬â€œÂ Michael Vey:  The Rise of the Elgen by Richard Paul Evans (USA/Peru)

*5 Ă¢â‚¬â€œÂ Soulless by Gail Carriger (England, BaW rec)

*6 Ă¢â‚¬â€œÂ Speaking from Among the Bones by Alan Bradley (England)

*7 Ă¢â‚¬â€œÂ A Morbid Taste for Bones by Ellis Peters (12th Century, England/Wales,BaW rec)

*8 Ă¢â‚¬â€œÂ Michael Vey: Battle of the Ampere by Richard Paul Evans (Peru)

*9 - Divergent by Veronica Roth (USA, Skye rec)

*10 - Anna of Byzantium by Tracy Barrett (Turkey, 11th/12th Century, Dusty Book, re-read)

*11 Ă¢â‚¬â€œ Austenland by Shannon Hale (England, Dusty Book)

*12 Ă¢â‚¬â€œ The Horse and His Boy by C.S. Lewis (Narnia, reread)

*13 Ă¢â‚¬â€œ Etiquette and Espionage by Gail Carriger (England, BaW rec)

*14 Ă¢â‚¬â€œ The MagicianĂ¢â‚¬â„¢s Nephew by C.S. Lewis (Narnia, reread)

*15 Ă¢â‚¬â€œ Wrapped by Jennifer Bradbury (England)

*16 Ă¢â‚¬â€œ Imprudent Lady by Joan Smith (England, BaW rec)

*17 Ă¢â‚¬â€œ Beorn the Proud by Madeleine Polland (Denmark, 9th Century, re-read)

*18 Ă¢â‚¬â€œ The Mark of Athena by Rick Riordan (audiobook) (USA/Italy)

*19 Ă¢â‚¬â€œ The Dead in their Vaulted Arches by Alan Bradley (England)

*20 Ă¢â‚¬â€œ The Last Battle by C.S. Lewis (Narnia, reread)

*21 Ă¢â‚¬â€œ The Sugar Queen by Sarah Addison Allen (USA, dusty book)

*22 Ă¢â‚¬â€œ The Mysterious Marquis by Eileen Ainsworth Ramsay (England/Scotland, dusty book)

*23 Ă¢â‚¬â€œ Agenda 21 by Harriet Parke and Glen Beck (USA)

*24 Ă¢â‚¬â€œ Persuasion by Jane Austen  (audiobook, England, re-read)

*25 Ă¢â‚¬â€œ The Grand Sophy by Georgette Heyer (England, dusty book)

*26 Ă¢â‚¬â€œ The Convenient Marriage by Georgette Heyer (England)

*27 Ă¢â‚¬â€œ Mr. KnightleyĂ¢â‚¬â„¢s Diary by Amanda Grange (England, dusty book)

*28 - Classics Illustrated Macbeth (Graphic Novel) by Shakespeare (Scotland)

*29 - Inferno by Dante (14th Century, classic, BaW read along)

*30 - Aunt Dimity: Vampire Hunter by Nancy Atherton (England, dusty book, BaW rec)

*31 - The Heiress of Winterwood by Sarah E. Ladd (England)

*32 - Jurassic Park by Michael Crichton (Costa Rica, dusty book, re-read)

*33 - The Wee Free Men by Terry Pratchett (Scotland, audiobook, BaW rec)

*34 - The Lost Sisterhood by Anne Fortier (Algeria/Greece/Turkey/England/Crete/Finland)

*35 Ă¢â‚¬â€œ Strange Capers by Joan Smith (England)

*36 Ă¢â‚¬â€œ Lady of Devices by Shelley Adina (England, 19th Century)

*37 Ă¢â‚¬â€œ Famous Men of the Middle Ages by Rob Shearer

*38 Ă¢â‚¬â€œ The Door in the Wall by Marguerite de Angeli (England, 14th Century, re-read)

*39 Ă¢â‚¬â€œ Little Women by Louisa May Alcott (USA, 19th Century, classic, re-read)

