a_reader_is_me | Entries tagged with intro

I had tried the reading challenge once, but miserably failed halfway. Now I've signed up for Fantasy and Science Fiction online course at Coursera, which requires a lot of reading; and in any case, I want to get back into the habit of reading something other than news and social network posts...

So I'm starting a new personal challenge, effective from the start of this month (Aug 1, 2013 - can't wait till next year!) till Aug 1, 2014. I want to read (at least) 52 books. Everything counts, including re-reads (I've read most of the stuff required for the sci-fi course, but it was ages ago and I want to refresh it), graphic novels, provided they're long enough (I've discovered the allure of graphic novels just recently, and it's a field worth exploring), and fanfiction (if it's long enough). And, of course, the media doesn't matter - most of my currently read books are e-books.

May the reading binge begin.

Current Mood: determined

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intro

Name:

jesuistitania
Goal: 50 books in 2011
Definition of "book": a play or novel. For poetry, essay and short stories, I don't know if I have a set definition, really... 200 pages seems like a good cut-off. Graphic novels don't count, but re-reads do.
Books read so far: 17

A little about my goal and my reading habits: I'm a teacher and a comic book geek, so for the last few years my reading time has been occupied with comic books and school reading lists. I felt I had to get back on track with my "for me" reading, so I figured a challenge couldn't hurt! I'd also been reading too much in English and neglecting Spanish (my first language) and French books, so keeping track helps me make my reading a little more balanced in the languages department. I'd been doing the challenge on my own, but when I joined Dreamwidth and saw this community existed, I couldn't resist!

I read pretty much anything I can get my hands on, but I have a soft spot for biographies and plays. I love me some plays. I can't think of a genre I flat-out dislike off the top of my head, I'm fairly easy to please when it comes to books.

Current Location: Spain

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intro

Name::

thady
Goal:: 30 books in 2011
Definition of "book": 180 pages or more; graphic novels count as a 1/2 book; re-reads count as 1/2 book; short-story collections are ok, if at least 3/4 of the collection is read and the page count is at least 180 pages
Books read so far: 0

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Name:

sasha_t
Goal: 20 books in 2011
Definition of "book": any hard/papercover 'book' over 250 pages, fiction or non-fiction, re-reads count
Books read so far: 0

A little about my goal and my reading habits: I love reading - it allows one to enter new worlds and broaden their own perceptions, but I just don't put aside enough time to do it. As part of a new goal to start writing creatively, I think this community presents the perfect challenge to further inspire and motivate me. 20 books is a small challenge compared to my fellow community members, but it is attainable. :)

I belong to a local book club, so 10 books will be chosen by others, the rest will be chosen by me. I look forward to being inspired by other members' reading experiences.

Current Mood: inspired

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Name:

wildcrow

Goal: 15 books read between Christmas Day 2010 and Christmas Day 2011

Definition of "book": novels or non-fiction works over 200 pages, no graphic novels, re-reads count, short story collections count if at least three-quarters of the stories are read

A little about my goal and my reading habits: I was a bookseller for 13 years (many years ago!) and used to read widely and voraciously, but fell out of the habit some years back when my life took a different direction. I think having a defined and attainable goal to aim for will motivate me into starting to read for pleasure again. I prefer historical fiction and non-fiction, fantasy, science fiction and travel literature but will tackle anything that piques my interest.

Current Mood: cheerful

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Challenge #1!

Name:

katealaurel
Goal: 20 articles read by January 31
Definition of ~~"book"~~ "article": Academic articles of average length (let's say 20 pages as a minimum) or academic book chapters.

A little about my goal and my reading habits: I recently finished applying to graduate school (ancient history), and in two years out of school, have fallen out of the habit of reading articles on a regular basis. While 20 articles in 40 days is, obviously, a much lower reading rate than I'll be doing if I get in, I'm hoping it'll be steady enough to help get me back into the habit for the new year.

Challenge #2!

Goal: 5 novels read by January 31
Definition of "book": No re-reads, no graphic novels.

