Hello, I've been on LibraryThing a while, but not in any groups etc, but I thought I'd give this 50 book challenge a go this year. I just finished a book this morning so the decks are cleared for 2009...

I have set myself a challenge to read 50 books, from the following categories:
6 out of 6 received as Christmas gifts:
Everything is Illuminated
Haunted
On Chesil Beach
The End of Mr Y
The Red Queen
The Road Home
Just want to read all of these in time for more new ones next Christmas!

2 out of 4 which I've started before but not managed to finish:
Blood Meridian
Infinite Jest
Soul Mountain
Latin American Short Stories
I somehow suspect Infinite Jest will remain unfinished...

15 decided by my Book Club - we meet around every 3 weeks, so I guess there will be approximately 17 books chosen this year.

15 out of the 87 (yes 87) unread books I just counted on my shelves - I always vow to get through more of these before buying new stuff. maybe this will be the year I actually do.

2 out of the 12 Shakespeare plays I have sat on my shelf. I never had to cover Shakespeare at school, and it always feels like a bit of a gap.

5 other new books. Because I know I won't be able to resist.

5 re-reads of old favourites on my shelf. Because I know I won't be able to resist.

There might end up being some overlap (ie a book gets chosen for book club which I already have sat on my shelf) in which case I'll just try to get through more of the unread ones to make up to the 50 in total.

Yikes! Best be off to start reading. Good luck everyone else that's taking part.

Message edited by its author, Jan 15, 2009, 7:11pm.

Looks like you have a good plan, Honto. Don't books make the best presents? Good luck with your challenge!
--BJ

Thanks billiejean, yes I always love getting books as gifts. Its cool to see what people think you might like reading that you might not necessarily see otherwise. Good luck if you're also doing the challenge.

In the meantime, 1 book down, 49 to go.
1. (from my Christmas gift list) The End of Mr Y by Scarlett Thomas - really enjoyed this wide ranging clever book.

2. Two Lives by Vikram Seth (from my tbr pile) - fascinating, if slightly patchy memoir of an interesting couple.

You definitely have a game plan. I'd recommend jumping into Everything is Illuminated. One of my favorite modern lit books of recent years. Good luck on Infinite Jest. That should count for at least 3 choices if not more!

Hi theresa, thanks for your message - a few people have told me I should get on with Everything is Illuminated as soon as I can. I've just started Lolita for my book club, so perhaps it will be next after that. Good luck with your challenge too.

3. The Drought by J G Ballard (from my tbr pile) - not one of his best, found the writing a bit tedious.

4. Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov (book club read, also a re-read for me) - beautifully written book which needs little introduction. It amazes me Nabokov could write so well in what is not even his first language.

Hi Honto! Glad to see that someone else is just getting to Lolita. Maybe this is the year I'll finally read it. Anxious to see what you think of On Chesil Beach. Some great books on your list. Enjoy.

I was meaning to read Lolita last year and never got around to it...I like your gameplan! I have a list of books that I'd like to reread but somehow never get there, too many newer books come up. I like the idea of making it a "required" portion of the challenge. Good luck!

You have such a wonderful game plan! I feel very disorganised by comparison - but then again, I have more unread books and a compulsive book-buying habit so perhaps I'd fall at the first hurdle and disgrace myself! Good luck...

Thanks guys, I enjoyed poking around all my shelves looking at what I had before making a plan - thought I had more chance of sticking with it if I made it needlessly complex! At least this way if I don't make the whole 50 books I might manage a few sections...

5. The Liar by Stephen Fry (from my tbr pile) - well this was ok, exactly the sort of thing you'd expect Stephen Fry to write. Full of clever references, little twists and mysteries, public school shenanigans etc. Good fun to read. Just came across as a bit self conscious and affected as well.

6. Everything is Illuminated by Jonathan Safran Foer (a christmas gift) - I loved this book. It was funny and sad and shocking and strange all at once. I especially loved the writing style used for Alex. Has anyone seen the film? Any good?

I'm getting behind schedule, need to step up my reading pace! I also have 3 new books from my birthday earlier this week:
The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro
Q & A: A Novel by Vikas Swarup (basis for Slumdog Millionaire)

But next up is Revolutionary Road - latest book club choice.

Message edited by its author, Feb 20, 2009, 2:29pm.

Happy belated birthday, Honto! Everything is Illuminated has been on my TBR for a while now, glad you enjoyed it. I'll be interested in seeing your thoughts on Never Let Me Go. I've heard very good things about it but so far, the only Ishiguro I've read is Remains of the Day, which was good.

Thanks spacepotatoes! I've read a few other Ishiguro books, they are all a bit odd and confusing.

7. Revolutionary Road by Richard Yates - book club choice - managed to read this while avoiding all write ups of the film and book, so really had no idea how the book would pan out. Brilliantly written, but very bleak. I piled through it in just a couple of days, really couldn't put it down once I got started. I think this one will stay with me for a while.

8. Funeral in Berlin by Len Deighton - tbr pile - didn't really enjoy this that much, found it cliched, confusing and a bit dull.

I haven't read a Len Deighton book in ages!
--BJ

Hi billiejean, I think it will be at least ages before I read another one!

9. On Chesil Beach by Ian McEwan (a christmas gift) - Is it just me or is this a bit short? I did enjoy it, and it captures the lack of communication and understanding between the couple very well, but I couldn't help thinking it lacked a bit of substance, like he got to 150 pages and decided to just get the rest finished off in as few pages as possible.

Next up is Watchmen by Alan Moore, which just got chosen at my bookclub, should be fun to read a graphic novel for a change.

