The Reading Challenge Group discussion

My main objective for 2015 is to reduce my TBR list that just keeps piling up. I've been inspired by many Goodreads users in this group, I've added some challenges of my own while other challenges are from other groups I belong to.

Overall 2015 reading goals
• Read 180 books ✿✿✿ Completed 29 August 2015 ✿✿✿
• Read 40,000 pages (2015 Reading Challenge - Let's Turn Pages Challenge)✿✿✿ Completed 4 July 2015 ✿✿✿


2014 reading challenges

My challenges


✿ ✿ ✿Big and Small challenge : 12/12 ✿ ✿ ✿ Completed 12 March 2015
(view spoiler)[



(hide spoiler)]

Other chunksters:
(view spoiler)[

(hide spoiler)]

# of chunksters (500+ pages): 29

✿ ✿ ✿TBR slimming challenge Read at least 48 books from my TBR:126/48 ✿ ✿ ✿ Completed 20 April 2015
(view spoiler)[
Pick books from my TBR added earlier than 01/01/15


(hide spoiler)]

✿ ✿ ✿Hoarder’s challenge Read 12 books I already own: 12/12 + 11 extra
Pick books from “waiting on the shelf” list (as it stands on 01/01/15)✿ ✿ ✿ Completed 26 July 2015
(view spoiler)[

(hide spoiler)]

✿ ✿ ✿New To Me Authors challenge Read 6 popular authors that I have never read: 6/6 ✿ ✿ ✿ Completed 2 July 2015✿ ✿ ✿
(view spoiler)[
It’s time to meet new authors!

1. ✔ Ken Follett
2. ✔ Jody Picoult
3. ✔ Jojo Moyes
4. ✔ Paullina Simons
5. ✔ Lee Child
6. ✔ Kate Morton

✿ ✿ ✿Favourite Authors challenge Read 6 books by my favourite authors: 6/6✿ ✿ ✿ Completed 3 June 2015


(hide spoiler)]

✿ ✿ ✿Masochist challenge Read 4 books from my TBR that come recommended but I think I’ll hate: 4/4 ✿ ✿ ✿ Completed 19 May 2015
(view spoiler)[

(hide spoiler)]

✿ ✿ ✿Guilty Pleasure challenge: Read 4 books that I just can’t wait to read: 4/4 ✿ ✿ ✿Completed 24 June 2015
(view spoiler)[

(hide spoiler)]

✿ ✿ ✿SF&F 2015 Reading Challenge for the group Sci-fi and Heroic Fantasy: 24/24 ✿ ✿ ✿ Completed 9 May 2015
SF&F Challenge

✿ ✿ ✿SF&F 2015 Bookshelf Challenge (Read all the books! the sequel) for the group Sci-Fi and Fantasy Book Club: 16/16 ✿ ✿ ✿ Completed 6 August 2015
SF&F Bookshelf Challenge

✿ ✿ ✿Sci-Fi Challenge for The Reading For Pleasure Book Club: 10/10 ✿ ✿ ✿Completed 27 June 2015
SF Challenge thread and post link
(view spoiler)[
1. ✔Read a novel about an alien invasion: Childhood's End by Arthur C. Clarke
2. ✔Read a novel set on another, perhaps imaginary, planet:Fuzzy Nation by John Scalzi
3. ✔Read a novel about time travel or alternate history: The City & the City by China Miéville
4. ✔Read a Sci Fi novel where the main character is a child: Among the Hidden by Margaret Peterson Haddix
5. ✔Read a 19th century Sci Fi novel: The War of the Worlds by H.G. Wells
6. ✔Read a Sci Fi novel, written in the first half of the 20th century: The Machine Stops by E.M. Forster
7. ✔Read a Sci Fi novel, written in the second half of the 20th century: The Caves of Steel by Isaac Asimov
8. ✔Read a novel by an author suggested to you by a member of this group, or something you have come across here, or seen in these lists:The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K. Le Guin
9. ✔Read a book of Sci Fi short stories: The Illustrated Man by Ray Bradbury
10. ✔Read a graphic Sci Fi novel: Saga, Volume 1 by Brian K. Vaughan


(hide spoiler)]

✿ ✿ ✿Serendipity Non-Fiction challenge Pick up a book by browsing the library aisles I don’t normally venture in: 4/4 ✿ ✿ ✿ Completed 9th April 2015
(view spoiler)[

(hide spoiler)]

✿ ✿ ✿Recommended by family/friends challenge Read at least 6 books that have been recommended or given to me as a gift:6/6 ✿ ✿ ✿ Completed 9 May 2015
(view spoiler)[

(hide spoiler)]

✿ ✿ ✿TBR Favourite Genre challenge: 24/24
Read 6 books of each genre: Sci-Fi, Fantasy, Classic, Children/Ya ✿ ✿ ✿ Completed 6 August 2015
(view spoiler)[

(view spoiler)[ (hide spoiler)] (hide spoiler)]

✿ ✿ ✿History challenge Read a book for each time period (either 8 or 12 if I have time): 8/8 + 4 extra ✿ ✿ ✿ Completed 21 June 2015 ✿ ✿ ✿
(view spoiler)[

(hide spoiler)]

✿ ✿ ✿Decade challenge: 12/12 ✿ ✿ ✿ Completed 27 March 2015
Reduced to the last decades
(view spoiler)[
✔ 1900: A Little Princess by Frances Hodgson Burnett (first published 1905)
✔ 1910: My Man Jeeves by P.G. Wodehouse (first published 1919)
✔ 1920:The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald (published in 1925)
✔ 1930:Little House in the Big Woods Laura Ingalls Wilder (published in 1932)
✔ 1940: A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith (first published 1940)
✔ 1950: Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov (first published 1955)
✔ 1960: The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath (first published 1963)
✔ 1970: The Forever War by Joe Haldeman (first published 1974)
✔ 1980: The Whale Rider by Witi Ihimaera (first published 1987)
✔ 1990: Chocolat by Joanne Harris (first published 1999)
✔ 2000: 600 Hours of Edward by Craig Lancaster (first published 2009)
✔ 2010:The Uncommon Reader by Alan Bennett


