I have hesitated to take part in this challenge because I hate to leave things uncompleted, and 100 books a year is a bit too ambitious for me. Also, I have noticed that it is very hard for me to plan ahead with reading, as I don't want to "force" myself into reading anything I don't feel like reading at that particular time.
But, I will try... Now, let me think of some categories...
Okay, categories:
C-1) Medieval History (1/10)
C-2) Other non-fiction (3/10)
C-3) Historical fiction (2/10)
C-4) Science fiction/Fantasy/Horror (0/10)
C-5) Rereads (1/10)
C-6) Winners (2/10)
C-7) Classics (4/10)
C-8) Dutch language (2/10)
C-9) TBR (1/10)
C-10) Catchall (1/10)
Okay, new plan: As 100 books is too ambitious, I am going to narrow it down to 50, 5 in each category. Starting date will be 10-10-2009, with the book I am reading then. The end date will be either one year from now (10-10-2010) or at the end of 2010.
All selected books are gathered in my
1010 Challenge Collection.
10/10/2009 edit: Change of plans once again. I am having so much fun filling my categories that I am going back to 10 books per category, split in 5/5 (idea stolen from
LA12Hernandez). I plan to read at least 5 books per category (for 50 books total) with the possibility of reading more. To leave room for new acquisition I give myself permission to change around unread books at will :D.
* Books in italics are wishlisted books.
Ticker:
List of books read:
October 2009 (start 10-10-2009) (7 books, 93 to go)
1.
Nineteen Eighty-Four - George Orwell2.
A History of Histories - John Burrow3.
The Templar Legacy - Steve Berry4.
Azincourt - Bernard Cornwell5.
In Alle Staten - Max Westerman6.
Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close - Jonathan Safran Foer7.
The Historian - Elizabeth KostovaNovember 2009
8.
Jane Eyre - Charlotte Brontë9.
Philip Hoare - Leviathan10.
Geert Mak - De Brug11.
Preston & Child - Dodenboek12.
Kurt Vonnegut - Slaughterhouse Five13.
Fergus Kerr - Thomas Aquinas (Very Short Introductions)14.
Pride and Prejudice - Jane Austen15.
Wolf Hall - Hilary Mantel16.
White Tiger - Aravind Adiga17.
Julie & Julia - Julie PowellMessage edited by its author, Yesterday, 2:01am.
C-1 - Medieval History1/105 books about Medieval History 1) A great and terrible King - Marc Morris
2) Charlemagne - Rosamond McKitterick
3) The Great Mortality - John Kelly
4) The Death of Kings - Michael Evans
5)
Thomas Aquinas: A very short introduction -
Fergus Kerr (Started 7-11-2009 - Finished 8-11-2009
#13)
5 historical sources from the Medieval period1) De zeereis van de heilige Brendaan
2) Beowulf
3) The Ecclesiastical History of the English People - Bede
4) Two lives of Charlemagne - Einhard
5)
Aesop's fablesMessage edited by its author, Nov 8, 2009, 6:20am.
C-8 - Dutch language2/105 books translated into Dutch1)
De achtste zonde - Philipp Vandenberg
2)
De schatten van Imhotep -
Phillipp Vandenberg3) Dodenboek -
Douglas Preston (Started 4-11-2009 - Finished 6-11-2009
#11)
4)
De rechtvaardigen -
Sam Bourne5) Het Huis Des Doods - Paul Doherty
5 books originally written in Dutch6) Twee vrouwen - Harry Mulisch
7)
De Brug - Geert Mak (Started 3-11-2009 - Finished 4-11-2009
#10)
8)
De Grote Wereld - Arthur Japin
9)
Gala - Ronald Giphart
10)
Transit -
Hella S. Haasse* I almost never read books in my mother tongue. In fact, in 2009 I haven't read one book in Dutch. I am a bit ashamed, so I will make a conscious effort to read more in Dutch.
** All books in the subcategory 'originally written in Dutch' were freebies for the Week of the Book (boekenweekgeschenken) and the Week of Reading. Maybe this reading will inspire me to actually pay for a Dutch book written by a Dutch writer... Shame shame shame....
Message edited by its author, Nov 8, 2009, 6:16am.
I like your categories. I may be stealing some ideas for books!
That's really impressive that English is not your native tongue yet you do most of your reading in the language. I went to the Netherlands in 1997 and it was one of my favorite places I have ever visited. I still crave Dutch pancakes every now and then. Yum!
Hi Amy-Sue,
I think I read English easily because everything around me is bilingual. I work in English (Dutch colleagues, but the language of the project I work on is English), TV is in English, signs might be in English... so reading is easy. And as I do it all the time, it has become really a second language for me.
