Another year, another Back to the Classics challenge. Last year I only read eight of the twelve categories, so I’d like to do a bit better in 2018. The rules are pretty simple – any book that fits the category and is at least fifty years old qualifies. At the end of the year, participants are entered into a draw for a Book Depository gift certificate. Complete six categories, and you get one entry in the drawing Complete nine categories, and you get two entries in the drawing Complete all twelve categories, and you get three entries in the drawing Here are the categories and my tentative choices: A 19th…

This year I read seven books for the Foodies Read linkup – a couple memoirs, a few pieces of food-related fiction, and Anthony Bourdain’s two graphic novels. A good mix, although I keep trying to incorporate cookbooks here somehow and failing to do so. Maybe this will be the year. I enjoy the nudge to read more food writing and the chance to see what everyone else is reading, so I’ll be joining in again this year. Last year I read these titles: Garlic and Sapphires: The Secret Life of a Critic in Disguise by Ruth Reichl The Dinner by Herman Koch The Amateur Gourmet by Adam D. Roberts Gourmet…

This year I read eight books for the Back to the Classics 2017 challenge. I was aiming for at least nine, but that mid-year reading slump hit me pretty hard. This challenge continues to be a favourite of mine, and not just because I won the prize last year! This is my fifth time participating, and I still really enjoy the little push to read more and the chance to see what others choose for the same category. Mainly I like checking things off on a list, though. These are the categories I hit this year: A 19th Century Classic: The Prisoner of Zenda by Anthony Hope A 20th Century…

I’ve decided to join The Classics Club for another round. That’s another fifty classic novels read in the next five years, with a completion date of April 12th, 2022 (starting a few days back to include my current read). This is just a tentative list. I like to read on a whim, so it will change dramatically by the time I’m finished, as the previous list did. I don’t understand how people follow TBR lists that span a month, let alone five years, so I’m not even going to try. But this is what I would currently like to read, having scanned my shelves and Audible wishlist. I would like…

Five years ago, I decided to join an online challenge called The Classics Club, the goal of which was to read fifty classic novels in a five-year period. For the purposes of this list, I defined a classic as any book written mid-century or earlier. I always enjoyed reading classics in school, but I went almost my entire twenties without reading anything older than a decade or two, outside of university assignments. I didn’t really expect to finish this, or even still be blogging by this time, but here we are. I actually read the fiftieth book about half a year ago, but I decided to carry on to the…

I’m also joining the Foodies Read challenge again this year. The goal is to read any book that is somehow related to food, be that a cookbook, a foodie memoir, or a murder mystery in which the killer slays his victims using only spotted dick. The challenge levels are as follows: Short-Order Cook: 1 to 3 books Pastry Chef: 4 to 8 books Sous-Chef: 9 to 13 books Chef de Cuisine: 14 to 18 Cordon-Bleu Chef: More than 19 I’ll be aiming for the Pastry Chef level again, although I would like to read more than the bare minimum this year. My initial choices, which may change, will be: How…