A little about my goal and my reading habits: I need to spend more leisure time reading fiction and less leisure time reading blogs.

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Name:

catness
Goal: 50 books read between December 2010 - December 2011
Definition of "book": 100 pages or more according to ISBN (e-books are ok), graphic novels and re-reads do not count, unfinished books started before the challenge count because finishing is more important than starting.
A little about my goal and my reading habits: I never thought it would come to this, but it appears that I hardly ever read books anymore :( Movies and TV shows have occupied the niche reserved for storytelling-based art. This is doubleplusungood, because reading is essential for writing. And a little extra motivation never hurts!

Current Mood: optimistic

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Name:

snowynight
Goal: at least 5 books read before the end of the year.
Definition of "book": fanfic doesn't count because I read them anyway. graphic novels and mangas are OK, re-reads are not counted
Books read so far:
A little about my goal and my reading habits: I used to be an avid reader but due to busy life I've kind of fallen out of the habit. I want to pick it up again. My preference is for fiction and I much preferred short book/stand-alone to endless series. I try to read as many books written by or about people of colour as possible.

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Name: Alex (

chasethecloudsaway)
Goal: Sixty books between September 15th, 2010 and December 31st, 2010.
Definition of "book": No length restriction; short story collections count if 75% or more of the stories are read; rereads count, but at least ten need to be first reads.

A little about my goal and my reading habits: I'm trying to get back into books; I used to read at least five books a week until I got my own computer, and since then I've been terrible about reading. I do a lot of reading while eating, waiting, or watching television. I have a bunch of books I never got around to reading, which is why I'm putting in a requirement for a certain amount of first reads. I'm a fairly quick reader when I actually sit down and get into it; I can usually finish a book in under six hours, depending on length. So far as what I read, that's pretty much whatever catches my eye or somebody tells me to try; I read a fair bit of YA, and I've been getting more and more into fantasy for the past few years.

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intro

Name: Merry AKA

melancholic_beauty
Goal: Read 50 books from September 13th '10 to September 13th '11. ~~Unlucky number FTW!~~
Definition of "book": Rereads are okay, manga counts(even though I don't read it much), a book counts as over 100 pages.
Books read so far: None.

A little about my goal and my reading habits: I have problems focusing on books, so I thought I'd try this challenge again. ^_^ I'm hoping if I challenge myself that maybe I can get back into the reading habit and maybe get my concentration back! :D Plus, I'm getting a Moleskine book journal in the mail, and I don't want it to go to waste! XD

I hope I'll be posting here again! :)

-Merry

Current Mood: amused

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intro

Name: cafeshree
Goal:100 books between September '10 and September '11
Definition of "book": 200 pages or more, ebook or paper format, graphic novels ok

A little about my goal and reading habits: I read a lot, almost anything, though I'm not big on mainstream romance. I read heavily in fiction and I want to change this, so part of my 100 books is to make at least 25 of them non-fiction, and I want at least 50 of them to be books I own, I need to whittle down the huge piles of books I own.

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intro

I kept meaning to sign up for this community and then forgetting.
( All about me me me! )

Current Mood: busy

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intro

Name:

bobafeis
Goal: 50 books between July 1, 2010 and December 31, 2010
Definition of "book": no restrictions on length or reading levels, graphic novels and manga do not count unless there's a significant level of text as well, re-reads count for half a book

A little about my goal and my reading habits: I started this last year and I believe I met my goal, but with all that reading I forgot about little things like keeping count and posting to this community. I will read just about anything, but I concentrate most of my reading time on sf/f, ya, mg and literary novels.

I also read a lot of Advance Reader Copies, and will try to remember to mention when I'm talking about one. Anything I read in ARC form may or may not have any resemblance to the finished product.

