Wrap-Up Post for Book Bingo Reading Challenge

 I got a BINGO for this challenge which was hosted here. I was going for a Full House, but did not achieve that

Here's the Bingo Card:

1. About The Woman: Sky Girls by Gene Nora Jessen. Finished January 21

2. In a Land Far Far Away: The Songlines by Bruce Chatwin. Finished January 26

3. That Warm Fuzzy Feeling: Finding Lucy by Eugenie Fernandes. Finished February 2

4. In the Backdrop of War: The Great Halifax Explosion by John U. Bacon. Finished February 6

5. A Book Written by a WOC: Spinster Kang by Zoe Roy. Finished February 29

6. Ye Old Gods: A Finer End by Deborah Crombie. Finished March 31

7. A Genre I Don't Generally Read: A Dance like Flames by Tammy Blackwell. Finished April 28

8. Philosophically Speaking: Machiavelli by Patrick Boucheron. Finished April 20

9. Cult Classic: Fat City by Leonard Gardner. Finished June 1

10. Dystopian World: The Skeleton Coast by Mardi McConnochie. Finished June 12

11. A Book About Our Furry Friends: The Dog Patrol by Rob Laidlaw. Finished June 16

12. Found in Translation: Me and You by Niccolo Ammaniti. Finished July 14

13. Book by an Author from My Country: Once Removed by Andrew Unger. Finished September 29

14. Judged by the Cover: The Bromance Book Club by Lyssa Kay Adams. Finished October 10

15: A Book from a Country I Want to Visit: A Noel Killing by M.L. Longworth. Finished November 1

16. Reliving Days of Fairytales: Cinderella is Dead by Kalynn Bayron. Finished November 20

17. In Support of Indie Publishers: Bomb Girls by Barbara Dickson. Finished December 8

18. A Book about Food: Rosewater and Soda Bread by Marsha Mehran. Finished December 26

19. Your Choice: & Sons by David Gilbert. Finished December 31

Wrap-Up for Backlist Reading Challenge

Backlist Reading Challenge was hosted here

I have far more books than I really should, but I just can't help myself. I usually do a TBR challenge every year, but my usual host stopped doing it, and I saw this one, so decided to try this.
It's a bit different in that you read books published before 2019 that have been on your TBR list for a long time, but you don't have to own them. I mostly chose books that I already owned but haven't read (list here), but liked the ability to choose from the ones I've want to read for a while, but don't own (list here). Both of these lists are from my Goodreads page and that shows the date I added them to my list, so I didn't choose anything I added to the list after 2018.
I also liked that I didn't HAVE to pick them in advance, but could go with the flow of what I felt like reading.

There weren't any designated levels, but I was happy to get these 19 books crossed off my list

1. The Songlines by Bruce Chatwin. Finished January 26. Added to my TBR list in November 2012
2. The Coldwater Warm Hearts Club by Lexi Eddings. Finished February 10. Added to by TBR list in January 2018
3. March by Geraldine Brooks. Finished February 17. Added to my TBR list in November 2012
4. A Princess of Roumania by Paul Park. Finished March 2. Added to my TBR list in September 2017.
5. A Finer End by Deborah Crombie. Finished March 31. Added to my TBR list in August 2017.
6. The Tender Bar by J.R. Moehringer. Finished May 15. Added to my TBR in August 2017
7. Without a Guide edited by Katherine Govier. Finished June 29. Added to my TBR in December 2017
8. The Iron Queen by Julie Kagawa. Finished July 10. Added to my TBR in October 2017
9. The Reluctant Tuscan by Phil Doran. Finished July 12. Added to my TBR in March 2018
10. Closed Casket by Sophie Hannah. Finished July 20. Added to my TBR in October 2017
11. The Swinging Bridge by Ramabai Espinet. Finished August 23. Added to my TBR in August 2017
12. A Circle of Wives by Alice LaPlante. Finished September 7. Added to my TBR pile in August 2018
13. Cathedrals of Flesh by Alexia Brue. Finished September 22. Added to my TBR list in 2004, purchased sometime before 2010.
14. Catch-22 by Joseph Heller. Finished September 28. Added to my TBR list in November 2012.

