Monthly Wrap Up - January 2012

Hello February! You arrived so quickly. My online class started back up last night and now I have to hunker down into student mode. I enjoyed the winter break and miss it already.

I write an annual wrap up at the end of the end, so I decided to add monthly wrap ups to the blog.  Other bloggers do it and I'll definitely give them props after I find their posts among my 700+ Google Reader backlog.

January 2012 stats:

Books completed: 8 

1. Halo by Alexandra Adornetto
2. Not That Kind of Girl by Siobhan Vivian
3. Obsidian (A Lux Novel, Bk.1) by Jennifer L. Armentrout
4. The Future of Us by Jay Asher and Carolyn Mackler
5. The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern
6. Stardust by Neil Gaiman
7. Crossed (Matched, Bk.2) by Ally Condie
8. Carrier of the Mark by Leigh Fallon

Books unfinished (which I'll hopefully finish in Feb): 2

1. Dearly, Departed by Lia Habel
2. Anna Dressed in Blood by Kendare Blake

Library Fines: $2.30
I put a ton of holds on new YA releases in November and December. All the books arrived for me at the same time, which meant attempting to juggle and prioritize 15+ books.  Needless to say, it was an epic fail.  I read a few books I was dying to get my hands on (i.e. Crossed and The Night Circus) but I didn't get to all of them (i.e. The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater, Blood Red Road by Moira Young, and Legend by Marie Lu).

Book Reviews: 1
Ok, that's another disappointment. I need to step up my reviewing.
Obsidian (A Lux Novel, Bk.1) by Jennifer L. Armentrout.

BookCrossing Books Released: 0
The January meeting of the Audubon BookCrossers was a bust. Not many people showed up. I brought three books with me, but decided to save them for February's meeting instead. I'm not sure if I'm going to the February meeting since it's on Superbowl Sunday.  Hubby and I have cleaning to do since we've invited a few friends over.

Pages Read Challenge: 2,861 pages = 19% of goal
It's a great start to my Pages Read goal of 18,000.  If I keep this reading pace, I'll have to increase my goal.

Read Ten "1001-books": 0
None so far. I'll make an effort in February.

February Goals:

• Review more (maybe 2 or 3 at least).
• Release more (attempt to wild release?).
• Post my tentative reading lists this week for the Mount TBR and other challenges.
• Try not to rack up any more library fines!
• Visit more blogs and comment (instead of my usual stalking).

2012 Goals and Challenges

As promised, here are my goals and reading challenges for 2012.  Also, I joined a bunch of new reading challenges. Very exciting!  It's going to be a fun year.

2012 Goals:

• Read 65 books this year:  I read 58 in 2011 so I'll try to top that number. 65 sounds like a good goal.
• Review more:  I read a lot, but tend not to write many reviews.  I'll try to write more reviews in 2012.  I'm not satisfied with my review voice just yet.  I have to work on fine tuning my review style.  I can't let self-consciousness get the best of me.
• Spend time working on my challenges:  I basically forgot about my A-Z read and release challenge, so I actually should think about reading a few books that will fit in it.  This year I'm signing up for more challenges than ever.  I need to make an effort to keep track of them all (see below for details).
• Regularly attend and release at the local BookCrossers Meeting: I usually go to the monthly meetings (in Audubon, PA), but I'll try to bring more books to release. I will continue to only take books home that I have an interest in reading. 
• Visit official BookCrossing zones (OBCZ) more often:  I haven't stopped by Black Salt Cafe (my closest active OBCZ) in a while.  I want to release books there more frequently. 
• Visit Indie Bookstores:  I want to visit more independent bookstores (and blog about it), both in my area and while I'm on vacation or away at work conferences.
• Re-read The Hunger Games:  I'm so incredibly excited for the HG movie!  I'm going to the midnight premiere with a bunch of friends.  I can't wait!  In preparation, I have to re-read the book. When I went to the midnight premiere of Harry Potter 7 Pt. 2, my friends made a list of trivia questions which was so much fun while waiting in line.  I'll try to make my own list of trivia.
• Buy an e-reader? This is a maybe. It certainly would make my purse a lot lighter.  Plus, my public library system recently expanded to include Kindle devices.  I'm not sure what brand I might buy.  I've heard buzz about the Nook, but I don't frequently shop at Barnes and Noble. Maybe something compatible with NetGalley.

