The Reading Challenge Group discussion

Decade Challenge

This will run all year.
The idea is to try to read and record ONE book originally published in each decade listed. Your end result should be a list of the 22 decades posted here, with one book you've read beside each decade. (Feel free to cut and paste the template below to get started.)

Some members will have posted a mockup of this challenge in their personal goal threads, for ease of organization. This is the official thread for posting lists and sharing ideas about how to complete this challenge.

Also, GR does a "Best Books of ____" by decade, which is really helpful. You can access through LISTOPIA or Google "Best Books of (decade/year)" to get to them.

I really love the way this challenge forces me to read beyond my comfort zone.

Decade Challenge
(Original publication date)

1800-1809:
1810-1819:
1820-1829:
1830-1839:
1840-1849:
1850-1859:
1860-1869:
1870-1879:
1880-1889:
1890-1899:
1900-1909:
1910-1919:
1920-1929:
1930-1939:
1930-1949:
1950-1959:
1960-1969:
1970-1979:
1980-1989:
1990-1999:
2000-2009:
2010-2016:

Reserved for Updates: Badge info to come

DECADE CHALLENGE - FINISHED!!!
(Original Publication dates)

1800-1809: Castle Rackrent**
1810-1819: Emma**
1820-1829: The Last of the Mohicans**
1830-1839: The Nose by Gogol**
1840-1849: Dead Souls**
1850-1859: North and South**
1860-1869: Our Mutual Friend**
1870-1879: The Mystery of Edwin Drood**
1880-1889: The Black Arrow**
1890-1899: Trilby**
1900-1909: Just So Stories**
1910-1919: The Rainbow**
1920-1929: Ulysses**
1930-1939: Gone with the Wind
1940-1949: The Pearl**
1950-1959: A Question of Upbringing**
1960-1969: The Spy Who Came In from the Cold**
1970-1979: Maurice**
1980-1989: The Warrior's Apprentice**
1990-1999: Barrayar**
2000-2009: The Goose Girl**
2010-2016: After You**

I am so glad that I am not the only one doing the decade challenge. This will be one of my yearly challenges, it looked like fun.

This one usually does pretty well. I'm sure we won't be alone.

I needed some help with the 1800-1809 category. I looked up books on Google, Also went through the best books of the decade. Maybe I was just picky. I own the short stories by Heinrich Von Kleist, The Marquise of O and other stories. That is probably my choice for the 1800-1809. Anybody have any recommendations?

Cindy-
Last year I read Tales from Shakespeare by Charles and Mary Lamb. The authors turned the stories from Shakespeare's plays into prose, so it's essentially a book of short stories. I suspect that you would enjoy it very much.

Mo's Decade Challenge.
(Original publication date)

1800-1809: 1809 Six Records of a Floating Life *Read 7 May 16*
1810-1819: 1818 Frankenstein *Read 3 Sep 16*
1820-1829: 1821 Confessions of an English Opium-Eater
1830-1839: 1836 The Nose *Read 2 Nov 16*
1840-1849: 1848 White Nights *Read 6 Nov 16*
1850-1859: -1859 The Woman in White *Read 21 Jun 16*
1860-1869: - 1864 Journey to the Centre of the Earth *Read 5 Jul 16*
1870-1879: - 1877 A Simple Heart *Read 17 Aug 16*
1880-1889: - 1889 The Kreutzer Sonata *Read 16 Oct 16*
1890-1899: - 1890 Hunger *Read 9 Jan 16*
1900-1909: - 1908 The Wind in the Willows *Read 21 Apr 16*
1910-1919: - 1910 Howards End *Read 21 Dec 16*
1920-1929: - 1925 The Trial *Read 5 May 16*
1930-1939: - 1937 Of Mice and Men *Read 12 Sep 16*
1940-1949: - 1945 Cannery Row *Read 17 Jan 16*
1950-1959: - 1955 A View from the Bridge *Read 6 Aug 16*
1960-1969: - 1965 God Bless You, Mr. Rosewater *Read 3 Jan 16*
1970-1979: - 1979 Buried Child *Read 28 Feb 16*
1980-1989: - 1983 Brighton Beach Memoirs *Read 28 Feb 16*
1990-1999: - 1998 Naoko *Read 27 Mar 16*
2000-2009: - 2004 After Dark *Read 23 Jan 16*
2010-2016: - 2013 One by One *Read 6 Feb 16*

Hi Renee. HNY, I am going to attempt the decade challenge again this year. Hope everyone had a good holiday, back to routine now, my goal is - to finish.


