Sunday Salon: April 4, 2010.

It seems like 2010 is flying by! It is hard to believe that the year is already a fourth over (depressing? yes), but there are great things yet to come.

In reading news...

I wanted to wrap-up a few things from March. I managed to read 11 books during the month, which is a number I have been pushing for. It is definitely an amount I used to hit every month and it has taken a lot of effort to get back there. The titles I finished were:

1. The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
2. Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte
3. Alias Grace by Margaret Atwood
4. Lord of the Flies by William Golding
5. Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller
6. The Misanthrope by Moleire
7. The Cherry Orchard by Anton Chekov
8. A Study in Scarlet by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
9. Mrs. Dalloway by Virginia Woolf
10. The Sign of the Four by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
11. The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde

It was a great reading month and I read some phenomenal titles. I was glad to dive into the Sherlock Holmes stories and I hope to get through all 9 titles by June (perhaps that is wishful thinking). I also managed to read a few plays to balance out all the heavy titles I have been reading, as well as get through one chunkster for the Chunkster challenge, bringing me up to 3 completed (I'm aiming for 12).

With the 11 books I completed this month, my grand total for the year is 23. It puts me off pace for hitting 100 by 2, but that is still doable. I can make it people!

This coming month I am hoping to get through a similar amount of titles. Again, I am going to mix it up a bit and try to get in some more plays, as well as some new authors. Besides Doyle and Shakespeare, I am launching into my second exposure of another author-Dostoevsky! I read Crime and Punishment way back in September as my second book. I was going to wait to tackle another book by him, but it has been 6 months and an opportunity presented itself! I am participating in a read along hosted by Dolce Bellezza of Dostoevsky's The Brothers Karamazov. I think I got through Crime and Punishment so easily by myself since it was my second book and I had a lot of excitement built up about this process. Now I am staring at Dostoevsky and having heart palpitations, so perhaps this process will help. Like the other participants, I will be reading one of the four sections per week and posting my thoughts on each Thursday of this month (April 8, 15, 22 and 29). That will be different from my usual process, but change is good.

So on Thursdays this month expect Dostoevsky in addition to my Thursday Treat posts.

I am also going to try and wrap-up the LOST challenge to give myself some breathing room. I am still stuck on the four novels left on my list (Catch-22, Slaughterhouse-Five, Heart of Darkness, and The Turn of the Screw). I have to pick 2, but perhaps I'll just finish all of them and be an overachiever (we'll see).

I also have to get through The Count of Monte Cristo and another Dumas (The Three Musketeers or The Man in the Iron Mask) by the 23rd for the Classics Circuit.

See? April is going to be an extremely busy month for me! Anyway, I hope you all have a great reading week!

Book 29: Book Stats.

Title: Alias Grace
Author: Margaret Atwood (1939- )
First Published: 1996

Awards Won: 1996 Giller Prize, 1996 finalist for Booker Prize, and 1996 finalist for Governor General's Award

My Edition: Anchor Books
Pages: 468

About two years ago, I read The Handmaid's Tale at the urging of a good friend and absolutely loved it. Even though I went out and bought The Blind Assassin shortly after, I never got around to reading any more of Atwood's work, even though I meant to. This will be the second book I read by Atwood.

I will also be re-reading The Handmaid's Tale as part of my challenge. Because of the length, I am also counting this book towards the Chunkster Challenge as one of my 12 picks (I'm an overachiever).

Book 26: Book Stats.

Title: Little Women
Author: Louisa May Alcott (1832-1888)
First Published: 1868/1869

My Edition: Barnes and Noble Classic Edition
Pages: 489

Other works include: Little Men (1871), Jo's Boys (1886)

This novel was initially published under two separate titles. The first was called Little Women: Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy which chronicled the lives of the sisters up until a proposal. The second volume, entitled Good Wives, led the girls through adolescence and their marriages. Now these two volumes are combined into the one title.

I am only reading Little Women for my challenge, although I have read the other 2 titles before as a teenager.

I am also counting this book towards the completion of the Chunkster Challenge.

Book 22: Finished.

I knew I was going to like The Mill on the Floss. After all, I have loved every other Eliot novel and this was no exception.

I have already raved about the beauty of Eliot's style. She creates graceful languages that grabs a hold of the reader and sucks them into the story. Maggie was not just another female character-she was a very dear and intimate friend.

So when tragedy struck, I felt very deeply for Maggie. I felt her heartache and feelings of loss as keenly as if she had been my sister or a best friend.

Eliot had a great gift.

I have to wonder why Eliot never seems to have gotten the same amount of fame as some of her contemporaries, namely Charles Dickens. While she wrote and published at the same time, Dickens claimed all the fame, and he is a name that is really well known. And while Eliot is certainly known by bookish types, Dickens still gets all the honors. In my personal opinion, Eliot is a much better writer and far more interesting, especially since she hid her identity and published under a man's name. Perhaps it is because her body of work isn't as extensive, but it is much better written. Again, this is only my opinion.

In any case, I loved this novel.

For those of you who are interested, here is my synopsis.

