Challenge Wrap-Ups

I began many challenges in 2008, but, as I suck at challenges, I did not complete most of them, though I tried. 

First up, The 2k8 Challenge! By my (probably inaccurate) count,  I was ten books away from finishing this one; I read 18 YA debuts. Check out my list here. 

The Read For Your Dreams Challenge, also started by me, was a success! And, okay, I had to stretch a little to include some of these, but I did read ten books about or including significant amounts of travel. My list is here. I also want to give a shout out to Cafe Shree, who finished the challenge by reading about photography!

Let us not even speak of the failure that was The Printz Award Challenge. Not one book read.

I also tried the First in a Series Challenge. By my count, this was a success! However, the rules state that the “series” must be at least a trilogy, and I’m not entirely sure all of these are slated to have at least three books. 

The Short Story Reading Challenge was a failure. I read some books, yes, but not enough to complete the challenge.

I really don’t know about The Chunkster Challenge. I suspect I completed this one, but I don’t really want to go and look up the page numbers of the books I read and figure out what I read in what quarter.

I only finished three of my eight categories in the Triple 8 Challenge. 

I give up. Challenges are not for me, though I like the idea of them, and I do not plan in participating in any in 2009. 

 

Challenge Wrap-Ups

The Royalty Rules challenge and the Twisted Fairytale Challenge are now over, and I’ll be taking down those pages on the sidebar.

For the Royalty Rules challenge, I read five eligible books, and reviewed three so far, and the goal was 2-4 books read & reviewed, so I successfully completed this challenge. I read Song of the Sparrow by Lisa Ann Sandell, Princess on the Brink by Meg Cabot, Princess Mia by Meg Cabot, The Bonemender’s Choice by Holly Bennett, and Princess Ben by Catherine Gilbert Murdock.

For the Twisted Fairytale Challenge, I most pathetically only completed one book, Haunted Waters by Mary Pope Osborne. I do have good excuses, but, still, it is rather pathetic.

 

News & Links

First of all, I’ll be out of town Wednesday thru Saturday without internet access. I’ll still have some posts going up because WordPress lets me forward-date them, and you’ve got some cool things to look forward to–like an interview with Rachel Cohn! So stay tuned.

There are a few links I’d like to share as well. First of all, you can now check my shared items on Google reader page for blog posts I find interesting. Note: not all of these will be book-related. Some will be travel-related or just random. But still interesting

Second of all, Harmony has started the Resolutions Book Challenge, which I will be joining though I haven’t decided on all the details yet. Go check it out!

There’s a couple of blog contests going on right now. Nicole at WORD for Teens is giving away a signed copy of Frenemies, and  The Story Siren is giving away a copy of City of Ashes.

Chelsea at The Page Flipper is starting a book club! Check it out and join if you’re interested.

That’s all for the moment.

 

Read For Your Dreams Reading Challenge

I’m starting another reading challenge! The Read For Your Dreams Reading Challenge will last from 1 April 2008 until 1 January 2009, but you can sign up whenever you like, and books can overlap with other challenges.

So what do you have to do? You have to read ten books, fiction or non-fiction, that relate to your dream. Choose one thing you’d really like to do–travel the world, live in Italy, learn to cook, become a lawyer, I don’t care what. And then, read ten books that directly have to do with that dream.

Confused? Don’t worry, it’s really quite simple. For example, if your chosen dream is to travel the world, you would read ten books about travelling. It could be fiction about characters who backpack around Europe or take a cruise in the Carribean or non-fiction about ways to travel cheaply or a non-fiction account of a person’s experience travelling. If your dream is to be an Olympic gold medalist, you would read ten books about the Olympics and/or your chosen sport. And so on. Any questions, just ask, but I think it’s fairly straightforward.

To sign up, leave a link in the comments of the main challenge page (not here, click the link).

 

Twisted Fairy Tale Challenge!

