mathgirl40's 2022 BC Challenge

My goals for the year:

1. Move ABC books in a timely manner and end the year with fewer than 5.
2. Read, register and release more books from my own shelves.

My goals are similar to last year's. I'm participating in the Favourite Book of 2021 roundabout and will try to move each book along within 3-4 weeks of receiving it.

In 2021, I didn't do as well as I hoped in clearing books from my shelves, so I will try harder in 2022!

ABC books to read:

1. For Love by Sue Miller (BC link) -- finished and released
2. They Both Die at the End by Adam Silvera (BC link) -- finished and released
3. I am Malala by Malala Yousafzai (BC link) -- released
4. Dark Places by Gillian Flynn (BC link) -- to be read
5. The New York Trilogy by Paul Auster (BC link) -- finished and released
6. The Book of Longings by Sue Monk Kidd (BC link) -- finished and released
7. Eleanor Rigby by Douglas Coupland (BC link) -- finished and released
8. Suddenly, A Knock on the Door by Etgar Keret (BC link -- finished and released
9. Payment in Blood by Elizabeth George (BC link) -- to be read
10. The Girl with the Louding Voice by Abi Dare (BC link) -- finished and released
11. The Ladies of Missalonghi by Colleen McCullough (BC link) -- finished and released
12. Around India in 80 Trains by Monisha Rajesh (BC link) -- finished and released
13. The Offing by Benjamin Myers (BC link) -- finished and released
14. A Scurry of Squirrels by Polly Pullar (BC link) -- finished and released
15. Payment in Blood by Elizabeth George (BC link) -- finished

Other books from my shelves:

1. Dead Souls by Ian Rankin (BC link) -- finished, registered and released
2. Night Frost by R. D. Wingfield (BC link) -- finished, registered and released
3. The Dead of Jericho by Colin Dexter (BC link) -- finished, registered and released
4. The Nine Tailors by Dorothy Sayers (BC link) -- registered and released

>3 mathgirl40: You're ahead of me! I've only read half a book so far! :D

What a nice set of journal entries on your book!

>4 SqueakyChu: Thanks! It's a lot of fun to be part of the roundabout, as I get to see a variety of reactions to the books we all chose.

Here's my review of For Love by Sue Miller:
The style is a little too introspective for my tastes, but Miller does provide a thoughtful examination of various aspects of love. It's not the sort of book I'd normally gravitate toward, but I found the main character's story quite compelling.

I finished Dead Souls, the 10th book in Ian Rankin's Inspector Rebus series. I liked this one a lot, though it touched on disturbing and difficult subjects, such as how society deals with murderers and pedophiles after they are released back into society.

>6 mathgirl40: Your post caused me to go back and look at my review for this book as I had read it so long ago I didn't remember much about it. What struck me when I read it was the question of whether people are forever changed by things that happen to them when they are young or if they can overcome those challenges. Every one of the cases Rebus was involved in seemed to come back to that question.

>7 gypsysmom: That's a good observation, and it definitely applied not just to Rebus's cases but also to his own life.

I'd finished this roundabout book a while ago but realized just now that I hadn't added any review or comments for it:

They Both Die at the End by Adam Silvera -- This is a young-adult book about two teenage boys who meet and spend the final day of their lives together. I found the premise, that an organization predicts and warns you of your "Last Day", a little too far fetched but the author explored the relationships well.

Another roundabout book:

The Book of Longings by Sue Monk Kidd -- I loved this speculative account of Jesus's life and death, as told by his wife Ana. Even without the context, it's an excellent piece of historical fiction, showing the challenges women faced in that time period.

One from my shelves:

Night Frost by R. D. Wingfield -- This is the third book from the Inspector Frost series, which I discovered after watching the excellent TV adaptation. The story is a bit chaotic, with Frost struggling to juggle multiple murder cases amidst a flu outbreak, but it is an entertaining read.

I finished 3 roundabout books in the past couple of weeks!

New York Trilogy by Paul Auster -- This collection contains three connected novella-length stories, each one involving a man investigating and becoming obsessed with another person. This work is also found on the 1001 Books to Read Before You Die list.

Eleanor Rigby by Douglas Coupland -- This story, about a woman who is reunited with a son she had put up for adoption, mixes Coupland's humorous and insightful observations on society with the serious themes of loneliness and illness.