Maggie Tulliver is a bright and intelligent child who seems to be misunderstood by her parents. Rather than portray the standards of beauty, she is dark-skinned, dark-eyed, and has dark hair. The shame of her mother and her mother's sisters, Maggie retreats often into a world of books and make-believe. Her older brother, Tom, is sent away to school early on by their father, in hopes that he can escape the same sort of life, as his father is a miller.

Years pass and tragedy hits the family. Mr. Tulliver is engrossed in a lawsuit with a neighbor and loses, which results in the loss of every material item belonging to the Tulliver's. Together, Maggie and Tom have to face the circumstances now thrust in their faces. Giving up their childhood, the forge on to create a new life for themselves out of the misery of their father's.

However, fate steps in and rips them apart. Maggie is outcast by her brother, while Tom is obsessed with restoring his father's name.


Like I said, this is one of my favorite Eliot novels. It is far more gripping than Middlemarch or Silas Marner, both of which I'll be reading again in the future.

Finally, I want to post one more quote to help suck you in to this novel.

This quote I loved because I am sure I am not the only book lover who can relate. This really shows the depth of Maggie's feelings about her appearance and the standard of beauty in this time period:

"'I didn't finish the book,' said Maggie. 'As soon as I came to the blonde-haired young lady reading in the park, I shut it up and determined to read no further. I foresaw that that light-complexioned girl would win away all the love from Corinne and make her miserable. I'm determined to read no more books where the blonde-haired women carry away all the happiness. I should begin to have a prejudice against them,'" (377).

Does Maggie, the dark-eyed, dark-haired beauty find her own happiness? You'll have to read to find the answer to that question....


I need to also say that finishing this 608 page novel also helped me in the Chunkster Challenge, where I am trying to read 12 Chunksters (adult novels over 450 pages in length). This was book 1!

In Perspective, Chunksters, and Some Personal Notes.

I spent some time today trying to map out what I am going to read next. It is kind of a difficult task, even with a list. One on hand, I am trying to mix up what I am reading off my list so that I can jump all over and be entertained. But I also have to keep in mind that certain authors have more books on the list than others. I'm trying to make sure I spread their work out so it doesn't come down to the last ten books and I only have Dickens and Hardy to read. THAT would be rough going. It is a very daunting and overwhelming task.

I also took some time to look at the titles I actually own, which is about 175 out of the 250. I am one of those people who has to "own" their books, so I am trying to mix that up as well, so that I can slowly purchase a book here or there to supplement what I already own.

It ended up frustrating me. But I came up with a list of books to read next, which goes all the way up to finishing book 50. It was exhausting and it depresses me. 50/250 doesn't seem like much in the way of progress.

I also began to realize how MANY of the books were larger than I expected. I started looking at page numbers to balance out reading the smaller novels and plays with the bigger works (like Clarissa by Samuel Richardson which is a staggering 1536 pages). I began to realize that while I signed up for the Chunkster Challenge in hopes of getting through a mere 6 volumes over 450 pages this year, if I do that I won't be making any progress!

I've decided I need to challenge myself a little further to read more of the bigger volumes at regular intervals. I am editing my Chunkster post and list to reflect that change. The truth is...many of the classics are huge. Reader attention spans were different way back. Also, families couldn't afford to purchase a lot of books, so authors wrote longer works to make up for that. A longer book meant it took more time to get through. Now poor little me is paying the price for that.

Anyway, I just needed to put some things into perspective for myself. I still have every intention of finishing this within the 2 and a half years I set for myself, I just need to get cracking.

I also need to find a way to keep myself on track. I am behind in my postings to where my reading is. My post from this morning is from when I started Washington Square, which was (in actuality) over a week and a half ago. I am trying to keep from posting multiple entries a day, but I also don't want to give up my process of writing.

For me, reading is about the journey through the novel, which is why I write multiple posts about each book. I like to explain my feelings and thoughts as I get through each work. I don't want to give that up, but I am struggling to catch up the blog to where I really am. All of my posts to the point where I am now are written and scheduled to be posted. Right now I am starting Animal Farm, but all of my posts from Washington Square and The Mill on the Floss are in limbo waiting for publication. It is frustrating to be off track.

Do any of you have some advice about how I can fix this? Or should I just let it be?

Anyway, that's about all I had to say...

Oh, I am prepping for a giveaway (my first one!) that will be coming up in the next week or two. I'm excited about it, so keep a look out for that exciting post!

Sunday Salon: February 14, 2010.

First I just want to say, "Happy Valentine's Day!" to everyone! I hope you are able to spend some time with your loved ones today. Even if some say that V-Day is just a Hallmark holiday, I still think it is a special and wonderful day that gives you an excuse to be with your family and that someone special.

I am working today, so I will be spending time at the park in the cold. Unlike some other regions of the United States, Michigan really hasn't gotten a great deal of snow this winter. Usually we are the ones digging ourselves out, but we managed to miss the big storms. We did get about 5" on Tuesday night/Wednesday morning, so it is great to finally have snow on the ground and the sled hill open at the park! I love working during the winter and seeing everyone coming out to enjoy the snow.

