Challenge: Birth Year Reading Challenge

THE CHALLENGE

I am finally officially signing up for the Birth Year Reading Challenge hosted by Hotchpot Cafe. The idea is to read books published in the year of your birth. There is no set number of books to read, but you earn a "candle" for each book and the participant with the most candles by December 31, 2010 wins a pretty terrific prize.

THE YEAR: 1966

Then came 1966, a remarkable year altogether: a Jewish child was born in Spain for the first time in 374 years, Ronald Reagan was elected boss of California, Indira Gandhi was elected boss of India, the Soviets landed a Luna spacecraft on the moon, John Lennon opined dryly that the Beatles were more popular than Jesus, Haile Selassie visited Jamaica, the Grateful Dead moved to a house on Haight Street, the Americans landed a Surveyor spacecraft on the moon, Montgomery Cliff died, the Beatles released Revolver, "Star Trek" was first televised, Namibia declared independence, Jimmy Hendrix changed his name to Jimi, LSD was declared illegal, Catholics began to eat meat on Fridays, Barbados declared independence, the Americans bombed Hanoi, Walt Disney died, Kwanzaa was invented, Tom Stoppard wrote Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead, Arlo Guthrie wrote "Alice's Restaurant," Hewlett-Packard introduced its first computer, Buster Keaton died, Guyana declared its independence, Malaysia and Indonesia declared peace, taekwando was invented, Lesotho declared independence, Thich Nhat Hanh visited America, [and] Bill Evans opened a long run at the Village Vanguard jazz club . . .

-- The Grail: A Year Ambling & Shambling Through an Oregon Vinyard in Pursuit of the Best Pinot Noir Wine in the Whole Wild World by Brian Doyle (leading up to the point that 1966 was also the first year that pinor noir vines were planted in Oregon, giving birth to Oregon's wine industry).

THE BOOKS

It's hard to say how many books I will read this year that will earn me a candle. There are probably several books on my TBR shelf that were published in 1966, but without going through them all, it is hard to guess which ones. As I stumble across them, I will add them to the list of possibilities.

I'd like to stick with books I already own, since I have so many to get through. But there are a couple of books published in 1966 that have captured my fancy and I am keeping my eye out for.

So far, my possibilities include:


I, the King by Frances Parkinson-Keyes (I'm a big FPK fan and found this one at a library store the other day)

The Comedians by Graham Greene (on my TBR shelf)

The Anti-Death League by Kinglsey Amis (which I do not own, but would like to because Amis is one of my all-time favorites)

Valley of the Dolls by Jacqueline Susann (which I do not own yet, but what a great excuse)

REVIEWS = CANDLES

Indian Summer by John Knowles (reviewed here)

NOTE

Last updated on May 29, 2010.

Challenge Update: Battle of the Prizes, American Version

Congratulations to Caitlin at chaotic compendiums for being the first participant to complete the 2010 Battle of the Prizes, American Version!

Caitlin read and reviewed the following three books for this challenge:

National Book Award - World's Fair by E.L. Doctorow (reviewed here)
Pulitzer Prize - Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry (reviewed here)
Double-Dipper - The Color Purple by Alice Walker (reviewed here)

She also wrote a very thoughtful wrap-up post about her three choices and the challenge.

Laura at Musings is close on Caitlin's heels. But Laura elected to read two Pulitzer winners and two National winners instead of one of each and a double-dipper. So she has one more book to go.

You can find the links to Laura's three-so-far reviews and other terrific reviews from challenge participants on the main challenge post..

Again, thanks to all the participants! And there is still plenty of time to sign up because the challenge involves reading only three books by the end of January 2010.

State of the Blog, Part Two: The Challenges

Spring has sprung.  The pink trees are blooming and Easter is on the way. It is time to assess what bookery bloggery progress I've made in the first quarter of 2010.

This is a three-part assessment. This first part addressed the book lists. Part Two, here, deals with the challenges I joined this year. Part Three will take a look at the author lists.

I am hosting two "Battle of the Prizes" challenges this year and working on several others.  All are listed in the right-hand column.

CHALLENGES HOSTED BY ROSE CITY READER

Battle of the Prizes: American Version

National Book Award winners v. Pulitzer Prize winners, rules here. There is still plenty of time to sign up!

Books read so far: zero

Books I'm going to read for this challenge: 3

• Them by Joyce Carol Oates for my National winner;
• Breathing Lessons by Anne Tyler for my Pulitzer winner; and
• The Collected Stories of Katherine Anne Porter for my double dipper choice.

Battle of the Prizes: British Version

Man Booker Prize v. James Tait Black Memorial Prize, rules here. Again, there is still time to sign up!  

Books read so far: zero

Books I'm going to read for this challenge: 3

• The Sea, the Sea by Iris Murdoch for my Booker winner;
• The Secret Scripture by Sebastian Barry for my James Tait Black winner; and
• G by John Berger for my double dipper choice. 

CHALLENGES I AM PARTICIPATING IN

Bibliophilic Books Challenge



A challenge to read books about books. The home page is here.

I signed up for the "Bibliomaniac" level, which means I have 12 to read by the end of the year. I do not have a final list yet, but I have several in mind.

Books read so far: 2

• The Polysyllabic Spree by Nick Hornby (reviewed here) 
• The Flaneur: A Stroll Through the Paradoxes of Paris by Edmund White (reviewed here)

Books I may read for this challenge (so many to chose from):

• Housekeeping vs. the Dirt by Nick Hornby;
  
• Shakespeare Wrote for Money by Nick Hornby; 
• Ex Libris: Confessions of a Common Reader by Anne Fadiman;
• Rereadings: Seventeen Writers Revisit Books They Love, edited by Anne Fadiman; 
• 99 Novels by Anthony Burgess;
• The Well-Educated Mind by Wise S. Bauer;
• How to Read and Why by Harold Bloom;
• Studies in Classic American Literature by D. H. Lawrence;
• The Bookshop by Penelope Fitzgerald;
• The Club Dumas by Arturo Perez-Reverte; 
• Wonder Boys by Michael Chabon;
• At Home with Books: How Booklovers Live with and Care for Their Libraries by Estelle Ellis;
• The Most Beautiful Libraries in the World by Guillaume de Laubier;
• Literary Essays by Mark Twain;
• Speak Memory by Vladimir Nobokov;
• Saul Bellow: A Biography of the Imagination by Ruth Miller;
• Oscar Wilde: A Certain Genius by Barbara Belford;
• Capote by Gerald Clarke;
• Greene on Capri: A Memoir by Shirley Hazzard; and
• Walks in Hemingway's Paris: A Guide To Paris For The Literary Traveler by Noel Fitch

Birth Year Reading Challenge 

This challenge is to read one or more books published in the year you were born, hosted by Hotchpot Cafe. I signed up, but I haven't created a post yet. I really want to read The Valley of the Dolls by Jaqueline Susann (what a great excuse!), but I don't have a copy yet.

Book Awards Challenge

The challenge involves reading ten books that won ten different prizes by November 1, 2010. The home page is here. Many of my picks overlap with other challenges.

Books read so far: 2

• The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot Diaz (National Book Critics Circle winner;
• The Well and the Mine by Gin Phillips (Discover Award winner; reviewed here)

Books I may read for this challenge:

•  Breathing Lessons by Anne Tyler (Pulitzer winner);
• Them by Joyce Carol Oates (National winner);
• The Sea, the Sea by Iris Murdoch (Booker winner);
• G by John Berger (James Tait Black winner);
• The Secret Scripture by Sebastian Barry (Costa winner);
• Citizen Vince by Jess Walter (Edgar winner);
• Small Island by Andrea Levy (Orange winner);
• Kristin Lavransdatter by Sigrid Undset (Nobel winner); and
• Seaview by Toby Olson (PEN/Faulkner winner)

Chunkster Challenge

I signed up for the "Mor-book-ly Obese" level, meaning I will read six 450+-page books (or three 750+-pagers). Caribousmom hosts this challenge.

Books read so far: one (Three Loves by A. J. Cronin; reviewed here)

Books I may read for this challenge: 

•  Them by Joyce Carol Oates (which I am reading for my Battle of the Prizes: American Version challenge); 
• The Sea, the Sea by Iris Murdoch (which I am reading for my Battle of the Prizes: British Version challenge);
• The Satanic Verses by Salman Rushdie (on the Radcliffe list); and
• Up in the Old Hotel by Joseph Mitchell (because it has been on my TBR shelf forever.

100+ Challenge

I signed up for this because I am pretty sure I'll read more than 100 books this year. But I do not have my own post for it. The challenge home page is here.

