European Reading Challenge 2013

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The gist: The idea was to read books by European authors or books set in European countries (no matter where the author comes from). The books could be anything – novels, short stories, memoirs, travel guides, cookbooks, biography, poetry, or any other genre. You could participate at different levels, but each book must be by a different author and set in a different country – it's supposed to be a tour. (See note about the UK, below)

What counts as "Europe"? For this challenge, we used the list of 50 sovereign states that fall (at least partially) within the geographic territory of the continent of Europe and/or enjoy membership in international European organizations such as the Council of Europe. This list includes the obvious (the UK, France, Germany, Spain, and Italy), the really huge Russia, the tiny Vatican City, and the mixed bag of Baltic, Balkan, and former Soviet states.

Note: Technically, the United Kingdom is one country that includes England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland.  So one book from any one of these four should count as your one book for that one country. I'm not going to be a stickler about it because challenges should be about fun not about rules. However, when it comes to winning the Jet Setter prize, only one book from one of the UK countries will count.

Here is the list, in alphabetical order: Albania, Andorra, Armenia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Kazakhstan, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Moldova, Monaco, Montenegro, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Republic of Macedonia, Romania, Russia, San Marino, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, Ukraine, United Kingdom, and Vatican City. 

I chose the top level

Five Star (Deluxe Entourage): Read at least five books by different European authors or books set in different European countries, and managed to read twelve, so I'm pleased.

Books Read:

1. Dark Dreams by Michael Genelin (Slovakia) Finished January 5
2. City of Women by David R. Gillham (Germany) Finished January 13
3. Young Turk by Moris Farhi (Turkey) Finished January 13
4. Harvest by Jim Crace (UK) Finished February 20
5. The Smell of the Night by Andrea Camilleri (Italy) Finished March 15
6. A Mountain of Crumbs by Elena Gorokhova (Russia) Finished March 16
7. Two Pints by Roddy Doyle (Ireland) Finished May 2
8. The Ghost Riders of Ordebec by Fred Vargas (France) Finished May 11
9. Léon & Louise by Alex Capus (Switzerland) Finished June 2
10. The Lullaby of Polish Girls by Dagmara Dominczyk (Poland) Finished July 2
11. HHhH by Laurent Binet (Czech Republic) Finished July 17
12. Norwegian by Night by Derek B. Miller (Norway) Finished July 30

2013 Reading Summary

I took a picture of just one of my overflowing bookcases to illustrate the task ahead of me, but here is the progress I made this year. I read a total of 202 books, which was better than my aim of 200 books.

Authors
Male: 84
Female: 115
Multiple authors: 3

Sources
Library books: 76
Advance reading copies: 41
Netgalley: 14

Audience
Adult: 166
Teen: 21
Children: 15

Formats:
Audiobook: 28
ebook: 15
Graphica: 4
book: 155

Content

Translated: 12

• French: 6
• German: 2
• Italian: 2
• Japanese: 1
• Spanish: 1

Fiction: 162
I also counted those that fit into some genres, not everything did, but some fit into multiple genres

• Mystery: 49
• Romance: 21
• Historical: 34
• Fantasy: 9
• Science Fiction: 4
• Short Stories: 3

Nonfiction: 40

• Biography or memoir: 23
• Poetry: 3 (must do better)
• Essays: 1 (which is weird because I love essays)

Challenge books: For details on my challenge reading see my 2013 Challenge page
European Challenge: 12
Science Challenge: 3
Tea and Books Challenge: 1 (sadly did very badly on this one)
Colorful Challenge: 9 (squeaked in at the last minute!)
Postal Reading Challenge: 7 (didn't get to my target)
Global Reading Challenge: 16 (always seem to have issues with Africa, Australasia, and South America)
War Through the Generations Challenge: 4 (it was American Revolution, so a little harder to find stuff)
TBR Challenge (To Be Read): 3 (out of 12, so not good, especially as 2 were late December)
What's in a Name Challenge: 6 (Completed, again last minute)
Chunkster Challenge: 5 (didn't make my target)
Canadian Reading Challenge: 22 for the 6th year and 17 for the 7th (runs from July through June)

