Bookbugg's 2011 Challenge

Discussie75 Books Challenge for 2011

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Bookbugg's 2011 Challenge

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1Feefy
jan 4, 2011, 10:44 am

Greetings! This is my third year on Library Thing but my first year on the 75 Book Challenge. Last year I read 40 books but am hoping to do better in 2011. My favourites of 2010 were Atonement by Ian McEwan, I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith, The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger, and A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving. Worthy of special mention were The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield, The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon, Wedlock by Wendy Moore and The Help by Kathryn Stockett.

My thread from last year is here;
http://www.librarything.com/talktopic.php?topic=81081
Thanks to all my LT pals who left me messages :)

I seem to have hundreds of books on my TBR list. My objective for 2011 is to clear a few off the list and also to read more of the classics. I have Great Expectations, Anna Karenina, The House of Mirth and North and South lined up. As with last year, I'll try to write a short review of every book I read and I would love if some other LTers stopped by my thread the odd time :)

Happy New Year to everyone and best of luck with your challenges x

2nancyewhite
jan 4, 2011, 10:47 am

Welcome to the 75ers! I look forward to reading your reviews and seeing what you read.

Good luck with your goals!

3Feefy
jan 4, 2011, 12:56 pm

Thanks for the welcome Nancy, I am looking forward to the challenge and to hearing everyone's recommendations!

4bunkie68
jan 4, 2011, 1:03 pm

Hi Bookbugg, and welcome to the group! I can relate to the neverending TBR pile - mine seems to get bigger every time I turn around. LOL And perhaps you'll inspire me to read more of the classics, too - for an English major, I've read surprisingly few of them.

Lisa

5drneutron
jan 4, 2011, 3:19 pm

Welcome!

6lyzard
jan 4, 2011, 5:53 pm

More classics is good - star! :)

7Ygraine
jan 4, 2011, 6:09 pm

Looks like we've enjoyed some similar books. I can't wait to see what you read next as I have a feeling I'm going to get lots of recommendations from you.

8Feefy
jan 4, 2011, 7:39 pm

Thanks for the warm welcome folks!

9KLmesoftly
jan 4, 2011, 11:57 pm

Good luck this year! I'll be reading Anna Karenina, too - it seems like a few of us are tackling that one.

10PersephonesLibrary
jan 5, 2011, 2:54 am

McEwan and Irving as favorites? More classics for this year? Starred.

11alcottacre
jan 5, 2011, 6:44 am

Glad to have you with us!

We have an introductions thread here: http://www.librarything.com/topic/104688 if you want to stop in and meet everybody.

12Feefy
jan 6, 2011, 7:23 pm

Hi, thanks for the tip re the introductions thread!

Ok. I have just completed a 'bookshelf audit' to discover that I have 90, yes NINETY books unread. And I'm not going to lie to you, my fellow LTers - I am expecting a few more for my birthday in a couple of weeks time. Last year I managed 40 books but even if I pick up my pace I easily have enough to keep me going for the next two or three years. So under NO CIRCUMSTANCES am I allowed to acquire any new books. Unless its a special occasion.

Please tell me I am not the only one with this problem?!

13alcottacre
jan 7, 2011, 12:02 am

#12: You are not the only one with the problem. I have over 1000 unread books at my house :)

14Ygraine
jan 7, 2011, 4:50 am

My pile of unread books tips the scale at a little over 700 at the moment, so you shouldn't be too worried just yet.

15Feefy
jan 7, 2011, 5:26 am

A THOUSAND?! SEVEN HUNDRED?! Ok I suddenly feel a WHOLE lot better :) Maybe I can go and order some extra books after all......

16lyzard
jan 7, 2011, 5:38 am

My wishlist is over 6,500 books, but I own hardly any of them, so I'm not sure if that counts. However, I am---well, not reading through them so much as nibbling around the edges.

17alcottacre
jan 7, 2011, 6:26 am

#16: Well, if we are counting wishlists too and not just the unread books, the BlackHole is over 10,000 - and getting bigger all the time unfortunately.

18lyzard
jan 7, 2011, 6:31 am

Well, I guess I can stop feeling bad about THAT, anyway.

19alcottacre
jan 7, 2011, 6:41 am

I refuse to feel bad about the size of the BlackHole. I know I will never get to them all in my lifetime, but it is the fun of having a ton there to choose from, whatever mood I am in, as well as the fun of actually tracking down the desired books :)

20JanetinLondon
jan 7, 2011, 7:11 am

Hi, and welcome to the group! I have read three of the four books you have lined up for the year so far, so will be interested to see what you say about them.