(hide spoiler)]

✿✿✿2015 Monthly Genre challenge Read at least one book a month:55/12 ✿✿✿ Completed 3 Dec 2015

✔January - Historical Fiction
(view spoiler)[
The Shelters of Stone by Jean M. Auel
Orphan Train by Christina Baker Kline
The Lost Crown by Sarah Miller
(hide spoiler)]

✔February - Romance & Chick-Lit
(view spoiler)[
The Bronze Horseman by Paullina Simons
The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
Me Before You by Jojo Moyes
Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
(hide spoiler)]

✔March - Contemporary and Literary Merit
(view spoiler)[
600 Hours of Edward by Craig Lancaster
A Constellation of Vital Phenomena by Anthony Marra
Chocolat by Joanne Harris
Looking for Alaska by John Green
The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath
(hide spoiler)]

✔April - Poetry and Plays
(view spoiler)[
Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller
Spoon River Anthology by Edgar Lee Masters
The Man from Snowy River and Other Verses by A.B. Paterson
(hide spoiler)]

✔May - Fantasy (including Utopian)
(view spoiler)[
The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch
Nine Princes in Amber by Roger Zelazny
Theft of Swords by Michael J. Sullivan
A Wizard of Earthsea by Ursula K. Le Guin
(hide spoiler)]

✔June - Minority Studies/LGBT
(view spoiler)[
The Book of Negroes by Lawrence Hill
Lakota Woman by Mary Crow Dog
The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie
Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson
(hide spoiler)]

✔July - Manga/Graphic Novels &/OR Humor
(view spoiler)[
Sorry I Peed on You by Jeremy Greenberg
A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman
The Arrival by Shaun Tan
I Feel Bad about My Neck: And Other Thoughts on Being a Woman by Nora Ephron
Persepolis: The Story of a Childhood by Marjane Satrapi
All Creatures Great and Small by James Herriot
Through the Woods by Emily Carroll
(hide spoiler)]

✔August - Mysteries
(view spoiler)[
The Murder at the Vicarage by Agatha Christie
Whose Body? by Dorothy L. Sayers
The Beautiful Mystery by Louise Penny
The Big Sleep by Raymond Chandler
The Blackhouse by Peter May
(hide spoiler)]

✔September - Science-Fiction
(view spoiler)[
Afterparty by Daryl Gregory
Nexus by Ramez Naam
The Man Who Fell to Earth by Walter Tevis
Protector by Larry Niven
(hide spoiler)]

✔October - Horror/Thriller &/OR Short Story Collections
(view spoiler)[
Little Black Lies by Sharon Bolton
The Turn of the Screw by Henry James
Bird Box by Josh Malerman
The Crowfield Demon by Pat Walsh
My Cousin Rachel by Daphne du Maurier
14 by Peter Clines
The Doll's House by M.J. Arlidge
Gentlemen and Players by Joanne Harris
(hide spoiler)]

✔November - Adventure &/OR Travel
(view spoiler)[
Gregor the Overlander by Suzanne Collins
The Accidental Tourist by Anne Tyler
Seta by Alessandro Baricco
Time and Again by Jack Finney
(hide spoiler)]

✔December - Children's Lit &/OR Traditional Lit
(view spoiler)[
Nicholas St. North and the Battle of the Nightmare King by William Joyce
The Sleeper and the Spindle by Neil Gaiman
Celtic Myths, Celtic Legends by R.J. Stewart
The Gospel of Loki by Joanne M. Harris
(hide spoiler)]

covers(view spoiler)[

(hide spoiler)]

✿✿✿2015 Monthly Non-Fiction Challenge: Read at least one book a month: 37/12 ✿✿✿ Completed 3 Dec 2015

✔January - History
(view spoiler)[
Alexander the Great: A Very Short Introduction by Hugh Bowden
Tomorrow to Be Brave: A Memoir of the Only Woman Ever to Serve in the French Foreign Legion by Susan Travers
Alexander the Great by Philip Freeman
(hide spoiler)]

✔February - Sociology/Relationships/Family
(view spoiler)[
Mother-Daughter Duet: Getting to the Relationship You Want with Your Adult Daughter by Cheri Fuller
The Husband Project: 21 Days of Loving Your Man--On Purpose and with a Plan by Kathi Lipp
Can't We Talk about Something More Pleasant? by Roz Chast
Wit & Wisdom of Mothers by Hallmark Gift books
(hide spoiler)]

✔March - Autobiography/Memoir
(view spoiler)[
Night by Elie Wiesel
The Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid by Bill Bryson
Little House in the Big Woods by Laura Ingalls Wilder
Arawata Bill: The Story of Legendary Gold Prospector William James O'Leary by Ian Dougherty
(hide spoiler)]

✔April - Arts/Hobby/Skill related
(view spoiler)[
A History of Roman Art by Fred S. Kleiner
Crafts & Hobbies: 100 Days of Kindness - Spreading Happiness, Joy, and Love with 100 Acts of Random Kindness! by Jacob Reimer
The Baker's Daughter: Timeless Recipes from Four Generations of Bakers by Louise Johncox
Knit: Home by Quince & Co.
French Girl Knits by Kristeen Griffin-Grimes
(hide spoiler)]

✔May - Health/Wellness/Self-Improvement
(view spoiler)[
Backache, Stress, and Tension: Understanding Why You Have Back Pain and Simple Exercises to Prevent and Treat It by Hans Kraus
The Back Sufferers' Bible by Sarah Key
Undoing Depression: What Therapy Doesn't Teach You and Medication Can't Give You by Richard O'Connor
The Antidote: Happiness for People Who Can't Stand Positive Thinking by Oliver Burkeman
(hide spoiler)]