Out of Circulation

Finished December 30
Out of Circulation by Miranda James

This is part of a mystery series called "A Cat in the Stacks" featuring library board member, archivist and library volunteer Charlie Harris and his thirty-six pound Maine Coon cat Diesel.
Two local older ladies An'gel and Dickce Ducote, also on the library board are having another instance in a long-standing disagreement with another library board member, this time over where to hold this year's fundraising gala. Charlie tries to stay out of these as both he and Diesel dislike disagreements.
But it does seem like the one older woman, Vera, has no shortage of enemies. When Vera turns up dead at the gala, held at the Ducote sisters large house, the sheriff seems to suspect the only witness and Charlie is asked to help get to the bottom of things.
We are introduced to Charlie's lady friend, as well as his two children and their friends, as well as Charlie's boarder Stewart.
The deputy has a personal interest in the case since the witness is her mother, and Charlie's housekeeper. Lots of false trails and intrigue and some family skeletons that emerge.
Despite the presence of cats and libraries and a decent plot, the book didn't grab me and I won't be going out of my way for more of the series.

TBR Challenge 2014

The Goal: To finally read 12 books from my “to be read” pile (within 12 months).

Specifics:

Each of these 12 books must have been on my bookshelf or “To Be Read” list for AT LEAST one full year. This means the book cannot have a publication date of 1/1/2013 or later (any book published in the year 2012 or earlier qualifies, as long as it has been on my TBR pile – the host WILL be checking publication dates). Caveat: Two (2) alternates are allowed, just in case one or two of the books end up in the “can’t get through” pile.

My complete and final list must be posted by January 15th, 2014.

Crossovers from other challenges are totally acceptable, as long as I have never read the book before and it was published before 2013!

I decided to look at the top shelf of my living room bookcase, which has been unchanged for more than a year (like 3 I think) and pick what I can see there. My books:
1. The Book That Changed My Life: 71 Remarkable Writers Celebrate the Books that Matter Most to Them edited by Roxanne J Coady
2. Drowning Anna by Sue Mayfield. Finished October 31
3. Mental Traps: the Overthinker's Guide to a Happy Life by Andre Kukla
4. Bizarre Books by Russell Ash. Finished December 10
5. Dry Store Room No. 1 by Richard Fortey. Finished December 28
6. Serious Things by Gregory Norminton. Finished November 8
7. Dead Men by Stephen Leather. Finished November 18
8. Slam by Nick Hornby. Finished May 22
9. The Unfree French: Life under the Occupation by Richard Vinen.
10. Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett. Finished October 31
11. Ysabel by Guy Gavriel Kay. Finished December 15
12.Stitch Me Deadly by Amanda Lee. Finished May 29

Alternates:
1. Lauchlin of the Bad Heart by D.R. MacDonald
2. Drivetime by James Meek

Hot Pink

Finished December 29
Hot Pink by Adam Levin

Have to say that this collection of short stories didn't do anything for me. They are all a bit off the wall and more violent than I normally am comfortable with. The writing was okay, but nothing special, so that didn't make up for the other issues I had with it.
The collection includes ten short stories, and everyone seems disturbed or has lots of issues. They don't seem to communicate well with the people around them, and they all seem to have some kind of issue in how they react to certain kinds of behaviours from others.
Definitely not my thing.

I Could Pee on This

Finished December 28
I Could Pee on This and Other Poems by Cats by Francesco Marciuliano

This short collection of poems is all written from a cat's point of view. It is divided into four chapters: family, work, play, and existence. and the poems are all amusing and spot on. The author really gets into a cats head for these. I could see my cat and others I know in these verses. Light-hearted and fun, a good choice for any cat lover.

A Shtinky Little Christmas

Finished December 28
A Shtinky Little Christmas by Patrick McDonnell

This short collection of cartoons is from Mutts and depicts the story of the young cat Shtinky. The cat Mooch finds Shtinky in a garbage can, lost and hungry. He and Earl discuss the situation, ask the young cat some questions, give him a name and take him home. At home, the humans note that this cat is missing and a reward is offered and call up the owner, but Shtinky feels guilty about causing his rescuers trouble and makes an escape. Earl and Mooch go after him, and get lost themselves until they find someone who helps bring them all home and all is well. A nice little collection from my favourite comic strip.

