2016 Challenges

The Goals:

• Read at least 25 books this year

1. The Two Gentleman of Verona – William Shakespeare
2. White Nights – Ann Cleeves
3. Emil and the Detectives – Erich Kästner
4. Beatrix Potter tales:
   1. The Tale of Peter Rabbit
   2. The Tale of Squirrel Nutkin
   3. The Tailor of Gloucester
   4. The Tale of Benjamin Bunny
   5. The Tale of Two Bad Mice
   6. The Tale of Mrs. Tiggy-Winkle
   7. The Tale of Mr. Jeremy Fisher
   8. The Tale of Tom Kitten
   9. The Tale of Jemima Puddle-Duck
   10. The Tale of the Flopsy Bunnies
   11. The Tale of Mrs. Tittlemouse
   12. The Tale of Timmy Tiptoes
   13. The Tale of Johnny Town-Mouse
   14. The Tale of Mr. Tod
   15. The Tale of Pigling Bland
   16. The Tale of Samuel Whiskers or The Roly-Poly Pudding
   17. The Tale of the Pie and the Patty-Pan
   18. The Tale of Ginger and Pickles
   19. The Tale of Little Pig Robinson
   20. The Story of a Fierce Bad Rabbit
   21. The Story of Miss Moppet
   22. Appley Dapply’s Nursery Rhymes
   23. Cecily Parsley’s Nursery Rhymes
5. The Jungle Book – Rudyard Kipling
6. Folks from Dixie – Paul Laurence Dunbar
7. Pedro Páramo – Juan Rulfo
8. Selected Poems – Paul Laurence Dunbar
9. Titus Andronicus – William Shakespeare
10. A Midsummer Night’s Dream – William Shakespeare
11. The Grey King – Susan Cooper
12. Silver on the Tree – Susan Cooper
13. The President – Miguel Ángel Asturias
14. But What If We’re Wrong?: Thinking About the Present As If It Were the Past – Chuck Klosterman
15. Above the Shots: An Oral History of the Kent State Shootings – Craig S. Simpson and Gregory S. Wilson
16. His Last Bow – Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
17. The Bluest Eye – Toni Morrison
18. Pride and Prejudice – Jane Austen
19. The Taming of the Shrew – William Shakespeare
20. Harry Potter and the Cursed Child –  J.K. Rowling, Jack Thorne and John Tiffany
21. The Girl on the Train – Paula Hawkins
22. The Raven Boys – Maggie Stiefvater
23. Tuck Everlasting – Natalie Babbitt
24. Silence – Shūsaku Endō
25. The Dream Thieves – Maggie Stiefvater

• Resume the Reading Ohio project
  • Folks from Dixie – Paul Laurence Dunbar
  • Selected Poems – Paul Laurence Dunbar
  • Above the Shots – Craig S. Simpson and Gregory S. Wilson
  • The Bluest Eye – Toni Morrison
  • Tuck Everlasting – Natalie Babbitt
• Focus more on my Classics Club list
  • The Two Gentleman of Verona – William Shakespeare
  • Titus Andronicus – William Shakespeare
  • A Midsummer Night’s Dream – William Shakespeare
  • The President – Miguel Ángel Asturias
  • His Last Bow – Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
  • The Bluest Eye – Toni Morrison
  • Pride and Prejudice – Jane Austen
  • The Taming of the Shrew – William Shakespeare
• Start adding in some contemporary translated fiction.
• Plenty of Children’s Classics! April for the next Children’s Classic Literature Event

1. Emil and the Detectives – Erich Kästner
2. The Tale of Peter Rabbit – Beatrix Potter
3. The Tale of Squirrel Nutkin – Beatrix Potter
4. The Tailor of Gloucester – Beatrix Potter
5. The Tale of Benjamin Bunny – Beatrix Potter
6. The Tale of Two Bad Mice – Beatrix Potter
7. The Jungle Book – Rudyard Kipling
8. The Tale of Mrs. Tiggy-Winkle – Beatrix Potter
9. The Tale of Mr. Jeremy Fisher – Beatrix Potter
10. The Tale of Tom Kitten – Beatrix Potter
11. The Tale of Jemima Puddle-Duck – Beatrix Potter
12. The Tale of the Flopsy Bunnies – Beatrix Potter
13. The Tale of Mrs. Tittlemouse – Beatrix Potter
14. The Tale of Timmy Tiptoes – Beatrix Potter
15. The Tale of Johnny Town-Mouse – Beatrix Potter
16. The Tale of Mr. Tod – Beatrix Potter
17. The Tale of Pigling Bland – Beatrix Potter
18. The Tale of Samuel Whiskers or The Roly-Poly Pudding – Beatrix Potter
19. The Tale of the Pie and the Patty-Pan – Beatrix Potter
20. The Tale of Ginger and Pickles – Beatrix Potter
21. The Tale of Little Pig Robinson – Beatrix Potter
22. The Story of a Fierce Bad Rabbit – Beatrix Potter
23. The Story of Miss Moppet – Beatrix Potter
24. Appley Dapply’s Nursery Rhymes – Beatrix Potter
25. Cecily Parsley’s Nursery Rhymes – Beatrix Potter
26. The Grey King – Susan Cooper
27. Silver on the Tree – Susan Cooper
28. Tuck Everlasting – Natalie Babbitt

The Challenges:

o’s Reading England 2016. How many from my Classics Club list would fit that challenge! Goal: level 1 (1-3 counties).