And now, here are the four books I've read since the beginning of the month:

Title: Spindle's End
Author: Robin McKinley
Number of Pages: 384
Genre: Fantasy
Book Number/Goal:1/50
Review: here

Title: Un Lun Dun
Author: China Mieville
Number of Pages: 496
Genre: Middle Grade/Young Adult, Urban Fantasy
Book Number/Goal: 2/50
Review: here

Title: Savages (ARC)
Author: Don Winslow
Number of Pages: 390
Genre: Thriller, crime fiction
Book Number/Goal: 3/50
Review:here

Title: A Search for the King
Author: Gore Vidal
Number of Pages: 172
Genre: Historical Fiction
Book Number/Goal: 4/50
Review: here

Current Mood: tired

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Hi all. I subscribed to this community some months ago, and forgot to post. I'm trying to read a minimum of 50 books per year (graphic novels don't count, neither do rereads) and a minimum of 15,000 pages, and also engage in a big planned reading project of a list of classic novels in chronological order. So far this year I've read 22 books, 9713 pages, and 9 books on my list of classics (of which I'm aiming for 21 this year.) I'm also planning to read the Bible this year: the whole thing, in 90 days, towards the end of the year. So I'm hoping to get the rest of my planned reading done before then.

This is my planned list for this year: (ones I've read so far in italics)
Miguel De Cervantes, Don Quixote
John Bunyan, The Pilgrim's Progress
Daniel Defoe, Robinson Crusoe
Jonathan Swift, Gulliver's Travels
Samuel Richardson, Pamela
Laurence Sterne, The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy
Frances Burney, Evelina
Ann Radcliffe, Mysteries of Udolpho
Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice (reread)
Mary Shelley, Frankenstein
Charles Dickens, Great Expectations
Charlotte Bronte, Jane Eyre (reread)
Anne Bronte, The Tenant of Wildfell Hall
Nathaniel Hawthorne, The Scarlet Letter
Herman Melville, Moby-Dick
Elizabeth Gaskell, North and South
Gustave Flaubert, Madame Bovary
Harriet E Wilson, Our Nig
Fyodor Dostoyevsky, Crime and Punishment
Leo Tolstoy, War and Peace
Thomas Hardy, The Return of the Native
Henry James, The Portrait of a Lady
Mark Twain, Huckleberry Finn

Next year's list goes from The Red Badge of Courage to the present day. It's based on Susan Wise Bauer's novel list in The Well-Educated Mind, but with additions and substitutions - in particular, a lot more women and POC. I was going to read the whole list this year, but I realised I wasn't keeping up, and chopped it in half.

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intro,
reader: vass

Name:

shanaqui, reviews posted as

wilderthan
Goal: To read seventy-five books (minimum) over the summer.
Definition of "book": On the list below or an addition to it.
Books read so far: This goal starts from today.

A little about my goal and my reading habits: It's been a while since I had a goal on this comm. I'm trying to read at least 365 books in 2010, but I haven't been focusing too much on that during term-time. Now it's holidays, and even if I get a job I'll have more spare time. So I'm hoping to get a healthy chunk done. I've picked certain books so I can a) clear my shelves, b) return books to people I borrowed them from or c) finish up a series (or three). Or a mixture of the three. Generally I read one book on my ipod, one on my ereader, and one in hard copy, but most of these are for my ereader or hard copy. I expect I'll add to this list, it's just a preliminary.

The list is currently 100 books long, and I'm hoping to read at least 75 of the listed books.

( 71/75 )

Current Mood: sleepy
Current Music: Deb Talan - Comfort

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Name:

marny_h96
Goal: 40 books read from January 1, 2010 until December 31, 2010
Definition of book: No e-books, no audiobooks
Books read so far: 10

A little about my goal and my reading habits: After failing last year's goal of reading 75 books, this year I'm trying for 40. I've already read 10 books so far so I hope I'm going to make it to 40 by the end of the year. I read almost everything but my favorites are non-fiction (mostly history), historical fiction and murder mysteries/thrillers.

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Name:

hopeoubliette
Goal: 50 books before 16 Feb 2011
Definition of "book": Any novel published professionally as a novel, including young adult literature. Re-reads are okay.
Books read so far: 5
My List: Can be found here. This includes the reviews I've posted to the original challenge's community on livejournal.

