Mount TBR 2016 discussion

I think I might try 2 threads in 2016, one for print and one for electronic media (ebooks & digital audiobooks). I need the push to read my print books & in 2015, I found that they were falling behind my Kindle books.

Either that or I will just count print in my climb!

I will pick & choose my titles as I go, but here are some books I would like to get to in 2016:

mysteries by Michael Dibdin, Andrea Camilleri and Ngaio Marsh (or some of the many other authors I own!)
books by Rafael Sabatini, Zoé Oldenbourg, Manning Coles

Underworld
The Beach
Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell
Quartet in Autumn
Purge
Palace Walk
The Road
A Fine Balance
Atonement
Snow Country
The Shrimp and the Anemone
The Group
Cat’s Eye
The Moviegoer
I Capture the Castle
Wapshot Chronicles
The Years with Ross
Tropic of Cancer

Good luck with both climbs!

I've read three of those, Jonathan Strange, Quartet in Autumn and I Capture the Castle. All were good. Good luck with the challenge again this year, Leslie. :-)

Cath wrote: "I've read three of those, Jonathan Strange, Quartet in Autumn and I Capture the Castle. All were good. Good luck with the challenge again this year, Leslie. :-)"

Thanks Cath! Are you also climbing in 2016? I will look for your thread.

January Progress: 5 print, 13 total {acquired 19}

Paperback books (and hardcovers!)
1. *Madame Bovary (abandoned) (1/4)
2. Schott's Original Miscellany (1/19)
3. Riders to the Sea (1/28)
4. The Art Forger (1/28)
5. The Patience of the Spider (1/31)

and additional formats:
Kindle books
1. *Dom Casmurro (1/8)
2. *The Diary of a Provincial Lady (1/12)
3. *Under Western Eyes (1/17)
4. *The Diary of a Nobody (1/26)
5. *The Magnificent Ambersons (1/30)

Audiobooks
1. *Tess of the D'Urbervilles (1/11)
2. And Still I Rise: A Selection of Poems Read by the Author (1/18)
3. *Go Tell It On the Mountain (1/21)

* means the book is on the Guardian's 1000 Novels Everyone Should Read list

Have a good climb Leslie :-)

Thanks Louise!

Step #1 is a book I have decided to give up on. Madame Bovary has been sitting on my shelf unread for about 20 years & I should have let it sit a while longer! 1½*

Oh no! Sorry your first book was a bummer.

Jessika wrote: "Oh no! Sorry your first book was a bummer."

Ah well, it happens. At least I can be pretty sure they will get better from here!

Leslie wrote: "Jessika wrote: "Oh no! Sorry your first book was a bummer."

Ah well, it happens. At least I can be pretty sure they will get better from here!"

My first two were a bit lacking, so I feel your pain. Fortunately the one I'm reading at the moment is much better!

Not making a very impressive start to the year with only one print book done so far, especially as I have acquired 9 new books since the start of the year!!

Leslie wrote: "Not making a very impressive start to the year with only one print book done so far, especially as I have acquired 9 new books since the start of the year!!"

Well...I've read 6 and added 13, so I'm not doing much better. And there will definitely be a few more I still have a good portion of a Half Price Books gift certificate to spend..... (Like I'm not going to buy more without the gift certificate. LOL)

Bev wrote: "Leslie wrote: "Not making a very impressive start to the year with only one print book done so far, especially as I have acquired 9 new books since the start of the year!!"

Well...I've read 6 and ..."

Perhaps we need a 12 step program Bev!

Apparently. At least I do. But I think you have to be willing to address the problem. I'm not sure I am. :-)

Bev wrote: "Apparently. At least I do. But I think you have to be willing to address the problem. I'm not sure I am. :-)"

No, I am not either - which I guess is part of the problem!

