Nothing But Reading Challenges discussion

I've just discovered this reading challenge business (and goodreads in general) and I might be going a little 'challenge' crazy. But who says that's a bad thing? And after a bit of exploring, I don't think I'm nearly as crazy as some of the others around here. I say that with a tone of awe and a bit of jealousy. :)

Anyway, I'm going to attempt to finish these within in a year, but I'd really just like to complete them whether or not I fit into the time limit. Also, I realize these will have some overlap, but I'm curious as to how quickly I finish one or the other.

50 States Challenge

A-Z Challenge

I'm also going to start the Fill In the Gaps Project, but I'll need some time to make up my list.

Oh! (I keep thinking of things to add...) I've also set a personal goal to read 13 non-fiction books in 2013. And it turns out that, after looking through my TBR list, I have enough there to fill the list. I just need to get them done. So once I get to the first one, I'll track those here as well.

*Edit: May 19, 2013. In my compulsion to keep things organized for myself, I decided to make a summary of sorts of my challenges here.

1. 50 States: 23/50
2. A-Z Titles: 24/26
3. Literary Exploration, 2013: 11/12 - ended
4. Harry Potter: 11/16
5. Decades, 2013: 35/88 - ended
6. All About You: 39/39 - COMPLETED
7. Non-Fiction: 11/13 - ended
8. Reading University 22/45
9. Sub-Genre: 14/14 - COMPLETED
10. It's All in the Title: 30/30 - COMPLETED
11. Stuck in a Rut: 29/29 - COMPLETED
12. HFU, BA Literature: 23/24 - ended
13. The Twelve Towers: 30/78 - discontinued
14. Game of Thrones: 0/24
15. Fill in the Gaps: 31/100
16. Literary Exploration, 2014: 20/26
17. Goodreads Choice Awards, 2013: 15/20
18. HFU, BA Lit, 2014: 14/24 - discontinued
19. Pintrest Challenge: 17/26

Start: April 1, 2013
Status: 23/50


✓ Alabama (AL) - Looking for Alaska by John Green - 1/16/23
Alaska (AK) - The Snow Child
✓ Arizona (AZ) - Sprinkle with Murder by Jenn McKinlay - 4/16/16
Arkansas (AR) - Winter's Bone
✓ California (CA) - Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore by Robin Sloan - 1/12/23
✓ Colorado (CO) - Columbine by Dave Cullen - 9/6/14
Connecticut (CT) - We Are Water
Delaware (DE) - Cure for the Common Breakup or Fight Club
✓ Florida (FL) - Darkly Dreaming Dexter by Jeff Lindsay - 2/23/14
✓ Georgia (GA) - Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil by John Berendt - 5/24/13
Hawaii (HI) -Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption
✓ Idaho (ID) - Educated by Tara Westover - 7/27/20
✓ Illinois (IL) - Allegiant by Veronica Roth - 11/4/13
Indiana (IN) - The Fault in Our Stars
Iowa (IA) - These Things Hidden
✓ Kansas (KS) - Dark Places by Gillian Flynn - 10/15/15
Kentucky (KY) - Uncle Tom's Cabin
✓ Louisiana (LA) - Dead Until Dark by Charlaine Harris - 3/25/15
Maine (ME) - Empire Falls or Olive Kitteridge
Maryland (MD) - And When She Was Good
✓ Massachusetts (MA) - Defending Jacob by William Landay - 10/6/15
Michigan (MI) - Wake
Minnesota (MN) - Shiver
✓ Mississippi (MS) - A Time to Kill by John Grisham - 5/16/13
✓ Missouri (MO) - Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn - 4/7/13
Montana (MT) - Vampire Academy
✓ Nebraska (NE) - Eleanor & Park - by Rainbow Rowell 7/4/20
Nevada (NV) - The Goldfinch
✓ New Hampshire (NH) - The Last Policeman by Ben Winters - 2/2/14
New Jersey (NJ) - The Silver Linings Playbook
New Mexico (NM) -
✓ New York (NY) - The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald - 5/3/13
✓ North Carolina (NC) - Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens - 7/18/22
North Dakota (ND) - The Round House
✓ Ohio (OH) - I Am Number Four by Pittacus Lore - 9/21/13
✓ Oklahoma (OK) - Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI - 2/5/21
✓ Oregon (OR) - Geek Love by Katherine Dunn - 1/2/20
Pennsylvania (PA) - The Johnstown Flood
✓ Rhode Island (RI) - The Ghost and Mrs. McClure by Alice Kimberly - 5/30/16
South Carolina (SC) - The Secret Life of Bees
South Dakota (SD) - The Personal History of Rachel DuPree or The Seed Keeper
Tennessee (TN) - If You Find Me or A Summons to Memphis
Texas (TX) - The First Days, Bluebird, Bluebird, Friday Night Lights: A Town, a Team, and a Dream, or On Juneteenth
✓ Utah (UT) - Love Times Three: Our True Story of a Polygamous Marriage by The Dargers - 7/4/13
Vermont (VT) - Second Glance
Virginia (VA) - The Raven Boys or Flowers in the Attic
✓ Washington (WA) - Boneshaker by Cherie Priest- 12/23/14
West Virginia (WV) - The Glass Castle
Wisconsin (WI) - The Westing Game
Wyoming (WY) - October Mourning: A Song for Matthew Shepard





Possibilites:

Start: April 1, 2013
Status: 24/26

A - Assassination Vacation - 5/18/13 ✓
B - The Botany of Desire: A Plant's-Eye View of the World - 4/16/13 ✓
C - Cloud Atlas - 5/20/13 ✓
D - Darkly Dreaming Dexter - 2/23/14 ✓
E - The End of Your Life Book Club - 5/2/13 ✓
F - Feed - 8/10/14 ✓
G - The Great Gatsby - 5/3/13 ✓
H - The Historian - 1/14/14 ✓
I - I am America - 7/3/13 ✓
J - Jurassic Park - 5/14/13 ✓
K - The Knife of Never Letting Go - 4/27/13 ✓
L - Life After Life - 6/28/13 ✓
M - Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil - 5/24/13 ✓
N - The Night Circus - 11/17/13 ✓
O - The Orphan Master's Son - 4/2/14 ✓
P - The Passage - 6/6/13 ✓
Q - Queen of Shadows - 2/22/21 ✓
R - Ready Player One - 9/13/13 ✓
S - Sharp Objects - 4/7/13 ✓
T - A Time to Kill - 5/16/13 ✓
U - Unspoken - 11/22/13 ✓
V - Vampires in the Lemon Grove: Stories - 7/22/13 ✓
W - World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War - 9/10/13 ✓
X -
Y - Yours Truly - 12/18/23 ✓
Z - The Zero





TBR:

ENDED

I found another one- stumbled upon it on another member's page.

Literary Exploration

This challenge I'm going to plan out so as to certainly complete this by the end of the year. Also, I'm starting off Easy, but perhaps I'll upgrade later. We'll see.

Challenge duration: April 4, 2013 - December 31, 2013
Status: 11/24
Revised goal for 2013: 12

1. Classics - Mansfield Park - 12/4/13 ✓
2. Fantasy - The Demonologist
3. Graphic Novels - The Walking Dead, Book One - 8/21/13 ✓
4. Historical Fiction - Wolf Hall
5. Horror - Feed
6. Literary Fiction - The Age of Miracles
7. Mystery - The Thirteenth Tale
8. Non-fiction - Assassination Vacation - 5/18/13 ✓
9. Romance - Beautiful Disaster
10. Science fiction - Jurassic Park - 5/14/13 ✓
11. Thriller - A Time to Kill - 5/16/13 ✓
12. Young Adult - City of Bones - 7/14/13 ✓

I'm getting far too ambitious, but I can't stop book-shopping and adding to the TBR list. First world problem. Just in case, here's the next level additions:

13. Adventure - Poison
14. Autobiography/Biography - The End of Your Life Book Club - 5/1/13 ✓
15. Chick Lit - Can You Keep a Secret?
16. Drama - The Tempest -10/30/13 ✓
17. Humor - I am America - 7/3/13 ✓
18. Magical Realism - The Night Circus - 11/17/13 ✓
19. Paranormal - The Nightmare Affair
20. Philosophical - Life of Pi 9/19/13 ✓
21. Poetry - The Iliad
22. Pulp - The Zombie Room
23. Steampunk - Boneshaker
24. Victorian - Wuthering Heights

I can't resist Harry Potter. Also, I'm maybe over-extending myself, but I don't care. It's fun!

HP Sorting Hat Reading Challenge

I'm going for the hard level here (just for kicks), and I'll finish it when I finish it. Also, how can one really go wrong with something related to Harry Potter?

Start: Sept. 1, 2013
Status: 11/16

Gryffindor
➜ Lion/Shapeshifter:
➜ Scarlet/Gold: The Demonologist - 3/2/15 ★★★
➜ Ghost or decapitation: Leaving Time - 3/24/19 ★★★★
➜ Courageous/brave to the point of recklessness (sometimes): Allegiant - 11/4/13 ★★★★★



Slytherin : 3.75
➜ Snake: Boy, Snow, Bird - 7/20/18 ★★★★
➜ Green/Silver: The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo - 8/5/18 ★★★★
➜ Suicide/murder or unrequited love: The Last Policeman - 2/2/14 ★★★★
➜ Cunning or shrewd: The Runaway Jury 5/18/14 ★★★



Hufflepuff
➜ Medieval: Hush: An Irish Princess' Tale, Hild, Company of Liars
➜ Yellow/Black: Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore - 1/12/23 ★★★★
➜ Religious: Life of Pi - 9/19/13 ★★★★★
➜ Hard working, patient, or loyal: Anne of Green Gables or Little Women



Ravenclaw
➜ Eagle/Shapeshifter: Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children - 1/10/20 ★★★★★
➜ Blue/Bronze: The Dog Stars or All the Light We Cannot See
➜ Scotland: Outlander
➜ Intelligent, witty, or wise: The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie - 7/28/19 ★★★★

ENDED

Decades Challenge: 1-3-2013 to 1-4-2014

This sounds fun. I'm unsure how realistic it is to complete within the time frame, but whatever.

Start: 1/1/13
Status: 35/88

2003 (3)

2004 (4)
1. Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell

2005 (5)
1. The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
2. Assassination Vacation by Sarah Vowell
3. Don't Get Too Comfortable: The Indignities of Coach Class, The Torments of Low Thread Count, The Never-Ending Quest for Artisanal Olive Oil, and Other First World Problems by David Rakoff

2006 (6)
1. Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn
2. Sarah's Key by Tatiana de Rosnay
3. World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War by Max Brooks

2007 (7)
1. I am America by Stephen Colbert
2. City of Bones by Cassandra Clare

2008 (8)
1. The Knife of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness
2. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

2009 (9)
1. The Maze Runner by James Dashner
2. The Lost Symbol by Dan Brown
3. Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins

2010 (10)
1. The Scorch Trials by James Dashner
2. The Passage by Justin Cronin
3. I Am Number Four by Pittacus Lore

2011 (11)
1. The Death Cure by James Dashner
2. The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller
3. Love Times Three: Our True Story of a Polygamous Marriage by the Dargers
4. Ready Player One by Ernest Cline
5. Divergent by Veronica Roth
6. The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