I’m joining yet another challenge! I love fairytale re-tellings, so this one seemed perfect to me! The Twisted Fairy Tale Challenge is hosted by Enna Isilee at Squeaky Books. You can find the challenge post here, but basically you just have to read at least four books by May 5 that are “twisted fairy tales.” I’m going to post a page to keep track of my progress. I don’t know exactly what I’ll read, but my likely-possibilities are…

1. Beastly by Alex Flinn
2. Wildwood Dancing by Juliet Marillier
3. Hush by Donna Jo Napoli
4. Sun and Moon, Ice and Snow by Jessica Day George
5. Cindy Ella by Robin Palmer

Those are the ones I already have copies of. If I can get copies, though, I’d love to include Out of the Wild by Sarah Beth Durst, Bella at Midnight by Diane Stanely, The Swan Maiden by Heather Tomlinson, and Dragon Flight by Jessica Day George.

 

Heart of a Child Challenge

I’m signing up for yet another challenge! This one is the Heart of a Child challenge, hosted at Becky’s Book Reviews.  It runs from February 1 to July 14 (which, yes, makes me a little late). The challenge is to reread 3-6 books you loved as a child (which means anything under 18). As you know, I’m sixteen, so I’m not even 18 yet, so I’m going to make this mean, for me, any book I read before about middle school (I don’t know my exact age when I discovered some books, so it’s a loose guideline). I’ve been wanting to reread some old favorites, anyway, and this is a way to do it without feeling guilty!

A list is not necessary, and I reserve the right to change this at any time, but here are a few possibilities:

1. Greater Than Angels by Carol Matas (And/or others by her)
2. So Far From Malabar by Joy DeWeese Wehen
3. Bloomability by Sharon Creech (And/or other older books by her)
4. The Fairy’s Return by Gail Carson Levine (which, yes, is more recent, but it’s a collection of the Princess Tales books, which are older)
5. Hope Was Here by Joan Bauer
6. Alanna: The First Adventure by Tamora Pierce

 

The Short Story Reading Challenge

I’m joining another challenge! This one is The Short Story Reading Challenge, hosted at Kate’s Book Blog. I’m going to read at least six short story collections over the course of 2008. I’m not entirely sure what they will be yet, though. I’ll be including grl2grl by Julie Anne Peters, but that’s all I know so far!

 

The Printz Award Challenge

I’m joining yet another challenge! This one is the Printz Award Challenge, hosted at The Hidden Side of a Leaf. Joining this challenge means I agree to read at least six Printz award winners or honor books between January and December 2008. I’ve listed some possibilities, but, again, I reserve the right to change the list at any time!

1. The Astonishing Life Of Octavian Nothing, Traitor To The Nation, vol. One: The Pox Party by MT Anderson
2. The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
3. I Am The Messenger by Markus Zusak
4. Chanda’s Secrets by Allan Stratton
5. A Northern Light by Jennifer Donnely
6. The Earth, My Butt, And Other Big Round Things by Carolyn Mackler
7. Keesha’s House by Helen Frost
8. Fat Kid Rules The World by KL Going
9. A Step From Heaven by An Na

 

First In a Series Challenge

I’ve decided to join yet another challenge! This one is the First In A Series Challenge, hosted over at Thoughts of Joy.

The challenge runs from January to December 2008, during which time participants must complete twelve books that are the first in a series.

Here are fourteen possibilities, though I reserve the right to change this list; I don’t like to have my reading plans (or any plans, really) set in stone. Also, I’m not sure all of these count; there have to be at least three books in the series, and I’m not sure all of these will end up being trilogies. For the newer releases, I just know that somewhere there is something about it being “book one.” So, I don’t know about all of them.

1. A House of Night: Marked by PC And Kristin Cast
2. Hallowmere: In The Serpent’s Coils by Tiffany Trent
3. Chasing Yesterday: Awakening by Robin Wasserman
4. Vampire Academy Book One by Richelle Mead
5. Crystal Doors: Island Realm by Rebecca Moesta and Kevin J Anderson
6. The Promises of Doctor Sigmundus: The Hollow People by Brian Keaney
7. The Seventh Tower: The Fall by Garth Nix
8. A Great and Terrible Beauty by Libba Bray (this is a re-read, but I want to read it before The Sweet Far Thing)
9. Drama!: The Four Dorothys by Paul Ruditis.
10. Fairies of Dreamdark: Blackbringer by Laini Taylor
11. May Bird and the Ever After by Jodi Lynn Anderson
12. The Au Pairs by Melissa de la Cruz
13. Eragon by Christopher Paolini (I know I’m like the only person in the world who hasn’t read this yet!)
14. Goose Girl by Shannon Hale (This is the first, right?)

