Some Challenges for 2011

So, the new year and looking ahead and resolutions are upon me.  I find once again the lure of challenges too irresistable to resist.  Here are some challenges I am signing up for this year:

2011 Ireland Reading Challenge - hosted by Carrie at Books and Movies. Being the usual sucker hopeful optimist I am, I am aiming for Kiss The Blarney Stone (6 books).  I have no idea what they will be at this time.  How is that for faith??

British Books Challenge 2011 - hosted by The Bookette, this is an exciting challenge because so many of the books I read are British or about Britain. Seeing as I am incurable as well as hopeful, I'm joining the Royal Family Level - 12 books by British authors in 2011.  I might as well aim high, right?

Historical Fiction 2011 - so many of the books I read are historical, that this should  will be easy.  I hope.
I'm aiming high, Gentle Readers, since a Charles Dickens looms on my TRB pile, plus a host of mysteries from the past and..... so I'm signing on for Undoubtedly Obsessed, 15 books!  Undoubtedly a little bit crazy, more like. 

Carl's Sci-Fi Experience 2011 - this will be the third year I'm joining this reading experience.
I love this challenge because it gets me to read the sci-fi that I do buy the rest of the year and keep meaning to read.  I wish there were time to read all the books I want to.  In fact, I think I make this wish  every day.  Just tonight I was upstairs checking to see which Peter James mysteries I have (none on my TBR shelf apparently, but I do have two elsewhere in the house waiting to be read), and I realized that due to my slump in December, almost all the mysteries I expected to read are still waiting to be read. Sara Paretsky! Margaret Maron! Ruth Rendell! PD James! Jo Nesbo!  Ann Cleeves!  Peter Lovesey!  Brian Freeman!  It's like a who's who of mystery writing on my bookshelf waiting to be read, and all I need is a little a whole lot more time to read.  And really, Carl says this is just an experience.  A science fiction experience.  Plus, it has a cool photo. 

2011 100 + Reading Challenge - because I am going to get to 100 books.
Hosted by the indefatigable J-Kaye, who amazes me by hosting this and reading so much with three school-age children. This is my personal mountain to climb.  I have never gotten to 100 books read in a year, and I failed spectacularly again last year, reaching the very same total I did the year before: 78 books in total read.

2011 Support Your Local Library Challenge - also by J-Kaye.  I have 12 books out from the library currently, with another 14 waiting to be picked up by Friday. It is very dangerous a great way to find new books, reading all your blogs, and now our library has gone 21st century and it is so easy to request books! one click and presto!  Thus, the 26 books found in two weeks.
So I should be able to complete this challenge at the 25 books level.  I might up it to 50 if I go all gung-ho and actually read all these books I've taken out.

 

Challenges Ongoing:
Canadian Book Challenge 4, which I have read some already (see my sidebar for the link). I  read two more in December that I still have to review!  I succeeded in this one last year, so I'm planning to succeed again.  We do have some wonderful books in Canada, and I love this challenge for getting our books out there to be read, and also for making encouraging and reminding me to make the time for them.  Louise Penny, Vicki Delany, Tanya Huff, Charles de Lint, Guy Gavriel Kay, LR Wright, we have some wonderful writers here in Canada.