2015 Personal Reading Challenge (and 2014 Review)

Moving back to America over the summer, we were reunited with the books that were in storage for three years. Twelve boxes' worth of books. We thought about whether we were ever going to re-read (or in some cases read for the first time) the massive collection that had waited for us. A lot of books were academic books. My wife has a computer science degree, I have one in philosophy. Hers are from ten years ago so they are a bit dated. Mine are a lot of esoteric topics that would have been useful if I had stayed in academia but are shelf fillers otherwise. So we decided to sort through and make three groups: (1) ones we want to keep, (2) ones we want to get rid of, and (3) ones we want to read (or re-read) to see if we want to keep them. The "read and keep or donate" shelf looks like this:

"Read before donating" shelf

Oh, and this shelf...

More books on the chopping block

And this shelf...

We ran out of book ends!

If I had a full time job reading books I might possibly read them all in one year, but at my current rate, that's clearly impossible. Here's my ambitions for this year:

Books of fiction:

• Two from Michael O'Brien's end time series--I'm not sure which ones but I will list them.
• Anansi Boys by Neil Gaiman.
• Snow Crash by Neal Stephenson.
• In this House of Brede by Rumer Godden (which I started in 2014 over Christmas, so this will be the first to finish I'm sure--there's a discussion on A Good Story is Hard to Find podcast).
• Everything That Rises Must Converge by Flannery O'Connor (which will be discussed by A Good Story is Hard to Find in early January).
• The Mistborn Trilogy by Brandon Sanderson.
•  City Beyond Time by John C. Wright--a Christmas present!
• Hell House by Richard Matheson--a birthday present!

Books on theology/religion:

• Jesus of Nazareth: Infancy Narratives by Benedict XVI--a Christmas present (how appropriate!).
• Fleeing Herod: A Journey Through Coptic Egypt with the Holy Family by James Cowan--also a Christmas present.
• Messiah: Origin by Matt Dorff--a graphic novel by the guy who wrote that awesome graphic novel of the Book of Revelation (and also a Christmas present).
• Triumph: The Power and The Glory of the Catholic Church by H. W. Crocker III. I think I got this for Christmas a couple of years ago.

Books on philosophy and science:

• The Meaning of Relativity by Albert Einstein--I'm dreading this a bit because it'll be tough and it may wind up a "read and donate" book.
• Unpopular Essays by Bertrand Russell--also close to the "read and donate" piile.
• If Aristotle's Kid Had an Ipod by Connor Gallagher--intriguing idea for sure.
• Two books by Mortimer Adler--Like O'Brien above, I've had these books for a while and been meaning to get them. Not sure which ones I will choose, probably the shortest ones!
• Two books by Josef Pieper--ditto above.

Books on writing:
Professional Blogging for Dummies--Leftover from last year, I keep meaning to up my game in blogging. Maybe without all the European wandering I can get caught up!

So, there's no zombie books on my horizon but I'm sure that will change.

My other reading challenge is the Eighth Annual Graphic Novels and Manga Challenge 2015. I'm signing up the for the Silver Age challenge, which is 52 books in a year. Last year a read 42, so I think I can make it. I already have some planned (continuing Saga, re-reading Y: The Last Man, trying out Avatar: The Last Airbender graphic novels).

Here's what I planned and accomplished in 2014 (I did read more books than listed below). I'm glad that the blogging book is the only leftover!

Zombie Lit

• Deck Z--A tale of zombies aboard the Titanic. Reviewed here!
• The Year of Eating Dangerously--The second novel featuring undead lawyer Mallory Caine. Reviewed here!
• I Ate the Sheriff--third Mallory Caine, zombie-at-law, novel. Reviewed here!
• Bill the Galactic Hero on the Planet of Zombie Vampires--I couldn't resist picking up this title when I saw it in a used book store in the Lakes District. Review here!

English Lit

• The Lord of the Rings--A Good Story is Hard to Find podcast is discussing this in February--can I finish it by then? This will be my fourth reading of what I consider the greatest novel of the twentieth century. Reviewed here!
• Writing Down the Dragon--A book about Tolkien's work which naturally supplements LOTR. Reviewed here!
• Brave New World--Aldous Huxley's classic distopia. Reviewed here!
• Are Women Human?--Left over from last year. Reviewed here!
• In Praise of Folly--Okay, Erasmus isn't really English, but he was good friends with St. Thomas More, so that's my excuse for putting him here. We visited The Netherlands and saw some of Erasmus's old stomping grounds. Reviewed here!

Christian Lit

• St. Benedict and St. Therese: The Little Rule and the Little Way--leftover from last year. Reviewed here!
• Life of Benedict by Gregory the Great--the pope's biography of the founder of western monasticism. If the pope writes a biography of someone, it's probably worth reading. Reviewed here!
• The Wisdom Books--Robert Alter's translation and analysis of the books of Job, Proverbs, and Ecclesiastes. Reviewed here!
• Marriage is Like a Dance--a gift that looks too good to wait! Reviewed here!

Writing Lit (or is that redundant?)

• On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft--Stephen King's work leftover from two years ago. Reviewed here!

Graphic Novels

1. Hellboy in Hell #5, Dark Horse Presents #31 (in which Hellboy gets married!), Hellboy Christmas Special--reviewed here! 
2. The Stuff of Legend Omnibus One--reviewed here!
3. Time Travellers Hidden Rome--reviewed here!
4. Hellboy: The Midnight Circus--reviewed here!
5. Julius Caesar: The Life of a Roman General--reviewed here!
6. B.P.R.D. 1948--reviewed here!
7. Fanboys vs. Zombies Vol. 1--reviewed here!
8. Fanboys vs. Zombies Vol. 2--reviewed here!
9. The Stuff of Legend Omnibus Two--reviewed here!
10. Dark Horse Presents #32 (Hellboy unweds), Twilight Zone #1 and #2--reviewed here!
11. The Book of Revelation--reviewed here!
12. Bone Vol. 1--reviewed here!
13. Bone: Rose--reviewed here!
14. Ray Bradbury Chronicles Vol. 2--reviewed here!
15. Asterix and the Normans--reviewed here!
16. Serenity Vol. 1--reviewed here! 
17. Asterix and the Great Crossing--reviewed here! 
18. B.P.R.D. Vampires--reviewed here! 
19. Asterix and the Soothsayer--reviewed here! 
20. Witchfinder Vol. 2--reviewed here! 
21. Locke & Key Vol. 5--reviewed here! 
22. The Walking Dead Vol. 19--reviewed here! 
23. Locke & Key Vol. 6--reviewed here! 
24. The Walking Dead Vol. 20--reviewed here! 
25. Asterix and the Big Fight--reviewed here! 
26. The Walking Dead Vol. 21--reviewed here! 
27. Bone Vol. 2--reviewed here! 
28. Bone Vol. 3--reviewed here! 
29. Marvel Zombies vs. Army of Darkness--reviewed here!
30. Bone Tall Tales--reviewed here! 
31. Twilight Zone The Monsters Are Due on Mulberry Street--reviewed here! 
32. Bone Vol. 4--reviewed here! 
33. Bone Vol. 5--reviewed here!
34. Zombillenium 1--reviewed here! 
35. Bone Vol. 6--reviewed here!
36. Bone Vol. 7--reviewed here!
37. Zombillenium 2--reviewed here!
38. Bone Vol. 8--reviewed here!
39. Bone Vol. 9--reviewed here! 
40. Bone Handbook--reviewed here! 
41. X-Men: Days of Future Past--reviewed here! 
42. Saga Vol. 1--reviewed here!