2014 Reading Challenges

Fortunately, I didn't enter any reading challenges in 2013. Given how hectic this year has been (finishing up our first full year of homeschooling and buying a house/moving), I doubt I would have finished them. Looking back through my Goodreads list, I still managed to read 17 books, not including all the books I read with the kids for homeschooling and such. Not too shabby!

1) Cutting Your Grocery Bill in Half by Steve & Annette Economides
2) America's Cheapest Family by Steve & Annette Economides
3) The MoneySmart Family System by Steve & Annette Economides (I met my budgeting resolution last year with the help of the Economides family!)
4) Breaking Dawn by Stephenie Meyer (finally finished that series... still haven't seen the movies)
5) The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry by Rachel Joyce
6) Bebe Day by Day: 100 Keys to French Parenting by Pamela Druckerman
7) French Twist: An American Mom's Experiment in Parisian Parenting by Catherine Crawford (another theme... not sure I agree with the French parenting style but I did glean a few things from these two)
8) The Secrets of Happy Families by Bruce Feiler
9) Major Pettigrew's Last Stand by Helen Simonson
10) I Could Pee on This: And Other Poems by Cats by Francesco Marciuliano
11) The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer
12) The Secret Keeper by Kate Morton
13) Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail by Cheryl Strayed
14) The Witch's Daughter by Paula Brackston
15) The Language of Flowers by Vanessa Diffenbaugh
16) The Shoemaker's Wife by Adriana Trigiani
17) The Tree Shepherd's Daughter by Gillian Summers
18) More Rainbow Fairy Magic books then you can shake a stick at... but that starts getting into books read with the kids.

For 2014, I am in two book clubs so that should keep me busy. I have The Bean Trees by Barbara Kingsolver and A Moveable Feast by Ernest Hemingway teed up to meet those obligations in January. I have decided to tackle two reading challenges this year. I enjoyed the What's in a Name challenge in 2012 so will join it again this year, now hosted by The Worm Hole. The 2014 categories are:

1. A reference to time (Eleven Minutes, Before Ever After)
2. A position of royalty (The People’s Queen, The Last Empress, The Curse Of The Pharaoh)
3. A number written in letters (The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms, A Tale Of Two Cities)
4. A forename or names (Rebecca, Eleanor & Park, The Unfinished Work Of Elizabeth D.)
5. A type or element of weather (Gone With The Wind, Red Earth Pouring Rain) 

I was tempted by The Cheap Reader's Reading Outside the Box Challenge but was a bit intimidated by 25 books since my book club books may or may not fit all the categories of the challenge. That could result in a challenge that just isn't feasible for someone with my limited reading time. I know! I know! I should find more time to read but I want to set achievable goals. So instead I selected the Color Coded Reading Challenge from My Reader's Block as my second challenge for 2014. The 2014 categories are:

1. A book with "Blue" or any shade of Blue (Turquoise, Aquamarine, Navy, etc) in the title. 
2. A book with "Red" or any shade of Red (Scarlet, Crimson, Burgundy, etc) in the title.
3. A book with "Yellow" or any shade of Yellow (Gold, Lemon, Maize, etc.) in the title.
4. A book with "Green" or any shade of Green (Emerald, Lime, Jade, etc) in the title.
5. A book with "Brown" or any shade of Brown (Tan, Chocolate, Beige, etc) in the title.
6. A book with "Black" or any shade of Black (Jet, Ebony, Charcoal, etc) in the title.
7. A book with "White" or any shade of White (Ivory, Eggshell, Cream, etc) in the title.
8. A book with any other color in the title (Purple, Orange, Silver, Pink, Magenta, etc.).
9. A book with a word that implies color (Rainbow, Polka-dot, Plaid, Paisley, Stripe, etc.).

Of course, neither of the books for my January book club meetings meet either of the challenges. (sigh) Not an auspicious start but I have faith that I can meet both of these challenges this year. Are you planning to sign up for any reading challenges this year? Which ones?