After work I'll probably be cooking Matt and I some dinner so we can spend the evening together. We don't have any special plans, but I assume after dinner we'll sit down and watch a movie, or better yet "Lost." I am still catching up, but I am getting there! Promise! And now that I am doing the LOST book challenge, I NEED to catch up to make more connections!

I had a good reading week this week. I finished up Washington Square by Henry James, which I found to be a pretty deceiving little book. I have a lot to say about in my posts, which will go up sometime this coming week.

I also signed up for two challenges in addition to reading 100+. The first is the LOST challenge I mentioned, and I think I picked some great things to read for it. I only have until May 23, but that seems to be plenty enough time.

The second challenge was the Chunkster Challenge, where I am going to read 6 of the Chunkster type novels on my list in the come year. It wasn't really hard to find 6 (I mean, I'm reading the CLASSICS for goodness sakes!), but I narrowed it down to 6 with 2 alternates. I decided to be proactive and start one this week. I'm now in the middle of The Mill on the Floss, which is one of two novels I haven't read by George Eliot (the other being Daniel Deronda, which is not on my list). It is a bigger book than what I have been flying through at 608 pages, so it might take me a little longer.

Anyway, goals for this week:

• Have all my Washington Square posts up by the end of the week
• Finish The Mill on the Floss
• Start reading Lord of the Flies by William Golding (for the LOST challenge).

It should be a good week.

Happy Reading everyone!

Challenges: Chunkster and LOST.

Since I am rather new to book blogging, I didn't sign up for many challenges in December when it seemed like Challenge mania on most books blogs. Part of that is that since I am reading a particular list of books, I couldn't sign up for many that I was interested in. Since then, I have found a couple that interest me and fit the needs of my blog.

So, I am signing up to join two book challenges. Let's start with the LOST challenge, shall we?


The LOST Books Challenge is obviously inspired by the TV show, which I am still making my way through (I am still in Season 2). Throughout the show, many books are seen either being read by the characters, in the background of scenes, or talked about. Books are a large part of life on the island.

For me to win this challenge, I have to read 5 books seen on LOST. These are the five I have chosen:

1. Animal Farm by George Orwell-FINISHED
2. Catch-22 by Joseph Heller
3. Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad
4. Lord of the Flies by William Golding- FINISHED
   
5. Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut - FINISHED
   

I have also chosen 2 alternates in case I simply can't get one of those novels complete in time, or if I get bored:

1. O Pioneers! by Willa Cather- FINISHED
   
2. The Turn of the Screw by Henry James

One catch to this challenge is that I must complete my five novels by the time the series ends (sometime this spring). Wish me luck!



The second challenge I am joining is the Chunkster Challenge.


A "Chunkster" is a a piece of ADULT LITERATURE over 450 pages. You can imagine that with a list full of classics there are quite a few "Chunksters" on the list.

There are three levels to this challenge:

1. The Chubby Chunkster - this option is for the reader who has a couple of large tomes on their TBR list, but really doesn't want to commit to much more than that. 3 books is all you need to finish this challenge.
2. Do These Books Make my Butt Look Big? - this option is for the slightly heavier reader who wants to commit to 4 Chunksters over the next twelve months.
3. Mor-book-ly Obese - This is for the truly out of control chunkster. For this level of challenge you must commit to 6 or more chunksters OR three tomes of 750 pages or more. You know you want to.....go on and give in to your cravings.

I am choosing to complete the "Mor-book-ly Obese" level and get through 6 of the big books on my TBR list.

In choosing my titles, I made sure to double check all of my books to make sure they hit the requirement. I have also added page numbers to the titles so you can verify (these page numbers are according to my editions of the books).

*EDIT* I have decided that since there are so many large volumes on my list, I am going to double the challenge to 12 Chunksters that will be taken from this list of possibilities*

1. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte (547 pages)
2. The Mill on the Floss by George Eliot (608 pages): FINISHED
   
3. Moby Dick by Herman Melville (506 pages)
4. Tom Jones by Henry Fielding (982 pages)
5. Little Women by Louisa May Alcott (489 pages): FINISHED
   
6. An American Tragedy by Theodore Dreiser (859 pages)
7. Emma by Jane Austen (453 pages)
8. Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy (838 pages)
9. Catch-22 by Joseph Heller (463 pages )-This will double with the LOST Challenge
10. The Woman in White by Wilkie Collins (647 pages)
11. Clarissa by Samuel Richardson (1536 pages)
12. Native Son by Richard Wright (504 pages)
13. Main Street by Sinclair Lewis (521 pages)
14. Wives and Daughters by Elizabeth Gaskell (661 pages)
15. The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas (635 pages)
16. The Idiot by Fyodor Dostoevsky (696 pages)
17. David Copperfield by Charles Dickens (737 pages)
18. Alias Grace by Margaret Atwood (468 pages): FINISHED
    
19. The Brothers Karamazov by Fyodor Dostoevsky (796 pages): FINISHED
    
20. The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas (1462 pages): FINISHED
    

I have a quite a bit of heavy reading on my hands, but I have until January 31, 2011 to finish these 12 novels. I am sure I can do it.