And as for pancakes, they are quite easy to make with ingredients that you can find everywhere. See here for a recipe:
http://www.recipesource.com/ethnic/europ..., but much more, even a YouTube instruction video can be found online.
And I am glad you like my categories. I am thinking I might expand them back to ten books a category, but just have the goal to read at least 5 in each category, as I have so many ideas!
When I went to the Netherlands it was to visit a friend of DH(an American living in Amsterdam) and he says he gets frustrated at times trying to practice his Dutch because it is so bi-lingual there. All the Dutch people that he meet want to practice their English and he wants to practice his Dutch. I was amazed at how easy it was to get around by the amount of English there was printed on signs and I had fun trying to match up the Dutch with the English.
Thanks for the recipe for the pancakes! I'll have to give them a try.
The people at my work here, who came from abroad (UK, USA) have the same complaint. We switch to English as soon as we here an accent. To practice our own English, and to be friendly to foreigners. And it happens everywhere, shops, transportation, health-care. I can imagine it will be difficult to learn Dutch then.
I hope the pancakes taste good ;)
This message has been deleted by its author.
Woohoo, one down, 99 more to go :D
I just finished
Nineteen Eighty-Four by
George Orwell in the category C-7 Classics. I read this book because it is so ingrained in our culture (Big Brother is Watching You), I wanted to know what it was all about. I have read utopia books before (
Brave New World,
Utopia), and would place this in the same category. I really liked the book, and give it 4 stars.
Now, for my next book... I decided to move from category to category, and my next one will be....
A history of histories by
John Burrow from category C-2.
>17
I'll be very interested in what you think of
A History of Histories. It was the first book I bought for my Kindle, and I read it on and off for 17 months. I found it very heavy going in the areas in which I have little background (Roman history, for instance).
#18, I'll let you know as soon as I finish. I think I might find it less heavy, as I am quite used to reading the heavier history books, though I do expect to have a hard time when he gets to the 17th/18th/19th century, as that is my least favorite period (though it's getting better now).
#18, I stand corrected. The book is a lot heavier than I expected. I expected a book about the history of historiography, however, Burrow described much of the history itself. Since I am not that interested in Greek history, the first part was a bit of a drag. Let's see if it picks up. I guess it is always easier to read something heavy and dense if you are really interested in the material. Part 2 (Rome) should be a bit better and parts 3 (Christendom) and 4 (Revival of Secular History) should be great. We'll see. My reading plan is to have this book finished on Friday...
>20
I'm rooting for you!
And the second one is done... phew...
A History of Histories by
John Burrow. When I bought the book, I figured it would be about historians from Greek times to now. Describe the historian, the works he/she wrote, and why it was so special.
The book itself was much more extensive. I understand why, to understand a historian you have to understand the period he/she is living in. It's just that I personally don't really care for any period except the middle ages and renaissance. This made the book a bit of a drag for me. Don't get me wrong, the writing was very well, everything was explained and linked together, and Burrow is very clear about what he will and won't look into. The book did give me a better insight into the history of historical writing/study, which was the aim, so that's why I am giving the book 3 stars.
Of course, since in principle it is a book about books, it did give me two new additions to my TBR pile...
The Cheese and the Worms by Carlo Ginzburg and
The Conquest of New Spain by Bernal Diaz del Castillo... Even reading books you already own is bad for your wallet ;)
Edited to fix touchstones
Message edited by its author, Oct 21, 2009, 1:39am.
Good for you getting through
A History of Histories so quickly! That book would take me forever to get through, and I am a history lover too. That's awesome that you finished such a tome so early in the challenge!
I'm convinced that my TBR pile will never get smaller, it will only keep growing. Between friend recommendations, LT, book store and library browsing, library book sales, swaps etc. The pile is doomed to only increase and not decrease.
I really dislike spending forever on a book. I see how the reading goes on the first day, and then set a plan to finish the book in a set amount of days. It's a guideline, but I am all made up of inner-rules and schedules, so it helps me :)
But now I am going to read something lighter for a while. My next one will be
The Templar Legacy by Steve Berry and after that a borrowed book, Agincourt bij Bernard Cornwell...
Third one down!
The Templar Legacy by
Steve Berry. Trash in its finest form! Searching for the Templar treasure, supposedly hidden away back in the fourteenth century, Cotton Malone runs into all kinds of people searching for the same thing. A cross between Dan Brown and Indiana Jones.
Steve Berry is my guilty pleasure. I know his books will entertain me, so I decided to read this after reading a couple of heavy, serious and loooong books in these past couple of weeks. I am giving it four stars.
I hope to be reading
The Templar Legacy soon too as it was a free kindle download. Glad it got the trash seal of approval! You definitely need those light books thrown in with the tomes to mix things up.
