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Friday, December 04, 2020

2021 Victorian Reading Challenge

Victorian Reading Challenge
Host: Becky's Book Reviews (sign up here)
Duration: January 2021 - December 2021
Goal: Read between 4 to 6 Books (4 minimum)

Choose to participate in the basic challenge (quarterly) or the advanced challenge (themed months). All books must fall into the "Victorian" category being either a) books originally published between 1837 and 1901 b) books originally written (but not published) between 1837 and 1901 c) general nonfiction about the Victorian era (the times, the culture, the people, the events) d) biographies of Victorians.

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I. Quarterly Victorian Challenge

Read ONE book between January 1, 2021 and March 31, 2021
Read ONE book between April 1, 2021 and June 30, 2021
Read ONE book between July 1, 2021 and September 30, 2021
Read ONE book between October 1, 2021 and December 31, 2021

II. There will be ELEVEN themed monthly posts. (And ONE Super-Bonus Theme that will cover all twelve months). You can sign up for this level of the challenge and not "have" to participate every month. The goal is to read at least four to six books throughout the whole year. It is also more important to finish your current book than start a new theme. So if a new month comes and you're still halfway through your book...finish your book...and don't worry about keeping up with that month's theme.

January/February The theme is ADAPTATIONS. Read any book that has been adapted into a movie, miniseries, or television show. OR read any book that you think SHOULD be adapted into a movie. If you choose that option you can even make a case for WHO should star in it.

February/March The theme is LOVE and MARRIAGE. Read any book where characters fall in love, or fall out of love, or court, or become engaged, or get married. It doesn't have to be an epic romance with a happily ever after. (Though it can!)

March/April The theme is JOURNEYS and TRAVELS. Read any book where a character goes on ANY journey. (For example, Pickwick Papers, Three Men in a Boat, Jane Eyre, Can You Forgive Her?, Great Expectations, Treasure Island, Alice in Wonderland, etc.) The journey does not have to be a grand adventure or luxurious vacation.

April/May The theme is SECOND CHANCES. Give an author a second chance. Give a book a second chance. Give a genre a second chance.

May/June The theme is FAVORITE AUTHORS, NEW-TO-ME Books. Choose a favorite author and read a book by him/her that you've never read before.

June/July The theme is NONFICTION. Read nonfiction books (autobiographies, biographies, etc.) published during the Victorian era OR nonfiction books about the Victorian era or specific Victorians.

July/August The theme is NAMES AS TITLES. Read any book where a proper name (a person, a place, etc) is the title of the book.

August/September The theme is BACK TO SCHOOL. Read (or reread) any book that you were assigned to read in school or university. OR Read any book where a character's education is emphasized (Great Expectations, Nicholas Nickleby, Jane Eyre, etc.) OR Read any book that you think SHOULD be required reading for high school or university. OR Read a Victorian children's classic.

September/October The theme is CRIME OR TRUE CRIME. Thrillers. Mysteries. Suspense. Horror. GOTHIC. This would be a great place to fit in general nonfiction about the Victorian era. Some great true crime books have been published.

October/November The theme is HOME AND FAMILY. Read any book with a focus on family life and relationships between family members. (The relationships do not have to be healthy.)

November/December The theme is COMFORT READS. Reread a book (of any length) that just makes you HAPPY.

January Through December: The super-bonus theme is BEARDED VICTORIANS. I've listed a few examples below.


Charles Dickens

Anthony Trollope

Wilkie Collins

George MacDonald

2021 Georgian Reading Challenge

Georgian Reading Challenge
Host: Becky's Book Reviews (sign up here)
Duration: December 1, 2020 - December 31, 2021
# of books: minimum 4

What counts:

Novels, poems, plays, short stories, novellas, letters, diaries, essays, nonfiction published in Great Britain (or its colonies) during the Georgian era. (1714-1837) or (1714-1830)
Nonfiction books published about the Georgian era. Including, of course, biographies on the royal family.
Historical fiction set during the Georgian era.
Books, e-books, audio books.
Movies and television series set during this period--if you review them--can count. But try to keep things balanced.

You may make a list if you want to plan ahead...or read according to your whimsy.

Sign up by leaving a comment. No blog is required--no review either. But if you do have a blog, I'd love a link to it. Same with GoodReads if that is where you review books. (Comment moderation is turned on.)

You may follow me on twitter @blbooks.

Thursday, December 05, 2019

2020 Middle Grade Reading Challenge

Girl reading a book by Federico Zandomeneghi

Host: Becky's Book Reviews (sign up)
Duration: January - December 2020
# of books: minimum 12

Level One: Read ANY twelve books throughout the year.
Level Two: Themed Then and Now Pairs (minimum 6 pairs, or twelve books)

Sign up for either (or both) by leaving a comment.

Level one is self-explanatory. Any means ANY. If a book qualifies as being for a middle grade audience, then it qualifies as ANY. Fiction. Nonfiction. Graphic novels. Poetry. What is a middle grade audience? There's a younger range and an older range within middle grade. Certainly there are distinctions between books published for twelve year olds and books published for eight year olds. But essentially think books for mid-to-upper elementary schools and/or lower middle schools.

Level two is, I hope, a fun twist to the challenge. Read two books that share a theme. One book representing "then" and one book representing "now." Then and now are subjective terms certainly. Depending on one's own age, life experiences, and reading habits. But there should be around a twenty year gap (or more) between the "then" and "now" books. For example, you might compare CLEMENTINE by Sara Pennypacker to RAMONA THE PEST by Beverly Cleary.

I have a list of suggested themes, but, by all means feel free to come up with your own!

