Wednesday, January 1, 2014

Reading in 2014

The TBR Triple-Dog Dare has begun, so for the next three months I'll be reading only from my own TBR shelves, with the exception of a few library books already checked out or reserved.  This year I did not load up my library list, because I really want to tackle the TBR stacks.  I bought a lot of books last year, and my TBR total has reached a new high.  Many of these books are from the authors I was introduced to last year, including Monica Dickens and Margaret Kennedy; and others that I found again after many years, like Mary Stewart, Alexandre Dumas, and Barbara Pym.

At this point, I have to admit that my TBR-reduction project, which originally began in 2008, has been a spectacular failure.  This blog was meant to help in that project, but instead it has led me to other blogs featuring alluring books and new-to-me authors.  The net effect has been like a chocoholic let loose in a Ghiradelli factory.  Hopefully in these months I can make something of a dent, and also restrain myself from adding too many new books.

Other than the TBR Challenge, I don't sign up for challenges, really, though I enjoyed the RIP Challenge last fall.  My reading is generally pretty eclectic, and I want to follow my own whims or interests in choosing books.  I am hopeless with reading schedules, as my two RL books groups can testify.  I cannot read to a deadline.  I just don't want to turn the comfort and joy I find in reading into another source of stress (I have enough of that already).

All that said, I have been intrigued by the "A Century of Books" challenge, which Claire and Simon among others have completed and which is now starting a second round.  Intrigued by the idea of reading a book from every year from the 20th century, though not enough to join in.  But then Jane came up with a twist for her second round - reading mid-century as it were, from 1850-1949.  And that really piqued my interest, encompassing my favorite Victorians down to the mid-20th century.  It is a sad commentary on my TBR shelves that at this point, I already have 67 of those 100 years covered, some with 2-3 books.  The 1850s are the biggest gap, to my surprise.  The Dumas books I have waiting are too early, and the Trollope mostly too late (though coming in strong in the 1870s & 1880s).

So I think I am signing on for this one, but more with the intention of reading what I want to for the most part, and fitting those books into the century.  That means it will most likely take me more than the two years Jane has set as her goal.  The most important thing to me is that this should be fun. I won't read books just to fill up a year - I don't have enough time to read as it is.  But I am looking forward to discovering new authors, particularly for those 1850s.  I have a feeling I may finally have to read some e-books for the earlier years.  Also, I am going to borrow Jane's idea of periodic updates, since she found them helpful and encouraging.  But unlike Jane, I am going to read more than one book by some authors (Trollope comes to mind first), though I will try to avoid filling 1920-1949 just with Georgette Heyer, Dorothy L. Sayers, Angela Thirkell, Josephine Tey and Margery Allingham.  (I do have unread books by Heyer and Sayers that fall in those years, however.)

This is new territory for me, and a little outside my comfort zone - so a challenge in more than one sense. 

15 comments:

  1. Reading from the TBR shelves is always a good idea, though I got some books for Xmas that I am going to read asap. Good luck with the challenge.

    I like the concept of reading the century, but this challenge is totally impractical for me. It would be fun to come up with a reading list, though. I might do that!

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  2. Oh boy. I am still working on Century of Books so good luck with half century. It will be fun to follow. All the best,

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  3. I would love to only read from my TBR shelves and would if I didn't need to keep up with contemporary lit for work. I'm not going to read quite as much modern stuff this year as I did last, though, as I have decided to join the A Century of Books project. I can't do it in a year so I will take as much time as I need. I look forward to seeing what you and Jane read for her new challenge!

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  4. Jane, I always start this challenge with a fresh determination to deal with the TBR stacks, and buy fewer books in the future - this year I hope I can do a little better. Enjoy your Christmas books! I only got one - no one gives me books any more.

    Pam, I didn't realize you were doing a Century of Books as well! It really is an appealing reading project.

    Anbolyn, we are both doing A Century of Books - just different centuries :) I'll look forward to your list as well. Are you going to plan your reading, or just see what appeals?