21Morphidae
jan 7, 2011, 7:24 am

OMG! I thought I was the only one with a wishlist in the thousands. I feel so much better. Are yours in a searchable database with queries and stuff, like mine?

22alcottacre
jan 7, 2011, 7:42 am

#21: I keep mine listed out on Goodreads.

23lyzard
jan 7, 2011, 3:44 pm

>>19 alcottacre: as well as the fun of actually tracking down the desired books :)

YES!!

24Feefy
jan 7, 2011, 6:32 pm

I am so ashamed. My book embargo lasted a mere 24 hours. If even. I bought The Little Stranger by Sarah Waters this afternoon. I can't believe I crumbled so quickly. (*bookbugg hangs head in shame*)

25nancyewhite
jan 7, 2011, 6:35 pm

Well, it is Sarah Waters don't be too ashamed.

I also have 1000+ unread books I actually own and a wishlist of 400+. I'm preparing for retirement :-)

26alcottacre
jan 8, 2011, 4:14 am

#25: I'm preparing for retirement :-)

Or the WWBF, whichever comes first, right?

27Ygraine
jan 8, 2011, 3:57 pm

If you were going to break a book embargo, than that's a good book to do it for. I read The Little Stranger in 2010 and loved it.

28Whisper1
feb 2, 2011, 12:10 pm

Hi
I'm making a concerted effort to connect with each of our members because I'm compiling a list of birthdays.. If you haven't done so already, would you mind stopping by this thread and posting yours.

Thanks.

http://www.librarything.com/topic/105833

29Feefy
mrt 11, 2011, 4:39 am

Hi Folks, have been having a crazy 2011 and haven't found the time to update my thread (or read much for that matter). But here is my list for the year so far;

1. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
2. Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins
3. Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins

Really enjoyed the first two in The Hunger Games trilogy but I thought the story flagged a little in the third one.

4. People of the Book by Geraldine Brooks

I thought this was a brilliant book. A novel about the history of the 'Sarajevo Haggadah' and all the hands and European countries it had passed through over the centuries. Very interesting glance at how deeply ingrained anti-Semitism was throughout Europe over the ages. I can't recommend this book highly enough.

5. Burnt Shadows by Kamila Shamsie

I found this a very readable book but I have to say it wouldn't be a favourite. I thought it was slightly too broad in scope - it starts with the dropping of the Atomic Bomb on Nagasaki, moves on to the Partition days in Delhi, on to the war against the Soviets in Pakistan, then the destruction of the Twin Towers on 9.11, the ensuing war in Afghanistan and finally ends in Guantanamo. The characters were a little difficult to relate to although I really liked the relationship between Hiroko and Sajjad.

6. Room by Emma Donoghue

I thought this was a brilliant book - I can't begin to imagine how difficult it is to write convincingly from the perspective of a 5 year old boy but Emma Donoghue does it perfectly. Inspired by the Fritzl case, it is the story of a young boy and his mother trapped in 'Room' by an evil rapist who kidnapped the mother when she was 19. The little boy cannot quite comprehend that there is anything outside this limited space and has grave difficulties when they finally escape.

So that has been my reading so far this year. I am currently in the middle of Great Expectations by Charles Dickens and Excellent Women by Barbara Pym.

30Morphidae
mrt 11, 2011, 7:05 am

I love everything I've read by Geraldine Brooks. Have you read anything else by her?

31Feefy
mrt 11, 2011, 7:21 am

Hi Morphidae,
That was the first Geraldine Brooks book I read but it would definitely make me want to read more! I recently acquired a copy of March which I hope to devour soon. I would also be interested in reading the one about the plague, I think it's called Year of Wonders. What ones would you recommend?

32Morphidae
mrt 11, 2011, 7:50 am

Let's see. I gave Nine Parts of Desire (nonfiction) 9 out of 10 stars. March and Year of Wonders 8 stars and People of the Book 7 stars.

So, anything really.

33Feefy
mrt 13, 2011, 8:17 am

I didn't realise she had any non-fiction works - I just looked up Nine Parts of Desire and it looks very interesting - another one for Mount TBR!

7. Excellent Women by Barbara Pym

A comfortable read about dreary church-going spinster Mildred Lathbury, on whom everyone relies. Lovely writing, and quite witty in parts - but a bit dull by the end.

34Sandydog1
mrt 13, 2011, 8:37 am

Hey literary arthropod; you've had some great reads! I'm adding People of the Book and Nine Parts of Desire to my own version of a black hole.

Well, it's not really so big, it's not like that OTHER black hole we all know about. Mine's really only about 1,300 titles. It's more like a red dwarf.

35gennyt
mrt 18, 2011, 4:16 pm

Hi Bookbugg - I read Burnt Shadows for a book group last year. I agree about the rather too broad scope, though I thought the exploration of personal relationships across nationalities and changing political realities was good.

36Feefy
mei 8, 2011, 3:44 pm

Hi Sandydog and Gennyt, thanks for stopping by :)

8. The House at Riverton by Kate Morton
This is the story of young Grace, who goes into service at the grand house at Riverton, and observes all the tragedies befalling the family, including the suspicious death of a young poet at a summer party shortly after WW1. Gothic and suspenseful. Recommended.

9. The Age of Shiva by Manil Suri
Although I think this was a very well written book, I didn't really love it. I've read a good few books about India in the last couple of years, and feel that I would recommend A Fine Balance by Rohinton Mistry or The White Tiger by Aravind Adiga over this. This is the story of Meera, a young middle class girl who makes a bad match and marries a man she does not really love. She is dominated by her husband, her father, her sister and her in-laws. However, she is not a particularly likeable character, and I felt quite unsympathetic despite the awful things that happened to her - she seemed to almost wish that misery would befall her so that she could blame other people for all her problems. About three quarters of the way through, the story takes a peculiar turn and incest becomes a central theme.

10. Major Pettigrew's Last Stand by Helen Simonson
Thoroughly enjoyable read - loved the Major and found the writing very witty. Two thumbs up.

11. Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen
Loved loved loved this book. I could barely put it down. A young man runs away and joins the circus, falling in love with performer Marlena, but making several enemies on the way. An interesting author's note follows the novel - it seems that many of the incidents, particularly those involving lovable elephant Rosie, actually have their basis in fact. I really can't recommend this book highly enough :)

37alcottacre
mei 9, 2011, 12:49 am

#36: A couple of my recent favorites there - Major Pettigrew and Water for Elephants. I am glad to see you enjoyed them too!

38Feefy
mei 9, 2011, 4:38 pm

Hi Stasia, I have to say that although I'm not reading as much as I'd like to this year (started two new jobs, planning a wedding etc!) I am really enjoying almost everything I am reading. Don't know how I'm going to top Major Pettigrew and Water for Elephants now!

39Feefy
mei 20, 2011, 6:10 pm

12. Enduring Love by Ian McEwan

Good, but I didn't like it as much as Atonement or On Chesil Beach which I read last year. Nonetheless, I think that Ian McEwan is just a brilliant writer.

40alcottacre
mei 21, 2011, 12:06 am

Have you read Saturday by McEwan yet? I loved that one!

41Feefy
mei 22, 2011, 4:36 pm

Nope haven't read that one yet but I think my mom has it so I might pinch it off her!

42alcottacre
mei 23, 2011, 8:41 am

I will be interested in seeing what you think of it when you have a chance to read it.

43Feefy
mei 30, 2011, 4:50 pm

13. Fatherland by Robert Harris

This book is set in the 60s in an alternative world where Hitler & Germany won the Second World War. Enter SS officer March, who investigates the deaths of several high ranking governmental officials. At the start this seemed like an ordinary run of the mill detective thriller, and the setting a mere gimmick. However, it takes a turn for the better about half way through when March starts delving deeper. He discovers the secret shared by the dead men and documentation proving what actually happened to the 11 million Jews that were 'evacuated' during the war.

Clearly a very interesting premise. I thought Harris painted the scene very well - a 'racially pure' society dominated by fear and discipline. What a terrifying place the world would have become had Hitler succeeded.

I would recommend but only if you enjoy thrillers.

44Feefy
mei 30, 2011, 4:51 pm

Just started White Teeth by Zadie Smith this morning.

45alcottacre
mei 31, 2011, 12:49 am

#43: That one interests me. I will have to see if my local library has it.

46gennyt
jun 10, 2011, 1:28 pm

#44 How are you liking White Teeth? I read that one a few years back and enjoyed it.

47Feefy
jun 10, 2011, 6:51 pm

Hi gennyt I'm finding it a bit slow to be honest but I'm going to reserve judgment for the moment as I'm only half way through. I've heard such positive things about Zadie Smith so I'll definitely stick with the book til the end.