I keep a book cover list of the books I've read this year in the right-hand column of this blog. There are 28 books on the list so far and I think that is about accurate. Sometimes books don't show up over there because they are missing a cover picture on my LibraryThing library.

Typically British Challenge



I signed up at the "Cream Crackered" level to read eight "Typically British" novels. I will blow through those eight pretty quickly, since probably half of the books I read would qualify. The challenge home page is here.

Books read so far: 6

•  One Fat Englishman by Kingsley Amis (reviewed here);
• Case Histories by Kate Atkinson (finished, not reviewed);
• The New Confessions by William Boyd (reviewed here);
• Three Loves by A. J. Cronin (reviewed here);
• Where Angels Fear to Tread by E. M. Forster (reviewed here); and
• The War of the Worlds by H. G. Wells (reviewed here)

Books I may read for this challenge:

• The Secret Scripture by Sebastian Barry;
• The Sea, the Sea by Iris Murdoch;
• Bolt by Dick Francis; and
• Orlando by Virginia Woolf

Challenge: Chunksters

I am kicking myself for not signing up for this last year because I read enough books to meet the requirements. So I signed up this year for the "Mor-book-ly Obese" level, which means reading six 450+-page books (or three 750+-pagers).

I do not know yet which books I will read, but there are several biggies on my TBR shelf that are vying for my attention.

REVIEWS

Three Loves by A. J. Cronin(reviewed here)

IN THE RUNNING

Them by Joyce Carol Oates (which I am reading for my Battle of the Prizes: American Version challenge)

The Sea, the Sea by Iris Murdoch (which I am reading for my Battle of the Prizes: British Version challenge)

The Satanic Verses by Salman Rushdie (on the Radcliffe list)

Up in the Old Hotel by Joseph Mitchell (because it has been on my TBR shelf forever)

Review of the Day: Three Loves

Three Loves is A. J. Cronin's second novel, first published in 1932. It tells the engrossing, ultimate tragic, story of the three loves of Lucy Moore -- her husband, her son, and God.
Into all three relationships, Lucy brings the same monumental pride, bull-headed obstinance, and self-defeating melodrama that lead to her ultimate downfall. Life gives Lucy some hard knocks, but it is hard to feel sorry for her when she antagonizes all those who try to help her.

It is Lucy’s stubborn hostility that makes this book more interesting than the typical family drama. Although she is not likeable, she inspires some sympathy because she means well in her monomaniacal way. Like with a Greek tragedy, it is hard to tear away even when the tragic end is so apparently inevitable.

The book is fairly long -- over 550 pages -- but moves right along with plenty of action, plot, and conflict among the characters. Some of the attitudes and assumptions of the characters are a little dated, but with illegitimate children, adultery, violent death, lesbianism, insanity, social injustice, and Church hypocrisy, there is nothing stodgy about the story.

Cronin was a prolific mid-century author who wrote more than 20 novels, many which were made into movies or television shows. Judging from Three Loves, it is easy to see why he was so popular.

NOTES

This book counts as one of my choices for both the Chunkster Challenge and the Typically British Challenge.

OTHER REVIEWS

(I realize that other reviews of this book are unlikely, but if you have reviewed any Cronin book, please leave a comment with a link and I will add it here.)

Review of the Day: The Flâneur

A flâneur is a loiterer, or a stroller, or, as French poet Charles Baudelaire described him, “a person who walks the city in order to experience it.” Edmund White describes Paris through the eyes of such a person in The Flâneur: A Stroll Through the Paradoxes of Paris.

White’s book is loosely organized into chapters discussing various types of people living in Paris: French writers, American writers, blacks, Jews, artists, gays, and royalists. He uses these as starting points for rambling discussions through Paris history, politics, and the lives of famous Parisians, with detours to fashion, sex, architecture, and the city’s assorted nooks and crannies.

Writers loom large in White’s Paris. While he includes artists, jazz musicians, politicians, and aristocrats, White’s heart lies in a literary Paris. He mentions dozens of poets, novelists, critics, and philosophers, and provides detailed portraits of some of Paris’s more celebrated scribes, including Colette and Baudelaire.

The loose structure of book sometimes jumbles the information provided. It can take a while to figure out where White is heading, and the amount of information White packs in can be staggering. But the book may be all the more enticing because it lacks a rigid itinerary and provides such an abundance of particulars. As White explains:

[T]he flâneur is in search of experience, not knowledge. Most experience ends up interpreted as – and replaced by – knowledge, but for the flâneur the experience remains somehow pure, useless, raw.