1800-1809
1810-1819
1820-1829
1830-1839
1840-1849
1850-1859
1860-1869
1870-1879
1880-1889
1890-1899
1900-1909
1910-1919
1920-1929
1930-1939
1930-1949
1950-1959 - The Last of the Wine by Mary Renault
1960-1969 - A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess - read 2 Jan
1970-1979
1980-1989
1990-1999
2000-2009
2010-2016

Linked books have been read:

Decade Challenge
(Original publication date)

1800-1809:
1810-1819:
1820-1829:
1830-1839:
1840-1849:
1850-1859:
1860-1869: Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll
1870-1879: A Doll's House by Henrik Ibsen
1880-1889: Heidi by Johanna Spyri
1890-1899:
1900-1909: The Call of the Wild by Jack London
1910-1919:
1920-1929:
1930-1939: Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston
1930-1949: The Pearl by John Steinbeck
1950-1959: Waiting for Godot by Samuel Beckett
1960-1969: To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
1970-1979: The Princess Bride by William Goldman
1980-1989: Scarlet Song by Mariama Bâ
1990-1999: Paula
2000-2009: Boy Meets Boy
2010-2016: The Invention of Wings

Anybody doing the decade challenge? I started with the 1800's. Anybody struggling with that era. Maybe my list was too ambitious. 1800-1810 was tough.

I'm definitely doing the Decade. And I agree that the early 1800s are difficult. Once you get past the first decade it's easier. Jane Austen and Walter Scott come along, then all the Victorians. If you've already done the first decade, the rest should be a piece of cake!

For books from the 1800s, I have a few suggestions (and apologies in advance if these are already obvious to you guys).

1) There is a slightly-confusing literary/historical term called "the long Eighteenth century" that actually stretches from 1600 to 1815, it isn't just the 1700s. So if you do a Google search on that phrase, you may find some early 1800s books (and since they are probably available in the public domain, you could even read them for free online maybe). Also, here are two titles from the 1820s:

1) Jane Talbot by Charles Brockton Brown
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...

2) The Private Memoirs and Confessions of a Justified Sinner
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8...

FYI, I don't happen to be doing this particular mini-challenge, but I am enjoying the TBR mini challenge. Cheers, Becky Wolsk

Thanks for the tip, Becky. I have been using Wikpedia, years in literature. You get a list of what was popular for that year, say 1820 plus the new books that were published. Kind of gives you an extra thought about the year and its time frame.

What a good idea, Cindy! Thanks!

Always wanted to do something like this, need to get some older books ;-)

1800-1809:
1810-1819:
1820-1829:
1830-1839:
1840-1849:
1850-1859:
1860-1869:
1870-1879:
1880-1889:
1890-1899:
1900-1909:
1910-1919:
1920-1929:
1930-1939:
1930-1949:
1950-1959:
1960-1969:
1970-1979:
1980-1989:
1990-1999:
2000-2009: The Kite Runner
2010-2016: Gratitude

How is everyone doing with the Decade Challenge?

9 down and 13 to go. I am pleased with it, having fun.

I am a month ahead right now, I'm sure that wont stay once I get to Oliver Twist and Tale of Two Cities though!

I have 7 books to finish to complete this challenge!

How is everyone else doing?

I have 8 books to finish and complete the Decade challenge

Anybody still working on the Decade challenge? I have 4 more books to completion. Some great books, some not so good.

This sounds like fun! Might fit into the 1000/1001 Books to read before I die Challenge. Love it when we can cross over. Thx for the inspiration!

Could we include books already read in 2016?

Absolutely! All challenges that run from Jan-Dec can be back-filled with books you've read in 2016. :D

Btw, I'm still diligently working on this one. I happen to find it one of the more challenging of the mini-challenges. It turns there are certain decades I read in more than others, and some decades I never seem to touch. :P

DECADE CHALLENGE
(Original Publication dates)

1800-1809: Castle Rackrent**
1810-1819: Emma**
1820-1829: The Last of the Mohicans**
1830-1839: The Nose by Gogol**
1840-1849: Dead Souls**
1850-1859: North and South**
1860-1869: Our Mutual Friend**
1870-1879: The Mystery of Edwin Drood**
1880-1889: The Black Arrow**
1890-1899: Trilby**
1900-1909: Just So Stories**
1910-1919: The Rainbow**
1920-1929: Ulysses**
1930-1939: Gone with the Wind
1940-1949: The Pearl**
1950-1959: A Question of Upbringing**
1960-1969: The Spy Who Came In from the Cold**
1970-1979: Maurice**
1980-1989: The Warrior's Apprentice**
1990-1999: Barrayar**
2000-2009: The Goose Girl**
2010-2016: After You**

For anyone interested in joining this challenge before the end of 2016... You can backfill with any books you've read this year.

I am doing a similar challenge in another group, but I am getting ideas from your list.
What did you think of Maurice? I have read most of Forster's works, but could not get into that one. I think I like Room With a View the best of all his books.

I've read all the Forster I could get my hands on. Love his writing. I loved Maurice as well but it does start slow. The character is wonderful, though. Complex and heart-breaking. The movie was quite good, too. Rupert Graves (who played Frank Honeychurch) and Hugh Grant are liquidly gorgeous in their youth.

