For those not familiar with the challenge: There are 12 categories (which are meant to be filled with 12 different books). In order to qualify as a classic, the book has to have been published (or written) 50+ years ago, so 1970 or older. There are several other minor rules (like having to read all the books in 2020), which you can read at the link above. If you are interested in joining the challenge, the deadline is in March. I'd love for others to join me in doing this!
Every year I do the challenge, I add a second challenge on top of it. This year, I came up with a monthly category in addition to the 12 categories for the Back to the Classics challenge. The challenge is not to read 24 books but to read 12 books and that each book would fit 2 categories - one from the Classics and one from the Months. Oh - and, just like the past 2 years, I want to read at least 1 play!
But...that's 12 books and the blog title says 20 books?! You are absolutely right, how observant of you! The other 8 books will be from my TBR 'shelf.' The books are not on a physical shelf but are ones I've been wanting to read for a while. I haven't read them yet because they are not over 50 years old - so they couldn't be read as part of the classic challenge. That being said, the books from the TBR shelf are not going to be part of the classic challenge and there is no stipulation as to when they were published.
NOTE: As I read the books, I will link my reviews to the titles listed below.
Back to the Classics
January - Winter (Cold / Dark)
-Classic by a Women Author
Left Hand of Darkness (1969)
by Ursula K. Le Guin (American, 1929-2018)
February - Black History Month
-Classic by a Person of Color
The Garies and Their Friends (1857)
by Frank J Webb (African-American, 1828-1894)
March - Women’s History Month
-19th Century Classic (Published in the 1800s)
Tenant of Wildfell Hall (1848)
by Anne Bronte (English, 1820-1849)
April - Easter / Religion
-Classic with a Person’s Name in the Title
Doctor Faustus (1592)
by Christopher Marlowe (English, 1564-1593)
May - Spring (New Beginnings / Children)
-Classic in Translation
Mio, My Son (1956)
by Astrid Lindgren (Swedish, 1907-2002)
June - LGBT Pride Month
-Genre Classic (Science-Fiction)
Babel-17 (1966)
by Samuel R. Delany (African-American, 1942- )
July - American / Patriotic
-Classic with Nature in the Title
The Catcher in the Rye (1951)
by J. D. Salinger (American, 1919-2010)
August - Summer (Travel / Sun)
-Classic Adaptation
Treasure Island (1883)
by Robert Louis Stevenson (Scottish, 1850-1894)
September - Fall (School / Teachers)
-Classic with a Place in the Title
Villette (1853)
by Charlotte Bronte (English, 1816-1855)
October - Halloween / Horror
-Abandoned Classic
Dracula (1897)
by Bram Stoker (Irish, 1847-1912)
November - Thanksgiving / Family
-Classic About a Family
The Whole Family (1908)
A collaboration of 12 authors edited by:
Elizabeth Jordan (American, 1865-1947)
December - Christmas / Santa
-20th Century Classic (Published 1900-1970)
Letters From Father Christmas (1920-1943)
by JRR Tolkien (English, 1892-1973)
(Note: The Tower Treasure (The Hardy Boys #1), linked below in the TBR section, will count as my 20th-century classic if the Christmas Letter book is disqualified due to being considered a picture book.)
EDIT: I switched the Classic categories between Doctor Faustus and Huck Finn from what I originally chose. I did this because it seemed to be cheating to use a play as an 'adaptation.' Also, there are many movies of Huck Finn that I'd be interested in watching. Since they both have a person's name in the title, the switch worked no problem.
EDIT 7/19/2020: I started Huck Finn and decided I just wasn't enjoying it. Since I'm just reading for fun, it didn't make sense to read a book that wasn't fun - so I stopped. I switched classic categories between Huck Finn and Treasure Island... because I LOVE the movie Treasure Planet and I'm excited to do an adaptation review on them. The new book I chose to replace Huck Finn for the month category of July/American/Patriotic and the classic category of "nature in the title" is The Catcher in the Rye.
TBR Shelf
Margaret Atwood (Canadian, 1939- )
The Handmaid's Tale (1985)
I have wanted to read The Handmaid's Tale for a while now. I really like dystopian novels and there are some aspects of this novel that are intriguing to me. There are also some parts that seem to challenge my views and I'm a little scared of the book. I'm finally going to put my foot down and read it this year.