10. Watchmen by Alan Moore (book club read) - this is a great graphic novel, with complex and interesting characters. You are never quite sure who you're supposed to side with as the super-heroes (most of whom are normal people rather than possessing any actual super powers) are all flawed one way or the other and mostly quite dislikeable. It is a bit 'of its time' - written in the 80s when the cold war meant nuclear war seemed inevitable, but still a good read with some great artwork.

Message edited by its author, Mar 14, 2009, 7:15am.

11. The Book Thief by Markus Zusak (birthday gift) - really enjoyed this. Its got an interesting style to it,the way it is narrated and the little notes and facts throughout the text. Its funny but its also a very sad book capturing a little bit of the war as seen through the eyes of a German child.

12. Inversions by Iain M Banks (tbr pile) - Just finished this and still a bit non plussed by it. I did quite like it, but found the ending a bit frustrating.

13. The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot Diaz (book club read) - liked this but struggled with the Spanish bits in it.

14. The Red Queen by Margaret Drabble (xmas present) - the writing in this book felt a little stilted but the story really drew me in regardless.

15. The Raw Shark Texts by Steven Hall (tbr pile) - I still can't decide if this was wildly original or highly derivative, well in fairness its a mix of both but a great read which I would recommend giving a go.

16. Emergence by Steven Johnson (tbe pile) - took a while to get through this, but its pretty readable. Some of the computer stuff feels out of date now but some interesting stuff on cities.

17. Slumdog Millionaire by Vikas Swarup - (tbr) - actually called Q&A, this is the book the film is based on. Its quite different in a lot of details, with only the basic premise the same really. Its not bad, but the film is probably better. More coherent.

Message edited by its author, Jun 1, 2009, 6:00pm.

18.Pride and Prejudice and Zombies by Jane Austen and Seth Grahame-Smith (book club) - this is exactly as described - a very silly mash up of Pride and Prejudice and zombie attacks. Its not especially well written, but is good fun and amusing in places, and is a quick and easy read.

19. The Road Home by Rose Tremain (christmas present) - a quick enjoyable read about an Eastern European immigrant coming to the UK to find work and make money to send home to his family.

Message edited by its author, Jun 5, 2009, 1:35pm.

20. Cat and Mouse by Gunter Grass - (tbr pile - actually picked up via bookcrossing) very short, but somewhat tedious.

21. Soothing Music for Stray Cats by Jayne Joso (book club read) - I liked this up to a point, but found the writing style a bit distracting, and some of the story a bit too implausible.

22. Billy Liar by Keith Waterhouse (book club, also a re-read) - love this book, read it a few times. Lots of funny moments and a few less funny as Billy's web of lies unravels around him.

23. The Man Behind the shades by Nolan Dalla and Peter Alson (borrowed) - interesting fast moving read about one of pokers greatest players, and how he won and lost millions. Ultimately a bit depressing as he wastes his talent and dies young, but a fascinating insight into the poker world back then.

Message edited by its author, Jul 26, 2009, 5:22am.

24. The History of Love by Nicola Krauss (book club) - this was an initially confusing but ultimately very enjoyable book once all the strands started to come together. Much better than the title and cover had led me to expect.

25. Never let me go by Kazuo Ishiguro (birthday present) - his usual polite understated beautiful writing applied to a slightly sci-fi theme. Couldn't put this down, though I can't really explain quite why.

And that means I'm halfway though the challenge, though WAY more than halfway through the year. Well I suppose it wouldn't be a challenge if it was easy...

Message edited by its author, Aug 9, 2009, 5:48am.

26. The Cider House Rules by John Irving (tbr) - a good read. Little more serious and issue driven than others by him that I have read, but recommended.

27. Make a Million from Online Poker by Nigel Goldman (new) - quick and useful guide to playing poker online. I'll let you know if I make my million!!

28. The Reluctant Fundamentalist by Mohsin Hamid - interesting novel about a Pakistani guy living in America at the time of 9/11

29. Chronicle of a Death Foretold by Gabriel Garcia Marquez (tbr pile) - more of a novella really, enjoyable but too short to be really involving

30. Haunted by Chuck Palahniuk (xmas present) - pretty grim reading, nice to have a bit of gross out horror occasionally I guess!

31. The Room of Lost Things by Stella Duffy (book club) - loved the local connection of this and reading about the streets I walk around everyday. But it never quite came together as I hoped it would.

Message edited by its author, Sep 24, 2009, 5:50pm.

32. The Heart is a Lonely Hunter by Carson McCullers (book club) - set in 30s deep south America, this is quite a strange book. It took a little getting into, but then was quite compelling. But I felt that ultimately it didn't quite come together for me.

18 books to go, about 10 weeks of the year left, it's not looking promising...

33. The Atom Station by Halldor Laxness (new) - Got this to read while in Iceland, but found it disappointing after loving Independent People last year, it all felt a bit too surreal and stylised with too little substance.

34. The End of Mr Y by Scarlett Thomas (book club) - well this is kind of cheating, I read it back in Jan as I got it for Xmas. But then it won the vote for book club, so I thought I'd flick back through it to remind myself and ended up engrossed in reading the whole thing again.

35. The Drowned World by JG Ballard (bookclub, re-read) - strange, surreal book set in a flooded post climate change London of the future. Liked it, didn't love it.

(reposted to get touchstones working

Message edited by its author, Nov 26, 2009, 3:54pm.

36. Haroun and the Sea of Stories by Salman Rushdie (book club, re-read) - lovely childrens book - a fantastical fairy tale dealing with the conflict in Kashmir and freedom of speech. Ace!