Suggested themes:

Newbery Winners
Newbery Honors
Coming of age novels
Problem novels
Death/Dying/Grief
Friendship
Family/Dysfunctional Family
Series books
Fantasy
Animal Fantasy
Pets
Orphans
Action/Adventure
Science Fiction/Dystopias
Ghost Stories
Sports
Mysteries
Young Love/First Romance
First Job(s)
Historical Fiction
War
Rural setting
Urban setting
School setting
Summer
Characters from TV, movies, games, etc.
New Experiences
Nonfiction
British Authors
American Authors
Australian Authors
Canadian Authors

How was the subject treated then? How is it treated now? Were there any similarities in the two books that you read? Were there any differences? How well did your "then" book age? Is it dated or still relevant? Do you think your "now" book will age well? Could it become a classic? Which did you prefer? Which would you recommend to an actual child?

If you have a blog, write a post reviewing both books...OR...write a post comparing the two and linking to your reviews. If you don't have a blog, then you can share your thoughts in a comment on one of the check-in posts.

© 2019 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Monday, December 17, 2018

2019 Chunkster Challenge

A Good Book by Paul Gustav Fischer, 1905

2019 Chunkster Challenge
Host: Becky's Book Reviews (sign up here)
Duration: December 2018 - December 2019
# of books: Ultimately up to you

The mission: see how many points you can earn reading chunksters in 2019. Can you earn 100 points and get that A+?

Each book will have a point value attached to it. Bonus points are possible so you can earn extra credit to help you get that perfect grade.

E-books do count if their print counterparts are over 450 pages.
Audio books, if unabridged, DO count if their print counterparts are over 450 pages.
If a book is over 450 in large print, but NOT over 450 in regular print, then it doesn't count.

Point System

Basics:

Middle Grade and Young Adult Novels over 450 pages -- 3 points
Middle Grade and Young Adult Novels over 700 pages -- 5 points
Adult Novels over 450 pages -- 5 points
Adult Novels over 825 pages -- 10 points
Nonfiction over 450 pages, any age audience -- 5 points
Anthologies (short stories, plays, essays, sermons, poetry) over 450 pages, any audience, 3 points*
Omnibus edition of an author's work over 450 pages, 3 points**

Bonuses:

If you complete an entire series and each of the books in the series qualifies as a chunkster, you earn an additional bonus point.
If you read four or more (series OR non-series books) by the same author--each one qualifying as a chunkster--you earn an additional bonus point.
If you read a chunkster that has been translated into English, you earn an additional bonus point.
If you read two or more new-to-you authors, you earn an additional bonus point.
For every chunkster classic you read that was published before 1800, you earn an extra two points.
For every chunkster classic you read that was published before 1900, you earn an extra one point.
If you choose to make a list, you can give yourself an extra point every time you finish a book from the list.

*Must read whole anthology for it to count since individual pieces would not qualify.
**This is assuming that the individual novels within the omnibus do not qualify as chunksters on their own. For an omnibus to count, you must read the whole book. It only counts as one book. If it is an omnibus edition and the individual novels within the omnibus DO qualify as chunksters on their own, then you may decide if you want to count them as individual books or as one book.

Sign up by leaving a comment.

A blog is not required. But if you don't have a place to write about what you read, do leave comments on the quarterly check-up posts to let us know how you're doing on the challenge. (March 30, June 29, September 28, and December 28th.)

© 2018 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Tuesday, November 27, 2018

2019 Reading Challenges: World at War Reading Challenge

World At War Reading Challenge
Host: Becky's Book Reviews
Sign up here
Duration: January - December 2019
Goal: Get at least one bingo! (more are welcome, of course!)
Sign up in the comments!

The categories:

_ Any book published 1914-1918
_ Any book published 1918-1924
_ Any book published 1925-1930
_ Any book published 1931-1938
_ Any book published 1939-1945
_ A nonfiction book about World War I
_ A nonfiction book about 1910s and 20s
_ A nonfiction book about 1920s and 30s
_ A nonfiction book about 1930s
_ A nonfiction book about World War II
_ A fiction book set during World War I
_ A fiction book set 1918-1924
_ A fiction book set in the 1920s
_ A fiction book set in the 1930s
_ A fiction book set during World War II
_ A book set in the United States or Canada
_ A book set in England, Ireland, or Scotland
_ A book set in Europe
_ A book set in Asia or Middle East
_ A book set elsewhere (a country/continent not already read for the challenge)
_ A book focused on "the war"
_ A book focused on "the homefront"
_ Watch any movie released in 1940s
_ Watch any movie released in the 1930s
_ Watch any movie about either war

The rules:

Books, audio-books, e-books--all qualify
Books for any age group qualify--children's books/middle grade, young adult, adult
Rereads are allowed
Reviews are not required but if you do get the chance to review, please leave a link!
You can create a reading list if you want, but it's not a requirement
If you do make a list, consider adding a list of five books you'd recommend to others
"Nonfiction" includes biography, autobiography, memoirs, diaries, letters, etc. Also "general" nonfiction--focus on a subject instead of one individual. For the 1920s and 1930s, you might for example read about the Depression, FDR, the Dust Bowl, Prohibition, jazz, harlem renaissance, early film-making, organized crime, Scopes Trial, Hindenburg, 1936 Olympics, etc. Any subject will do essentially.
Fiction can be "general" fiction, or, from a genre. For example, the "any book published..." could be fiction or nonfiction for any age group and from any genre. And fiction set during the specified times could be historical fiction, historical romance, historical mystery, historical fantasy, historical science fiction. For example, Connie Willis has two books where characters from the future time-travel back to World War II. These would qualify.

