The Reading Challenge Group discussion

I chose this title because it's also the twitter hashtag I use when I want to catalogue links to articles I enjoyed, so I figure I might as well use it here too. I've opened the thread, but I won't update it until this weekend (I'm almost done with exams, and I want to see what's on my home shelf before I start planning).

I'll probably do another alphabet challenge (and this time maybe finish it?) because it forces me to choose books from all over my to-read as opposed to just going down the list chronologically (not that I have the patience to do that anyway). The main goal for 2016 is to stem the money hemorrhaging. I have so many books at home I haven't read, and I have a long list of books in my university's e-library. It's time to finally read them. In short, I challenge myself not to purchase anything published before 2016. I'll allow space for new-releases, but otherwise I'm going to (try) to read what I have (or what I acquire for free, I always jump on the school's various book club lists in hopes that some give the members copies to read).

Here's hoping for 2016!

I'm actually not sure I'll still do the alphabet challenge. It depends on few factors, but in the meantime I'll set up some personal mini challenges. All of these books, except the ones with asterisks, I've owned for a while, so I'll put them towards the TBR challenge as well. Italicized books are on an as-time-permits basis.

When In France
Paris Noir: African-Americans in the City of Light


Reading Islam
The Ideal Muslimah 5 July '16
Commentary on Surah al-Fatiha, Mirza Ghulam Ahmad
The Prescribed Prayer Made Simple 17 Jan '16
The Quran: Basic Teachings 20 June '16
Islamic Studies Book 1
Islam and Politics in Southeast Asia
Islam's Response to Contemporary Issues
Ihya Ulum Al-Din, Vol 1, Imam Ghazali
[Space reserved for a Rumi collection]
And the Mountains Echoed*

Southeast Asian Studies
A Sourcebook in Indian Philosophy
Sources of Indian Tradition: From the Beginning to 1800
Sources of Indian Tradition: Vol 2
(The Bhagavad Gita, As it is
The Pictoral Biography of the Lord Buddha)

NetGalley New Releases deadlines beside titles
The Prayer Rug MARCH 15
The Joy of Argument MARCH 20
Food, Genes, and Culture: Eating Right for Your Origins 7 Aug '16
Good Children of the Flower 12 Aug '16


2016 New Releases *
The Moon in the Palace
The Empress of Bright Moon
The Dutch Girl
A Hard and Heavy Thing
The Vegetarian

Something Old
Emma
Walden
Oliver Twist
The House of Mirth
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer

Play Time
A Doll's House
Hamlet
A Raisin in the Sun*

China/Chinese
Desiring China: Experiments in Neoliberalism, Sexuality, and Public Culture
Islam in Hong Kong: Muslims and Everyday Life in China's World City
Dreams of Joy
China Dolls
China Goes Global: The Partial Power
Graded Chinese Reader--2500Words
The China Study: The Most Comprehensive Study of Nutrition Ever Conducted And the Startling Implications for Diet, Weight Loss, And Long-term Health
Chinese Religious Life
China in the 21st Century


Flex (Squirrels and school reading)
Les Précieuses ridicules (School) 24 Jan '16
Muslim Girls and the Other France: Race, Identity Politics, and Social Exclusion (squirrel) 7 Feb '16
Kindred 13 Feb '16
The Romance Diet: Body Image and the War We Wage on Ourselves 22 Feb '16
South China Morning Blues 12 July
Negroland: A Memoir
Integrated Chinese Level 1/Part 1 Textbook: Simplified Characters
The Making of a Story: A Norton Guide to Creative Writing


Overflow (leftovers from 2015)
Muhammad: A Prophet for Our Time 2 May '16
Jasmine Falling 24 Jan '16
Purity 26 Jul '16

The Martian
The Girl on the Train
(R)evolution
No god but God: The Origins, Evolution and Future of Islam

The 2016 list is done! Whatever I don't read will be tacked onto 2017, because I must learn to control myself, haha.

World-Lit Challenge/Group Reads Plans (can't guarantee I'll do it in order, but I'll try).

January: South America
February: Middle East
March: Sub-Sahara
April: Southeast Asia
May: Central America/Mexico & Caribbean
June: Western Europe
July: North Africa
August: South Asia/India Subcontinent
September: North America
October: Eastern Europe
November: Oceania/Australia
December: East Asia

Uh-Oh, the squirrels are hitting me hard

Good luck with your list, it's quite impressive !

