The 2011 TBR Pile Challenge

If you’re like me, you have a pile of books, virtual or real (or both), that you’ve been meaning to read but haven’t gotten around to for one reason or another. Working as a cataloger in a consortium, I’m constantly seeing what books, both newly published and older, libraries are buying. I love to read but don’t have the time (hopefully this will be changing soon…more on that in another post), so all those intriguing titles that catch my eye when they pass by me just pile up. I try to keep up, but every day something shiny and new appears to distract me.

This is why I was thrilled when I read Laura Miler’s post on Salon about being a better reader in 2011 and saw her mention of the 2011 TBR Pile Challenge. TBR stands for “to be read,” and the challenge is to spend the next year reading 12 books that have been sitting around for a year or longer. While I have plenty of real books that are actually sitting on my shelf, I decided instead to pick twelve titles that I’ve had on my Kindle for over a year, including a couple I’ve had since I bought it in February of 2008. Part of the challenge is to review each book after you read it, so I’ll be posting reviews here as I progress. Without further ado, here is my list:

1. Away, by Amy Bloom

2. The gargoyle, by Andrew Davidson

3. Child 44, by Tom Rob Smith

4. The golden compass, by Phillip Pullman

5. The almost moon, by Alice Sebold

6. The emperor’s children, by Claire Messud

7. The hour I first believed, by Wally Lamb

8. Sense and sensibility, by Jane Austen

9. A mercy, Toni Morrison

10. The vagrants, Yiyun Li

11. Kushiel’s dart, Jacqueline Carey

12. Dead witch walking, Kim Harrison

Alternates:

Of human bondage, by Somerset Maugham

Girl with the dragon tattoo, by Steig Larsson

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3 thoughts on “The 2011 TBR Pile Challenge”

  1. Just checking-in on your progress for the 2011 TBR Pile Challenge – how are things going so far?! Don’t forget to link your reviews to your master list. πŸ™‚

    Also… BIG Giveaways are happening on my blog this week, and TBR Pile Challenge participants earn extra entries for linking to their lists, so be sure to visit my Giveaways section soon! πŸ˜‰

  2. Hi, Adam! Thanks for the visit. I’ll definitely stop by to check out the giveaways πŸ™‚ My progress has been almost non-existent, but I’m on vacation soon so I’m hoping to get some serious reading done.

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