✔June - Biography
(view spoiler)[
Vita di Leonardo by Bruno Nardini
Lakota Woman by Mary Crow Dog
Elizabeth Yates: The First Lady Mayor in the British Empire by Judith Devaliant
(hide spoiler)]

✔July - Nature/Animals
(view spoiler)[
All Creatures Great and Small by James Herriot
A Walk in the Woods: Rediscovering America on the Appalachian Trail by Bill Bryson
(hide spoiler)]

✔August - True story/True crime/Current Events
(view spoiler)[
Christie: A Family's Tragic Loss and a Mother's Fight for Justice by Tracey Marceau
Phenomena: The Lost and Forgotten Children by Susan Tarr
(hide spoiler)]

✔September - Science/Maths/Technology
(view spoiler)[
How to Cut a Cake: And Other Mathematical Conundrums by Ian Stewart
The Demon-Haunted World: Science as a Candle in the Dark by Carl Sagan
(hide spoiler)]

✔October - Psychology
(view spoiler)[
Make It Stick: The Science of Successful Learning by Peter C. Brown
(hide spoiler)]

✔November - Travel/Food/Essays
(view spoiler)[
Forever Paris: 25 Walks in the Footsteps of the City's Most Illustrious Figures by Christina Henry De Tessan
Rick Steves' Walk: Historic Paris by Rick Steves
Paris Noir: The Secret History of a City by Jacques Yonnet
Tasting Italy: A Culinary Journey by Alice Vollenweider
Ladies, A Plate: Traditional Home Baking by Alexa Johnston
(hide spoiler)]

✔December - Religion/Spirituality/Philosophy
(view spoiler)[
An Infinity of Little Hours: The Trial of Faith of Five Young Men in the Western World's Most Austere Monastic Order by Nancy Klein Maguire
The Monk Who Sold His Ferrari: A Fable About Fulfilling Your Dreams & Reaching Your Destiny by Robin S. Sharma
(hide spoiler)]

covers(view spoiler)[

(hide spoiler)]

✿ ✿ ✿Original Bingo (May-August 2015) for the group The 2015 Reading Challenge Group ✿ ✿ ✿ Completed 21 June 2015


(view spoiler)[
B1: Exploration : Saga, Volume 1 by Brian K. Vaughan
B2: Congratulations!: The Complete Maus by Art Spiegelman (Pulitzer Prize (1992)
B3: Participation: Ordinary Grace by William Kent Krueger
B4: Information: Book Crush: For Kids and Teens-Recommended Reading for Every Mood, Moment and Interest by Nancy Pearl
B5: Collaboration: The Antidote: Happiness for People Who Can't Stand Positive Thinking by Oliver Burkeman

I1: Listed it: A Wizard of Earthsea by Ursula K. Le Guin
I2: Bought it: Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel
I3: Eyed it: The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams
I4: Downloaded it: The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch
I5: Scored it!: James and the Giant Peach by Roald Dahl (library book + audio)

N1: Oldie but goodie: The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank
N2: New kid on the block: The Stranger by Harlan Coben
N3: FREE: The Ghost Brigades by John Scalzi
N4: Yesterday's news: Lock In by John Scalzi
N5: Everybody's talking: The Book of Negroes by Lawrence Hill

G1: Nice to meet you: My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult
G2: You seem familiar: Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoyevsky
G3: One of the girls : Lakota Woman by Mary Crow Dog
G4: One of the guys: The Illustrated Man by Ray Bradbury
G5: Old friends: Redshirts by John Scalzi

O1: Take a stand : The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd
O2: Take a friend: Theft of Swords by Michael J. Sullivan
O3: Take a trip :Prey by Michael Crichton
O4: Take a look :Undoing Depression: What Therapy Doesn't Teach You and Medication Can't Give You by Richard O'Connor
O5: Take a break: Among the Hidden by Margaret Peterson Haddix

First bingo: 1st row - 28.05.15
5th column - 31.05.15
1st column - 05.06.15
5th row - 10.06.15
4th column - 13.06.15
central column - 16.6.15

Original Bingo Thead
(hide spoiler)]

✿ ✿ ✿ABB Bingo Challenge ✿ ✿ ✿ Completed 7 March 2015



ABB Bingo Challenge

✿✿✿ 3rd Reading Bingo✿✿✿Completed 23 August 2015

(view spoiler)[
A funny book: A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman
A book written by a NZ author:The 10pm Question by Kate De Goldi
A book with a number in the title: The Eagle of the Ninth by Rosemary Sutcliff
A book of short stories: All Creatures Great and Small by James Herriot
A book of non-fiction: A Walk in the Woods: Rediscovering America on the Appalachian Trail by Bill Bryson
A book that’s been made into a movie: Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones
A book that’s about another culture: Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes by Eleanor Coerr
A second book in a series: Eldest by Christopher Paolini
A book recommended by a librarian or a teacher:The Snow Child by Eowyn Ivey
A book by a female author: The Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton
A first book by a favourite author: Half Way Home by Hugh Howey
A scary book: Through the Woods by Emily Carroll
Free square: Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind by Yuval Noah Harari
A book with a mystery: The Murder at the Vicarage by Agatha Christie
A book a friend loves: Big Little Lies by Liane Moriarty
An award winning book:All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr (Pulitzer)
A classic book: The Man of Property by John Galsworthy
A book with a colour in the title:Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson
A graphic novel: Persepolis: The Story of a Childhood by Marjane Satrapi
A book set in another world: The Ruins of Gorlan by John Flanagan
A book set in the past: The Boleyn Inheritance by Philippa Gregory
A book with magic:The Emperor's Blades by Brian Staveley
A book with a female heroine: Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson
A book about adventure: Redwall by Brian Jacques
A book set in the future:Altered Carbon by Richard K. Morgan

