2012 Book Challenges in Review

Last year, I discovered the world of reading challenges! I also hosted two of my own book challenges, one in the summer and another in the winter that spilled into 2013. I realize 2012 is now over, so I wanted to get rid of my 2012 Book Challenges tab, but I also wanted to make sure I preserved my completed (and attempted) challenges somewhere, so I'm including my progress below.

Have you ever participated in a reading challenge? I'll be doing another one this summer, so check back on April 15 for the categories! :)

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I'm participating in 10 12 book challenges this year, gleaned from lovely book bloggers all over the web. I started this project on January 27, so I was a little late to the game, but I still have over 11 months to make it happen! (And of course, I'm going to retroactively count all the books I've read since January 1.)

1. A-Z Challenge — GOAL NOT MET

Pretty self-explanatory. Disclaimer: I've decided that I will not count "A," "An" or "The" as first words in titles for this list. Seems fair, right?

A. Alice in Wonderland, Lewis Carroll (January 18 - January 21)

B. The Boleyn Inheritance, Philippa Gregory (February 29 - March 3)

C. Catherine the Great: Portrait of a Woman, Robert K. Massie (March 28 - March 31)

D. Dear John, Nicholas Sparks (March 19)

E. Extras, Scott Westerfeld (January 10 - January 18)

F. Fifty Shades of Grey, E L James (April 23 - April 27)

G. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, Stieg Larsson (January 21 - January 28)

H. Heart of Darkness, Joseph Conrad (February 21 - February 26)

I.

J.

K. The Kite Runner, Khaled Hosseini (May 28 - June 1)

L. Lone Wolf, Jodi Picoult (April 1 - April 2)

M. Me Talk Pretty One Day, David Sedaris (January 28 - January 30)

N. Never Let Me Go, Kazuo Ishiguro (February 6 - February 8)

O. Odd Thomas, Dean Koontz (June 2 - June 8)

P. Pretties, Scott Westerfeld (January 7 - January 8)

Q.

R. Room, Emma Donoghue (February 27 - February 28)

S. Specials, Scott Westerfeld (January 8 - January 10)

T.

U. Uglies, Scott Westerfeld (January 4 - January 7)

V.

W. The Weight of Silence, Heather Gudenkauf (April 11 - April 14)

X.

Y.

Z.

2. Finishing the Series — GOAL NOT MET

I'm aiming for Level 3, which means I have to complete three series before December 31.

1. Uglies, Scott Westerfeld - 4/4 (January 4 - January 18)
2. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, Stieg Larsson - 2/3 (January 21 - February 19)
3. Fifty Shades of Grey, E L James (April 23 - in progress)

3. A Classics Challenge — GOAL NOT MET

Read seven classics throughout the year. I am listing the seven I plan to read, but that can change of course.

1. Alice in Wonderland, Lewis Carroll (January 18 - January 21)
2. Through the Looking-Glass, Lewis Carroll
3. Aesop's Fables, Aesop (February 5 - February 6)
4. The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald (April 4)
5. Grimm's Fairy Stories, Jacob & Wilhhelm Grimm (March 4 - in progress)
6. Heart of Darkness, Joseph Conrad (February 21 - February 26)
7. The Catcher in the Rye, J.D. Salinger (May 17 - May 19)

4. Off the Shelf — GOAL NOT MET

Only read books I already own (from before Jan. 1, 2012) and haven't gotten around to. I'm listing all such books below with the goal to read them all, as there aren't very many. With the number of books I have, the best level I can hope for is "Tempted" (five books).

1. Never Let Me Go, Kazuo Ishiguro (February 6 - February 8)
2. Ender's Game, Orson Scott Card (January 30 - February 1)
3. Rediscover Catholicism, Matthew Kelly (March 4 - in progress)
4. Little Bird of Heaven, Joyce Carol Oates 
5. The Bookseller of Kabul, Asne Seierstad
6. Full of Grace, Christine Watkins 
7. Dark Star Safari, Paul Theroux* (July 2011 - in progress)
8. Half the Sky, Nicholas D. Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn* (February 2011 - in progress)

*I actually started reading these books in 2011 and 2010, but just stopped halfway through and never finished. I won't count these on any other challenges except this one because of that, but I have them so I want to finish them!

5. Outdo Yourself — COMPLETED: February 6

Well this won't be very hard, considering I only read nine books (outside of class, that I can remember) last year.

