2015 Reading Challenge

How am I going to read 42 (plus 2 because of trilogy) books by December 31st? Not really sure. Kind of freaking out…just a bit. It seems like a lot to read with only 4 months to go. I’m sort of thinking what did I get myself into. But its fine (deep breaths). I can do this. So I decided to stay organized by going through the list of challenges in POPSUGAR’s 2015 Reading Challenge and deciding which ones I still have to complete and what books I can read that correspond with each requirement. I tried to choose a wide variety of reads from various different genres.

I recently completed The House Girl by Tara Conklin as part of my book club (plan to post that review by latest Sunday). I have also finished A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas, however I have submitted my review to another blog site. They plan to post the review by September 16th, so I will post it only after they have put it up. Next up in my book club reads is Hausfrau by Jill Alexander Essbaum, and we plan to meet next week to discuss it. Also this week I will be reading All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr. I have heard this one is really good so I am excited to read it.

Below is my list of reads for the challenge. I think that I have picked reads for every requirement except maybe 3 or 4 because I am waiting on a friend or family member to recommend one to me. If anyone has any suggestions for reads, or if you think you know of a better book that fulfills my challenge requirements leave me a comment.

1. A book with more than 500 pages – Perfidia by James Ellroy (Book Club read)
2. A classic romance – The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne
3. A book that became a movie – Girl with a Pearl Earring by Tracy Chevalier (Book Club read)
4. A book published this year – Go Set a Watchman by Harper Lee
5. A book with a number in the title – The 100 by Kass Morgan (COMPLETED)
6. A book written by someone under 30 – Perfect Ruin by Lauren DeStefano
7. A book with nonhuman characters – A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas (COMPLETED)
8. A funny book – Catch 22 by Joseph Heller (Book Club read)
9. A book by a female author – The House Girl by Tara Conklin (Book Club read – COMPLETED)
10. A mystery or thriller – Moriarty by Anthony Horowitz (Book Club read – COMPLETED)
11. A book with a one word title – Panic by Lauren Oliver
12. A book of short stories – The Love of a Good Woman by Alice Munro
13. A book set in a different country – Hausfrau by Jill Alexander Essbaum (Book Club read)
14. A nonfiction book – Parenting beyond Pink and Blue by Christia Spears Brown
15. A popular author’s first book – The Thomas Berryman Number by James Patterson
16. A book from an author you love that you haven’t read yet – Black Ice by Becca Fitzpatrick
17. A book a friend recommended (will wait on a friend to recommend)
18. A pulitzer prize winning book – All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr
19. A book based on a true story – The Paris Wife by Paula McLain
20. A book at bottom of your to-read list – Sea of Shadows by Kelley Armstrong
21. A book your mom loves (I still have to ask her about this)
22. A book that scares you – Carrie by Stephen King
23. A book more than 100 years old – 12 Years A Slave by Solomon Northup
24. A book based entirely on the cover – A Mad Wicked Folly by Sharon Biggs Waller
25. A book you were supposed to read in school but didn’t – To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
26. A memoir – Foxcatcher by Mark Schultz (COMPLETED)
27. A book you can finish in a day – Wild Orchid by Cameron Dokey (COMPLETED)
28. A book with antonyms in the title – Wicked Lovely by Melissa Marr
29. A book set somewhere you’ve always wanted to visit (Australia) – Stolen by Lucy Christopher
30. A book that came out the year you were born – Outlander by Diana Gabaldon
31. A book with bad reviews – The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
32. A trilogy – Legend trilogy by Marie Lu
33. A book from childhood – Anne of Green Gables by Lucy Maud Montgomery
34. A book with a love triangle – A Kiss of Deception by Mary E. Pearson
35. A book set in highschool – School Spirits by Rachel Hawkins
36. A book with a colour in the title – Golden by Cameron Dokey (COMPLETED)
37. A book that made you cry – If I Stay by Gayle Forman
38. A book with magic – Before Midnight by Cameron Dokey (COMPLETED)
39. A graphic novel – Skim by Mariko Tamaki
40. A book by an author you’ve never read before – I Remember You by Cathleen Davitt Bell
41. A book that takes place in your hometown (Toronto) – Cat’s Eye by Margaret Atwood
42. A book originally written in different language – Ruby Red by Kerstin Gier
43. A book set during Christmas – Little Women by Louisa May Alcott
44. A book written by an author with you initials – The Inheritance Loss by Kiran Desai
45. A play (a friend is working on finding me one)
46. A book you own but never read – Tinker Tailor Solider Spy by John Le Carre
47. A banned book – 1984 by George Orwell
48. A book you started but have never finished – The Diviners by Libba Bray
49. A book set in the future – Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
50. A book based on or turned into a TV show – Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin