Cover to Cover Challenge discussion

Last January I read 11 books. Lets see if I can beat it.

January:
1. The Van Alen Legacy by Melissa de la Cruz (3 stars)
2. The Once and Future King by T.H. White (new author)(4 stars)
3. Fragile Eternity by Melissa Marr (3.5 stars)
4. Hush, Hush by Becca Fitzpatrick (new author)(4 stars)
5. Impossible by Nancy Werlin (new author)(4 stars)
6. The Bricklayer a Novel by Noah Boyd (new author)(3.5 stars)
7. Roses by Leila Meacham (new author)(4.5 stars)
8. Just Listen by Sarah Dessen (re-read) (4 stars)
9. The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume II: The Kingdom on the Waves by M.T. Anderson (5 stars)
10. Heir to Sevenwaters by Juliet Marillier (3.5 stars)
11. I, Claudius by Robert Graves (new author) (4 stars)
12. The Seven Rays by Jessica Bendinger (new author) (2 stars)


Total Pages in January: 5,274
Total Books in January: 12

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Last February I read 15 books. I'm not sure if I can beat it, but I'm sure gonna try.

February:
1. Getting Revenge on Lauren Wood by Eileen Cook (new author)(3 stars)
2. Daughter of Fortune: A Novel byIsabel Allende (new author)(3.5 stars)
Good Fortune by Noni Carter (new author) (didn't finish)(1 star)
3. Lord of the Flies by William Golding (re-read) (4 stars)
4. How High the Moon: A Novel by Sandra Kring (new author)(3.5 stars)
5. The Shadow Club by Neal Shusterman (3 stars)
6. The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer(new author)(4.5 stars)
7. Sabriel by Garth Nix (new author)(2.5 stars)
8. Interview With the Vampire by Anne Rice (new author)(3 stars)
9. 1984 by George Orwell (re-read)(5 stars)
10. Have a Little Faith: The Story of a Last Request by Mitch Albom (4 stars)
11. Wings by Aprilynne Pike (new author)(3 stars)

Total Pages in February: 3,328
Total Books in February: 11

Last March I read 17 books. Last March I also must not have been very busy.

March:
1. The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand (new author)
2. I Heart You, You Haunt Me by Lisa Schroeder (new author)(3 stars)
3. Every Little Thing in the World by Nina de Gramont (new author) (4.5 stars)
4. The Unwritten Rule by Elizabeth Scott (new author)(3 stars)
5. Wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson (5 stars)
6. The Whole World: A Novel by Emily Winslow (new author)(2 stars)
Sweet, Hereafter by Angela Johnson (didn't finish)
7. Ivy by Julie Hearn (new author)(4 stars)
8. Memoirs of a Teenage Amnesiac by Gabrielle Zevin (2.5 stars)
9. The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan (new author)(4 stars)
10. The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan (re-read)(5 stars)
11. The Sea of Monsters by Rick Riordan (re-read)(5 stars)
12. The Titan's Curse by Rick Riordan (re-read)(5 stars)
13. The Battle of the Labyrinth by Rick Riordan (re-read)(5 stars)
14. The Last Olympian by Rick Riordan (re-read)(5 stars)

Total Pages in March: 4,680
Total Books in March: 14

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April:
1. The She by Carol Plum-Ucci (3 stars)
2. Jessica's Guide to Dating on the Dark Side by Beth Fantaskey (new author)(3 stars)
3. The Red Tent by Anita Diamant (new author)(5 stars)
4. Avalon High by Meg Cabot (3 stars)
5. Keeping Faith by Jodi Picoult (3.5 stars)
6. Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card (new author) (4 stars)
7. Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher(re-read) (5 stars)
8. The Exile of Gigi Lane by Adrienne Maria Vrettos (new author) (3.5 stars)

Total Pages in April: 2,722
Total Books in April: 8

May:
1. Leviathan by Scott Westerfeld (3 stars)
2. The Princess Bride by William Goldman (new author) (4 stars)
3. The Dead-Tossed Waves by Carrie Ryan (4.5 stars)
4. Gone by Michael Grant (re-read) (5 stars)
5. Hunger by Michael Grant (re-read) (5 stars)
6. A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens (new author)
7. Lies by Michael Grant (4 stars)
8. If I Stay by Gayle Forman (new author)(3 stars)
9. The Dead and the Gone by Susan Beth Pfeffer (2.5 stars)
10. Along for the Ride by Sarah Dessen (3.5 stars)
11. Perfect Chemistry by Simone Elkeles (new author)(4 stars)

