TBR Challenge 2018

As everyone who knows me knows, I have way too many unread books at my house, so this challenge is right up my alley

The idea is to choose 12 books that have been on your shelves a long time (along with 2 alternates in case the going gets really tough) and read them this year.

So here's my list.
1. The Portable Dorothy Parker by Dorothy Parker
2. Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress by Dai Sijie. Finished September 14
3. Men and Dogs by Katie Crouch. Finished June 24
4. Four Fields by Tim Dee. Finished December 31
5. Pieces of My Mind by Frank Kermode. Finished December 9
6. The Confidant by Helene Gremillon. Finished November 30
7. Going After Cacciato by Tim O'Brien
8. Let's Take the Long Way Home by Gail Caldwell. Finished November 25
9. The House at the End of Hope Street by Menna Van Praag. Finished December 12
10. Due Considerations by John Updike
11. Ivanhoe by Sir Walter Scott. Finished October 7
12. The Perfect Summer by Juliet Nicolson. Finished December 20

Alternates:
1. Memoirs of an Infantry Officer by Siegfried Sassoon
2. A Princess of Roumania by Paul Park

It should be fun and interesting!

European Reading Challenge 2018

I always enjoy this challenge.

The rules are pretty straightforward:

THE GIST: The idea is to read books by European authors or books set in European countries (no matter where the author comes from). The books can be anything – novels, short stories, memoirs, travel guides, cookbooks, biography, poetry, or any other genre. You can 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"?: We stick with the same 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, and Italy), the really huge Russia, the tiny Vatican City, and the mixed bag of Baltic, Balkan, and former Soviet states.

THE LIST: 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.

NOTE: Even after Brexit, the United Kingdom is still one country, in Europe, that includes England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland. So one book from any one of these four counts as your one book for the United Kingdom. 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.

As usual, I will be going for the 5 Star Reading level
FIVE STAR (DELUXE ENTOURAGE): Read at least five books by different European authors or books set in different European countries.

PopSugar Reading Challenge 2018

This reading challenge came into my radar recently and looks interesting.
Here's the post.



























































































I'm intrigued and will naturally do the advanced 10 as well as the main 40. There's lots of potential here, and since one of the prompts is to do a prompt from one of the previous 3 years, I may get into them a bit too.
Naturally, I will be keeping track on my reading challenge page.

2017 Reading Summary

I didn't reach my goal of 150 books this year, only getting to 145. As my husband says, too much time spent playing solitaire on my iPad. I definitely am changing that for the new year. However I've also been spending more time doing crafts such as needlework, so that has been taking some time as well.

Here's how I stand at the end of the year:

By type and genre: (note that some books may fall within more than one genre)
Fiction         124                  33 of these were part of a series
   Mystery/Thriller   43
   Historical Fiction  22
   Romance               19
   Fantasy                   8
   Science Fiction       3
   Short Stories           6
No westerns this year

Nonfiction     21
   Biography and Memoir  10
   Essays                              2
   Drama                              0
   Poetry                               0

By audience
Adult      117
Teen         13
Children   15

Translated works  7
French   4
German 2
Italian    1

Authors
50 of the books I read were by Canadian authors
Male authors                                   33
Female authors                             107
Multiple authors incl. both sexes     5

Format
Physical book   127
Audiobook         17
ebook                   1

Source
Library                     46
My own                    97    (77 of these left to other homes after I finished them)
Family borrow           2

I've had better years in terms of books read, and have been on a downward trend the last few years. Hopefully we'll go up again in 2018.

Wrap-Up of Gentle Spectrums 2017 Reading Challenge

I completed this challenge successfully.

This challenge ran from February 1, 2017 to January 31, 2018, but since I do it every year, I stop at the end of December.

The challenge has two parts,

A Limitless Hues

This part has the names of colours in book titles or the word colour or terms like iridescent, bright, light, hue, spectrum, rainbow, shade, etc. Terms that might be shades of a color like cherry or canary don't count with the colour itself

1. The White Princess by Philippa Gregory. Finished March 27.
2. Blue Lightning by Ann Cleeves. Finished May 1
3. Purple Palette for Murder by R.J. Harlick. Finished October 21

B Gentle Subjects

This part has ten subject categories to match to book titles. Some will also allow content matches.

1. History

Historic people, content, places, symbols, and books set in 1967 or earlier.