Ha, my plan for this week is working. Lot's of light and quick books!
This morning I finished number four,
Azincourt by Bernard Cornwell. Although I think Cornwell is a pretty male writer (lot's of fighting and war) this one was recommended (and lent) to me, so I read it. I really liked it. Yes, it was a lot of war and fighting, but in between you learn something about how war was fought back in the fifteenth century, what the composition of companies was like, and how ordinary archers terrified the French. For a good quick read, this book gets four stars.
>27
People lending you books can be a mixed proposition. My nephew, who collects first editions of all Star Wars printed items (novels, comic book series, even young adult novels), lends me anything that happens chronologically after the movies (I'm not interested in the earlier stuff). I'm not interested in the comic books either but read them because he's insistent. The novels are usually very good, and three of the upcoming entries are on my SF list, although I think one may come in too late for the challenge. The caveat is that I have to return them to him in mint condition (or replace them). Still, it's a great connection with him, and whenever we see each other we have lots to talk about.
Lately he's been trying to interest me in the
Jim Butcher books, and I have one of his books on my challenge pile. Then I have a neighbor who drops off books she thinks I'll find interesting. Another book or two on the 101010 pile. I'm trying not to bang my head on the wall. Well, at least I've gotten to the point in life where I can start a book and not finish it, and try a book loaned to me as a must-read and give it back unread if I don't want to waste the time after trying it.
#28, and normally I am not a fan of borrowing books, but this friend follows my reading so he has a good idea of what I will like.
I dislike lending books to friends because I like to keep a paperback back pristine, no cracks or folds, and nobody else I know does this. But then I just remember, chill, it is a book, it isn't worth that much, friendship is worth more.
Finished #5, it is going nice in my fast read week :D
It was
In alle staten by
Max Westerman. Max Westerman was a reporter for Dutch TV, stationed in the US (NYC) for twenty years, and in this book he writes about the US, the changes, the preconceptions. The book is from 2007, so a bit dated at points, but all in all a nice read. He doesn't love the US unconditionally, but he doesn't hate it as much as some Europeans either, he is just really open and Dutch about everything, which I like. A nice read, four stars.
Fast weeks are fun. Sounds like a good week so far.
I hate lending books too because I hardly ever get them back. I only ever give books away now.
The last book of this fast reading week is #6 of the 1010 challenge:
Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close by
Jonathan Safran Foer. I have and have read
Everything is illuminated. Extremely Loud is an incredibly sad and touching story about dealing with loss. The main character is Oskar, who lost his father in 9/11, but it also tells the story of his grandparents, who lost everything in the bombing of Dresden. I had tears in my eyes reading this book, and it deserves five stars.
I reread my first book for the 1010 challenge. It was
The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova. I read this book years ago, while in school. I remember I took a long time in reading it because I did not want it to end. It is certainly one of my favorite books ever.
So I was a bit apprehensive to read it again, because what if it didn't hold up? Well, I needn't have worried, because I love it even more now.
The book follows three generations of historians, in the 1920s, 1950s and 1970s (the story is written down in 2008) in their search for Dracula. They search in archives and libraries for information, and visit locations in Eastern and Western Europe. The book is a combination of historical fact and scary fiction. It is wonderfully written through letters and stories, and I highly recommend it. It gets five stars again. :)
I see you have Fortey's
Dry Storeroom No. 1 on your list. I have that at home at the moment, hadn't decided whether to add it to 101010, but recently finished his
Trilobite. He also just came out with a 4th edition of
Fossils: The History of Life which I've requested at the library. Have you read anything else by him?
I read Diamond's
Collapse, liked it tremendously except for 1st section which I found slow. I've got his
Guns, Germs and Steel on my 101010 list.
I haven't read anything else by Fortey, to be honest, until I found this book I never even heard of him. What attracted my in
Dry Storeroom No. 1 is my (and my boyfriend's) background in Museology, and our love for natural history museums. I am really looking forward to reading it, also because I know of some of the cool things that are hidden in the Natural History Museum (Bill Bryson told us a bit about it in
A Short History of Nearly Everything).
I haven't read either Diamond books, but I am really looking forward to both. I might put
Guns, Germs and Steel on my 1010 list too, but I am afraid my non-fiction category will need no help in filling itself ;).
I have wanted to read
The Historian for years and it is has been in my TBR pile forever. Glad to hear it is so good. Maybe it's time to dust it off. I've been finding the size of it daughting, but you make it sound so good!
Guns, Germs, and Steel is one of my DH favorite books of all times. I know it will find its way into one of my list soon. Maybe not this list, but soon because he is dying to talk about it with me. He says it is fascinating.
I just have candidates for my 101010 categories rather than official commitments, but both Jared Diamond books are on that list.
