Reading challenge - Back to the Classics Challenge

When I first started blogging over at http://justaddbooks.blogspot.co.nz/ it was because I had set myself a challenge of reading 12 classic novels in a year. I think I managed about seven, ultimately.

But the unintended consequence of that idea was that my teeny wings stretched slightly and I started books blogging semi-regularly.

As part of my quest to embiggen my world this year, I went poking for reading challenges, and found the one above, hosted over here at https://karensbooksandchocolate.blogspot.co.nz/ and my brain went "a ha!" here is a place to start!

So I read over the rules and categories, and I'm aiming for 12 reads. Here they are, with their attendant categories:

1.  A 19th century classic - any book published between 1800 and 1899.

The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexander Dumas.

2.  A 20th century classic - any book published between 1900 and 1967.

Howard’s End by E M Forster

3.  A classic by a woman author.

Middlemarch by George Eliot

4.  A classic in translation.

The Blind Owl by Sadegh Hedayat

5.  A classic published before 1800. Plays and epic poems are acceptable in this category.

Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes

6.  A romance classic.

The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton

7.  A Gothic or horror classic.

The Woman in White by Wilke Collins

8.  A classic with a number in the title.

Fahrenheit 451

9.  A classic about an animal or which includes the name of an animal in the title.

The Wolves of Willoughby Chase by Joan Aiken

10. A classic set in a place you'd like to visit. It can be real or imaginary:

Down and out in Paris and London by George Orwell

11. An award-winning classic.

The Wanderer by Fritz Leiber (Hugo winner, 1965)

12. A Russian classic. 2017 will be the 100th anniversary of the Russian Revolution, so read a classic by any Russian author.
Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoyevsky

That's ... a list of books! See how I go, anyway. :)

Sunday post 52; It's Monday, what are you reading? 37

The Sunday Post is a chance for a chat and catch-up with other bloggers. It's hosted by Kimba here:
http://caffeinatedbookreviewer.com/ and It's Monday! What are you reading? is now hosted by Kathryn over here: http://bookdate.blogspot.co.nz/

Let's see ... last week was more of the same, I think. Summer holidays grind on for spawn, and unfortunately the weather isn't playing along - we've mostly  had windy, wet days. I think we're all suffering a bit of cabin fever and hoping for better weather so we can at least get out of the house and enjoy some sunshine.

 My first reading finish of the year was Black Widow: Forever Red by Margaret Stohl, which I enjoyed a lot. Right now I'm making my way (slowly) through the Alexander Hamilton biography by Ron Chernow (and listening to the Hamilton soundtrack right now). I don't read a lot of non-fiction and find I have to shift my brain's gears to do it, but my brain has become lazy, so this mental workout will be good for it.

I also posted a short post asking how people expand their worlds - mine is feeling particularly small at the moment - so I'll pose the question here again - how do you make  your world bigger?

Tomorrow I start working on the spreadsheet I've been contracted to do, and I'm hoping I'll hear from the polytech pretty soon as well, so I can make some plans. If I know I'm going to be studying for sure, then I can suspend the ever soul-destroying job search for a bit. For now, however, I remain in limbo.

I rearranged my TBR bookcase yesterday, and though I know I won't get through all of these this year, having it so much tidier is nice. Here's a before and after shot, so you can all see it :)

(Just ... ignore the mess around it - lol.)

How about you? How do you make your world bigger? How's your week? What are you reading?

Review - Black Widow: Forever Red by Margaret Stohl

I love novels like this. Novels that have built-in characters that I recognise, that I can just check out, read, and enjoy.

I tend to go to Star Trek novels when I'm feeling that way, but Black Widow: Forever Red sits in that nice pretty nicely.

 Ava is rescued from Ivan the Strange at the age of eight. She meets a woman with vivid red hair, who promises Ava that she'll look out for her.

After a few years of enjoying SHIELD's somewhat dubious hospitality, Ava escapes. She's never seen the red-headed woman again, and as could be expected, her trust issues have trust issues.

However, fate, SHIELD and the red-headed woman (aka Natasha Romanoff) are not done with Ava yet. Ava and her friend Oksana attend a fencing tournament where Ava sees Alex, a boy she feels a strange connection with...

Next thing, Alex, Ava AND Natasha are on the run from everyone ever, and Ava and Natasha try to sort out their weird connection. Most of that part went over my head, honestly .... something, something Quantam Entanglement. It means that Ava can tap into Natasha's thoughts and abilities, and is a "gift" from Ivan the Strange.

There's cameos from Coulson and Tony Stark, and references to the Avengers. See? Familiarity breeds content. :D

Black Widow: Forever Red is an easy, exciting read that can be gobbled up very quickly.

It's a small world ...

Well, at the moment MY world feels rather small. It's something I've been thinking about lately - I spend a lot of time at home -  more so now that it's the summer holidays, and my world feels like it's shrinking exponentially (if that's the word I want).

With the new year upon us, and with the possibility of studying again after more than 20 years looming on the horizon, I need to figure out how to expand my world again, beyond my home, and beyond spawn.

I'm not sure what I'm going to do yet, but I wanted to get the idea down on paper, so to speak, to give me a jumping-off point.

How do you expand your world?

Sunday Post 51; It's Monday, What are you reading? 36

Whoops, I took a bit of an unintended blogging break there. Nothing outstanding happened - I was working on the spreadsheet, and then Christmas, and I caught a cold. Plus, of course, spawn is home for the school holidays.