2012 (12)
1. Beautiful Ruins by Jess Walter
2. Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn
3. The End of Your Life Book Club by Will Schwalbe
4. Tell the Wolves I'm Home by Carol Rifka Brunt
5. Insurgent by Veronica Roth
6. Unspoken by Sarah Rees Brennan

2013 (13)
1. Life After Life by Kate Atkinson
2. Inferno by Dan Brown
3. Vampires in the Lemon Grove: Stories by Karen Russell
4. Tenth of December by George Saunders
5. Allegiant by Veronica Roth
6. Adulting: How to Become a Grown-up in 468 Easy(ish) Steps by Kelly Williams Brown

All About You Challenge
COMPLETED

Start: 5/1/13
Status: 39/39
Finished: 12/31/22

May - Read books by authors you've never read but have been meaning to
1. John Grisham - A Time to Kill - 5/16/13 ✓
2. Sarah Vowell - Assassination Vacation - 5/18/13 ✓
3. Michael Crichton - Jurassic Park - 5/14/13 ✓
4. David Rakoff - Don't Get Too Comfortable: The Indignities of Coach Class, The Torments of Low Thread Count, The Never-Ending Quest for Artisanal Olive Oil, and Other First World Problems - 5/25/13 ✓

- COMPLETED

June - Read books set in a country you'd like to visit
1. The It Girl by Ruth Ware - 6/26/23 ✓
2. Mansfield Park by Jane Austen - 12/4/13 ✓
3. Boyfriend Material by Alexis Hall - 12/31/22 ✓
4. Below Stairs: The Classic Kitchen Maid's Memoir That Inspired "Upstairs, Downstairs" and "Downton Abbey" by Margaret Powell - 8/20/13 ✓

- COMPLETED

July - Read your sign
V: Vampires in the Lemon Grove: Stories by Karen Russell 7/22/13 ✓
I: I am America by Stephen Colbert 7/3/13 ✓
R: Reconstructing Amelia by Kimberly McCreight 4/2/15 ✓
G: The Giver by Lois Lowry - 10/31/15 ✓
O: The Orphan Master's Son by Adam Johnson 4/2/14 ✓

- COMPLETED

August - Read books from your favorite genre
1. Circe by Madeline Miller - 11/12/22 ✓
2. The Gentleman's Guide to Vice and Virtue by Mackenzi Lee - 9/3/22 ✓
3. Sarah's Key by Tatiana de Rosney 8/16/13 ✓
4. Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens - 7/18/22 ✓

- COMPLETED

September - Read your birthday month
S: Setterfield, Diane - The Thirteenth Tale - 7/12/15 ✓
E: Erin Morgenstern - The Night Circus - 11/17/13 ✓
P: Pittacus Lore - I Am Number Four - 9/21/13 ✓
T: The Tempest by William Shakespeare - 10/30/13 ✓
E: Etiquette & Espionage by Gail Carriger - 12/24/15 ✓
M: Martel, Yann - Life of Pi - 9/19/13 ✓
B: Boneshaker by Cherie Priest - 12/23/14 ✓
E: Elizabeth Kostova - The Historian - 1/14/14 ✓
R: Ready Player One by Ernest Cline - 9/13/13 ✓

] - COMPLETED

October - Read your Chinese zodiac
S: Sarah Rees Brennan - Unspoken - 11/22/13 ✓
N: The Nightmare Affair by Mindee Arnett - 1/14/15 ✓
A: Allegiant by Veronica Roth - 11/4/13 ✓
K: Katherine Center - The Bodyguard - 7/31/22 ✓
E: Emily Henry - People We Meet on Vacation - 12/5/22 ✓

- COMPLETED

November - Read books written by some of your favorite authors
1. Persuasion by Jane Austen - 6/11/14 ✓
2. Country Driving: A Journey Through China from Farm to Factory by Peter Hessler - 3/13/14 ✓
3. The Partly Cloudy Patriot by Sarah Vowell - 12/25/14 ✓
4. The Casual Vacancy by JK Rowling - 8/17/18 ✓

- COMPLETED

December - Covers with your birthstone (sapphire)
1. The Love Hypothesis by Ali Hazelwood - 2/7/22 ✓
2. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix by JK Rowling - 5/30/22 ✓
3. The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman - 5/28/16 ✓
4. Things You Save in a Fire by Katherine Center - 9/19/22 ✓

- COMPLETED

ENDED
Goal: Read 13 non-fiction books in 2013
Status: 11/13

1. The Botany of Desire: A Plant's-Eye View of the World - 4/16/13
2. The End of Your Life Book Club - 5/2/13
3. Assassination Vacation - 5/18/13
4. Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil - 5/24/13
5. Don't Get Too Comfortable: The Indignities of Coach Class, The Torments of Low Thread Count, The Never-Ending Quest for Artisanal Olive Oil, and Other First World Problems - 5/25/13
6. Love Times Three: Our True Story of a Polygamous Marriage - 7/4/13
7. The Autobiography of Martin Luther King, Jr. - 8/14/13
8. Below Stairs: The Classic Kitchen Maid's Memoir That Inspired "Upstairs, Downstairs" and "Downton Abbey" - 8/20/13
9. Band of Brothers - 10/2/13
10. Running with Scissors - 12/8/13
11. Adulting: How to Become a Grown-up in 468 Easy(ish) Steps - 12/17/13

So NBRC adapted this challenge from Historical Fictionistas. I like that this one is more 'go at your own pace,' but I'm still going to work toward the Historical one I've outlined above. :)

Challenge post
Started: 5/9/13
Finished: ?
Status: 22/45

Associate's Degree - COMPLETED 6/27/14
Science, Science Fiction: Jurassic Park - 5/14/13 ✓
Literature, American Novel: The Great Gatsby - 5/3/13 ✓
History, American History: Assassination Vacation - 5/18/13 ✓
Social Sciences, Anthropology (Country of origin: US; Book: England): Mansfield Park - 12/4/13 ✓
Art, Fine Art (painting): Tell the Wolves I'm Home - 10/3/13 ✓
Lang., Sino-Tibetan: Country Driving: A Journey Through China from Farm to Factory - 3/13/14 ✓
Athletics, Olympics: The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics - 6/27/14 ✓