*40 Ă¢â‚¬â€œ Blackmoore by Julianne Donaldson (England, 19th Century) *biggest disappointment 

*41 Ă¢â‚¬â€œ The Mysterious Benedict Society by Trenton Lee Stewart (Aly rec)

*42 Ă¢â‚¬â€œ The Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum (classic)

*43 Ă¢â‚¬â€œ Slaughter House Five by Kurt Vonnegut (banned book, USA & Germany, BaW rec)

*44 Ă¢â‚¬â€œ The Giver by Lois Lowry (banned book)

*45 Ă¢â‚¬â€œ The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman (England, spooky read, BaW rec)

*46 Ă¢â‚¬â€œ The Legend of Sleepy Hollow & Rip Van Winkle by Washington Irving (USA, classic, dusty book)

*47 Ă¢â‚¬â€œ A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens (England, 19th Century, classic, re-read)

*48 Ă¢â‚¬â€œ Michael Vey: Hunt for Jade Dragon by Richard Paul Evans (Taiwan, USA)

*49 Ă¢â‚¬â€œ The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins (USA)

*50 Ă¢â‚¬â€œ Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins (USA)

*51 Ă¢â‚¬â€œ Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins (USA)

*52 Ă¢â‚¬â€œ The Rise and Fall of Mount Majestic by Jennifer Trafton

*53 Ă¢â‚¬â€œ Cousin Kate by Georgette Heyer (England, 19th century)

*54 Ă¢â‚¬â€œ Sylvester: Or the Wicked Uncle by Georgette Heyer (England, 19th century)

*55 Ă¢â‚¬â€œ The HitchhikerĂ¢â‚¬â„¢s Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams

*56 Ă¢â‚¬â€œ The Rumplestiltskin Problem by Vivian Vande Velde

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Robin, I am not done with HotAW but do not delay for me. I am only a third of the way through so hope to start plugging along again soon. Can't seem to motivate myself.

 

I have left it languishing for months on my currently reading shelf on Goodreads. That doesn't even seem to shame me.

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Here are the Author Flavors of the Month.  Any changes, suggestions or questions????

  • January: Haruki Murakami 
  • February: Jane Austen
  • March: Charlotte Bronte
  • April: C.S. Lewis
  • May: Dante - Purgatorio
  • June: Alexander Dumas
  • July: Tracy Chevalier
  • August: Isabelle Allende
  • September: Michel De Montaigne
  • October: Anne Rice
  • November: Fyodor Dostoevsky
  • December: Henry James
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<p>Here are the Author Flavors of the Month. Any changes, suggestions or questions????

  • January: Haruki Murakami
  • February: Jane Austen
  • March: Charlotte Bronte
  • April: C.S. Lewis
  • May: Dante - Purgatorio
  • June: Alexander Dumas
  • July: Tracy Chevalier
  • August: Isabelle Allende
  • September: Michel De Montaigne
  • October: Anne Rice
  • November: Fyodor Dostoevsky
  • December: Henry James

Great list Robin! Love the October Anne Rice!

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Here are the Author Flavors of the Month.  Any changes, suggestions or questions????

  • January: Haruki Murakami 
  • February: Jane Austen
  • March: Charlotte Bronte
  • April: C.S. Lewis
  • May: Dante - Purgatorio
  • June: Alexander Dumas
  • July: Tracy Chevalier
  • August: Isabelle Allende
  • September: Michel De Montaigne
  • October: Anne Rice
  • November: Fyodor Dostoevsky
  • December: Henry James

 

 

Sorry, newbie question: Is the idea to read a book by that author during that month? I'm guessing that's it, but if there is anything else to it please let me know!  I love the author list.  Off to look up Haruki Murakami  :gnorsi:

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It does and doesn't feel like the start of the New Year.  My annual New Year's Day tradition of clearing the decks from the holidays is on hold til Sunday as I'm getting ready for Christmas 2.0, which we will celebrate tomorrow and Saturday when my oldest finally can join us. (He worked 13 hours on Christmas Day and 12 hours yesterday, with lots of 8 hour days in between.  Disneyland is so packed during the holidays it reaches capacity by 11am and they have to close the gates for 3 hours or so til the crowds thin enough to let more in!)  My youngest and I spent yesterday doing the mad last minute Christmas present shopping dash and today I'm wrapping presents!!  Still need to finish grocery shopping for Christmas dinner.  

