2016 Challenges Complete - Round Two

12/20/2016

I did indeed complete all six of the challenges I signed up for this year, and I'm rather surprised at how well I did. I had no idea how my reading life was going to change once I had my baby in April, so I didn't sign up for as many challenges as I usually do. Now that I'm gathering a list of challenges I want to try in 2017, I have a feeling I'm going to have an even harder time reining myself in than I did this year.

Here is round two of the challenges I completed this year!

Hosted by Chapter Break
Goal: Give Your Shelves a Warm, Friendly Hug (21-30 books)

1. So Many Books, So Little Time by Sara Nelson
2. Maud: The Life of L.M. Montgomery by Harry Bruce
3. Akin to Anne: Tales of Other Orphans by L.M. Montgomery
4. Lost in Rooville by Ray Blackston
5. The Island of Dr. Libris by Chris Grabenstein
6. Tisha by Robert Specht
7. Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea by Jules Verne
8. The Tale of Hill Top Farm by Susan Wittig Albert
9. The Name of the Rose by Umberto Eco
10. War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy
11. The Midnight Rose by Lucinda Riley
12. The Girl in the Gatehouse by Julie Klassen
13. The Invention of Sarah Cummings by Olivia Newport
14. Walking the Amazon by Ed Stafford
15. Irresistible North by Andrea di Robilant
16. A Walk Through Wales by Anthony Bailey
17. Seven Seasons in Siena by Robert Rodi
18. Istanbul: Memories and the City by Orhan Pamuk
19. Walking the Bible: A Journey by Land Through the Five Books of Moses by Bruce Feiler
20. Right from the Start by Shirley Morgenthaler
21. River Town: Two Years on the Yangtze by Peter Hessler

Okay, so I just barely made this one. I was really hoping I would do better. It's my goal to get a couple more books of my Circumreading the World journey read by the end of the year, so the number may go up by a couple. This is definitely one I'll try again next year and hopefully work even harder at!

Hosted by An Armchair By the Sea & Smoke and Mirrors

January: Little House in the Big Woods by Laura Ingalls Wilder
February: Little House on the Prairie by Laura Ingalls Wilder
March: Farmer Boy by Laura Ingalls Wilder
April: On the Banks of Plum Creek by Laura Ingalls Wilder
May: On the Shores of Silver Lake by Laura Ingalls Wilder
June: The Long Winter by Laura Ingalls Wilder
July: Little Town on the Prairie by Laura Ingalls Wilder
August: These Happy Golden Years by Laura Ingalls Wilder
September: The First Four Years by Laura Ingalls Wilder
October: On the Way Home by Laura Ingalls Wilder
November: West from Home by Laura Ingalls Wilder
December: A Wilder Rose by Susan Wittig Albert

I petered out on the reviewing part, but at least I read them all! This is the first time I've read the Little House books, and I'm so glad I finally did. What took me so long?

Hosted by: The Introverted Reader
Goal: Explorer (6-10 books)

