18
Nov
2009
Because I’m Sure You’re Sick of Hearing About Challenges, Here’s 3 at Once
Very soon, it will actually be 2010, and by then I’ll have stopped posting about all of these reading challenges. Until then, I’m going to try to post about them in clumps, in order to make it easier for you to skip over if you wish.
The LGBT Challenge has three levels of participation. I’m going to join at the lowest level, which is to read four books, but I have five in mind.
Here’s my list:
Band Fags! by Frank Anthony Polito
Brokeback Mountain by Annie Proulx
The Long Way Home by Joss Whedon and Georges Jeanty
The Color Purple by Alice Walker
The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde
The next challenge I’ve had my eye on is S Krishna’s South Asia Author Challenge. This one is to read books by authors from or with ancestry from South Asia, which includes Pakistan, India, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka.
There’s one strict rule that got my attention, which is that there is no going down a level. So I’m going to officially sign up for the lowest level, which is to read three books, but I’m going to make my list five books, which just so happens to be the amount for the next level up and hope I read them all.
My list includes:
The Enchantress of Florence by Salman Rushdie
Saffron Dreams by Shaila Abdullah
A Fine Balance by Rohinton Mistry
The Reluctant Fundamentalist Mohsin Hamid
The Namesake by Jumpa Lahiri
Of course, looking at that list it seems to exclude Bangali and Sri Lankan authors. Hmm…maybe I’ll have to think about this.
I know that whole bunches of you read YA books, but I’ve never been that into them…even when I was at that age. However, I’ve been thinking that I should read more. So I’m signing up for J. Kaye’s YA Challenge. It’s a pretty lofty challenge and the minimum is to read 12 books, so that’s what I’ll do. At least I’ll give it a shot. And who knows, maybe I’ll fall in love with YA.
You might notice that I don’t actually have 12 books on my list. So, I’m open for suggestions. Just remember that with the exception of Eyes Like Stars, which I have only just realized is the first in a series, but it’s already on my list for something else and I’m friends with @lisamantchev on Twitter, I don’t read series until they are completed. Won’t. Do. It.
Anyways, here’s my list thus far:
Fallen by Lauren Kate
Nature Girl by Carl Hiaasen
The Wednesday Wars by Gary D Schmidt
Eyes Like Stars by Lisa Mantchev
Liar by Justine Larbestier
Band Fags! by Frank Anthony Polito
On of Blake Nelson’s YA books
Awesome, thanks for joining us in the GLBT Challenge!
You have some serious reading ahead of you. The only one of these I’m doing is the GLBT challenge.
I’m doing the GLBT challenge for sure and would like to do the South Asian Author challenge as well if I clear out a few of the ones I’m currently working on.
I’m doing the GLBT Challenge and YA Challenge, but I’m sure there will be more. I just can’t help myself!
For YAish books, check out John Connolly’s The Book of Lost Things or The Gates. Both are on the adulty end of the YA spectrum, and both are thoroughly enjoyable reads.
great mix here. lordy, the gauntlets are being thrown down left and right. i just threw one down on my site to tempt you, maybe?
So glad you are joining the YA reading challenge. I am really going to cut loose in 2010…lol.
you are signing up for tons of reading challenges.
You have some BIG challenges there! I think I’m signing up for J.Kaye’s YA Challenge too. I don’t want to bog myself down with challenge books and not leave myself time for review books and that huge TBR pile.
Wow, the buttons alone are extraordinary! I’m having a hard time keeping up with what I’ve slated to read already, so I can’t join anymore, but I’ll participate vicariously with your good reviews.
For YA fiction suggestions, I’ll throw out Megan Whalen Turner’s The Thief, which is very entertaining and leads up to an even better The Queen of Attolia. I don’t think it’s a really intentional series (same characters, no overarching plot tying all the books together), but there is a fourth book coming out in the spring. Just in case you want to wait until then.