And a Few More Wrap-Ups

Hosted by Joanne at Booklover Book Reviews
Dates: 1 January - 31 December, 2011
Objective: Read and review books written by Australian Authors

I signed up at the "Tourist" level, and read three books:

1. Picnic at Hanging Rock. Joan Lindsay
   
2. The Seance. John Harwood
   
3. My Brilliant Career. Miles Franklin
   

Loved this challenge -- thanks so much to Joanne for hosting. The three books I read were some of my favorites from this year's reading, and a couple of them (Picnic at Hanging Rock and My Brilliant Career) had been on my TBR list for decades.

Hosted by Yvonne of Socrates' Book Reviews
Dates: 1 January - 31 December, 2011

I signed up at the "Snoop" level, and read six books:

1. Whisker of Evil. Rita Mae Brown
   
2. Malice in Miniature. Jeanne M. Dams
3. Mrs. Malory and the Fatal Legacy. Hazel Holt
   
4. Mrs. Malory and a Time to Die. Hazel Holt
5. Quiet As a Nun. Antonia Fraser
6. The Killings at Badger's Drift. Caroline Graham
   

Many thanks to Yvonne too, for hosting this one. I love mysteries, and while I didn't exactly cruise through the cozies for this, I still enjoyed all the books I read. Still trying to catch up on reviews (what else is new?), but I've included links to those that exist.

Hosted by Historical Tapestry
Dates: 1 January - 31 December, 2011

I signed up at level four ("Daring & Curious"), and committed to five books. Actually read seven:

1. The Anatomy of Ghosts. Andrew Taylor
2. The Girl Who Would Speak for the Dead. Paul Elwork
   
3. Mr. Chartwell. Rebecca Hunt
   
4. Picnic at Hanging Rock. Joan Lindsay
   
5. The Winter Ghosts. Kate Mosse
   
6. The Seance. John Harwood
7. Alice I Have Been. Melanie Benjamin
   

I had some misgivings about signing up for this one -- didn't think of myself as a fan of historical fiction; but as it turned out, I had a lot of fun with it. Thanks so much to Historical Tapestry for hosting.

Challenges for 2011, Part 3

Well, here we are - nearly at the end of December; and I'm still several books away from my fifty-book goal for the year. I should be reading, right? But instead, I've been cruising around, looking at all the new reading challenges in the works for 2011. And, lo and behold, I managed to find a few more that are just too interesting to pass up. I really should have a keeper looking after me.

ARC Reading Challenge 2011

1 January - 31 December 2011
Four reading levels: 12 or fewer books, 24, 25, 30 or more
Host: Teddy Rose of So Many Precious Books, So Little Time
See the announcement/sign-up page here.
✸ This is an extremely useful challenge, and I'm so glad it's being offered again in 2011. I'm still working through my list for the 2010 edition of the challenge, but I'm definitely signing up for this one.

Cruisin' thru the Cozies Reading Challenge 2011

1 January - 31 December 2011
Three levels: 1-6, 7-12, 13 or more books
Host: Yvonne of Socrates' Book Review Blog
See the announcement/sign-up page here.
✸ I love cozy mysteries, so this one should be no problem at all. Even so, I think I'll probably be signing up at the first level (1-6 books).

Historical Fiction Reading Challenge 2011

1 January - 31 December 2011
Five levels: 2, 5, 10, 15, or 20 books
Host: Historical Tapestry
See the announcement/sign-up page here.
✸ I had to think about this one for a while. I always maintain that I don't read much historical fiction (even though I do enjoy it), but when I got to looking at my list of books for this year, I realized that several of them would qualify in that category. Any kind of historical fiction is acceptable, so I'm signing up, and I think I'll probably go for the "Daring & Curious" level (5 books).

TBR Lite Challenge 2011

1 January - 31 December 2011
Three different reading options; and you should have a list of possible books posted (see mine here).
Host: Miz B
See the announcement/sign-up page here.
✸ Another highly useful challenge. I like this "lite" version because I'm really bad about sticking to plans and schedules when it comes to reading. TBR Lite allows me to change my mind and move things around as needed. There's also a Yahoo group for the challenge (here), where participants can chat about their reading. I'm going to be signing up for Option B (read six books in twelve months). I don't have a specific list for this challenge yet, but I've got "to-be-read" lists posted at Good Reads (here) and Shelfari (here), and I'll be taking my books for the challenge from those.

OK, those are definitely the last challenges I'll be signing up for in 2011. That is, until I find another tempting possibility. (You knew that was coming, right?) During the year, I'll be updating my progress on my challenge blog, here.