Completed books: 53

6. Eclectic Reader — COMPLETED: September 19

1. Literary Fiction: Never Let Me Go, Kazuo Ishiguro (February 6 - February 8)
2. Crime/Mystery Fiction: The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, Stieg Larsson (January 21 - January 28)
3. Romantic Fiction: Dear John, Nicholas Sparks (March 19)
4. Historical Fiction: The Boleyn Inheritance, Philippa Gregory (February 29 - March 3)
5. Young Adult: Uglies, Scott Westerfeld (January 4 - January 7)
6. Fantasy: The Fellowship of the Ring, J.R.R. Tolkien (June 20 - September 19)
7. Science Fiction: Ender's Game, Orson Scott Card (January 30 - February 1)
8. Non Fiction: Game Change, Obama and the Clintons, McCain and Palin, and the Race of a Lifetime, John Heilemann and Mark Halperin (March 20 - March 25)
9. Horror: Odd Thomas, Dean Koontz (June 2 - June 8)
10. Thriller/Suspense: The Girl Who Played With Fire, Stieg Larsson (February 1 - February 5)
11. Classic: Alice in Wonderland, Lewis Carroll (January 18 - January 21)
12. Your favorite genre (travel writing): Best American Travel Writing 2008, edited by Anthony Bourdain (February 29 - March 19)

7. What's In A Name 5 — GOAL NOT MET

1. A book with a topographical feature (land formation) in the title
2. A book with something you'd see in the sky in the title:
• House Made of Dawn, N. Scott Momaday (May 4 - May 6)
  
3. A book with a creepy crawly in the title:
• The Girl who Kicked the Hornet's Nest, Stieg Larsson
  
4. A book with a type of house in the title:
• The Red Tent, Anita Diamant (May 1 - May 3)
5. A book with something you'd carry in your pocket, purse, or backpack in the title:
• Snow Flower and the Secret Fan, Lisa See (March 25 - March 27)
6. A book with a something you'd find on a calendar in the title:
• Me Talk Pretty One Day, David Sedaris (January 28 - January 30)

8. Why Buy the Cow? — GOAL NOT MET

A challenge specifically for free, legally obtained digital books. Thank goodness for my Kindle, right? :) And this will definitely help me with A Classic Challenge! Going for the "Penny Pincher" level (24 books).

1. Alice in Wonderland, Lewis Carroll (January 18 - January 21)
2. Aesop's Fables, Aesop (February 5 - February 6)
3. Heart of Darkness, Joseph Conrad (February 21 - February 26)
4. Grimm's Fairy Stories, Jacob & Wilhhelm Grimm (March 4 - in progress)

9. Antonym Reading Challenge — GOAL COMPLETED: June 8

It's just what it sounds like - reading pairs of books with antonyms in the title. How cool! I'm going for my "Bachelors" degree in this challenge (12 - 20 books).

1. Uglies, Scott Westerfeld (January 4 - January 7) and Pretties, Scott Westerfeld (January 7 - January 8)
2. Heart of Darkness, Joseph Conrad (February 21 - February 26) and House Made of Dawn, N. Scott Momaday (May 4 - May 6)
3. A People's History of the United States, Howard Zinn (April 5 - May 1) and Beasts, Joyce Carol Oates (March 19 - March 19)
4. The Weight of Silence, Heather Gudenkauf (April 11 - April 14) and We Need to Talk About Kevin, Lionel Shriver (May 13 - May 17) 
5. The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, Mark Haddon (June 1 - June 2) and Me Talk Pretty One Day, David Sedaris (January 28 - January 30)
6. Plainsong, Kent Haruf (May 19 - May 22) and Odd Thomas, Dean Koontz (June 2 - June 8) 

10. Read Your Name — COMPLETED: February 8

I was only going to use "MEGAN" for this challenge, then I realized I had 3/5 letters when I started. So then I was going to use my first and last name, but then I realized I'm supposed to read the letters of my name in order! Whaaaat? Guess I'm only doing my first name now haha.

M. Me Talk Pretty One Day, David Sedaris (January 28 - January 30)

E. Ender's Game, Orson Scott Card (January 30 - February 1)

G. The Girl Who Played With Fire, Stieg Larsson (February 1 - February 5)

A. Aesop's Fables, Aesop (February 5 - February 6)

N. Never Let Me Go, Kazuo Ishiguro (February 6 - February 8)

Updated February 25, 2012:

So I lied. Apparently 10 book challenges aren't enough, because I've decided to join two more! They just looked too fun to pass up:

11. The Book Nest Challenge

Source: weheartit.com via Megan on Pinterest

The Book Nest hosts seasonal instead of annual challenges, so I guess this challenge could technically be counted as four. The challenges are pretty involved, so instead of listing my books, I'll provide links to each seasonal challenge and keep you updated on my total below:

Winter Book Challenge (January 1 — March 31): 175 points, finished 25th out of 62
Spring Book Challenge (April 1 — June 30): 265 points, finished 17th out of 57

12. Where Are You Reading? — GOAL NOT MET

This challenge is to read a book set in each state. Unfortunately, 11 of the 12 books I had read so far this year when I started the challenge were either set internationally or were science fiction, so I couldn't attribute them to a specific American state. I'm calling right now that this is probably going to be a 2012-2013 challenge. Follow along with my progress on the map below.


Final count: 13/50

View Where are you reading? in a larger map

Note: I've also read many books this year that didn't fit into any challenge. Find all my book reviews here.