15. Rough Riders by Mark Lee Gardner. Finished October 27. Added to my TBR list in February 2018

16. Invisible Murder by Lene Kaaberbol and Agnete Friis. Finished November 8. Added to my TBR list in 2012. 
17. District and Circle by Seamus Heaney. Finished November 12. Added to my TBR list in 2006

18. Fire and Ice by Jonathan Mingle. Finished December 14. Added to my TBR list in December 2017.

19. & Sons by David Gilbert. Finished December 31. Added to my TBR list in July 2018

Wrap-Up for Aussie Author Challenge

 The Aussie Author Challenge was hosted here

.
I went for the Wallaroo level, of 6 books, at least 2 female and 2 male and 2 authors new to me.

I did not achieve it, falling short of a second male author. 
1. The Elephant by Peter Carnavas. Finished February 15 (male author, new to me)
2. March by Geraldine Brooks. Finished February 17 (female author)
3.The Skeleton Coast by Mardi McConnochie. Finished June 12 (female author)
4. Music for Tigers by Michelle Kadarusman. Finished July 2 (female author)
5. A Quiet Girl by Peter Carnavas. Finished September 4 (male author)
6. The Weekend by Charlotte Wood. Finished November 15 (female author, new to me)

7. Foreign Correspondence by Geraldine Brooks. Finished December 10 (female author)

Wrap-Up for 52 Books in 52 Weeks Reading Challenge

Hosted here. this challenge has a number of interesting prompts, and that made it a bit more complex. I read 48 to fit the challenge, not quite achieving the 52 I aimed for.

I was successful for the Bingo and the Dusty, but missed on my goals for the Nobel Prize, the Ladies of Fiction, and the 

1. The Half Brother by Lars Saabye Christensen. Finished January 4. Clunky (1)
2. An Island Christmas by Nancy Thayer. Finished January 11  (Bingo)
3. The Songlines by Bruce Chatwin. Finished January 21 (Dusty)
4. Sky Girls by Gene Nora Jessen. Finished January 21 (Bingo)
5. Asleep by Banana Yoshimoto. Finished January 31 (Ladies)
6. The Blue Demon by David Hewson. Finished February 3 (Bingo)
7. The Coldwater Warm Hearts Club by Lexi Eddings. Finished February 10 (Dusty)
8. Something to Remember You By by Gene Wilder. Finished February 12 (Bingo)
9. Secrets at Cedar Cabin by Colleen Coble. Finished February 14 (Bingo)
10. March by Geraldine Brooke. Finished February 17 (Dusty)
11. The Prince and the Pilgrim by Mary Stewart. Finished February 22 (Ladies)
12. A Princess of Roumania by Paul Park. Finished March 2 (Dusty)
13. Parting Shot by Linwood Barclay. Finished March 11 (Bingo)
14. Vintage 1954 by Antoine Laurain. Finished March 20 (Bingo)
15. A Finer End by Deborah Crombie. Finished March 31 (Ladies)

16. Dangerous Waters by Anne Allen. Finished April 3 (Bingo)
17. Nothing Left to Mend by Matt Weaver. Finished April 16 (Bingo)
18. The Stranger in the Woods by Michael Finkel. Finished April 26 (Bingo)
19. A Dance like Flame by Tammy Blackwell. Finished April 28 (Bingo)
20. Machiavelli by Patrick Boucheron. Finished April 20 (Bingo)
21. The Tender Bar by J.R. Moehringer. Finished May 15 (Dusty)
22. Under a Silent Moon by Elizabeth Haynes. Finished May 24 (Bingo)
23. CeeGee's Gift by Joy H. Selak. Finished June 2 (Bingo)
24. The Whitsun Daughters by Carrie Mesrobian. Finished June 10 (Bingo)
25. The Deepest Night by Shana Abe. Finished June 27 (Bingo)
26. Without a Guide edited by Katherine Govier. Finished June 29 (Bingo)
27. The Reluctant Tuscan by Phil Doran. Finished July 12 (Dusty)
28. Closed Casket by Sophie Hannah. Finished July 20 (Dusty)
29. Life in the Studio by Frances Palmer. Finished July 23 (Bingo)
30. Simply Stitched by Yumiko Higuchi. Finished August 9 (Bingo)
31. The Swinging Bridge by Ramabai Espinet. Finished August 23 (Dusty)
32. Roanoke Ridge by J.J. Dupuis. Finished August 31 (Bingo)
33. A Circle of Wives by Alice LaPlante. Finished September 7 (Bingo)
34. Cathedrals of Flesh by Alexia Brue. Finished September 22 (Dusty)
35. Led Astray by Kelley Armstrong. Finished September 27 (Bingo)
36. Catch-22 by Joseph Heller. Finished September 28 (Dusty)

