Mount TBR 2013 Reading Challenge discussion

The rumors are true...Your mountaineering guide is calling for the first quarterly check-in post. Let's see how our challengers are doing. Made it a couple of miles? Camping out in a cave 1/3 of the way up the mountain face? Taking refuge in a mountain hut along the way? Let us know how you're doing. For those who would like to participate in this checkpoint post, I'd like you to do two things:

1. Tell us how many miles you've made it up your mountain (# of books read). If you're really ambitious, you can do some intricate math and figure out how the number of books you've read correlates to actual miles up Pike's Peak, Mt. Ararat, etc. And feel free to tell us about any particularly exciting adventures you've had along the way.

2. Complete ONE (or more if you like) of the following:
A. Post a picture of your favorite cover so far.
B. Who has been your favorite character so far? And tell us why, if you like.
C. Have any of the books you read surprised you--if so, in what way (not as good as anticipated? unexpected ending? Best thing you've read ever? Etc.)
D. Which book (read so far) has been on your TBR mountain the longest? Was it worth the wait? Or is it possible you should have tackled it back when you first put it on the pile? Or tossed it off the edge without reading it all?

And what do you get for all that hard work (and distraction from the actual climb)? Comments must appear on this thread by 11:59 pm on Sunday, March 31. On Monday I will crank up the Custom Random Number Generator and pick a winning climber--based on comment number. He or she will have the chance to add to their TBR stack via my gently-used book vault (prize list will be sent). Just think, if you win a book you can start up a pile for next year's Mount TBR Challenge.

Even if you're not in the mood for a prize or if you've only got one leg of the journey under your belt, I'd love to have you check in and tell us how your climb is going!

PLEASE save all comments on fellow climbers' progress until after the Prize Drawing. This makes it easier for me to draw a winner. Thanks!!!!

OK, I'll play! I initially committed to Pike's Peak (12 books) and completed the challenge mid-March! I have hundreds of books in my TBR stacks and even though I want to read all of them, I'm often overwhelmed by which book to pick next! Added to this the siren song of new releases, well, you know how it goes!

For this year's Mount tBR Challenge, I've been using 1) a random number generator (random.org) plus my goodreads "want-to-read" list to generate my next read as well as 2) pulling the oldest titles from my goodreads "want-to-read" list. My oldest stack on gr/Want-to-read dates from 07/24/2009 and so far I've tackled two of the four remaining titles from that list: The Age of Innocence (by Edith Wharton) and The Religion (by Tim Willocks.) The Religion was the eleventh title in my list, the chunkiest, and took me nearly two weeks to read it!



01. The House of Mirth (by Edith Wharton)
(In my stacks since 11/21/2012)


02. Gone, Baby, Gone (by Dennis Lehane)
(In my stacks since 09/08/2012)


03. Cannery Row (by John Steinbeck)
(In my stacks since 01/22/2011)


04. Fables, Vol. 7: Arabian Nights (and Days) (by Bill Willingham et al)
(In my stacks since 11/23/2011)


05. Fables, Vol. 8: Wolves (by Bill Willingham et al)
(In my stacks since 12/03/2012)


06. Deadeye Dick (by Kurt Vonnegut)
(In my stacks since 11/17/2012)


07. Swim Back to Me) by Ann Packer)
(In my stacks since 06/09/2012)


08. The Age of Innocence (by Edith Wharton)
(in my stacks since 07/24/2009)


09. She Got Up Off the Couch: And Other Heroic Acts from Mooreland, Indiana (by Haven Kimmel)
(In my stacks since 03/03/2012)


10. The Great Gatsby (by F. Scott Fitzgerald)
(In my stacks since 12/07/2012)


11. The Religion (by Tim Willocks)
(In my stacks since 07/24/2009)


12. Lipstick Jungle (by Candace Bushnell)
(In my stacks since April 18, 2011)

You can see all my commentary on these books on my current thread:
http://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/1...
There's an interesting transcription of a FB thread about why The Great Gatsby (by F. Scott Fitzgerald) is considered a modern classic; my disappointment with The Religion (by Tim Willocks) - They promised me cannibalism! and; where I take a risk in comparing Edith Wharton with Candace Bushnell :-)

