Source: What’s in a Name Challenge – 2
Aim: To read 6 books that have specific words in their titles.
Participant: Susan

Hopefully we will be able to complete the What’s in a Name 2 Challenge without scrambling for titles that fit at the end of the year. The six categories are:

A book with a profession in the title – The Piano Teacher – Janice Y K Lee
A book with a time of day in the title -
A book with a relative in its title -
A book with a body part in its title – The Thing Around Your Neck - Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
A book with a building in its title -
A book with a medical condition in its title – How to Heal a Broken Wing – Bob Graham

Source: Bonnie Jacobs at Book Around the World
Aim: To read a book from each country in the world. The book should convey something about that country and not just be written by somebody who lives there.
Participants: Susan & Meredith

We’re going to make this an ongoing challenge and not limit it to 2009. (Meredith’s Note: It’s nice to know that you will draw a line somewhere!) We’ll take it on as a team as well. ( Meredith’s Note: What the ?!?) The list of countries below is taken from a CIA World Fact book online, accessed on 14th March 2009.

Look out world, here we come!

Afghanistan
Akrotiri
Albania
Algeria
American Samoa
Andorra
Angola
Anguilla
Antarctica
Antigua and Barbuda
Argentina
Armenia
Aruba
Ashmore and Cari
Armenia
Aruba
Ashmore and Cartier Islands
Australia – 1788: The Brutal Truth of the First Fleet by David Hill
Austria
Azerbaijan
Bahamas, The
Bahrain
Baker Island
Bangladesh
Barbados
Belarus
Belgium
Belize
Benin
Bermuda
Bhutan
Bolivia
Bosnia and Herzegovina – (The Cellist of Sarajevo by Steven Galloway)
Botswana
Bouvet Island
Brazil
British Virgin Islands
Brunei
Bulgaria
Burkina Faso
Burma
Burundi
Cambodia
Cameroon
Canada – (Alias Grace by Margaret Atwood)
Cape Verde
Cayman Islands
Central African Republic
Chad
Chile
China
Christmas Island
Clipperton Island
Cocos (Keeling) Islands
Colombia
Comoros
Congo, Democratic Republic of the
Congo, Republic of the
Cook Islands
Coral Sea Islands
Costa Rica
Cote d’Ivoire
Croatia
Cuba
Cyprus
Czech Republic
Denmark
Dhekelia
Djibouti
Dominica
Dominican Republic
Ecuador
Egypt – (Dreamers of the Day by Mary Doria Russell)
El Salvador
Equatorial Guinea
Eritrea
Estonia
Ethiopia
Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas)
Faroe Islands
Fiji
Finland – (Let the Northern Lights Erase your Name by Vendela Vida)
France – (Suite Francais by Irene Nemirovsky)
French Polynesia
French Southern and Antarctic Lands
Gabon
Gambia, The
Gaza Strip
Georgia
Germany – The Reader by Bernhard Schlink
Ghana
Gibraltar
Greece
Greenland
Grenada
Guam
Guatemala
Guernsey – (The Guernsey Literary Potato Peel Pie Society – Mary Ann Schaffer + Annie Barrows)
Guinea
Guinea-Bissau
Guyana
Haiti
Heard Island and McDonald Islands
Holy See (Vatican City)
Honduras
Hong Kong – The Piano Teacher by Y K Lee
Howland Island
Hungary
Iceland
India – The Marriage Bureau for Rich People by Farahad Zama
Indonesia
Iran
Iraq
Ireland
Isle of Man
Israel
Italy
Jamaica
Jan Mayen
Japan
Jarvis Island
Jersey
Johnston Atoll
Jordan
Kazakhstan
Kenya
Kingman Reef
Kiribati
Korea, North
Korea, South
Kosovo
Kuwait
Kyrgyzstan
Laos
Latvia
Lebanon
Lesotho
Liberia
Libya
Liechtenstein
Lithuania
Luxembourg
Macau
Macedonia
Madagascar
Malawi
Malaysia
Maldives
Mali
Malta
Marshall Islands
Mauritania
Mauritius
Mayotte
Mexico
Micronesia, Federated States of
Midway Islands
Moldova
Monaco
Mongolia
Montenegro
Montserrat
Morocco
Mozambique
Namibia
Nauru
Navassa Island
Nepal
Netherlands
Netherlands Antilles
New Caledonia
New Zealand – (The Bone People by Kerri Hulme)
Nicaragua
Niger
Nigeria – The Thing Around your Neck by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Niue
Norfolk Island
Northern Mariana Islands
Norway
Oman
Pacific Ocean
Pakistan
Palau
Palmyra Atoll
Panama
Papua New Guinea
Paracel Islands
Paraguay
Peru
Philippines
Pitcairn Islands
Poland
Portugal – (Alentejo Blue by Monica Ali)
Puerto Rico
Qatar
Romania
Russia – (The Archivist’s Story by Travis Holland)
Rwanda – (We Wish to Inform You that Tomorrow we Will be Killed with our Families by Phillip Gourevitch)
Saint Helena
Saint Kitts and Nevis
Saint Lucia
Saint Pierre and Miquelon
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
Samoa
San Marino
Sao Tome and Principe
Saudi Arabia
Senegal
Serbia
Seychelles
Sierra Leone
Singapore
Slovakia
Slovenia
Solomon Islands
Somalia
South Africa
South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands
Southern Ocean
Spain – (The Shadow of the Wind by Zafon)
Spratly Islands
Sri Lanka – (The Sweet and Simple Kind by Yasmine Gooneratne)
Sudan
Suriname
Svalbard
Swaziland
Sweden
Switzerland
Syria
Taiwan
Tajikistan
Tanzania – The Hunter’s Wife by Katherine Scholes
Thailand
Timor-Leste
Togo
Tokelau
Tonga
Trinidad and Tobago
Tunisia
Turkey – (Istanbul by Orhan Pamuk)
Turkmenistan
Turks and Caicos Islands
Tuvalu
Uganda
Ukraine
United Arab Emirates
United Kingdom
United States
United States Pacific Island Wildlife Refuges
Uruguay
Uzbekistan
Vanuatu
Venezuela
Vietnam
Virgin Islands
Wake Island
Wallis and Futuna
West Bank
Western Sahara
Yemen
Zambia
Zimbabwe