Tuesday, November 20, 2018

2019 Georgian Reading Challenge

Georgian Reading Challenge
Host: Becky's Book Reviews (sign up here)
Duration: December 1, 2018 - December 31, 2019
# of books: minimum four

Georgian Era can be defined as either 1714-1830 OR 1744-1837. You may choose how you want to define it in terms of the reading challenge. It covers the reigns of George I, George II, George III, and George IV of England. (If you go with the later definition, it also includes the oh-so-brief reign of William IV.) This includes the REGENCY PERIOD but is more inclusive.

There will be seven check-in posts. February 16, 2019; April 6, 2019; May 18, 2019; July 6, 2019; September 7, 2019; November 2, 2019. December 28, 2019.

IF you love reading AND you happen to love tea...consider joining my Share-a-Tea reading challenge.

"Official" theme song: Born 2 Rule (The Four Georges)

What counts:

Novels, poems, plays, short stories, novellas, letters, diaries, essays, nonfiction published in Great Britain (or its colonies) during the Georgian era.
Nonfiction books published about the Georgian era. Including, of course, biographies on the royal family.
Historical fiction set during the Georgian era.
Books, e-books, audio books.
Movies and television series set during this period--if you review them--can count. But try to keep things balanced.

Monday, November 19, 2018

2019 Charity Reading Challenge (sign up)

Charity Reading Challenge
Host: Becky's Book Reviews (sign up here)
Duration: January-December 2019
# of books: You decide

Sign up by leaving a comment.

Read for a good cause! Buy books at a charity shop, or, even a friends of the library book sale, or, donate a certain percentage of money for each book you read for the challenge. You can choose your own goal of how many books to read, what charity you'll be donating money towards, how much money, etc. (For example, you might want to donate $1 for each paperback you read, or, $3 for every hardback you read. You can work out the details yourself.)

Rules:

Books and audio books, so long as purchased from a charity shop (or library book sale), count. E-books count if you donate a certain percentage of money to the charity of your choice. (You may read ANY book you choose if you donate your set amount.) Brand new books, old-and tattered out-of-print books. Both are welcome!
You do not need a blog to participate. You can comment on this post or any challenge-related post to update others on your progress.
Any qualifying book finished in 2019 can count towards the challenge.
Books can be of any length and be written for any audience. This challenge does not exclude picture books.
Qualifying books can be books you've intended to read for ages, or, impulse buys!(Who goes into a charity shop with a list?!)
No list is required, but, you can make one as you go if you like. The fun thing about this challenge is that everyone's list is going to be unique!
You may read for more than one charity if you like.

2019 Victorian Reading Challenge

Victorian Reading Challenge
Host: Becky's Book Reviews
sign up here
Duration: January - December 2019
Goal: Read a minimum of 4 Victorian books

IF you love Victorian literature AND you happen to love tea...consider joining my Share-a-Tea reading challenge.

Sign up by leaving a comment. No blog is required. But if you do have a blog, please leave a link. (If you have a goodreads profile AND if you review regularly on goodreads, then you may leave that as well.)

I will be posting check-in posts on March 2, May 11, July 20, September 28, and December 14th. (The posts are already scheduled.)

There will be a few options this year.

Option A: 2019 Bingo CARD. Make a bingo by reading five books. Vertical. Horizontal. Diagonal.

Option B: Checklist [Feel free to copy/paste this. You can replace the _ with an X or a ✔ (copy/paste it) when you finish reading a book. If you list the books you read, that may help other people decide what to read.]

_ book that was originally published serially
_ book published between 1837-1840
_ book published between 1841-1850
_ book published between 1851-1860
_ book published between 1861-1870
_ book published between 1871-1880
_ book published between 1881-1890
_ book published between 1891-1901
_ a book of poems
_ a book of short stories
_ a play
_ a children's book
_ place name in the title
_ a character name in the title
_ a color in the title
_ a number in the title
_ A book published between 1902-1999 with a Victorian setting
_ A book published between 2000-2019 with a Victorian setting
_ nonfiction book about the Victorian era
_ nonfiction book about Queen Victoria, Prince Albert, or their children

Option C: Choose one author to read exclusively for this challenge; perhaps challenge yourself to read chronologically OR to read through an entire series in one year.

Option D: Choose ONE decade to explore in depth. Try to read at least one book per year of your decade.

© 2018 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

2019 Middle Grade Reading Challenge

Girl reading a book by Federico Zandomeneghi

Host: Becky's Book Reviews (sign up)
Duration: January - December 2019
# of books: minimum of 6

Option 1: Read six middle grade books of your choice.
Option 2: Choose one author to focus on. Perhaps read through an entire author's work.
Option 3: Read as few as six, or as many as you like, from the checklist below

Feel free to copy/paste this. You can replace the _ with an X or a ✔ (copy/paste it) when you finish reading a book. If you list the books you read, that may help other people decide what to read.