The Yellow Duster Sisters

Finished December 28
The Yellow Duster Sisters by Susan Kennaway

This memoir covers the years of World War II when Susan and her older sister Gyll were evacuated from Watford to Africa and then their return to England.
The decision is made to send the girls to Africa where their mother's sister works as a governess. They stay with the family she works for, who have a son and a daughter. The daughter, Mavis, is the same age as Susan. They hadn't previously met their aunt, and find her hard to warm up to. Their new guardian treat them as poor relations, forcing them to wear patched up clothes, adhere to strict rules, and go to bed at six. Unbeknownst to the girls, their father had sent the guardians money for their upkeep, but they were made to feel as charity cases. When the letters from home grow further and further apart and then stop coming altogether, the sister feel completely abandoned and find comfort only in each other.
In the fall of 1942, the girls are sent from their guardians in Rhodesia to a boarding school in South Africa. By the spring of 1943 ships heading to England are starting to take civilians, and with the girls desperate for their old life they manage to work with their guardians to arrange a chaperoned passage back to England.
The second part of the book covers their return to England until the end of the war.
The girls are disappointed that no one meets their ship, but manage to get to London on their own where their father meets them. Their mother is in Scarborough working with Polish servicemen and the father living alone with servants. Neither parent seems glad to see them, and their father soon packs them off to a very strict boarding school where once again only being together makes it bearable.
The unhappiness with this time in their lives comes through clearly and looking it back on it several decades later hasn't dulled the pain for Susan. This amazingly open and honest memoir brings the loneliness felt by those girls to life.

The Doctor Rocks the Boat

Finished December 27
The Doctor Rocks the Boat by Robin Hathaway

This is part of the series featuring Doctor Fenimore. Fenimore is a cardiologist in Philadelphia, and one day passing the Schuylkill River, he sees a rower out and remembers how he found rowing to be a great destressor when he was an intern. He decides to take it up again. When he goes to Windsor Club boathouse to rejoin, he finds his old classmate Charlie Ashburn there. Charlie has to quit rowing years ago because of a heart defect, but now is son is vying to compete at Henley and Charlie is his biggest supporter. Fenimore can't help but wonder if Charlie's son Chuck was checked to see if he inherited the defect or not after he sees how drained Chuck is after rowing.
Easing into his return to rowing, Fenimore finds it difficult to find the time to row during hours when he knows others will be around. Talking to others, he finds the Victorian boathouses are under threat from developers who want to build a marina in their place. The Historic Commission has a proposal in the works to register Boathouse Row as an historic landmark, but it may not get through the process before the decision to develop takes place.
Fenimore's young office assistant has taken a fall on his skateboard and broken his leg, but also seems to be hiding something. Has he started hanging out with a bad crowd again?
All these things worry Fenimore and he gets involved in both professional and personal ways.
The setting was interesting with the information provided on rowing and the lovely natural setting and historic buildings. The different storylines offered many different possible plots behind attacks on Fenimore and others, I liked the characters and found the mystery a good one.

Still Alice

Finished December 26
Still Alice by Lisa Genova

I've had this novel on my shelf for awhile, and am glad I finally got to it. The Alice of the title is Alice Howland, a full professor of psychology at Harvard University, world-renowned expert in linguistics, and mother of three children in their twenties. Her husband is also a professor at Harvard and the two have even written a book together. Alice turns 50 a couple of months into the novel.
As Alice has several issues of forgetfulness and disorientation she begins to worry, and takes herself in for a checkup. As other causes are ruled out, Alice finds she has early onset Alzheimer's, something she never dreamed of. It takes her a while to accept it, and her family also struggles with what this means, not only for her, but also for them. Early onset Alzheimer's has a strong genetic component, and there is a high possibility at least one of her children might have the gene as well.
As the disease progresses, we see how the different family members handle the changes, how it affects Alice's career, and her life. We see her struggle and her plans for the future.
This is a novel that had me silently weeping as I read it, totally involved in the lives of these characters and the reality they were now dealing with.
I know someone with a parent who had early onset Alzheimer's and can't help but wonder if she and her siblings have looked at the genetic possibilities for themselves.