Bachelor's Degree - COMPLETED 6/26/23
Major: Social Science
1. Psychology: The Silent Patient - 6/10/20 ✓
2. Education: Educated - 7/27/20 ✓
3. Education: Fangirl - 8/15/20 ✓
4. Psychology: The Woman in the Window - 12/28/20 ✓
5. Psychology: Anxious People - 1/13/21 ✓
6. Anthropology (Country of origin: US; Book: Ireland): The Guest List - 5/24/21 ✓
7. Political Science: Atomic Love - 9/6/21 ✓
8. Education: Looking for Alaska - 1/16/23 ✓
9. Education: From Behaving to Belonging: The Inclusive Art of Supporting Students Who Challenge Us - 1/29/23 ✓
10. Anthropology (Country of origin: US; Book: UK): The It Girl - 6/26/23 ✓




Minor: Literature
1. American Novel: This is Where I Leave You - 8/17/14 ✓
2. English Novel: The Cuckoo's Calling - 1/1/19 ✓
3. Icelandic Novel: Burial Rites - 2/29/20 ✓



Master's Degree: History
Alternate History
1.
2.
3.

Options:
*The Perishing
*11/22/63
Soulless
*The Mermaid and Mrs. Hancock

American History
1. The House Girl - 7/13/23 ✓
2. American Fire: Love, Arson, and Life in a Vanishing Land - 8/19/23 ✓
3.

Options:
The Other Typist
*One Summer: America, 1927
*Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents
*Stamped from the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America
*The Four Winds

European History
1.
2.
3.

Options:
*Wolf Hall
*In the Garden of Beasts: Love, Terror, and an American Family in Hitler's Berlin
*The Splendid and the Vile: A Saga of Churchill, Family, and Defiance During the Blitz
*All the Light We Cannot See

World History
1.
2.
3.

Options:
*The Buried: An Archaeology of the Egyptian Revolution
*The Library of Legends
Peach Blossom Spring
*The Luminaries

Random
1.
2.
3.

Options:
*Fall of Giants
*The Black Count: Glory, Revolution, Betrayal, and the Real Count of Monte Cristo
*Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption
*Sisters in Arms
*The Circus Train

Sub-Genre Challenge
COMPLETED

Start: 7/1/13
Status: 14/14
End: 7/11/23

Genre: Mystery
1. Amateur Sleuth: The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie - 7/28/19
2. Cozy: Sprinkle with Murder - 4/16/16
3. Crime: In the Woods - 12/20/15
4. Detective: Storm Front - 7/11/23
5. Fiction: Inferno - 7/17/13
6. Golden Age: The Mysterious Affair At Styles - 2/8/14
7. Hard Boiled: Killing Floor - 5/13/17
8. Historical: The Lost Apothecary - 7/12/21
9. Murder: The It Girl - 6/26/23
10. Noir: The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo - before 2013
11. Paranormal: The Ghost and Mrs. McClure - 5/30/16
12. Suspense: The Girl on the Train - 8/21/16
13. Thriller: Darkly Dreaming Dexter - 2/23/14
14. Whodunit: The Cuckoo's Calling - 1/1/19

It's All in the Title
Level: Easy, 3 per category
COMPLETED

Started: May 30, 2013
Status: 30/30
Completed: 7/13/23

Categories:
►Color
1. The Color Purple - 2/5/14
2. Lethal White - 5/2/19
3. White Fragility: Why It’s So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism - 6/20/20



►Sky (cloud, star, moon, sun, etc.)
1. The Partly Cloudy Patriot - 12/23/14
2. The Sun Is Also a Star - 4/7/18
3. A Constellation of Vital Phenomena - 1/4/17



►Food or Drink
1. Tequila Mockingbird: Cocktails with a Literary Twist - 12/15/15
2. The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie - 7/28/19
3. Eats, Shoots & Leaves: The Zero Tolerance Approach to Punctuation - 7/18/18



►Body of Water (sea, pond, creek, etc.)
1. The Ocean at the End of the Lane - 9/6/17
2. Broken Harbor - 7/18/19
3. Fourth of July Creek - 11/28/21



►Person’s First or Last Name
1. The Autobiography of Martin Luther King, Jr. - 8/14/13
2. Sarah's Key - 8/16/13
3. Life of Pi - 9/19/13



►Romantic Word (kiss, wedding, bride, etc.)
1. Love Times Three: Our True Story of a Polygamous Marriage - 7/4/13
2. An American Marriage - 1/9/19
3. Two Boys Kissing - 7/14/20



►One Word Title
1. Inferno - 7/17/13
2. Allegiant - 11/4/13
3. Unspoken - 11/22/13



►Number in Title (once, twice, etc can count as well)
1. Ready Player One - 9/13/13
2. I Am Number Four - 9/19/13
3. The Twelve - 7/29/14



►Type of home (house, manor, cabin, etc)
1. Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children - 1/10/20
2. The House in the Cerulean Sea - 3/21/22
3. The House Girl - 7/13/23



►Family Member (sister, father, wife, aunt, uncle, step-sister, cousin, etc.)
1. Band of Brothers - 10/2/13
2. The Orphan Master's Son - 4/2/14
3. The Husband's Secret - 10/19/16

Stuck in a Rut Challenge
COMPLETED

Start: September 1, 2013
End: August 31, 2014
Status: 29/29
Completed: 2/8/23

TASK ONE: A Mix of Old and New
◈Read 1 X complete Trilogy
The Newsflesh Trilogy by Mira Grant
1. Feed - 8/10/14
2. Deadline - 1/2/15
3. Blackout - 2/15/15