BookCrossing Challenges:

This year I'm continuing my usual BookCrossing Challenges and I'm adding several non-BC challenges open to the book blogging world.  Check out all the details:

2012 Pages Read Challenge:  It's favorite BookCrossing challenge!  I surpassed my 2011 goal of 15,000 pages so I'm bumping up my 2012 goal to 18,000 pages.

Read Ten 1001 Books Challenge:  I'm a sucker for lost causes, so I'm signing up again to read 10 books from the 1001 Books to Read Before You Die list.  I only read 5 books in 2011 and 6 in 2010.

2012 Reduce Mount TBR Challenge: It's my first time participating in the Mount TBR challenge.  I have so many books on my TBR list (I can't even count them). My goal is to knock 25 books off my TBR list this year. 

A-Z New Author Read & Release Challenge:  This is a tough one because the books need to be new authors you haven't read yet and after reading, you have to register and release the books.  I read so many library books that I completely ignored this challenge in 2011.  I'll try to knock a few off the list this year.  I'll shoot for 3 books.

Non-BookCrossing Challenges (open to everyone):  It's my first time participating in all of the following challenges....Yay!  Check out the links below for all the challenge details and to sign up, of course.

2012 Young Adult Reading Challenge (The Eclectic Bookshelf)

Level 3: The Jumbo Size YA Reading Challenge – Read 40 Young Adult novels.

I think I read more than 40 YA books in 2011.  Since I want to expand my reading to knock off more of my 1001 adult books, I think 40 YA books is a good goal for this challenge.

Steampunk Reading Challenge 2012 (Dark Faerie Tales)

Level 1: Gaslight – Choose 6 books to read

I don't think I've read a steampunk book yet. That's weird. Well, now's the time to start.  Six books sounds like a good introduction to the genre.

The Dystopia Challenge  (Bookish Ardour)

Level 2:  Contagion – Choose 15 books to read

I love dystopian YA.  I have a bunch on my Mount TBR list so I should be able to hit 15 without a problem.

  

Speculative Romance Challenge (Book Chick City)

Level 3: Sexy Vampires – Read 18 Speculative Romance novels

I'm a sucker for speculative romance...sigh! I'm on an angels and demon kick right now.  Plus, steampunk and apocalyptic romance count too.  This one is going to be fun.

What challenges are you participating in this year?

2011 Wrap Up, Part 1

Happy New Year all!  I'm excited for 2012 because it'll bring some awesome book releases to look forward to....and some life changes as well (graduation, hopefully a new job, and possibly a move).   

Here's Part 1 of my 2011 recap, which includes my challenge results.  I'll post Part 2 soon.  It features my favorites and not-so-favorite reads from the past year. 

2011 Recap:

- I read 58 books this year, which is up from 53 last year.

- I quietly had my one year blog anniversary in April 2011. I promise to actually celebrate it this year.

- Started my second year of graduate school in the fall.  I only have two semesters left!  I'll finish my Masters in Library Science (MLS) this summer.  Thus, I'll be looking for a new job as a librarian (preferable for fall, if the stars align and luck is on my side....too dramatic?).

- I celebrated my second anniversary on BookCrossing in August.  I joined in August 2009.

- Participated in one 24-hour Dewey read-a-thon this year.  I couldn't participate in the October read-a-thon because I was out of town visiting a friend.

