2016 Reading Challenge: A Book You've Already Read At Least Once

A Book You've Already Read At Least Once

Choosing for this category was surprisingly hard, because I have read so many good books in the past, and re-read them already.  I ended up inadvertently choosing The Giver because I saw some students at my local library reading it for class and it made me want to re-read it.

Title:  The Giver
Author:  Lois Lowry
Rating:  4/5

Summary:

In a world with no poverty, no crime, no sickness and no unemployment, and where every family is happy, 12-year-old Jonas is chosen to be the community's Receiver of Memories. Under the tutelage of the Elders and an old man known as the Giver, he discovers the disturbing truth about his utopian world and struggles against the weight of its hypocrisy.

2016 Reading Challenge: A Book Published This Year

A Book Published This Year

I thought it would take me a few more months to find a book published this year that I liked enough to review and include in this challenge, but that's not the case.  Read my review of the book here.

Title: The Girl Who Fell
Author: S. M. Parker
Rating: 5/5
Published:  March 1, 2016

Summary:

His obsession. Her fall.

Zephyr Doyle is focused. Focused on leading her team to the field hockey state championship and attending her dream school, Boston College.

But love has a way of changing things.

Enter the new boy in school: the hockey team’s starting goaltender, Alec. He’s cute, charming, and most important, Alec doesn’t judge Zephyr. He understands her fears and insecurities—he even shares them. Soon, their relationship becomes something bigger than Zephyr, something she can’t control, something she doesn’t want to control.

Zephyr swears it must be love. Because love is powerful, and overwhelming, and…

Terrifying?

But love shouldn’t make you abandon your dreams, or push your friends away. And love shouldn’t make you feel guilty—or worse, ashamed.

So when Zephyr finally begins to see Alec for who he really is, she knows it’s time to take back control of her life.

If she waits any longer, it may be too late.

2016 Reading Challenge: A Book That Was Banned at Some Point

A Book That Was Banned at Some Point

This book of the challenge was just easy.  What book hasn't been banned or at least challenged at one point or another?  However, I had higher hopes for this book than what it delivered.

Forever by Judy Blume

Summary:

There's a first for everything.

When you build up something in your mind -- really imagine it, wish for it -- sometimes, when it actually happens, it doesn't live up to your expectations.

True love is nothing like that.

Especially not for Katherine and Michael, who can't get enough of each other. Their relationship is unique: sincere, intense, and fun all at the same time. Although they haven't been together all that long, they know it's serious. A whole world opens up as young passion and sexuality bloom.

But it's senior year of high school, and there are big changes ahead. Michael and Katherine are destined for another big "first": a decision. Is this the love of a lifetime, or the very beginning of a lifetime of love?

Review:

Eh, I really expected more from Judy Blume, and I've read plenty of her books in the past.  It wasn't bad per-say, but it wasn't exactly engaging either.

As for banned, Texas in it's usual controlling way hated children to learn about sex and love.  Here is a very nice post about where any why it was banned and challenged: Censorship & Judy Blume.

2016 Reading Challenge: A Book You've Been Meaning to Read

A Book You've Been Meaning to Read

There are probably over 200 books I've been meaning to read, just in the last few years.  For this specific challenge I chose I one I've been meaning to read only for a short time:

The Martian by Andy Weir

Summary:

Six days ago, astronaut Mark Watney became one of the first people to walk on Mars. Now, he's sure he'll be the first person to die there. After a dust storm nearly kills him and forces his crew to evacuate while thinking him dead, Mark finds himself stranded and completely alone with no way to even signal Earth that he’s alive — and even if he could get word out, his supplies would be gone long before a rescue could arrive. Chances are, though, he won't have time to starve to death. The damaged machinery, unforgiving environment or plain-old "human error" are much more likely to kill him first. But Mark isn't ready to give up yet. Drawing on his ingenuity, his engineering skills — and a relentless, dogged refusal to quit — he steadfastly confronts one seemingly insurmountable obstacle after the next. Will his resourcefulness be enough to overcome the impossible odds against him?

Mini-Review:

I loved this book since the moment I picked it up and finished it record time (or what passes as record time for me these days).  You can see my full review of this book here.

2016 Reading Challenge: A Book You Can Finish In A Day

A Book You Can Finish In A Day

Technically I didn't finish this book the same day I started, but that's only because I started it at about 10 pm, and finished it shortly after midnight the next day.  However, I'm counting that as a "day" because it was less than 24 hours by far.

I rather liked the book, and it is a Newbery Award winner:

The One and Only Ivan

by Katherine Applegate

Summary:

Ivan is an easygoing gorilla. Living at the Exit 8 Big Top Mall and Video Arcade, he has grown accustomed to humans watching him through the glass walls of his domain. He rarely misses his life in the jungle. In fact, he hardly ever thinks about it at all.

Instead, Ivan thinks about TV shows he’s seen and about his friends Stella, an elderly elephant, and Bob, a stray dog. But mostly Ivan thinks about art and how to capture the taste of a mango or the sound of leaves with color and a well-placed line.

Then he meets Ruby, a baby elephant taken from her family, and she makes Ivan see their home—and his own art—through new eyes. When Ruby arrives, change comes with her, and it’s up to Ivan to make it a change for the better.

Katherine Applegate blends humor and poignancy to create Ivan’s unforgettable first-person narration in a story of friendship, art, and hope.

2016 Reading Challenges

Hello all!  I haven't posted in forever!  So to start off the new year here is a post on the reading challenges I have accepted for this year.  I may accept more depending on what I find.

First, my Goodreads challenge this year is 85 books!  I've already read three:

          

In addition to this challenge (which I do every year), I accepted a challenge my local library put out:

I have not yet begun that challenge, but I'm looking forward to it and I've already chosen several books for some of the categories.

What reading challenges are you doing this year?

I'll start putting up reviews again soon.