ty1997's 1010 challenge

I've been playing with this for a while now, so it's time to step up, post it, and commit. I'm hopeful this will help motivate me to reach by 50 book goal (see thread here) for the first time.

The numbers in parentheses are the minimum numbers I'd like to read in each category in 2010, with one catch: Books can double (or even triple) count if they qualify for multiple categories. It's a bit of cheatery, but it's the only way I'll achieve these (ambitious-for-me) goals based on my past annual reading performance, and it may help to direct some interesting combo reading choices.

Edit to my personal rules (1/23/10): Originally I had determined that books could count in as many categories as they conceivably qualified for, but I have decided to limit this to two categories per book maximum. Ideally, I would not double-count any books, but my category goals sum up to 67 books for the year, and the most I've ever read in a year is thirty-something. Perhaps I'll strike the double-counting rule later, if I get on a tear of reading this year (like I hope to).

A. College Prep English (15) Books from the 1001 books lists, because I've read a woefully low number.
B. Something Different (7) - Things outside of my normal reading comfort zone. Such as Fantasy, sci-fi, short story collections, plays, graphic novels, YA lit, Children's lit, maybe even poetry.
C. Something New (7) - Books that are First in a series
D. Group Reads (5) Group Reads here on LT, or reads for the book clubs that I'm not exactly a member of
E. Classic Mysteries (5)
F. Global Reads (5)
G. Dewey/LOC Challenge (5)
H. Learning Is Fun (5) Non-fiction
I. Contemporary Fiction (10)
J. Doorstoppers (3) To avoid only reading short books for challenges. I like a good epic novel.

A. College Prep English (Goal: 15) - Books from the 1001 books lists

1. Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep by Philip K. Dick
2. The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway
3. Cranford by Elizabeth Gaskell
4. Giovanni's Room by James Baldwin
5. The Thin Man by Dashiell Hammett
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.

B. Something Different (Goal: 7) - Things outside of my normal reading comfort zone. Such as Fantasy, sci-fi, short story collections, plays, graphic novels, YA lit, Children's lit, maybe even poetry.

1. Already Dead by Charlie Huston (Message #12, finished January 13)
2. When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead
3. Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller
4.
5.
6.
7.

COMPLETE

C. Something New (Goal: 7) - Books that are First in a series

1. The Exile by Allan Folsom
2. Already Dead by Charlie Huston
3. Murder Takes The Cake by Gayle Trent
4. The Strain by Guillermo Del Toro
5. Caught Stealing by Charlie Huston
6. The Chicago Way by Michael Harvey
7. Child 44 by Tom Rob Smith

D. Group Reads (Goal: 5)

1. Musicophilia by Olive Sacks (Message #13, finished January 23)
2. The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson (Message #21, finished January 30)
3. American On Purpose by Craig Ferguson
4. The Strain by Guillermo Del Toro
5.

E. Classic Mysteries (Goal: 5)

1. The Sign of the Four by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
2. The Thin Man by Dashiell Hammett
3.
4.
5.

F. Global Reads (Goal: 5)

1. The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson. Sweden. (Message #21, finished January 30)
2. Cranford by Elizabeth Gaskell
3.
4.
5.

G. Dewey/LOC Challenge (Goal: 5)

1. Musicophilia by Olive Sacks (Message #13, finished January 23)
2.
3.
4.
5.

H. Learning Is Fun (Goal: 5) - Non-fiction

1. American On Purpose by Craig Ferguson
2. SOCCER: A Spectator's Guide By Ron Rhody
3.
4.
5.

I. Contemporary Fiction (Goal: 10)

1. The Exile by Allan Folsom (Message #12, finished January 12)
2. The Twenty Dollar Bill by Elmore Hammes (Message #18, finished January 26)
3. When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead
4. Caught Stealing by Charlie Huston
5. The Chicago Way by Michael Harvey
6. Let The Great World Spin by Colum McCann
7. Child 44 by Tom Rob Smith
8. Rocket Man by William Elliott Hazelgrove
9.
10.

J. Doorstoppers (Goal: 3)

1.
2.
3.

