SciFi and Fantasy Book Club discussion

This thread is to discuss the main GR book reading challenge, as opposed to the group one.

This year I have set myself the challenge of reading 70 books. So far I've read 8.

I went with 60, and I also have read 8, with 50 pages left in Roadside Picnic I might squeeze in 9 before January shuts the door.

UPDATED 12-29-2015

BOOKS READ THUS FAR GOODREADS GENERAL SITE READING CHALLENGE

2015 GOODREADS General Challenge Only: 36 total titles to date:

Quintessence The Search For Missing Mass In The Universe by Lawrence M. Krauss -- REVIEW.
Death from the Heavens: A History of Strategic Bombing by Kenneth P. Werrell -- REVIEW.
NUKED: I Was A Guinea Pig For The U.S. Army by Michael Harris -- REVIEW.
Write Now! 20 Simple Strategies for Successful Writing by Greg Strandberg -- REVIEW
Inside Windows 10: An early look at Microsoft's Operating System by Onuora Amobi -- REVIEW.
Justice Calling by Annie Bellet -- REVIEW.
Il-2 Shturmovik Guards Units of World War 2 by Oleg Rastrenin, author and A_Yurgenson, illustrator -- REVIEW
WordPress Made Super Simple - How Anyone Can Build A Professional Website From Scratch With Little Or No Experienceby Jack Davies, series editor Sarah Wiley -- REVIEW
The Atomic Times: My H-Bomb Year at the Pacific Proving Ground by Michael Harris -- REVIEW.
Mosquito: The Original Multi-Role Combat Aircraft by Graham M. Simons -- REVIEW
PC Patrol Craft of World War II: A History of the Ships and Their Crews by William J. Veigele -- as a tribute to my late father who served on one of these vessels in World War II. REVIEW.
Cat and Jemima J by Jane Green -- REVIEW.
Summer Secrets by Jane Green -- REVIEW.
The Wright Brothers by David McCullough -- REVIEW.
The Realm of the Nebulae by Edwin Powell Hubble -- REVIEW
Worlds of Exile and Illusion: Rocannon's World, Planet of Exile, and City of Illusions-- Anthology REVIEW> by Ursula K. Le Guin - the first three books of the Hainish Cycle (not on the GR SF&F Book Club shelf).
The Sagan Diary by John Scalzi -- REVIEW.
JavaScript and HTML5 Now byKyle Simpson - REVIEW
How to Speak Wookiee: A Manual for Intergalactic Communication byWu Kee Smith illustrated by JAKe. -- REVIEW.
The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho, translated by Alan R. Clarke and Clifford E. Lander-- REVIEW
Podkayne of Mars by Robert A. Heinlein -- REVIEW.
Simon Ships Out A heroic cat at sea. Based on a true story by Jacky Donovan -- REVIEW.
Incursion by Ray Daley -- REVIEW
318: Legacy Code Prequel Story by Autumn Kalquist -- REVIEW.
Decode: Fractured Era Archives by Autumn Kalquist -- REVIEW
50 Greatest Poems of Paul Laurence Dunbar by Paul Laurence Dunbar
Amazing Fantastic Incredible: A Marvelous Memoir by Stan Lee and Peter David -- REVIEW
IA: Initiate by John Darryl Winston -- REVIEW in work.
The Complete Robot by Isaac Asimov -- REVIEW.
Better World by Autumn Kalquist -- REVIEW.
Hitler's Time Machine by Robert F. Dorr -- REVIEW
In the Governor's Shadow: The True Story of Ma and Pa Ferguson by Carol O'Keefe Wilson -- REVIEW
Exceptional: Why the World Needs a Powerful America by Dick Cheney and Liz Cheney -- REVIEW.
Black Widow #1 by Nathan Edmondson. READ. REVIEW in work.
This Long Vigil by Rhett C. Bruno READ. REVIEW is in work.

SCI-FI/FAN TO BE COUNTED ON GENERAL CHALLENGE 26 titles to date:

The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K. Le Guin -- REVIEW.
The Snow Queen by Joan D. Vinge -- REVIEW.
Embassytown by China Miéville -- REVIEW.
The Colour of Magic by Sir Terry Pratchett -- REVIEW.
The Quantum Thief by Hannu Rajaniemi -- REVIEW
The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood -- REVIEW
The Carpet Makers by Andreas Eschbach, trans. by Doryl Jensen -- REVIEW.
The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien -- REVIEW.
Leviathan Wakes by James S.A. Corey -- REVIEW.
The Sheep Look Up by John Brunner -- REVIEW.
City of Stairs by Robert Jackson Bennett -- REVIEW.
The Killing Moon by N.K. Jemisin -- REVIEW.
Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel -- REVIEW.
Red Mars by Kim Stanley Robinson --REVIEW.
A Canticle for Leibowitz by Walter M. Miller Jr. -- REVIEW
Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes -- REVIEW
The Martian Chronicles by Ray Bradbury -- REVIEW
The Golem and the Jinni by Helene Wecker --REVIEW.
Watchmen by Alan Moore, Dave Gordon, illustrator/colorist and John Higgins letterer -- REVIEW
The Caves of Steel by Isaac Asimov -- REVIEW.
Ready Player One by Ernest Cline -- REVIEW
Cat's Cradle by Kurt Vonnegut -- REVIEW.
Guards! Guards! by Sir Terry Pratchett -- REVIEW.
Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell -- REVIEW.
Armada by Ernest Cline -- REVIEW .
Ancillary Sword by Ann Leckie -- REVIEW .

