Archive for October, 2008

Mission Accomplished: Read 23 books in one year

Wednesday, October 1st, 2008

At long last, I have read 23 books in less than a year and completed this goal!

On Oct 22, 2007, I started this goal, and I completed it on October 1, 2008. The 23 books I read, in order are:

  1. A Man Without a Country by Kurt Vonnegut
  2. Firmin: Adventures of a Metropolitan Lowlife by Sam Savage
  3. Money Doesn't Grow on Trees: A Parent's Guide to Raising Financially Responsible Children by Neale S. Godfrey
  4. The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger
  5. Rosencrantz & Guildenstern Are Dead by Tom Stoppard
  6. The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka
  7. The Children of Men by P.D. James
  8. The Orchid Thief by Susan Orlean
  9. Speed Cleaning 101: Cut Your Cleaning Time in Half! by Laura Dellutri
  10. Thief of Time by Terry Pratchett
  11. The Book of General Ignorance by John Lloyd & John Mitchinson
  12. No Country for Old Men by Cormac McCarthy
  13. Girl Boy Etc. by Michael Weinreb
  14. Mort by Terry Pratchett
  15. Darkly Dreaming Dexter by Jeff Lindsay
  16. Company: A Novel by Max Barry
  17. Reaper Man by Terry Pratchett
  18. Jennifer Government by Max Barry
  19. Dearly Devoted Dexter by Jeff Lindsay
  20. Soul Music by Terry Pratchett
  21. Soon I Will Be Invincible by Austin Grossman
  22. The View from the Seventh Layer by Kevin Brockmeier
  23. How to Get Out of Debt, Stay Out of Debt & Live Prosperously by Jerrold Mundis

Here is the summary/review of the last of my 23 Books, completed on October 1, 2008:

October 2008 (Month 12)

  1. How to Get Out of Debt, Stay Out of Debt & Live Prosperously by Jerrold Mundis
    Whether you have $100 or $100,000 in debt, this book has many effective strategies for getting out of debt and staying out. The first section of the book helps you deal with various "broken" views regarding money and debt, helping you understand why you might feel the need to debt. The second section helps put everything into perspective and take some stress off the way you think about your financial status. The third section gives you the tools you need to take control of your finances and truly understand what's going on with your money. The final section helps you with the final stages of getting free from debt and how to increase your prosperity.
    The central concept of this book is: "Just for today, one day, do not incur any new debt." More importantly, the book helps you keep to this rule each and every day. Most of the ideas are based on the Back in Black program used by Debtors Anonymous.

This turned out to be an awesome goal to have (and complete) because it really has gotten me back into reading.

See more progress on: Read 23 books in one year

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23 Books: Month 11

Wednesday, October 1st, 2008

I have been working on the Readers' Challenge for ten months now. My ultimate goal is to Read 23 books in one year.

The next-to-last month has slipped by in my challenge. Of course, I'm ending up cutting it very close, but I'm not worried. I have just one book left to finish by October 22. As my luck would have it, the book that I'm over halfway through with was requested by another patron, so I couldn't keep the book! Aargh! That's an obvious setback. Luckily, I am already about halfway through another book, too, but it's non-fiction and much slower reading.

So, here's the one book I did manage to finish this past month:

September 2008 (Month 11)

  1. The View from the Seventh Layer by Kevin Brockmeier
    This is an interesting collection of short stories, most of which have a somber tone. Many revolve around characters who are morning in their own way about missed opportunities. Though most of the stories carry this common theme, the characters and settings are completely different between stories. For instance, there is a Star Trek-esque fan fiction, a Choose-Your-Own-Adventure story, a fable about a mute man who lived in a world where everyone else sang melodiously, and a story about a man who accidentally buys God's overcoat that has papers with prayers spilling from the pockets. Among the 13 short stories, there will be touching moments and thought-provoking proverbs, but the melancholy tone carries throughout. A well written book. Suggested for anyone who won't mind a lack of outrageously happy endings.

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