Catching up on Classics (and lots more!) discussion

Going to do three challenges again this year but different ones from last year...

Actually I enjoyed the group reads challenge so much I’m going to add that one in too

Challenge 3 - Second place or worse
* Completed 26 December 2021 *

Old School
✅ The Egoist(replacing Cousin Bette)
✅ The Diary of a Nobody

New School
✅ Their Eyes Were Watching God
(This won poll in March 2021 but was eligible at the start of the challenge)
✅ Life A User's Manual

Short Story
✅ Passing
✅ Bartleby, the Scrivener: A Story Of Wall-Street

Long Read
✅ The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy, Gentleman

Challenge 5 - Decade Challenge
* Completed 31 December *

Back to the 80s
✅ 1980 - A Month in the Country
✅ 1981 - Gorky Park
✅ 1982 - Zami: A New Spelling of My Name
✅ 1983 - Heartburn
✅ 1984 - Hotel du Lac
✅ 1985 - The Accidental Tourist
✅ 1986 - The Light Fantastic
✅ 1987 - Moon Tiger
✅ 1988 - The Swimming-Pool Library
✅ 1989 - Mary Queen of Scotland and The Isles

Challenge 7 - Group Reads
* Completed 12 October *

✅ 1. The Captain's Daughter (Read in The Captain's Daughter: And the History of the Pugachev Rebellion) - January Short Story Read
✅ 2. The Portrait of a Lady - Q1 Long Read
✅ 3. Their Eyes Were Watching God - March New School Read
✅ 4. Fathers and Children - April Old School Read
✅ 5. Babette’s Feast - May Short Story Read
✅ 6. Moll Flanders - June Old School Read
✅ 7. The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle - July New School Read
✅ 8. Goblin Market - July Short Story Read
✅ 9. The Unbearable Lightness of Being - August Revisit the Shelf
✅ 10. Flatland: A Romance of Many Dimensions - September Old School Read
✅ 11. The Gold Bug - October Short Story Read
(Read in The Fall of the House of Usher and Other Writings)
✅ 12. The Fall - October New School Read

Challenge 8 - Expand your Horizon with New Authors
* Completed 6 August *

✅ 1. R.K. Narayan - Swami And Friends
✅ 2. Doris Lessing - The Grass is Singing
✅ 3. Anthony Powell - A Question of Upbringing
✅ 4. V.S. Naipaul - A House For Mr Biswas
✅ 5. George Lamming - In the Castle of My Skin
✅ 6. Vita Sackville-West - All Passion Spent

Here we go - ready for the buffet!

This is a wonderful assortment, Pamela! Their Eyes were Watching God is a favorite of mine, and I'm very curious about A Question of Upbringing. Enjoy!

I like your selections in your different challenges, Pamela! I'm also reading Cousin Bette next year. Hope it's good!
As Kathleen just mentioned, I'm interested in A Question of Upbringing. It sounds like it might be a good one, and I'd like to know what you think. Will be watching for your comments! :)

I think we have to submit Passing for voting again. I‘ve seen it on so many challenges now.

I love Passing! I thought it was brilliant.

Philina wrote: "I think we have to submit Passing for voting again. I‘ve seen it on so many challenges now."

Good idea! It was very good & I think more people should read it :)

Terris wrote: "Philina wrote: "I think we have to submit Passing for voting again. I‘ve seen it on so many challenges now."

Good idea! It was very good & I think more people should read it :)"

I also read Passing recently and thought it was excellent. It also think it would be a great book club read. There are so many potential issues to discuss.

Great lists Pamela. I love your 80's decade one. 3 of them are movies that I loved (Gorky Park, Heartburn and Accidental Tourist). Now that it's been a long time, I'd like to read the books especially Gorky Park.

I loved Their Eyes Were Watching God and Passing also.

Thanks for all the input everyone, I’m really excited about Passing now, maybe I’ll read that first.

Good start with two of the Group Reads completed, plus my first from the New Authors A Question of Upbringing.

I know a couple of people were curious about A Question of Upbringing, I really liked it. It had a dry wit and some sharp observations about characters. It is part of a 12 book series covering a lifetime where the characters recur, so I’ve decided to make the series my reading project for this year and follow it through.

OK it’s halfway through the year so time to review my progress…

The Group Reads going well, 6/12 completed. I’m reading a variety of Old/New/Short/Long and enjoyed them all so far.

The New Authors also good progress, 5/6 completed. Again I’ve enjoyed all the books read, have already read more by Anthony Powell and will definitely be reading more by VS Naipaul and Doris Lessing.

Bit slower on the Second Place or better 3/7 completed, and have some longer books still to read for this.

Decade Challenge Only 2/10 completed (although one was 880 pages!) so this is the one to focus on in the next few months.

Overall, having great fun with these challenges and finding lots of enjoyable reads. Hope the next 6 months go equally well….

Your summary is inspiring Pamela, and a great idea, with this varied group of challenges. I've really enjoyed my new author challenge too--so many classic authors to choose from!

Pamela wrote: "OK it’s halfway through the year so time to review my progress…

The Group Reads going well, 6/12 completed. I’m reading a variety of Old/New/Short/Long and enjoyed them all so far.

The New Aut..."


Nice progress. You are right at the halfway point midway through the year. Good job.

First challenge completed #8 Expand your Horizon with New Authors

Excellent challenge - I enjoyed all 6 books and will definitely be reading more by these authors.

Congratulations, Pamela. Always lovely to have one completed, but you are doing very well with all of them!

Pamela wrote: "First challenge completed #8 Expand your Horizon with New Authors

Excellent challenge - I enjoyed all 6 books and will definitely be reading more by these authors."

Congrats Pamela, I love finding new authors.

Challenge #7 Group Reads completed! Such an interesting variety of classics, I enjoyed this a lot.

That is quite a range of different classics! Well done, Pamela.

Nice job on the new authors and the group reads challenges. Congratulations.

Looks like you did really well with your challenges, lots of check marks.

Just finished The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy, Gentleman which completes Challenge 3 - Second Place or worse. Just the decade challenge to finish by the end of the year…

Well done, Pamela!

Congrats, Pamela.

Second Place or Worse, Group Reads, and New Authors all complete. Way to go. The other is so close good luck.

Yippee! The Decade Challenge completed with just 7.5 hours left of 2021 here!

Great challenges, looking forward to more great reading in 2022

WooHoo!

Pamela wrote: "Yippee! The Decade Challenge completed with just 7.5 hours left of 2021 here!

Great challenges, looking forward to more great reading in 2022"

Oh yea! How satisfying to finish. Congratulations.

You did it! Congrats, Pamela.