 

My companion to Christmas 2.0 prep is the audio version of the 13th title in the Master and Commander series, The Thirteen Gun Salute.  It has started a little slow, and if I didn't have faith in the author and the series I'd actually have given up on it by now.  I'm a chapter or so into Tracy Chevalier's The Lady and the Unicorn. 

 

Love the list of flavor of the month authors, but as per usual am not committing to any particular challenges.  I just plan to follow where ever the reading muse leads!

 

Welcome to Rose, aka Chrysalis Academy.  You'll find some nice company here!

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Sorry, newbie question: Is the idea to read a book by that author during that month? I'm guessing that's it, but if there is anything else to it please let me know! I love the author list. Off to look up Haruki Murakami :gnorsi:

Yes, exactly. All meant for inspiration and trying authors haven't read yet.

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Robin, I am not done with HotAW but do not delay for me. I am only a third of the way through so hope to start plugging along again soon. Can't seem to motivate myself.

 

I have left it languishing for months on my currently reading shelf on Goodreads. That doesn't even seem to shame me.

Don't feel bad, I quite 1/3 of the way through. :0 Fortunately HotMw looks more interesting.

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The last books of 2014:

 

3 chunky books I finally finished:

 

Tale of the Heike:  I started this in January when we were doing Japan, but got distracted... and it really needed me to give it larger chunks of reading time.   This epic narrative was a fascinating delight (and Tyler's translation is superb, though I still also like McCullough's and am glad I own both).  It is enormous (?~700+pages), and there aren't characters who carry all the way through, but the little vignettes delighted me.

 

Paradiso by Dante: I started this right after finishing Purgatorio, but wasn't in a Dante mood any more, but I slipped into the right groove at last and enjoyed it very much (though Purgatorio remains my favorite).  The Hollander translation with extensive notes was exactly what I wanted for this (and was my favorite option for Purgatorio also).

 

History of the Ancient World: I'd forgotten how much parts of the end of this bother me, but the rest I appreciated.  My favorite part of SWB's overviews is connecting the different pieces - there is much I know in isolation, but pulling those pieces together and interconnecting them a bit is a pleasure.  ...counterbalanced a little by the irritation of the over simplification necessary for such an overview.  To make it through HotMW, I think I'll need to read some more detailed works alongside, or I'll go batty.

 

3 really short works:

 

Anna Christie by Eugene O'Neil:  Unsurprisingly this was a painful read, but there was a glimmer of light... and a muddled striving.

 

Air Raid: A Verse Play for Radio by Archibald MacLeish: This stayed very surface (quite the contrast to the O'Neill), and suffered a bit for being written on the brink of WWII with a shade of propagandistic intent, but still moving.

 

Songs for Gaia by Gary Snyder: a tiny booklet of poems, a few of which sparked things for me, but overall it didn't blow me away.

 

2 Chanukah books:

 

Soul of Chanukah: This is derived from Rabbi Carlbach's talks - I adored it last year and this year I read a chapter aloud each night of Chanukah so our whole family could enjoy it.

 

Chanukah with Rebbe Nachman of Breslov: this also enhanced my holiday

 

Final count: 373 (link to Goodreads list)

 

 

 

 

 

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I think I have to commit to a dusty challenge for this year (if I can count as 'dusty' anything I owned at the start of the year)... we have received several thousand books from a bookstore that had to cut its available space in half.

 

...I am still reeling from the bounty... and still sorting and stacking and searching for new shelves.  The majority of the books are history - many of them books I've longed for for years or have on my library lists - but there is archaeology, literature, books about books, travel, art, science, nature, political science, and much more.