The Exile by Allan Folsom (First-in-a-series, and Contemporary Fiction)

I read The Day After Tomorrow by Folsom several years back and really enjoyed it. It ranks in my top 10% of books I've read, so I went into The Exile excited and ready for a new favorite. It was not to be.

Perhaps it's Folsom fault and The Exile just isn't as good as The Day After Tomorrow. Perhaps it's me as my reading tastes have shifted over the years from thrillers and spy novels to a slightly more literary fare. Perhaps it's a little bit of both.

The Exile starts out well enough. John Barron is a homicide detective in LA when a crazed killer escapes from police custody. Of course, we know the crazed killer, Raymond Thorne, is part of a bigger story yet to come, even if we don't yet know the details, but the first third of the book is mostly a decently done police procedural as Barron and his squad hunt Raymond. Alas, this first section of the book ends in a somewhat melodramatic, cliched way.

The real problems come in the remainder of the book, as our protagonist deals with the all-too-common unstoppable, perfect, brilliant killer whilst he simultaneously tries to discover what the bigger plot is...a plot that turns out to, of course, be a tad ridiculous.

This type of novel requests that you suspend disbelief for the sake of the thrills, and I can still do that, if the rest of the books delivers. Unfortunately, the portions of the book that should require me to suspend disbelief still seems implausible at times, and the secondary characters mostly see like cardboard cutouts.

Not downright terrible, but not good.

2.5/5

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Already Dead by Charlie Huston (Something Different and First-in-a-series)

The literary and movie worlds of late are overwrought with vampires, a genre I've never been keen on, but Amazon was offering Already Dead for free on the Kindle, and the reviews were decent, so I took a chance.

Joe Pitt is a Vampyre (Huston's spelling) in an alternate reality Manhattan where vampires live quietly, and mostly secretly, among us. In Huston's world, they aren't evil, murderous demons (for the most part) but rather people that have been infected with a virus. One of the interesting facets of the books is that Pitt, and the rest of the vampyres, don't know much about the virus or how it works. It's a disease that hasn't been researched, so both the reader and the vampyres are not fully aware of the possible effects.

Joe is a bit of an independent contractor, in a Manhattan where all of the Vampyres have joined clans. Joe is given two jobs: find a runaway 14 year old girl, and find a carrier that is infecting people with a bacteria that turns them into zombies. (And who doesn't love zombies, really?). The two cases are, of course, related.

The book gritty and graphic, which is a little off-putting. The writing is informal, with numerous run-on sentences, but this fits Joe's world and Joe's personality.

It appears that Already Dead is the beginning of a series. I'm not sure I'll read any more in the series, but Huston does a solid job of setting up a world, characters, and ethos, and I am at least passingly curious concerning what becomes of them.

Decent read. 3/5

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Murder Takes The Cake by Gayle Trent (First-in-a-series)

A woman moves back to her small hometown to restart her life as a cake decorator but finds her gossip-mongering first customer dead. This leads to some surprising discoveries and questions about her own family's history as well.

A light, fun, (if relatively predictable) read.

3.5/5

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Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep by Philip K. Dick (1001 books)

A look at what makes us human, specifically focusing on empathy. It works well when Dick is subtle, but falls flat with the Mercerism angle.

3.5/5

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The Sign of the Four by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (Classic Mysteries)

An early Sherlock Holmes tale which develops the character, including his cocaine use and allusions to his boxing skills. This particular Holmes book is more of an adventure/chase story, rather than a mystery. In fact, Holmes has solved the crime and explained most of the particulars less than half way through the book. The chase is adventurous and fun, but the end gets bogged down with a long explanation by the villain of his history and motives. (The villain is a complicated character, though.)

3.5/5

Musicophilia by Olive Sacks (Groups Reads and Dewey/LOC Challenge)

This book looks at case studies of interactions that people have with music from a neuroscientist's perspective. This includes cases of people who have musical hallucinations, people who can no longer process music after accidents, and interestingly, people who have seizures that are induced my music. There are also case studies related to the positive treatment effects of music on groups of people with brain injuries, Alzheimer's, and mental retardation.

