Challenge: 50 Books discussion

I started my first book for this challenge on the 24th. Skipping Christmas may not be a masterpiece, but it made me laugh! 49 books to go until next Christmas Eve :)

2 - East by Edith Pathou. I really enjoyed this book, which has lots of elements of Scandinavian folklore.

3 - Book of Silence by Sara Maitland.

4 - The Shinning Girls - a book about a time travelling serial killer.. Not really that good...

5 - Princess Academy - A really sweet book, that provided me with a well spent afternoon accompanied with lots of hot chocolate!

6 - Two Princesses of Bamarre - This was a really funny adventure book. A coward princess who is afraid f her own shadow finds herself chasing dragons in order to save her sister.

7 - Running the Books: The Adventures of an Accidental Prison Librarian, Steinberg, Avi - This book opened new horizons for me. A prison librarian tells stories of the inmates he met.

8 - Frost (The Frost Chronicles, #1), Ellison, Kate Avery

9 - James Smythe The Machine, a modern version of Frankenstein.

10 - Shopenhauer, Essays and Aphorisms. I did not agree with many of his insights on the right path to take in order to achieve happiness (in his opinion we can only be happy if we pursue a life if solitude and intellectual contemplation). However, I did enjoy reading on the traps we should avoid, namely materialism and resentment.

11 - Jessica Day George, Sun and Moon, Ice and Snow, another scandinavian faith tale populated by trolls and polar bears. Great read.

12 - Melanie Dickerson, The Fairest Beauty, not a very good book, but it was ok for spending a Saturday afternoon…

13 - Robin McKinley, Deerskin, I LOVE THIS BOOK!!!

14 - The Mysterious Islandby Jules Verne – A group of friends are caught by a storm, and land in island where mysterious things happen. Because of their ingenuity, they do a very good job at surviving, always coming up with inventive ways of doing things. One of the most interesting things about reading a book by Jules Verne, is that he teaches about nature and science with his stories. It took me a long time to read it, and effort, because sometimes it was not the most engaging of readings. But it was definitively worth it.

15 - Orange Is the New Black by Piper Kerman – I read this book shortly after reading Running the Books, also about life in prison. While Running the Books opened new horizons for me, and raised new ethical questions, the same things did not happen at all with this book… The writer was too focused on herself, and did not really described life in a prison as well as it could have.

16 - Cybele's Secret by Juliet Marillier – This is really a bad book… It was not even entertaining, just a waste of time. The first book of the series was really good though... Wildwood Dancing is a great read, incorporating elements of Romanian folklore.

17 - The Healer's Apprentice by Melanie Dickerson - A nice retelling of the Sleeping Beauty story.

18 - The Singer of All Songs, Kate Constable

19 - The Tutor's Daughter, Julie Klassen

20 - Dragon Slippers, Jessica Day George

21 - Dragon Flight, Jessica Day George

22 - Dragon Spear, Jessica Day George

23 - Labyrinth, by Kate Mosse

24 - Dracula, Bram Stoker. I used to read this book oven and over again when I was 11 or 12 years old, and this is the first time since that I revisited it. I had forgotten how wonderful this book is, for me it is so much more than just an adventure story! I love the idea that Bram Stoker has of humanity, the lack of cynicism, the melancholy and the forgiveness. He allows us to engage with all the characters, and he writes beautifully well. I really think this is one of my favourite books of all time.

25 - Winnie-the-Pooh, A. A. Milne

And this is half the challenge completed!

26 - Spindle's End, Robin Mckinley, another fairy tale retelling, I didn't really enjoy it....

27 - The Shadow of the Wind, Carlos Ruiz Zafon, a thriller about the love of books. This book was actually quite good!

28 - Practical Spirituality: The Spiritual Basis of Nonviolent Communication by Marshal Rosenberg. This is a wonderful little book about how to communicate non-violently with other people. The basis for this should be empathy. For sure, I will read this book more than once.

29 - Beautiful Disaster, Jamie McGuire

30 - Thorn, Intisar Khanani. This is a really nice retelling of one of my favourite fairy tales, the Goose Girl.

31 - Walking Disaster, Jamie McGuire

32 - Entwined, Heather Dixon

33 - The Fire Rose, Mercedes Lackey

34 - The Book of Lost Things, by John Connolly. This is one of the best books I read this year. This writer goes beyond the surface, and makes a deep reflection on human nature and our search for meaning, in this world of suffering. Never in my life did I read a book quite like this, and I am grateful for the experience.

35 - Slammed, Colleen Hoover

36 - Hopeless, Colleen Hoover

37 - Everything That Rises Must Converge: Stories, Flannery O'Connor

38 - Wolfskin, Juliet Marillier

39 - Hopeless, Colleen Hoover

hey you put Hopeless in there twice. Just thoufht I wouls let u know

Alison wrote: "hey you put Hopeless in there twice. Just thoufht I wouls let u know"

Thank you Alison!! :)

39 - Gossip from the Forest, Sara Maitland. I thought the theme of the book was really interesting, our relationship with the forest, and how stories are connected with that. However, the book was badly written, I think the author did not know how to explore the topic.

40 - The Coincidence of Callie & Kayden
41 - The Redemption of Callie & Kayden - both by Jessica Sorensen. I think the writer wanted to focus on characters who went through traumatic situations, and look at how it can be possible to heal. It was ok, but I don't think the characters are always coherent.

42 - Can You Keep a Secret?, Sophie Kinsella, funny book! :)

43 - The Resolution of Callie & Kayden, by Jessica Sorensen

44 - The Great Christmas Knit Off, by Alexandra Brown. I loves this book so much. It is fled with description of fabrics, food, snow, wool and lots of other cosy things for xmas. I enjoyed getting to know the characters and the small town where the story is set. While I was reading this book, I was transported to good place. Five stars!

45 - If I Stay, Gayle Forman

46 - Where She Went, Gayle Forman

47 - Fables, Vol. 1: Legends in Exile, Bill Willingham

48 - The Christmas Mystery, Jostein Gaarder

Did you love Hopeless?????? One of my faves from last year.

49 - Maybe Someday, Colleen Hoover

Beth wrote: "Did you love Hopeless?????? One of my faves from last year."

That is such a coincidence! I just finished reading Maybe Someday by Colleen Hoover, and now I see your message :)
I agree with you on Hopeless, I really did love the book, and the story stayed with me for a long time after I finished reading it. Some bits were painful to read because we care about the characters.

50 - The Snow Child by Eowyn Ivey

Challenge completed!! :)