◈Read 2 X books that have your Favorite Color on the cover
1. Unspoken by Sarah Rees Brennan - 11/22/13
2. The Demonologist by Andrew Pyper - 3/2/15



◈Read 3 X books from your Favorite Author/s
1. Persuasion by Jane Austen - 6/11/14
2. Country Driving: A Journey Through China from Farm to Factory by Peter Hessler - 3/13/14
3. The Partly Cloudy Patriot - 12/25/14



◈Read 4 X Different New to You Authors
1. Ready Player One by Ernest Cline - 9/13/13
2. Life of Pi by Yann Martel - 9/19/13
3. Running with Scissors by Augusten Borroughs - 12/8/13
4. The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern - 11/17/13



◈Read 5 X Different Genres
1. Science Fiction: World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War by Max Brooks - 9/10/13
2. Non-Fiction: Band of Brothers by Stephen Ambrose - 10/2/13
3. Fantasy: I Am Number Four by Pittacus Lore - 9/21/13
4. Drama: The Tempest by William Shakespeare - 10/30/13
5. Self-help/Humor: Adulting: How to Become a Grown-up in 468 Easy(ish) Steps - 12/17/13



TASK TWO: Books of All Sizes
◈Read 2 X Short Stories (Less than 100 pages)
1. "To Reach Japan" by Alice Munro - 1/20/14
2. "Amundsen" by Alice Munro - 1/24/14



◈Read 2 X Novella's (Less than 200 pages)
1. Ethan Frome by Edith Wharton - 8/4/15
2. The Uncommon Reader by Alan Bennett - 8/5/15



◈Read 2 X Novels (200-400 pages)
1. Warm Bodies by Isaac Marion - 1/17/14
2. What's Eating Gilbert Grape by Peter Hedges - 1/22/14



◈Read 2 X Chunky books (More than 400 pages)
1. The Ink Black Heart by Robert Galbraith - 2/8/23
2. The Twelve by Justin Cronin - 7/29/14



TASK THREE:
◈Read a complete series from book 1 through to the last published book at the time of the challenge
The Dublin Murder Squad by Tana French
1. In the Woods - 12/20/15
2. The Likeness - 2/8/19
3. Faithful Place - 5/25/19
4. Broken Harbor - 7/18/19

ENDED - Completed in my mind :)

So... I've been slowly progressing through my BA in History for Historical Fictionistas University, but I was just reviewing the requirements, and I'm somewhat certain that I'm much closer to completing the BA in Literature. I think once 2014 rolls around, I'll pursue the BA in History again - with better planning and more time.

2013
Degree: BA Literature
Status: 23/24
Challenge post

Science & Mathematics tasks:
1. Science Fiction: Jurassic Park - 5/14/13 ✓
2. Number: I Am Number Four - 9/21/13 ✓
3. Geometric Shape: Running with Scissors - 12/8/13 ✓

Social Sciences tasks:
1. The Daily Show Reading Club: Don't Get Too Comfortable: The Indignities of Coach Class, The Torments of Low Thread Count, The Never-Ending Quest for Artisanal Olive Oil, and Other First World Problems - 5/25/13 ✓
2. Different Classes: Below Stairs: The Classic Kitchen Maid's Memoir That Inspired "Upstairs, Downstairs" and "Downton Abbey" - 8/20/13 ✓
3. Dystopia: Allegiant - 11/4/13 ✓

Language tasks:
1. Translated from French: The Count of Monte Cristo - 10/19/13 ✓
2. Translated from French: Dangerous Liaisons

Arts tasks:
1. Portrait: Tell the Wolves I'm Home - 10/3/13 ✓

History tasks :
1. Non-Fiction: The Autobiography of Martin Luther King, Jr. - 8/14/13 ✓
2. Dual Storyline: Sarah's Key - 8/16/13 ✓
3. War: The Book Thief - 4/20/13 ✓

Literature tasks:
1. Re-read: Great Expectations - 11/8/13 ✓
2. Short Story Collection: Vampires in the Lemon Grove: Stories - 7/22/13 ✓
3. Graphic Novel: The Walking Dead, Book One - 8/21/13 ✓
4. Non-Fiction: Assassination Vacation - 5/18/13 ✓
5. Play: The Tempest - 10/30/13 ✓
6. Fantasy: City of Bones - 7/14/13 ✓
7. Mystery: Inferno - 7/17/13 ✓
8. Historical Fiction: The Song of Achilles - 4/15/13 ✓
9. Guardian list: The Great Gatsby - 5/3/13 ✓
10. Guardian list: Cloud Atlas - 5/20/13 ✓
11. Man Booker Prize: Life of Pi - 9/19/13 ✓
12. Prometheus Award: Ready Player One - 9/13/13 ✓

Read:

I just love planning challenges. Also, this one appeals because of the relatively open-ended time frame.