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  5. The TBR dare and the ACOB challenge can dovetail quite nicely--as you have already discovered with 67 of them. One problem you may encounter is the double whammy of challenge-itis. You know, its the feeling when books that you would otherwise be happy to read suddenly seem like chores just because you have set up a requirement to read them.

    Before I did ACOB the first time around (I won't be doing it this time), I would have thought that the 1850-1949 would have been a great approach. I read so much older stuff it seemed to me that the first half of the 20th century would have been really easy to knock out. But I found it rather challenging to find stuff for some of those years. Although I love stuff from the 1890s, I found the 1900s and 1910s difficult to fill and very oddly, I found there was a literary style to a lot of books from the 1930s that really made me unhappy. And much to my surprise I liked the 1950s and 1960s more than I thought I would.

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  6. Your TBR sounds as good as many libraries, but good luck resisting the calls of other books, which I know can be very insistent.

    I've just checked my challenge notebook, but I can't offer any authors beyond the obvious yet. If push comes to shove I'll relax my one book per author rule, though I found with my first century that a little digging will uncover interesting books for most years.

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  7. During my first years of blogging my TBD also increased substantially, but lately I've noticed the numbers have become more stable. Maybe it's guilt, maybe it's lack of space. I've also noticed I'm become tougher on myself and what I buy, as well as give books away during my yearly Spring Cleaning.

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  8. So glad you've found a possible way to do the century in the best way for you, Lisa!

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  9. Thomas, I know that "itis" feeling all too well. With the TBR dare, it usually hits in February - just wanting to read something "new." With the 20th century books, I wasn't excited about the 1960s and 1970s, though as with the 1930s I could probably fill them with mysteries. I believe I saw the word "hives" describing your reaction to the second round :)

    Jane, the 1850s are going to be interesting. I will be looking to your posts for ideas. I'm also already noting some vague publication dates - Pendennis is listed as 1848-1850, I think because it was it was serialized?

    Alex, I had to move around this time last year, and as always that helped me clarify very quickly which books could go. But I still buy too many - being able to find books so easily through the internet is my downfall.

    Simon, I really appreciate the flexibility of this challenge. I'd like to say I could do it in a year, but with the hefty Victorian stories I love so well, I don't think that's possible.

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  10. Ah, someone has finally expressed the two-edged sword of blogging in scientific terms: the chocoholic effect! I'm so impressed you can fill 67 years from your own books. I suspect the effort of sorting through my books would probably end abruptly with my being found crushed under them! ;-) Happy New Year, Lisa - may all your bookish resolves bring you great reading pleasure.

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  11. vicki, I did have a couple of mini-avalanches, rooting for books at the back of the double-stacked shelves. At this point I need to give in & buy a couple of larger bookcases (the literary equivalent of buying the next dress size).

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  12. I have already resolved to catch up on my TBR shelves - starting with John Julius Norwich's "Venice". But I couldn't read only what I have - I'm too addicted to the library. The fun of searching out new books.

    Perhaps I can find a balance.

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  13. Elizabeth, how nice to see you over here! I couldn't give up the library either (the three months of this challenge are tough). I also love discovering new books - but first the lists like Marzipan and now the blogs I follow have introduced me to new authors faster than I can read them. At the same time the internet has made it easier to acquire the books - and Houston also has great bookstores. The net result is book greed - acquiring more than I can reasonably read, which induces TBR guilt. I'd like to whittle down the TBR stacks, and then find that balance.

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  14. Ooh, yay for another ACOB reader! Can't wait to see what you've got in that stash of books already on your to be read shelves. :)

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  15. Alex, I was also looking at what I've got stockpiled & unread on my Nook, which added a few titles to the list. The 1880s are still looking a bit sparse though. I will be shamelessly "borrowing" from other people's lists!

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Thank you for taking the time to read, and to comment. I always enjoy hearing different points of view about the books I am reading, even if we disagree!