37. Rough Riders by Mark Lee Gardner. Finished October 27 (Bingo)

38. Raven, Rabbit, Deer by Sue Farrell Holler, illustrated by Jennifer Faria. Finished November 4 (Bingo)

39. Invisible Murder by Lene Kaaberbol and Agnete Friis. Finished November 8 (Dusty)

40. District and Circle by Seamus Heaney. Finished November 12 (Nobel)

41. The Grass is Singing by Doris Lessing. Finished November 13 (Nobel)

42. A World of Mindfulness by Pajama Press. Finished December 2 (Bingo)

43. Journey to the Hopewell Star by Hannah D. State. Finished December 4 (Bingo)

44. Fire and Ice by Jonathan Mingle. Finished December 14 (Bingo)

45. Maker Literacy by Lynn Pawloski and Cindy Wall. Finished June 16 (Bingo)

46. Undercover Bromance by Lyssa Kay Adams. Finished December 19 (Bingo)

47. & Sons by David Gilbert. Finished December 31 (Dusty)

48. Jane Austen by Claire Tomalin. Finished December 31 (Bingo)

There is a Bingo associated with the Challenge and I completed that successfully, even getting one including the Bonus squares.

Whimsical - An Island Christmas by Nancy Thayer. Finished January 11 

Enlighten Me! - Sky Girls by Gene Nora Jessen. Finished January 21

Angels and Demons - The Blue Demon by David Hewson. Finished February 3

Soldier - Something to Remember You By by Gene Wilder. Finished February 12

Outlaws and Lawmen - Secrets at Cedar Cabin by Colleen Coble. Finished February 14

Fourth in a series: Parting Shot by Linwood Barclay. Finished March 11

Pick a number: Vintage 1954 by Antoine Laurain. Finished March 20

Mysterious: Dangerous Waters by Anne Allen. Finished April 3

Noir: Nothing Left to Mend by Matt Weaver. Finished April 16

Reality Check: The Stranger in the Woods by Michael Finkel. Finished April 26

Steampunk: A Dance like Flame by Tammy Blackwell. Finished April 28

Renaissance: Machiavelli by Patrick Boucheron. Finished April 20

Whodunit: Under a Silent Moon by Elizabeth Haynes. Finished May 24

Use the force, Luke: CeeGee's Gift by Joy H. Selak. Finished June 2

Ghosts and Goblins: The Whitsun Daughters by Carrie Mesrobian. Finished June 10

Transformative: The Deepest Night by Shana Abe. Finished June 27

Four Corners: Without a Guide edited by Katherine Govier. Finished June 29

Artist: Life in the Studio by Frances Palmer. Finished July 23

Creative: Simply Stitched by Yumiko Higuchi. Finished August 9

Top of a Mountain: Roanoke Ridge by J.J. Dupuis. Finished August 31

Femme Fatale: A Circle of Wives by Alice LaPlante. Finished September 7

Vampires and Werewolves: Led Astray by Kelley Armstrong. Finished September 27

Cowboy: Rough Riders by Mark Lee Gardner. Finished October 27

Four Legged Animals: Rabbit, Raven, Deer by Sue Farrell Holler, illustrated by Jennifer Faria. Finished November 4

Off the Grid: A World of Mindfulness by Pajama Press. Finished December 2 

Beam me up Scotty: Journey to the Hopewell Star by Hannah D. State. Finished December 4

Elemental: Fire and Ice by Jonathan Mingle. Finished December 14

Technology: Maker Literacy by Lynn Pawloski and Cindy Wall. Finished June 16 

Computer Hacker: Undercover Bromance by Lyssa Kay Adams. Finished December 197

Free Book: Jane Austen by Claire Tomalin

Another part of this one is the Ladies of Fiction Bookology. This one was definitely a challenge, and I didn't get very many of these. I was aiming to read one book by the author in the given month, and I only got the first 3 months.

Each month you'll have the opportunity to explore different authors, characters, countries, and genres.  There are a number of ways to complete the challenge, including but not limited to:  

• Spell out the author's name - one book per letter from the title on the cover.
• Read one or more books written by the author. 
• Read a book written in the country or time period of the author.