The Twelve Towers Challenge
DISCONTINUED 7/3/23

Start: September 28, 2013
Level/Duration: Slow and steady; up to five years
Status: 30/78

➜12 books that you've acquired most recently (from start date)
1. A Child is Torn “Innocence Lost” - 1/30/14
2. Darkly Dreaming Dexter - 2/23/14
3. Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption
4. Tell the Wolves I'm Home - 10/3/13
5. Orange is the New Black: My Year in a Women's Prison
6. Dead Until Dark - 3/25/15
7. Unspoken - 11/22/13
8. The Black Count: Glory, Revolution, Betrayal, and the Real Count of Monte Cristo
9. The Last Policeman - 2/2/14
10. Beautiful Disaster - 1/31/14
11. Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk
12. Warm Bodies - 1/17/14

➜11 books that you never find time to get around to or that have been on your shelves the longest (on my goodreads tbr shelf)
1. Empire Falls
2. The Orphan Master's Son - 4/2/14
3. The Constant Princess
4. Defending Jacob - 10/6/15
5. Where'd You Go, Bernadette - 3/14/16
6. Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore
7. The Age of Miracles
8. The Dog Stars
9. A Child Called "It"
10. The World Is Flat: A Brief History of the Twenty-first Century
11. In the Garden of Beasts: Love, Terror, and an American Family in Hitler's Berlin

➜10 books you randomly select from your shelves
1. The Tiny Book of Tiny Stories, Vol. 1 - 1/15/14
2. Friday Night Lights: A Town, a Team, and a Dream
3. The Woman Upstairs
4. One Summer: America, 1927
5. Seriously... I'm Kidding
6. A Long Way Down
7. The Program
8. Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking
9. Starcrossed - 11/5/15
10. Five Days at Memorial: Life and Death in a Storm-Ravaged Hospital

➜9 sequels, series continuations, or spin-offs
1. The Power of Six
2. The Twelve - 7/29/14
3. The Ask and the Answer
4. City of Ashes - 3/23/14
5. The Kill Order - 11/17/15
6. Bring Up the Bodies
7. Soul of the Fire
8. Living Dead in Dallas - 4/13/15
9. Winter of the World

➜8 novellas or short-stories
1. "Leaving Maverly" by Alice Munro (Dear Life: Stories) - 1/29/14
2. "Gravel" by Alice Munro (Dear Life: Stories) - 1/29/14
3. "Haven" by Alice Munro (Dear Life: Stories) - 1/30/14
4. Ethan Frome by Edith Wharton - 8/4/15
5. The Uncommon Reader by Alan Bennett - 8/5/15
6.
7.
8.

➜7 books that everyone seems to have read but you
1. Fifty Shades of Grey
2. Anne of Green Gables
3. 1984
4. The Bell Jar - 4/13/14
5. The Casual Vacancy - 8/17/18
6. Fight Club
7. The Fault in Our Stars

➜6 anticipated releases (release dates after your start date)
1. Allegiant - 11/4/13
2. The Winds of Winter
3. The City of Mirrors
4. Go Set a Watchman
5. After Alice
6.

➜5 books that were recommended to you via Goodreads
1. The Shadow of the Wind
2. Reconstructing Amelia - 4/2/15
3.
4.
5.

➜4 books that you started but never finished
1. Déjà Dead
2. A Clockwork Orange
3. Little Women
4. Wolf Hall

➜3 books that you've already read before
1. A Game of Thrones - 3/1/22
2. The Book Thief - 3/4/14
3. Wild Swans: Three Daughters of China

➜2 books with covers that you don't think fit the storyline or that you don't like the covers of but everyone raves about the books
1. Starcrossed - 11/5/15
2. Dreamless - 11/23/15

➜1 book that intimidates you
1. Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln

One for the future - ideally after I finish the Harry Potter Challenge.

Game of Thrones Challenge

◆House Arryn:
Sigil: The moon-and-falcon, white, upon a sky blue field.
Motto: “As High As Honor”
Option 1: Read a book with a predominately blue cover.
Option 2: Read a story featuring a member of the military, or in which the protagonist does the right thing. Alternatively, read a story that involves heights in a significant way.
Option 3: Read a book in which a falcon or another bird of prey plays a significant role in the story. Bird shifters are fine, too!

◆House Baratheon:
Sigil: A crowned stag, black, on a golden field.
Motto: “Ours is the Fury”
Option 1: Read a book with a predominately gold/yellow cover.
Option 2: Read a story in which the protagonist is angry about something, that involves war in some way, or in which the protagonist is fighting against injustice.
Option 3: Read a book featuring a stag or deer. Alternatively, read a book about a king.

◆House Greyjoy:
Sigil: A golden kraken upon a black field.
Motto: “We Do Not Sow”
Option 1: Read a book with a predominately black cover.
Option 2: Read a book featuring pirates, ships, or the sea.
Option 3: Read a book that involves a kraken or another mythical creature.

◆House Lannister:
Sigil: A Golden lion upon a crimson field.
Official Motto: “Hear Me Roar!”
Unofficial Motto: “A Lannister pays his debts.”
Option 1: Read a book with a predominately red cover.
Option 2: Read a book featuring siblings, a father/son relationship, or someone in debt.
Option 3: Read a book that involves a lion or other big cat. Or, read a book set in a circus.

◆House Martell:
Sigil: A sun pierced by a golden spear.
Motto: “Unbowed, Unbent, Unbroken”
Option 1: Read a book with an orange cover.
Option 2: Read a book in which the protagonist overcomes great hardships or survives impossible odds. Alternatively, read a dystopian or post-apocalyptic novel.
Option 3: Read a book set in space, that involves stars, or in which the protagonist uses a weapon.

◆House of Mormont:
Sigil: Bear.
Motto: “Here We Stand”
Option 1: Read a book that has both green and black on the cover.
Option 2: Read a book with a bear on the cover or that deals with a zoo.
Option 3: Read a book in which a main character suffers from unrequited love. Or read a book with a loyal hero or heroine.

◆House Stark:
Sigil: A grey direwolf on an ice-white field.
Motto: “Winter is Coming”
Option 1: Read a book with a grey or white cover.
Option 2: Read a book set in winter, that involves snow, or in which a character keeps an unusual pet.
Option 3: Read a book featuring wolves or werewolves.

◆House Targaryen:
Sigil: A three-headed dragon, red on black.
Motto: “Fire and Blood”
Option 1: Read a book that has both red and black on its cover.
Option 2: Read a book featuring a either a character in exile or a queen. Or, read a book in which fire or blood plays a significant role.
Option 3: Read a book that involves a dragon, or a creature or person who is the last of their kind (or very rare).

