Catching up on Classics (and lots more!) discussion

I want to have more time to just read in 2024 and I wasn't going to do a buffet. Then Bob published the list and here we are. I cannot resist Around the World challenges.

Challenge #4 - Members Choice Challenge Choose one book per category/genre for a total of 12 books.

1. 19th Century, Far From the Madding Crowd
2. 20th Century, The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie
3. 21st Century, Opal Country
4. A book originally written in a language other than your own, The Summer Book
5. An Author never read before, A Chelsea Concerto
6. Diversity Classic, read a book from a religion, culture, country, or race different than yours. Quicksand
7. Science Fiction/Fantasy, Broken Ghosts
8. Action/Adventure, After London: or, Wild England
9. Childrens/Young Adult, The Railway Children
10. Nonfiction Memoir/Biography, Three Houses
11. Mystery/Thriller, Some Die Eloquent
12. Horror or Humor The Last Dance

Challenge #5 - Short Story Challenge
Read 24 short stories. This equates to only two per month for the year. Read them all at once or spread them out; it's up to you.

1. Makedonija by Miroslav Penkov (Bulgaria)
2. The Sacrificial Egg by Chinua Achebe
3. The Beauties by Anton Chekhov
4. East of the West by Miroslav Penkov
5. Buying Lenin by Miroslav Penkov
6. The Letter by Miroslav Penkov
7. Cross Thieves by Miroslav Penkov
8. The Night Horizon by Miroslav Penkov
9. A Man Worth Waiting For by Bojana Bajić
10. Awakened by Marijana Čanak
11. Notes from the Attic by Marijana Dolic
12. Something, at least by Zvonka Gazivoda
13. The title by Svetlana Kalezić Radonjić
14. The day with the head by Sladana Kavaric-Mandic
15. Trapped by Olja Knezevic
16. Do you remember me? by Jelena Lengold
17. Peace by Ana Miloš
18. Small death by Katarina Mitrović
19. The Son's Veto by Thomas Hardy
20. Young pioneers, we are seaweed by Andrea Popov Miletić
21. Smell by Milica Rašić
22. Franchise by Isaac Asimov
23. The Overcoat by Nikolai Gogol
24. Address Unknown by Kathrine Kressmann Taylor

Challenge 6 - Group Reads and/or Buddy Reads Challenge

The challenge is to read 12 total books/stories from this year's group poll winners or Buddy Reads, in any combination. Your reads can be from the upcoming 53 poll winners, or from the 2024 Buddy Reads thread. Between New School, Old School, Short Story/Novella, Revisit the Shelf, Quarterly Long Read, and Buddy Reads there should be plenty of choices.

1. Quicksand
2. The Beauties
3. The Overcoat
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.

Challenge #7 - Expand Your Horizon With New Authors

Seek out at least six (6) authors that you have never previously read, from any genre or era you want.

1. The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie by Muriel Spark
2. A Chelsea Concerto by Frances Faviell
3. An Inspector Calls by J.B. Priestley
4. Address Unknown by Kathrine Kressmann Taylor
5. The Summer Book by Tove Jansson
6. The Unbearable Lightness of Being by Milan Kundera

Challenge #13 - Travel the World One Continent at a Time

Africa Anoniem
Asia
Australia Opal Country
Europe Far From the Madding Crowd
North America Quicksand
South America

Challenge #12 - Series Books – Start, Continue, Complete

Start
Ben Devlin by Brian McGilloway: Borderlands

Continue
Shetland by Marsali Taylor: The Shetland Night Killings: The Shetland Sailing Mysteries#
DCI Sloan by Catherine Aird: Some Die Eloquent

Complete (up to current publication date)
Constance Fairchild: Nowhere To Run by James Oswald
Anna Gwynne: Before She Falls by Dylan Young
Skelfs by Doug Johnstone: The Great Silence, Black Hearts, The Opposite of Lonely
Tony McLean by James Oswald: The Damage Done, Written in Bones, The Gathering Dark, Cold as the Grave, Bury Them Deep, What Will Burn, All That Lives, For Our Sins

Challenge - Century

1870: Far From the Madding Crowd by Thomas Hardy
1880: After London: or, Wild England by Richard Jefferies
1890: The Seagull by Anton Chekhov
1900: The Railway Children by E. Nesbit
1910: Summer: Classic Literary Fiction by Edith Wharton
1920: Quicksand by Nella Larsen
1930: Three Houses by Angela Thirkell
1940: Dust Tracks on a Road by Zora Neale Hurston
1950: A Chelsea Concerto by Frances Faviell
1960: The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie by Muriel Spark
1970: Some Die Eloquent by Catherine Aird
1980: The Unbearable Lightness of Being by Milan Kundera

Ha ha, the same thing happening to me with the 2024 Bingo. These challenges are irresistible! And for me, in the end there's really no point in resisting anyway, since I find them really enjoyable.

Have fun!

I love that other people also cannot say "no". We always have fun and I enjoy watching your reads, so I am glad you gave in.

Enjoy have fun and have a good year. Happy reading!

I've managed to finish the Short Story challenge which I'm quite pleased with. Most of the stories are from two books namely East of the West: A Country in Stories and Balkan Bombshells which covered parts of eastern Europe that I don't know well at all.

Both of these books sound fascinating, Carolien. Congrats on finishing the short story challenge and happy reading from here.

Yay, congratulations on finishing the short story challenge!

Congratulations on finishing the short story challenge.

Congratulations, Carolien!

I never planned on doing many of these this year, but managed to complete the Genre and Short Story challenge as well as a surprise unplanned Century challenge.

That's fantastic! I hope you enjoyed your reading. :)

Thanks, Wobbley!