2025 Reading Challenge discussion

Sheet I'm using for my challenge:

Blank Excel Document v3.0

(Download it at File>Download as...>Microsoft Excel (.xlsx)

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Books Finished:
(view spoiler)[

# 59 La Nona ( 100% ) Finished: 04/10/2015 ★★★★☆
# 53 El Tunel ( 100% ) Finished: 04/01/2015 ★★★★★
# 55 Crónica de una... ( 100% ) Finished: 03/18/2015 ★★★★☆
# 5 The Maze Runner 1 ( 100% ) Finished: 02/09/2015 ★★★★★
# 3 Lord of the Rings 2 ( 100% ) Finished: 02/07/2015 ★★★★☆
# 54 Aura ( 100% ) Finished: 01/26/2015 ★★☆☆☆
# 52 Niebla ( 100% ) Finished: 01/24/2015 ★★★★★
# 2 Lord of the Rings 1 ( 100% ) Finished: 01/17/2015 ★★★★☆
# 50 La Tía Tula ( 100% ) Finished: 01/17/2015 ★★★★★
# 1 The Hobbit ( 100% ) Finished: 01/15/2015 ★★★★☆
(hide spoiler)]

Wow, you're really organized, Gabriel! I'm impressed!

Ok, just a quick feedback on LoTR:

(view spoiler)[
This is 100x better than The Hobbit!! I'm still on chapter 5, and it has already got over my expectations: great narrative, great plot (more than I remember seeing on the movie), and fot those who don't know if they should read the hobbit first, let me tell you: It doesn't matter!! You can skip right ahead the first 2 'chapters' of the prologue (they are REALLY boring) as they only talk a little bit of Middle Earth history (if you're interested, you should read The Silmarillion instead), but the 3rd is MANDATORY for those who didn't read it. (It is a perfect summary of it) (hide spoiler)]

Marina wrote: "Wow, you're really organized, Gabriel! I'm impressed!"

Thank you!

I really like the way you set up your thread, Gabriel. It's very organized! If I put together a reading list, I always end up straying from it immediately, but I really respect people who can come up with a list and stick to it! Good luck with your challenge. :)

Cassandra wrote: "I really like the way you set up your thread, Gabriel. It's very organized! If I put together a reading list, I always end up straying from it immediately, but I really respect people who can come ..."


Thank you very much! Is nice to see that people are following my thread and liking it :D

I just saw the honest trailer of Gone Girl on youtube and decided to add it to my reading list (replacing The Darkest Minds. Has anyone read it yet?

I haven't read The Darkest Minds, so I can't compare. I really enjoyed Gone Girl. I changed my opinion of each of the characters so many times while reading that book. Gillian Flynn is really good at changing things up in just a few pages.

Quick update:

Ok, so..my classes started this week and I'm also moving, which means: no time to read.
I should already be arround the middle of the second LOTR book, and I haven't finished the first one yet!

I'll be looking for a way to catch up my progress, but it seems that I won't update so frequently until May.

If anyone has some advice to give, I'd be glad to hear :/

I think the first step is to not stress out about not reading as quickly as you think! Depending on the workload of your classes, it can be hard to find time to read. I always bring a book with me to read on the bus during my commute to school and to read during classes.

I agree with Cassandra, don't stress about reading! It's not an assignment (unless it's reading for class), it's for fun:) When I feel a lack of reading but don't have time to sit and crack the book, I will have an audiobook playing in the house while I am doing mindless chores (like unpacking). That way I'm still getting the story and getting things done. Good luck with your classes and the move!

Megan wrote: "I agree with Cassandra, don't stress about reading! It's not an assignment (unless it's reading for class), it's for fun:) When I feel a lack of reading but don't have time to sit and crack the b..."

Thank you! ( Both of you) :)

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Finished The Fellowship of the Ring today. Starting The two Towers and also added a novel I have to read for my Literature class(in spanish) : La tia Tula

Finished La tia tula. I REALLY liked it (it actually made me laugh a lot :D)
5 Stars (Soon I'll post the review)

I've been late with my reading, but I think I can recover when I get some vacations.
Meanwhile, I updated the Excel Blank Document so people can specify the book version they have and also to save some space while posting (it'll only show the cover instead of the name)

Added a new mandatory book to my list. (In Spanish, again)

Ok...It's been a while since my last update.
Why?
-I'm moving, and that means NO INTERNET for a few days.

Now, almost everything is back to normal and I could finish Niebla while I was waiting for the IT guys come to my house.
I'm telling you, I usually don't read the same book twice, but this one I could read 4 time and still wouldn't get tired of it. SUPER Recommended.

Btw, it's in spanish, but I think there should be and english version of it.

What is it about?
(view spoiler)[
It's the story of a guy who is a born-to-be-philosopher, and is a REALLY distracted guy. It begins when he was on a street and coouldn't decide where he should go (left or right), and decides to go in the direction of the first dog he saw would go. A woman passes by.He starts following her.
While he's lost in his thoughs, he realizes that he followed her accidentally all the way to her house and now she thinks he's a creep.
And worst of all, the only thing he saw were her (beautiful) eyes and couldn't see how she actually were, and actually thinks he's in love with her.

It's a really funny story, and is written almost entirely of dialogues and monologues, full of philosphies about the man, the love, men, women and existencialism and trust me, it's not boring at all.
(hide spoiler)]

How is it written?
Miguel de Unamuno is a Spanish author that invented (according to my literature teacher) the "nivola", that translating to english would be something like "lil' soup opera".