Total Pages in May: 4,614
Total Books in May: 11

June:
1. Shade by Jeri Smith-Ready (new author)(4 stars)
2. The Morganville Vampires by Rachel Caine new author)(2.5 stars)
3. White Cat by Holly Black (4 stars)
4. Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë (new author)(4 stars)
5. Claire de Lune by Christine Johnson (new author)(2 stars)
6. Bee Season by Myla Goldberg (new author)(4 stars)
7. She's So Dead to Us by Kieran Scott (4.5 stars)
8. Skybreaker by Kenneth Oppel (5 stars)
9. Audrey, Wait! by Robin Benway(new author)(4.5 stars)
10. Girl in the Arena by Lise Haines (new author)(2.5 stars)
11. I'd Tell You I Love You, But Then I'd Have to Kill You by Ally Carter (new author)(3 stars)
12. Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater (new author)(3.5 stars)
13. Eyes Like Stars by Lisa Mantchev (new author)(3.5 stars)

Total Pages in June: 4,260
Total Books in June: 13

July:

1. Pretty Little Liars by Sara Shepard (new author)(3.5 stars)
2. L.A. Candy by Lauren Conrad (new author)(3 stars)
3. The Deathday Letter by Shaun Hutchinson (new author)(3.5 stars)
4. Wild Roses by Deb Caletti (4 stars)
5. Girl v. Boy by Yvonne Collins (new author)(3 stars)
6. Bass Ackwards and Belly Up by Elizabeth Craft (new author)(3.5 stars)
7.It's Kind of a Funny Story by Ned Vizzini (new author)(4.5 stars)
8. The Poison Diaries by Maryrose Wood (new author)(2 stars)
9. The Queen of Everything by Deb Caletti (4.5 stars)
10. What-the-Dickens: The Story of a Rogue Tooth Fairy by Gregory Maguire (3 stars)
11. Glimpse by Carol Lynch Williams (new author)(4 stars)
12. Willow by Julia Hoban (new author)(4 stars)
13. Lucas by Kevin Brooks (4 stars)
14. The Maze Runner by James Dashner (new author)(4 stars)
15. Linger by Maggie Stiefvater (4.25 stars)
16. Poison Study by Maria V. Snyder (new author)(5 stars)
17. Prophecy of the Sisters by Michelle Zink (new author)(2 stars)
18. Devoured by Amanda Marrone (new author)(2.5 stars)
19. Marcelo In The Real World by Francisco X. Stork (new author)(3.5 stars)
20. Girl, Interrupted by Susanna Kaysen (new author)(4 stars)


Total Pages in July: 5704
Total Books in July: 20
Total Pages: 31852
Total Books: 89

August:

September:

October:

November:

December:

Hey guys! My challenge for last year was 180, but sadly only got to 160. This year my goal is slightly smaller, and if I manage to surpass it, I'll try the 180 again.
I'll post the books I'm reading as I'm reading them, along with my star ratings and whether or not they are a re-read or a new author.






I'm open to recommendations and suggestions. While I read mostly YA and fantasy, I've been looking to expand my horizons with new authors and genres.

Okay, here's a summary of my thoughts on all the books I read in January.

January was an okay month. I didn't read anything earth-shattering and there were a couple of disappointments.

My favorite book this month was probably The Kingdom on the Waves. Honestly, I thought I was going to hate it, but it surprised me. Alas, it was the best of the sequels I read this month. The Van Alen Legacy, Fragile Eternity, and Heir to Sevenwaters were disappointing sequels.

I also started a few series this month with Hush, Hush, The Bricklayer, I, Claudius, and The Seven Rays. Out of these, I'll most likely only continue the Hush, Hush series. The rest just weren't my cup of tea.

I, Claudius and The Once and Future King were good books, but weren't exactly my thing. I had to read The Once and Future King for school by the way.

Roses really surprised me. I didn't expect to like it as much as I did. And Impossible disappointed me. I guess my expectations for that one were too high.

I try to get at least one re-read in a month, and this month's was Just Listen. Just Listen is just a charming little novel, and a good re-read book.

Overall, this month I tried a lot of new things. I am introduced to seven new authors and a couple new genres.

Summary of my thoughts about the books I read in Febraury.

It was kind of a slow month for me. I only read 11 instead of 12, but hey, February is the shortest month of the year.

My favorite new book of the month was The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society. It was refreshing and sweet, it's only a shame I won't be able to read more from the author.

I started a few new series. Daughter of Fortune, Wings, The Shadow Club, Sabriel, and Interview with the Vampire. Out of these I would only likely continue with the Wings series. The rest were kind of disappointments.