Ladies of Fiction
Hosted by Read 52 Books in 52 Weeks
Month	Author	Genre
January	Banana Yoshimoto	Literary Fiction
February	Mary Stewart	Mystery, Romantic Suspense, and Arthurian Fantasy
March	Deborah Crombie	Crime Fiction
April	Elizabeth Hunter	Romance, Contemporary fantasy, and Paranormal mystery
May	Sharon Kay Penman	Historical Fiction
June	N.K. Jemisin	Science Fiction / fantasy
July	M.M. Kaye	Historical Fiction and Mystery
August	Nalini Singh	Paranormal Romance
September	Sarah Dunant	Renaissance historical fiction and Thrillers
October	Jayne Ann Krentz aka Amanda Quick aka Jayne Castle	Romantic Suspense, Historical and Paranormal
November	Cherie Priest	Steampunk, Horror and Mystery
December	Rumer Godden	Literary Fiction

Another subcategory of this challenge that I'm considering is the Nobel Prize Winners. Here is the information for that:

The Nobel Prize Winners in Literature  

In 2010, I took a Nobel Literature class and thoroughly enjoyed it. Although it was a lot of work, I read several books that probably normally would never have considered reading including Jean Paul Sartre's Nausea, Thomas Mann's Magic Mountain, Gabriel Garcia Marquez's One Hundred Years of Solitude,and Kenzaburo Oe's The Silent Cry.  After reading these books, it made me want to read more selections from the literature prize list. Since then, I've read books by one or two authors from the list each year. Join me in reading the authors who won the Nobel Prize for Literature.  

Baby Steps:  2 Books

Toddler:  4 books

Adolescent:  6 Books

Teenager:  8 or more Books

I went for adolescent on this part of the challenge, but only achieved the Baby Steps level

1. District and Circle by Seamus Heaney. Finished November 12 (Winner 1995)

2. The Grass is Singing by Doris Lessing. Finished November 13 (Winner 2007)

I'm also going to commit to the Dusty and Chunky subchallenge

I knew I wouldn't stop buying books (I know myself too well to even consider that, plus I have some subscriptions I want to continue), but I committed to levels for both Dusty and Chunky.
For Dusty, I committed to Beyond the Sea level at 8 books and achieved that easily, but for Chunky, I committed to Down to the Water Line to get some of those behemoths moving off my TBR shelf and didn't even manage The Tide is High level.

Dusty and/or Chunky Mini Challenge

The dusty books are the ones that have been sitting on your shelves for a while - you know which ones.

The chunky books are more than 500 pages long and will take a bit more time, but oh so worth it. 

Dusty Books

Safe in the Harbor - 2 Books

Sail on Sweet Sister - 4 Books

Life in the Dark Water  - 6 Books

Beyond the Sea  - 8 Books

The Voyage  - 10 Books or more

Chunky Books - Come Sail Away 

The Tide is High  - 2 books

Down to the Water Line  - 4 books

Big Boat  - 6 books

 Big Ship Sailing  - 8 books

Mother Ocean  - 10 books or more

Chunky
1. The Half Brother by Lars Saabye Christensen. Finished January 4 (764 pages)

Dusty:
1. The Songlines by Bruce Chatwin. Finished January 21 (on my shelf since at least 2012)
2. The Coldwater Warm Hearts Club by Lexi Eddings. Finished February 10 (on my shelf since 2016)
3. March by Geraldine Brooks. Finished February 17 (on my shelf since at least 2012)
4. A Princess of Roumania by Paul Park. Finished March 2 (on my shelf since September 2017)
5. The Tender Bar by J.R. Moehringer. Finished May 15 (on my shelf since August 2017)
6. The Reluctant Tuscan by Phil Doran. Finished July 12 (on my shelf since March 2018)
7. Closed Casket by Sophie Hannah. Finished July 20 (on my shelf since October 2017)
8. The Swinging Bridge by Ramabai Espinet. Finished August 23 (on my shelf since at least August 2017)
9. Cathedrals of the Flesh by Alexia Brue. Finished September 22 (on my shelf since sometime before 2010)
10. Catch-22 by Joseph Heller. Finished September 28 (on my shelf since November 2012)

11. Invisible Murder by Lene Kaaberbol and Agnete Friis (on my TBR since 2012)

12. & Sons by David Gilbert (on my TBR since July 2018)

Wrap-Up for 20/20 Reading Challenge

This was a new challenge for 2020

It sounded fun, but I didn't complete it, ending 4 books short.

It's hosted here.

There are 20 categories that have you reading 10 fiction and 10 nonfiction books. 

I read 9 Fiction books and 7 Nonfiction that fit the challenge categories. I had the most trouble with the last category as I had few books on my list that the host had read.