NOTES

This is one of the 12 books I am reading for the Bibliophilic Books Challenge. It is also on my French Connection list.

OTHER REVIEWS

(If you would like your review listed here, please leave a comment with a link and I will add it.)

Review of the Day: One Fat Englishman

Roger Micheldene is One Fat Englishman. An obese publisher on an extended business trip to America, Micheldene (or Mitch Dean as one gauche American insists on calling him) spends his time eating and drinking prodigiously, attempting to bed every woman he meets, and pompously mocking Americans’ intellectual pretentions and taste in cigars.

There is very little in the way of plot. Lots of things happen, but to not much purpose. The point seems to be to compare and contrast American and British sensibilities, as displayed in a mid-60’s, second-tier academic culture. The pleasure lies in Kingsley Amis’s curmudgeonly wit, in passages such as:

To be sure about nonsense he had to be able to classify it, assign it to a family tree of liberal nonsense, humanist-humanitarian nonsense, academic nonsense, Protestant nonsense, Freudian nonsense and so on. Macher’s nonsense stopped before he could get deep enough into it.

Or his dipsomaniacal observations, such as:

Not caring what one drank unfortunately did not guarantee not caring what one had drunk.

Fans will eat it up. Amis neophytes should start with Lucky Jim.

NOTE

This is one of the books I read for the 2010 Typically British Challenge.

OTHER REVIEWS

(If you would like your review of this or other Amis books listed here, please leave a comment with a link and I will add it.)

Challenge: Typically British Reading Challenge

FINISHED!

This challenge paired perfectly with my Battle of the Prizes Challenge -- British Version -- as well as my reading preferences. Which is why I finished it first of all my 2010 challenges.

The challenge was to read "typically British" novels by British authors in 2010.  There are different levels of participation.  Since I typically read typically British novels, I signed up at the "Cream Crackered" level to read eight qualifying novels.

This challenge was a lot of fun and I look forward to participating next year if Book Chick City hosts it again. I hope she does!

FINISHED BOOKS AND REVIEWS

One Fat Englishman by Kingsley Amis (reviewed here)

Case Histories by Kate Atkinson (finished, not reviewed)

The New Confessions by William Boyd (reviewed here)

Three Loves by A. J. Cronin (reviewed here)

Where Angels Fear to Tread by E. M. Forster (reviewed here)

The War of the Worlds by H. G. Wells (reviewed here)

Everyday Drinking: The Distilled Kingsley Amis by Kinglsey Amis (reviewed here);

The Secret Scripture by Sebastian Barry (reviewed here)

LIKELY CANDIDATES
(MAYBE NEXT YEAR)

The Sea, the Sea by Iris Murdoch

Bolt by Dick Francis

Orlando by Virginia Woolf

NOTES

Last updated on June 23, 2010.

Challenge: Book Awards Reading Challenge

This challenge dovetails nicely with my Battle of the Prizes Challenges -- both the American Version and the British Version -- as well as with several of the lists I am keeping track of.

The challenge involves reading ten books that won ten different prizes by November 1, 2010. My list may change, but I am thinking of reading ten from the following, because they are all on my TBR shelf now:

The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot Diaz (National Book Critics Circle winner; finished, but I didn't review it)

Breathing Lessons by Anne Tyler (Pulitzer winner)

Them by Joyce Carol Oates (National winner)

The Sea, the Sea by Iris Murdoch (Booker winner)

G by John Berger (James Tait Black winner)

The Secret Scripture by Sebastian Barry (Costa winner; reviewed here) 

Citizen Vince by Jess Walter (Edgar winner; reviewed here)

Small Island by Andrea Levy (Orange winner)

Kristin Lavransdatter by Sigrid Undset (Nobel winner)

Seaview by Toby Olson (PEN/Faulkner winner)

The Well and the Mine by Gin Phillips (Discover Award winner; reviewed here);

NOTE

Last updated on June 23, 2010.

Challenge: Battle of the Prizes, British Version

This challenge pits winners of the English Man Booker Prize against winners of the Scottish James Tait Black Memorial Prize in a British Version of the Battle of the Prizes. (Click here for the American Version.)

