2010 Chunkster Challenge (2/1/10 - 1/31/11)

Wendy from Caribousmom is hosting the 2010 Chunkster Challenge.


Many thanks to Dana who has hosted this challenge for the past couple of years and has generously handed over the reins to me in 2010. I am keeping most of Dana's rules and definitions...Why? Because why fix something that isn't broken?!??!

Definition of a Chunkster:

• A chunkster is 450 pages or more of ADULT literature (fiction or nonfiction) ... A chunkster should be a challenge.
• If you read large type books your book will need to be 525 pages or more ... The average large type book is 10-15% longer or more so I think that was a fair estimate.

The Rules:

• No Audio books in the chunkster.

It just doesn't seem right. Words on paper for this one folks.

No e-Books allowed - we are reading traditional, fat books for this challenge.

Short Stories and Essay collections will not be counted.

Books may crossover with other challenges

Anyone may join. If you don't have a blog, just leave me a comment on this post with your progress (and to let me know you are playing)

You don't need to list your books ahead of time.
Once you pick a level, that's it...you're committed to that level!

You must pick a level of participation (thanks again to Dana for the humor in these categories!):

1. The Chubby Chunkster - this option is for the reader who has a couple of large tomes on their TBR list, but really doesn't want to commit to much more than that. 3 books is all you need to finish this challenge.
2. Do These Books Make my Butt Look Big? - this option is for the slightly heavier reader who wants to commit to 4 Chunksters over the next twelve months.
3. Mor-book-ly Obese - This is for the truly out of control chunkster. For this level of challenge you must commit to 6 or more chunksters OR three tomes of 750 pages or more. You know you want to.....go on and give in to your cravings.

Some Other Questions you Might Have:

• To review or not to review, that is the quesion...Reviews are not mandatory, but they are strongly encouraged. I will be putting up a Mr. Linky at the beginning of the challenge for links to your reviews. I will also be posting a Mr. Linky for wrap up posts at the end of the challenge.
• Will there be prizes? Perhaps. I am still thinking on this...but I may consider some bookish giveaways as the challenge progresses! If I were you, I would subscribe to this blog just in case I announce something important.
• Is there anything else we need to know? Um, not that I can think of right now. But, lately I have been into being flexible. And I may decide to add some fun stuff to this blog, or even have a guest poster or two. Check back in occasionally (or subscribe to the feed) just in case!

Oops! I screwed up in preparing for this one! I purchased several HUMONGOUS ebooks for my Kindle to have on hand for this challenge -- Under the Dome, The Pillars of the Earth and the Story of Edgar Sawtelle-- and now I see ebooks won't count. :-(

Oh, well! I'm sure I will fit them in for some other challenge. I'm going to choose level one, the Chubby Chunkster, which is to read 3 books of 450 pages or more.

Rainbow Connection Challenge (1/1 - 6/30/10)

Sue is hosting the Rainbow Connection Challenge.


January 1, 2010 - June 30, 2010

I’m hosting my first Challenge, Rainbow Connection Challenge. Reading Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, Indigo, and Violet books.

You can complete either a single rainbow or double rainbow challenge.

Single Rainbow (reading 7 books) by either Author (first or last name) or Title starting with R, O, Y, G, B, I and V (Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, Indigo, and Violet) books.

Double Rainbow (reading 14 books) by Author (first or last name) and Title starting with R, O, Y, G, B, I and V (Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, Indigo, and Violet) books.

There will be a rainbow prize for all that complete the challenge.

Rules:
1. This challenge is from January 1, 2010 to June 30, 2010.
2. Read a book starting with R, O, Y, G, B, I and V (Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, Indigo, and Violet) books.
3. The books you chose for this challenge can overlap with other challenges.

I am going to sign up for Single Rainbow which is a commitment of 7 books.

