Reading Wrap-Up: November 2012

Posted December 6, 2012 by in Monthly Wrap-ups / 17 Comments

It’s the last month of the year! Time sure flies, doesn’t it? I still haven’t felt like sitting in front of a computer screen to blog, but the computer screen just got more interesting at our house…

I don’t remember how long ago it was (I would say six months, at least), but Eric’s computer took a crap. He creates digital artwork as a hobby, and he burned out his computer doing stuff on it that it wasn’t really made to do. So over the past several months, he has been doing a bunch of research on how to build his own computer from the ground up, and has been buying the parts for it. Last Sunday he sat down and built a new computer for himself, and yesterday we went through the process of setting it up and installing all of the software to get it running. Everything went smoothly, amazingly enough, and I am now blogging from a super-duper-built-by-Eric computer. I’m very proud of him, and this PC is pretty awesome.

I did lots of reading in November, and not a lot of blogging (again). I really need to catch up on some reviews, although I’m pretty sure I’ll never be able to catch up on all of them. This means that I am probably out of the running for the Insatiable Booksluts’ End of the World Challenge, but I’m good with that. SJ was kicking my ass anyway. Hahaha! I realized this year that I am not really the short-term challenge type, so I won’t be joining any of these challenges next year. SJ and I have decided that 2013 will be the year of Reading Whatever the F*ck We Want, so stay tuned for more information on that.

(I have finished the reading for two of the challenges I joined this year: the Back to the Classics Challenge and the Chunkster Reading Challenge are complete, aside from reviewing some of the books.)

This is what I accomplished in November:

Number of books finished: 12
YTD: 137

  • The End of Your Life Book Club, Will Schwalbe
  • The Bolter, Frances Osborne
  • Dark Places, Gillian Flynn
  • Sharp Objects, Gillian Flynn
  • The Trial, Franz Kafka
  • The Waste Lands (DT #3), Stephen King
  • Both Flesh and Not, David Foster Wallace
  • Dead Souls, Nikolai Gogol
  • Gilead, Marilynne Robinson
  • Silver Sparrow, Tayari Jones
  • Flight Behavior, Barbara Kingsolver
  • The Fault in Our Stars, John Green

Number of books in progress:

  • American Dervish, Ayad Akhtar
  • The City & The City, China Miéville
  • Wishin’ and Hopin’, Wally Lamb
  • The Broom of the System, David Foster Wallace

Number of pages read: 4,144
YTD: 47,425

Books reviewed:

**I’m using the Daytum website to keep track of my reading stats this year, so you can follow my progress at any time by visiting my Daytum profile.

Back to the Classics Challenge 2012November's Autumn Classics ChallengeMount TBR Reading ChallengeChunkster Reading Challenge 2012 button2012 End of the World Reading Challenge

Reading Challenges progress:

  • Back to the Classics Challenge: 2/9  (YTD: 9/9) DONE! (…aside from reviewing a few of the books.)
  • Mount TBR Reading Challenge: 2/40  (YTD: 20/40)
  • Chunkster Reading Challenge: 3/14  (YTD: 20/14) DONE! (Technically, I am finished with this challenge aside from writing some reviews. I still have more chunksters to read this year, though.)
  • End of the World Reading Challenge: 3,666  (YTD: 38,990)
  • The Classics Club: 17/100 (Total)
  • A Non-Fiction Adventure: 18/130 (Total)

**You can follow my progress and learn more about each challenge under the Challenges tab in my menu bar.

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Ashley (my almost-12-year-old daughter) is participating in two of the challenges with me: the Back to the Classics Challenge and the Mount TBR Challenge. She doesn’t have a place to review the books she’s read, so she’s just doing the reading and keeping track of her progress in a notebook.