Does one prize have higher standards than the other? Pick better winners? Provide more reading entertainment or educational value? Maybe challenge participants will be able to answer these and more questions – maybe they will simply read three or four great books!

DETAILS

OPTION ONE: Chose three books that you have not read before:

1) One that won both the Booker and the James Tait Black prizes (here is the short list of double dippers);

2) One that won the Booker but not the James Tait Black (Booker winners are here); and

3) One that won the James Tait Black but not the Booker (James Tait Black winners are here).

OPTION TWO: For those who have already read all three of the double-dippers, or otherwise do not want to read one of those three, pick two Booker winners and two James Tait Black winners for a total of four books.

OFFICIAL RULES

• Read all books between February 1, 2010 and January 31, 2011.

• Overlap with other challenges is allowed -- and encouraged! The Complete Booker is a logical crossover. The great thing is, for those working on both these lists, completing the challenge means reading three books, but crossing four items off the lists.

• You do not have to commit to your choices now; you can change your mind about books at any time.

• Sign up here by leaving a link to your post in a comment, or the list of your three choices in the comment. I will add the links to the participant list in this post.

• As you progress, please let us know by leaving comments with links to progress reports and reviews. Reviews are not necessary, but encouraged. If you do not have a blog, put your reviews or reports in a comment on this post.
  

• You can copy and paste the button. Or, if you want me to send you the code, please leave a comment with an email and I will. I cannot figure out the fancy ways of giving directions. 
  

IDEAS

My three choices (subject to change at whim) are:

1) G by John Berger for my double dipper choice;

2) The Sea, the Sea by Iris Murdoch for my Booker winner; and

3) The Secret Scripture by Sebastian Barry for my James Tait Black winner.

I picked these three because they are all on my TBR shelf now and have been for a while.

PARTICIPANTS

Rose City Reader
chaotic compendiums 
Musings 
Oh, So Many Manias . . .  
Books in the City
ExUrbanis
J.G. at Hotch Pot Cafe 
Birdie's Nest

REVIEWS

Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel on chaotic compendiums 
G by John Berger on Musings

The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro on Birdie's Nest
Without My Cloak by Kate O'Brien on Musings
The Secret Scripture by Sebastian Barry here on Rose City Reader

Challenge: The Battle of the Prizes, American Version

This challenge pits winners of the Pulitzer Prize for fiction against the winners of the National Book Award in the American Version of the Battle of the Prizes.  (Click here for the British Version.)

Does one prize have higher standards than the other? Pick better winners? Provide more reading entertainment or educational value? Maybe challenge participants will be able to answer these and more questions – maybe they will simply read three great books!

DETAILS

Chose three books that you have not read before:

1) One that won both the Pulitzer and the National (here is a list of double dippers);
2) One that won the Pulitzer but not the National (Pulitzer winners are here); and
3) One that won the National but not the Pulitzer (National winners are here).

OPTION: For those who have already read all six of the double-dippers, or otherwise do not want to read one of those six, pick two Pulitzer winners and two National winners for a total of four books.

OFFICIAL RULES 

• Read all books between February 1, 2010 and January 31, 2011. 
  

• Overlap with other challenges is allowed -- and encouraged! The Pulitzer Project and The National Book Award Project are logical crossovers. The great thing is, for those working on both these lists, completing the challenge means reading three books, but crossing four items off the lists.
  

• You do not have to commit to your choices now; you can change your mind about books at any time.
  

• Sign up here by leaving a link to your post in a comment, or the list of your three choices in the comment. I will add the links to the participant list in this post. 
  

• As you progress, please let us know by leaving comments with links to progress reports and reviews. Reviews are not necessary, but encouraged. If you do not have a blog, put your reviews or reports in a comment on this post.
  

• You can copy and paste the button. Or, if you want me to send you the code, please leave a comment with an email and I will. I cannot figure out the fancy ways of giving directions. 

IDEAS

You can find a list of last year's participants and links to their reviews here. 

My three choices (subject to change at whim) are:

1) The Collected Stories of Katherine Anne Porter for my double dipper choice;

2) Breathing Lessons by Anne Tyler for my Pulitzer winner; and

3) Them by Joyce Carol Oates for my National winner.

I picked these three because they are all on my TBR shelf now and they give me a "prize winners by women" theme to work with.

PARTICIPANTS

Rose City Reader
chaotic compendiums (read her wrap-up post here)
Musings 
Oh, So Many Manias . . . 
Joy's Blog
Book In Hand
ExUrbanis 
100 Books. 100 Journeys
J.G. at Hotch Pot Cafe
Remember to Breathe 
Book Psmith
Man of La Book

REVIEWS

Morte d'Urban by J. F. Powers on Musings 

World's Fair by E. L. Doctorow on chaotic compendiums

Angle of Repose by Wallace Stegner on 100 Books. 100 Journeys 

The Adventures of Augie March on 100 Books. 100 Journeys 

Lonesome Dove on chaotic compendiums 

Breathing Lessons on Book Psmith

Gilead by Marilynne Robinson on Musings

The Color Purple by Alice Walker on chaotic compendiums

Let the Great World Spin by Colum McCann on Musings

The Color Purple by Alice Walker on 100 Books. 100 Journeys

Tinkers by Paul Harding on Musings

The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay by Muchael Chabon on Man of La Book

The Collected Stories of Katherine Anne Porter on Hotchpot Cafe

Challenge: Bibliophilic Books

This is my organizational post for the Bibliophilic Books Challenge.

I am excited about this one, because I thought I had imagined it, but it turns out it really exists. The point is to read books about books. They can be fiction or non-fiction, so there are plenty to chose from. There are many qualifying books on my TBR shelves right now, and I have really been in the mood for them.

I signed up for the "Bibliomaniac" level, which means I have 12 to read by the end of the year. I do not have a final list yet, but I have several in mind.  There are enough choices on my TBR shelf that I chose all 12 from what I have now.

There are a lot of author biographies on my list. I think they fall within the guidelines for the challenge, because they discuss the authors' books. But if they do not count, there are plenty of other choices on my list.

FINISHED AND REVIEWED

The Polysyllabic Spree by Nick Hornby (reviewed here)

The Flaneur: A Stroll Through the Paradoxes of Paris by Edmund White (reviewed here)

Ex Libris: Confessions of a Common Reader by Anne Fadiman (reviewed here)

A Year in the World by Frances Mayes (reviewed here)

GRABBING MY ATTENTION

Housekeeping vs. the Dirt by Nick Hornby

Shakespeare Wrote for Money by Nick Hornby


Rereadings: Seventeen Writers Revisit Books They Love, edited by Anne Fadiman

99 Novels by Anthony Burgess

The Well-Educated Mind by Wise S. Bauer

How to Read and Why by Harold Bloom

Studies in Classic American Literature by D. H. Lawrence

The Bookshop by Penelope Fitzgerald

The Club Dumas by Arturo Perez-Reverte

Wonder Boys by Michael Chabon

At Home with Books: How Booklovers Live with and Care for Their Libraries by Estelle Ellis

The Most Beautiful Libraries in the World by Guillaume de Laubier

Literary Essays by Mark Twain

Speak Memory by Vladimir Nobokov

Saul Bellow: A Biography of the Imagination by Ruth Miller

Oscar Wilde: A Certain Genius by Barbara Belford

Capote by Gerald Clarke

Greene on Capri: A Memoir by Shirley Hazzard

Walks in Hemingway's Paris: A Guide To Paris For The Literary Traveler by Noel Fitch

NOTES

This post was last updated on May 5, 2010.

State of the Blog, Part Two: The Challenges

I am not a big challenge person, although I appreciate the effort and hard work that bloggers go to to host so many enticing projects. I am too compulsive to sign up for a challenge and not complete it, so I do not sign up for many.

In 2009, I joined and completed four challenges. There are more I want to sign up for in 2010, but I am sticking with challenges focusing on the types of books I like to read.

2009 WRAP UP

The Sunshine Smackdown: Battle of the Prizes



I had to participate in this one -- I hosted it. The idea was to read one book that won the National Book Award, one that won the Pilutzer Prize, and one that won both. I am going to host it again in 2010, but it will start earlier, so not be a summer challenge.

My wrap-up post is here. I read and reviewed three books:

1. The Fixer by Bernard Malamud (winner of both the National and the Pulitzer; reviewed here)
2. Goodbye Columbus by Philip Roth (National winner; reviewed here)
3. Advise and Consent by Allen Drury (Pulitzer winner; reviewed here)
   

The 100+ Challenge



My book total for 2009 was 111, so I completed the challenge. But I was pretty lame about posting my reviews. I did for a month or so, then stopped, went back in the summer and added several, then tapered off completely. Here is my completed list of books read in 2009, with links to reviews. I am signing up again for 2010, but I probably won't be any better about active participation.