RED - Ron Jeremy: The Hardest Working Man in Showbiz - Ron Jeremy 1/17/10
ORANGE -
YELLOW - The Yellow-Lighted Bookshop - Lewis Buzbee 2/16/10
GREEN -
BLUE -
INDIGO -
VIOLET -

2010 Books Completed

Books Read in 2010

1. Cinderella - Henry W. Hewet 1/1/10 40p. (1/5)
2. Beauty and the Beast - Marie Le Prince de Beaumont 1/2/10 48p. (5/5)
3. Homebuyers Beware: Who's Ripping You Off Now? - Carolyn Warren 1/17/10 288p. (5/5)
4. Ron Jeremy: The Hardest (Working) Man in Showbiz - Ron Jeremy 1/17/10 352p. (5/5)
5. The Mist - Stephen King 1/23/10 240p. (5/5)
6. Hank Zipzer: Day of the Iguana - Henry Winkler 1/28/10 154p. (5/5)

JANUARY - 1122 pages

7. The Princess Diaries - Meg Cabot 2/15/10 256p. (5/5)
8. The Yellow-Lighted Bookshop - Lewis Buzbee 2/16/10 216p. (3/5)
9. Push - Sapphire 2/23/10 179p. (5/5)

FEBRUARY - 651 pages

10. More Blood, More Sweat and Another Cup of Tea - Tom Reynolds 3/5/10 352p. (4/5)
11. Under the Dome - Stephen King 3/12/10 1088p. (5/5)
12. The Princess Diaries Vol. 2: Princess in the Spotlight - Meg Cabot 3/19/10 256p. (5/5)
13. The Doll People - Ann M. Martin & Laura Godwin 3/20/10 288p. (5/5)
14. Hank Zipzer: The Night I Flunked My Field Trip - Henry Winkler & Lin Oliver 3/30/10 160p. (5/5)

MARCH - 2144 pages

15. Beyond the Spiderwick Chronicles: Book 3: The Wyrm King - Tony DiTerlizzi and Holly Black 4/3/10 209p. (4/5)
16. Hank Zipzer: Holy Enchilada! - Henry Winkler & Lin Oliver 4/8/10 157p. (5/5)
17. The Meanest Doll in the World - Ann M. Martin & Laura Godwin 4/10/10 267p. (5/5)
18. Garfield and the Wicked Wizard - Michael Teitelbaum 4/10/10 79p. (1/5)
19. The Runaway Dolls - Ann M. Martin & Laura Godwin 4/10/10 329p. (5/5)
20. Hank Zipzer: Help! Somebody Get Me Out of Fourth Grade - Henry Winkler & Lin Oliver 4/17/10 155p. (5/5)
21. Dear Dumb Diary, Let's Pretend This Never Happened - Jim Benton 4/20/10 95p. (5/5)
22. Dear Dumb Diary, My Pants Are Haunted! - Jim Benton 4/22/10 128p. (5/5)

APRIL - 1419 pages

23. Dear Dumb Diary, Am I the Princess or the Frog? - Jim Benton 5/3/10 148p. (5/5)
24. Dear Dumb Diary, Never Do Anything, Ever - Jim Benton 5/5/10 132p. (5/5)
25. This Time Together - Carol Burnett 5/6/10 288p. (5/5)
26. Dear Dumb Diary, Can Adults Become Human - Jim Benton 5/8/10 117p. (5/5)
27. Dear Dumb Diary, The Problem With Here Is That It's Where I'm From - Jim Benton 5/11/10 120p. (5/5)
28. Dear Dumb Diary, Never Underestimate Your Dumbness - Jim Benton 5/15/10 150p. (5/5)
29. Hank Zipzer: Summer School! What Genius Thought That Up? - Henry Winkler & Lin Oliver 5/15/10 156p. (5/5)
30. Dear Dumb Diary, It's Not My Fault I Know Everything - Jim Benton 5/17/10 131p. (5/5)
31. Blockade Billy - Stephen King 5/20/10 144p. (5/5)
32. Ma and Pa Dracula - Ann M. Martin 5/26/10 122p. (4/5)
33. The Princess Diaries Vol. 3: Princess in Love - Meg Cabot 5/28/10 256p. (5/5)
34. Hank Zipzer: My Secret Life as a Ping-Pong Wizard - Henry Winkler & Lin Oliver 5/31/10 158p. (5/5)

