"Outside a dog a book is man's best friend, inside a dog it is too dark to read!" -Groucho Marx========="The person, be it gentleman or lady, who has not pleasure in a good novel, must be intolerably stupid." -Jane Austen========="I don’t believe in the kind of magic in my books. But I do believe something very magical can happen when you read a good book."-JK Rowling========"I spend a lot of time reading." -Bill Gates=========“Ahhh. Bed, book, kitten, sandwich. All one needed in life, really.” -Jacqueline Kelly=========

Saturday, December 3, 2016

2016 Reading Challenges Complete


It may be only December 3rd but I have completed all my 2016 reading challenges. Woot. Woot. No last minute cramming in a few more pages to complete a challenge on the last day of the month this year.

So how did I do and what did I read?

A. Read all the YMA Winners (YA selections only). Complete!
1. Michael L. Printz Award (Best YA literature of the year) 
  • Bone Gap by Laura Ruby
2. Schneider Family Book Award (Teen living with a disability)
  • The Unlikely Hero of Room 13-B by Teresa Toten
3. Alex Awards -10 best adult books that appeal to teen audiences (Pick one of ten)     
  •  Girl at War by Sara Novic; 
    4. Margaret A. Edwards Award (Read one book by the winning author)
    • Name of author David Levithan
    • Title: Will Grayson, Will Grayson; Dash and Lilly's Book of Dares;Lover's Dictionary
    5. Stonewall Children's and Young Adult Literature (LGBT) 
    • Porcupine the Truth by Bill Konigsberg 
    6. William C. Morris Award (First YA novel by author)
    • Simon vs the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli
    7. YALSA Award for Excellence in Nonfiction for Young Adults 
    • Most Dangerous: Daniel Ellsberg and the Secret History of the Vietnam War by Steve Sheinkin
      8. Coretta Scott King Author Award (African American Author) (The winner is a children's book, so select one of the Honor Books)
      •  X: a Novel by Iliyasah Shabazz and Kekla Magoon
      9. Pura Belpre (Latino Author) 
      • Enchanted Air by Margarite Engle
      B. Read all the Printz Award and Honor books from 2016 (Complete!)
      Award winner:
      • Bone Gap by Laura Ruby---read June 13, 2015
      Honor books:
      • The Ghosts of Heaven by Marcus Sedgwick----read May 11, 2015
      • Out of Darkness by Ashley Hope Perez---read January 28, 2016
      C. Read Pulitzer Prize books---4 completed
      • The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton
      • The Yearling by Marjorie Rawles
      • The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot Diaz
      • The Sympathizer by Viet Nguyen
      D. Read Classics by Women Authors---8 completed
      1. The Yearling by Marjorie Rawling (1938)/Jan. 13, 2016
      2. The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton (1920)/April 16, 2016
      3. And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie (1939)/June 19, 2016
      4. West With the Night by Beryl Markham (1942)/June 24, 2016
      5. A Good Man Is Hard to Find and Other Stories by Flannery O'Connor (1955)/July 7, 2016
      6. The Splendid Outcome by Beryl Markham (1987)/ July 24, 2016
      7. Out of Africa by Isak Dinesen (1937)/ October 23, 2016
      8. Little Women by Louisa May Alcott (1868)/ November 27, 2016

      E. Goodreads Challenge: Goal: read 105 books for the year. I've read 111 so far! I also intended to make a dent on my Goodread To-Read list. I think I started the year with over 60 book titles on that list and now it is 58 books. I read quite a few books from the list but kept adding more to it. 

      Thoughts:
      This year I focused on reading challenges that advanced my interests and ongoing challenges and I'm feeling really good about what I accomplished. Eight classics and four Pulitzers feels especially good. Since I am always looking for Printz Award winners many of the books on the first and second challenge I had already read in 2015 before turning the calendar page to 2016. It feels a little like cheating but it will be an ongoing situation. When the 2017 Youth Media Awards are announced, I will have already read many of the books. The one challenge I love and I missed this year, Austen in August, was postponed until September and, as you know, I was too slammed that month to participate in a reading challenge.

      Looking forward to 2017:
      Since this year felt just about right to me in terms of reading challenges, I will stick with a similar plan for 2017. I want to continue to read off my Classics and Pulitzer lists. I will read all the YMA winners and the Printz award and honor books, and hopefully this year 'Austen in August' will be in August so I can join in. 



      5 comments:

      1. I haven't done a book/blogging challenge for years, but really enjoyed them when I did. I am taking your entire YA challenge list and putting them on my TBR! The only one I've read from the list is Simon versus the Homo Sapiens Agenda and I thought it was terrific.

        So, maybe I'll do that challenge in 2017. Did you make up that challenge or is it one that you participated in from someone else?

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        Replies
        1. I made up the Read all the YMA Winners Challenge. Usually it is a fairly easy challenge for me because I usually read so many potential winners on my hunt for the Printz each year. Join me next year!

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        2. You inspired me so I went out and got 6 of the 2016 winners. This weekend I read The Unlikely Hero of Room 13B (loved it!) and David Levithan's The Lover's Dictionary (really liked it)

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      2. Congrats on making it through your challenges! :)

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      3. Well done! Looks like you've had a great year - I think picking the challenges carefully is the secret. I'm impressed by the classics... :)

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      I look forward to your comments and interactions! Join in the conversation.