Print #2 is a small hardcover book I received as a gift years ago (perhaps over 10 years ago!) - Schott's Original Miscellany. While more a book to dip into rather than read straight through, I found myself enjoying this more than I had expected to. There were a considerable number of entries that made me laugh aloud, such as Hamlet's famous speech rendered into pig Latin! And I did find some useful bits of information (as the previously unknown to me weather proverb "Halo round the sun or moon/Rain or snow is coming soon"). 4½*

Print #3 is a play in a collection (I don't think it would be described as an omnibus) - Five Great Modern Irish Plays is the hardcover book I own. Book #3 is Riders to the Sea which is one of the 5 plays in the collection. Very very short one act play (16 pages) but packs a punch. 3½*

Print #4 was The Art Forger which I have owned since 2013 when the author came to our local book fair. I had thought it was crime fiction & certainly crime plays a role but it was more of a literary fiction. Quite enjoyable & informative. 3½*

With this book, I have met my goal of 4 print books per month. It has been a struggle but hopefully I can keep this pace (or increase it!).

Very good!

Glad you were able to meet your print goal!

Bev wrote: "Glad you were able to meet your print goal!"

Me too -- but you know as well as I do that it is always easiest to keep resolutions in January! :/

Leslie wrote: "Bev wrote: "Glad you were able to meet your print goal!"

Me too -- but you know as well as I do that it is always easiest to keep resolutions in January! :/"

True... :-)

I managed to squeeze in one more book before the end of January by spending the day reading The Patience of the Spider. I am really enjoying this Italian mystery series.

Nice job, Leslie!

Thanks Jessika!

February Progress: 4 Print, 14 total {acquired: 8}
Year to date: 9 print, 27 total {27 acquired}

Paperback books (and hardcovers!)
6. The Sense of an Ending (2/2)
7. *Blacklist (2/22)
8. *Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell (2/24)
9. The Playboy of the Western World (2/28)

and additional formats:
Kindle books
6. Alaeddin and the Enchanted Lamp (2/3)
7. Jill the Reckless (2/6)
8. *Hunger (2/12)
9. Gentleman Jole and the Red Queen (2/16)
10. *Penrod (2/22)
11. Miss Buncle's Book (2/23)
12. *Just William (2/26)

Audiobooks
4. Aladdin and the Enchanted Lamp (2/3)
5. Jump at the Sun (2/8)
6. Beautiful Creatures (2/14)
7. John Ball's In the Heat of the Night (2/15)

* means the book is on the Guardian's 1000 Novels Everyone Should Read list

Wow, Leslie, you're doing really well! :-)

Cath wrote: "Wow, Leslie, you're doing really well! :-)"

Thanks, it was an excellent reading month for me overall. But I still acquired more than I read -- guess it is a good thing I decided to keep track this year! And I picked up a couple of more short stories today - but they are by Sayers so that doesn't count, right!?

Leslie wrote: "Step #1 is a book I have decided to give up on. Madame Bovary has been sitting on my shelf unread for about 20 years & I should have let it sit a while longer! 1½*"

Leslie wrote: "Bev wrote: "Apparently. At least I do. But I think you have to be willing to address the problem. I'm not sure I am. :-)"

No, I am not either - which I guess is part of the problem!"

Madame Bovaryis also on my list. I hope I like it better than you do. I have read 5 books, but added 8 to my mountain. Couldn't stop myself.

Good luck with Madame Bovary Nathalie! I guess that a lot of us here have the book-acquiring bug :)

First one of the month is my 5th print book, The Sense of an Ending by Julian Barnes. While it wasn't exactly my kind of thing, it kept me interested & was easy to read. One of these days, I am going to learn my lesson and stop buying Man Booker Prize-winners! 3½*

Leslie wrote: "First one of the month is my 5th print book, The Sense of an Ending by Julian Barnes. While it wasn't exactly my kind of thing, it kept me interested & was easy to read. One of thes..."

Leslie, you and had about the same reaction to this one (I gave it 3 stars). I really like Barnes overall, but this one didn't live up to my anticipation.

Bev wrote: "Leslie wrote: "First one of the month is my 5th print book, The Sense of an Ending by Julian Barnes. While it wasn't exactly my kind of thing, it kept me interested & was easy to re..."

Oh, that is good to hear. This was my first experience with Barnes so I am glad to hear that others are better. Do you have a favorite or recommendation which I should try?

but they are by Sayers so that doesn't count, right!?

Absolutely not, Leslie! LOL!