CURRENTLY READING ALL TITLES ARE COMPLETED;

TOTAL COMPLETED AND REVIEWED GR GENERAL ONLY and SF-FAN TO DATE = 62 at the end of the year.

My reading challenge update links for 2015 can be found at:

Message 102 at 2015 SciFi / Fantasy Book Group Challenge progress.
Message 94 at My Bringing Up Burns 2015 Reading Challenge progress.
Message 3 on this page.

I set a goal of 45, same as last year, but now that I've gotten back into reading comic books and I'm listening to audiobooks in the car, I'm racking up the numbers pretty fast - I've read/listened to seven books so far (four ahead of schedule). That may not be an impressive pace to some of the more voracious readers here, but it's unprecedented for me.

One benefit of reading in those new formats is that I feel more comfortable taking on a really long book like The Way of Kings (which I just finished) because I don't feel like I'm falling behind in my reading goals or missing out on other things. I can read one book on my kindle during my commute, listen to other books in the car, and check in on some comics on my ipad in my spare time at home. I'll probably read a bunch more stuff in that 700 - 1000 page range this year because of that.

Anyway, I'll probably increase my goal for the year because I'll hit 45 pretty quickly at this pace (unless I wind up getting a different job with less freedom to read on my commute).

By the way, I don't count individual comic issues toward my totals (I don't mark those as "read"), only graphic novels and collections. Those still tend to be relatively short though.

Richard wrote: "Kim, correct me if I am wrong, but I am under the impression that we can count our group's books we are reading on the general Goodreads challenge which also counts books
not
in the Sci-Fi/Fant..."

Yes. The books I read for the group count towards both challenges.

I read 15 books last year, so I wanted to increase the number to 25!
I read all but one or two of those 15 books during summer break so 25 shouldn't be so hard if I start reading during school semesters. :)

12 of those books are for the group challenge. The other 13 will probably be books in series I want to finish.

I set a goal of 100 even if I know I will reach it easily (29 read so far). My goal is to read more SF and fantasy and more classics. And less YA.

There are great books in YA, the problem is I am too adventurous with these and read too many of them, so I don't really like many of them or I am fed up with seeing the same ideas many times.

Each year I try to read 2 books whose titles start with each letter of the alphabet. That works out to 52 books. (26 letters times 2.) Every year I fail, but it's fun to attempt.

I also only count "real" books in this list, meaning a fiction or non-fiction book that is comprised primarily of words with few (if any) illustrations or photos.

So a graphic novel would not count, even if it is as substantial as the 480-page Star Wars Legacy Vol. 1 doorstop. Nor do art or photo books. This is why I generally have a final tally of 60+ books, but nowhere near enough to complete my challenge.

Edit: I've read 11 books so far, but only 4 count. I accept that I may be a bit odd in this type of accounting. It's part of the magic that is me.

I have done once the alphabet challenge but with only 26 books, doable but I found it frustrating to look for and read books I probably wouldn't read, except they begin by a rarely used letter.

I don't count either graphic novels, that would be weird for me to count as 70+ books a manga serie I follow. And I probably have read more manga volumes than other books. A manga volume is only on average a 30 minute reading.

I set a challenge of 110 books this year which will be a stretch since about 100 is usually where I end up.

I wonder how many people do challenges within challenges, I do the alphabet challenges - one with titles, and one with authors I've never read (I think I've read all the books in the X section of the library by now!), and then of course the challenge for this group.

And I'm particular, I won't let any book count for more than one challenge, but then my tbr list is so long I don't have trouble finding enough books to fit the challenge.

My goal for the year is also 110. I managed 101 last year and I wanted to push myself a bit more this year. I am 16 books in already so it has been a pretty solid start.

I have never tried the alphabet challenge, but it is something I may have to give a try...

I like doing a month bookpool challenge in another group. Every participant give 3 books before the month begins then the winner is the one to read the most books during this month. Even without trying to win, it's a nice way of discovering new books, being reminded some or being more persuaded to read the books I wanted to read.

I set my goal only to 55 books this year and so far I've read 4 books. Last year I aimed (and read) 100 books, but this year I don't want that feel of hurry to complete the challenge like I had in the end of last year. This year I won't count any comics or graphic novels to my challenge, like I did last year (though only a few and only in the beginning).