◆House Tully:
Sigil: A leaping trout, silver, on a field of rippling blue and red.
Motto: “Family, Duty, Honor”
Option 1: Read a book that has at least two of these colors somewhere on its cover: red, blue, or silver.
Option 2: Read a book about family or about a protagonist who has to take responsibility for their actions.
Option 3: Read a book involving fish or fishing, or read a book that takes place primarily near water.

◆House Tyrell:
Sigil: A golden rose on a grass-green field.
Motto: “Growing Strong”
Option 1: Read a book with a green cover.
Option 2: Read a book in which a character comes of age or a character shows significant growth.
Option 3: Read a book involving trees, flowers, or another type of plant in a significant way.

Fill in the Gaps Project
I finally made the list. :)

11/9/13 Side note: The list was made from my TBR list, in order of how long it's been there and/or if its a classic and/or if its something that's been super popular recently. But I can't handle it's seemingly arbitrary order, and I had to make it alphabetical.

7/3/23 Revision:
- 30/100 completed at this time
- Reorganized completed list (chronologically)
- Reorganized TBR by genre
- Replaced 21 books on TBR


Start: January 1, 2014
End:
Status: 31/100

1. The Historian - 1/14/14
2. Warm Bodies - 1/17/14
3. What's Eating Gilbert Grape - 1/22/14
4. The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy - 1/29/14
5. The Last Policeman - 2/2/14
6. The Mysterious Affair at Styles - 2/8/14
7. The Orphan Master's Son - 4/2/14
8. King Leopold's Ghost: A Story of Greed, Terror and Heroism in Colonial Africa - 4/6/14
9. The Bell Jar - 4/13/14
10. Lord of the Flies - 4/18/14
11. The Handmaid's Tale - 5/27/14
12. Persuasion - 6/11/14
13. The Twelve - 7/29/14
14. Columbine - 9/6/14
15. The Partly Cloudy Patriot - 12/25/14
16. Dead Until Dark - 3/25/15
17. Reconstructing Amelia - 4/2/15
18. Perfume: The Story of a Murderer - 8/23/15
19. Defending Jacob - 10/6/15
20. Dark Places - 10/15/15
21. The Giver - 10/31/15
22. Where'd You Go, Bernadette - 3/14/16
23. Breakfast at Tiffany's - 4/9/16
24. Birds of a Lesser Paradise: Stories - 7/17/16
25. A Constellation of Vital Phenomena - 1/4/17
26. The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time - 7/9/18
27. The Casual Vacancy - 8/17/18
28. Leaving Time - 5/24/19
29. Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore - 1/12/23
30. Looking for Alaska - 1/16/23
31. Storm Front - 7/11/23


Classics (22)
1984
Anna Karenina
Anne of Green Gables
Beloved
The Brothers Karamazov
Butcher's Crossing
A Clockwork Orange
Emma
The English Patient
The Iliad
Invisible Man
Little Women
Northanger Abbey
The Odyssey
Peter Pan
The Sound and the Fury
Stoner
The Talented Mr. Ripley
Things Fall Apart
The Things They Carried
Uncle Tom's Cabin
Wuthering Heights

Fiction (14)
The Bourne Identity
Burn Notice: The Fix
Empire Falls
The Fault in Our Stars
Fight Club
The Goldfinch
Olive Kitteridge
A Prayer for Owen Meany
Room
The Secret Life of Bees
The Solitude of Prime Numbers
When You Reach Me
Winter's Bone
The Zero

Historical Fiction (8)
11/22/63
All the King's Men
All the Light We Cannot See
Fall of Giants
King's Fool: A Notorious King, His Six Wives, and the One Man Who Knew All Their Secrets
The Luminaries
Outlander
Roots: The Saga of an American Family

Non-Fiction (21)
1776
Becoming
The Black Count: Glory, Revolution, Betrayal, and the Real Count of Monte Cristo
The Buried: An Archaeology of the Egyptian Revolution
Cooked: A Natural History of Transformation
Five Days at Memorial: Life and Death in a Storm-Ravaged Hospital
Hard Choices
Hunger: A Memoir of (My) Body
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks
In the Garden of Beasts: Love, Terror, and an American Family in Hitler's Berlin
John Adams
Love, Life, and Elephants: An African Love Story
One Summer: America, 1927
A People's History of the United States
Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking
Schindler's List
Shadowlands: Fear and Freedom at the Oregon Standoff
Stamped from the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America
Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln
Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption
Unfamiliar Fishes

Essays (4)
Fraud: Essays
The New Kings of Nonfiction
Skipping Towards Gomorrah
A Supposedly Fun Thing I'll Never Do Again

Whoa, Liz...

Yeah, what can I say? I like making lists, and love crossing things off. But really, the only challenge that I'm actively working on (as it's the only one with a deadline of sorts) is the HFU challenge.

I'm modifying the challenge (here) and taking out the 12 complete genres from my 2013 attempt.