MAY - 1922 pages

35. Believe It, Be It - How Being the Biggest Loser Won Me Back My Life - Ali Vincent 6/10/10 176p. (5/5)
36. The Royals - Kitty Kelley 6/12/10 547p. (4/5)
37. Dear Dumb Diary, That's What Friends Aren't For - Jim Benton 6/14/10 131p. (5/5)
38. Fearless Fourteen - Janet Evanovich 6/17/10 320p. (5/5)
39. Just After Sunset - Stephen King 6/18/10 367p. (5/5)
40. Plum Lucky - Janet Evanovich 6/28/10 176p. (5/5)

JUNE - 1717 pages

41. Confessions of a Shopaholic - Sophie Kinsella 7/4/10 384p. (5/5)
42. The Princess Diaries IV: Princess in Waiting - Meg Cabot 7/7/10 256p. (5/5)
43. The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner - Stephenie Meyer 7/15/10 192p. (5/5)
44. Shopaholic Takes Manhattan - Sophie Kinsella 7/20/10 400p. (5/5)
45. The Princess Diaries V: Princess in Pink - Meg Cabot 7/21/10 288p. (5/5)
46. Finger Lickin' Fifteen - Janet Evanovich 7/22/10 352p. (5/5)

JULY - 1872 pages

47. Shopaholic Ties the Knot - Sophie Kinsella 8/23/10 416p. (5/5)
48. The Princess Diaries VI: Princess in Training - Meg Cabot 8/26/10 304p. (5/5)
49. Death of a Trophy Wife - Laura Levine 8/31/10 304p. (5/5)

AUGUST - 1024 pages

50. The Princess Diaries VII: Party Princess - Meg Cabot 9/22/10 320p. (5/5)
51. Shopaholic and Sister - Sophie Kinsella 9/25/10 400p. (5/5)
52. Club Dead - Charlaine Harris 9/30/10 304p. (5/5)

SEPTEMBER - 1024 pages

53. Hank Zipzer: My Dog's A Scaredy-Cat - A Halloween Tail - Henry Winkler & Lin Oliver 10/1/10 158p. (3/5)
54. Here's the Deal: Don't Touch Me - Howie Mandel 10/3/10 220p. (5/5)
55. Agatha Raisin and the Day the Floods Came - M. C. Beaton 10/5/10 240p. (5/5)
56. Turkey Day Murder - Leslie Meier 10/7/10 288p. (5/5)
57. The Christmas Sweater - Glenn Beck 10/29/10 294p. (5/5)
58. Hank Zipzer: The Curtain Went Up, My Pants Fell Down - Henry Winkler & Lin Oliver 10/29/10 158p. (4/5)
59. Wedding Day Murder - Leslie Meier 10/30/10 234p. (5/5)

OCTOBER - 1592 pages

60. Sizzling Sixteen - Janet Evanovich 11/28/10 309p. (5/5)

NOVEMBER - 309 pages

61. This Isn't What It Looks Like - Pseudonymous Bosch 12/3/10 423p. (5/5)
62. Huckleberry Finished - Livia J. Washburn 12/12/10 246p. (5/5)
63. Dear Dumb Diary, The Worst Things in Life Are Also Free - Jim Benton 12/15/10 148p. (5/5)
64. Full Dark, No Stars - Stephen King 12/31/10 368p. (5/5)

DECEMBER - 1185 pages




2010 Statistics:
Books Read: 64
Pages Read: 15,981

Favorite Books of 2010:
Under the Dome - Stephen King
The Doll People - Ann M. Martin & Laura Godwin
Dear Dumb Diary - Jim Benton
Confessions of a Shopaholic - Sophie Kinsella
The Christmas Sweater - Glenn Beck
Full Dark, No Stars - Stephen King