_1. Title beginning with A
_2. Author beginning with A
_3. Title beginning with B
_4. Author beginning with B
_5. Title beginning with C
_6. Author beginning with C
_7. Title beginning with D
_8. Author beginning with D
_9. Title beginning with E
_10. Author beginning with E
_11. Title beginning with F
_12. Author beginning with F
_13. Title beginning with G
_14. Author beginning with G
_15. Title beginning with H
_16. Author beginning with H
_17. Title beginning with I
_18. Author beginning with I
_19. Title beginning with J
_20. Author beginning with J
_21. Title beginning with K
_22. Author beginning with K
_23. Title beginning with L
_24. Author beginning with L
_25. Title beginning with M
_26. Author beginning with M
_27. Title beginning with N
_28. Author beginning with N
_29. Title beginning with O
_30. Author beginning with O
_31. Title beginning with P
_32. Author beginning with P
_33. Title or Author beginning with Q
_34. Title beginning with R
_35. Author beginning with R
_36. Title beginning with S
_37. Author beginning with S
_38. Title beginning with T
_39. Author beginning with T
_40. Title or Author beginning with U
_41. Title or Author beginning with V or W
_42. Title or Author beginning with X or “Ex”
_43. Title beginning with Y
_44. Author beginning with Y
_45. Title or Author beginning with Z
_ 46 children's book published in the 1860s
_ 47. children's book published in the 1870s
_ 48. children's book published in the 1880s
_ 49. children's book published in the 1890s
_ 50. children's book published in the 1900s
_ 51. children's book published in the 1910s
_ 52. children's book published in the 1920s
_ 53. children's book published in the 1930s
_ 54. children's book published in the 1940s
_ 55. children's book published in the 1950s
_ 56. children's book published in the 1960s
_ 57. children's book published in the 1970s
_ 58. children's book published in the 1980s
_ 59. children's book published in the 1990s
_ 60. children's book published in the 2000s
_ 61. children's book published in the 2010s
_ 62. children's book published in 2019
_ 63. a Newbery Winner
_ 64. a Newbery Honor
_ 65. nonfiction
_ 66. poetry
_ 67. graphic novel
_ 68. first in a series
_ 69. any book in a series
_ 70. last book in a series
_ 71. science fiction
_ 72. fantasy
_ 73. mystery
_ 74. animal fantasy
_ 75. realistic/contemporary
_ 76. coming of age
_ 77. action, adventure
_ 78. historical fiction
_ 79. historical fiction, world war I
_ 80. historical fiction, world war II
_ 81. historical fiction, civil rights
_ 82. historical fiction, civil war
_ 83. historical fiction, great depression
_ 84. reread
_ 85. library
_ 86. free choice
_ 87. another free choice
_ 88. biography or autobiography
_ 89.written in first person
_ 90. written in third person
_ 91. verse novel
_ 92. illustrated "notebook" or diary
_ 93. out of print
_ 94. anniversary reprint of a children's book
_ 95. favorite author
_ 96. new-to-you author
_ 97. YOUR pick for Newbery 2019
_ 98. multiple authors
_ 99. happy, happy
_ 100. oh the sads

© 2018 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

2019 Share-a-Tea Reading Challenge (Sign up here)

Host: Becky's Book Reviews
Sign up here
Duration: January - December 2019
# of books: minimum of 4

Love drinking tea? Love reading books? Love reading a book while drinking tea? Have I got a reading challenge for you! In 2019, I'll be hosting the Share-a-Tea Reading Challenge again.

Who can join? Anyone who enjoys reading. You don't need to have a blog. You don't need to have a twitter account.

Are coffee drinkers welcome? Well. You can still join in, I suppose. But you might be outnumbered by tea drinkers.

Which books count towards the challenge? Any book that you primarily read while drinking tea. Not every single page needs to have been read while drinking tea. (I'm not that strict!!!) But this challenge is all about celebrating SLOWING DOWN and SAVORING the moments.

How many books? Is there a set minimum? This challenge is about QUALITY and not quantity. It's not about reading fifty books or even twelve books. This is an anti-rush reading challenge. Enjoy where you are in a book, and, engage fully in it. Live in the book.

This challenge has a focus on SHARING. How can you share? Several ways:

1) When you sign up in a comment below, share one favorite tea and one favorite book. And if you've got one handy: a favorite quote.
2) If you write a post on your blog announcing the challenge (and making a place to keep track of what you've read), consider sharing a bit about yourself--your reading and drinking habits. You might consider a longer list of recommendations!
3) If you're on twitter, tweet me as often as you like. @blbooks OR @operationbible Tweet about favorite teas, favorite books, favorite authors, favorite quotes, what you're currently reading, what you've just finished reading, etc.
4) Consider adding me and fellow participants to your blogroll, and cheer on other participants by reading reviews and leaving comments.
5) At the end of each month, I'll publish a check-in post. You can leave comments sharing what you're reading, what you've read, tea recommendations, etc. Even if you haven't finished a book, you can share where you're at. Remember, it isn't about how many books you read per month! I plan on posting a check-in post on the FOURTH SATURDAY of every month. The check-in posts for 2019 will be January 26, February 23, March 23, April 27, May 25, June 22, July 27, August 24, September 28, October 26, November 23, December 28.

Be aware that comment moderation is turned on. So if you sign up for the challenge, and don't see your comment published, it just means I haven't published it...yet. But I will.

Do ask questions if you have them. I'll do my best to answer them.

© 2018 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Saturday, November 17, 2018

2019 Good Rule Reading Challenge (Sign up)

Host: Becky's Book Reviews (sign up here)
Duration: January 2019-December 2019
Inspiration: It is a good rule, after reading a new book, never to allow yourself another new one till you have read an old one in between. If that is too much for you, you should at least read one old one to every three new ones. C.S. Lewis
# of books: readers decide

Sign up by leaving a comment! I do have comment moderation on because the amount of spam comments is overwhelming.

1. Decide if you want to set a monthly, quarterly, or a yearly goal for this challenge. You might start out with a monthly goal to see what works best, and then modify it throughout the year.
2. Set your goal of books. You might want this challenge to cover all the books you read this year. OR. You might want this challenge to cover a specific area of your reading. Either is fine.
3. Decide if you want your balance to be 50% new to 50% old OR if you want your balance to be 75% new to 25% old.
4. Set your qualifications. How will you be defining "new"? How will you be defining "old"? Do you view "new" and "old" solely in terms of publishing dates? Or do you prefer to see it as "first time reads" and "rereads." Either interpretation works for me.
5. If you read broadly--audience, genre, etc. You might want to set guidelines on how you want this challenge to work for you.
6. If you blog, you might want to write a sign-up post with your goals and perhaps a structured post or two that you can continue to update throughout the challenge. Share links if you want.
7. If you are on Goodreads, you might want to create two bookshelves. One for keeping track of old books. One for keeping track of new books. Feel free to share the links if you do.
8. I am on twitter if you want to follow me. @blbooks You may leave your twitter in the comments if you'd like.
9. Combine with other reading challenges if you like.
10. DO ask questions, especially before the challenge begins and in the first few months.

