Mount TBR 2020 discussion

I have started out climbing Mt Blanc for the last two years only to jump over to Mt Vancouver and succeed with that climb. But rather than start with Mt Vancouver, I think I will start with Mt Blanc again as I'm not sure yet what my reading plans are going to be. I'm thinking of tackling some chunksters this year and they may not be ones from my TBR pile.

I will include physical and kindle books and, as in previous years, I will edit this message with my progress throughout the year.

Currently Reading

Finished Reading
1. On Murder Considered as One of the Fine Arts by Thomas De Quincey. Xmas gift from 2019. Started on 01Jan20. Finished on 01Jan20.
2. De Sade: A Critical Biography by Ronald Hayman. Bought in 2019. Started on 08Jan20. Finished on 13Jan20.
3. The 120 Days of Sodom by Marquis de Sade. Kindle. Bought in 2016. Started on 17Jan20. Finished on 28Jan20.
4. Pure by Andrew Miller. Kindle. Bought in 2015. Started on 25Feb20. Finished on 02Mar20.
5. The Witches: Salem, 1692 by Stacy Schiff. Bought in 2017. Started on 15Mar20. Finished on 04Apr20.
6. Death in Spring by Mercè Rodoreda. Birthday gift in 2019. Started on 05Apr20. Finished on 10Apr20.
7. Clochemerle-les-Bains by Gabriel Chevallier. Bought in 2016. Started on 25Apr20. Finished on 03May20.
8. Songs of Love and Horror: Collected Lyrics of Will Oldham. Bought in 2019. Started on 09Oct19. Finished on 10May20.
9. Hill by Jean Giono. Bought in 2019. Started & finished on 16May20.
10. The Misfortunes of Virtue and Other Early Tales by Marquis de Sade. Kindle edition. Bought in 2019. Started on 30May20. Finished on 05Jun20.
11. A Glastonbury Romance by John Cowper Powys. Bought in 2019. Started on 06Jun20. Finished on 07Jul20.
12. The Brazen Head by John Cowper Powys. Bought in 2019. Started on 20Aug20. Finished on 30Aug20.
13. Charles Tunnicliffe. Prints: A Catalogue Raisonné by Meyrick & Heuser. Bought in 2017. Started on 13Sep20. Finished on 20Sep20.
14. Mr. Gillray: The Caricaturist by Draper Hill. Birthday present in 2018. Started on 23Sep20. Finished on 29Sep20.
15. When the Time Comes by Josef Winkler. Bought in 2018. Started on 28Oct20. Finished on 01Nov20.
16. Grieshuus: The Chronicle of a Family by Theodor Storm. Bought in 2019. Started reading 04Nov20. Finished reading 07Nov20.
17. The Master Masochist: Tales of a Sadistic Mistress by Leopold von Sacher-Masoch. Bought in 2019. Started on 08Nov20. Finished on 13Nov20.
18. Love. The Legacy of Cain by Leopold von Sacher-Masoch. Bought in 2018. Started on 15Nov20. Finished on 21Nov20.
19. A Doppelgänger; with Aquis submersus by Theodor Storm. Bought in 2019. Started reading 28Nov20. Finished on 28Nov20.
20. Pnin by Vladimir Nabokov. Bought in 2017. Started on 02Dec20. Finished on 05Dec20.
21. The Drunkard's Walk: How Randomness Rules Our Lives by Leonard Mlodinow. Shelved in 2011. Started reading 06Dec20. Finished on 12Dec20.
22. The Cossacks; The Death of Ivan Ilyich; Happy Ever After by Leo Tolstoy. Bought in 2017. Started on 16Dec20. Finished on 19Dec20.
23. Hiroshige: Landscape, Cityscape: Woodblock Prints in the Ashmolean Museum by Clare Pollard & Mitsuko Ito Watanabe. Bought in 2017. Started on 16Dec20. Finished on 23Dec20.
24. Gimpel the Fool and Other Stories by Isaac Bashevis Singer. Bought in 2017. Started reading on 25Dec20. Finished on 27Dec20.

Well, I thought I'd start off with a slim book (On Murder Considered as One of the Fine Arts) to get the ball rolling; it was a Xmas gift and one of those small black Penguin books.

