You'll love this one...!! A book club & more discussion

Wow...just going through my library and reviewing what books I'd like to either revisit or finally get around to reading was the first fun part of this challenge. Not sure I'll get past the first list...but figured it was best to have the option. So here is my plan:

A: Margaret Atwood
The Blind Assassin Finished 1/30/2013
B: A.S. Byatt Possession
Rachel Bertsche
MWF Seeking BFF: My Yearlong Search for a New Best Friend Finished 2/3/2013
(I guess I'll leave Possession for the next round! Got distracted by this quick, easy, fun read)
C: Rajiv Chandrasekaran
Little America: The War Within the War for Afghanistan finished 2/8/2013
D: Ghalib Shiraz Dhalla
The Two Krishnas: A Novel Finished 2/16/2013
E: Jeffrey Eugenides
The Marriage Plot Finished 2/24/2013
F: Gustave Flaubert
Madame Bovary Finished 3/17/2013
G: John Green
The Fault in Our Stars Finished 3/18/2013
H: Kent Haruf
Plainsong finished 3/24/2013
I: Kazuo Ishiguro
Never Let Me Go. finished 3/31/2013
J: Ha Jin
Waiting finished 4/14/2013
K: Robert Kaplan Monsoon: The Indian Ocean and the Future of American Power finished 4/21/2013
L: Penelope Lively
Moon Tiger finished 4/26/2013
M: Gabriel Garcí­a Márquez
One Hundred Years of Solitude finished 5/2/2013 OMG I hated this book!!!
N: Sara Nelson
So Many Books, So Little Time: A Year of Passionate Reading
Nabokov Vladimir
Lolita Finished 5/12/2012
O: Orczy Emmuska Baroness
The Scarlet Pimpernel Finished 5/31/2013
Martin Page
How I Became Stupid Just realized that at 129 pages, this book is too short!
P: Oliver Potzsch
The Hangman's Daughter Finished 6/1/2013
Q: Raymond Queneau
Zazie in the Metro Sigh. Another one that turned out to be too short!
Anna Quindlen
Every Last One Finished 6/2/2013
R: Ian Rankin
Black and Blue Finished 6/11/2013
S: Dava Sobel
Galileo's Daughter: A Historical Memoir of Science, Faith and Love Finished 6/20/2013
T: Donna Tartt
The Secret History Decided to read something already on my physical TBR shelf instead of buying something new!
Anne Tyler
Back When We Were Grownups Finished 6/22/1013
U: Barry Unsworth
Sacred Hunger
John Updike
Rabbit, Run Finished 6/26/2013
V: Abraham Verghese
Cutting for Stone Finished 7/2/2013
W: Cheryl Wagner
Plenty Enough Suck to Go Around: A Memoir of Floods, Fires, Parades, and Plywood Finished 7/18/2013
X: Xinran
Sky Burial: An Epic Love Story of Tibet Finished 7/21/2013
Y: Mo Yan
Red Sorghum Finished 8/27/2013
Z: Stefan Zweig
Beware of Pity Finished 9/29/2013

And now...alphabetical by titles:
A: All Quiet on the Western Front
Erich Maria Remarque Finished 10/5/2013
B: Beloved
Toni Morrison Finished 10/9/2013
C: Crossbones Yard
Kate Rhodes Finished 10/11/2013
D: Deliverance
James Dickey Finished 10/28/2013
E: Excellent Women
Barbara Pym Finished 11/14/2013
F: Flowers for Algernon
Daniel Keyes Finished 11/15/2013
G: The Gathering
Anne Enright Finished 11/21/2013
H: The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
Douglas Adams Finished 11/28/2013

I love your list, Michelle! I am looking forward to reading your thoughts on those picks!

You have some fantastic books on your list, Michelle! I am eager to find out what you think about them.

Glad you are joining us for the Alphabet challenge, Michelle! You've got a good line up of books to start you off. :)

This is a great excuse to get to some of those books that have been languishing in the pile for too long! But I anticipate substitutions as the challenges goes on and some new "must read -- NOW" books appear in my life :-)

I'm excited about that one, Judy. I ordered it from Amazon just a couple of days before signing up for the challenge...so the question is whether I'll wait that long to read it!

You have Possession and Plainsong near the top of your list. They are two of my favorite books. ; ) I hope you enjoy them as much as I did.

I must admit, Possession will be a re-read for me. I loved it so much the first time (six or seven years ago), and figured I was definitely due for another journey through it. Looking forwad to Plainsong, too!

Have read two from your list, Michelle. Great list. :)

Bummer -- thought I was finally going to get around to reading Zazie in the Metro, but just flipped through it and saw that it's only 176 pages. This challenge really is a challenge!!!