Some examples:

Goal: I want to read 100 picture books. I intend to read 75 new picture books. I intend to read 25 old (or classic) picture books.
Goal: I want to read 12 biographies or autobiographies. I intend to read 9 new biographies and 3 old biographies.
Goal: I want to read 4 cookbooks. I intend to read 3 new cookbooks and 1 old cookbook.
Goal: I want to use the Good Rule only when reading my favorite genre--romance. There are so many I haven't read but want to read that I want to go for 50% new and 50% old.
Goal: I want this challenge to count EVERY book I read. I don't like to set goals. But I will commit to staying with this balance no matter how many--or how few--books I read this year.

© 2018 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Monday, December 11, 2017

Family Tree Reading Challenge

Family Tree Reading Challenge
Host: Becky's Book Reviews (sign up)
January - December 2018
# of books: minimum 3,

Love reading? Love family? Love researching family history? Want a family-friendly reading challenge?

Goal: To read a book from the birth year of your selected family members. You do not have to mention them by name, unless you want. But do please list the years you'll be reading. You may include yourself in your 'family tree.'

Minimum of three books (and three family members). You can read more, of course.

Sign up by leaving a comment.

What books count towards the reading challenge?

Fiction
Nonfiction
Board books
Picture Books
Early Readers
Early Chapter Books
Chapter Books
Graphic Novels
Middle Grade Books
Young Adult Books
Adult Books
Poetry
Short Stories
Plays

Is a blog required? Are reviews required? No. If you do blog, I'd love a link to your blog so I can read your reviews and book recommendations. If you review books on GoodReads, leave a link to your profile so I can friend you and follow your reviews!

If you're on twitter, you can contact me @blbooks and talk cats OR books!

You can comment on this post or any challenge-related post to update others on your progress.

© 2017 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Saturday, October 21, 2017

2018 Good Rule Reading Challenge

Host: Becky's Book Reviews (sign up)
Duration: January 2018 - December 2018
Inspiration: It is a good rule, after reading a new book, never to allow yourself another new one till you have read an old one in between. If that is too much for you, you should at least read one old one to every three new ones. C.S. Lewis
# of books: readers decide

Sign up by leaving a comment! I do have comment moderation on because the amount of spam comments is overwhelming.

1. Decide if you want to set a monthly, quarterly, or a yearly goal for this challenge. You might start out with a monthly goal to see what works best, and then modify it throughout the year.
2. Set your goal of books. You might want this challenge to cover all the books you read this year. OR. You might want this challenge to cover a specific area of your reading. Either is fine.
3. Decide if you want your balance to be 50% new to 50% old OR if you want your balance to be 75% new to 25% old.
4. Set your qualifications. How will you be defining "new"? How will you be defining "old"? Do you view "new" and "old" solely in terms of publishing dates? Or do you prefer to see it as "first time reads" and "rereads." Either interpretation works for me.
5. If you read broadly--audience, genre, etc. You might want to set guidelines on how you want this challenge to work for you.
6. If you blog, you might want to write a sign-up post with your goals and perhaps a structured post or two that you can continue to update throughout the challenge. Share links if you want.
7. If you are on Goodreads, you might want to create two bookshelves. One for keeping track of old books. One for keeping track of new books. Feel free to share the links if you do.
8. I am on twitter if you want to follow me. @blbooks You may leave your twitter in the comments if you'd like.
9. Combine with other reading challenges if you like.
10. DO ask questions, especially before the challenge begins and in the first few months.

Some examples:

Goal: I want to read 100 picture books. I intend to read 75 new picture books. I intend to read 25 old (or classic) picture books.
Goal: I want to read 12 biographies or autobiographies. I intend to read 9 new biographies and 3 old biographies.
Goal: I want to read 4 cookbooks. I intend to read 3 new cookbooks and 1 old cookbook.
Goal: I want to use the Good Rule only when reading my favorite genre--romance. There are so many I haven't read but want to read that I want to go for 50% new and 50% old.
Goal: I want this challenge to count EVERY book I read. I don't like to set goals. But I will commit to staying with this balance no matter how many--or how few--books I read this year.

© 2017 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Saturday, October 14, 2017

2018 Middle Grade Reading Challenge

Girl reading a book by Federico Zandomeneghi

Host: Becky's Book Reviews (sign up)
Duration: January - December 2018
# of books: minimum of 6

Option 1: Read six middle grade books of your choice.
Option 2: Choose one author to focus on. Perhaps read through an entire author's work.
Option 3: Read as few as six, or as many as you like, from the checklist below

Feel free to copy/paste this. You can replace the _ with an X or a ✔ (copy/paste it) when you finish reading a book. If you list the books you read, that may help other people decide what to read.

