RYOB (Read Your Own Books) 2010

I'm signing up for the RYOB Challenge again in 2010. It's one of MizB's Reading Challenges, and you can read all about it and join up by visiting the challenge announcement page. I'm planning to read at least 20 books from my own collection in 2010, and I'll be updating my progress on my challenge blog.

Decades 2010

I almost joined the 2009 edition of the Decades Challenge, but talked myself out of it at the last minute. So this year, I'm giving in and joining up.

The challenge runs throughout 2010 and is being hosted by Michelle from 1MoreChapter. You can read all about it and sign up by visiting the challenge announcement page, but the basic idea is to read a minimum of ten books in 2010, which were published in ten consecutive decades (books published since 2000 don't count). Crossovers with other challenges are allowed, and your list can change at any time.

The challenge announcement page has links to lists of eligible books, in case you need some suggestions. I'm thinking of reading the 20th Century, 1900s-1990s. Haven't decided on any titles yet, but I'll be updating my progress on my challenge blog.

Booking Through Thursday: Favorites of the Year

This week's BTT topic is a good one, and just what you'd expect: "What were your favorite books of the year? (Books that were new to you in 2009, if not necessarily published this year.)"

I guess it's natural to want to look back at your year's reading and do some summing up. I've already done a post about the books I read in 2009 (Reading Wrap-Up), but didn't rate anything. I enjoyed almost all the books I read – only a few were real stinkers. Here's the list of my ten favorites.

• The Age of Innocence, by Edith Wharton
• Ellen Foster, by Kaye Gibbons
• The Great Victorian Collection, by Brian Moore
• Homer & Langley, by E.L. Doctorow
• The Longshot, by Katie Kitamura
• The Master, by Colm Toibin
• Rabbit Is Rich, by John Updike
• Sacred Hearts, by Sarah Dunant
• Stardust, by Joseph Kanon
• The Uncommon Reader, by Alan Bennett

The list is in alphabetical order, but of all of them, I think Edith Wharton's The Age of Innocence would actually be my top pick – the one I can see myself reading again in years to come.

2009 Reading Wrap-Up

I'm going to try to keep this as short and simple as possible. My only real reading goal for 2009 was to read more books than the 42 I read in 2008, so I set 50 books as a target to aim for. And I very nearly made it. I've read 49 books at this point. And if I could realistically hope to finish the one I'm reading now by tonight at midnight, I could claim 50! That's unlikely to happen, but it is raining with more of the same predicted for later on. And we don't have any parties planned. So I suppose a literary marathon might not be out of the question. Just have to see what the evening brings.

For 2010, I have two goals. First, I want to read at least as many books as I read this year - more, if possible. And second, I want to try to be more faithful about reviewing each book, even if it's just a "thumb's up/down" approach - especially for books I'm reading for challenges. Of course, I'm a world-class procrastinator, so I'm not sure how far I'll get with that one, but we can hope.

I'm not going to include a lot of statistics or analysis. And I'll do a separate post about some of my favorites from this year's batch. So here's the list of books read in 2009 (listed as they were read), with links to reviews:

1. Drawers & Booths, by Ara 13 (2007; 215 pages; fiction)
2. Cover Her Face, by P.D. James (1962; 250 pages; mystery fiction)
3. The Master, by Colm Toibin (2004; 338 pages; fiction)
4. Rest in Pieces, by Rita Mae Brown (1992; 347 pages; mystery fiction)
5. Hotel Du Lac, by Anita Brookner (1984; 184 pages; fiction)
6. Solaris, by Stanislaw Lem (1961; 204 pages; science fiction)
7. Index to Murder, by Jo Dereske (2008; 259 pages; fiction)
8. Land of Marvels, by Barry Unsworth (2009; 287 pages; fiction)
9. The Age of Innocence, by Edith Wharton (1920; 285 pages; fiction)
10. The Great Victorian Collection, by Brian Moore (1975; 213 pages; fiction)
11. Blasphemy, by Douglas Preston (2008; 524 pages; fiction)
12. Angels & Insects: Two Novellas, by A.S. Byatt (1992; 340 pages; fiction)
13. The Private Patient, by P.D. James (2008; 352 pages; fiction)
14. Angels & Demons, by Dan Brown (2000; 572 pages; fiction)
15. The Way Through the Woods, by Colin Dexter (1992; 296 pages; fiction)
16. The Book of God and Physics, by Enrique Joven (2009; 350 pages; fiction)
17. The Old Man and Me, by Elaine Dundy (1963; 231 pages; fiction)
18. Brimstone, by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child (2004; 500 pages; fiction)
19. The Optimist's Daughter, by Eudora Welty (1972; 109 pages; fiction)
20. Ellen Foster, by Kaye Gibbons (1987; 126 pages; fiction)
21. Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH, by Robert C. O'Brien (1971; 233 pages; fiction)
22. To Dance with the White Dog, by Terry Kay (1990; 241 pages; fiction)
23. The Unit, by Ninni Holmqvist (2006/2009; 268 pages; fiction)
24. Moon Tiger, by Penelope Lively (1987; 208 pages; fiction)
25. The Longshot, by Katie Kitamura (2009; 191 pages; fiction)
26. The Valley of Fear, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (1914; 320 pages; fiction)
27. The Mothman Prophecies, by John A. Keel (1975; 288 pages; nonfiction)
28. The Angel's Game, by Carlos Ruiz Zafon (2009; 470 pages; fiction)
29. Sacred Hearts, by Sarah Dunant (2009; 402 pages; fiction)
30. The Fire, by Katherine Neville (2008; 445 pages; fiction)
31. Grave Goods, by Ariana Franklin (2009; 337 pages; fiction)
32. Fear the Worst, by Linwood Barclay (2009; 400 pages; fiction)
33. Rabbit Is Rich, by John Updike (1981; 467 pages; fiction)
34. Victory Over Japan, by Ellen Gilchrist (1984; 277 pages; fiction)
35. Dance of Death, by Douglas Preston & Lincoln Child (2005; 560 pages; fiction)
36. The Man in the Picture, by Susan Hill (2007; 145 pages; fiction)
37. The Woman in Black, by Susan Hill (1983; 160 pages; fiction)
38. New Year's Eve, by Lisa Grunwald (1997; 366 pages; fiction)
39. From Doon with Death, by Ruth Rendell (1964; 226 pages; fiction)
40. The Friend of Madame Maigret. Georges Simenon (1950; 186 pages; fiction)
41. The Lair of the White Worm. Bram Stoker (1911; approx. 120 pages; fiction)
42. Homer & Langley. E.L. Doctorow (2009; 208 pages; fiction)
43. The Uncommon Reader. Alan Bennett (2007; 120 pages; fiction)
44. The Lover. Marguerite Duras (1984; 117 pages; fiction)
45. The Lesson of the Master. Henry James (1888; approx. 63 pages; fiction)
46. Stardust. Joseph Kanon (2009; 506 pages; fiction)
47. Santa Clawed. Rita Mae Brown (2008; 240 pages; fiction)
48. Christmas Card Magic. Margaret Perry (1967; 127 pages; nonfiction)
49. Crewel Yule. Monica Ferris (2004; 245 pages; fiction)
50. [Maybe] The Inn at Lake Devine. Elinor Lipman (reading now)

Teaser Tuesdays: Don't Go There

Well, I'm sorry to have to report that I'm still reading the same book I was reading the last time I posted a Teaser Tuesday entry - and that was a couple of weeks ago. December has been a slow month for me, where reading is concerned. All that holiday-ing is fun but time-consuming. So, here's another snippet from Crewel Yule by Monica Ferris. I should explain that the Belle in the quote is (or was) Eve's best friend and business partner, and Jack is (or was) Eve's hubby.