A little about my goal and my reading habits: I found

50bookchallenge before I joined Dreamwidth, but as I'm shifting my focus to here, I'd like to focus my challenge here as well as there, and have a place to continue or make new challenges for myself once I'm done with my 50 books. As to my reading habits, I tend toward fantasy or psychological horror books, with a few crime fiction novels thrown in for good measure. I love Jeffery Deaver's work, and my list includes a few books that I anticipate having some difficulty with, but that I've been wanting to read for a while.

Current Mood: awake

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Name:

assassinscloak
Goal: to read 53 in 2010
Definition of "book": Conventional books.
Books read so far: 2/53
A little about my goal and my reading habits: I read a lot, but in recent years I've moved away from reading conventional books cosied up in my armchair, or relaxing in the bath to losing whole days hopping through tweets, blogs posts, articles and fan-fiction on-line. I'd like to rediscover my love of the printed page and maybe, also, my attention span.

Current Mood: mellow

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Name:

digitalghost a.k.a. Melange or Mike

Goal: To read 4 books a month, (the first month being counted as the rest of October plus November), which fit into 4 categories: 1 Nonfiction History book, 1 book of Classic Literature, 1 just-for-fun novel, and 1 book of Philosophy. I chose the History and Philosophy categories because I want to broaden my horizons, and I want to read all of these books that I have amassed because of the Great Books program I used to be in at school.

Definition of "book": Anything that comprises a single volume: for example, a single short story does not count, but a collection of short stories does. If the short story is published by itself in a volume, then it does count. A relatively longer essay, such as Nietzsche's Birth of Tragedy, which I am using for my first Philosophy, and is published in one volume, counts. Also, collections of poetry count, as do graphic novels. Comic books, however do not count.

A little about my goal and my reading habits: I designed my goal to help me broaden my horizons and read a lot of stuff that I would find fascinating, but not necessarily read all the time. I feel like I should read more non-fiction. Also, I need to work on reading the vast quantities of books that I have bought but have not got around to reading. My reading habits are pretty varied. I will read anything, basically. I go with Faulkner's opinion that the aspiring writer should read everything, both good and bad. (I even read Twilight, for Lord's sake.) I usually read classic literature, historical fiction, fantasy, certain types of sci-fi, and Frank Miller.

List for Month One:
History: Thucydides - The Pelopponesian War
Philosophy: Friedrich Nietzsche - The Birth of Tragedy
Literature: Theodore Dreiser - Sister Carrie
Novel: Chuck Palahniuk - Invisible Monsters

ETA: I am extending the deadline for the first month to the end of December. School caught up with me. :/:/:/

Current Mood: awake
Current Location: Tortuga

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intro

My week is up! I managed to read nine of the ten books, which is good going, I think. So now for a list of books I want to read before I get back to uni. I'll carry on with this one for as long as it takes, though. (Which is probably not that long, at the rate I read.)

Name:

shanaqui
Goal: Read twenty books (hopefully before going back to university on 28th September).
Definition of "book": From the list below.

List:
Nina Bawden, Carrie's War.
Frances Hodgson Burnett, Little Lord Fauntleroy.
Susan Coolidge, What Katy Did.
Charles Dickens, David Copperfield.
Karen Joy Fowler, The Jane Austen Book Club.
Nicholas Stuart Gray, The Seventh Swan.
Peter Hunt, An Introduction to Children's Literature.
Ursula Le Guin, Powers.
Ursula Le Guin, Cheek by Jowl.
Sergei Lukyanenko, The Night Watch.
Sergei Lukyanenko, The Day Watch.
Sergei Lukyanenko, The Twilight Watch.
Sergei Lukyanenko, The Last Watch.
Rosemary Sutcliff, The Capricorn Bracelet.
Rosemary Sutcliff, The Eagle of the Ninth.
J. R. R. Tolkien, The Hobbit.
J. R. R. Tolkien, The Fellowship of the Rings.
J. R. R. Tolkien, The Two Towers.
J. R. R. Tolkien, The Return of the King.
Jeanette Winterson, Sexing the Cherry.

(17/20)

Current Mood: calm

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