I'm now committed to the next level, Mount Blanc (total of 24 books) and have started with Road to Fotheringhay (by Jean Plaidy.) This is also from my oldest stack of 07/24/2009.) This past week though, I've been very much distracted by life stuff and haven't had the concentration to focus on print reading so much. However, I did manage to listen to an audiobook, that had been in my audible library since 03/03/201: Bangkok Tattoo (by John Burdett; narrated by Paul Boehmer.) I'm hoping to summit Mont Blanc by the next checkpoint :-)

I started off the year with high expectations for completing Pike's Peak and have made good progress so far. I have finished 7 books. The most important read so far has been . Even though I did not put this on my Goodreads TBR until June 2011, I had had the book since March of 2010. I actually found the original receipt in the book. I wish I had read it sooner. This book is also the one I have had on my list the longest. My favorite book on the trek so far has been
Outliers was a Christmas gift last December.

Trekking up Mount Vancouver, I've managed ten, which puts me slightly (very slightly!) ahead of schedule: one over the quarter.

Two of them were extremely quick and easy passages on the climb, but I don't feel too guilty at taking the softy route, because there were some steeper passages too. In particular the one with my very favourite cover: , I mean how can you beat Monet's portrait of Rouen Cathedral, just adore it!

Best so far was: The Hare With Amber Eyes: A Family's Century of Art and Loss, a wonderful read which took me completely unawares. I had expected it to be plain ole history, but I was caught by the emotion and deeply moved.

Longest on the shelves:
Red Dog. It was waiting for the right occasion. That popped up this week when I was recovering from a cold and needed something bland and undemanding. I'm glad it was something that is on permanent loan from my Mum. I would have regretted any money paid out for it.

I'm plugging my way up Mount Everest. I've read 24 books off of my TBR kindle list. If I keep up at this pace, I'll be in good shape to finish by the end of the year.

I'd be doing better with my progress, but I've been reading more newer books than books on the TBR list so it's killing my average a bit. All together I've read about 71 books so far this year so I've got to be better about alternating between a TBR and a new one to bring this number up quicker.

Oldest Books: I've read 2 books that I'd downloaded on the Kindle in June of 2011 and so it's been great to get them read. Both of them were cozy mysteries, which I've been getting back into lately. They were fun to read but of course both of them are part of a series, so I've had to had book 2's for each on my TBR list. I fear that on January 1, 2014, my TBR list is going to be higher than it was on January 1, 2013, but at least I am making progress by plugging away at the oldest books on the list.

My favorite TBR book so far would have to be the one I read first back in January Most of the books I read have been either 3 or 4 stars, but this one was a 5 star without hesitation.

A surprising one would have to be . I'm not usually into time travel romances, so honestly I'm not sure why I ever downloaded it, but I needed a book with Yellow in the title for another challenge so I tried it out and was pleasantly surprised that I liked it so much!

Clambering up Mt Vancouver (36) and just finished #16, so the halfway mark is coming into view. I expect my speed may drop as the oxygen gets thinner (and the summer weather beckons).

My favorite character was Miss Mattie from Cranford, who was totally endearing as a selfless, sweet but sometimes silly sister and friend. My second favorite character (John McGinnes, the hero's sidekick from A Firing Offense) could not have been more different from Miss Mattie --a fast talking perpetually half wasted electronics salesman--but I enjoyed meeting them both.

My oldest on the shelf book was a collection of some Roman satiric poetry I bought in the mid to late 80's after reading somewhere, I think in Anthony Trollope's Autobiography, how much he liked Horace. I was surprised by how unchanged human nature is from Horace's report of his compatriot's vagaries 2,000 years ago, and I was a little shocked at how misogynistic some of the poems were. My second oldest was a book I abandoned/was distracted from in 1998--The Sixteen Pleasures by Robert Hellenga-- this time reading I could see why my attention wandered at that particular point in the story, but this time I kept on going.

No fantastic covers so far, but I like this one for all the local detail

1. Bad Power by Deborah Biancotti
2. Showtime by Narrelle Harris
3. Lost in Time by Melissa De La Cruz
4. The Needlework of Mary Queen of Scots by Margaret Swain
5. Persuasion by Jane Austen
6. The Katerina Trilogy: Gathering Storm by Robin Bridges

So I upped the ante this year to Mt Blanc. Mt Blanc is 15,781 feet and I've read 6 of 24 books or 25% of my goal, so if I'm doing the fancy math correctly, I'm 3945 feet up? I just need to keep this pace up for the rest of the year and I *think* I'll be fine, if the shiny new books don't keep distracting me?

