August wrap up

I'm a bit late with my August wrap up! I had every intention of doing it on the weekend but with one thing and another it is only just now happening.

Reading wise I got through 17 books in August which is pretty reasonable. That figure is flattered by the fact that on the last Friday night in August I finished 3 books in a row and then another the next day. I think I needed a romance fix!

The reading highlight of August was definitely The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins! I had seen it mentioned so many times by people that I trust but still was a bit ho-hum about picking it up. Then I picked it up at the library and now I wish I had of read it earlier. What a fantastic read! Now I can't wait to read Catching Fire!

City of Bones by Cassandra Clare 4.5/5
Web of Love by Mary Balogh 4/5
Night Train to Memphis by Elizabeth Peters 4/5
The Rabbits by John Marsden and Shaun Tan 4.5/5
Dead and Gone by Charlaine Harris 4.5/5
The Queen of Attolia by Megan Whalen Turner 4.5/5
The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins 5/5
Lords of the Bow by Conn Iggulden 4/5
The Sins of Lord Easterbrook by Madeline Hunter 3.5/5
Death at La Fenice by Donna Leon 4.5/5
Royal Harlot by Susan Holloway Scott 4/5
Untamed by P C Cast and Kristin Cast 4/5
City of Ashes by Cassandra Clare 4/5
Shields of Pride by Elizabeth Chadwick 3.5/5
Wed Him Before You Bed Him by Sabrina Jeffries 4.5/5
Vision in White by Nora Roberts 4/5
Grand Finale by Janet Evanovich 3.5/5

So how am I going with my reading challenges? There is some good news and some not so good news really.

One piece of good news is that I have now completed the 100+ Reading Challenge. My complete list can be found here. Last year I had read 100 books by early July so it is pretty clear that my reading totals are going to be way down this year.

I have made good progress on the Reliquaue challenge this month as well having read four out of the required six books to complete the Haunted Nights challenge. The books I have read so far are City of Bones and City of Ashes both by Cassandra Clare, Dead and Gone by Charlaine Harris and Untamed by P C Cast and Kristin Cast.

Once Readers In Peril IV (RIP) was announced, there was no doubt in my mind that I would be signing up! I signed up for Peril the First, which means that I intended to read four books, and so far I have read three books that fit the challenge criteria. The three books are City of Ashes by Cassandra Clare, Legacy by Lois McMaster Bujold and Mariana by Susanna Kearsley.

I also signed up for a new challenge - the LJ Smith Reading Challenge that is being hosted by My Friend Amy. I had requested the first book from the library before the challenge was announced so it seemed to be an omen that I needed to sign up!

I am also taking this opportunity to confirm that I have signed up for the Books Alive 2009 Reading Challenge which is being hosted by Book Thingo. Books Alive is an annual event which is sponsored by the Australian Government to try and encourage people to read. Each year they bring out a booklet of recommended reads, and there is usually at least one book that you can get for free if you purchase one of the recommended reads. This year there are two books, one is a kids book and the other a short story collection.

So if that is all the good news, then the not so good news has to be that I have made no progress at all on several challenges including the Art History Reading Challenge, War Through the Generations, the Period Drama Challenge or the Harry Potter Reading Challenge. I think that next month I will try to concentrate on a couple of these other challenges...maybe!

Oh, almost forgot! Don't forget to sign up for my awesome Catching Fire giveaway! Check out all the details here.

I am adding this final LOLCat picture, just because it made me laugh when I first saw it!

July 2009 Reading Update

Not a bad reading month this month. The number of books read was down a little, and I am not really sure why, but overall I have been reading less all year so that just continues the trend.

The books I did read this month were:

Hugh and Bess by Susan Higginbotham 4/5
Not Quite a Husband by Sherry Thomas 4.5/5
The Dream Hunter by Sherrilyn Kenyon 4/5
The Piano Teacher by Janice Y K Lee 4/5
Silent on the Moor by Deanna Raybourn 4.5/5
Jewels of the Sun by Nora Roberts 4.5/5
Finger Lickin' Fifteen by Janet Evanovich 4/5
The Dark Rose by Cynthia Harrod Eagles 4.5/5
Chosen by P C Cast and Kristin Cast 4/5
An Affair Before Christmas by Eloisa James 4/5
Lord of the Silent by Elizabeth Peters 4.5/5
The Wedding Officer by Anthony Capella 4.5/5

Of the challenges that I have not yet completed this year, I didn't make any progress on the Art History reading challenge, but I have borrowed a couple of books that will fit the theme, so hopefully in the next couple of months I will make some progress.

I read two books this month for the War Through the Generations challenge - The Piano Teacher by Janice Y K Lee and The Wedding Officer by Anthony Capella. I think I have one more book to read to complete this challenge.

At this point I have read 86 books that I started this year and so not long to go before I finish the 100+ reading challenge.

This month I joined in the Period Drama Challenge, which isn't about reading at all, but rather watching period dramas. Last night I watched the last quarter of North and South (again) so now I will probably watch the whole thing again and then that will be one down for that challenge as well.

I did mention last month that I was thinking about joining a couple more challenges, and now I am officially joining both the Harry Potter reading challenge. Whilst I have read the first four books in the Harry Potter series, I didn't ever get around to reading the last three. My brother is supposed to be giving me the audio version as read by Stephen Fry so I will most likely listen to that in order to complete this challenge.

The other challenge that I am signing up for is the Reliquiae Challenge because I really can't resist paranormal books! I am going for the highest level (Haunted Nights). My first three books are going to be Kissing Sin by Keri Arthur, Dead and Gone by Charlaine Harris and City of Bones by Cassandra Clare. I will work out the other three books in due course.

Finally, a big thank you to Gina from Book Dragon who has awarded me the Kreativ Blogger award. Thanks Gina!