Amy-Sue, I know that
The Historian is a love or hate book. Looking at the reactions on the LT talk boards some people absolutely hate it, and some love it (same like
The Time-Traveller's Wife and other books). I loved it, with my love for history, mystery, research and a bit of suspense. It made me want to read
Dracula too, and I have also placed a book about the Dracula myth (including in The Historian) on my wishlist (
From Demons to Dracula: The Creation of the Modern Vampire Myth).
Kristenn, my books are all candidates too. If one book leads to another and I might change all my books up until I have read them. :)
And
Jane Eyre was my #8. I read this book for my Classics/1001 category.
I loved the story. I always thought that the language and the feel of the story would be too old fashioned for my liking, but I loved it. I read the Penguin Classics version, and what I disliked was the introduction/foot notes. Even though the introduction had a spoiler warning, the foot notes spoiled the story anyway, without warning. I will be sure not to check the footnotes next time during a first read. This book gets five stars from me!
>39 One of my all-time favorites. I read it many times as a girl and watch all the productions that are made.
Finished my 9th book:
Leviathan by Philip Hoare, a book about mankind's fascination with the whale. The book was nice, but it was mostly about Herman Meville and whale hunting, and not so much about whales themselves and with earlier fascinations with whales (middle ages etc.). All in all a nice story though, with great pictures and an important (and sad) message. Three stars.
And a quick 10th book:
De Brug (The Bridge) by Geert Mak about the Galata Bridge in Istanbul, and the people that live and work on the bridge. It tells the story of daily life in Istanbul for the poorest people, of Turkish honour and of the history of Turkey from the end of the Ottoman empire until now. A short fast read. I am not a huge fan of Geert Mak, and this one was ok, three stars.
A weekend away and a lot of time spent on (broken-down) trains gave me three more finishes for my 1010 list.
#11 -> Dodenboek (Book of the Dead) by
Preston and Child. This book is part of the Pendegast series, and the last of a trilogy. I haven't read any of the others, but I could infer a lot from the story. It was a thriller, with a bit of historical mystery, but in the end it was all about a maniac-killer. Nice fast read, but cheap (why are the writers trying to sell me a Macbook??), three stars.
#12 ->
Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut. I got this book after recommendations and seeing it mentioned on a lot of places. I have a hard time in putting this book in a category (I chose classics in the end, because it is on the 1001 books list). It can be science fiction because of the time travel, but it could be just fiction too. Either way, I really liked it, four stars.
#13 ->
Thomas Aquinas: A very short introduction by
Fergus Kerr. I had seen the Very Short Introductions series in stores before, and I wanted to try one, so I picked Thomas Aquinas because I wanted to learn more about him. The book was more about his theology/philosophy than I expected, but still a very good read. Four stars.
#14 ->
Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen. My fourth classic already. After loving Jane Eyre I wanted to read this book, also in preparation of reading
Pride and Prejudice and Zombies one day soon. I loved this one too (though I liked Jane Eyre one star better), especially the humor. Mr. Bennet is my favorite! Four stars.
I'm glad you liked Slaughterhouse-Five! I picked up a copy of it a few weeks ago and I hope to read it for my 1001 Books category. I keep planning to start it, but some how I never get round to it. Maybe an LT recommendation will give me the push I need!
Push push push ;) It is not a long read, but I really liked it. So go read ;)
#15, Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel. I'll be honest here, I had never heard of Hilary Mantel before she won the Booker Prize this year for Wolf Hall. In my effort to read more prize winners, and because it is a historical novel of the 1500s, I picked it up (or actually, my boyfriend gave it to me). The writing style is peculiar, but I loved reading it. It creates this entire mood. The story is that of Thomas Cromwell, from youth up until 1535 when Thomas More is executed, told from his perspective. For once he is not the bad guy. I gave the book five stars.
Glad to hear you liked Wolf Hall so much. I have it on my 1010 list also.
#16,
White Tiger by
Aravind Adiga. Another one for my winners category. The story of an Indian man and how he is making it in India. Good writing, disturbing story. Four stars.
There goes #17
Julie and Julia, an unplanned buy at the airport when I was trying to get rid of some last franks... But no regrets! I really do not like to cook, I can't see the point of all the energy that goes into it, with big chances of the food being ruined, and even if it comes out ok, it being gone in half an hour. I am just too practical. But luckily this book was more about the Julie/Julia project and the year of the project than the cooking. I liked
Julie Powell's writing, and will go see the movie someday... Four stars.
Now I was planning on reading something in the science fiction/fantasy/horror category (expanded from just SF) but brought
The Eyre Affair with me. Although I guess this could be qualified as fantasy of some sort... mmm. Maybe time for a shift :)
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