 

The Royalty Rules Reading Challenge

I’ve decided to join another challenge! This one is being hosted by The Magic of Ink. The challenge is to read 2-4 books that have to do with royalty between February 1st and April 30th. Find out more about the challenge here.

I’m going to do this one just like the other challenges I’m doing, with a page (linked to in the sidebar) where I’ll keep track of my progress, but for now, this is what I have of my reading list (more possibly to be added, if I feel like going beyond the four books that are in the challenge):

1.  Princess Academy by Shannon Hale
2. Princess Ben by Catherine Gilbert Murdock
3. Seeing Redd by Frank Beddor
4. The Lost Queen by Frewin Jones

 

Triple 8 Challenge

I’ve found a challenge to participate in for 2008: The 888 Challenge. The challenge is to read eight books in eight different categories in ’08. They can overlap with other challenges, and eight books can overlap into different categories. I’m not going to choose books now, but I’ll leave a link to this in the sidebar as well. I found this one through Alyssa. I reserve the right to change this at any time, but for now here’s what I have:

Category 1: Non-fiction

Category 2: Favorite re-reads

Category 3: Books found through other bloggers

Category 4: Adult novels

Category 5: POD books

Category 6: Books published at least 10 years ago

Category 7: Debut novels

Category 8: First in a series books

 

The 2k8 Challenge

I’ve decided to start my own challenge. Check out the details here, and you can always get back to that through the link in the sidebar. Basically, I want to find new books and authors in 2008, and this is a way to do so!

 

Reading in 2008

I don’t know if I’ll be around to do this when 2008 actually starts, so I’ll go ahead and post this early. So here they are, my reading (and blogging) goals for the year 2008.

In 2008, I am recycling my goal to read a book a day, 365 books. Actually, I think it’s a leap year so 366. In 2007 I only read about 300, but hopefully I can actually meet the goal in 2008!

I also want to keep remembering to record all the books I read, title and author at the very least, and preferably some more information and notes, but that’s not a requirement. The records should be kept in my notebook and also posted online for a set time period. I can’t decide if that should be months or something shorter–every week, or twice a month? I guess we’ll see.

I also want to review every book I read, with the exception of those read for school. Reviewing my history textbook would be stupid.

Those read for school count towards the number read if I read at least 75% of the book (with novels, I’ll read it all, but with, say, the Princeton Review Guide to the AP World History Exam, I might skip a section or two).

I want to complete at least 5 different challenges over the course of the year. Hopefully that’ll introduce me to some great books I would not have read otherwise! I may create my own challenge, too.

I’d love to participate in the Cybils again, and try to read a bigger percentage of the nominees than I was able to this year (which should be doable as I won’t have finals. I had mostly semester-long classes this year, and will have mostly year-long classes next year).

I want to  keep up with this blog better! By this I mean updating review lists more often, posting more interviews, actually doing the Tell An Author You Care thing every month that I promised to do but forgot to do ages ago, and maybe adding a new feature (details on that later).

I’ll make this a page of its own as well as a new post, linked to in the sidebar, and if you think I’m not keeping up with it well enough, tell me! I’d also love to hear about your reading goals for 2008.

 

The Saturday Review of Books Challenge

I was going to participate in the Saturday Review of Books Challenge. I picked out some good books, and I still might finish that list, but the challenge is done and I failed miserably. Hopefully I’ll try some new challenges in 2008, though! Congratulations to all the people who finished that one.

 

24 Hour Read-a-thon

Next month, I’m going to participate in the 24 Hour Read-a-thon, hosted by The Hidden Side of a Leaf. I’m quite excited to have an excuse to spend a whole 24 hours reading! Check it out–even if you’re not a blogger or don’t want to read for 24 hours straight, they need cheerleaders, too!