Around the Year in 52 Books discussion

How far is everyone on the challenge? I've read the four books, but two have been side reads (Educated because I couldn't resist reading it as soon as I got it, and The Graveyard Book because I'm teaching it to my class beginning this week).

So I'm done with weeks 1 & 2, but I may put off week three for a bit longer to do another side read (Reject read, as I'm thinking to keep myself from feeling unproductive!)

Emily wrote: "How far is everyone on the challenge? I've read the four books, but two have been side reads (Educated because I couldn't resist reading it as soon as I got it, and [book:The Gravey..."


I'm still working on book one! Well done on your four, Emily.

This might be a silly question but this group is the most likely place someone else has also considered it...

If you are reading week by week, are you considering the week to start on Tuesday (since Jan 1 was a Tuesday), or on Sunday or Monday as the "normal" start to a week?

That's a good question...

Looking at the way they divided up the main list (by months, with 4 in some and 5 in the other), I think it starts on Tuesdays. October has 5 Tuesdays but only 4 Sundays and Mondays, and they have October as having 5 prompts.

Yeah, I'm using Tuesdays, so that I have exactly a week per book. Thus I'm now starting week 2 since in my timezone it's now January 8th.

I am currently working on my 4th book, Stalking Jack the Ripper for week 4. My plan is to read in order of the month, then read a few side reads for other challenges. After those are done, I am debating starting next months reads or more side ones. This is going faster then I thought it would, but I will take it before I hit a slump.

My book club chose a book that will fit for week 3 for me, but my club isn't meeting until January 23rd. I'm tempted to start the book, but I'm worried I'll forget about it by the time book club rolls around... especially if I read 4 more books between now and then!

I think I'm just going to start reading next months reads if I get ahead... especially because I know I'll hit a rough patch and wish I was a few books ahead.

I'm reading in order :)

Well, except for weeks 20 & 41, which I've had to stick in at the start because of library holds. I've read week 20 and 1 for week 1, and am attempting to do weeks 41 and 2 this week...and I'm already about 200 pages behind!

There will undoubtedly be exceptions and re-classifications, but so far I am in order having finished the award-winning Rebecca and started the "Who"-including The Man WHO Was Thursday with Vanity Fair by William ThAckerY on deck.

Ron wrote: "There will undoubtedly be exceptions and re-classifications, but so far I am in order having finished the award-winning Rebecca and started the "Who"-including The Man WHO Was Thursday with Vanity ..."

Vanity Fair was so much fun as an audio book.

I am thoroughly enjoying going in semi-order this year. Took out all the books for January in all the challenges and put them on my desk. Then I can choose which one to read and when; as long as I don't get out Februarys until I finish the pile. Structure and freedom. And then some prompts wont get left to the end because I don't like them.

Emily wrote: "Joanne, this seems like so much fun but also like a lot to jump into... where would you recommend starting?"

Sorry I didn't see this until now, but I see you made your way over to my team in Turf Wars anyway :)

I'm also using Tuesdays as the start of the week for the challenge as this is the way the division of weeks per month seems to work for the overall 52 books.

I've completed the W word for week #2 The Ex Who Hired Her and have the audiobook for week #3 lined up A Darkness Absolute by Kelley Armstrong. This will probably take longer than one week to listen to so it will be concurrent with week #4.

I just started my book for prompt #3. My IRL book club is reading The Nest by Cynthia D'Aprix Sweeney, and it works for the ATY author... I wanted to push it off so that I read it closer to our meeting date (January 23rd), but I got through most of my books planned for the month already! January is turning out to be a prolific reading month for me.

So far this year I have only read one book for this challenge. All of my books have been side reads. In fact the next few books that I have from the library are all side reads and due back in the next 4 or 5 days.

I am trying not to feel rushed to read them and get on the my week two read. There is a reason I put this books on hold. I want to enjoy them. Ticking off boxes are fun though.

Anastasia wrote: "So far this year I have only read one book for this challenge. All of my books have been side reads. In fact the next few books that I have from the library are all side reads and due back in the n..."

I had a similar problem! I had a few library holds come in, and I wanted to read them and not get too far ahead on my ATY challenge, but I also really like checking off the boxes and putting my reads in the spreadsheet. So I've already read my week 3 book and I think I'm going to start on my week 4 book next..

So far (haha, two weeks into the challenge) I'm enjoying the "reading in order" strategy. I've finished my reads for the first three weeks, and waiting for my fourth book to come available at the library. I thought that maybe I should read my week 52 and work backwards when waiting for a book, but I have so many other non-challenge books that I want to read - I'm currently reading something that's been sitting on my night stand (just ignore the other 15 or so books GR says I'm also currently reading 😜

I'm currently ahead, but will certainly fall behind now that I'm back to my six day work week!

