The VIRTUAL Mount TBR Reading Challenge discussion

Well, my fellow mountaineers, our inaugural virtual climbing expedition is coming to a close and it's time to get ready for the Final Mountaineering Checkpoint. Where does the time go? I'm ready to hear how all our mountain-climbing team members have done out there on Rum Doodle, Mt. Crumpit, Mt. Seleya....whichever peak you've chosen. Checkpoint participation is absolutely voluntary and is not considered necessary for challenge completion.

For those who would like to participate in this checkpoint post, I'd like you to at least complete the first of these two things. And if you feel particularly inspired (or generous about humoring me during the holiday season), then please do both.

1. Tell us how many miles you made it up your mountain (# of books read). If you've planted your flag on the peak, then tell us, take a selfie, and celebrate (and wave!). Even if you were especially athletic and have been sitting atop your mountain for months, please check back in and remind us how quickly you sprinted up that trail. And feel free to tell us about any particularly exciting book adventures you've had along the way.

Since my main objective in TBR mountain-climbing is to read from my own stacks, I set my goal for the virtual climb at Rum Doodle and managed to meet that goal back in March. Of course the non-owned books still called my name and I have since planted flags on Mt. Crumpit and Mt. Munch as well. I've made it a few steps up White Plume, but I've headed back to base camp so I can concentrate on a final run for the top of Everest over in Mount TBR.

2.Use titles from your list to complete as many of the following sentences below as you can. I've given my answers as examples. Feel free to add or change words (such as "a" or "the" or others that clarify) as needed.

My Life According to Books
1. My Ex is/was Strong Poison
2. My best friend is [a] Code Talker
3. Lately, at work [it's been like] Terror on the Titanic
4. If I won the lottery, [I'd buy] The House on Downshire Hill
5. My fashion sense [is still] Becoming
6. My next ride [will be on the] 4:50 from Paddington
7. The one I love is The Lightning Thief
8. If I ruled the world, everyone would [have] Books to Die For
9. When I look out my window, I see [a] River of Darkness
10. The best things in life are [like a] Gaudy Night

And what do you get for all that hard work? The Checkpoint will close at 11:59 pm on Thursday, January 9. On Friday I will crank up the Custom Random Number Generator and pick a winning climber. He or she will have the chance to add to their own TBR stack via my gently-used book vault (prize list will be sent). For those who also participate in the Mount TBR Challenge, this prize may count towards your 2020 TBR climb.

Even if you're not in the mood for a prize or if you got distracted by pretty scenery or side trails (your own books, ARCs, what-have-you), I'd love to have you check in and tell us how your 2019 mountain climb went!

Please comment below with your check-in information. And please only use this thread for check-ins. If you'd like to congratulate your fellow climber, you are encourage do so by visiting their climb threads. Than

Well, I planted my flag up Mt. Crumpit back in October, I think. Since then, I've read a couple more books that could count for this challenge, but I decided to focus on my owned TBR or else I wouldn't have made it to Mt. Kilimanjaro's peak. It was a good way to balance my desire for shiny new releases and the books I owned and were collecting dust on my shelves. I became such good friends with the Grinch that I'll be visiting him again in 2020!


My Life According to Books
1. My Ex was Heartless
2. My best friend is [the] Ash Princess
3. Lately, at work [I've been] Losing It
4. If I won the lottery, [I would visit] The Tyrant's Tomb
5. My fashion sense [is] Changeless
6. My next ride [will be to the] City of Ghosts
7. The one I love is Blameless
8. If I ruled the world, everyone would Never Judge a Lady by Her Cover
9. When I look out my window, I see The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo
10. The best things in life are [the] Eleven Scandals To Start To Win a Duke's Heart

Posted on blog as Quiet Geordie.

Managed to get up both Crumpit and Munch.

I chose Rum Doodle and reached the summit on Aug 31. Topped Crumpit on Dec 3, and have 4 books since.

My Life According to Books
1. My Ex is/was... Lethal White
2. My best friend is... The Cat Who Dropped a Bombshell
3. Lately, at work... [too many] Bloodsucking Fiends
4. If I won the lottery... [I'd take a] Holiday in Havana
5. My fashion sense... [is] Blindsighted
6. My next ride... [will be to] Plasticity Island
7. The one I love is... Magyk
8. If I ruled the world, everyone would... [have] Dragon Blood
9. When I look out my window, I see... Strange Weather
10. The best things in life are... Smoke & Summons

I planned for Mt. Olympus and I'm now at 170 books. I'm surprised that I read so many library books.

My Life According to Books
1. My Ex is Pure Joy
2. My best friend is The Only Girl in the World
3. Lately, at work [it's all] Shards and Ashes
4. If I won the lottery, [I'd buy] The House on Willow Street
5. My fashion sense [is still] Surfacing
6. My next ride [will be on the] War Horse
7. The one I love is Storm Cursed
8. If I ruled the world, everyone would [be] Skinny
9. When I look out my window, I see The Rains
10. The best things in life are Clean

I planned for Stormness but managed to climb Mout Olympus. I'm now at 203 books and still climbing (albeit more slowly!). All but three books were library books

My Life According to Books is hard when your reading is mostly mysteries:

1. My Ex is Lost You
2. My best friend is Telling the Truth
3. Lately, at work [it's all] Ask Me No Questions
4. If I won the lottery, [I'd buy] The Guest Cottage
5. My fashion sense [is still] The Red Coat
6. My next ride [will be on the] The Dark Lake
7. The one I love is Teetotaled
8. If I ruled the world, everyone would [be] Almost French
9. When I look out my window, I see The Girls in the Garden
10. The best things in life are Top Drawer

Went for Mt. Munch, finished up on White Plume.

Wheeeee.

Managed 61 out of 100 planned so managed to climb Stormness Head.

I started with a goal of 12 and moved step by step up the mountains to Mt Mindolluin, ending the year with 79 read. That’s 16 more than I whittled off my TBR mountains and 79 books I got to read for free. Thanks, Bev, for this fun challenge, and thank you to my public library for all the books! No prize needed.

I am a day late...but not a prize short. Yesterday was a bit hectic so I pulled out the Custom Random Number Generator this morning and put it to work picking my winners for various challenges. Our winner here on Goodreads for the inaugural Virtual Mount TBR Challenge is...comment #6 Tamara!

Congratulations and thanks for climbing with me! If you would like a prize, please email me at phryne1969@gmail.com and I'll send you the prize list. And thanks to everyone who tackled their Virtual Mount TBRs in 2019!

And a round of applause for our winner and all our climbers!