 

...I am also feeling called to more nonfiction reading this year now that I have such an increased wealth of choices.

 

Not every book is a keeper for us (I'll try to share titles that might appeal to folks here in case I can pass them on to any of you!  ...one immediate category is a pile of New Testament Greek books (and a box of vocab flash cards!).  If those are of interest to anyone, let me know!

 

 

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Hello, my reading fell into a bit of a slump this past year.

Blame full-time electricity, (daughter and I spent many evenings sharing a 12 volt light with our books, side by side in a warm bed), my sister's DVD loan of seasons of multiple shows, and diminishing insomnia.

However I'm about to attempt an onslaught on turning the room full of book boxes into a library. It is a large,cold, dark room. Ideal for January and February in southern Australia. We are expecting more than 40 C today.

My bedside table is filled with difficult and currently uninspiring non-fiction. I think I need to get lost in another concurrent novel.

I may not follow your sugestions but I'll try to keep a reading record this year and go back to more TV-less evenings.

Thanks for the inspiration.

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Sorry, newbie question: Is the idea to read a book by that author during that month? I'm guessing that's it, but if there is anything else to it please let me know! I love the author list. Off to look up Haruki Murakami :gnorsi:

Just popping back in to say the current releasehttps://www.goodreads.com/book/show/19288239-colorless-tsukuru-tazaki-and-his-years-of-pilgrimageof Murakami's was probably the easiest to read of the three I have read so far. 1Q84 is my favourite. Pretty high up there all time favorite wise. ;)

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Don't feel bad, I quite 1/3 of the way through. :0 Fortunately HotMw looks more interesting.

I agree but at this moment cannot face it. ;) Since my plan was the kindle edition I can have it in seconds so I am hoping that I feel motivated soon.

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Hi, I'm Lyne.

 

I took 2014 off, but I am going to rejoin this year.  I am going to do a 5/5/15 challenge.

My topics are:'

 

1.  French Revolution

 

2.  Continents  One book per continent, excluding Antarctica and Europe, with each book having a  WWII setting.

 

3.  My kids are doing Literature pockets non-fiction.  Basically they read something from each section of the library's non-fiction sections.  I thought that sounded interesting so I am going to do an adult version.

 

4.  open, I don't want to lock myself into choices for the whole year, so I am going to leave a category TBD later.

 

5.  FICTION (which I prefer and will probably end up counting for the remainder of books to be read.)

 

 

What I have started:

 

Girls of Atomic City by Denise Kiernan for library book club

Shortcut by John Pollack about how analogies reveal connections, spark innovation, and sell our greatest ideas.  interesting so far.

 

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I'm enjoying the mother-daughter cozy reading vignettes.

 

Robin, I like the monthly author challenges and will likely participate in a few of these at least.

 

Eliana, having seen the awe-inspiring pics of your bookshelves earlier in the year I cannot imagine how you will find room for half a bookstore!

 

I forgot to add one book to my January tbr list. It's another one that I would never think to read, way outside my usual genre but one dh thinks I'll really enjoy--Zero History, by William Gibson.

 

Our afternoon has unfolded pleasantly around our newest favorite card game, Wizards, pots of tea, chocolate, snuggling dogs and Aine Minogue on the airwaves.

 

Mumto2, I also am going to read HofMW on the kindle. We'll see how that goes as I generally prefer reading non-fiction in hardcopy form.

 

And now off to watch my current fave series Last Tango in Halifax with Derek Jacobi and Anne Reid available free on Neflix.

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I'm enjoying the mother-daughter cozy reading vignettes.

 

Robin, I like the monthly author challenges and will likely participate in a few of these at least.

 

Eliana, having seen the awe-inspiring pics of your bookshelves earlier in the year I cannot imagine how you will find room for half a bookstore!

