Now, I'm pretty certain that at the start of the year I said I wasn't really going to set myself any challenges (I didn't set one on Goodreads for example). But after a month, I caved and posted this list of books I wanted to read to complete a reading challenge for the year.
I then promptly forgot all about it until just now. Oops.
So although it's way past the halfway point of the year (hello August, how did you get here???), I thought I'd just do a quick update on how I've done so far... Better late than never, eh? And who knows? Maybe I'll surprise myself.
1. A book with more than 500 pages: CHECK!
A Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin2. A classic romance
3. A book that became a movie: CHECK
I read The Color Purple, To Kill a Mockingbird, Dracula, and The Beach, all of which became movies! There are probably even more that I can't think of right now.
4. A book published this year
5. A book with a number in the title: CHECK
I literally just finished Ready Player One by Ernest Cline about 5 minutes ago, so that's another challenge complete! Yay! Hopefully I'll get a review up soon :)
6. A book written by someone under 30
7. A book with non-human characters: CHECK
I finished The City and the Stars by Arthur C. Clarke a couple of days ago and that has some characters that aren't human... So I'm gonna go with that!
8. A funny book: CHECK
Read (and loved) The Martian earlier in the year. Not exactly the same type of humour as the book in my original post, but still really funny!
9. A book by a female author: CHECK
Loads of them!
10. A mystery or thriller: CHECK
I forgot to mention in my July wrap-up (woops) that I read Taken at the Flood by Agatha Christie, partly listening to it on audiobook in the car on the way to Norfolk, and partly via my own physical copy (which I flew through - I couldn't take the suspense!).
11. A book with a one word title: CHECK
Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman.
12. A book with short stories
13. A book set in a different country: CHECK
I put Burial Rites by Hannah Kent as my original answer for this, but I could also have gone with Chronicle of a Death Foretold by Gabriel Garcia Marquez.
14. A non-fiction book
15. A popular author's first book: CHECK
The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan, which I LOVED and really need to get on and review!
16. A book from an author you love that you haven't read yet
17. A book a friend recommended: CHECK
The Beach by Alex Garland.
18. A Pulitzer Prize winning novel: CHECK
Well, I haven't managed to read Gilead yet, but I did read The Color Purple and To Kill a Mockingbird, which I think have both won the Pulitzer Prize.
19. A book based on a true story
20. A book at the bottom of your TBR list
21. A book your mom loves: CHECK
I didn't get round to reading the one I put on the list originally, but I did read Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day by Winifred Watson, which my mum adores!
22. A book that scares you
23. A book more than 100 years old: CHECK
Dracula by Bram Stoker. I also read some of the Penguin Little Black Classics that fall into this category.
24. A book based entirely on its cover
25. A book you were supposed to read in school and didn't
26. A memoir
27. A book with antonyms in the title
28. A book you can finish in a day: CHECK
I read The Machine Stops by E.M. Forster, which is super short, in one sitting (I think), and it completely blew my mind.
29. A book set somewhere you've always wanted to go
Does Mars count? ;)
30. A book published the year you were born
31. A book with bad reviews
32. A trilogy
33. A book from your childhood
34. A book with a love triangle
35. A book set in the future: CHECK
Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel.
36. A book set in high school
37. A book with a colour in the title: CHECK
The Color Purple by Alice Walker.
38. A book that made you cry
39. A book with magic
40. A graphic novel: CHECK
Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi, which I recently cited as one of my favourite reads of this year.
41. A book by an author you've never read before: CHECK
Loads.
42. A book you own but have never read: CHECK
Again, loads. I did read a lot of books I only bought this year, but I also read plenty that had been sitting on my shelf awhile.
43. A book that takes place in your hometown
44. A book that was originally written in another language: CHECK
The Guest Cat by Takashi Hiraide.
45. A book set during Christmas
46. A book by an author with your initials
47. A play
48. A banned book
49. A book based on or turned into a TV show
I'm part of the way through A Clash of Kings so I'll probably count that here when I'm done with it.
50. A book you started but never finished
I'm coming for you Villette!
So there you go! If my counting is correct, I've completed:
21/50 challenges
Yay me! I'm definitely pleased with that :) I just hope I actually end up reading over 50 books this year (stupid exams).
Are you guys doing any challenges? How's your reading going so far this year?