1st bingo – first row 29 July 2015
2nd bingo – last row 2 August 2015
3rd bingo - 4th column 5 August 2015
(hide spoiler)]

✿✿✿ 4th Reading Bingo✿✿✿Completed 1 Dec 2015



(view spoiler)[
A funny book: The Humans
A book your parent read: Pinocchio
A book of science fiction: bird box
A book with non-human characters: Call of the wild
A book published this year: little black lies
A non-English book: Silk/seta
A book with a place name in its title: Paris
A book that became a movie: This is where I leave you
A classic: The Turn of the Screw
A book with a mystery: Elizabeth is missing
A book with more than 250 pages: Plainsong
A book of poetry: The rime of the ancient mariner
Free square: My Cousin Rachel by Daphne du Maurier
A book by a local author: The colour / Ladies a plate
A graphic novel: V for vendetta
A book set in school: Gentlemen and Players
A book with magic: The Witch's Boy
A book based on a true story: Schindler's List
A book with a colour in its title: Paris noir
A book based on a play: Macbeth
A book with a number in its title: 14
A book your friend loves: Olive Kitteridge
A book about a famous person: Augustus: The Life of Rome's First Emperor
The second book in a series: Royal Assassin
A book with a dragon: The Dragonbone Chair

First bingo: 23 oct diagonal top right to down left
2nd bingo: 30 Oct top row
3rd bingo: first column
4th bingo: second column 11 Nov
(hide spoiler)]

Month summary


January
(view spoiler)[
1.A Little Princess ****
2.Alexander the Great: A Very Short Introduction **
3.Tomorrow to Be Brave: A Memoir of the Only Woman Ever to Serve in the French Foreign Legion ***
4.The Shelters of Stone **
5.The Martian ***
6.Orphan Train ****
7.The River **
8.The Egg ***
9.Other People ***
10.The Machine Stops ***
11.Alexander the Great *****
12.Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn *****
13.Hand Made Baking: Recipes to Warm the Heart by Kamran Siddiqi **
14.Liesl & Po by Lauren Oliver **
15.Read for Your Life: 11 Ways to Better Yourself Through Books by Pat Williams ***
16.Tell No One by Harlan Coben *****
17.Of Lions and Unicorns by Michael Morpurgo **
18.Hamlet by William Shakespeare ****
19.CliffsComplete Shakespeare's Hamlet by Terri Mategrano ****
20.Fuzzy Nation by John Scalzi ***
21.The Lost Boy by Greg Ruth **
22.The Lost Crown by Sarah Miller ***
23.Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov
24.The Hope of Elantris by Brandon Sanderson **
(hide spoiler)]


# Books read: 24
# Pages read: 6,589
Best book of the month: Alexander the Great by Philip Freeman
Best yield/payoff read: The Shelters of Stone (6 challenges!)

February
(view spoiler)[
25.The Slow Regard of Silent Things by Patrick Rothfuss **
26.The Bronze Horseman by Paullina Simons **
27.The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald ***
28.Before They Are Hanged by Joe Abercrombie *****
29. Some Desperado by Joe Abercrombie **
30.Mother-Daughter Duet: Getting to the Relationship You Want with Your Adult Daughter by Cheri Fuller ***
31.A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith ***
32.The Forever War by Joe Haldeman **
33.A Passion for Bread: Lessons from a Master Baker: 7 Steps to Making Perfect Loaves by Lionel Vatinet ****
34.Me Before You by Jojo Moyes ****
35.The Husband Project: 21 Days of Loving Your Man--On Purpose and with a Plan by Kathi Lipp **
36.Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen ****
37.Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel ****
38.Tides of War by Steven Pressfield * (DNF)
39.The City & the City by China Miéville ****
40.Can't We Talk about Something More Pleasant? by Roz Chast **
41Wit & Wisdom of Mothers by Hallmark Gift books ***
42.The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins ****
43.Pompeii: Echoes from the Grand Tour by Mimmo Jodice **
✔ One Helping by Tear Fund New Zealand (ISBN 978-0-473-28740-5 not in GR) ***
44.84, Charing Cross Road by Helene Hanff **
45.The Whale Road by Robert Low **
(hide spoiler)]
NotInGR

# Books read: 22 (GR counter says 45 as one of the books isn't present in GR)
# Pages read: 6,184 (the missing book page count compensates for DNF book)
Best book of the month: Before They Are Hanged by Joe Abercrombie
Best yield/payoff read: A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith (5 challenges)

March
(view spoiler)[
46.600 Hours of Edward by Craig Lancaster *****
47.Old-Fashioned Jams, Jellies, and Sweet Preserves: The Best Way to Grow, Preserve, and Bake with Small Fruit by Jo Ann Gardner **
48.My Man Jeeves by P.G. Wodehouse ***
49.Grumpy Cat: A Grumpy Book by Grumpy Cat **
50.The Hunchback of Notre-Dame by Victor Hugo ****
51.How to Run: From Fun Running to Full Marathons by Hugh Jones **
52.Sixth of the Dusk by Brandon Sanderson **
53.A Constellation of Vital Phenomena by Anthony Marra ****
54.Chocolat by Joanne Harris *****
55.Night by Elie Wiesel ****
56.The Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid by Bill Bryson ****
57.The Whale Rider by Witi Ihimaera ***
58.Looking for Alaska by John Green ***
59.The Sum of You: The Six Forces that Shape Your Personality by Alan Graham ****
60.Last Argument of Kings by Joe Abercrombie ****
61.Little House in the Big Woods by Laura Ingalls Wilder ****
62.The War of the Worlds by H.G. Wells ***
63.The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath **
64.Roman Art by Paul Zanker ***
65.I, Claudius by Robert Graves ****
66.The Architecture of Ancient Rome by Nigel Rodgers ***
67.Goldfields Of Otago: An Illustrated History by John Hall-Jones ***
68.Arawata Bill: The Story of Legendary Gold Prospector William James O'Leary by Ian Dougherty ****
69.The Uncommon Reader by Alan Bennett ****
70.Ribbons of Grace by Maxine Alterio **
71.The Woebegone Twins by Christopher William Hill ***
(hide spoiler)]