Camille wrote: "Good luck with your list, it's quite impressive !"

Haha, thanks. realistically, I only see my self getting through half xD

My personal challenge is essentially a TBR challenge, but I have a tendency to give into squirrels. This thread will hold me accountable haha. I'll list them as I finish them.

Level One (5 TBR books) = List Tickler
1. Jasmine Falling
2. The Prescribed Prayer Made Simple
3. Muhammad: A Prophet for Our Time
4. The Quran: Basic Teachings
5. The Ideal Muslimah

Level Two (10 TBR books) = List Tamer
6. Purity
7. Negroland: A Memoir
8. The Jungle Book
9.
10.

Level Three (15 TBR books) = Captain of the Shelf
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.

Level Four (20 TBR books) = Master of All Dust Bunnies
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
Dance of Book Joy ensues!

22 Feb- The Romance Diet by Destiny Allison


29 Feb- Roy Litchenstein, Tartuffe, and Various wikipedia things


Some day in March: The Joy of Argument

Making good head way, but far behind where I want to be.

This is when I begin to doubt my ability to finish. Summer speed-reading, here I come. Thank goodness for long daily commutes to work.

Chunkster Challenge, books greater than 400 pgs:
Level 1:
1) Sources of Indian Tradition: From the Beginning to 1800
2)Sources of Indian Tradition, Vol 2: Modern India and Pakistan
3)A Sourcebook in Indian Philosophy
---
4) Purity (526) 26 Jul This book was fabulous, highly recommend.

5) The Making of a Story

Featherweight challenge, books less than 280 pgs:
Level 1- Ruffled Feathers
1. The Ideal Muslimah(268) It was dry but informative

2. Food, Genes, and Culture: Eating Right for Your Origins (248) writing was a bit simple, but at least the information was interesting.

3. Negroland (248) Not bad but I feel like Jefferson skirted the issue.

4. Basic Patterns of Chinese Grammer (128) Super basic but a good review.

5.

Level 2- Flapping Wings
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.

Order for my own reference:
*read simultaneously from top and bottom of list*


islamic hijab
women on the orient express. Pub: Sep 20
artificial intelligence. Pub Oct 3
quran in context. Pub Oct 16
Smarter, Better, Faster. Arch: Sep 12
women, peacebuilding, religion. Arch: Sept 23
ctrl+ z ARCH.ED
AI. Pub: July 1
Negroland
Dreams of Joy
emotionally healthy leader
mountains echoed
Prostitutes and polygamists
A doll's house
a raisin in the sun
Indian philosophy
indian tradition 1
indian tradition 2
paris noir
islam in hong kong
Ihya ulum ad-din
Commentary on Surah al-fatihah
making of a story
tomates piments aubergines
Islamic Studies Book 1
---
Happiness effect: pub date feb 1, '17

2017 Pile-up
Available via NYU:
China
Born Red: A Chronicle of the Cultural Revolution
Women and the Family in Rural Taiwan
The Problem of China
Wolf Totem
Wild Swans: Three Daughters of China

Black
Love in the Driest Season: A Family Memoir

Classics
The Beautiful and Damned
Candide

Theology & Philosophy
Mahayana Buddhism: The Doctrinal Foundations
Other Selves: Philosophers on Friendship
Grounding for the Metaphysics of Morals/On a Supposed Right to Lie Because of Philanthropic Concerns
On the Genealogy of Morality
Nicomachean Ethics
The Spirit of the Age/On Liberty/The Subjection of Women

Misc
Maternal Thinking: Toward a Politics of Peace
The Foundation Trilogy
The Perception of the Environment: Essays on Livelihood, Dwelling and Skill
The Namesake
Wasteland
At Home in the Universe: The Search for the Laws of Self-Organization and Complexity
-----
My Books
Theology
Holy Bible: King James Version
Selling God: American Religion in the Marketplace of Culture

Islam
The Prophet(french, but too lazy to add that version)

Misc
College Unbound: The Future of Higher Education and What It Means for Students

New Release Challenge 2016
I need to double check the levels for this one
1. Good Children of the Flower Pub: Aug 9, Finished: Aug 12.
2. Now What, Grad?: Your Path to Success After College