* The Palace of Heavenly Pleasure by Adam Williams. Finished February 4 (set in 1899-1902 China)
* Sister of Mine by Sabra Waldfogel. Finished February 7 (set in 1852-1867, Georgia)
* Malice of Fortune by Michael Ennis. Finished February 13 (set in 1502-1503 Italy)
* One for Sorrow by Mary Downing Hahn. Finished February 28 (set in 1918-1919)
* Crooked Heart by Lissa Evans. Finished March 28 (set during WWII)
* The Second Mrs. Hockaday by Susan Rivers. Finished April 25 (set during the US Civil War and a few decades later)

2. Food

Food and drink, and words typically used to describe them like sweet or sour.
* Cake or Death by Heather Mallick. Finished February 23
* Egg Drop Dead by Laura Childs. Finished March 21
* Princess Pistachio and Maurice the Magnificent by Marie-Louise Gay. Finished June 20
* Cottage Cheese Thighs by Jenn Sadai. Finished July 6
* Baby Cakes by Theo Heras. Finished September 24

3. Sky

Elements by day or night, astronomy, spiritual terms
* Racing the Sun by Karina Halle. Finished March 6
* Blue Lightning by Ann Cleeves. Finished May 1
* The Glass Universe by Dava Sobel. Finished November 13

4. Canadian

Titles do not need to match this category. Canadian authors and features do. A brief Canadian setting does not count. I didn't use all my Canadian books, but chose a few.
* You Can Read by Helaine Becker, illustrated by Mark Hoffmann. Finished February 4 (Canadian author)
* Everything Beautiful Is Not Ruined by Danielle Younge-Ullman. Finished February 18 (Canadian author and setting)
* A Murder for Max by John Lawrence Reynolds. Finished March 30 (Canadian author and setting)

5. Money, Valuable, Class

Monetary terms, gems, etc.
* Tapestry of Fortunes by Elizabeth Berg. Finished February 5
* Gilt Hollow by Lorie Langdon. Finished February 22

6. Music

Musical terms. Also books about music or musicians, or by musicians.
* The Evening Chorus by Helen Humphreys. Finished March 19

7. Is the Third a Charm?

Titles associated with "three". A third volume, or your third book by an author. Include a comment as to whether the author is more appealing or less at this third book.
* Three Jack Reacher Novellas by Lee Child. Finished April 4
* The Twenty-Three by Linwood Barclay. Finished July 5 (third in trilogy)

8. Traditions, Practices, Celebrations
* The Burial by Courtney Collins. Finished February 18
* An Intimate Wilderness by Norman Hallendy. Finished April 8

9. All Critters

* Boar Island by Nevada Barr. Finished March 1
* The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery. Finished March 15
* Exit, Pursued by a Bear by E.K. Johnston. Finished March 29
* A Cast of Vultures by Judith Flanders. Finished April 18
* A Bed of Scorpions by Judith Flanders. Finished May 14
* The Wide-Mouthed Frog by Keith Faulkner, illustrated by Jonathan Lambert. Finished June 9
* A Greyhound of a Girl by Roddy Doyle. Finished July 14
* Rusty Puppy by Joe R. Lansdale. Finished October 5

10. Clothing or Fashion
* The Greatcoat by Helen Dunmore. Finished December 4

European Reading Challenge Wrap-Up 2017

Well, I did far less European countries than I have in the past. Only the five necessary to complete this challenge.

Hosted by Rose City Reader, this challenge is one I like to do every year. It gets me reading books from or set in other countries and fulfills part of my love of travel in a vicarious way.

Here is the link for the challenge. I will be doing the Five Star challenge again, which requires me to read books from 5 European countries. The challenge host has the details for the challenge requirements.
Here is the link to my sign-up for it.

My books:
1. Malice of Fortune by Michael Ennis. Finished February 13 (Italy)
2. The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery. Finished March 15 (France)
3. The White Princess by Philippa Gregory. Finished March 27 (England)
4. A Greyhound of a Girl by Roddy Doyle. Finished July 14 (Ireland)
5. To the Back of Beyond by Peter Stamm. Finished September 18 (Switzerland)