I've not bought any books at all this month which is pretty much unknown for me. I did reserve three from the library yesterday though, so I'm not applying for sainthood just yet... ;-)

Leslie wrote: "Oh, that is good to hear. This was my first experience with Barnes so I am glad to hear that others are better. Do you have a favorite or recommendation which I should try? "

His short story collection A History of the World in 10½ Chapters is fantastic. I also enjoyed Nothing to Be Frightened Of and The Porcupine.

Thanks Bev!

Step #7 in my climb is a V.I. Warshawski mystery, Blacklist. In addition to the mystery, Paretsky has included a big dose of social commentary about the U.S. in the days post-9/11. 4*

#8 in my hike is the looong book Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell in hardcover. An interesting idea but way too long and I could see what the end would be when there was still 400 pages to go. 3*

Good on you for tackling that doorstop! I have a really hard time with books that add on WAY more pages than necessary (which to me seems to be a real trend in modern publishing......).

Bev wrote: "Good on you for tackling that doorstop! I have a really hard time with books that add on WAY more pages than necessary (which to me seems to be a real trend in modern publishing......)."

I have noticed that too (especially in the recent mysteries) - I blame it on the lack of editors now.

I am about to embark on an even longer book -- Don Quixote! Can't blame this one on modern publishers though :D

Good for you for tackling these doorsteps, Leslie. I read JS&MrN last year and am eyeing up the other doorsteps I have and wondering which I should try for Mount TBR. I have some interesting ones but the spirit is not madly willing at the moment. ;-)

Cath wrote: "Good for you for tackling these doorsteps, Leslie. I read JS&MrN last year and am eyeing up the other doorsteps I have and wondering which I should try for Mount TBR. I have some interesting ones b..."

If I like them, I can whiz through an 800 page book. The problem is with ones that I am more lukewarm about - they can feel like they are taking forever!

Leslie wrote: "I am about to embark on an even longer book -- Don Quixote! Can't blame this one on modern publishers though :D "

Don Quixote is great though. Or at least I thought so when I read it back in college. I wonder if I would think so now. Although....I have read Middlemarch within the last few years and I loved it too. I think it makes a difference when I step into classic literature. I expect a different mindset and narrative style. I just think it's so weird that so many modern books have turned into doorstops when I'd think people's attentions spans were getting shorter--what with tweeting and whatnot.

Bev wrote: "Leslie wrote: "I am about to embark on an even longer book -- Don Quixote! Can't blame this one on modern publishers though :D "

Don Quixote is great though. Or at least I thought so when I read i..."

Glad to hear it! I have added it to the group bookshelf, as some of us are reading it as a buddy read - I hope that is OK.

I managed to get one more print book done in Feb. - The Playboy of the Western World by Synge. I liked this one - a black comedy of sorts. 4*

That brings me to 4 Print, 14 total {acquired: 8} for the month and 9 print, 27 total {27 acquired} for the year. At least I am breaking even at this point!

March Progress: 5 Print, 12 total {acquired: 7}
Year to date: 14 print, 39 total {34 acquired}

Paperback books (and hardcovers!)
10. *A Prayer for Owen Meany (3/10)
11. Black Plumes (3/13)
12. Juno and the Paycock (3/18) (contained in the omnibus Five Great Modern Irish Plays)
13. And Quiet Flows the Don (3/21)
14. Last Seen Wearing (3/26)

and additional formats:
Kindle books
13. *Castle Rackrent (3/1)
14. *Lark Rise (3/19)
15. *Over to Candleford (3/30)
16. The Devil's Disciple (3/30) (contained in the omnibus The Plays of Shaw)

Audiobooks
8. Mr. Rickey Calls a Meeting (3/1)
9. *Lord of the Flies (3/5)
10. The Living (3/21)

* means the book is on the Guardian's 1000 Novels Everyone Should Read list

Leslie wrote: "I have added it to the group bookshelf, as some of us are reading it as a buddy read - I hope that is OK."

Absolutely!

Best wishes on your Don Quixoite undertaking!

Jessika wrote: "Best wishes on your Don Quixoite undertaking!"

Thanks Jessika!