 

I forgot to add one book to my January tbr list. It's another one that I would never think to read, way outside my usual genre but one dh thinks I'll really enjoy--Zero History, by William Gibson.

 

Our afternoon has unfolded pleasantly around our newest favorite card game, Wizards, pots of tea, chocolate, snuggling dogs and Aine Minogue on the airwaves.

 

Mumto2, I also am going to read HofMW on the kindle. We'll see how that goes as I generally prefer reading non-fiction in hardcopy form.

 

And now off to watch my current fave series Last Tango in Halifax with Derek Jacobi and Anne Reid available free on Neflix.

 

My husband is also a William Gibson fan so I asked him about Zero History.  He said it is the third in a series and wonders if the second (Spook Country) may be the better choice non-Gibson fanatics.

 

On the topic of games, we played a round of Gentlemen Thieves last a night, a board game that I bought for my husband who is an Arsene Lupin fan (as I am). 

 

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Shukriyya, I suspect my main issue with the kindle version will be the maps. I had decided that since I really like looking at maps I can google if I feel the need. The fat book sitting on my bedside is extremely unappealing most mornings. If I don't do it first thing not going to happen.

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Happy New Year, BaWers!

 

I cannot / will not promise anything, but I *think* I may read my first Murakami this month: Norwegian Wood.

 

Over the last two weeks of our five-week winter break, however, I will focus on finishing several carryovers from 2014, including Howards End Is on the Landing (Hill), Kayak Mornings (Rosenblatt), The Shining Girls (Beukes), Abroad (Crouch), and The Unspeakable (Daum). That last one was one of the books I received for Christmas, by the way -- a collection of essays that made several "best of" lists at the end of the year. It deserves the praise. Just terrific.

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<p>Here are the Author Flavors of the Month. Any changes, suggestions or questions????

  • January: Haruki Murakami
  • February: Jane Austen
  • March: Charlotte Bronte
  • April: C.S. Lewis
  • May: Dante - Purgatorio
  • June: Alexander Dumas
  • July: Tracy Chevalier
  • August: Isabelle Allende
  • September: Michel De Montaigne
  • October: Anne Rice
  • November: Fyodor Dostoevsky
  • December: Henry James

For June, can we choose Dumas fils rather than Dumas pĂƒÂ¨re? I've had Camille on standby for a while.

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Hi friends, both old & new! So glad to see everyone popping back into this year's thread. :seeya:

 

Another suggestion for author month -- Marco Polo. That's a completely selfish recommendation from me because I want to read his work this year, along with a couple of other companion pieces. I know crstarlette mentioned wanting to join in -- anyone else???

 

And, I'll toss out Kurt Vonnegut's name into the pile too since I'm a huge fan.

 

Not sure what I'm starting yet. I'm still just barely into The Affinity Bridge (steampunk book) which got shoved to the side amid all the holiday busyness. I really like the idea of tackling many or most of the books on my now color-coded shelves during this year.

 

Here are exactly 52 books I could read this year, if only I would concentrate on my own shelves  :lol:  (instead of the library, additional book acquisitions, etc...)... (I must chant to myself that I want to read all of these & resist the urge to request oodles of library books. Hard to do because I just got an email saying that one of my library requests is now here.)

 

IMG_2244.jpg?t=1419991718

 

As always, I will turn around & completely contradict myself to say that I really, really want to buy or download Murakami's Underground since neither of my library systems carries it. And, that would make me already veer from my plan of reading what I already have on my shelf.

 

Btw, for those who haven't read Murakami, my favorite of his is Kafka on the Shore. (I'm contemplating a re-read.) I think 1Q84 stands as his true masterpiece. I remember loving A Wild Sheep Chase but I read it so many, many years ago that I don't actually remember anything about it. Colorless Tsukuru Tazaki & His Years of Pilgrimage was ok, but I felt like he could have written it in his sleep & wish he had pushed himself to explore some new territory. (Might be a good starter book for those who have never read Murakami, though.) I tried The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle (often considered a fan favorite of his) but didn't finish it; maybe I tried it too soon after 1Q84, but it just didn't keep my interest.

