Newtonville Books Reading Challenge – Final Tally @newtonvillebks

Newtonville Books published a 2015 Reading Challenge. The goal was “something fun to get you out of your comfort zone.” I read and I was up for a challenge.

The challenge definitely had me read books that I would not otherwise have picked up. I surprised myself to be reading Shakespeare and Maya Angelou. I even read, or at least started reading, a few books I was supposed to have read in college. Mrs. Doug stared quizzically at some of my reading choices.

The challenge also meant that my “To-Read” stack of books remained tall while I queued up books that fit into the challenge categories instead.

Of the 39 categories on the challenge, I finished 36.

I tried getting through Robinson Crusoe, the book I picked for being over 100 years old. It was so boring. I put it aside to grab something else on the list. I never got back to it. And I don’t think I will.

I had trouble finding authors with my initials. At least anything interesting by an author with my initials. I thought I had found something with Went the Day Well?: Witnessing Waterloo. I was wrong. I didn’t finish that book either.

I had a book ready for the “autographed book” category. I never got to it. But it’s still in my tower of to-read-books on my nightstand.

Here is the final list and my entries:

Category	Book	Read
A book that became a movie:	Argo: How the CIA & Hollywood Pulled Off the Most Audacious Rescue in History by Antonio Mendez An Oscar-Winning movie	March 27
A book with non-human characters:	Ancillary Justice by Ann Leckie. Set in an alien world where spaceships and soldiers are run by artificial intelligence. The protagonist is a ship’s AI.	January 2
A book with a one word title:	Wool By Hugh Howey One word title, six word description: Civilization trapped in an underground silo.	April 6
A book of short stories:	Tenth of December: Stories Saunders, George	August 30
A book from a small press:	Dark Tide: The Great Boston Molasses Flood of 1919 by Stephen Puleo Published by Beacon Press	September 21
A book based on a true story:	Dead Wake: The Last Crossing of the Lusitania by Erik Larson	November 18
A book more than 100 years old:	Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe	Didn’t Finish
A book based entirely on its cover:	Deep Down Dark: The Untold Stories of 33 Men Buried in a Chilean Mine, and the Miracle That Set Them Free by Héctor Tobar Saw this one on the table at Newtonville Books	March 31
A book you’ve pretended to read:	1984 George Orwell Sorry college literature class	December 11
A book you can finish in a day:	Dept. of Speculation by Jenny Offill I didn’t finish it in a day, but you can.	January 23
A book set somewhere you’ve always wanted to visit:	On the Beach by Nevi Shute The book is set in Australia.	March 31
A book in translation:	Galileo’s Telescope: A European Story by Massimo Bucciantini, Michele Camerota, Franco Giudice; translation by Catherine Bolton	May 18
A graphic novel:	The Walking Dead, Vol. 22: A New Beginning It’s a TV show, but it’s a graphic novel series first	March 24
A book you own but have never read:	The Spy Who Came in from the Cold John le Carré	December 26
A book by an author with your initials:	Went the Day Well?: Witnessing Waterloo by David Crane DC just like me	Didn’t Finish
A play:	Romeo and Juliet Shakespeare	November 15
A banned book:	The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time Mark Haddon Picked this one up from the Newton Library’s Banned Book Week display	October 5
A book you previously started but never finished:	Lost in Shangri-La: A True Story of Survival, Adventure, and the Most Incredible Rescue Mission of World War II By Mitchell Zuckoff	December 12
A Pulitzer Prize-winning book:	The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt 2014 winner of the Pulitzer Prize	April 23
A book by a Nobel Prize-winner:	Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway	November 2
A book that takes place in the area where you grew up:	Bay State “Blue” Laws and Bimba by William Wolkovich. Documentary study of the Anthony Bimba trial for blasphemy and sedition in Brockton, Massachusetts, 1926	October 22
A book by an author you’ve never heard of:	In the Kingdom of Ice: The Grand and Terrible Polar Voyage of the USS Jeannette by Hampton Sides	May 6
A book written by an author under 30:	The Beginner’s Guide to Bicycle Commuting by Mathias Rechtzigel	September 30
A book written by an author over 70:	Alone on the Ice: The Greatest Survival Story in the History of Exploration by David Roberts Born in 1943; Book published in 2013	October 18
A book of poetry:	The Poetry of Maya Angelo	October 28
A young adult book:	Wonder by R.J. Palacio A recommendation from my son.	March 21
A book set in the future or in a different world:	Lock In by John Scalzi Fifteen years from now, a new virus sweeps the globe.	February 24
A book your mom or dad loves/loved:	Boston Strong: A City’s Triumph Over Tragedy by David Wedge and Casey Sherman Written by my cousin so the whole family loves it	September 4
A Newtonville Books staff pick:	Ship Breaker by Paolo Bacigalupi One of Nicolle’s picks	September 2
A signed book:	Independence Day (Dewey Andreas, #5) by Ben Coes	Still to Read
A bestseller:	The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins ‘The Girl on the Train’ is a runaway hit in USA Today	January 20
A book with an animal on the cover:	Authority by Jeff VanderMeer See the bunny	February 18
A library book:	Disclaimer: A Novel Borrowed from the Newton Free Library	June 6
A book with a color in the title	Red Notice: A True Story of High Finance, Murder, and One Man’s Fight for Justice	June 1
A book you then discuss in a bookclub	I Am Pilgrim by Terry Hayes Discussed in a Goodreads group	January 29
A book that came out the year you were born:	The Third Policeman by Flann O’Brien Published in 19…..	April 13
A book with magic:	The Magicians by Lev Grossman A Harry Potter knock-off	March 3
A book by an author that lives in Boston:	Power Down by Ben Coes Wellesley is Greater Boston	June 14
A book set in a different country:	The Diver’s Clothes Lie Empty by Vendala Vida Morocco	August 31