# Books read: 26
# Pages read: 6,799
Best book of the month: Chocolat by Joanne Harris
Best yield/payoff read: The Hunchback of Notre-Dame by Victor Hugo (5 challenges)

April
(view spoiler)[
72.A History of Roman Art by Fred S. Kleiner *****
73.The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas by Ursula K. Le Guin ***
74.The Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett ****
75.The Caves of Steel by Isaac Asimov ***
76.Holy Holidays!: The Catholic Origins of Celebration by Greg Tobin *
77.Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller ***
78.Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter by Tom Franklin ***
79.Crafts & Hobbies: 100 Days of Kindness - Spreading Happiness, Joy, and Love with 100 Acts of Random Kindness! by Jacob Reimer **
80.Spoon River Anthology by Edgar Lee Masters ***
81.Tomorrow, When the War Began by John Marsden **
82.Childhood's End by Arthur C. Clarke ****
83.Blood Song by Anthony Ryan ***
84.Arrowtown; History & Walks by Julia Bradshaw ***
85.The Crowfield Curse by Pat Walsh ***
86.The Man from Snowy River and Other Verses by A.B. Paterson **
87.Life After Life by Kate Atkinson ***
88.Killing Floor by Lee Child ****
89.The Baker's Daughter: Timeless Recipes from Four Generations of Bakers by Louise Johncox **
90.The Sense of an Ending by Julian Barnes **
91.Dissolution by C.J. Sansom ****
92.Knit: Home by Quince & Co. ***
93.French Girl Knits by Kristeen Griffin-Grimes **
94.The House of the Scorpion by Nancy Farmer *
95.Perfect State by Brandon Sanderson ***
✔(Not in GR) The Edible journey by Tai Tapu School ****
(hide spoiler)]


# Books read: 25 (GR counter says 95 as one of the books isn't present in GR)
# Pages read: 6,855 (the not-in-GR book page count compensates the DNF book)
Best book of the month: A History of Roman Art by Fred S. Kleiner
Best yield/payoff read: The Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett (5 challenges)

May
(view spoiler)[
96.Among the Hidden by Margaret Peterson Haddix **
97.The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank ***
98.Redshirts by John Scalzi **
99.The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams **
100.Backache, Stress, and Tension: Understanding Why You Have Back Pain and Simple Exercises to Prevent and Treat It by Hans Kraus **
101.The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd ****
102.Book Crush: For Kids and Teens-Recommended Reading for Every Mood, Moment and Interest by Nancy Pearl ***
103.Saga, Volume 1 by Brian K. Vaughan **
104.The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch ****
105.Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoyevsky ***
106.The Back Sufferers' Bible by Sarah Key ***
107.Nine Princes in Amber by Roger Zelazny *
108.The Complete Maus by Art Spiegelman *****
109.Theft of Swords by Michael J. Sullivan ****
110.James and the Giant Peach by Roald Dahl ****
111.The Illustrated Man by Ray Bradbury ***
112.A Wizard of Earthsea by Ursula K. Le Guin ***
113.Undoing Depression: What Therapy Doesn't Teach You and Medication Can't Give You by Richard O'Connor ***
114.My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult *****
115.Prey by Michael Crichton **

(hide spoiler)]


# Books read: 20
# Pages read: 6,605
Best book of the month: The Complete Maus by Art Spiegelman
Best yield/payoff read:The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams (4 challenges)


June
(view spoiler)[
116.The Antidote: Happiness for People Who Can't Stand Positive Thinking by Oliver Burkeman ****
117.The Ghost Brigades by John Scalzi ****
118.Ordinary Grace by William Kent Krueger ***
119.Niccolo Rising by Dorothy Dunnett *
120.The Book of Negroes by Lawrence Hill ****
121.Vita di Leonardo by Bruno Nardini ***
122.The Stranger by Harlan Coben ***
123.Lakota Woman by Mary Crow Dog ****
124.Lock In by John Scalzi ****
125.Unlocked: An Oral History of Haden's Syndrome by John Scalzi ****
126.Elizabeth Yates: The First Lady Mayor in the British Empire by Judith Devaliant **
✔(Not in GR) Untold stories of Onehunga by Norine Borchard (Vol 1 + Vol 2)
127.Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel ***
128.The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie **
129.Jo Seagar Bakes by Jo Seagar ***
130.Half a King by Joe Abercrombie *****
131.Augustus by John Williams **
132.The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K. Le Guin **
133.Roadside Picnic by Arkady Strugatsky *****
(hide spoiler)]


# Books read: 19
# Pages read: 5,791
Best book of the month: Roadside Picnic by Arkady Strugatsky
Best yield/payoff read: Ordinary Grace (3 challenges)


Half year challenge recap:

1.Overall reading goals: 131/180, 38,823 /40,000
2.Big and small: 12/12 Completed
3.TBR slimming:75/48 Completed but ongoing
4.Hoarder’s challenge: 10/12 + 5 extra
5.New-2-Me: 5/6
6.Favourite authors: 6/6 Completed
7.Masochist: 4/4 Completed
8.Guilty pleasure: 4/4 Completed
9.SF&F 2015 Reading Challenge for the group Sci-fi and Heroic Fantasy: 24/24 Completed
10.SF&F 2015 Bookshelf Challenge for the group Sci-Fi and Fantasy Book Club: 14/16
11.Sci-Fi Challenge for The Reading For Pleasure Book Club: 10/10 Completed
12.Serendipity: 4/4 Completed
13.Recommended by: 6/6 Completed
14.TBR favourite genre: 18/24
15.History: 8/8 + 4 extra Completed
16.Decade: 12/12 Completed
17.Monthly Genre: 22/12 – ongoing
18.NF monthly genre: 23/12 – ongoing
Original Bingo (May-August 2015) – Completed
ABB Bingo Challenge - Completed