- Sadly, I didn't complete any books in June.  I had a crazy busy summer semester (only six weeks long) that caused a major leisure reading road block.  Hopefully, I won't repeat it this year.

-  In November, I read the most books that I've ever read in one month, 13!  I was on a Jenny Han and Stephanie Perkins binge.

- Near the end of the year, I focused on new releases from 2011.  I loved it!  There are so many awesome first books of series out.

Reading Challenges:

2011 Pages Read Challenge: Last year I didn't reach my pages read goal, so I decided to shoot for the same number this year: 15,000 pages.  I actually reached it this time!!!  My final tally was 16,101 pages, 107% of my goal.  Yahoo!  I even read more pages that I didn't count...including my 400+ page textbook and a few books I disliked enough not to finish (cough...The Thirteen Hallows...cough). 

Read Ten 1001-Books Challenge:  Epic fail! I only read five 1001-books this year. I'll try it again this year.

• Erewhon by Samuel Butler.
• Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson.
• The Time Machine by H. G. Wells
• The Wonderful O by James Thurber
• The 13 Clocks by James Thurber

A-Z Read & Release Challenge: Another fail!  I haven't done anything with this ongoing BookCrossing challenge for a number of reasons.  First, a majority of the books I read this year were library books so they can't be registered.  A few registered books I releases were repeat letters (G and R). I'll keep my eye out for books that fit into this release challenge, but I'm not gonna sweat over it. 

Stay tuned for Part 2 of my 2011 Wrap Up and my 2012 Goals post!

R.I.P. Challenge Wrap Up

In September, I joined Carl's (Stainless Steel Droppings) 6th annual R.I.P. Challenge (i.e. R.eaders I.mbibing P.eril).  I wanted to use the challenge as a way to catch up on my 1001-books reading, or lack there of.

The R.I.P. challenge participants read books from September 1st to October 31st in the following genres: Mystery, Suspense, Thriller, Dark Fantasy, Gothic, Horror, Supernatural.

I signed up for the "Peril the First" level to read 4 books. Not too much for me. While I thought I would read Frankenstein, Dracula and Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, I only read one of those titles. What can I say...I get easily distracted with YA series.  Here are the five supernatural-themed books I read in October:

City of Bones (The Mortal Instruments, Bk.1) by Cassandra Clare.

Welcome to Dead House (Goosebumps, #1) by R. L. Stine.

Queen of the Dead (The Ghost and the Goth, Bk.2) by Stacey Kade.

Demonglass (Hex Hall, Bk.2) by Rachel Hawkins.

Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson.

Some thoughts on these book:
I absolutely love the Hex Hall series!  Demonglass was my favorite among all my October reads, followed closely by City of Bones.  I bought The Mortal Instruments trilogy set a while ago so I'll definitely continue reading the series in November.  Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde was different than I thought it would be...more suspense than horror.  I'm glad I read it.  Welcome to Dead House is a Goosebumps classic that I had lying around.  I was obsessed with Goosebumps growing up and must have read at least the first 50 volumes of the series.  Finally, Queen of the Dead was amusing but not world-shattering. It's a fun series (The Ghost and the Goth) but not as addicting as Hex Hall or The Mortal Instruments.

This was a fun challenge!  I'll join it again next year.

R.I.P. VI Challenge

Carl from Stainless Steel Droppings is hosting the 6th annual R.I.P. Challenge, which stands for R.eaders I.mbibing P.eril. From September 1st to October 31st, read books in the following genres:

Mystery, Suspense, Thriller, Dark Fantasy, Gothic, Horror, Supernatural.  

I'll try the "Peril the First" level of reading 4 books. It shouldn't be too hard to accomplish.  I'm way behind on my 1001 book reading so I will finally get around to reading Frankenstein, Dracula and Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.  Not sure about the fourth book yet. 

Check out Carl's blog post for all the details.

