Reading Challenges: First Books, 100 (and more!), Alphabets, and IYOB

Challenge the First...

Hosted by Royal Reviews (though the challenge post is currently at Queen of Happy Endings), the "1st in a Series" Reading Challenge is...

As so many of us love reading our series this one gives you the chance to include them in your challenges. As with all our other challenges there are various levels from the Curious to the Obsessed. If you start out at the Curious level and find yourself on the Addicted level then just change you post accordingly.

Challenge Guidelines:

1. Anyone can join. You don't need a blog to participate.

2. There are four levels:
    i. Curious – Read 3 novels that are first in a series.
    ii. Fascinated – Read 6 novels that are first in a series.
    iii. Addicted – Read 12 novels that are first in a series.
    iv. Obsessed – Read 20 novels that are first in a series.

3. Any genre counts.

4. You can list your books in advance or just put them in a wrap up post. If you list them, feel free to change them as the mood takes you.

5. Challenge begins January 1st thru December, 2010.

6. When you sign up under Mr. Linky, put the direct link to the post about the 1st in a Series Challenge. Include the URL so that other participants can find join in and read your reviews and post.

My Thoughts:

I thought (at first) to choose the first level ("curious"), but I think now I'll aim for the second level: "Fascinated."  (I find I read a lot of series titles anyway, so that may change in the near future, but for the moment...)

My initial book list:

1. Twilight by Stephenie Meyers (Twilight saga)
        (I have so far refused to read this series - and laughed at the wrong places in the movie - but now I'm guilted into reading it when my mom bought me the second book for easter... sigh)
2. Second sight by Amanda Quick (Arcane Society)
3. The trouble with magic by Madelyn Alt (Bewitching Mystery)
4. A spy in the house by Y. S. Lee (The Agency)
5. On Basilisk Station by David Weber (Honor Harrington)
6. The lightning thief by Rick Riordan (Percy Jackson and the Olympians)

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Challenge the Second...

Hosted by Home Girl's Book Blog, the goal of the "100+ Reading Challenge" is fairly obvious... reading 100 or more books in 2010!

Challenge Guidelines:

1. The goal is to read 100 or more books. Anyone can join. You don't need a blog to participate.

2. Audio, re-reads, eBooks, YA, manga, graphic novels, library books, novellas, young readers, non-fiction... as long as the book has an ISBN or equivalent, or can be purchased as such, it counts. What doesn't count: individual short stories or individual books in the Bible.

3. No need to list your books in advance. You may select books as you go. Even if you list them now, you can change the list if needed.

4. Crossovers from other reading challenges count.

5. Challenge begins January 1st thru December, 2010. Books started before the 1st do not count.

6. When you sign up under Mr. Linky, put the direct link to your post where your books will be listed. Include the URL to this post so that other viewers can find this fun challenge. If you’d prefer to put your list in the sidebar of your blog, please leave your viewers the link to the sign up page. Again, so viewers can join the challenge too.

My Thoughts:

Though I haven't been reading a lot in the past year or two, I'm planning to start again this year... there are just so many good books! I hoping this challenge (and the others) are going to help me with that plan...

My initial book list:

* I haven't decided yet, but I'll definitely be aiming for the 100 and plus (with emphasis on the "and plus") benchmark...

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Challenge the Third...

Hosted by Becky at a dedicated blog, the "A to Z Reading Challenge" is a chance to read in a slightly different way... alphabetically!

Challenge Guidelines:

The challenge runs from January 1, 2010 to December 31, 2010, and there are three levels to choose from:

      Option 1: Authors -- Read alphabetically by author. Commit to 26 books.
      Option 2: Titles -- Read alphabetically by title. Commit to 26 books.
      Option 3: Authors & Titles -- Commit to reading 52 books

And about those pesky, difficult letters?
If you want to give the X's a go... For authors, try to find an X in the first name, middle name, or last name. For titles, it doesn't have to be the starting word. Try to find an X somewhere in a title, and it'd count in my book.