Connie wrote: "You have Possession and Plainsong near the top of your list. They are two of my favorite books. ; ) I hope you enjoy them as much as I did."

Connie -- I loved...LOVED...Plainsong. Have you read the sequel?

Beginning of June, and I'm struggling to stay on track! But this week I read (a very quick, light read and kind of fun if a little silly) and which was also a quick, easy read. By coincidence, both are historical fiction (a genre I'm not especially drawn to) and both feature big, strong (physically), clever heros and fiesty, smart, strong (emotionally) female leads. I thought the Hangman's Daughter dragged a bit -- I was ready for the book to be over 150 pages before it was -- but I enjoyed the setting, the light history, and the unlikely hero.

Mid-July, and I must admit that some "reading fatigue" is setting in! I miss reading a book purely because I want to, and not because it's next on my list for a challenge or for a book club read! On the other hand, I have read some great new books and have revisited some old favorites that I might not have gotten around to otherwise.

So far in July for this challenge I read Cutting for Stone, which was really, really good; and , which I just couldn't get into. I was really looking forward to Plenty of Suck and am interested in how New Orleans is (still) recovering. But I guess I just didn't enjoy the author's voice, even though I admire the work she put into rebuilding.

On to my next book!

Understand that feeling Michelle. Sounds like you need to treat yourself to a random read you've been hanging out for. My pile of books to read has been getting rather huge due to my inflexible reading challenges the last year. That's what happens when you're a compulsive book buyer and can't go past a bargain ;)

Glad you enjoyed Cutting for Stone though. I read it last year too for a challenge on a bit of a whim (hadn't heard much about it) and loved it.

Michelle wrote: "Mid-July, and I must admit that some "reading fatigue" is setting in! I miss reading a book purely because I want to, and not because it's next on my list for a challenge or for a book club read! ..."

I've been using the challenges as a means of finally getting around to the books that I bought "just because" and are sitting there collecting dust. Still, there's this impulse to grab a book... any book... and read it "just because".

I think the challenges are fun and I do enjoy them. On the other hand, I have a huge pile of books sitting around that I keep telling myself that I cannot read yet, because I HAVE to finish the challenge books first. I am feeling challenged by the challenges lately. I think next month I am going to back off.

The last book I read was Rubbernecker. Loved it. At present I am reading Talking to the Dead
Jury is still out. The main character, as a detective, takes a lot of risks. The book is set in Scotland. The main characters are all female and the men are only secondary, Unusual. I think it will get better as I delve.

I find myself going back and forth between "assigned" reading and whatever I want. I stress a little about not reading all the books for each group I'm in, but reading for pure entertainment keeps the overall stress level lower :)

Late August, and I'm shocked to see it's been a full month since I last finished a book for this challenge. To be fair, I'm moving halfway around the world and am starting a new job...but still! Just finished , which probably wasn't a great choice during a hectic time -- the action skips around in time so much that it's really hard to follow if you are putting it down for several days at a time between reads. I think it's one of those books I'll need to read again in a couple of years, to see if I like it better when I can fully concentrate on it. And now on to Z!

Don't be too hard on yourself! It sounds like you have a lot going on that can keep you from reading!

Janice wrote: "Don't be too hard on yourself! It sounds like you have a lot going on that can keep you from reading!"

Thanks, Janice! Looking forward to getting settled so I can re-devote myself to my love of books :-)

That sounds all very exciting!

Lots of excitement! Where are you moving to?

At least you're on your Z book - almost done with one alphabet!

Ugh...once again, a month to complete a book! I was right on track for so long, but now am 3 behind! I really enjoyed , but it was long and the challenges related to moving haven't yet calmed down!

Hi Jaxnsmom -- I moved to Washington, DC from Manila. I'm really enjoying it!

I lived in Northern Virgina for fifteen years, and worked in DC about half that time. I don't miss the traffic at all, but I miss all the attractions, and the restaurants - I really miss all the ethnic foods!

Yeah, I really like it here so far. Autumn is beautiful. And I'm a big fan of public transportation! Now if only Congress would pass a budget so life could get back to normal...

I wish they'd take it serious and stop putting us more in debt. I'm waiting to see if we get any color around here, so far not much to see.

Sigh. Still two books behind, but at least I'm not taking a month between books anymore :-)

Absolutely loved -- I had never seen the movie but had been hearing about the "squeal like a pig" scene for years. (They don't actually say that in the book, by the way) A disturbing, but powerful book.

Hmm...can't seem to catch up! STILL two books behind! Next up...

We're at the same place. Since I've finished one alphabet, I'm not even trying for this one :)