Reading Challenges Update and HP Deathly Hallows Pt.2

My summer semester is over!  WooHoo!  When I got home from work each day, grad school stuff enveloped all my time.  The summer semester was condensed and intensive.  The last six weeks was full of writing discussion board posts, researching legislative histories, reading scholarly articles and learning all about library reference.  I learned a lot this semester, but I'm so glad it's over.  Now I can get back to reading and BookCrossing...until the madness starts up again at the end of August.

I'm way behind on my reading challenges. Unbelievably, I didn't finish a book in June.  That's a first since I started to track of my books read in January 2010.  I began two books, but never got around to finishing them. I'll look out for any read-a-thons in the end of July or August to help get my reading goals back on track.

2011 Pages Read Challenge:
I really want to hit that 15,000 pages read goal, especially since I didn't make it last year. However, I'm further behind now that I was this time last year.  As of my last count (in the end of May), I'm at 4,645 pages read. That's only 30% of my goal.  Eek!  I have to step up my pace.

Read Ten 1001 Books Challenge:
I only read 1 book so far, Erewhon by Samual Butler (and I hated every moment of it). I'd like to read some Jane Austen, George Orwell, H.G. Wells, Margaret Atwood, and maybe even Franz Kafka if I'm feeling adventurous. I never like to list the next book I'll read because I always end up changing my mind.  I read whatever I crave in that moment.

A-Z New Author Read & Release Challenge:
It's been a while since I updated my list. This challenge takes so long because it only counts registered BookCrossing books that you read and release. So my library books and non-registered BC books don't count.  I completed 10 out of 26 letters so far. Here's the list.

Check out my Reading Challenges page for the lists of books I've read so far. 

On a completely different topic....

I'm going to the Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 midnight showing tonight!!!  I'm so excited to see it and I know I'll cry in the end.  With the last film, it feels like an era is ending.

I'm going with a group of people which is a first for me.  I usually go to midnight showings by myself because I can't find anyone to drag along with me.  Except of course for last year, when my husband and brother actually came with me for Part 1 of the Deathly Hallows.  When we got to the theater, there were firetrucks and hundreds of people outside all over the parking lot. Some idiot pulled the fire alarm before we got there and it was mayhem.  The theater had no idea how to handle the crowd and by the time they started to let people in, it was past midnight with huge unruly crowd of teenagers pushing and yelling.  What a nightmare!  We didn't stay that night, but were able to exchange our tickets that weekend.  In short, I'm not going back to that movie theater for a midnight showing ever again.

Here are some links to get you in the HP spirit:

Harry Potter Maize Maze (Technabob)
Harry Potter fans unite to end worldly evils (CBSnews)
Harry Potter Stars Felt "Weird" During Epilouge Scene (MTV) 
Harry Potter The Exhibition 
10 Things You Need to Know About "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2" (Moviefone)
9 Classic Album Covers Re-Imagined With "Harry Potter" Characters (nextmovie)

Dewey 24 Hour Read-a-thon, Part 3

Hour 20 Update:
- 8.5 hours of reading/4 hours blogging & challenges.
- I finished 2 books during this read-a-thon:
  The Foretelling by Alice Hoffman
  The Boxcar Children (#1) by Gertrude Chandler Warner.

I think I'm hitting that wall...bedtime is nearing.  I will add a final post soon, possibly after napping.  Keep going strong everyone.  I always enjoy this read-a-thon! :)

Hour 18 Update:
I'm still up at Hour 18!  It's nearly 2am (approaching hour 19) and I'm getting a little loopy. It's really hard to focus on reading.

- Reading 2nd book: The Boxcar Children (#1) by Gertrude Chandler Warner.
- 7 hours of reading for 248 pages...hmm, guess I'm still a bit distracted.  I wanted to be further, but I'm having fun anyway.
- I LOVE the Classic Paranormal Mashup mini-challenge. The mashup book title I came up with is Ethan Frome Hell. And with this mini-challenge, I hit my goal of participating in 5.