Tamora Pierce (American, 1954- ) - Circle Universe - Circle of Magic Quartet
Sandry's Book - The Magic in the Weaving (1997) – Circle of Magic #1
Tris's Book - The Power in the Storm (1998) – Circle of Magic #2
Daja's Book - The Fire in the Forging (1998) – Circle of Magic #3
Briar's Book - The Healing in the Vine (1999) – Circle of Magic #4
Tamora Pierce was one of my favorite authors growing up and, for a long time, I've wanted to read all the books in both the Circle Universe (11 books and counting) and the Tortall Universe (20 books and counting). My hope is that I will accomplish that over the next several years.
Mercedes Lackey (American, 1950- ) - Valdemar Universe
Exile's Honor (2002) - Prequel 1
Exile's Valor (2003) - Prequel 2
Take a Thief (2001) - stand-alone
I have only read the Arrows of the Queen trilogy by Mercedes Lackey, but those books I've reread more times than any other. Similar to Pierce, I've always wanted to read other books by Lackey. I hope to read all books in the Valdemar Universe (36 books and counting - not including the 13+ anthologies) in the next several years. Eventually, I might read some of the multitudes of books she's written outside of the Valdemar Universe, but, for now, that's where I'm focusing this long-term goal. (Note: I have a chronological list of Valdemar Universe books that I am following, which is different from publication order.)
Those are my 20 books I plan to read in 2020! There may be some changes along the way, but that's OK. If I end up finishing all 20 before the year is over, then I will start reading books on my literal TBR shelf (because I do actually have one). I look forward to experiencing this year (partly) through books! I hope you are able to read some too - whether fiction or non-fiction - classic or contemporary - book or ebook or audiobook. Happy New Year and happy reading!
Literal TBR Shelf
Complete Guide to Money (2011)
by Dave Ramsey (American, 1960- )
The Four Purposes of Life (2011)
by Dan Millman (American, 1946- )
The Supergirls (2009)
by Mike Madrid (American, 1950s(?)- )
The Tower Treasure (1927)
by Franklin W. Dixon (Canadian, 1902-1977)
Perfectly Yourself (2006)
by Matthew Kelly (Australian, 1973- )
Abandoned Books
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1884)
by Mark Twain (American, 1835-1910)
EDIT: I switched the Classic categories between Doctor Faustus and Huck Finn from what I originally chose. I did this because it seemed to be cheating to use a play as an 'adaptation.' Also, there are many movies of Huck Finn that I'd be interested in watching. Since they both have a person's name in the title, the switch worked no problem.
EDIT 7/19/2020: I started Huck Finn and decided I just wasn't enjoying it. Since I'm just reading for fun, it didn't make sense to read a book that wasn't fun - so I stopped. I switched classic categories between Huck Finn and Treasure Island... because I LOVE the movie Treasure Planet and I'm excited to do an adaptation review on them. The new book I chose to replace Huck Finn for the month category of July/American/Patriotic and the classic category of "nature in the title" is The Catcher in the Rye.
Margaret Atwood (Canadian, 1939- )
The Handmaid's Tale (1985)
I have wanted to read The Handmaid's Tale for a while now. I really like dystopian novels and there are some aspects of this novel that are intriguing to me. There are also some parts that seem to challenge my views and I'm a little scared of the book. I'm finally going to put my foot down and read it this year.
Tamora Pierce (American, 1954- ) - Circle Universe - Circle of Magic Quartet
Sandry's Book - The Magic in the Weaving (1997) – Circle of Magic #1
Tris's Book - The Power in the Storm (1998) – Circle of Magic #2
Daja's Book - The Fire in the Forging (1998) – Circle of Magic #3
Briar's Book - The Healing in the Vine (1999) – Circle of Magic #4
Tamora Pierce was one of my favorite authors growing up and, for a long time, I've wanted to read all the books in both the Circle Universe (11 books and counting) and the Tortall Universe (20 books and counting). My hope is that I will accomplish that over the next several years.
Exile's Honor (2002) - Prequel 1
Exile's Valor (2003) - Prequel 2
Take a Thief (2001) - stand-alone
I have only read the Arrows of the Queen trilogy by Mercedes Lackey, but those books I've reread more times than any other. Similar to Pierce, I've always wanted to read other books by Lackey. I hope to read all books in the Valdemar Universe (36 books and counting - not including the 13+ anthologies) in the next several years. Eventually, I might read some of the multitudes of books she's written outside of the Valdemar Universe, but, for now, that's where I'm focusing this long-term goal. (Note: I have a chronological list of Valdemar Universe books that I am following, which is different from publication order.)