Anyway. Back to regular blogging, I hope. I'm aiming for around three posts a week - I find that the more I write, the more I write, if that makes sense.

The Sunday Post is a chance for a chat and a catch-up with other bloggers, and is hosted by Kimba over at http://caffeinatedbookreviewer.com/ Meanwhile, It's Monday! What are you reading? is hosted by Kathryn right here: http://bookdate.blogspot.co.nz/

We had a quiet Christmas. I was sick, so I stayed home while J and spawn went to family for Christmas dinner. I actually had a nice day. Spawn got up at 5, so I sent him back to bed for another hour, then, of course, he insisted on bringing his Santa sack in and showing me everything. We did presents, then the boys headed off. I had steak for my lunch and played Dragon Age for a bit, enjoying the peace and quiet. The boys had a great time as well, so it was a good day all around.

I'm still applying for jobs but somewhere along the way I've lost the spirit of optimism I had. This time last year, I wasn't working either, but I had money in the bank, and the difference that actually makes - is huge. Right now, I'm sitting here wondering how we're going to pay for our groceries next week. I want to remember this, because at the end of 2017, I don't want this hanging over my head like a storm cloud.

I  have applied for a course at the local polytech - SIT. It has a fee-free scheme, and I'm hoping I'll be eligible for student loans and an allowance. I'm going for a Certificate in Business, as a possible precursor to doing a Bachelor of Commerce, majoring in marketing. It's not something I ever saw myself doing, but a lot of the communication jobs I've seen have a marketing component. I have nearly 20 years' communications experience, and if I can't find a job anyway ... I need to do something.

With my luck and timing, I was contacted by a local restaurant I had applied at. I'd forgotten that I'd applied - put it out of my mind, I think. I have no food service industry experience but the owner wanted to meet. Smack in the middle of the week I was coughing my lungs out. Ugh. So I chatted to him on the phone, and he said to call him when I'm feeling better. The cough is lingering, but it's nearly gone, so I might give him a call either this week or next week.

I do have another month of spreadsheet work this month, but I won't get paid for that until mid-February, when I deliver the work. Which is fine, it'll be good to be doing something, but ugh. Money. It's absolutely true that when you have money, you don't think about it. When you don't ... you don't think about anything else.

I made my Goodreads goal last year of 80 books - passing it by about four books - https://www.goodreads.com/user_challenges/3671291 This year I'm going to aim for 85 books and work to diversify my reading - more women, more writers of colour.

I didn't get the Dark Tower series finished in 2016, so that's on the agenda for this year. Also finishing my long-term cross-stitch project, Circe. (I say that like Circe is my only long-term project. I have many languishers.) But as you can see, it's  a realistic goal.

Right now I'm flirting with the Alexander Hamilton biography by Ron Chernow. It's a doorstopper.

Get a job, or get on the course. Get out of the bloody system and off benefits.

Drink more water. Eat more fruit. Be kind.

How about you? What are you reading? What are your 2017 plans?

Sunday Post 50; It's Monday What are you reading? 35

The Sunday Post is a chance for a chat and a catch-up, and is hosted by Kimba over here: http://caffeinatedbookreviewer.com/ and It's Monday! What are you reading? is now hosted by Kathryn right here: http://bookdate.blogspot.co.nz/

Let's see ... last week was mostly spent mired in spreadsheets as I'm still working through this two-week contract. The work is due on Wednesday this week, and I have a lot of double-checking to do before then.  The good thing about it is that I can just do it from home. And in looking for something suitable on Netflix to watch while I work, I stumbled over Gilmore Girls, which I had never watched.

Now I'm on to ... season three? I think? It's good fodder for while I'm working because I don't need to concentrate too hard.

What else. I've finished a few books, and I've written a couple of reviews. Coming up - hopefully this week - will be She Sings of Old, Unhappy Far-off Things (the book itself was much better than the terrible title suggests), Going South by Colin Hogg, and the first book in the Valerian series of graphic novels - City of Shifting Waters.

I've also watched some terrible, terrible Netflix movies, but I'm not sure whether I'll review them or not. Maybe do a short reviews post - lol.

The local library has launched its summer reading programme, and spawn's class travelled there on Thursday to get started, so I went along as parent help. There's challenges for kids, teens and adults, and for the kids, there's an activity challenge as well as a reading one. I've never finished one but you never know. :)

I went out for lunch on Saturday with some former workmates which was a lot of fun - always good to catch up with people.

I haven't been doing much else, I don't think. Spreadsheeting. Watching Netflix and reading -lol.

What about you?

How's your week?

Review - The Girl From the Savoy

It's 1923, and Dolly Lane is about to start work at the Savoy in London as a maid. Dolly is carrying memories and baggage from the fallout of the Great War, but she's determined  to live out her dream of performing on the stage.

Actress Loretta May has the world at her feet - she's rich, famous, beautiful - and dying.

Dolly and Loretta's paths would normally never cross, but Dolly bumps into Loretta's brother Perry, and it changes all of their lives.

The Girl From the Savoy evokes the era perfectly - the early 1920s - post-war with endless possibilities in the future.

Both Dolly and Loretta come to life off the page, and the supporting characters like Perry and Dolly's friend Clover - are also memorable.

Reading The Girl From the Savoy made me want to put on a nice dress and go for afternoon tea in a fancy hotel - complete with tiny cakes. True escapism at its best.