Does anyone know whether there is any sign of a library thing iPhone app?

48aktakukac
jun 12, 2011, 2:33 pm

Hi, I just found your thread for this year. I'm glad you liked The House at Riverton. I read that one last year and it was one of my favorites. I also enjoyed Major Pettigrew's Last Stand last year. I'm going to try to read something by Zadie Smith later this year.

49Feefy
Bewerkt: jun 26, 2011, 9:35 am

Hi Aktakukac, thanks for stopping by!

14. The Irish Bride's Survival Guide - by Natasha Mac a'Bhaird

Ok this is probably cheating, but it's 300 pages long and I read it cover to cover! So it's going on the list :)

It has some great tips!

Nearly finished White Teeth which was a slow burner to start but I'm really enjoying it now.

50Feefy
jul 3, 2011, 5:20 pm

15. White Teeth by Zadie Smith

This is the story of three fairly dysfunctional families - the Iqbals (Bangladeshi), the Jones (Jamaican-British) and the Chalfens (o so British). I don't really know what to say about it except that I absolutely loved parts of this book but found other parts extremely dull. I wouldn't be rushing out to read another of this author's books, though according to my sister On Beauty is far better.

Onwards and upwards! Just started reading Her Fearful Symmetry by Audrey Niffenegger.

51Morphidae
jul 3, 2011, 6:53 pm

Well, if that's the case, I probably won't ever read White Teeth as I couldn't finish On Beauty. It was boring and I didn't like any of the characters.

52Feefy
jul 4, 2011, 3:23 am

I think Morphidae that the pair of us would be better off leaving the world of Zadie Smith untouched!

53Feefy
aug 7, 2011, 6:25 pm

16. Her Fearful Symmetry by Audrey Niffenegger

Very hard not to compare this to the Time Traveler's Wife. It's a good book if judged on its own merits but isn't even a fraction as good as Time Traveler.

Nonetheless, Niffenegger certainly comes up with some interesting and very original plots, and I think the best thing about her is that she makes things that are totally farfetched seem absolutely normal. Middle-aged Aunt leaves London apartment (overlooking Highgate Cemetery) to her two American nieces on her death, on the condition that they journey to England and live there for a year. Of course the aunt has now returned as a ghost and is haunting the flat. Interesting though not particularly likeable characters, and good plot twists. Worth checking out.

17. A Year of Wonders by Geraldine Brooks

I had to look this one up on the basis of Morphidae's recommendation earlier this year (Thanks Morphidae!). This book was right up my street as I love historical fiction. Told through the eyes of Anna (miner's widow turned midwife/healer), it is the story of a little English village that went into voluntary quarantine when struck by the Plague. Brooks doesn't leave much to the imagination in her description of the symptoms of the plague, so if you are weak of stomach, I'd advise giving this slightly gruesome tale a miss!

I have enjoyed the two Brooks books I read this year so much. I have March sitting on my shelf and will certainly be giving it a whirl shortly.

18. The Birth House by Ami McKay

Story about a young midwife in Nova Scotia around the time of the first World War. Very readable but a bit predicatable. Interesting look at the friction between the world of male dominated modern medicine and the world of traditional women's wisdom.

And that's all for now. Over the weekend I got Oranges are Not the Only Fruit by Jeanette Winterson, The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood, The Distant Hours by Kate Morton and Boy by Roald Dahl. So I have plenty to choose from for book #19.

54Morphidae
aug 7, 2011, 7:57 pm

Glad you liked A Year of Wonders! Everything but her latest has been a hit with me.

55alcottacre
aug 8, 2011, 8:55 am

I am also a big Brooks fan. I hope you enjoy March.

56Feefy
aug 20, 2011, 7:42 pm

Morphidae, any other good recommendations please throw them my way!

19. Breakfast at Tiffany's by Truman Capote

Novella about New York It-girl Holly Golightly. The writing is about as close to perfection as you can get.

Currently reading Julia Child's autobiography My Life in France. Enjoying it so far and will keep you posted.

57KLmesoftly
aug 22, 2011, 12:41 pm

I read Breakfast at Tiffany's in 2009 and LOVED it. Agreed on the beautiful writing.

58Morphidae
aug 23, 2011, 6:35 am

How about Garden Spells by Sarah Addison Allen? I just read it and it made my top books of 2011 list.