The Categories:

1. Crime fiction or True Crime

   The Wings of the Sphinx by Andrea Camilleri. Finished January 5 (Crime Fiction)

2. A book set in the country where you are currently residing (so that's Canada for me)

   The Great Halifax Explosion by John U. Bacon. Finished February 6 (Nonfiction)

3. A book with a (mostly) white cover

   Protecting Pollinators by Jodi Helmer. Finished July 28 (Nonfiction)

4. A book with day or night in the titles

DID NOT COMPLETE THIS

5. LGBTQ related title (fiction or nonfiction)

  Written in the Stars by Alexandria Bellefleur. Finished March 12 (Fiction)

6. Book originally published in the 1990s

   Land Girls by Angela Huth. Finished August 16 (Published 1994) (Fiction)

7. Book about mental health / dealing with mental illness
   The Neuroscientist Who Lost Her Mind by Barbara K. Lipska. Finished July 19 (Nonfiction)

8. A humour book

DID NOT COMPLETE THIS

9. A book from an author you chose for another category in this challenge

    Foreign Correspondence by Geraldine Brooks. Finished December 10 (Nonfiction)

10. A book with 11 letters/characters in the title (excluding spaces and punctuation)
    Vintage 1954 by Antoine Laurain. Finished March 20 (Fiction)

11. An epistolary book

    Ambulance No. 10 by Leslie Buswell. Finished October 14 (Nonfiction)

12. A book with a calendar month in the title

    March by Geraldine Brooks. Finished February 17. (Fiction)

13. A book you read in your childhood days

DID NOT COMPLETE THIS

14. Book translated into English from another language

    Machiavelli by Patrick Boucheron. Finished April 20 (Nonfiction)

15. Book with more than 500 pages

    The Half Brother by Lars Saabye Christensen. Finished January 4 (764 pages)(Fiction)

16. A book that has something to do with sports

     Sky Girls by Gene Nora Jessen. Finished January 21 (Nonfiction)

17. An illustrated book

     What Cats Think by Mies van Hout, text by John Spray. Finished January 12 (Fiction)

18. A wartime book (fiction or nonfiction)

     The Last Train to London by Meg Waite Clayton. Finished January 15 (Fiction)

19. A book that has won the Sahitya Akademi Award for English

     The Sari Shop by Rupa Bajwa. (Fiction)

20. A book earlier reviewed by the host of the challenge. 

DID NOT COMPLETE THIS

Wrap Up Post for European Reading Challenge

 I did the European Reading Challenge again for 2020. This time I got to 14 countries.

I went for the 5 star level and achieved it.

1. The Half Brother by Lars Saabye Christensen. Finished January 4 (Norway)
2. The Wings of the Sphinx by Andrea Camilleri. Finished January 5 (Italy)
3. The Last Train to London by Meg Waite Clayton. Finished January 15 (Austria)
4. A Princess of Roumania by Paul Park. Finished March 2 (Romania)
5. Vintage 1954 by Antoine Laurain. Finished March 20 (France)
6. A Finer End by Deborah Crombie. Finished March 31 (England)
7. Unwanted by Kristina Ohlsson. Finished May 3 (Sweden)
8. The Dream Stitcher by Deborah Gaal. Finished May 26 (Poland)
9. A Perfect Waiter by Alain Claude Sulzer. Finished July 25 (Switzerland)
10. The Ignorance of Blood by Robert Wilson. Finished August 8 (Spain)
11. Marrow and Bone by Walter Kempowski. Finished September 6 (Poland)
12. Ever After by Olivia Vieweg. Finished October 21 (Germany)

13. Invisible Murder by Lene Kaaberbol and Agnete Friis (Denmark)

14. Rosewater and Soda Bread by Marsha Mehran (Ireland)

Wrap-Up Post for What's In a Name Challenge for 2020

I've skipped this one the last couple years, but I've always liked it so decided to add it again. I managed to finish the last one just a couple of hours before the deadline to complete the challenge.

It's hosted here.
This year the six things to have in a book title are:
* an ampersand

& Sons by David Gilbert. Finished December 31
* an antonym

Fire and Ice by Jonathan Mingle. Finished December 14
* 4 letters or less
Lark by Anthony McGowan. Finished August 15
* a given name
Spinster Kang by Zoe Roy. Finished February 29
* reference to children
A Quiet Girl by Peter Carnavas. Finished September 4
* one of the four natural elements

Dangerous Waters by Anne Allen. Finished April 3