Source: J-Kaye’s Book Blog
Aim: To read 100+ books in 2009
Participant: Susan

It will be interesting to see just how many books I managed to get through this year. All genres count including children’s books, YA and non-fiction. This list could get LONG, my friends, so hold on to your hats!

1.  Australian Marine Life – Graham J Edgar (non-fiction)
2. The Folklore of Discworld – Terry Pratchett & Jacqueline Simpson (non-fiction)
3. Traditional Indian Cooking – Ramola Parbhoo (cookbook)
4. How to Heal a Broken Wing – Bob Graham (picture book)
5. The Story of Australia – Vanessa Collingridge (non-fiction)
6. The Bitter Shore – Jacquie Everitt (biography)
7. Red Dress Walking – S A Jones (fiction)
8. Don’t Read This Book – Jill Lewis (picture book)
9. A Small Free Kiss in the Dark – Glenda Millard (youth fiction)
10. Girl Next Door – Alyssa Brugman (youth fiction)
11. The Piano Teacher – Janice Y K Lee (fiction)
12. 1788 – The Brutal Truth of the First Fleet – David Hill (non-fiction)
13. Gathering Storm – Rosie Dub (fiction)
14. The Reader – Bernhard Schlink (fiction)
15. Allergy Safe Family Food – Susanna Paxton (cookbook)
16. Indian Summer – Pratima Mitchell (youth fiction)
17. A Year in Girl Hell – Meredith Costain – (youth fiction)
18. Spyology – Five Mile Press (non-fiction)
19. The Credit Crunch Cookbook (cookbook)
20. Fit and Firm For Ever – Paula Goodyer (non-fiction)
21. Suzuki’s Green Guide – David Suzuki (non-fiction)
22. Mac Slater Cool Hunter #2: I heart NY - Tristan Bancks (youth fiction)
23. The Marriage Bureau for Rich People - Farahad Zama
24. A Book for Kids - C J Dennis
25. The Death: The Horror of the Plague - Ananda Braxton-Smith (children’s non-fiction)
26. In the Shadow of the Palace - Judith A Simpson (children’s fiction)
27. Handpicked – Siew Siang Tay
28. The Stamp of Australia – Kelly Burke (non-fiction)
29. The Hunter’s Wife by Katherine Scholes
30. The Donkey Who Carried the Wounded by Jackie French (children’s non-fiction)
31. If I Stay by Gayle Forman (youth fiction)
32. Exchanging Lives by Kathy Buchanan (youth fiction)
33. The Lucky Ones by Tohby Riddle (youth fiction)
34. Hopetoun Wives by Fran Cusworth
35. Pearl verses the World by Sally Murphy (children’s fiction)
36. The Thing around your Neck by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie (short stories)
37. Angel Cake by Cathy Cassidy
38. The Love Dare by Stephen & Alex Kendrick
39. Her Mother’s Face by Roddy Doyle (picture book)

Source: Rebecca at Lost in Books
Aim: To read 9 books in 9 different categories before the end of 2009. There can be up to 9 overlaps, so the total number of books will be between 72 and 81.
Participant: Susan

Rebecca was inspired by the Triple 888 in 2008 contest. It may take me a little while to get all the categories sorted out, but I’m looking forward to this one. I’m going to try to not double up at all, so that should mean that there will be 81 different titles on the list by the end of the year. Wish me luck!

