Tag: Reading Challenges

2014 Reading Challenges, Three-Quarters Update

On By cherylmahoneyIn Ruminations3 Comments

It’s the beginning of October, and that means time for another update on Reading Challenges!  I have to admit that I have not been paying a lot of attention to this over the summer…but I’ve managed to make at least some progress anyway.  I’ve grayed-out books read in the first half of the year, to make it easier to see recent updates.

Fairy Tales RetoldFairy Tales Retold Challenge

My goal here was 7-9 books for the official challenge (which only counts YA and Middle Grade), and 12-15 as a personal challenge, to leave some open slots for grown-up retellings.

  1. Frogged by Vivian Vande Velde (MG)
  2. Bella at Midnight by Diane Stanley (YA)
  3. Enchanted by Alethea Kontis (YA)
  4. Hero by Alethea Kontis (YA)
  5. Half Upon a Time by James Riley (MG)
  6. Cress by Marissa Meyer (YA)
  7. Jack the Giant-Killer by Charles de Lint
  8. Princess of the Wild Swans by Diane Zahler (MG)
  9. The Castle Behind Thorns by Merrie Haskell (YA)

Not much going on with this one…something to focus on for the fall, clearly!  Anyone with a good recommendation on a retold fairy tale I should explore?

Continue reading “2014 Reading Challenges, Three-Quarters Update” →

Fall Reading and R.I.P.

On By cherylmahoneyIn Ruminations2 Comments

lavinia-portraitRIP1It’s still hot where I live, but Autumn will soon be upon us…and that means it’s time for the Readers Imbibing Peril (R.I.P.) Challenge.  This is another seasonal/genre-focused reading challenge hosted by Carl of Stainless Steel Droppings.  In keeping with crackling leaves and dusky breezes, this challenge focuses on horror and mystery and stories that make you shiver!

I am very late signing up this year…  The challenge began September 1st, and I only just realized it.  I get distracted for a week and see what happens!  In my defense, although I love all of Carl’s challenges, this one is a distant third.  The spring Once Upon a Time challenge?  Yeah, I may be guilty of checking for the sign-up post multiple times a day as the date approaches… 😉

Even if this one is not quite so beautifully-aligned with my favorite genres, I still always enjoy a walk on the darker side with this challenge.  And I may have been subconsciously preparing for this after all!  I just completed an Agatha Christie audiobook (finished September 3rd) and then began a listen to The Invisible Man, which strikes me as horror.  So you can expect those two reviews soon, and I also just put a Sherlock Holmes novel on reserve at the library, because I always like to get some Holmes in during this challenge.

Beyond that?  The Invisible Man has put me in the mood for old classic horror films, so I may be hunting down a few of those…  And beyond that?  I think I’ll just see how the wind blows!

2014 Reading Challenges, Mid-Year Update

On By cherylmahoneyIn Ruminations2 Comments

Happy 4th of July!  And if it’s July 4th, that means that, impossibly enough, we’re halfway through 2014 already.  High time for an update on reading challenges–past time, in fact, because I got distracted and forgot to give my usual quarterly update at the end of March!  So today I have an update on the first six months of the year in reading.

Fairy Tales RetoldFairy Tales Retold Challenge

My goal here was 7-9 books for the official challenge (which only counts YA and Middle Grade), and 12-15 as a personal challenge, to leave some open slots for grown-up retellings.

  1. Frogged by Vivian Vande Velde (MG)
  2. Bella at Midnight by Diane Stanley (YA)
  3. Enchanted by Alethea Kontis (YA)
  4. Hero by Alethea Kontis (YA)
  5. Half Upon a Time by James Riley (MG)
  6. Cress by Marissa Meyer (YA)
  7. Jack the Giant-Killer by Charles de Lint
  8. Princess of the Wild Swans by Diane Zahler (MG)

As usual, the Once Upon a Time Challenge was a big boost to my fairy tale reading! Continue reading “2014 Reading Challenges, Mid-Year Update” →

2013 Reading Challenges – End of the Year Wrap-Up

On By cherylmahoneyIn Ruminations3 Comments

It’s the last day of the year, and even though there may be a few hours of final reading left, I think it’s a good time to wrap-up how my reading challenges went.  This was a very satisfying year in challenges, as I knocked out a lot of big, scary intimidating books, and finished some really wonderful series!

All links go to reviews, faded text indicates it was read a previous quarter (except for series–too complicated to separate) and if you’re curious about any unreviewed books, just ask! Continue reading “2013 Reading Challenges – End of the Year Wrap-Up” →

Shiny New 2014 Reading Challenges

On By cherylmahoneyIn Ruminations8 Comments

The new year approaches and that means it’s time to look at my shelves, look at my (far too numerous) lists of books I’m meaning to read, and decide what focus I want to give my reading for 2014.  Here are my selected challenges, giving you some hints at what reviews you can expect in the next 12 months!

Fairy Tales RetoldFairy Tales Retold Challenge

So you all know I’m a bit of a fan of retold fairy tales, right?  Even though I published one this year, I don’t feel I read enough…so I’m putting it on the challenge list again.  Officially I’m aiming for Lady in Waiting, 7-9 books.  I hope to read more like 12-15, but only YA and Middle Grade officially count, and I’d rather keep some mental slots open for grown-up retellings.

TBR List Challenge

This is my own personal variation on the ToBeRead Pile Challenges that float all over the web.  You see, I don’t actually have a pile because I nearly never buy a book unread.  But I do have a list, mostly thanks to all you lovely bloggers out there, and that list has been longer than I like it to be for the last year or more.  There’s so many wonderful books on it that I want to read but haven’t got to yet!  This is a pretty loose goal, no numbers involved, but I do hope to cut this list way down–not to zero, because then what would I read?  But down.

preqseqbuttonPrequel and Sequel Challenge

You may remember that I’ve been working on my VERY LONG list of incomplete series for the past 2 years!  As a result…well, more on results when I get to the 2013 Challenges Results post!  But I will tell you that I am not planning on that challenge again next year…only I still have several “duets” that I’ve only read half of, so the Prequel and Sequel Challenge is a perfect fit for finally getting to those!

I thought I had my challenges figured out, but then I just had to go scroll through A Novel Challenge and found another…

2014-Historic-Fiction-Reading-Challenge-SweetMarie83_zps26ece3fbHistoric Fiction Reading Challenge

This is a genre I like a lot, but don’t seem to get to all that often–and it’s just about the only favorite genre NOT covered by Carl’s seasonal “experiences”!  All the same, I’m going relatively low-impact here, and just aiming for the first level, “Testing the Bonds of Time,” reading 1-5 books.

Carl’s “Experiences”

And of course there’s no question that I’ll be participating again in the various seasonal experiences over at Stainless Steel Droppings.  We’re right in the middle of the Sci Fi Experience, spring brings (my very favorite!) the Once Upon a Time Challenge, and in the fall there’s the Readers Imbibing Peril Challenge–and a good time is always had by all!

Aren’t new reading challenges fun?  I love shiny new goals, with so many books enticingly waiting in the months to come…