I also realised that the book I bought and started last year (Songs of Love and Horror: Collected Lyrics of Will Oldham) is valid for this year's challenge as I've only read about 8%—I was reading it along with listening to the songs but that takes quite a while so I may just read it on its own and see how the lyrics work without the music.

I really should read something else from my TBR pile.

I knew things were going to be a bit slow this year, as far as clearing my TBR pile was concerned. I started The Witches: Salem, 1692 by Stacy Schiff today.

Thinking of abandoning The Witches: Salem, 1692; it's a mess of a book.

Nearly three weeks spent reading a book (The Witches) I don't even like, phew! And I still haven't finished. It's slow going...plod...plod.... Because of the subject matter, I feel that I should like it.

Ok, after a bit of a hiatus let's get back to reading something from my TBR stack: Clochemerle-les-Bains by Gabriel Chevallier—third book in the Clochemerle series.

Clochemerle-les-Bains was ok, but only ok, up until the half-way point and now it's become a drudge. I don't think it's just me as the first half covered the characters in the villlage in a similar way to the first two books but now it's become a satire on the medical profession. I can't see myself abandoning it but this could be a bit of a struggle. About twenty pages a day is all I can manage now.

Well, Clochemerle-les-Bains picked up again. A longueur coinciding with my inability to read anything made it difficult to progress. I'm now only slightly behind.

Read Hill by Jean Giono yesterday. In one day! Even though it's a short book I wasn't expecting to read it in one day. I liked it, but the beginning moreso than the end. It becomes too cataclysmic about two-thirds of the way through. I preferred Second Harvest, which was the third in the series.

I could really do with reading some books that've been on the stack for years.

The Sade odyssey continues; started The Misfortunes of Virtue and Other Early Tales today—a collection of early short stories, including, of course, the novella The Misfortunes of Virtue, which is the first version of 'Justine'.

Started the 1,120 page book, A Glastonbury Romance by John Cowper Powys, today. This may take a while.

Half way through Powys's 1,120 page book A Glastonbury Romance. Luckliy enough I'm enjoying it.

Finished! A great book though the ending was a bit.....meh! I will probably re-read bits again over the next few days, especially the ending, to see what I make of it once it's had to time to settle.

Well, I knew it was going to be a problem completing this challenge this year; I've been reading some good books, but they're big and/or new. We'll have to see what the rest of the year brings.

Frazzled with work...frazzled with working from home...there's no let up...no joy with fiction...let's read non-fiction....a nice big catalogue of drawings of nature by Tunnicliffe from an exhibition from 2017...nice...

Right. What next?
I'm a bit behind. I should be completing my 18th book now but have just finished the 13th.

Finished my 14th. Two months behind.

Finished my 17th book. I'm halfway through August!

Oh shit, it's December 1st and I've got five books to read by the end of month.

The Drunkard's Walk: How Randomness Rules Our Lives. Time for some non-fiction methinks.

Ok, three more to read to complete climb: I started two books today.

good luck to you! I have 3 going also that I hope to complete by the end of the year. but I failed.miserably this year with my reading.

Carla wrote: "good luck to you! I have 3 going also that I hope to complete by the end of the year. but I failed.miserably this year with my reading."

Thanks Carla. Well, good luck with the three you're reading, hopefully you can knock those off your pile—and better luck next year! Or choose a smaller mountain. :-)

I haven't decided yet on next year but it will probably be the same.

Just finshed Hiroshige: Landscape, Cityscape: Woodblock Prints in the Ashmolean Museum...just one more book to read...one more week to go....I can do this!!

I've finished Gimpel the Fool and Other Stories by Isaac Bashevis Singer, my 24th book! I just about made it to the top!

Here's the pile of books read in 2020. n.b. the kindle on the top represents the three I read on it. Only 24 this year but I think it looks impressive all piled up.

Congrats on achieving your goal Jonathan! I like the photo of books all piled up. A good way to mark your accomplishment. Good luck on your 2021 reading goals!

Pamela wrote: "Congrats on achieving your goal Jonathan! I like the photo of books all piled up. A good way to mark your accomplishment. Good luck on your 2021 reading goals!"

Thanks Pamela. I wish you well with your 2021 climb.

Congrats on reaching your goal! And love the photo :)

Leslie wrote: "Congrats on reaching your goal! And love the photo :)"

Thanks Leslie. I'm not sure I'll be able to add a similar photo this year as I've started off with three kindle books.