July
(view spoiler)[
134.Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson ***
135.Sorry I Peed on You by Jeremy Greenberg ***
136.The Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton ****
137.Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson ****
138.A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman ****
139.The Arrival by Shaun Tan ***
140.I Feel Bad about My Neck: And Other Thoughts on Being a Woman by Nora Ephron **
141.Persepolis: The Story of a Childhood by Marjane Satrapi ***
142.All Creatures Great and Small by James Herriot *****
143.Through the Woods by Emily Carroll **
144.Altered Carbon by Richard K. Morgan **
145.Eldest by Christopher Paolini ***
146.A Walk in the Woods: Rediscovering America on the Appalachian Trail by Bill Bryson **
147.All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr ***
148.Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones ***
149.Big Little Lies by Liane Moriarty *****
150.The Boleyn Inheritance by Philippa Gregory ****
151.The Emperor's Blades by Brian Staveley ****
152.The Reptile Room by Lemony Snicket ***
153.The Eagle of the Ninth by Rosemary Sutcliff ***
154.The 10pm Question by Kate De Goldi *
155.Defending Elysium by Brandon Sanderson **
156.Shadows for Silence in the Forests of Hell by Brandon Sanderson ****
(hide spoiler)]


# Books read: 23
# Pages read: 7,804
Best book of the month: Big Little Lies by Liane Moriarty
Best yield/payoff read: Eldest (4 challenges)

August
(view spoiler)[
157.The Snow Child by Eowyn Ivey ***
158.Redwall by Brian Jacques ***
159.The Murder at the Vicarage by Agatha Christie ***
160.The Man of Property by John Galsworthy ***
161.A Scanner Darkly by Philip K. Dick *
162.Christie: A Family's Tragic Loss and a Mother's Fight for Justice by Tracey Marceau ****
163.Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind by Yuval Noah Harari *****
164.The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah **
165.Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes by Eleanor Coerr ***
166.Half Way Home by Hugh Howey **
167.Cathedral by Raymond Carver *
168.Whose Body? by Dorothy L. Sayers ***
169.The Beautiful Mystery by Louise Penny ****
170.A History of Greece, 1300 to 30 BC by Victor Parker **
171.Ancient Greece: An Illustrated History by Marshall Cavendish ***
172.Ancient Greece: From Prehistoric to Hellenistic Times by Thomas R. Martin ****
173.The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton ****
174.Phenomena: The Lost and Forgotten Children by Susan Tarr ***
175.The Big Sleep by Raymond Chandler **
176.Antigone by Sophocles ***
177.The Ruins of Gorlan by John Flanagan ***
178.The Blackhouse by Peter May ****
179.The Winter Rose by Jennifer Donnelly *
180.A Betrayal in Winter by Daniel Abraham ***
181.Stigmata by Colin Falconer ***
(hide spoiler)]


# Books read: 25
# Pages read: 7,950
Best book of the month: Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind by Yuval Noah Harari
Best yield/payoff read: The Murder at the Vicarage (2 challenges)

September
(view spoiler)[
182.The Cathars: The Most Successful Heresy of the Middle Ages by Sean Martin *****
183.Poison Study by Maria V. Snyder ***
184.Ancient Greece: A Political, Social, and Cultural History by Sarah B. Pomeroy *****
185.The Penguin Historical Atlas of Ancient Greece by Robert Morkot ****
186.Afterparty by Daryl Gregory ****
187.Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jamie Ford ***
188.How to Cut a Cake: And Other Mathematical Conundrums by Ian Stewart **
189.The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett ***
190.The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making by Catherynne M. Valente ****
191.Nexus by Ramez Naam ***
192.The Whistling Season by Ivan Doig *****
193.The Man Who Fell to Earth by Walter Tevis **
194.The Curse of Chalion by Lois McMaster Bujold ****
195.Bull Mountain by Brian Panowich ***
196.Mistress of the Art of Death by Ariana Franklin **
197.The Summer Book by Tove Jansson ***
198.The Demon-Haunted World: Science as a Candle in the Dark by Carl Sagan ****
199.Out of the Easy by Ruta Sepetys **
200.Protector by Larry Niven ***
201.Around a Greek Table: Recipes & Stories Arranged According to the Liturgical Seasons of the Eastern Church by Katerina Katsarka Whitley *****
202.The Witch's Boy by Kelly Barnhill ***
203.This is Where I Leave You by Jonathan Tropper ***
204.Plainsong by Kent Haruf ***
(hide spoiler)]
]

# Books read: 23
# Pages read: : 7,683
Best book of the month: The Whistling Season


October
(view spoiler)[
205.The King Must Die by Mary Renault **
206.Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout ****
207.Little Black Lies by Sharon Bolton ***
208.The Mysterious Howling by Maryrose Wood ***
209.The Turn of the Screw by Henry James ***
210.Royal Assassin by Robin Hobb ****
211.The Call of the Wild by Jack London ****
212.Make It Stick: The Science of Successful Learning by Peter C. Brown ****
213.The Humans by Matt Haig ***
214.Bird Box by Josh Malerman ***
215.The Crowfield Demon by Pat Walsh **
216.Elizabeth is Missing by Emma Healey ***
217.Augustus: The Life of Rome's First Emperor by Anthony Everitt ****
218.My Cousin Rachel by Daphne du Maurier *****
219.14 by Peter Clines **
220.A Land More Kind Than Home by Wiley Cash ****
221.The Doll's House by M.J. Arlidge **
222.V for Vendetta by Alan Moore *
223.Gentlemen and Players by Joanne Harris ****
224.Pinocchio by Carlo Collodi ****
(hide spoiler)]