Australian Authors
1. Red Dress Walking – S A Jones
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.

YA Fiction
1. Indian Summer – Pratima Mitchell
2. A Year in Girl Hell – Meredith Costain
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.

History
1. 1788 – The Brutal Truth of the First Fleet – David Hill
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.

Classics (pre-1970)
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.

Memoirs/Biographies
1. The Bitter Shore – Jacquie Everitt
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.

Books Made into Movies
1. The Reader – Bernhard Schlink
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.

General Non-Fiction Books
1. Allergy Safe Family Food – Susanna Paxton (cookbook)
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.

Asia and Asian Culture Fiction
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.

Books from my TBR Pile
1. (Memoirs of a Geisha – Arthur Golden)
2. (Life of Pi – Yann Martel)
3. (Alias Grace – Margaret Atwood)
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.

Source: Rebecca at Lost in Books
Aim: To read 9 books with specific colours in the title
Participant: Susan

There are 6 set colours for this challenge and 3 extra colours that I can select myself. I have taken the risky step of allowing Meredith to select them, so this could be interesting.

Six Required Colours:
Blue:
Red: Red Dress Walking by S A Jones
White:
Black:
Silver:
Gold:

Three Personal Meredith’s Choice Colours:
Green: Suzuki’s Green Guide by David Suzuki
Puce (OK – just kidding) Purple:
Pink:

Source: One More Chapter
Aim: To read 1% of books from the 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die list.
Participant: Susan

A 2008 update on the 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die has created two separate lists that participants can choose from for this challenge. Almost 300 titles were removed from the original list and replaced with other titles for the latest edition. For the challenge, participants can read 10 books from either list, or 13 books from the two lists combined (which contains almost 1300 titles).

For those who, like me, love a good list and can’t help finding out just how many books they have already read, check out these great spreadsheets covering both the old and new lists.

I’ve just read over the lists and marked down what I have already read. Very depressing stuff. Just as well this challenge came along to inspire me or I might have to be 1001 myself before I get them all read. Below are the books I have listed as being on my TBR pile from both versions of the 1001 Books list. I’ll remove the brackets once I have read them.

1. (Life of Pi – Yann Martel)
2. (Alias Grace – Margaret Atwood)
3. (A Suitable Boy – Vikram Seth)
4. (The Scarlet Letter – Nathanial Hawthorne)
5. (Remains of the Day – Kazuo Ishiguro)
6. (Like Water for Chocolate – Laura Esquivel)
7. (Memoirs of a Geisha – Arthur Golden)
8. (Smiley’s People – John Le Carre)
9. (Breakfast at Tiffany’s – Truman Capote)
10. (Casino Royale – Ian Fleming)
11. (Brideshead Revisited – Evelyn Waugh)
12. (Treasure Island – Robert Louis Stevenson)
13. (The Invisible Man – H G Wells)

A to Z Reading Challenge

Source: Becky at A – Z Challenge
Aim: To read a book for each letter of the alphabet
Participant: Susan

There are a few different options with this challenge to get the letters of the alphabet:
1.    Author names (26 books)
2.    Book titles (26 books)
3.    Author names + book titles (52 books)
4.    Countries (26 books)
5.    Alphabet books (26 books)

I’ve decided to go with option 3, just to keep things interesting. There’s no doubling up either, so that is 52 different titles. I may find myself swapping them around a bit near the end to help cover some obscure letters.

Author Names
A
B Buchanan, Kathy – Exchanging Lives
C Collingridge, Vanessa – The Story of Australia
D
E
F Forman, Gayle – If I Stay
G
H
I
J
K
L
M Millard, Glenda – A Small Free Kiss in the Dark
N
O
P
Q
R Riddle, Tohby – The Lucky Ones
S Scholes, Katherine – The Hunter’s Wife
T
U
V
W
X
Y
Z Zama, Farahad – The Marriage Bureau for Rich People

Book Titles
A
B
C
D
E
F Fit and Firm Forever – Paula Goodyer
G Girl Next Door – Alyssa Brugman
H Hopetoun Wives – Fran Cusworth
I Indian Summer – Pratima Mitchell
J
K
L
M
N
O
P
Q
R
S
T
U
V
W
X
Y
Z