Certain case studies struck a chord with me, but overall the book felt like it skimmed and flitted around a lot. It wasn't helped by some technical music and scientific references that weren't fully explained for this layman.

The book does effectively reinforce what an amazing organ the brain is, and how integral music is in our lives.

2.5/5

The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway

Hemingway's marvelous narrative flows like the waters of the Gulf Stream. Without using an abundance of words, he achieves in putting us in the boat with Santiago, fighting the fish and the sharks with him. We feel his hope and defeat fully.

Welcome to the challenge! You have great categories; I've starred your thread and will be checking back to see what else you choose to read this year. (:

"Do Androids" is a good entry point to the world of PKD.

I'd recommend trying "Man in the High Castle" as well. A fascinating book and one of the first alternate history novels.

Thanks remusly!

michael, I'l add Man in the High Castle to the TBR list. Thanks!

The Twenty Dollar Bill by Elmore Hammes

This book follows a twenty dollar bill or, more correctly, whoever possesses the twenty dollar bill. As the twenty changes hands (be it my theft, commerce, donation) the story leaves behind the former carrier of the twenty and progresses to the next person.

The concept drives the reader to examine the interactions among people, sometime quite fleeting, and the impacts we can have, or fail to have, on each other. By the nature of the book, many character's storylines go unresolved to the reader, leaving us to imagine what became of them.

The execution of the story is unfortunately mediocre. Some characters are two-dimensional or seem like caricatures. The characters mostly all speak in the same voice, making it difficult to feel a difference between them.

A few characters do resonate and there are moments of discovery when we see how one character views another character that they interacted with, as opposed to the view the character had of him/herself. If the concept appeals to you, this relatively short book may be worth trying.

3/5

Enjoying your thread - have added Already Dead and The Twenty Dollar Bill (even with caveats!) to my list.

Thanks Lisa!

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson

Categories: Global Reads (Sweden), Group Reads (This also could have counted for 1001 books, first-in-a-series and contemporary fiction. Perhaps at the end of the year, I will have to re-allocate where I counted this)

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo has two protagonists and two story lines. Mikael Blomkvist, a financial report in Stockholm, has been convicted of libel against businessman Hans-Erik Wennerstrom. It is clear from the beginning that Wennerstrom is dirty and the Blomkvist has gotten a bum rap, though we don't know the details until much later. After his disgrace, he is hired by an 82-year-old business tycoon to solve the murder of his grand-niece, Harriet, who went missing almost 40 years earlier. Intertwined with both parts of the story is the young, troubled private investigator Lisbeth Salandar.

Larsson develops Salandar deeply throughout the book, adding layers to her complex character. Mikael is well-developed also, though not to the level of Salandar. Secondary characters get more a short shrift. Arch-nemesis Wennerstrom is never met, let along developed; rather, he's known to the reader by reference from other characters, with the acceptance that he's a bad person .

The mystery of Harriett Vanger is engaging, but after that case is solved, there are still many pages of fighting the phantom Wennerstrom. This is a good 350 page mystery stuffed inside a 600 page book.

3/5

I read When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead for the TIOLI challenge and I just adored it. If I used the word darling, I would probably call this a darling book, but I would mean it in a non-derogatory way. It's pitch-perfect and does everything right in a tight package.
4.5/5

American On Purpose by Craig Ferguson
I'm not familiar with Craig's work. I've never seen his late night talk show, I never watched the Drew Carey show, and I never saw any of Craig's movies, so reading this book was reading about someone I've only heard of. That's doesn't pose a problem, however, since you don't need to know Craig or her his work to read the book.
The book chronicles his life, especially his bout with drugs and alcohol, his recovery, the rise of his career, and his path to become an American citizen. I was impressed with how much creativity he has (music, acting, writing, directing) and with his drive overall (he considered quitting his high-paying Drew Carey job because he wasn't creatively satisfied).
It was interesting to see the view of the 'American dream' from a recent immigrant, and the book is generally interesting as a memoir of his life, but it didn't capture me.
3/5