It happened when Eve was visiting her husband at work and casually logged onto his e-mail account to send a message -- and found a whole set of red-hot, lusty exchanges between him and Belle. Jack didn't deny it. He said Belle understood him in a way Eve didn't. Jack packed a bag and left home that night. [p.44]

Ah, yes - the old "you don't understand me" gambit. Well, I hope she learned a good lesson about the dangers of "casually" logging onto someone's e-mail account - even your husband's. Especially your husband's.


Teaser Tuesdays is hosted by mizb17 at Should Be Reading. If you'd like to read more teasers, or do a little teasing yourself, head on over to her blog. And these are the rules: Grab your current read; Let the book fall open to a random page. Share with us two (2) "teaser" sentences from somewhere on that page. You also need to share the title of the book that you're getting your "teaser" from … that way people can have some great book recommendations if they like the teaser you've given! Please avoid spoilers!

The Winter Words Reading Challenge

OK, here's another one. Tarissa over at In the Bookcase is hosting the Winter Words Reading Challenge which runs throughout the season, from December 21 to March 19. The workings are a bit complicated, so you should head on over to the challenge announcement page and read up on it, but it sounds intriguing.

Basically, the challenge is to read at least three or as many as nine books. You choose from a list of winter-related acronyms and then match up your reading choices with those words.

Here's the list of acronyms:

• 3 books - ice, ski
• 4 books - snow, sled
• 5 books - frost, slick
• 6 books - winter, icicle, flurry
• 7 books - mittens, snowman
• 8 books - slippery, ice skate
• 9 books - snowflake

I'm having a lot of fun pairing up books with those wintry words, but I'm going to play it safe and choose the 3-book level and use "ice" as my acronym. Haven't decided on definite book choices yet, but my candidates are:

I = I Am Madame X by Gioia Diliberto, or The Inn at Lake Devine by Elinor Lipman
C = The Children's Book by A.S. Byatt, or The Wapshot Chronicle by John Cheever
E = The Egypt Game by Zilpha Keatley Snyder, or Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? by Philip K. Dick

I'm using the titles of the books to match up, but you can use authors' names if you prefer. And I'll be updating my progress on my challenge blog here.

The challenge is open to readers of all ages - children, teens, and adults - so I'm assuming that young adult and even children's literature is acceptable reading matter. It also means that this might be a great excuse to do a little more reading to/with your kids. Or even read some of those childhood classics you never got around to. Should be fun.

Here and There in Bookland

Just catching up on my journal reading.

On expensive reading matter, from the New York Times Book Review, 12/27/2009, p. 18:

"Big Spenders: Every month, the used-book Web site AbeBooks.com releases a list of its most expensive sales. The list is often dominated by specialty items and antique works.... But in November, with the holidays approaching, things took a distinctly literary turn. Did the person who spent $12,500 for a set of Charles Dickens's works (and a signed note from the author) plan to give them to someone special for Christmas? That sale topped the list, followed by a first edition of F. Scott Fitzgerald's 'Tender Is the Night,' for $11,000, and a signed, limited-edition copy of Helmut Newton's gargantuan photography book 'Sumo,' for $10,867. The Newton book is 20 inches wide and more than 2 feet long, but for that kind of money you don't need to worry about finding a place for it on your coffee table: it comes with a custom display stand designed by Philippe Starck."

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On the reaction to the Twilight series, from "Girls Just Wanna Have Fangs," by Sady Doyle, in The American Prospect, 11/19/2009:

"As Twilight demonstrates, not everything girls like is good art -- or, for that matter, good feminism. Still, the Twilight backlash should matter to feminists, even if the series makes them shudder."

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On the moral teachings of Jane Austen, from "What Would Jane Do?," by James Collins, in the Wall Street Journal, 11/14/2009:

"I find that reading Jane Austen helps me clarify ethical choices, helps me figure out a way to live with integrity in the corrupt world, even helps me adopt the proper tone and manner in dealing with others. Her moralism and the modern mind are not, in fact, in direct opposition, as is so often assumed."