# Books read: 20
# Pages read: 6,637
Best book of the month: A Land More Kind Than Home by Wiley Cash

November
(view spoiler)[
225.Gregor the Overlander by Suzanne Collins **
226.Paris by Edward Rutherfurd ****
227.The Last Kingdom by Bernard Cornwell ***
228.The Accidental Tourist by Anne Tyler **
229.Seta by Alessandro Baricco **
230.Forever Paris: 25 Walks in the Footsteps of the City's Most Illustrious Figures by Christina Henry De Tessan ****
231.Rick Steves' Walk: Historic Paris by Rick Steves ***
232.Time and Again by Jack Finney ***
233.The Rime of the Ancient Mariner by Samuel Taylor Coleridge ***
234. Gilead by Marilynne Robinson ***
235. Paris Noir: The Secret History of a City by Jacques Yonnnet ****
236. In the Bleak Midwinter by Julia Spencer-Fleming ***
237. Macbeth by A.J. Hartley ****
238.Tasting Italy: A Culinary Journey by Alice Vollenweider ***
239.The Colour by Rose Tremain ***
240.An Infinity of Little Hours: The Trial of Faith of Five Young Men in the Western World's Most Austere Monastic Order by Nancy Klein Maguire ***
241.The Dragonbone Chair by Tad Williams ****
242.The Night Before Christmas hardcover: The Classic Edition by Clement C. Moore ****
243.Ladies, A Plate: Traditional Home Baking by Alexa Johnston ****
244.I Let You Go by Clare Mackintosh ***
(hide spoiler)]


# Books read: 20
# Pages read: 6,314
Best book of the month: Macbeth by A.J. Hartley

December
(view spoiler)[
245.Schindler's List by Thomas Keneally ****
246.Nicholas St. North and the Battle of the Nightmare King by William Joyce ***
247.A Redbird Christmas by Fannie Flagg ****
248.A Brief History of the Celts by Peter Berresford Ellis ***
249.The Monk Who Sold His Ferrari: A Fable About Fulfilling Your Dreams & Reaching Your Destiny by Robin S. Sharma **
250.The Sleeper and the Spindle by Neil Gaiman ***
251.The Enchanted by Rene Denfeld ****
252.The Christmas Box by Richard Paul Evans ***
253.A Christmas Memory by Truman Capote ***
254.The Immortal Nicholas by Glenn Beck *
255.The Bottoms by Joe R. Lansdale ****
256.The Story of the Other Wise Man by Henry van Dyke ***
257.Christmas Cookies: Dozens of Classic Yuletide Treats for the Whole Family by Monika Romer ****
258.The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry by Gabrielle Zevin **
259.Kindred by Octavia E. Butler ***
260.Celtic Myths, Celtic Legends by R.J. Stewart **
261.Historical Atlas of the Celtic World by John Haywood *****
262.Last Bus to Wisdom by Ivan Doig *****
263.An Old-Fashioned Christmas: Sweet Traditions for Hearth and Home by Ellen Stimson **
264.Rite of Passage by Alexei Panshin **
265.Vicious by V.E. Schwab **
266.Bastard Out of Carolina by Dorothy Allison ***
267.A Noble Radiance by Donna Leon **
268.The Cricket on the Hearth by Charles Dickens ***
269.Mudbound by Hillary Jordan ****
270.Bootlegger's Daughter by Margaret Maron **
271. The Grownup by Gillian Flynn ***
272. The Middle Ages: An Illustrated History by Barbara A. Hanawalt ***
273. The Gospel of Loki by Joanne M. Harris ****
(hide spoiler)]


# Books read: 29
# Pages read: 82,240
Best book of the month: The Bottoms by Joe R. Lansdale

My Year in review

# books read: 273 (8 abandoned)
# pages read: 82,240
# books over 500 pages: 29
# new-to-me authors now on my watchlist (with 4 or 5 stars ratings): 38
# 5 stars reads: 22 … 4 stars reads: 68 … average: 3.1 stars
# books on TBR at the beginning (pre-2015): 361
# pre-2015 TBR books read: 126 (TBR is now 309)

Top 10 Fiction reads:
• I, Claudius
• Before They Are Hanged by Joe Abercrombie
• Dissolutions
• Roadside picnic
• Big Little lies
• The whistling season by Ivan Doig (Best Fiction of the year)
• My cousin Rachel
• Gentlemen and players
• Macbeth: a novel
• The bottoms
Honourable mention: Bull Mountain, A Land More Kind Than Home and The Enchanted

Top 5 Non-fiction:
• A history of Roman Art
• Alexander the Great by Philip Freeman (Best NF of the year)
• All Creatures Great and Small
• The Cathars
• Sapiens by Yuval Noah Harari
Honourable mention: Historical Atlas of the Celtic World and Ancient Greece: A Political, Social, and Cultural History

This sounds really interesting! So many books to read! Good luck with all these challenges.

thanks Camille, good luck to you too :-)

January reading list

OK, let’s start. Here is my January reading plan (subject to change), to read in no particular order:

• by Jean M. Auel (History + Colossal + Bingo)
• by Susan Travers (Hoarder’s + Bingo)
• by Andy Weir (Favourite genre: sci-fi + Bingo)
• by Frances Hodgson Burnett (first published 1905) (Decade + Classic + Bingo)
• by Hugh Bowden (Monthly Non-fiction:history + shortie)
• by Christina Baker Kline (Monthly Genre: Historical Fiction + Bingo)

Good choices - do tell me if you like The Martian because I have been heavily debating that one.

will do Chase :-)

Good luck with these challenges - it looks like a fun year of reading ahead!

I love your challenges, Kiwi, and highly organized too!