The Strain by Guillermo Del Toro
The first in a planned trilogy by Del Toro, a movie director, opens with a wonderful, cinematic, pull-you-into the book scene surrounding an aircraft at JFK. Alas, that's the highlight of the book. It slows from there and has two major problems: 1. There were some plot inconsistencies that my logical mind couldn't get past (I have a hard enough time 'suspending reality' for movies, but I just can't do it for books.) 2. The book closes without any resolution of anything. It felt more like Act 1 of a play or movie than the first book in a trilogy. It reminded me of finishing the first castle in Super Mario Bros. just to be told that our princess was in another castle.
2.5/5

Caught Stealing by Charlie Huston
A gritty action-filled book that will make me double-think cat-sitting for my neighbor.
3.5/5

re: Caught Stealing. I know, I was sick about that poor cat. Those were some of the hardest passages to read.

Cranford by Elizabeth Gaskell

I read this for the Take It Or Leave It Challenge for May (one-word titles). It's the story of a small group of women in the English town of Cranford. The story isn't as much plot-driven as it is a look at the relationships and customs of small-town living in 19th century-England. The novel was originally published in serial form in a magazine edited by Charles Dickens, and portions of the novel certainly feel Dickensian. It's got great wit, and Gaskell certainly wasn't afraid of killing her characters (I wasn't feeling too safe for any of them a third of the way through at the rate they were expiring).

An enjoyable little read. 4/5.

The Chicago Way by Michael Harvey

As a more recent resident of Chicago, I decided to check out The Chicago Way for the local flavor. I enjoyed reading about places and names that I know. The book is a good PI mystery story overall but something about the flow didn't work for me at all times. Some twists come out of nowhere, which can be either bewildering or enjoyable, depending on your style. I question a few character motivations (can't say more without big spoilers), and found the payoff lacking (despite a late twist) but I'll consider checking out another book in the series.

3.5/5

Let The Great World Spin by Colum McCann

I love the characters in this book. The hopelessly good, constantly searching Corrigan. The scarred Tillie and Jazzlyn. The pained Claire. The beautiful Gloria. I want to take all of them, put them in my pocket, carry them around with me.

But I didn't love the book. I liked it well enough, but something went wrong. Perhaps the author got in the way of his characters, tried too hard (or too little in the proofing at times) and thus tripped up the characters. As much as I loved his creations, they couldn't rise up and make this book the great work it had the potential to be.

Giovanni's Room by James Baldwin

I read this for the TIOLI challenge, and as part of my quest to increase the number of books I have read from the 1001 books list.

This book is stunning, in a subtle way. It's also courageous and amazing, on part of the author, publishers, and everyone involved considering when it was published. Consider that, at the time of publication (as pointed out in the book) it was illegal for two men to be intimate in the US. Illegal, as in you could go to jail. (In fact, it was still illegal in some states until just a few years ago). I can only imagine the behind-the-scenes conversations about whether to publish this book or not, but thank goodness they did.

Baldwin weaves a tragic tale about tragic characters. The biggest tragedy for all of them is varying levels of self-hate regarding their innermost desires. The characters, though often not likable, are real and insightful; their observations about themselves and their fellow characters are, on occasion, riveting.

The book helps to highlight how far society has come, and yet it highlights how far many people haven't come in dealing with their own identities. The tragic characters in this book still exist in numbers today. I wish I could give each of them a copy of this book.

4.5/5

Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller
Also for the TIOLI challenge. No major plot surprises here: the main character, Willy Loman, is a salesman and by the end of the book he'll be dead. The nuance of this drama, and this is probably brilliant to see on stage with a good cast, is the examination of the unhappiness int he Willy's life and the lives of his children, how they got where they are, and the baggage some of them have carried for years.

3.5/5

I read Giovanni's Room a long time ago, and recall being horrified but addicted to the tale. It probably inspired some love for the heart-wrenching books in me today...

Death of a Salesman I detested -- but then again, I read it because I was forced to in high school. I couldn't figure out what the point of it was. I didn't learn anything, I didn't feel anything, I didn't enjoy it, .... My guess is that it's one of those books that The Institution has kids read before the kids have had enough of life to really get them, but I haven't tried to reread it to see if that's true in my case or not. Did you get the sense that it's something people would be able to identify more with as an adult than as a 16 year old?