59Feefy
sep 8, 2011, 6:03 pm

Any recommendations by you Morphidae are good with me! Just logged on and ordered it. Might be a while before I get around to it though. My reading has more or less slowed to a standstill as am so busy with my wedding coming up in three weeks! Am still only halfway through My Life in France and have also just started Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro. Enjoying it so far.

60Feefy
Bewerkt: okt 3, 2011, 4:50 am

Bookbugg has joined the league of married women!

In the airport now, about to embark on honeymoon to the US. Hopefully loads of time for reading :)

61drneutron
okt 3, 2011, 8:55 am

Congrats! Hope your trip is a good one.

62Feefy
okt 22, 2011, 9:03 pm

Thanks drneutron! We had a wonderful time in the States, so much to see and do that there was not as much time as I anticipated for reading (what a surprise!).

20. Evergreen by Belva Plain

Nicely written epic centering around Anna, a young Polish Jew who emigrates to New York in the early 1900s. Impressive story spanning the Wall Street Crash of 1929, World War 2 and the Holocaust, the Vietman War and onwards. A good read though sad in parts as tragedy seems to repeatedly hit the family. Generally melancholy.

21. Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro

Dystopian science fiction novel set in 1970s England. The story opens in Hailsham, a boarding school where the students are 'special', and exist for a specific sinister purpose. Surprisingly touching and beautifully written. I will certainly be checking out some other titles by this author.

63Morphidae
okt 23, 2011, 6:26 am

I loved The Remains of the Day by Ishiguro even more than Never Let Me Go.

64Feefy
okt 23, 2011, 8:32 am

O I have The Remains of the Day on my shelf! Will tackle that shortly!

65aktakukac
okt 24, 2011, 3:13 pm

Congratulations! Sounds like you had a busy trip...and in that case, it's fine that you didn't have as much time for reading!

66Feefy
okt 31, 2011, 6:45 pm

It was an epic trek across the States! We had such a wonderful time though that I barely even noticed that I wasn't doing much reading.

22. Julie and Julia by Julie Powell

Julie Powell decides to cook her way through the Julia Child cookbook, "Mastering the Art of French Cooking" in one year. That is 524 relatively elaborate recipes in 365 days. Yikes. Initially I picked this book up essentially for the 'food porn'! However, many of the recipes Julie describes in this book to my humble palate sound intensely unappetising. Think liver, brains, beef jellies and artichokes as her staple ingredients. So it didn't exactly get me running to the kitchen to cook up a storm.

What I was not expecting was how funny this book was. I laughed out loud a LOT reading her hilarious descriptions of her life as a temp in a government agency, her calamitous attempts at some of the recipes, and her relationship with her long-suffering husband. So if you are down in the dumps, looking for a light read and a bit of a chuckle, this is your book.

As an aside, I am also half way through Julia Child's autobiography, My Life in France. Which obviously ties in nicely with the above mentioned Julie and Julia. Finding it a tiny bit dull at this point though. Will persevere.

67Feefy
Bewerkt: dec 10, 2011, 6:55 am

23. Becoming Jane Eyre by Sheila Kohler

Very readable biography, primarily about Charlotte Bronte but also about Emily and Anne. Amazing how these girls were able to draw from their very limited experiences of the world to produce the most wonderful of stories. I would recommend this book.

24. The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood

I seem to have read an awful lot of dystopian novels this year. Curious. This one was particularly good. In an ultra religious society, women have been stripped of all rights - they cannot hold property, they are not allowed to read or write, and each must fulfil a very specific role in society. This is the story of Offred, a 'Handmaid' whose sole purpose is to breed. Very well written, but fairly bleak.

68Feefy
jan 10, 2012, 4:44 pm

Last two books of 2011;

25. Starter for Ten by David Nicholls

Enjoyable tale of the difference between knowledge and wisdom. Young man goes to University in the 80s. Give it a whirl, especially if you liked One Day.

26. The Distant Hours by Kate Morton

Gothic style mystery about the Sisters Blythe. This book went on too long and the 'grand reveal' isn't all that grand. That sounds like a scathing review but in actual fact I quite enjoyed it. Though not as much as The House at Riverton by the same author which I read earlier in the year.

And there we go. A disappointing year numbers wise, though in my defence I changed jobs twice and got married. So i had other things on my mind. Better luck for 2012!!

Thanks to all who stopped by this year, I hope you'll stop by my 2012 thread, details of which are to follow.