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I forgot to add up my women vs men authors.  I am shocked!

 

Women - 26

Men - 16

 

I am wondering if this is due to my living an abundant amount of time in Flufferton Abbey instead of living in some realm of fantasy  :laugh:

 

But you said you read 56 books?  26 and 16 equals 42 ....

 

Regards,

Kareni

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But you said you read 56 books?  26 and 16 equals 42 ....

 

Regards,

Kareni

 

Math, schmath. You seriously expect people to add on New Year's Day? :svengo:

 

I think the other authors are zombies & in such a state of deterioration that they can't be classified as male or female. :zombiechase:

 

Literature, people. Not math.

http://38.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_ltix20r8bJ1qfmqapo1_1280.gif

 

:lol:

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We'll be starting out with a year long read of Susan Wise Bauer's History of the Medieval World. The goal is to finish by the end of the year so we will aim for one to two chapters a week.  Let's start with Chapter one this week and then we'll alternate two chapters every other week. 

 

 

I'd like to participate this year, specifically for this book!  I love SWB, but I could not get through History of the Ancient World. Maybe, with some accountability, I can do better with HOTMW :)  

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Math, schmath. You seriously expect people to add on New Year's Day? :svengo:

 

I think the other authors are zombies & in such a state of deterioration that they can't be classified as male or female. :zombiechase:

 

Literature, people. Not math.

http://38.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_ltix20r8bJ1qfmqapo1_1280.gif

 

:lol:

 

or perhaps they're angels which might be strangely appropriate.

 

I miss Calvin and Hobbes.  Sigh ....

 

Regards,

Kareni

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Another suggestion for author month -- Marco Polo. That's a completely selfish recommendation from me because I want to read his work this year, along with a couple of other companion pieces. I know crstarlette mentioned wanting to join in -- anyone else???

 

 

Someone got Invisible Cities (Calvino) for Christmas, was it you? 

 

Murakami, Norwegian Wood, read-alongs: 

 

Read-alongs are nice because you have built-in discussion and encouragement partners, but new folks should never feel bad for not reading along or dropping out.

 

Norwegian Wood is the only Murakami I have finished and I've heard it's the least 'Murakami-ish' of his works. I remember it being a really straightforward story and that's not really his reputation.

 

 William Gibson/Zero History: I read the first in that series, Pattern Recognition, and it had some interesting ideas. I haven't read Spook Country or Zero History so I don't know how much you need to know moving forward. 

 

Board Games: Gentleman Thieves sounds interesting. So far I've only played La Isla (scientists studying an island full of extinct species) and Takenoko (bamboo growing and panda eating it game), but dh and the boys are doing a bunch of fighting games that drive me to the sofa with a blanket and a book. 

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I would like to join for the first time.  :seeya:

 

I am currently reading Hard Road West, a wonderful book about the California Trail and the Gold Rush, told from the perspective of a geologist.

 

For the Asian theme, I won't be reading a translated book, but I'll be reading The Good Earth by Buck.

 

I'd like to add Murakami but I'm not sure yet if I will.  

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I'll join you in History of The Medieval World. I'll go order it now! I am also going to go through The Well Educated Mind and start Don Quixote. My Bible plan of this year is the ESV Study Bible year round plan. I haven't banged out anything else yet other than I want to read more classics (which WEM will help with) and I'd like to read more poetry. Aaand now I'm off to go stalk the library's site to see what Haruki Murakami they might have.

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I would like to join! I was way too intimidated last year but this year I would like to give it a shot. I just started Prophecy by S.J. Parris and will look into Harukami.

I read all four of the SJ Parris books last year. They made my favorites list. Hope you enjoy this one. Have you read the first one, Heresyhttp://www.theguardian.com/books/2010/mar/13/heresy-sj-parriswhich was probably my absolute favorite?

 

ETA. Just wanted to add a warm welcome to you and all the new people. Great to see so many!

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