My favorite cover was
-- lush and wintry and Russian like the series it's for.

The one that surprised me was Jane Austen's Persuasion. I was having such a hard time getting into that book intially, so I was surprised how strongly I felt about and for Anne Elliot and Frederick Wentworth by the end. I was honestly worried how the story would be wrapped up.

Of the six, the Needlework of Mary Queen of Scots has been on my TBR list the longest. I think I picked it up from a needlework store, after it was mentioned in an article in Piecework magazine. I've spoken of my disappointment with the book's illustrations, but I liked how it showed Mary's needlework in context of the period and intrigues surrounding her.

I've been stuck 7 miles up on Pike's Peak since Feb 17! Unfortunately I spent a lot of time and hundreds of pages reading a book that ended up being a DNF. Then I read a long sci-fi book for a read-along that didn't count towards my TBR score. And I'm really messed up and behind in my ARC reviews! So, time to reorganize my reading schedule!
My favorite read so far was The Inimitable Jeeves because it made me laugh. The book I've read that had been on the shelf the longest (02/02/03) was The Metamorphosis, which was not as good as I expected but still a good story.

This is my first year with Mt TBR - but I love the concept! I signed up in March so I have counted all of the books I have read since January 2013. My New Years' resolution this year was to do my best to clear out my accumulated TBR list.

So far, I am doing really well in my climb up Mt Kilimanjaro. I've read 18 out of 60 books so am 30% of the way up. I would have picked a higher mountain but (thankfully), I do not have enough books in my pre-acquired collection to get there, so this will have to do. I initially signed up for the 24-book mountain for about 10 minutes and, as I realized how big my pile was, I converted to this one.

Here's my completed list:
1. Easy (2/1/13)
2. Happy Ever After (5/1/13)
3. Crossed (7/1/13)
4. What I Did for Love (15/1/13)
5. Just Kids (19/1/13)
6. Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail (24/1/13)
7. Odd Thomas (29/1/13)
8. Defending Jacob (3/2/13)
9. Me Before You (7/2/13)
10. Snow Flower and the Secret Fan (12/2/13)
11. The Future of Us (13/2/13)
12. Guts: The Endless Follies and Tiny Triumphs of a Giant Disaster (15/2/13)
13. Virgin River (17/2/13)
14. What Is the What (25.2.13)
15. Shantaram (9.3.13)
16. In the Woods (15.3.13)
17. Dead I Well May Be (19.3.13)
18. Days of Blood & Starlight (23.3.13)

The book that was on my pile the longest was What Is the What by Dave Eggers. I bought it over 2 years ago - I can't even remember when. I thought it was great; I love Eggers' writing - but it wasn't the most amazing book I've read so far.

So far, my absolute favourite book has been Me Before You by Jojo Moyes. This book is beautiful, realistic and heartbreaking. I will carry this story for a long time and am certain I will revisit it (which is rare for me). I did not know that I had it in me to accept a love story like this one. There's a scene where (view spoiler)[ Lou shaves Will's face that is just so simple and tender and elegant and surprisingly intimate, I was left all afluster (hide spoiler)]... I know it sounds like nothing but this author is incredibly adept at ensuring the reader is emotionally invested. It's not a *sappy* love story but it is simply beautiful and should be read.


Other books I loved were:
Just Kids by Patti Smith
Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail by Cheryl Strayed
Defending Jacob by William Landay
Shantaram by Gregory David Roberts
Dead I Well May Be by Adrian McKinty

And I WOULD have loved: In the Woods by Tana French but the ending of the book frustrated me so much that the first 3/4 of it was ruined.

My calculations indicate that I am 1,768.5 meters up the Mountain, with 4,126.5 meters to go. I get terrible altitude sickness; as I get higher, I may slow down...

: )

With 6/24 books read, I am 25% of the way up Mont Blanc, which means that I am tracking to finish my challenge by year end.

My best surprise read for this challenge was Beautiful Ruins by Jess Walter. A lovely and fun read, which understandly, was on many Best of 2012 lists. It's also my favorite cover of the year so far.

My least favorite book so far has been Blood Meridian, or the Evening Redness in the West , because of its over the top violence and lack of compelling storyline.