I will have to try Maurice again some time, when I am more caught up with my reading ( whenever that will be!).

I'm a bit late to the party, but I figured I would see how far I've gotten with this one! I may not be able to finish by the end of 2016, but you never know! Using all original publication dates.

1800-1809
1810-1819: Persuasion (Pub. 1818, I Finished 10/27/16)
1820-1829
1830-1839
1840-1849
1850-1859
1860-1869
1870-1879
1880-1889
1890-1899
1900-1909
1910-1919: The Thirty-Nine Steps (Pub. 1915, I Finished 1/28/16)
1920-1929: The Sun Also Rises (Pub. 1926; I Finished 2/4/16)
1930-1939: Of Mice and Men (Pub. 1937, I Finished 6/27/16)
1940-1949: The Stranger (Pub. 1942, I Finished 1/23/16)
1950-1959: Lolita (Pub. 1955, I Finished 5/17/16)
1960-1969: The Water is Wide: A Memoir (Pub. 1969, I Finished 9/8/16)
1970-1979: The Book of Laughter and Forgetting (Pub. 1978, I Finished 10/19/16)
1980-1989: The Alchemist (Pu. 1988, I Finished 8/22/16)
1990-1999: Bridget Jones's Diary (Pub. 1996, I Finished 1/18/16)
2000-2009: Olive Kitteridge (Pub. 2008, I Finished 1/11/16)
2010-2016: Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, Parts 1 & 2 (Pub. 2016, I Finished 8/26/16)

Good luck, Amanda.

Finished- 11/14/2016
This was a tough challenge, but I am glad I took it on. A lot of hard work, breathing a sigh of relief that I am finished.

1800-1809-The Marquise of O— and Other Stories by Heinrich Von Kleist
1810-1819- The Swiss Family Robinson by Johann David Wyss
1820-1829-The Spy by James Fenimore Cooper
1830-1839-Father Goriot by Honere de Balzac
1840-1849-Twelve Years a Slave by Solomon Northup
1850-1859-The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne
1860-1869-Uncle Silas by J. Sheridan Le Fanu
1870-1879-The Mystery of Edwin Drood by Charles Dickens
1880-1889-She by H. Rider Haggard
1890-1899-The War of the Worlds by H.G.Wells
1900-1909-The House on the Borderland by William Hope Hodgson
1910-1919-Uneasy Money by P.G. Wodehouse
1920-1929-Mrs. Dalloway by Virginia Woolf
1930-1939-The Unvanquished by William Faulkner
1930-1949-Holy Disorders by Edmund Crispin
1950-1959-The Once and Future King by T.H. White
1960-1969-Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury
1970-1979-The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams
1980-1989-Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card
1990-1999-Timeline by Michael Chrichton
2000-2009-The Second Time Around by Mary Higgins Clark
2010-2016-Sing Me To Sleep by Chris Simms

That is quite an accomplishment, Cindy!

Great job, Cindy!

Reading through all of these decades was fun, but tough. I didn't realize how much the writing styles change through all of these decades. A world of difference in a story written in 1870 than the one I just read from 1999.

So so much! And I find that I gravitate more toward certain decades, while I struggle to find titles I want to read for others. (I'm looking at you, 1930s!)

Oh I'm loving the 30s Renee and have found tons of them. I can recommend some if you want?

I really like the idea of this challenge and shall do it next year :O)

And congrats Cindy! Few I'd like to try such as the Marquise of O

I will absolutely tap you as my 30s resource, Vero! :D

What 'genre' were you looking for? On the top of my head, I would recommend:

* Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day by Winifred Watson (1938) is just a breath of loveliness and humour (a film adaptation was made a few years back with Frances McDormant - book better).

* Miss Buncle's Book (1934) is another gem with great characters.

* Thinking of 'funny', PG Wodehouse is great and wrote plenty. The Luck of the Bodkins (1935) was excellent.

* Agatha Christie, Dorothy L Sayers, Daphne du Maurier, Pearl S Buck, Virginia Wolf, Georgette Heyer, etc.

In fact, this year has been great for discovering lots of great authors and books from the 1930s, 40s and 50s, and all was due to re-reading Miss Pettigrew back in January. The book was re-discovered by an independent English publisher, Persephone Books, back in 2008 I think, and I've been completely taken by their 'mission' and catalogue. They have the knack for finding some great reads (http://www.persephonebooks.co.uk//tit...). I'm not saying to buy these since they are expensive but to give you ideas. Some can be found as ebooks, or published by cheaper editions, or your library might have the original publication (you never know).

Hope this helps :O)

Awesome! Thanks so much!

Tick Tock. Tick Tock.
The 2016 Decade Challenge is calling you.

Decade Challenge
This challenge will be found in the MINI CHALLENGE ARCHIVE for 2016 updates. Hope to see you among the 2017 Challenges!