I'll be stalking and looking for ideas along the way. :D

Your challenges has so much variety. I hope you enjoy The martian. It's one of the best books I read last year.

Thanks guys!

@Melissa, feel free to stalk away, I too pick up books to read from fellow GR members.

@Shreya, I'm looking forward to reading The Martian!

Completed my first 2015 read: A Little Princess while continuing my colossal. Here's my short review: A charming novel, it remind us of the power of nobility of the heart, imagination, self-respect, friendship and of believing you can be a princess no matter what.

I loved this little novel, I think I will re-read it at some point, probably next Christmas given its heart-warming properties :-)

Oh, A Little Princess! What a lovely way to start your year! Congrats on your first finish.

thanks Renee :-)

Added a second book: Alexander the Great: A Very Short Introduction, only 2 stars this time :-(

Loved your review. I'll skip that one.

Yes, Renee I was interested in Alexander after the recent archaeological discovery, speculating about Alexander's remains being in Greece rather then in Egypt, but this book was not a good choice

Finished Tomorrow to Be Brave: A Memoir of the Only Woman Ever to Serve in the French Foreign Legion by Susan Travers, interesting true story of a remarkable woman

Finished The Shelters of Stone, the first of my "colossal" reads (800+ pages) for the year. I was tempted to rate this novel 3 stars but downgraded to 2 stars, as by my own rating rules, I'm not planning to read more from this series.

I'm continuing The Martian by Andy Weir.

Finished the Martian, for me it was a true 3 1/2 stars. I won't do a full review as there are many good ones on GR already. I agree with many reviewers that the calculation and explanations were a little too much. I like science and I am an engineer but being a novel not a text book, some of them could have been easily left out of the book.

I enjoyed the humour in the book very much and a chucked quite a few times. I liked the dynamics of the other characters on Earth, it felt a lot like some work meetings I've been involved LOL. GR doesn't allow 1/2 stars unfortunately so I'm giving this book a 3 stars, it is already a bestseller and its overall rating won't suffer much

First of all: Wow you're so organised Kiwi :O
Second thing: Now I'm really curious about The Martian. Your comment and the reviews of my friends sound so interesting, but as I'm not really good with understanding science stuff thanks to my teachers back in school I feel like I won't like it :(

Congrats on already reading so many books! :D

Thanks Alessandra, looks like you've got a well organised system too!

Re the Martian, there are some parts when the protagonist analyses the reasoning behind his calculations, for example how much nitrogen is required for a reaction to occur or why he is choosing a particular solution to an immediate problem (I don't want to give too much away) where I felt that the author was trying to impress readers who are expert in that specific field.
I'm not just taking about him being "nerdy" (after all Mark is an astronaut and his character requires him to be "scientific-minded" and perhaps even number obsessed), I even enjoy geeky talk, but sometimes it felt like the aim was to impress experts and proving that the novel had scientific basis, rather than providing credibility of the solution for the general reader. Sorry I'm aware my rambling is confusing right now, but you get what I'm getting at?

Having said that, I enjoyed the book, it's full of unexpected failures and glorious come backs, often gripping, I like Mark character quite a lot and I was often rooting for him!
My 3 stars are also reflecting that, although well written, the plot (a shipwrecked survivor with limited resources on an inhospitable world) isn't too original for a sci-fi book and I couldn't stretch to 4 :-)

I get what you are getting at. Thanks for getting further into it. I think I'll consider reading it at some later point :)

Finished , lovely book about the story of a orphan-train rider, I never knew about the events in the story. 4 stars.

After being disappointed by my earlier book choice about Alexander the Great, I have decided to read another book on the subject: . This books comes highly recommended, I have read only a couple of pages and it looks like it's just what I was looking for :-)

Kiwi wrote: "Finished the Martian, for me it was a true 3 1/2 stars. I won't do a full review as there are many good ones on GR already. I agree with many reviewers that the calculation and explanations were a ..."

Whew! I've been wanting to read this, but I was guessing from the description that I'd like it but not love it as much as I'm "supposed" to. Thanks for taking off some of the pressure :)

Brenda I hope you like it!

Continuing Alexander the Great which I'm greatly enjoying: finally a book written by a classicist and historian but that obviously has a talent for writing history as if it were a novel.

In the meantime I finished a few short novellas: by the author of The Martian, by the author of Coraline and . The latter is a short dystopian novella written in 1909 (!) which warns humanity about the dangers of losing our own self-reliance in favour of machine dependency.

Finished , it's my first 5 stars book of 2015. Excellent read even for non-history buffs. Philip Freeman crafts Alexander's story as a captivating novel. The description of his long campaign is interspersed by curious events, facts and legends of the lands he travels and interesting reflections on his character all of which make Alexander's figure come to life. Yes, he was a great general, a shrewd politician, but also a man, with human faults despite all his glory. Highly recommended.

For ABB bingo I finished the first book by Gillian Flynn. It's another 5 stars for me, and no surprises here, given that it is also part of my favourite author challenge.
Quite chilling story, it reminded me of "mommy dearest".

Kiwi, because of your recommendation, I'm adding Alexander the Great!

I already feel under pressure :P I do hope you'll like it Melissa!

Finished another couple of books: Liesl & Po and Read for Your Life: 11 Ways to Better Yourself Through Books .

I didn't like the fist book as much as I would have hoped (it was at the bottom of my TBR after all) but it allowed me to complete my first BINGO, so Yay!

The second book makes a convincing case for people to read more (preaching to the choir I know), it goes into the why, when, where, what, who and how. It provides lots of inspiring quotes (some of which I added to GR) and I particularly liked the chapter summaries.
I have to agree with some reviewers, the book contains a lot of repetition and it feels a little bit dated. I also noticed a narrow perspective in terms of book choices, I would have liked to see more suggestions to broaden one's reads by choosing books written in a foreign language for instance. Altogether not a bad read 3 stars from me.