As nearly everyone seems to be getting busy with Christmas, I thought today might be a good day to look at how well I did on Emily’s TBR Challenge. The original point of the challenge was to read 20 books from the TBR pile and not buy any new ones until those 20 books were read. Yeah, right. I think I made it a week before caving in at Half Price Books. But I kept reading from my list and while I didn’t manage to read all of them, I still think I did pretty well.
The books I read:
- The Year of the Flood by Margaret Atwood.
- Blankets by Craig Thompson.
- The Angel’s Game by Carlos Ruiz Zafon.
- The Forbidden Rumi by Rumi, translated by Nevit O. Ergin.
- The Tyranny of E-mail by John Freeman.
- The Gates by John Connolly.
- Moo Pak by Gabriel Josipovici.
- Lois the Witch by Elizabeth Gaskell.
- Oedipus at Colonus by Sophocles.
- Proust and the Squid by Maryanne Wolf.
- The Winter’s Tale by Shakespeare.
- Edith Wharton by Hermione Lee.
- Gongora by Luis de Gongora y Argote and illustrated by Pablo Picasso.
- Mansfield Park by Jane Austen.
- The Master by Colm Toibin.
- A Human Eye by Adrienne Rich.
I am currently in the middle of 2666 by Roberto Bolaño and hope to finish it by the end of the year.
There are three books I did not get to:
- The Wilderness Warrior: Theodore Roosevelt and the Crusade for America by Douglas Brinkley.
- A Book of Silence by Sara Maitland.
- Evil in Modern Thought by Susan Neiman.
I’ll carry those three over into next year because I’d still like to read them. It was a fun challenge and in 2011 I hope to read more books that have been sitting on my shelves for awhile.
On a side note, if you have an ebook reader or if you find one in your Christmas stocking, be sure to take a gander at NetGalley. I just found out about them today. It’s a secure site for publishers to share digital galleys. Book bloggers are welcome to sign up and request galleys to review. There are several big name publishers and even some university presses. Check it out!
Even though I don’t celebrate Christmas, I know many people do and the blogosphere is already getting very quiet. I’ll take the opportunity for a little time away from my computer for a couple of days to relax and read. To everyone who does celebrate Christmas, I hope your celebrations are filled with love and happiness!
Happy reading!! It’s nice when the rest of the world is quiet to take some time to do the thing you love best.
A few of those books I know are chunksters. Nice inroads on your shelves!
I think you did quite well with the TBR Challenge. You read more books for just this challenge than I managed to read all year!
I told Lisa about the NetGalley and she’s signing up!
You did a great job on this challenge! I really hope I can read the books I put on my list for next year–you TBR-challengers have very much inspired me! 2666 is on my list, so I am very interested to see what you make of it. And I see you’re reading An Instance of the Fingerpost, which I’ve had on my pile for a *really* long time! Have a great weekend and enjoy your quiet reading time–it sounds really blissful actually!
I haven’t signed up for NetGalley – I don’t have an e-reader and can’t really get into reading books on my laptop with Adobe Digital Editions – but it *does* seem like a good site. I went to the Firebrand Community Conference for work earlier this year – the folks at Firebrand are, in part, behind NetGalley – and the NetGalley team seems really committed to creating a smooth experience for end-users/readers.
Also, meant to say, congrats on your TBR Challenge progress! I didn’t do nearly so well – I made it through exactly six of mine. I’m carrying the rest of my list over to next year, too, because I *would* still like to read them … eventually.
I think you did a great job with this — congrats! Have a wonderful weekend, and I’ll see you when you get back!
Ah, I’ve never come across a challenge I thought I could do but this is one (though without the ban on buying more) that I could give a go. I wouldn’t make anywhere near 20 this year, but I did make a concerted effort to read a few at least. (BTW, I was given Atwood’s The year of the flood today for Xmas).
Didn’t you do well? Have a wonderful few days of peaceful, quiet reading, Stefanie -sounds absolutely glorious!
Congrats on doing so well with your challenge Stefanie. I am going to be doing a bit of weeding of the shelves this weekend because there are some books I think I might have been interested at one point but no longer am so I need to make room for new books
But yes, my focus next year I think will be my shelves.
Thanks for the Net galley link. I still haven’t tried our iPad but if I end up liking it for reading books then I’ll have to check that out. Enjoy the quiet time!
Glad to see you did so well with my challenge (better than I did). I’m hoping to complete it in 2011, though and continue to read from my TBR tome, instead of constantly adding to it. But, we know that won’t happen, if I keep reading your blog.
I have been aware of Net Galley for quite awhile, but had not been drawing e-books from them because I found reading them on my computer. Now with my new Nook from Santa, I’m renewing my activity with them. You’re right – they have an excellent array of books to be reviewed.
Now for the TBR challenge, I didn’t do nearly as well as you. Of the original 24 I had on my list, I only got to 5 of them. Several of the others are going to be carried over to my TBR list for 2011, although I am abandoning signing up for any formal challenges. I think I might do better if I think they’re not on some list someplace!
Stefanie — I wish you luck in your struggle with BBA [Book Buying Addiction]…… but, I find that I have no powers of my own to impart unto you, regarding this. Even if I was outlawed from all bookstores as of Jan.1st, 2011 — I would have to live to the venerable age of 116 to get through my current pile of ABB. [Already Bought Books].
Daphne, thanks! Oh yes, it it so nice to step back for some quiet time.
Carrie, thanks! Unfortunately I think I bought as many new books as I managed to read from the shelves this year!
wil, LOL, well, I suppose that is one way to look at things
tara, yay! Hope she finds some good stuff!
Danielle, I didn’t do too badly. Will have to continue to try next year too. I think you should just leap right in to 2666, no other way to do it. Instance of the Fingerpost has been on my list for ages and ages. So far it is off to a good start!
Heather, NetGalley is a nicely put together site. I requested one book so we’ll see how smoothly the process goes. And thanks! The six you got through is better than none though, yes? And there is always next year
Dorothy, thanks! You won the prize though. I think you were the only one who actually read all the books on her list!
whisperinggums, one wouldn’t think it would be so hard to read books that are already on the shelves, but it is! Hooray for getting Atwood! I look forward to hearing what you think about the book.
Litlove, thanks! I hope you are getting in some wonderful reading yourself!
Iliana, you’ve got to take that iPad away from your husband and give a try and let us know what you think of it for reading! Weeding the shelves is an unfortunate but necessary thing to do. I have a feeling I will need to do it at some point during the year too.
Emily B, it was a good challenge you created. Without it who knows when I would have read some of the books I did? And while I may have still bought plenty of new books, I think I did cut back so that’s a plus!
Tina, sounds like Santa was nice to you this year! You may have only read 5 from your list but that is better than nothing! And there is always 2011 to try again
Cipriano, I think I’d have to live to at least 116 and not buy any new books in that whole time in order to get through everything I own. But if I have to live that long or even longer, so be it! I will!
It sure is hard … I am now trying to always (mostly?) nominate a TBR for any groups I’m in that ask for nominations. I managed to get a few nominated this year which helped me read more than I sometimes manage. As for The year of the flood, I think I should re Oryx and Crake first, shouldn’t I – and it’s in the TBR pile too.
No need to reread Oryx and Crake unless you have completely forgotten it, but even if you have a simple summary will suffice. Flood takes place during the same time and has some overlap but I found that O & C kind of came back to me a little as I read Flood.
I need to challenge myself like this in 2011. I should read 50 instead of 20 before I buy any more books!
Kathleen, well, I couldn’t make it with only 20, 50 would be a huge challenge!