I'm sure I would have hated Death of a Salesman if I read it in high school, for two main reasons. I hated just about everything we were forced to read in high school (and college) for the simple reason that we were being forced to read it. (If I could go back in time and take a different approach, I would. Several of those books I feel I want to re-read now). Also, I don't think I would have identified with it at all at 16. I did identify with the book a bit now that I'm older, but there certainly no great revelations.

The Thin Man by Dashiell Hammett

Sarcastic, fun-loving, socialites solving a murder in 1930s Manhattan? Yes, please!

Much fun. 4/5

I never read Death of a Salesman, but I felt the same way about reading Ethan Frome and The Scarlet Letter in high school. I think they had themes and stories that were very difficult for me to identify with then. I reread them both as an adult and they were much better, though it was difficult to give them a fair reading because my view was tainted by the high school experience. I think teenagers are pushed into many of the classics a few years too soon.

SOCCER: A Spectator's Guide By Ron Rhody

Like any good, patriotic American, I've spent my life ignoring football, while occasionally baffling over what all those other silly nations were going on about. Then, I happened to be in Mexico during the UEFA cup in 2008, and soccer was on every day in the hotel at dinner. So I started watching and, lo and behold, I got a bit hooked on it for the duration of that business trip.

Fast forward two years, and the World Cup is upon us. I realized with dismay, on the eve of the opening, that while I enjoyed my soccer spectating experience and was able to understand the game at a very high level (score more goals than your opponent!) I was missing some of the rules and general strategies. What are strikers and midfielders? What’s up with yellow and red cards? How does offside occur?

Enter Ron Rhody, and his helpful little book. Ron is a grandfather whose son played soccer from age 6 through college and now Ron’s grandchildren are playing. He says in the description that most of the soccer books on the market are about playing or coaching and he's right; I know because I looked for a book to help me, a new spectator, understand the game better. I can gladly say I found it.

Rhody is not a soccer professional. He doesn't mention ever playing or coaching, just watching his son and now his grandchildren. His son edited and proofed the book, so what results is the informal, chatty writing style, much like a chat with a friend or your grandfather, coupled with a level of authority provided by the input from this son. The book reads easily, there isn't much to bog down even a soccer dummy like myself.

The basics of the game are discussed: the field, players, positions, layouts, and general strategies. Rhody also discusses the rules you most need to know, without performing a mind-numbing dissection of all of the rules. The book is short, something Rhody states up front. His goal is to provide a high-level view for spectators new to the game. The reader looking for a full end-to-end description of all rules, strategies, and techniques will find this book lacking, but they aren’t the target audience for this book.

Rhody does fall into the trap of defending soccer’s worth a little and trying to sell the game to a new audience, but that is only because of how much he enjoy it. All of his enthusiasm is genuine and warm-hearted. At times he uses a term before defining it later, but the reader is able to work through this.

For anyone who doesn't know much about soccer, but wants to know some more in order to watch and enjoy a game, this book is a good choice

Child 44 by Tom Rob Smith

Leo Demidov works for the MGB (State Security) in Stalinist Russia. He is a believer in the State and the dream of Communism, where there is no crime and the accused are always guilty. When he starts doubting, his perfect world begins to crumble.

Smith spends the first half of the book describing what it was like to live under the Stalin regime. The paranoia, the constant worry, the willingness to turn on those you love to protect yourself and the perfection of the State. A feeling of claustrophobia consumes the reader.

The second half of the book focuses on the chase for a serial killer. It's not a mystery, as Smith has revealed the identity of the killer to the reader. Rather, it is a thriller and a question of how, against odds, Demidov can stop him. Compared to the rest of the book, the ending feels a little too neat, a bit too optimistic.

With one notable exception, Smith draws detailed, nuanced characters who don't fit the perfect-good-guy / evil-bad-guy one-dimensional mold. The characters have history, problems, damage - much of it due to the State. The true heart of this job is in the characters' journey and growth.

4/5

Rocket Man by William Elliott Hazelgrove

Link to review in my 50-book challenge thread