Those are my 20 books I plan to read in 2020! There may be some changes along the way, but that's OK. If I end up finishing all 20 before the year is over, then I will start reading books on my literal TBR shelf (because I do actually have one). I look forward to experiencing this year (partly) through books! I hope you are able to read some too - whether fiction or non-fiction - classic or contemporary - book or ebook or audiobook. Happy New Year and happy reading!
Literal TBR Shelf
Complete Guide to Money (2011)
by Dave Ramsey (American, 1960- )
The Four Purposes of Life (2011)
by Dan Millman (American, 1946- )
The Supergirls (2009)
by Mike Madrid (American, 1950s(?)- )
The Tower Treasure (1927)
by Franklin W. Dixon (Canadian, 1902-1977)
Perfectly Yourself (2006)
by Matthew Kelly (Australian, 1973- )
A Singular Life (1895)
by Elizabeth Stuart Phelps Ward (American, 1844-1911)
by Jennifer K. Stuller (American, 1975- )
Redwall (1986)
by Brian Jacques (English, 1939-2011)
The Spirit of Christmas (written before 1936)
by GK Chesterton (English, 1874-1936)
A Dog Called Hope (2016)
by Jason Morgan (American, ?- ) and Damien Lewis (British, 1966- )
Abandoned Books
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1884)
by Mark Twain (American, 1835-1910)
You are so clever! I love how you paired the Back to the Classics Challenge with your monthly challenges.
ReplyDeleteBTW, I particularly liked The Handmaid's Tale. Personally, I had strong disagreements w/ the author, though probably not for the same issues you may be anticipating; yet, I found it provocative and captivating all the same. I'd reread it again and again. (Then again, I am a sucker for dystopian.)
Thanks! I actually came up with the monthly categories ahead of time and on Jan 2 put books to them. Before I published the post, I decided to look one last time to see if the categories for Back to the Classics had been posted - and they had! So I had to figure out how to match up the categories together. I ended up switching 2 books out from my original list because I didn't have a book in translation or one that I had abandoned (of which, there are only 4 that I can think of).
DeleteI look forward to reading The Handmaid's Tale - I'm still a little nervous, though... but that makes it even more exciting!
Great choices!! Best of luck with your reading! I love Tenant & Villette. :)
ReplyDeleteThanks! Last year, I read Jane Eyre (loved), Agnes Grey (meh), and Wuthering Heights (hated). I was going to read Shirley and Tenant this year, but Villette just fit the categories better. I hope to read Shirley and The Professor next year!
DeleteGreat choices. I love Dracula. And I really liked The Tenant of Wildfell Hall, too. Happy reading! :D
ReplyDeleteYeah, I though I'd really like Dracula too. I was super excited to read an epistolary novel as well! I tried to read a few years ago, but just hit a slump and got bored. I put it down and never picked it up again... until this year! I look forward to giving it another try.
DeleteI read Marlowe's version of Faustian legend in 2019...fascinating. Excellent choices all. We've got Tenant in common this year. Enjoy!
ReplyDeleteMy husband grew up in Germany and told me about Doctor Faustus. I'm excited to read Marlowe's version this year! I'm working my way through the Bronte sister books and hope to finish them next year.
DeleteGreat list! I love your seasonal categories.
ReplyDeleteThe Left Hand of Darkness is a perfect read for winter I think.
I read the Handmaid’s Tale in the late 1980s and immediately became a fan of Atwood. I just re-read it to prep for reading The Testaments since I don’t watch the T.V. show. It still holds up, in my opinion. And it is a real page turner.
I'm reading Left Hand now! When I was looking for books to fit the categories, they said the planet was cold and icy - so I thought it would be a good fit for winter (though I initially was going to read for my LGBT category). I didn't realize the planet's name is literally Winter! I plan on reading Handmaid's Tale after Left Hand!
DeleteA fun list. Good luck! I hadn't thought about Left Hand of Darkness now being fifty years old--I should have put it on my list.
ReplyDeleteEnjoy!
I'm greatly enjoying it so far!
DeleteI really like the way you've paired the classics challenge with your monthly challenge! Tenant of Wildfell Hall was a favorite the year I read it and I plan to read Villette at some point this year, too. Good luck with the challenge.
ReplyDeleteThanks! I'm slowly working my way through the Bronte sisters. I read 3 last year, plan to read 2 this year, and then another 2 next year and I should have read them all!
DeleteGreat category merging! I'm reading Twain's "Innocents Abroad" for the 19th Century Classic category. Good luck with your 2020 reading.
ReplyDeleteThank you! Good luck to you as well!
Delete