So...what?
That means, that there's almost NO description in the whole book (of the scenario or the physical traits) and there's a lot of talking. Also they're the kind of comedy that actually makes you LOL.

I think this describes perfectly my opinion of the book.
Rating : 10/10

Finished Aura. Didn't like it. At all.

I'm reading TLOTR again, but before that, I started browsing a little on the internet. After a little while, I discover something that may interest a lot of people:(view spoiler)[ Photoreading . I didn't actually found this book like a miracle. First, I came into this video: http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=PZqXBhGR_W8 , this blog: http://fourhourworkweek.com/2009/07/3... , and in the comment section, some dude was talking about another method, were you could ACTUALLY reach 25,000 WPM (Words per Minute). And after browsing a little, I found this book here on GR, and added it to my to-read-this-year list.
Before anyone start thinking that this is some kind of magic, IT'S NOT. These are TECHNIQUES for improving your reading, and require a lot of practice.

Also, this is not cheating, because the exercises aim to read faster and absorb all information while you read it.

I'll try to buy it tomorrow, and after I finish it I tell you my thoughts of it. (hide spoiler)]

(view spoiler)[I digged a little more on some speed reading articles (seriously, Lotr is taking forever to finish) and I found one that may interest some challengers here: http://www.writehacked.com/productivi...
And for those who read my last update, I recommend reading this article (it's definitely not a good idea to rush literature, but some techniques can be useful for other things, like articles, newspapers, homeworks...
I'll try to finish at leas the Two Towers today. (hide spoiler)]

Updated the Excel Document today to the v2.0
I've never done something so beautiful in my entire life *----*

Btw, I really don't wanna finish LOTR, I'm just reading it because it's on my desk for at least 2 years, and that for me means that is about time to read it.

I really like the way you're tracking your reading this year. The statistics on the right are super interesting (pages/day and those ones).

Good luck getting through the Lord of the Rings trilogy. For me, The Return of the King was the most exciting.

Cassandra wrote: "I really like the way you're tracking your reading this year. The statistics on the right are super interesting (pages/day and those ones).

Good luck getting through the Lord of the Rings trilogy...."

I'm almost giving up on the because the second part is just too boring for me, but I'll try to finish it at once so I can check out . Thanks for the support :)

Hopefully you will like it better! In any case, you will be able to say that you finished the trilogy.

You're right.
Ok, I finished the book and take what I said, the book was great. But I'm perceiving a pattern here:
TOLKIEN DOESN'T KNOW HOW TO START A STORY!!!!! But he compensates that by continuing it and finishing smoothly.
If you know how to speed-read, I'd recommend you to read the second part of the book (up until almost half) as fast as you can, because it's only then that it gets back to the good.

I think I'm done with Tolkien for a while.
Next book:

Finished The Maze Runner 1 . For those who only saw the movie, that was not the whole story, and the book was just PERFECT!!Easy to read, but too many chapters (seriously, there's a one-page chapter in the book!) 10/10
02/17/15
Important Update:

I have an important exam on Feb 27th, so I won't be reading for a while. (Hope you guys understand)

Just added Blind Side to my shelf (this one literally has a "TAKE ME!!" written on its cover) and I'm starting it ASAP, because I have to take it back to the library (I think, this one was being offered at the entrance, so it's not borrowed for a limited time). It also has this link on it: http://www.bookcrossing.com/ ...I have no idea what this means, but I'll check it later.


Btw, I'm "kinda" late with the reading because (again) I have an extremely important exam this week (I mean, seriously, a three-days exam 3 hours/day O.o). But as I have to finish some of those for my literature class, I think I'm gonna get the Crónica de una muerte anunciada done today and maybe The Maze Runner 2 , because I just got the epub from a friend and need to relax a little.

I'll give some news as soon as I finish one of them.


*EDITED*

Just found out what this site is about: basically you give a book "freedom", by placing a sticker on cover and back cover, and you have should give this book to another person after you read it; also register on the website where did you find it and your opinion (basically like GRs) so the ex-owner knows where did it go (the challenge is to make it go around the world, I guess.

Finished today Crónica de una muerte anunciada . It was...fine, I guess? It was really boring most of the time, but the end was tottaly like "WTF??"
I'd recommend it to anyone who is patient to read a book, because it may look small, but you have to read it again, and again, and again...and again to understand it. It fits into a very interesting mix of Horror/Drama/Comedy/Thriller.
4 Stars

Ok, I know I haven't finished it yet, but this book IS different ( The Tunnel ) It is basically a story from a guy who murdered a girl that he loved (that's no spoiler, I swear), but he tells the story as a flashback and they're exactly alike (a "weirdos" love story, I should say :D)
Super funny and unpredictable. When I finish I'll write a full review of it.

(For the lazy readers: it is super easy to read it! It only has, like, 4 pages/chapter on average ;) )

Finished The Tunnel yesterday. It was a great book...for those who like a romance with some darker material.
5 Stars

Already over 10% !


Quick review on The Maze Runner 2 :

Seriously, I can summarize Dashner's work into 2 words: plot twist. And you know what? I BLOODY LOVE IT!!
This is definitely going to my best-book-ever shelf :)

Re-read La Nona today...I forgot how funny it was :D
5 Stars

Just a reminder for when I rate the book The Maze Runner 2 : that is the first time I've had a jumpscare from reading a book, seriously! I'm getting really addicted to it, and I'm feeling a 5 stars coming. :D