1. London: His Last Bow – Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
2. Hertfordshire: Pride and Prejudice – Jane Austen

The Classics Club’s Women’s Classic Literature Event. Goal: min. 4 classics by a woman author (not counting contemporary).

1. Beatrix Potter – The 23 Tales
2. Jane Austen – Pride and Prejudice
3. Toni Morrison – The Bluest Eye
4. Natalie Babbitt – Tuck Everlasting 

Karen at Books and Chocolate’s Back to the Classics Challenge. (All books must be at least 50 years old.) Goal: hit all 12 categories.

1. A 19th Century Classic – any book published between 1800 and 1899.
2. A 20th Century Classic – any book published between 1900 and 1966.
3. A classic by a woman author. [Pride and Prejudice]
4. A classic in translation.  Any book originally written published in a language other than your native language. Feel free to read the book in your language or the original language. [Pedro Páramo]
5. A classic by a non-white author. Can be African-American, Asian, Latino, Native American, etc. [Selected Poems]
6. An adventure classic – can be fiction or non-fiction. Children’s classics like Treasure Island are acceptable in this category.
7. A fantasy, science fiction, or dystopian classic. Dystopian could include classics like 1984, and children’s classics like The Hobbit are acceptable in this category also.
8. A classic detective novel. It must include a detective, amateur or professional.
9. A classic which includes the name of a place in the title.  It can be the name of a house, a town, a street, etc. Examples include Bleak House, Main Street, The Belly of Paris, or The Vicar of Wakefield. [The Two Gentlemen of Verona]
10. A classic which has been banned or censored. If possible, please mention why this book was banned or censored in your review. [The President]
11. Re-read a classic you read in school (high school or college).  If it’s a book you loved, does it stand the test of time?  If it’s a book you disliked, is it any better a second time around?
12. A volume of classic short stories. This must be one complete volume, at least 8 short stories. It can be an anthology of stories by different authors, or all the stories can be by a single author. Children’s stories are acceptable in this category also. [Folks from Dixie]

 

Keely at We Walked Outside and Saw The Stars’ Ancient Greek Reading Challenge. Goal: level 1 (1-4 texts).

Jen at The Introverted Reader’s Books in Translation Challenge 2016. Goal: Conversationalist (4-6 books).

1. Emil and the Detectives [Emil und die Detektive] – Erich Kästner (Germany, 1929) [Eileen Hall, translator]
2. Pedro Páramo – Juan Rulfo (Mexico, 1955) [Margaret Sayers Peden, translator]
3. The Predisent [El Señor Presidente] – Miguel Ángel Asturais (Guatemala, 1946) [Frances Partridge, translator]
4. Silence – Shūsaku Endō (Japan, 1966) [William  Johnston, translator]

 

Samantha’s Shakespeare 400: The Bardathon Challenge 2016. Goal: Mix-and-match Shakespeare (min. 5 Shakespeare experiences: read/watch/listen/perform/play).

• The Two Gentleman of Verona (read & watched)
• Titus Andronicus
• A Midsummer Night’s Dream (read & watched)
• The Taming of the Shrew (read & watched)

o’s The Pickwick Papers readalong. Runs from March 2016-November 2017.

I – March 2016 (chapters 1–2)
II – April 2016 (chapters 3–5)
III – May 2016 (chapters 6–8)
IV – June 2016 (chapters 9-11)
V – July 2016 (chapters 12–14)
VI – August 2016 (chapters 15–17)
VII – September 2016 (chapters 18–20)
VIII – October 2016 (chapters 21–23)
IX – November 2016 (chapters 24–26)
X – December 2016 (chapters 27–29)
XI – January 2017 (chapters 30–32)
XII – February 2017 (chapters 33–34)
XIII – March 2017 (chapters 35–37)
XIV – April 2017 (chapters 38–40)
XV – June 2017 (chapters 41–43)
XVI – July 2017 (chapters 44–46)
XVII – August 2017 (chapters 47-49)
XVIII – September 2017 (chapters 50–52)
XIX – October 2017 (chapters 53–55)
XX – November 2017 (chapters 56–57)