Suddenly a Knock on the Door by Etgar Keret -- This is a collection of quirky and often strange stories by Israeli author Keret. Many of them are very short and more like vignettes.

>9 mathgirl40: I love Etgar Keret's short stories. Come to think of it, I have one of his books here at home that I haven't finished yet. I should probably get back to it sooner rather than later.

Today, however, I am going through some older books to cull my TBR mountain which has grown way too high over the past two decades!

>10 SqueakyChu: I loved many of Keret's stories too, but a number of them left me feeling very unsatisfied, because they were so brief. I guess it's a compliment to the author that I want to know more about what happens to the characters!

I finished these two roundabout books recently:

The Girl with the Louding Voice by Abi Daré -- A story about a Nigerian girl who overcomes tremendous hardships to pursue her dream of an education. Despite some brutal and heartbreaking passages, I found this book enjoyable and inspiring.

The Ladies of Missalonghi by Colleen McCullogh -- A historical romance novel set in Australia in the early 1900's. There were many aspects of the book I liked, but I found some of the main character's actions problematic.

>12 mathgirl40: I read the McCullogh book when it came out. I seem to recall there was a controversy at the time because it was so similar to L. M. Montgomery's book The Blue Castle. Or am I confusing it with another of McCullogh's books?

>13 gypsysmom: I've not read The Blue Castle so I can't compare, but it's on my TBR list. I do like Montgomery's writing.

I finished Fire Watch by Connie Willis. This is a book from my own shelves that I've registered and will release soon. I've loved all of Willis's novels, but this collection of short stories was a mixed bag. My favourite was the first one, "Fire Watch", a longer story that is part of the Oxford Time Travel series.

I'm quite behind on my updates! Here are the BC books I've read since I last posted.

The Dead of Jericho by Colin Dexter – I recently visited my daughter in Oxford and we went to a pub in the Jericho section of the city, so of course I had to buy this book when I saw it in a bookshop there. It's a good entry in the Morse series and after reading it, I rewatched the TV adaptation starring John Thaw.

Around India in 80 Trains by Monisha Rajesh – I loved the premise behind this book from the Favourites of 2021 roundabout: a train journey around India. However, I didn't care for the writing style, and despite the lavish and detailed descriptions, I didn't feel I gained much insight about the country.

The Offing by Benjamin Myers – This book, another from the 2021 roundabout, is a charming coming-of-age story about the friendship between a young man and an elderly woman, slow-paced but still very engaging, with some really lovely passages.

Payment in Blood by Elizabeth Geoge - This is an RABCK that was sent to me earlier in the year. The cast and crew of an upcoming play are under suspicion when the playwright is murdered. This is a good installment in the Inspector Lynley series but the real star of the story is his partner Detective Sergeant Havers.

A Scurry of Squirrels by Polly Pullar – Another from the 2021 roundabout, this book was charming and informative and taught me more than I ever thought I'd want to know about the red squirrel!

The Nine Tailors by Dorothy Sayers – I'd read this book a number of years ago and picked up a copy, meaning to reread it. I'd still like to reread it one day, as I recall it as being one of the best of the Lord Peter Wimsey series. However, I decided to send it as a RABCK when I saw it on a fellow BCer's wishlist. I figure that was better than having it collect dust for a few more years!

Before the end of December, I finished off my final BC book, an RABCK sent to me last year. It was Dark Places by Gillian Flynn -- a disturbing but page-turning thriller about a woman whose family was brutally murdered when she was a child and her investigation into what actually happened.

I am happy to say that I finished the year with no ABC books left on my TBR stack! Actually, a book for the newly launched "Favourite Book of 2022" roundabout did arrive in mid-December, but since it's meant to be read in January, I'll consider it a 2023 book.

>18 mathgirl40: Well done. I almost made it with ABC books cleared off the stack but then NorthernLights came to town in early December and brought me The Morningside Years. But that's the only ABC book I have right now.

>19 gypsysmom: I'd read and released a copy of The Morningside Years myself, a number of years ago. I released it at a local farm market, run by a family that has owned the farm for a long time, and the book actually contained a recipe contributed by one of that family's members!