The Colorful Reading Challenge



This was fun in that it got me to read several books I probably would not have gotten around to if I hadn't been looking for colors in titles. I completed the challenge on December 31 and didn't do a final wrap-up post -- this post is the closest I got. I read and reviewed nine books:

1. RED: Red Square by Martin Cruz Smith (review) 
2. BLACK: Black Cherry Blues by James Lee Burke (mini-review) 
3. GOLD: Towers of Gold: How One Jewish Immigrant Named Isaias Hellman Created California by Dinkelspiel, Frances (review) 
4. GREEN: Blue Planet in Green Shackles: What Is Endangered: Climate or Freedom? by Vaclav Klaus (review) 
5. YELLOW: A Yellow Raft in Blue Water by Michael Dorris (review)
6. SILVER: The Silver Palate Cookbook by Julee Rosso (review) 
7. RUST: American Rust by Philipp Meyer (review)
8. BLUE: Blue River by Ethan Canin (review)
9. WHITE: American Lion: Andrew Jackson in the White House by Jon Meacham (review)

The Spice of Life Challenge

This one was super fun because I love books about food, and I liked that there were several different categories of books. I hope Rebecca hosts it again, because I want to sign up for a higher level. In 2009, I signed up for the "Sampler" level and read and reviewed four books

1. Au Revoir to All That by Michael Steinberger (my non-fiction choice; reviewed here)
2. The Last Chinese Chef by Nicole Mones (my fiction choice; reviewed here)
3. The Silver Palate Cookbook by Julee Rosso (my cookbook choice; reviewed here)
4. Julie & Julia by Julie Powell (my memoir/essay choice; reviewed here)

2010 CHALLENGES

Battle of the Prizes: American Version

It's the National Book Award winners v. the Pilutzer Prize winners, Round Two.

I am going to host this challenge again this year, but instead of just taking place in the summer, it is going to start February 1 and run to the end of the year. Otherwise, the same rules as last year will apply. I'll get the sign up page posted soon.

Battle of the Prizes: British Version

I am going to add a new challenge this year -- a British version of the Battle of the Prizes. This one will pit Man Booker Prize winners against the James Tait Black Memorial Prize winners.  I hope too get it up by February 1, but I have to make a challenge button first and I am having trouble finding a good picture.

Chunkster Challenge

I am kicking myself for not signing up for this last year because I read enough books to meet the requirements. So I am going to sign up in 2010 for the "Mor-book-ly Obese" level. I am not sure which six 450+-page books (or three 750+-pagers) I will read, but there are several biggies on my TBR shelf that are vying for my attention.


Bibliophilic Books Challenge



I am excited about this one, because I thought I had imagined it, but it turns out it really exists. The point is to read books about books. They can be fiction or non-fiction, so there are plenty to chose from. There are many qualifying books on my TBR shelves right now, and I have really been in the mood for them.

I am signing up for the "Bibliomaniac" level, which means I have 12 to read by the end of the year. I do not have a final list yet, but I have several in mind, starting with Nick Hornby's The Polysyllabic Spree.


100+ Challenge



Even with my anticipated mediocre participation (see above), I am signing up because I am pretty sure I'll read more than 100 books this year.

Challenge Wrap Up: Battle of the Prizes

The Battle of the Prizes Challenge ended yesterday on Labor Day. This was the first challenge I hosted and I want to give a huge THANK YOU to everyone who participated.

To recap: This challenge pitted winners of the Pulitzer Prize for fiction against the winners of the National Book Award. The goal was to read one Pulitzer winner, one National winner, and one that won both prizes; to read all three books between May Day and Labor Day; and to post reviews and comments here.

A list of all the reviews follows (if I missed one, please leave a comment with a link). Also, a couple of people did wrap up posts with some comparing and contrasting of the prizes. For those who signed up but did not finish the challenge, I am still so pleased that you participated -- good intentions definitely count when it comes to reading challenges.

