2013 TBR Pile Challenge Wrap-Up

One of my favorite challenges has quickly become Roofbeam Reader’s annual TBR Pile Challenge. The whole point is to finally read books that have been sitting on your “To Be Read” shelf for a long time. I am so bad at letting the books I want to read stack up and then neglecting them.

For the second year in a row I’ve completed the challenge. Even if I don’t end up loving every book on my list it’s always such a satisfying feeling to finally get to them.

Here my list of books that I finished this year. There was only one from my list that I bumped and use an alternate for and that’s Dickens. I’m hoping to get to that next year. I am already working on my list for 2014!

1) Vanity Fair by William Makepeace Thackeray (finished March 2013)

2) An Abundance of Katherines by John Green (finished January 2013)

3) Birdsong by Sebastian C. Faulks (finished April 2013)

4) One of our Thursdays is Missing by Jasper Fforde (finished May 2013)

5) Heart and Soul by Maeve Binchy (finished September 2013)

6) Summerland by Michael Chabon (finished May 2013)

7) About a Boy by Nick Hornby (finished July 2013)

8) Dombey and Son by Charles Dickens

9) 1776 by David McCullough (finished March 2013)

10) The Magician's Assistant by Ann Patchett (finished January 2013)

11) Galapagos by Kurt Vonnegut (finished September 2013)

12) The Selected Works of T.S. Spivet by Reif Larsen (finished October 2013)

ALTERNATES:

1) Among Schoolchildren by Tracy Kidder (finished October 2013)

2) Nobody's Fool by Richard Russo

Photo by moi and from Adam's blog. 

The Selected Works of T. S. Spivet

The Selected Works of T. S. Spivet

by Reif Larsen

★★★☆

T.S. Spivet is a 12-year-old genius with a gift for cartography. He lives in Montana and spends his time on a ranch creating maps of everything around him; facial expressions, diagrams of insects, water drainage, etc. A misunderstandings leads to an open invitation to visit the Smithsonian Institute in Washington D.C. and he decides to embark on a cross-country journey by himself.

The book is almost impossible to categorize. It’s technically a graphic novel and the margins are filled with maps and notes. But it also includes much more text than many GNs and feels more like a novel. It’s a coming-of-age story and feels a bit like a young adult novel, but there is definitely some serious subject matter. I’m not a reader that needs everything I read to have a label, but when you’re trying to describe a book you realize that labels can be helpful.

T.S. has a hard time connecting with his rancher father and his scientist mother. They both love him, but don’t show affection in traditional ways. There is a side plot involving one of Spivet’s ancestors that I really loved. T.S. is reading about a fellow scientist in his family while traveling to D.C. and learning from the choices she made.

If graphic novels are already not your favorite thing I’m not sure this would be a good fit. The side notes and drawings can feel tedious at times. They were an interesting element, but were also a bit distracting sometimes.

Something happens about ¾ of the way through the book which changed things drastically for me. I felt like I lost some of my connection to the story and I began to doubt what was happening. I think I would have enjoyed it more if I just ignored the unbelievable elements and just went with it out.

BOTTOM LINE: A completely unique book, which is rare. Interesting characters and storytelling technique and in the end I was really glad I read it.

“A map does not just chart, it unlocks and formulates meaning; it forms bridges between here and there, between disparate ideas that we did not know were previously connected.”

“Shelving is an intimate thing, like the fingerprint of a room.”

“How many snapshots in the world were actually just-after shots, the moment that elicited the shooter to press the button never captured; instead, the detritus just following, the laughter, the reaction, the ripples.”

p.s. I had no idea they made a movie of the book! It looks fantastic. You can check out the trailer here.  

Galapagos

Galapagos

by Kurt Vonnegut

★★★★

Vonnegut tends to be one of those authors that you just get or you don’t. I love his sarcastic style, but I know it doesn’t work for everyone. I also think I have a particular soft spot for him because he is a fellow Hoosier.

In this novel we meet Mary, a widow who is taking a cruise to the Galapagos islands. Little does she know that their cruise ship will soon become a second Noah’s ark when the world ends and the only people left are those on the ship. The story is told a million years in the future by the son of Kilgore Trout. The few remaining humans must attempt to restart the human race on the Galapagos islands.

One of the themes in Vonnegut’s work is the absurdity of man; our willingness to destroy both ourselves and each other. This is a central point in Galapagos as well. He can’t help but add a few lines about his own big brain’s crazy idea to go fight in Vietnam, which echoes his own experience fighting in WWII.  

BOTTOM LINE: An overlooked classic and one of Vonnegut’s better books. If you’ve already checked out his big ones (Breakfast of Champions, Slaughterhouse-Five and Cat’s Cradle) then pick this one up. It’s an incredibly quick read and sure to make you laugh if you love Vonnegut’s sense of humor.

“I say the same thing about the death of James Wait: "Oh, well - he wasn't going to write Beethoven's Ninth Symphony anyway." This wry comment on how little most of us were likely to accomplish in life, no matter how long we lived, isn't my own invention.”

p.s. A few of Vonnegut’s best lines.

This was my Classics Club Spin book for September and a book on my 2013 TBR list.

2013 TBR Pile Challenge

Adam aka the Roof Beam Reader is once again hosting the TBR Pile Challenge. I participated in and completed this challenge for the first time this year and loved it! The whole point is to read books that are already languishing on your own shelves. Since I'm incredibly motivated by lists, this challenge is perfect for me.

The Goal:
To finally read 12 books from your “to be read” pile (within 12 months).

Specifics: 

Each of these 12 books must have been on your bookshelf or “To Be Read” list for AT LEAST one full year. This means the book cannot have a publication date of 1/1/2012 or later. Caveat: Two (2) alternates are allowed, just in case one or two of the books end up in the “can’t get through” pile.

I've carefully created my list for 2013 and here's what I came up with...

1) Vanity Fair by William Makepeace Thackeray (finished March 2013)
2) An Abundance of Katherines by John Green (finished January 2013)
3) Birdsong by Sebastian C. Faulks (finished April 2013)
4) One of our Thursdays is Missing by Jasper Fforde (finished May 2013)
5) Heart and Soul by Maeve Binchy (finished September 2013)
6) Summerland by Michael Chabon (finished May 2013)
7) About a Boy by Nick Hornby (finished July 2013)
8) Dombey and Son by Charles Dickens
9) 1776 by David McCullough (finished March 2013)
10) The Magician's Assistant by Ann Patchett (finished January 2013)
11) Galapagos by Kurt Vonnegut (finished September 2013)
12) The Selected Works of T.S. Spivet by Reif Larsen (finished October 2013)

ALTERNATES:
1) Among Schoolchildren by Tracy Kidder (finished October 2013)
2) Nobody's Fool by Richard Russo

Photo by moi and from Adam's blog.