Getting Revenge on Lauren Wood was a little light book which I enjoyed, and How High the Moon was also charming. Neither were masterpieces, but certainly enjoyable. Have a Little Faith was comforting, I guess.

I had two re-reads for the month (Lord of the Flies and 1984), and suprisingly, both of them were school required. Which was cool because everyone in class was giving their predictions on what would happen, and I'm just sitting there with a smirk on face, shaking my head. I had fun driving everyone crazy.

The one book I COULD NOT STAND was Good Fortune. I spent the entire months reading ten pages here and there and it was bloody awful. I only got about half-way through. Don't worry, I didn't count it towards my total.

Here's is what I thought about my March reads...

I spent most of the month reading The Fountainhead, which was semi-required for school. Meaning, all the teachers were expecting you to read it, but it was not technically required. I didn't know my feelings about this book. Definitely my heaviest read of the month, and I couldn't choose a rating. It just didn't seem fair to. I hated it and I liked it. I could tell it was a good book even at times when it was less-than-enjoyable.

I read three books online, all from new authors. I Heart You, You Haunt Me was okay, but I'm not particularly fond of verse novels. Every Little Thing in the World was suprisingly good, and I definitely recommend it. The Unwritten Rule was just meh.

I received a advanced copy of The Whole World from debut novelist, Emily Winslow, and I didn't like it. Another book I wasn't particularly fond of was Sweet,Hereafter by Angela Johnson. I didn't finish it because I couldn't even get into it. It was a fart of book anyway, at less than 180 pages.

I went to Borders and got a bunch of new books. Wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson gets five stars from me. I absolutely love that author. Also good was The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan, and I am greedy for a sequel. Ivy was good certianly, and Memoirs of a Teenage Amnesiac was just okay.

For my re-read of the month, I chose an entire series: Percy Jackson and the Olympians. I just LOVE this series, and I have to say they were my most enjoyable reads of the month. I crammed them in at the end. I just need familiar, comfortable reads after so many new ones.

Ayn Rand is sure very strange. I read Fountainhead, Atlas Shrugged and The Anthen. The first two were the better ones. Wasn't crazy about the last one at all. One I did with a online friend so it was good that I had someone reading it since we posted about it. And one I did with my sister and we even used cliff notes. There is still one more I want to read and maybe her bio or I think she has a journal type book.

My April book thoughts....

I only read eight books this month. I know, fail. But I was ssssoooo busy. I had driver's ed, a family emergency, plus AP testing and exams. So forgive me for not reading my heart out.

I did one re-read of a books I ah-dore. That would be Thirteen Reasons Why. Man, I could read that book over and over. It's very good, to say the least.

All my new reads were pretty decent, actually. The Red Tent was my favorite new read. That got five stars from me. I loved it.

Ender's Game and The Exile of Gigi Lane got around four stars from me. Those are the books I would recommend. I've been wanting to read Ender for a while, so it was exciting to finally sink my teeth into it. The Exile of Gigi Lane was better than I expected. I expected some teenage fluff, but it was actually pretty funny.

Avalon High and Jessica's Guide to Dating on the Dark Side were light books. I wasn't expecting much from them, and I enjoyed them well enough.

The She and Keeping Faith were kind of disappointing. I didn't like them too much.

Overall, a decent month for one filled with so few books.

About what I read in May:

It was a pretty good month, in which I read a lot of YA.

I got my hands on a lot of books I was looking forward too like Leviathan, Perfect Chemistry,If I Stay, and Along for the Ride. I was kind of disappointed in Leviathan and If I Stay, but I liked them just the same.

I re-read the Gone series in preparation for Lies, the third installment. And I read The Dead-Tossed Waves as well, which was an awesome sequel to The Forest of Hands and Teeth. But I didn't enjoy all the sequels I read. I didn't exactly like The Dead & and The Gone.

Classic-wise, Mr Bierman made us read A Tale of Two Cities. It was rough going at first, but I overall enjoyed it. I also read The Princess Bride, and I have to say I like the movie better.

In June, I had an influx of young-adult. As the school year ended, I managed to squeeze in one more classic: Wuthering Heights. I liked it a lot more than expected.

It was a really good month besides. My only real disappointment was the Morganville Vampires. After going to a used bookstore, I acquired many books, and started way more series than I should have. Shade, White Cat, Morganville, She's So Dead to Us, I'd Tell You I Love You, Shiver, Eyes Like Stars...all were starting off a series. I need to get myself out of those things. Oh, and I also continued a trilogy too, with Skybreaker (which was awesome).

I didn't manage to squeeze in any re-reads though. I got excited with too many new books to choose from.