Here’s a look at what Ashley accomplished in November:

Number of books read: 6
YTD: 102

  • Greetings from Nowhere, Barbara O’Connor
  • Cirque du Freak #5: Trials of Death, Darren Shan
  • Dear Austin, Elvira Woodruff
  • The Celery Stalks at Midnight, James Howe
  • Banner in the Sky, James Ramsey Ullman
  • The Brain Finds a Leg, Martin Chatterton

Number of pages read: 1,166
YTD: 27,098

Reading Challenges progress:

  • Back to the Classics Challenge: 0/9  (YTD: 8/9)
  • Mount TBR Reading Challenge: 0/50  (YTD: 18/50)

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  • therelentlessreader

    I’m already tempted by upcoming 2013 challenges. I don’t want to be! I’m patiently waiting for Reading Whatever the F*ck We Want!

    • You know? I thought I would be, too, but I can honestly say I’m not tempted. I’m still doing the Classics Club and Michelle’s long-term nonfiction challenge, so that’s enough for me. SJ and I have also decided to work on reading through Stephen King’s oeuvre, so…yeah.

      • therelentlessreader

        The one that is getting to me is Adam’s TBR challenge. I can combine that with The Classic Club and then it just about won’t even COUNT as a challenge! Ha!

        • Yeah, Adam’s TBR challenge is cool and it would work out well with the Classics Club.

  • I am ALL for The Year of Reading Whatever the F*ck We Want. (I pretty much do that anyway.) I signed up for a few challenges and didn’t complete any of them because I just want to read whatever I want whenever I want. Even when I try to come up with a reading plan for the next month, I never follow it; one month there were four books I planned to read, and I didn’t end up reading any of them!

    I’d love to hear your thoughts on the Gillian Flynn books, and I can’t wait for your review of Both Flesh and Not!

    • I’m the same way about reading plans. Hahaha!

      I already have a Gillian Flynn post started–it should be posted soon.

  • Congratulations on finishing some of your challenges! I feel kinda bad because I joined up for the Back to Classics 2012, but I didn’t even get to read a single one of my planned books for it 🙁 Oh well…I’ll try again next year…?

    The only challenge I finished was the Chunkster Challenge, but I’m rather proud of that because I didn’t think I could actually read 6 chunksters in a year. Turns out it’s the only thing I did all year lol.

    I’m looking forward to joining new challenges in 2013 🙂

    • Thanks! I knew I’d get the Chunksters challenge done because I prefer reading chunksters. I really thought I’d get the TBR challenge done, but I should have known better. Hahaha!

  • Keep reading hard for YOU!

  • Oh challenges. I remember when I had spreadsheets galore for challenges but dang did I get burned out on that! I just loved making all of the reading lists. But this year I think I’ve read 35 books (including audio)…far cry from your 137!! 😉 I’ve heard great things about the new Kingsolver. Did you enjoy?

    • The new Kingsolver is wonderful. I loved it.

      I have a bunch of spreadsheets for different book lists. You’re right–making them is the fun part. Hahaha!

  • Sweet lovely Heather – I really enjoy reading your blog and your exquisite taste in books – so close to my own ;-P Because of this I’ve nominated you for a Booker Award. I don’t know if you like getting awards or not but I see them as a kind of reminder to remember to thank the bloggers who write the blogs we each love and cherish. So thank you! If you want to receive it, you can read about it here: http://christinarosendahl.wordpress.com/2012/12/08/the-booker-award/

    • You are truly wonderful, thank you. 🙂 I really enjoy reading your blog, too, and getting this comment made my whole weekend.

  • Soooooooo. . . .

    How fun that you’re on a cool, built-just-for-you computer!!!! Congrats on finishing a few challenges as well!!!!

    And good for Ashley to get in on the craziness of book challenges. Next thing you know, she’ll be guest blogging right alongside her mom!

  • I’m with you on challenges. I don’t think I’m going to join many, if any, of them last year. I pretty much failed all of them this year. Eric is awesome! It’s amazing that he built a computer. You and Ashley are doing great with your reading. Keep it up. 😉

  • Congrats on the completion of your challenges. And wishing you a nice time on your super computer. 🙂 For obvious reasons, I was not able to complete the BTTCC and the Africa Reading Challenge. The running up and down during the latter part of the year (pop’s sickness and death) just sort of stressed me out and I could barely function. I am hoping for a better reading plan next year. 🙂
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