Quite surprisingly, I've managed 13 books out of 36 so I'm over a third of the way up Mt. Vancouver and am traveling well at this stage. However I'm sure I'll slow up as the slope gets steeper.

My stats for this year are 18 books read all up and 24 new (or new to me) acquired so still going backwards overall.

was my oldest book read so far. It was given to me as a gift about 5 years ago. I don't usually read graphic novels, and it was better than I expected it to be.

is probably my favourite cover so far as it features a painting I really like.

was my most surprising find because many of my GR friends haven't particularly liked it (the reviews are very mixed) but I loved it.

featured one of my favourite characters, George Smiley.

I've read eleven books toward my goal of reading 36 of my TBRs. The biggest surprise thus far was Ring For Jeeves. I love P. G. Wodehouse and particularly his Jeeves and Wooster characters, so it was surprising to pick up a "Jeeves" novel and find that Wooster is missing. It was a very enjoyable book all the same.

I've read 6 books so far,

1. Beauty Queens
2. Among Others
3. The Wonderful Wizard of Oz
4. A Princess of Mars
5. Distrust That Particular Flavor
6. Monster Hunter International

So, I'm halfway there, since I'm only climbing Pike's Peak (12 books). Of note is that all of these completed books are audiobooks. I've finished books on my e-reader, but those are all from this year.

Of them, Monster Hunter International has been on the TBR list the longest, back to February 2012. I have older books on my TBR list, but I haven't been as interested in them as these. It was okay, but not nearly as good as I was hoping/expecting. It's the first in a series, but I likely won't be continuing except if I borrow them from the library.

1. I've read 28/150+ so far. It would be a lot more if I just stopped borrowing from the library and read the one's I've already got at home instead :) So I'm 18.6% done, which equals 4.85km or 15.870ft of Mt Olympus. So still way to go!

2.
A: Here's my favourite cover so far:



Don't be shocked, the explanation follows in B.

B: My favourite character so far: Adolf Hitler in Er ist wieder da. Now, don't get me wrong. I'm no Nazi or anything. I was just completely fascinated by this character. "Er ist wieder da" is a satire on the current political system and on society. It is the absolute bestseller here at the moment and it's extremely fascinating. To summarize it quickly, Hitler wakes up in the middle of Berlin in the summer of 2011. He quickly starts socializing with other people and soon becomes a media star. Mainly that's possible because everyone believes him to be a brilliant method actor who never falls out of his role. Hitler's way of thinking is still the same as it was then and he soon starts undercutting the current political system. The whole book is written in a brilliant, fascinating way and often makes you laugh really hard. But at the same time it's a very critical look at society which leaves absolutely no one unharmed. Definitely the best thing I've read this year.

C. Apart from Er ist wieder da I was pleasantly surprised by Meine russische Schwiegermutter. I won it at a contest and at first I thought that it would be quite crappy but then I enjoyed it so much that I read it in one day. It often made me laaugh really hard.
I was really disappointed by Cloud Atlas and by Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. There was such a hype about Cloud Atlas, how brilliantly it was written and that all the parts were interconnected in such a unique way that I had been looking forward to reading it for a really long time. In the end I read it really quickly but just to be able to finish it again really soon. It really wasn't special, some parts were quite boring and the thriller part was actually really bad. Fear and Loathing was also quite a disappointment. I had also expected a lot more as it is such a cult classic.

D. The book that has been on my TBR mount the longest is Siddhartha by Hermann Hesse. I had been wanting to read that one for years but somehow I never did until this year. I really enjoyed it although not as much as Beneath the Wheel which is one of my favourite books.

I've read 69 books so far.

My favorite cover so far



Favorite character so far: Blacksad. Reminds of a cat version of Idris Elba. Strong, has heart, nice.

I was surprised by Snow Child. So many people raved about it that I thought I wouldn't like it. But I did.

Book on my TBR pile the longest -

I've made it to the top of Pike's Peak, without a complete dud amongst the twelve books read. The book I've liked least is David Sedaris' Me Talk Pretty One Day. I've like all of the rest, some a lot more than others. Probably my favourite has been Thomas Kenneally's The Daughters of Mars: A Novel. I bought it when it was first published last year, but put off reading it, not for years, but for months.

Happy Easter from central Canada! I'm Carolyn. I'm nearly done 22 novels. To some, I'm grooving. I could soak up more but I strategized early completion of picky challenges. When we get back to what we'd rather (gothic or paranormal mystery), we zoom! :) I pleged "Mount Ararat" but could make "Mount Kilimanjaro".