Saving Montgomery Sole

Finished December 31
Saving Montgomery Sole by Mariko Tamaki

This young adult novel has 16-year-old Montgomery Sole at the center. Monty, as she is known to her friends, lives in a small town in coastal California with her two moms, Jo and Kate and her little sister Tesla. Coming from Canada, Monty feels like a misfit in her school, that is until Thomas arrived. Thomas is a year older and a grade above her, but also a bit of a misfit. He is gay, and a thinker and drama enthusiast. The two formed a Mystery Club, which is not about mystery books, but about discussing things they don't understand, or that are mysterious. When new girl Naoki, also part Canadian arrives, she migrates to their group for all the right reasons and as the book opens, the three are fast friends.
There is the usual bullying behaviour by some of the cool guys and gals at school, led by Matt, for the guys, and Madison for the gals. Monty has a bit of a history with Matt, and the betrayal by him makes his actions more personal for her. When another new kid arrives, and Monty finds that his father is the infamous Reverend White, who preaches against the sins of homosexuality, she immediately takes against him.
Monty sees an ad on the internet for something called the Eye of Know and, since it is cheap, decides to order it. When it comes, it isn't what she expected, and she isn't really sure how to use it, but when she tries, it seems to have violent effects.
This is a story of friendship, of families, of the power of belief, and of things and people not always being what they seem.
I loved it.

NewsPrints

Finished December 31
NewsPrints by Ru Xu

This teen graphic novel features a girl, Lavender Blue, who dresses as a boy to work as a newsboy and live at the newspaper's orphanage run by the mayor of Nautilene and his wife. The country they live in, Goswing, is in the tenth year of war against Grimmaea, and many men are away at war. Many others will never return.
As the book begins, Blue is running from a rival group of new deliverers, having trespassed on their turf. She gets away by climbing a fire escape and getting into an abandoned industrial building. There she meets a man who goes by the name of Jack and who seems to be a no-very-successful inventor working on some sort of device to attract birds. She becomes his apprentice, running errands and helping out wherever she can.
On a trip to the shipyards where he plans to meet the admiral in charge, Blue meets the admiral's daughter who has been working as a secretary, and also finds a boy who seems to be living on the edge, a boy who calls himself Crow. As Blue and Crow become friends, and she gradually gains his trust, she increasingly finds herself wanting to be her true self, and reveal her female identity.
This is an interesting story of sexual bias, set in a wartime situation. A story of having the freedom to be who one truly is, without having to hide parts of that, or do what others believe is right for us.

One Day It Happens

Finished December 31
One Day It Happens: Stories by Mary Lou Dickinson

I loved this collection of short stories. Some of the characters appear in more than one story, which is nice. I liked the range of stories here as well. There are stories showing compassion for others, compassion for oneself, and struggles with mental illness.
There are stories of illness and of menace, stories of celebration and of worry. The author gets inside her characters heads in a meaningful way, showing us thought processes, struggles for what to do next in their lives. Their are stories of friendships, of marriages breaking down, of lives starting anew.
I enjoyed all of them. Dickinson is a wonderful writer.

Last Lullaby

Finished December 26
Last Lullaby by Alice Walsh

A mystery set in a small town in Newfoundland, this novel features the main character of Lauren LaVallee, a lawyer who also teaches at the local college. Lauren is a single mom of a 4 year-old daughter, Bailey, having left Bailey's father when she became pregnant, knowing that a child didn't fit into his plans.
The college is widely known for its drama program, and attracts talent from outside the province. Lauren is friends with many of the other professors. One of them is Emma, head of the English department. Emma is also a single mom, with a daughter, Dylan, the same age as Bailey. Both women teach a young woman Jade, who seems to be struggling as a single mom. She hasn't been coming to class or meeting deadlines. They go together to have a talk with Jade. Jade's apartment seems a bit of a mess, but her daughter Cara seems well cared-for, and the two women offer support, but Jade seems too worried about her finances to pay attention.
Lauren is reminded of another friend of hers, Claire, who has recently had a baby, Ariel. Claire has been struggling with postpartum depression, and has delayed her return to work at the college, where she teaches in the drama department. Claire's husband Bram is a local doctor and busy with his practice. Claire's doctor Anya has been helpful, but Claire is still struggling. Lauren makes plans to go see Claire soon.
I liked the characters in the book. There is depth to them. Lauren has some things in her past she isn't proud of, and we gradually find that she isn't the only one with secrets.
Because it is a small town, people connect with each other in more than one way. A local police officer, Rebecca, is also a student in Lauren's legal class at college, and has a child in the same daycare as Bailey. A young man, Patrick, is doing a coop at the daycare, but also sometimes babysits for parents like Jade and Claire. He's nearly finished college and plans to start his own daycare. Two other college teachers, life partners, have just adopted a baby girl, but seem reluctant to have visitors or to bring the baby out for a baby shower. One of them also seems very friendly with Patrick.
When Claire wakes up one afternoon and discovers young Ariel dead, and the death seems to be homicide, Lauren takes the case, and believing in Claire's innocence, looks beyond the obvious, to the possible.
This was a very interesting mystery, and, while I guessed at some things, I didn't figure out others until the end.