Still can't find a book for the letter you need? I'll take your word for it. I've been there. I know. If your library doesn't see the need to order books just because it starts with an X, then I don't blame you for not wanting to special order a book that you may or may not enjoy. You gave it your best, don't feel bad. You can still make this challenge work for you.

My Thoughts:

I decided to aim for option 3 (read alphabetically by author and title - 52 books!), mainly because I couldn't decide which to do! ;-)

My initial book lists:

By Author:
A - Allen, Sarah Addison: Garden spells
B - Bliss, Karina: What the librarian did
C -
D -
E -
F - Fantaskey, Beth: Jekel loves Hyde
G -
H -
I -
J -
K - Kostova, Elizabeth: The historian
L - Liu, Marjorie: Wild road
M - Meyers, Stephenie: Twilight
N -
O -
P -
Q - Quick, Amanda: Second sight
R - Riordan, Rick: The lightning thief
S -
T -
U -
V -
W -
X -
Y -
Z -

By Title:
A - Alcatraz versus the evil librarians by Brandon Sanderson
B -
C -
D - Dante in love by Harriet Rubin
E - Extremely loud and incredibly close by Jonathan Safran Foer
F - The factory voice by Jeanette Lynes
G -
H -
I -
J -
K -
L -
M -
N -
O - On Basilisk Station by David Weber
P -
Q -
R -
S - Steamed by Katie MacAlister
T - The trouble with magic by Madelyn Alt
U -
V -
W - White lies by Jayne Ann Krentz
X -
Y -
Z -

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Challenge the Fourth...

Hosted by Sylvia at the Classical Bookworm, the "Biodiversity Reading Challenge" was created to honour 2010 as the International Year of Biodiversity.

Sylvia says: As a biologist, I naturally couldn’t let this international year go by without putting together a reading challenge for it! By learning more about biodiversity we can better appreciate its value and do more to ensure its protection at home and around the world. To that end I’ve put together a selection of reading challenges for this year...

Challenge Levels:

1. Basic: 3 books on any biodiversity topic.

2. Biomes: 3 books about major world ecosystems: open ocean; coral reefs; lakes and rivers; arctic tundra; boreal forests; temperate forests; tropical forests; savannah; grassland/steppe/ deserts.

3. Branches: 3 books on different life forms: plants; fungi; invertebrates (including insects); reptiles and amphibians; birds; mammals.

4. Bye-bye: 2 books about endangered or extinct species or about extinction or conservation.

5. Backyard: Buy 2 or more field guides to your local flora & fauna and get to know your neighbours.

6. Biodiversity Bonanza: One of each of the above!

I’ve also devised some “field trips” to get you closer to your subject:

1. Level 1—Indoorsy: Visit a natural history museum or watch a documentary series on biodiversity (e.g. Planet Earth)

2. Level 2—Outdoorsy: Take a guided walk or hike in a local park. Check park system websites for schedules.

3. Level 3—Full Granola: Design your own field trip to go birding, botanizing, field-journaling, or whatever you like. Alternatively, join a local natural history club, or take a course in natural history online or at a college or community centre.

Sylvia has also helpfully provided some web resources and suggested books.

My Thoughts:

I thought at first just to head for the "Basic" level, but after thinking about all the wonderful books available, I've decided to upgrade to "Biodiversity Bonanza": read a book from each of the other levels!  For the "field trip", I'v decided to stick with level 1 ("Indoorsy")...

My initial reading list: ...is coming soon!

Field trip level:

I plan to re-watch "Blue Planet" (which I loved when I first saw it!) as well as the "Planet Earth" set.  I did happen to catch most of the "Life" episodes on Discovery channel, but wasn't as impressed as I was with "Blue Planet" (and a lot of the shots looked very familiar...)

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I've created a "Reading Challenges" page where I'm planning to keep track of my progress for all of my challenges, including these and others...