Inside the Goodreads challenge I'm also doing this groups scifi/fantasy challenge, where I've aimed to read minimum of six books. I'm also doing a challenge in other group to read 12 books (mostly classics), so if I complete these two I already have 18 books to Goodreads challenge.

Despite exceeding my goal last year, I decided to keep this year's GR goal at 60, the same as 2014:

24 for the SF&F group
--12 from the ongoing monthly picks
--12 from previous bookshelf books, including our "side reads"
12 for the 1001 Books You Must Read group, either their monthly picks or something else.
24 discretionary choices

I am currently at 7, and according to the GR sidebar, 13% ahead of schedule. I wish I could say that about the rest of my life.

I set my goal at 150, but suspect I will exceed this goal. I have a long commute and audio books make the drive more bearable.

I have read 19 books so far, which is 5 books ahead of schedule according to GoodReads.

Goal is set at 125 but I doubt I'll make it. I don't feel pressed to make the goal but I like the idea of trying to see if I can get that many books done in a year.

I plan on taking a bite out of the Malazan series this year and catching up with A Song of Ice and Fire so that will probably hinder my chances

All of you with triple-digit book goals, please tell me where you work. I want to come and throw water balloons at you. Grr grr.

Haha. Work 4 days, 2 at home with a good amount of downtime :D

Pretty sweet, can't lie

I have a long commute, so there is a lot of audio book time.

I work in a library--I don't read on work time, mostly, but I certainly get ahold of the books more easily. I read much more than I watch anything.

I am usually closer to 0 hour weekly of TV and probably only go 0 or one time a year to cinema. Reading short books helps too.

Yeah, a picture book or two works wonders. No lie. And useful when you encounter a random child having a meltdown.

I'm already at 8/25 books, so I'll definitely beat the 15 books of last year.
I've specified the challenge a bit for myself:
12 books for the SFF challenge (5/12 done)
5 classics (1/5 done)
5 non-fiction books (0/5 done)
25 books total (8/15 done)

I actualy thought that i wouldn't read so much this year so my goal is to read 20 books. Now i
am sure that i'll read more, as i've already finished 11 books out of 20 so it's quite good.

I am 19/52, which puts me 11 books ahead of schedule on my first book reading challenge. I am including comic volumes, but hope to reach 52 books without them. Only read 12 books last year, so decided I needed to do something drastic to increase my non-work reading, and reduce the audible and kindle books piling up on my devices! Less TV and fewer podcasts for me; a 2.5-3 hour commute a day helps to get through the audio books. Like the idea of sub-challenges - will look at that next year.

I'm probably not going to be able to read nearly as much this year as I have in recent years, so I've set a relatively low goal this time.

I keep two GR accounts -- one for most everything, and one for romance books -- so that I don't bother my sff/mystery friends with my romance books. I've set a goal of 50 on the sff account, and 30 on the romance account. We'll see how I do. So far in sff I've read:

Daughter of the Forest — Juliet Marillier
Broken Homes -- Ben Aaronovitch
Son of Avonar — Carol Berg
Guardians of the Keep — Carol Berg
The Soulweaver — Carol Berg
Sword-Dancer — Jennifer Roberson

and I'm in the middle of both

Daughter of Ancients -- Carol Berg
Sword-Singer -- Jennifer Roberson

Incidentally, someone just pointed out Roberson to me a few days ago. If anyone here likes sword-and-sorcery with first person narrative and dry self-deprecating humor, this series is a lot of fun.

Warren, I also include comics in my challenge. Mine are TPBs but they're still a quick read. I tend to accommodate that by bumping my overall goal up. They can be a good boost if you get behind too :)

I set mine for 124 this year 1 more then I did last year. I'm currently way ahead of schedule at 46, because my computer was broken for three weeks...then I got iced in from work with a power outage for a few days and whelp. Of course now I'm seeing if I can hit 200 this year, but it's pretty doubtful unless I can keep up this pace.

I went with 20 and already read 12, so I'm on a good track. I count graphic novels.

I signed up to do so many challenges on Worlds Without End (25 of them) that I have ended up having to read 201 books to meet them all!

Oh well, I've read 85 so far this year, so I'm not concerned about meeting that target.

I set a goal of 50 and am on a good track with 18 completed so far. I also count graphic novels - if not, I'd have to remove the 1st 3 volumes of Saga from the list.

I have given up this year and only set myself a target of 24.
Part of that is my ABC - A letter each month for the author's surname (so it will take me 2 years).
This month I sort-of cheated with Mary Doria Russell because I really want to read The Sparrow

I'm currently reading A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving. I've picked up this book at least twice in the past 20 years unable to get into it. Apparently enough time has passed and I've matured a little because now I can't put it down.

I finally caught up, but slip behind one book for brief times of course. Until the next reading slump...

my original goal was a book per week. that meant 52 books. but I reached that goal less than 3 months after new year, so I increased the goal to 110 books. I've read 73 books so far. I'll have to increase the goal again if I keep this pace.