I finished The Labyrinth of the Spirits which was a hold leftover from December. It doesn't fit into any of my non-order challenges, but it fits perfectly under multi-generational sage!! I'm resisting the urge to put it there because I really need to spread out the these topics to not have the worst at the end. I guess I'm starting my reject challenge early than I thought.

I read Week 1 (a book that was nominated for an award) and Week 2 (a book with one of the 5 Ws in the title) then did a book for my rejects challenge. I then jumped to Week 4 (a book with a criminal character) followed by Week 3 (a book where the author's name contains A, T, and Y). I am now reading another book for my rejects challenge. So, I'm mostly reading in order, but not following things too strictly.

I'm the same, dalex. My ATY reads have been in order, but I have definitely supplemented with rejects reads.

So I finished my audiobook for week #3 - A Darkness Absolute by Kelley Armstrong. It didn't take me as long as I thought it would because the story progressed at a solid pace. I really enjoy the LOST vibe of this series.

Will start the week #4 book on Tuesday.

I finished my week 3 book a week and a half ago, but I’ve been stacking side reads and haven’t even gotten my week 4 book from the library yet. Whoops!

I have switched my 2nd week read and started my 3rd week. The 5 W's are proving difficult with the restrictions I have imposed.

I may have to loosen it up for that prompt.

I’m on fire this year, I already read 5 books for the challenge! 😃 I’m tackling books I’ve had on my tbr for years, so they’re not as exciting as new releases, but I’m keeping motivated!

Way to go Sophie!

Hello everybody!
My mood and feelings are changing so fast during last weeks but finally I decided to read in order (but I hope I´ll be faster than book a week). Now I read the fourth book so I´m still on track.

I’m in order so far and finished Good Omens: The Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch for week 3 yesterday. For week four I have a couple different options that I all have available from the library: The Unseeing, Cherry, and "I Heard You Paint Houses": Frank "The Irishman" Sheeran & Closing the Case on Jimmy Hoffa. Anyone read any of these and have any suggestions on which one I should go with.

I have read all the January books and am waiting to start February. I am determined not to rush it and to go in order. So fun books this week.

The library is sabotaging my reading in order plan! They've just bought in some new releases I've been waiting for since last year so I've got to read them before they have to go back

Sarah wrote: "The library is sabotaging my reading in order plan! They've just bought in some new releases I've been waiting for since last year so I've got to read them before they have to go back"

The nerve! Librarians have no manners...

Johanne wrote: "Sarah wrote: "The library is sabotaging my reading in order plan! They've just bought in some new releases I've been waiting for since last year so I've got to read them before they have to go back..."

It's like they have no idea when these books would be most convenient for me lol

:)

I've completed the five January prompts so I'm just filling out the rest of the month with books for my rejects challenge. January is almost always a heavy reading month for me because (1) I'm excited about the new year and my reading plans and (2) snow and (3) I generally watch a good bit of TV when the weather starts to turn in October so by January I just really kind of have zero interest in it.

I'm the same, dalex... Except I haven't finished my ATY books for this month because I've been so distracted by rejects books haha!

I'm on track to read the most books I've ever read in one month, which is astounding... I usually get most of my reading done in the summer, but I've never done more than 10 in a month, and I'm currently working on my 12th!

I am going to get week 4's done next, but I'll probably save week 5 for February... I'm trying to read one LGBTQ+ book a month, and the one for February is my week 5 book.

I'm still chugging along and reading in order. I finished The Taming of the Drew for week 5 weeks. Getting it out of the way early in the week will hopefully give me enough time to finish It for week 6 (I'm over half way through, but its such a long book)

I've been sick and really had very little energy to read. Feeling better today, so I will probably start . my week 5 book - City of Ashes (series title is from Julius Caesar).

I'm so excited to start The Gentleman's Guide to Vice and Virtue for Week 5! I picked up that one and the sequel from the library yesterday.

I know! February books start tomorrow. The first one is one I have been waiting for.

Week #5 actually started on Tuesday the 29th. The information on the group home page hasn't been getting updated regularly.

Ann wrote: "I know! February books start tomorrow. The first one is one I have been waiting for."

SAME! I'm trying to rush through The Untelling, which I hoped to finish by the end of January, but it's not looking promising. I'm itching to get to week 5 though.

I have totally did not plan on reading in order -quite the contrary. I was just gonna read whatever I wanted, and slot them in later. Well, it turned out, that at the end of January, I actually managed to slot in the first 11 categories from what I read. I am very pleased... I have never read in order before.

