2018/2019 Reading Challenge(s)

Welcome to 2019!

I'm going to start by wrapping up how my 2018 reading challenges went.

I had two challenges for 2018. One was a challenge of 50 books overall. I surpassed that with 63! Last weeks post highlighted my favorites from that group.

The other was my classic challenge. This marked the first year where I did not finish that. Originally I had 8 books. Around July my life got way busier(something I knew ahead of time and should've planned for), that combined with the density of some of my choices made me realize it wasn't going to happen and I ended up moving some of them to the next year.

Here's how those panned out.

• Persuasion - A pleasant read. I gave it 4 stars and enjoyed it. I found it different from the other works I've read by Austen, and yet it held the same charm that draws me to her writing. I love her characters and this held up to that standard of intriguing and three dimensional characters.
  
  
  
  
  
• Diary of Anne Frank - This is the only book I dropped after much consideration and strongly believing(as I stared at it on my dresser) that I wouldn't find it to my taste.
• A Christmas Carol - This was the only book on my list that I've read the full, unabridged version of before. It definitely has held up since my childhood and gave me all the warm fuzzies. Was the perfect Christmas time read. 5 stars for this.

• David Copperfield - Though I started this one early in the year, I put it aside and left it unfinished. Well-written, but I'd made the stupid choice of watching the movie shortly beforehand and the story was too fresh in my mind to launch right back into it. The movie is extremely close to the book, making it like re-reading the same thing back to back. This is one I've moved to my 2019 classic challenge.
• The Secret Garden - As a child I loved this book. The thought of a secret garden, a life with no school, no adults, and friends was like . . . the best. I thought that'd be so much fun. All the animals and the garden that was beautiful and hidden away.
  
  As an adult, reading the unabridged version, I was bogged down with the rather lackluster story. I found myself frustrated with the stupid accent. It wasn't easy to read and then the kids thought it was "So cool" that they used it in addition to the characters who actually had a moors accent.
  
   
  It's also not a very exciting book and there's not much for characters outside of the three kids. Reading about three little kids playing outside does not intrigue me as an adult. I already knew what was going to happen which didn't help either.
  
  I gave this 3 stars because I do feel it's a good book (the abridged version where the accent is gone) for little kids who'd love to dream of their own special garden, but for adults it was very, very dull.

• A Tale of Two Cities - Another one I didn't get to in 2018 and will now be on my 2019 list.
• 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea - Soooo, I basically hated this book. This netted one star and if it wasn't for the fact that I try to finish my classic challenge books and I was reading it at the same time as Elise over at magicwriter.com I would've put it in my did-not-finish pile.
  
  The extremely short version is that the book is boring as rock watching and full of inaccuracies regarding marine life and other ocean-based facts.
  
  The long version can be found in my ABB post.
• War and Peace - I also didn't have time for this one and it's now on my list of 3 for 2019.

So there you are! For 2019 my classic challenge will be A Tale of Two Cities, War and Peace, and David Copperfield.

Added to that will again be my usual 50 book general challenge through Goodreads! And also my Book-a-Month Challenge with my sister(more on that next week!).

I'd love to hear what you're hoping to read this year and if you have any book challenges!