Challenge duration: January 1, 2014 - ?
Status: 20/26


13. Action/Adventure - Poison - 10/18/14
14. Chick Lit - The Hating Game - 2/5/22
15. Children's book - The Wishing Spell - 9/9/15
16. Contemporary/Drama - August: Osage County - 8/12/14
17. Cyberpunk/Steampunk - Boneshaker - 12/23/14
18. Dystopian/Post-Apocolyptic - Warm Bodies - 1/17/14
19. Epic - Fall of Giants
20. Erotica - Fifty Shades of Grey
21. Espionage - The Bourne Identity
22. Fantasy - The Demonologist - 3/2/15
23. Gothic - The Historian - 1/14/14
24. Historical Fiction - Where the Crawdads Sing - 7/18/22
25. Horror - Feed - 8/10/14
26. Literary Fiction - The Vanishing Half - 12/11/20
27. Mystery - The Thirteenth Tale - 7/12/15
28. Paranormal/Supernatural - The Nightmare Affair - 1/14/15
29. Poetry - Aimless Love: New and Selected Poems - 10/24/15
30. Pulp -
31. Romance - Beautiful Disaster - 1/31/14
32. Self-Help/Education - Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking
33. Short Stories - Uncommon Type - 6/28/23
34. Travel - Country Driving: A Journey Through China from Farm to Factory - 3/13/14
35. True Crime - Columbine - 9/6/14
36. Urban Fantasy - Storm Front - 7/11/23
37. Western - Butcher's Crossing
38. Young Adult - Starcrossed - 11/5/15

Curse you Goodreads! And your exposing me to so many wonderful new books!

Goodreads Choice Awards, 2013
Moderate: 20 books

Started: 1/1/14
Status: 15/20

1. The Storyteller - 11/2/14
*2. The Goldfinch
3. We Are Water
4. The Cuckoo's Calling - 1/1/19
5. Night Film
6. Reconstructing Amelia - 4/2/15
7. Burial Rites - 2/29/20
*8. The Luminaries
*9. TransAtlantic
10. The Ocean at the End of the Lane - 9/6/17
11. The Golem and the Jinni
12. Lexicon - 8/29/14
13. MaddAddam
14. The Humans - 1/18/16
15. Fairyland: A Memoir of My Father
16. Wave
17. After Visiting Friends: A Son's Story
*18. One Summer: America, 1927
19. The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics - 6/27/14
20. Manson: The Life and Times of Charles Manson
21. Gulp: Adventures on the Alimentary Canal - 10/3/2014
22. David and Goliath
*23. American Savage: Insights, Slights, and Fights on Faith, Sex, Love, and Politics
24. Tequila Mockingbird: Cocktails with a Literary Twist - 12/15/15
*25. The Drunken Botanist: The Plants That Create the World's Great Drinks
*26. Cooked: A Natural History of Transformation
27. Adulting: How to Become a Grown-up in 468 Easy(ish) Steps - 12/17/13
28. Raven Girl
29. Aimless Love: New and Selected Poems - 10/24/15
30. The House Girl - 7/13/23
31. The Other Typist
32. Bully
33. Two Boys Kissing - 7/14/20
34. This Is What Happy Looks Like
35. Etiquette & Espionage - 12/24/15

HFU, BA Literature, 2014 (challenge here)
DISCONTINUED 7/3/23

Start: 1/1/14
End: ?
Status: 14/24

General Requirements:
History
1. Historical Fictionistas group read: The Historian - 1/14/14
2. Non-Fiction: King Leopold's Ghost: A Story of Greed, Terror and Heroism in Colonial Africa - 4/6/14
3. Memoir: Fairyland: A Memoir of My Father

Language, Arts, & Athletics
1. Non-Fiction, Athletics: The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics - 6/27/14
2. Sport-related word: Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk
3. Language in the plot: Lexicon - 8/29/14

Science & Mathematics
1. Number in Title: The Twelve - 7/29/14
2. Finance: The Wolf of Wall Street
3. Animal on Cover: The Goldfinch

Social Sciences
1. Trial: The Runaway Jury - 5/18/14
2. Education in Title: Etiquette & Espionage - 12/24/15
3. 18th Century Leader: John Adams

Major Requirements:
Literature
1. Chunkster: The Luminaries
2. Short Story Collection: Dear Life: Stories - 2/28/14
3. Anthology: The Scribner Anthology of Contemporary Short Fiction: 50 North American Stories Since 1970
4. Plays: August: Osage County, - 8/12/14
5. Non-Fiction: Country Driving: A Journey Through China from Farm to Factory - 3/13/14
6. Historical Fiction: Fall of Giants
7. Young Adult: Poison - 10/18/14
8. Thriller: The Cuckoo's Calling - 1/1/19
9. Must Read Classics: Wuthering Heights
10. Must Read Classics: Lord of the Flies - 4/18/14
11. Pulitzer Prize: The Orphan Master's Son - 4/2/14
12. Pulitzer Prize: Empire Falls

Pintrest Challenge


Start: 10/9/15
Finish:
Progress: 17/26

1. a book you own but haven't read: The Cuckoo's Calling - 1/1/19
2. a book that was made into a movie
3. a book you pick solely because of the cover
4. a book your friend loves: Heir of Fire - 1/26/21
5. a book published this year
6. a book by an author you've never read before: In the Woods - 12/20/15
7. a book by an author you love: Fangirl - 8/15/20
8. a book at the bottom of your "to-read" pile: Where'd You Go, Bernadette - 3/14/15
9. a book with a color in the title: The House in the Cerulean Sea - 3/21/22
10. a book set somewhere you've always wanted to visit
11. a book you started but never finished: The Casual Vacancy - 8/17/18
12. a book with a lion, a witch, or a wardrobe: Crown of Midnight - 9/18/20
13. a book with a female heroine: Throne of Glass - 8/24/20
14. a book set in the summer: It Happened One Summer - 7/30/22
15. a book of poems: Aimless Love: New and Selected Poems - 10/24/15
16. a book you learned about because of this challenge
17. a book that will make you smarter
18. a book with a blue cover: Foundation - 3/3/16
19. a book you were supposed to read in school, but didn't
20. a book "everyone" but you has read
21. a book with a great first line
22. a book with pictures: America Again: Re-becoming the Greatness We Never Weren't - 11/6/15
23. a book from the library: Dark Places - 10/15/15
24. a book you loved... read it again!: Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix - 5/30/22
25. a book that is more than 10 years old: The Giver - 10/31/15
26. a book based on a true story: Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI - 2/5/21