This is my second year doing the challenge and my first attempt to read in order, keeping in mind that that isn't always possible as I am borrowing from the library some of the books on the list. So far, so good. I read one book in January that wasn't in order (library book) and the rest have been. Need to figure out the later half of February for my book options and keep it going!

I'm starting my week #6 book today The Broken Girls. It's an audiobook so it will take me through to week 7 I'm sure.

Lauren wrote: "I'm starting my week #6 book today The Broken Girls. It's an audiobook so it will take me through to week 7 I'm sure."

The Broken Girls is so, so good! It was one of my favorite reads last year!

Thanks Emily. I'm looking forward to it as I've enjoyed most of Simone St. James's historical mysteries.

I've started skipping around a bit - completed #6 before #5 - but I am trying to stick to the order still. Not sure what I'm going to read for the "two books with similar topic/genre/theme" prompts though.

Cendaquenta wrote: "I've started skipping around a bit - completed #6 before #5 - but I am trying to stick to the order still. Not sure what I'm going to read for the "two books with similar topic/genre/theme" prompts..."

I'm going with mental illnesses, and I'll probably regret that.. having to read two books in a row with that as a prominent feature will be tough.

I decided, early-on, to jump around with my 52 reading challenges. And, already, I am doubtful that I will do the "psychological thriller." Also, my first book of the year just had to be a book that was a Christmas gift and am glad I did that. It was Trevor Noah's memoir, BORN A CRIME. Not only was it an excellent read; it was not a lengthy tome that might've put me immediately behind in my goal of 52! Now that would've been a bummer! Ken Follett's 900+pp novel will have to wait...

Besides, I do try to get some of my own writing in once in a while (tho' not enough in recent years). Each morning, almost since 2019 began, I've been posting on my FB feed one short bit of poetry from a small, 3.5"x9" handmade-in-Bali booklet that I started filling with "haiku, tanka and other short sweet word-thoughts" in 2/03, while I was staying in a my fav cabin (then called "hermitages") at Still Point Interfaith Retreat Center. It's been really calming & centering for me to start my day with this practice (well, one day so far it didn't happen until noonish), and have been getting wonderful feedback from friends. And this early morning activity was one of the inspirations for deciding on my current read: FIERCE FAIRY TALES: POEMS & STORIES TO STIR YOUR SOUL by Nikita Gill. I'd first heard of Gill's work when her awesome poem, "Why Tinkerbell Quit Anger Management" appeared in Spirituality & Health Magazine. Bought the book. Used it as a prompt with my women's writing group (which is called "Pandora," by the way). Writer friends loved it. Yet I hadn't read the entire book, despite my love of fairy & folk tales & having even led workshops re creating them (especially "with a feminist twist!). As soon as I read #38 in the challenge list, I thought of Gill's book and am now immersed in it. Meets it completely - it's fiction in both poetry & prose (the latter so awesome that I could call it prose poetry), yet not in the usual format of a novel!

So that's the tenor of my day today. Although I will manage to find time to cook a meal, do some dishes, possibly even find time for a little laundry. But first, let me share today's short thought/poem that I posted on FB, from my book of shorts noted above:

25.
dreams don't follow life.
they follow the afterlife,
gifts of soul journeys.
packed into suitcase: one dream;
ticket - night train, coach class seat.
MZD

Have a dreamy, lovely day!

P.S. I have a feeling that how I go about selecting my Challenge books will be much the same as above: I will own a book, decide to read it, see how it fits into the 2019 List. I have printed all previous lists thus far (wasn't a member of this group 'til early this month), created & printed a chart to track my Challenge reads with plenty of space to cross out an original challenge (such as the Psycho Thriller) and pencil in a new one. I saw some interesting ones on the earlier lists. I've already revised my To Read shelf on GR to include many books already in-house that I hope to fit in during the year! I would say that this will reduce the back-up of unread books in the house, but that might not happen unless I stay out of Barnes & Noble & 2 fav local bookstores, stay off Amazon, and stop reading Bookmarks magazine!

I'm still technically still Team Reading In Order, but I had a few library holds of new-ish books come up so I've been side tracked. Vengeful ended up being a DNF, but The Winter of the Witch was well worth the detour. Last up I have Thunderhead but then I'm back in order.

The book of the month for the group is The Clockmaker's Daughter for Week 6's Dual Timeline, if anyone here is interested on getting in on that discussion. It's definitely a denser book than I've read for the challenge so far, but I've enjoyed the 50 pages I've read so far!