1. So Many Books, So Little Time by Sara Nelson
2. Maud: The Life of L.M. Montgomery by Harry Bruce
3. Tisha: The Wonderful True Love Story of a Young Teacher in the Alaskan Wilderness by Robert Specht
4. Bringing Up Bébé: One American Mother Discovers the Wisdom of French Parenting by Pamela Druckerman
5. A Spoonful of Sugar: A Nanny's Story by Brenda Ashford
6. Jane's Fame: How Jane Austen Conquered the World by Claire Harman
7. The Year of Reading Dangerously: How Fifty Great Books (and Two Not-So-Great Ones) Saved My Life by Andy Miller
8. Among the Janeites: A Journey Through the World of Jane Austen Fandom by Deborah Yaffe
9. Ten Letters: The Stories Americans Tell Their President by Eli Saslow
10. The Nothing That Is: A Natural History of Zero by Robert M. Kaplan
11. The Little Bookstore of Big Stone Gap: A Memoir of Friendship, Community, and the Uncommon Pleasure of a Good Book by Wendy Welch
12. The Penguin Lessons by Tom Michell
13. The King's Speech: How One Man Saved the British Monarchy by Mark Logue
14. Mastering the Art of French Eating: Lessons in Food and Love from a Year in Paris by Ann Mah
15. The Perfection of the Paper Clip: Curious Tales of Invention, Accidental Genius, and Stationery Obsession by James Ward
16. The Mommy Group: Freaking Out, Finding Friends, and Surviving the Happiest Time of Our Lives by Elizabeth Isadora Gold
17. The Missing Ink: The Lost Art of Handwriting by Philip Hensher
18. The Lost Girls: Three Friends, Four Continents, One Unconventional Detour Around the World by Jennifer Baggett
19. How to Be a Heroine by Samantha Ellis
20. Grunt: The Curious Science of Humans at War by Mary Roach
21. Good Prose: The Art of Nonfiction by Tracy Kidder
22. Out of Order: Stories from the History of the Supreme Court by Sandra Day O'Connor
23. The Private World of Georgette Heyer by Joan Aiken Hodge
24. God's Bestseller: William Tyndale, Thomas More, and the Writing of the English Bible - A Story of Martyrdom and Betrayal by Brian Moynahan
25. What We See When We Read by Peter Mendelsund
26. When Breath Becomes Air by Paul Kalanithi
27. Living with a Dead Language: My Romance with Latin by Ann Patty
28. Walking the Amazon: 860 Days. One Step at a Time. by Ed Stafford
29. Irresistible North: From Venice to Greenland on the Trail of the Zen Brothers by Andrea di Robilant
30. A Walk Through Wales by Anthony Bailey
31. Seven Seasons in Siena: My Quixotic Quest for Acceptance Among Tuscany's Proudest People by Robert Rodi
32. West from Home: Letters of Laura Ingalls Wilder, San Francisco, 1915 by Laura Ingalls Wilder
33. Istanbul: Memories and the City by Orhan Pamuk
34. Walking the Bible: A Journey by Land Through the Five Books of Moses by Bruce Feiler
35. River Town: Two Years on the Yangtze by Peter Hessler

So, um, yeah. I read a lot more nonfiction than I was anticipating. Next year, I'll set my goal a bit higher for this challenge!

6 Comments

Christine @Buckling Bookshelves link

12/20/2016 02:02:26 pm

Wow, that nonfiction list! Great job in 2016 and good luck figuring out your 2017 challenges. A word of caution for joining a lot of challenges next year... toddlerhood is a whole new game! And I don't mean that in a scary or bad way, just that things keep shifting... I suppose we'll get used to that eventually, right?! My son was also born in April, so we are pretty much exactly a year ahead of you guys. This year was much different than the year he was born, in my experience anyway! 8-ish months old at Christmas time was so fun though. Wishing you and your family a very Merry Christmas! :) :)

Julie @ Smiling Shelves link

12/23/2016 09:15:49 pm

Thanks for the head's up! I'm already see my reading time decline as nursing time is less than it was when he was a newborn. I can only imagine chasing a toddler around makes it difficult, too. I'll try to limit myself as much as I can.

I'm really looking forward to seeing him open presents. It's going to be fun! Merry Christmas to you!

Susan in TX

12/20/2016 09:10:23 pm

I had to giggle. My reading went up exponentially *after* I had kids! The first two are only 16 months apart, so there was a lull for a little bit, but by the time I had 4 (and my oldest had not turned 5 yet), I was consistently reading 100-150 books a year! (Prior to having kids, I thought reading 50/year was a banner year.)
Must confess that I homeschool/ed them all and part of that was me reading "ahead" for whatever was next. But all of mine were/are big readers, so it just gets more fun as you begin to read together and then discuss together. :)
Happy reading to you, and Merry Christmas!

Julie @ Smiling Shelves link

12/23/2016 09:13:48 pm

Wow, that's an impressive amount of reading while having four little kids! Good for you! I have to admit, I can't wait to have read aloud and read together nights as a family!

Kailana link

12/21/2016 08:45:26 am

That's awesome!! I haven't decided if I am going to do any reading challenges in 2017. I am terrible at keeping track when I do. lol

Julie @ Smiling Shelves link

12/23/2016 09:11:48 pm

I love lists, so I love keeping track of my reading challenges. Goodreads has been a great help for this! :)

2016 Challenges Complete - Round Two

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