I don't call a 're-read' something I don't remember (Clyde Robert Bulla, Nancy Drew). I've started fresh with some of my childhood books. The longest awaiting a first read among my finished 22 was “The Salzburg Connection”, Helen MacInnes. I'm sure I had it 20 years! Too spy-oriented for me but well crafted. I wrote about how I started bargain-buying as a teen, with a collection today that rivals Bev's. Seriously: an actual outbuilding of TBR! I made into a lounge & library! Our cats use it frequently. http://cmriedel.wordpress.com/2012/07...

The best surprise was a child's book from a yard sale last year, "The Foundling Fox" (Irina Korschunow). Despite being simple, it's the loveliest, happy tear-jerker you ever read. On one hand a newborn fox's mother is murdered ('hunted'). Fortunately another mother walks by, nurses the crying innocent, and realizes the only choice is to take him with her. I still cry at the beauty and meaning! Those caring about protecting wildlife, even adopters of human infants would be touched. The fox finds no difference between her original three and the other mother's baby she saved.

I'm on my way to Pike's Peak. So far I have read 4 books with 33% of the way up. I made a special list of the books I wanted to read for this challenge, but I have already added some more than the 12 books which are required.

The extra point Bev mentioned I will try to answer
A. and
B. My favorite character comes from The Immortals of Meluha and is the main character Shiva. He is an unexpected hero in the first part of a wonderful trilogy by Amish Tripathi
C. Kritiek van de criminele rede has been the best book these three month I read, because it was an unexpected jewel of criminal books, which are normally not my favorite ones.
D. Again Kritiek van de criminele rede was on me TBR list a long time. I've got the book in a very special way. Our railway company favors reading in the train and many commuters do so. A couple of years ago they had a new initiative. Travellers could exchange their old crimi-books or other books. In a particular railway station they set up a kind of library where anyone go put his/her old books in exchange for as many vouchers as books were offered. Then you could use the vouchers in the library to buy already filed books and also new ones which bookshops donated. That's how I came into possession of Kritiek van de criminele rede. For at least three years it was one my shelf and I never picked it up. Now that I've read it, I wouldn't have missed it.

I've made it up five complete miles (books) up my mountain peak, and three partials (one very probably will not finish, one I definitely will, the other maybe). I'm working on Mount Blanc so I'm about on track. Should be to mile (book) six now, and I’m close.

The book that surprised me the most, and was on my shelf longest, was The Great Gatsby. It surprised me because I expected great things, but I found it disappointing. I can acknowledge that it is a novel of its time, and the writing was perhaps breaking new ground, but it still didn't seem as good as it was purported to be as so many people said over the years. Perhaps I should have read it long ago when I first acquired it, may have felt differently then. Perhaps in the future I'll read it again and see it in a better light.

I seem to have stalled a little in March, as some library books that had been on hold for a long while came in. I expect in April to get back to the climb.

Didn't make it back here today as quickly as planned. Checking in now (entries for prize now closed). Will draw for a winning comment and post a winner soon.

Warmed up the Custom Random number generator....plugged in all the entries....and after much whirring and flashing of lights, out popped Comment #5. Which means that our first checkpoint winner is Lesley! Congratulations Lesley on your work on Mt. Everest so far and for having the winning comment. I will contact you soon about how to claim your prize.

Congratulations also to everyone making the climb up those TBR mountains! Looks like we're all making progress. Here's to another quarter of great reads!

Currently, I'm just behind Lesley on Everest with 23 books done from the TBR stacks. I've gotten slightly side-tracked by library reads and 2013 releases. Once I get a few more ARCs out of the way, I plan on getting back on the TBR main path. My favorite read so far has been Slippage by Harlan Ellison. I always forget how good he is. My favorite cover: The Green Plaid Pants

Congratulations Lesley!! : )

Congrats Lesley!

I got through most of the list in a first months and then went to the books I received more recently. My Mtbr tends towards the stack, not the queue.

Sigh. I keep getting sidetracked by other books: recently purchased, from the library, or borrowed from friends. So, although I've read 15 books since the beginning of January, I've only finished four from my Challenge list: #6, #1, #3, and--today--#2. Must. Get. Back. On. Track.