REVIEWS

Sophie's Choice on Chaotic Compendiums
The Optimist's Daughter on Joy's Blog
Middle Passage on Living Life and Reading Books
Advise and Consent on Rose City Reader
Empire Falls on Chaotic Compendiums
Gilead on Tip of the Iceberg
Olive Kitteridge by J.G. on Hotch Pot Cafe
The Fixer on Rose City Reader
The Fixer on Hotch Pot Cafe
The Great Fire also on Hotch Pot Cafe
The Magic Barrel on Book Psmith
The Collected Stories of Katherine Anne Porter on Chaotic Compendiums
The Fixer on Book Psmith
March on Remember to Breath
The Fixer on Remember to Breath
Sophie's Choice on Remember to Breath
Invisible Man on Tip of the Iceberg

WRAP UP POSTS

J.G. on Hotch Pot Cafe
Mine here on Rose City Reader
Remember to Breath
Book Psmith

THOUGHTS? IDEAS? COMMENTS?

Hosting this challenge was a lot of fun for me. It helped focus my attention on a couple of the lists I am working on and it was fun to "hang out" with other list-obsessive readers.

I plan to host the same challenge again next year (there are still many Pulitzer and National winners I haven't read yet). But I might expand the dates. This was "the Sunshine Smackdown" this year because I didn't think of the challenge until the spring and tried to contain the dates somehow. But I might make it a year-long challenge in 2010.

Also, as Psmith guessed in her wrap up post, this was "the American version." I have plans for the British version of a Battle of the Prizes Challenge. That one would pit Booker Prize winners against . . . I don't know yet. Costa winners? Too short and too dissimilar to the Booker, I think. Probably James Tait Black winners. But I can't launch that challenge until I get the JTB list added to my List of Lists there in the right hand column.

What are your thoughts and suggestions?

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Challenge Update: The Spice of Life Challenge

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I love the Spice of Life challenge. This is one that will be easy to finish by the end of the year, because I had already planned to read these books.

So far, I finished my non-fiction book: Au Revoir to All That by Michael Steinberger. My review is posted in the current edition of the Internet Review of Books.

I am halfway through with my cookbook choice: The Silver Palate Cookbook by Julee Rosso and Sheila Lukins (which overlaps with my "silver" choice for the Colorful Reading Challenge). It is tremendously fun to read this book, although it makes me almost maudlin with nostalgia.

I started my fiction choice this week: The Last Chinese Chef by Nicole Mones. I really enjoyed her novel, Lost in Translation, and sinking deep into this one already.

And, finally, I am going to get to my "memoir/essays" pick soon: Julie & Julia by Julie Powell. I must read this before I see the movie.

This is one challenge that is going by too fast. I think I should have signed up for the eight course "feast" version. Hopefully, Rebecca will host this again next year and I will be a glutton!

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Challenge Update: Colorful Reading

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We are soon to enter the fourth quarter of 2009. Time to get organized if I am to accomplish a couple of reading goals by the end of the year.

One of these goals is to complete the Colorful Reading Challenge. So far, I have read five of the nine books I picked for the challenge. Those books are listed here, with links to my reviews:

RED: Red Square by Martin Cruz Smith (review)

BLACK: Black Cherry Blues by James Lee Burke (mini-review)

GOLD: Towers of Gold: How One Jewish Immigrant Named Isaias Hellman Created California by Dinkelspiel, Frances (review)

GREEN: Blue Planet in Green Shackles: What Is Endangered: Climate or Freedom? by Vaclav Klaus (review)

YELLOW: A Yellow Raft in Blue Water by Michael Dorris (review)

I have four left, but I am halfway through my SILVER book, The Silver Palate Cookbook by Julee Rosso.

I originally picked the following books for the remaining three colors:

BLUE: My Blue Notebooks: The Intimate Journal of Paris's Most Beautiful and Notorious Courtesan by Liane de Pougy

WHITE: White Teeth by Zadie Smith

BROWN: Bad Boy Brawly Brown by Walter Mosely

But I am going to make a couple of changes. For one thing, I am going to read American Lion: Andrew Jackson in the White House by Jon Meacham for my "WHITE" book, because that one is languishing on my guilt list. If I read it by the end of the year, I can accomplish two goals at once.

Also, I am switching one of my extra colors. Instead of "BROWN" I am going to read a "RUST" book. So, "bye bye" to Bad Boy Brawly Brown, and "hello" to American Rust, which has been on my LibraryThing list even longer than the Andrew Jackson book. Another two-fer.

Thanks, again, to Rebecca at Lost in Books for hosting this challenge.
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