_1. Title beginning with A
_2. Author beginning with A
_3. Title beginning with B
_4. Author beginning with B
_5. Title beginning with C
_6. Author beginning with C
_7. Title beginning with D
_8. Author beginning with D
_9. Title beginning with E
_10. Author beginning with E
_11. Title beginning with F
_12. Author beginning with F
_13. Title beginning with G
_14. Author beginning with G
_15. Title beginning with H
_16. Author beginning with H
_17. Title beginning with I
_18. Author beginning with I
_19. Title beginning with J
_20. Author beginning with J
_21. Title beginning with K
_22. Author beginning with K
_23. Title beginning with L
_24. Author beginning with L
_25. Title beginning with M
_26. Author beginning with M
_27. Title beginning with N
_28. Author beginning with N
_29. Title beginning with O
_30. Author beginning with O
_31. Title beginning with P
_32. Author beginning with P
_33. Title or Author beginning with Q
_34. Title beginning with R
_35. Author beginning with R
_36. Title beginning with S
_37. Author beginning with S
_38. Title beginning with T
_39. Author beginning with T
_40. Title or Author beginning with U
_41. Title or Author beginning with V or W
_42. Title or Author beginning with X or “Ex”
_43. Title beginning with Y
_44. Author beginning with Y
_45. Title or Author beginning with Z
_46. 2018 Newbery Winner or Honor
_47. Newbery Winner or Honor from 2010-2017
_48. Newbery Winner or Honor from 2000-2009
_49. Newbery Winner or Honor from 1990-1999
_50. Newbery Winner or Honor from 1980-1989
_51. Newbery Winner or Honor from 1970-1979
_52. Newbery Winner or Honor from 1960-1969
_53. Newbery Winner or Honor from 1950-1959
_54. Newbery Winner or Honor from 1940-1949
_55. Newbery Winner or Honor from 1932-1939
_56. Newbery Winner or Honor from 1922-1931
_57. Notable Children's Book from 2018 or 2017
_ 58. Any book by a Wilder Award author
_ 59. verse novel
_ 60. graphic novel
_ 61. biography or memoir
_ 62. nonfiction
_ 63. poetry
_ 64. audio book
_ 65. first in a series
_ 66. any book in a series
_ 67. last book in a series
_ 68. favorite author
_ 69. new to you author
_ 70. British author
_ 71. Australian author
_ 72. Canadian author
_ 73. translated into English from another language
_ 74. American author
_ 75. set in the state you live
_ 76. set in a place you'd like to visit
_ 77. set in an imaginary place you'd like to visit
_ 78. picture book for older readers
_ 79. book about a pet
_ 80. animal fantasy
_ 81. fantasy
_ 82. alternate reality
_ 83. science fiction
_ 84. adventure
_ 85. action/suspense
_ 86. mystery/detective
_ 87. realistic fiction
_ 88. school setting
_ 89. multiple points of view
_ 90. historical fiction -- world war I
_ 91. historical fiction -- world war II
_ 92. historical fiction, your choice
_ 93. historical fiction, mystery or suspense
_ 94. oh the sads
_ 95. happy, happy ending
_ 96. laugh until you cry
_ 97. coming of age
_ 98. "diary" or "notebook"
_ 99. classic, your choice
_ 100. out of print
_ 101. library book
_ 102. impulse pick
_ 103. published in 2018
_ 104. YOUR pick for Newbery 2019

Bonus/alternate picks:
_ made into a good movie
_ made into a horrible movie
_ book from your childhood
_ free choice
_ multiple authors
_ orphan child
_ vacation setting or road trip
_ first crush
_ new book by favorite author
_ time travel or steam punk

Christin e asked a good question, can a book count for more than one category. Since reading 104 middle grade books in one year seems really ambitious for most folks--those that aren't Ms. Yingling--a book can be counted in two categories, but not more than two categories. This allows for *some* overlap. But not to an insane degree.

Charlotte's Web could be counted twice, but not in all these categories:

_ Title beginning with C
_ Title or Author Beginning with V or W
_ Newbery Winner or Honor from 1950-1959
_ Any book by a Wilder Award author
_ American author
_ animal fantasy
_ oh the sads
_ book from your childhood

© 2017 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

2018 Victorian Reading Challenge

Victorian Reading Challenge
Host: Becky's Book Reviews
Duration: January - December 2018
Goal: Read a minimum of 4 Victorian books

Sign up in the comments (If you have a blog, please leave your blog address. If you have a goodreads profile AND if you review regularly on goodreads, then you may leave that as well.)

I'll have quarterly check-in posts. I'll be posting check-in posts March 25, June 24, September 23, and December 30. You may leave links to your reviews on any of those four posts. If you want to share your review with me BEFORE that, AND if you have twitter, feel free to tweet me a link @blbooks.

Option A. Read alphabetically A-Z with authors OR titles OR a blend of authors/titles. I've decided that from now on X in reading challenges stands for multiple authors. I'm flipping my "x" to a "+".

Option B. Choose one author to read exclusively for this challenge; perhaps challenge yourself to read chronologically OR to read through an entire series in one year.

Option C. Do as many books from the checklist as you can. Feel free to copy/paste this. You can replace the _ with an X or a ✔ (copy/paste it) when you finish reading a book.

Option D. Make the challenge completely your own and read as YOUR whimsy dictates.

IF you love Victorian literature AND you happen to love tea...consider joining my Share-a-Tea reading challenge.

Feel free to copy/paste this. You can replace the _ with an X or a ✔ (copy/paste it) when you finish reading a book. If you list the books you read, that may help other people decide what to read.

This year's checklist:

_ A book that was originally published serially
_ book published between 1837-1840
_ book published between 1841-1850
_ book published between 1851-1860
_ book published between 1861-1870
_ book published between 1871-1880
_ book published between 1881-1890
_ book published between 1891-1901
_ nonfiction published between 1837-1860
_ nonfiction published between 1861-1901
_ A book published between 1902-1999 with a Victorian setting
_ A book published between 2000-2018 with a Victorian setting
_ A fiction or nonfiction book about Queen Victoria
_ Biography of a Victorian
_ Nonfiction book about the Victorian era
_ free choice
_ place name in the title
_ character name in the title
_ book in a series
_ drama or melodrama
_ gothic, suspense, mystery
_ romance or historical
_ comedy
_ science fiction or fantasy
_ adventure, crime, western
_ poetry collection OR story collection
_ happily ever after
_ unhappily ever after
_ children's book
_ translated into English from another language
_ a book under 250 pages
_ book over 500 pages
_ a book over 800 pages
_ A book that has been filmed as movie, miniseries, or television show
_ memorable heroine
_ memorable hero
_ British author
_ Irish author OR Irish setting
_ Scottish author OR Scottish setting
_ American author
_ reread
_ book with a subtitle (the longer the better!)

