Read 'Em & Cheer

[talkstowolves]

Generally speaking, I set out to read 50 books in a year: this is my baseline, so to speak. I haven't had any difficulty meeting this number for the past several years. I don't want to bump myself up to requiring a minimum of 100, because I don't tend to read that fast and it is actually about quality rather than quantity.

However, I do like to set myself little goals in the form of challenges. This year (so far), I have three big projects in mind. And one simple one: read more online fiction.

I have tons of zines in my bookmarks: Goblin Fruit, Strange Horizons, Tor.com, Beneath Ceaseless Skies, Ideomancer, Cabinet des Fées, etc. Problem is, I rarely make the time to actually read all of these excellent sites. This is the year that changes, and I hope to benefit you as well as me: each Friday, I plan to highlight at least one free piece of fiction or poetry that I've read that week. Starting tomorrow, in fact!

And now, for this year's projects:

THE PATRICIA A. MCKILLIP CHALLENGE

I'm actually trying this one again: I began it in 2009, then completely fell down on fulfilling the criteria. I only read The Changeling Sea by Patricia McKillip in that twelvemonth. However, I've got The Forgotten Beasts of Eld waiting on my to-read shelf and I'm still interested in reading more of McKillip's short fiction. As for the third selection? I'll probably pick up one of her novels that I've missed, such as Alphabet of Thorn, Od Magic, or Solstice Wood. (Solstice Wood! Now there's a thought, considering Winter Rose is one of my favorites.)

ALL ABOUT THE BRONTES

Laura, over at Laura's Reviews, has decided to host a challenge focusing on the works by (and inspired by) the Brontë sisters. I've been meaning to finish reading Wuthering Heights for forever (never did, in high school) and I just read Jane Eyre last summer, so my interest in the Brontës is piqued. Besides, any challenge that encourages the exploration of academic and derivative material definitely attracts me.

My likely list of reads for the challenge¹:

Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier²
Wide Sargasso Sea by Jean Rhys
The Eyre Affair by Jasper Fforde
Agnes Grey by Anne Brontë
The Professor by Charlotte Brontë
Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë

Note: This challenge actually only runs through June.

BAKER STREET SPECIAL
(banner coming soon!)

Another thing I've been meaning to do forever is read more Sherlock Holmes' stories! My husband idly suggested the other day that, if we really wanted to, we could watch the entire Jeremy Brett collection of Sherlock Holmes adventures. I had just been perusing an annotated edition of the Sherlock Holmes stories and that suggestion made me leap up,  cackling and rubbing my hands together briskly as I conceived a grand plan! That plan being that we would read, together, each story and then watch the Jeremy Brett episode. It is evidence of my husband's stout heart (and keen literary interest) that he immediately proved game for such an endeavor.³

I have a vague idea to go chronologically with the stories, but that'll depend on the episodes. I'm still figuring it out. I expect we'll do the novels as well! More on this challenge anon.



1. Yes, I'm totally stealing most of my list from Bibliofreakblog, where I first read about the challenge. What can I say? Oldfield seems to have good taste. (Although, my list will probably end up shifting a bit.) 

2. I have a lovely copy from a delightful friend in Boston that I've been meaning to read for forever.

3. Also, that he really enjoys Sherlock Holmes fiction.

Originally posted at Livejournal. You can comment here or there.