Sunday, January 13, 2019

The 2019 TBR Challenge


Like many avid readers, I often find myself waiting eagerly for new pubs or library books to come in, despite piles of books waiting to be read at home that I already own. But the only time I tried to deal with this was during my last year of law school when I knew I would be moving back to Boston, so I tried to read only books already in my possession with the objective of reducing the quantity I’d have to pack.  It worked to some extent because once I have read a book I usually decide whether to keep it or donate it (sadly, I still had to donate hundreds in 2006 that I hadn't had time to read).   However, lately I realized I am missing out on some great books I already own as well as purchasing more books than I have space for (this only stops me when I am traveling with already heavy luggage).  Yesterday, when tidying up for a visiting puppy, I was newly aware of my (otherwise delightful) piles.  

When I read about Roof Beam Reader’s 2019 TBR Pile Challenge, where the goal is to read at least 12 books that have been on my “to be read” list for at least a year (thus published before 2018), I decided to join in:
2019 TBR Pile Challenge

1.     Avalon by Anya Seton (1965) - reviewed 10/27/19
2.     Niccolo Rising by Dorothy Dunnett (1986)
3.     The Crystal Snowstorm by Meriol Trevor (1997) - reviewed 8/26/19
4.     Set in Stone by Robert Goddard (1999) - reviewed 8/13/19
5.     Those Who Save Us by Jenna Blum (2004) - reviewed 9/11/19
6.     Patriot Hearts by Barbara Hambry (2010) - reviewed 2/23/19
7.     The American Heiress by Daisy Goodwin (2010) - reviewed 12/12/19
8.     Sisters of Fortune by Jehane Wake (2010)
9.     Life After Life by Kate Atkinson (2013) - reviewed 8/3/19
10.  Through the Evil Days by Julia Spencer-Fleming (2013) - reviewed 12/19/19
11.  A Fall of Marigolds by Susan Meissner (2014) - reviewed 7/27/19
12.  The Travelers by Chris Pavone (2016) - reviewed 7/11/19

Alternates

13.  If You Go Away by Adele Parks (2015)
14.  The Gates of Bannerdale by Geoffrey Trease (1956)
Some of my TBR came from this windowsill pile.  Sometimes
it overbalances and comes crashing down.
For my Boston friends interested in finding a good home for their "read" books, I recommend donating to More Than Words, a youth development program that trains at risk young people to work in their two bookstores.


Girl Reading borrowed from this site: https://tinyurl.com/ycxv52lq

4 comments:

GSGreatEscaper said...

I donated thousands of books to More Than Words when we moved. Still miss some of them....Will be interested to see how you do on this challenge!

Judith said...

I feel akin to you because of your TBR List.
I've been intending to read Avalon for a very long time, because I so enjoy Anya Seton, but I don't own it, so it's not a TBR.
I do own Those Who Save Us and really thought so highly of it, but when I was close to the halfway mark, 3 books I'd been waiting for at the library came through all at once. You have reminded me that I very much want to go back to it, because it was so extraordinary. I will put it on my 2019 TBR list.

And lastly, as much as I appreciate Kate Atkinson as a writer, I had so much difficulty personally with Life after Life, that I retired it at 100 pages. But so many people loved it! I feel it's my deficiency, not Atkinson's. So enjoy!

Best wishes with your Challenge--

TracyK said...

The only book I have read on your list is Life After Life and I loved it. I still haven't read A God in Ruins, about the same family. You have some authors on your list that I need to read... Spencer-Fleming and Pavone for example.

Prototype_SR04 said...

I'll be interested to hear how you feel about Avalon. I want to read Dragonwyck by her, but the plot of Avalon sounds super cool!