Friday, October 13, 2017

Charity Reading Challenge 2018

Charity Reading Challenge
Host: Becky's Book Reviews (sign up here)
Duration: January-December 2018
# of books: You decide

Sign up by leaving a comment.

Read for a good cause! Buy books at a charity shop, or, even a friends of the library book sale, or, donate a certain percentage of money for each book you read for the challenge. You can choose your own goal of how many books to read, what charity you'll be donating money towards, how much money, etc. (For example, you might want to donate $1 for each paperback you read, or, $3 for every hardback you read. You can work out the details yourself.)

Rules:

Books and audio books, so long as purchased from a charity shop (or library book sale), count. E-books count if you donate a certain percentage of money to the charity of your choice. (You may read ANY book you choose if you donate your set amount.) Brand new books, old-and tattered out-of-print books. Both are welcome!
You do not need a blog to participate. You can comment on this post or any challenge-related post to update others on your progress.
Any qualifying book finished in 2018 can count towards the challenge.
Books can be of any length and be written for any audience. This challenge does not exclude picture books.
Qualifying books can be books you've intended to read for ages, or, impulse buys!(Who goes into a charity shop with a list?!)
No list is required, but, you can make one as you go if you like. The fun thing about this challenge is that everyone's list is going to be unique!
You may read for more than one charity if you like.

Thursday, October 12, 2017

Kitty Lit Reading Challenge 2018


Jeppe, Bruno Liljefors, 1860-1939

Host: Becky's Book Reviews (sign up here)
Duration: January - December 2018
Goal: To read books with CATS
# of books: minimum of 3

Last year I found a way to bring two of my loves together: drinking tea and reading books. This year, I hope to bring together two more of the things I love: CATS and books. I do encourage you to check out Kitten Academy, where kittens learn to cat; while you watch 24/7 on YouTube. Mr. A and DJ are awesome people. (https://kitten.academy/) I especially recommend the Kitten Close-Ups.

Sign up by leaving a comment.

What books count towards the reading challenge?

Fiction
Nonfiction
Board books
Picture Books
Early Readers
Early Chapter Books
Chapter Books
Graphic Novels
Middle Grade Books
Young Adult Books
Adult Books
Poetry
Short Stories
Plays

Brand new books, old-and tattered out-of-print books. Both are welcome!

No list is required, but, you can make one as you go if you like. The fun thing about this challenge is that everyone's list is going to be unique!

Is a blog required? Are reviews required? No. If you do blog, I'd love a link to your blog so I can read your reviews and book recommendations. If you review books on GoodReads, leave a link to your profile so I can friend you and follow your reviews!

If you're on twitter, you can contact me @blbooks and talk cats OR books!

You can comment on this post or any challenge-related post to update others on your progress.

© 2017 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

2018 Share-a-Tea Reading Challenge

Host: Becky's Book Reviews (sign up here)
Duration: January - December 2018
# of books: minimum of 2

Love drinking tea? Love reading books? Love reading a book while drinking tea? Have I got a reading challenge for you! In 2018, I'll be hosting the Share-a-Tea Reading Challenge again.

Who can join? Anyone who enjoys reading. You don't need to have a blog. You don't need to have a twitter account.

Are coffee drinkers welcome? Well. You can still join in, I suppose. But you might be outnumbered by tea drinkers.

Which books count towards the challenge? Any book that you primarily read while drinking tea. Not every single page needs to have been read while drinking tea. (I'm not that strict!!!) But this challenge is all about celebrating SLOWING DOWN and SAVORING the moments.

How many books? Is there a set minimum? This challenge is about QUALITY and not quantity. It's not about reading fifty books or even twelve books. This is an anti-rush reading challenge. Enjoy where you are in a book, and, engage fully in it. Live in the book.

This challenge has a focus on SHARING. How can you share? Several ways:

1) When you sign up in a comment below, share one favorite tea and one favorite book. And if you've got one handy: a favorite quote.
2) If you write a post on your blog announcing the challenge (and making a place to keep track of what you've read), consider sharing a bit about yourself--your reading and drinking habits. You might consider a longer list of recommendations!
3) If you're on twitter, tweet me as often as you like. @blbooks OR @operationbible Tweet about favorite teas, favorite books, favorite authors, favorite quotes, what you're currently reading, what you've just finished reading, etc.
4) Consider adding me and fellow participants to your blogroll, and cheer on other participants by reading reviews and leaving comments.
5) At the end of each month, I'll publish a check-in post. You can leave comments sharing what you're reading, what you've read, tea recommendations, etc. Even if you haven't finished a book, you can share where you're at. Remember, it isn't about how many books you read per month!

Be aware that comment moderation is turned on. So if you sign up for the challenge, and don't see your comment published, it just means I haven't published it...yet. But I will.

Do ask questions if you have them. I'll do my best to answer them.

© 2017 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

2018 Picture Book Reading Challenge

Original artwork by Charles Haigh-Wood (1856-1927)

Host: Becky's Book Reviews (sign up)
Duration: January - December 2018
Goal: To have adults read more picture books. To celebrate the fact that picture books are for everyone! Families are, of course, welcome to join in!
# of books: minimum of 6

Option 1: Read six picture books of your choice.
Option 2: Choose one author to focus on. Perhaps read through an entire author's work.
Option 3: Read as few as six, or as many as you like, from the checklist below

Feel free to copy/paste this. You can replace the _ with an X or a ✔ (copy/paste it) when you finish reading a book. If you list the books you read, that may help other people decide what to read.

_1. Title beginning with A
_2. Author beginning with A
_3. Title beginning with B
_4. Author beginning with B
_5. Title beginning with C
_6. Author beginning with C
_7. Title beginning with D
_8. Author beginning with D
_9. Title beginning with E
_10. Author beginning with E
_11. Title beginning with F
_12. Author beginning with F
_13. Title beginning with G
_14. Author beginning with G
_15. Title beginning with H
_16. Author beginning with H
_17. Title beginning with I
_18. Author beginning with I
_19. Title beginning with J
_20. Author beginning with J
_21. Title beginning with K
_22. Author beginning with K
_23. Title beginning with L
_24. Author beginning with L
_25. Title beginning with M
_26. Author beginning with M
_27. Title beginning with N
_28. Author beginning with N
_29. Title beginning with O
_30. Author beginning with O
_31. Title beginning with P
_32. Author beginning with P
_33. Title or Author beginning with Q
_34. Title beginning with R
_35. Author beginning with R
_36. Title beginning with S
_37. Author beginning with S
_38. Title beginning with T
_39. Author beginning with T
_40. Title or Author beginning with U
_41. Title or Author beginning with V or W
_42. Title or Author beginning with X or “Ex”
_43. Title beginning with Y
_44. Author beginning with Y
_45. Title or Author beginning with Z
_46. An alphabet book
_47. A counting book
_48. A color word in the title
_49. A number word in the title
_50. Concept book of your choice— picture book
_51. Concept book of your choice — board book
_52. bedtime book —board book
_53. bedtime book — picture book
_54. book that rhymes —picture book
_55. book that rhymes — early reader OR board book
_56. holiday of your choice — board book or early reader
_57. holiday of your choice — picture book
_58. wordless picture book
_59. new to you author
_60. new to you illustrator
_61. favorite author
_62. favorite illustrator
_63. free choice
_64. fairy or folk tale adaptation
_65. fairy or folk tale traditional
_66. a title with the word “first” in it
_67. a book set in the state you live
_68. a book set in a place you’d like to visit
_69. a book set in an imaginary place
_70. a book set in the past — fiction or nonfiction
_71. a book set in the present
_72. picture book for older readers — fiction
_73. picture book for older readers — nonfiction
_74. early reader — fiction
_75. early reader — nonfiction
_76. picture book with photographs
_77. one word title
_78. long title (four or more words)
_79. oversized book
_80. tiny book
_81. a book about playing (hide and seek, tag, or peekaboo, etc.)
_82. a book about school
_83. a book about hobbies (art, dance, music, crafts, sports)
_84. a title that is a question
_85. a title that is an exclamation
_86. an award winner or an honor book
_87. a collection (of poems OR stories)
_88. a book with animals (fiction)
_89. a book with animals (nonfiction)
_90. a book about books or reading
_91. a book celebrating family
_92. first book in a series
_93. any book in a series
_94. book with an adventure or misadventure
_95. a book about a pet
_96. A title with the word “yes” or “no” in it
_97. A title with the word “big” or “little” in it
_98. a classic published before 1968
_99. a book you think should be considered a classic
_100. Out of print
_101. Library book
_102. Impulse Pick
_ 103. Board book published in 2018
_ 104. Picture book published in 2018

Sign up by leaving a comment. Do indicate which option you're leaning towards. And if you have a blog, please leave your blog address so I can visit you.

Reviews are not a requirement. But if you do review, you can share links to your reviews. I'm thinking of having check-in posts on the 15th of every month.

© 2017 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Monday, January 02, 2017

2017 War Bingo Card

So instead of hosting another round of World at War, I thought I would still do a bingo card but expand it to a broader focus. Sign up in the comments!

Here's this year's card:

If you choose to accept this mission, your goal would be to read FIVE books and get a bingo.
Unless specifically stated, most squares could be filled by fiction or nonfiction. (I made an exception with World War I and World War II books, giving you two squares for each war). One book per square.

If you don't want to aim for a traditional bingo, read a minimum of five books to fill any five squares on the card, and it will count as a successful win. Or try to see how many squares you can fill in one year! You can replace the _ with an X or a ✔ (copy/paste it) when you finish reading a book. If you list the books you read, that may help other people decide what to read.

Duration: Since I'm posting late, how about a thirteen month challenge. January 2017-January 2018.

The categories:

_ World War II Nonfiction
_ Film or documentary about World War I or World War II
_ World War II Fiction
_ World War I Fiction
_ World War I Nonfiction
_ American Revolution
_ Free film or documentary with war setting
_ graphic novel with a war setting
_ award winning novel (adult, young adult, children) with a war setting
_ American Civil War
_ Russian Civil War (1917-1922)
_ French Revolution (1789-1799)
_ Free Book Choice
_ Napoleonic Wars (1803-1815)
_ Cold "War" (1947-1991)
_ Hundred Years' War (1337-1453)
_ English/British war of your choice
_ War of the Roses (1455-1487)
_ Norman Conquest of England (1066-1071)
_ English Civil War (1642-1651)
_ Middle eastern war of your choice
_ European war of your choice
_ African war of your choice
_ North or South American war of your choice
_ Asian war of your choice

The rules:

Books, audio-books, e-books--all qualify
Books for any age group qualify--children's books/middle grade, young adult, adult
Rereads are allowed
Reviews are not required but if you do get the chance to review, please leave a link!
You can create a reading list if you want, but it's not a requirement
If you do make a list, consider adding a list of five books you'd recommend to others