Dewey 24 Hour Read-a-thon, Part 2

Despite many distractions (errands, Mom visiting, and cooking dinner), I'm still reading.  OK, it's Hour 13 and I'm nowhere never my goals...but I've got all night.  Keep on going everyone! 

Hour 13 Update:

Hours Spent Reading: 3

Books Read: 1

   The Foretelling by Alice Hoffman (library hardback large print edition)

Pages Read: 141 pages

Mini-Challenges Completed:4
   1 - Intro
   2 - Where in the world are you reading?
  12- Mid-Event Survey
  13- Book Habits

Hour 12 Update:
Mid-Event Survey:
1. What are you reading right now? The Foretelling by Alice Hoffman
2. How many books have you read so far? Finishing up my first one.
3. What book are you most looking forward to for the second half of the Read-a-thon? Hmm, I want to read The Boxcar Children next. :)
4. Did you have to make any special arrangements to free up your whole day? I intended to, but had to also run errands and make dinner.
5. Have you had many interruptions? How did you deal with those?  Way too many interruptions to count. I dealt with them, but I'll bunch back in the second half.
6. What surprises you most about the Read-a-thon, so far? I haven't updated my posts as much as I thought I would.  Sorry, I'll check in more often.
7. Do you have any suggestions for how to improve the Read-a-thon next year?  Not yet...maybe later.
8. What would you do differently, as a Reader or a Cheerleader, if you were to do this again next year?  I would try really hard to focus more on just reading today. Couldn't devote as much time as I thought I would.
9. Are you getting tired yet? Nope, I'm ready for more!
10. Do you have any tips for other Readers or Cheerleaders, something you think is working well for you that others may not have discovered? Nothing revolutionary, but commenting and texting friends help keep you connected.

2011 Challenges and Reading Progress

Spring semester is in full swing with a ton of required reading and papers due soon.  I haven't had much time for leisure reading (sad face)...so I'm looking forward to spring break.  I'll still have work, but at least I will hold my own little read-a-thon to catch up on my long TBR pile.

I'm participating in the same reading challenges as last year:

• 2011 Pages Read Challenge: My goal is 15,000 (same as last year but I hope to actually reach it)
• Read Ten 1001-Books (ditto above)
• and continue the ongoing A-Z New Authors Read & Release Challenge

So far this year I've read 952 pages, about 6.3% of my pages read goal.  I'm hoping to actually reach that 15,000 pages read mark this year even though I'm behind in my pace from last year. I might try to focus on reading shorter books this year since I have a habit of starting 300+ page books and set them down without finishing.  It's not that these books are boring, but I sometimes get distracted with shorter stories which are faster to complete. Just an idea...we'll see what the year brings.

2010 Wrap Up

Wow, I can't believe it's 2011!  I'm still deciding on my reading goals for 2011 (I know I'm late to the party), so let's wrap up some loose ends from 2010.  It was a busy year.

2010 Recap:

- Started this blog in April 2010. My first real attempt at blogging.

- Started graduate school in the fall for a Masters in Library Science (MLS) so I can become a librarian. The program runs through Summer 2012.

- 2010 was my first full year on BookCrossing!  I joined in August 2009.

- Became a regular attendee of the Audubon BookCrossing group.

- My first two wild releases caught by an anonymous finder:

• Shoot Him If He Runs (Stone Barrington) by Stuart Woods, caught on 11/22/10
• The Darkest Evening of the Year by Dean Koontz, caught on 11/22/10

- Participated in 5 BookCrossing bookrings/rays/boxes:

• Green Angel by Alice Hoffman
• The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
• How to Train Your Dragon by Cressida Cowell
• The Last Town on Earth by Thomas Mullen
• Manga/Graphic Novel Bookbox!

- Participated in 3 read-a-thons (two 24-hour Dewey read-a-thons and the HUGE TBR Read-a-thon in June)

- Received my first ARC (Advanced Reader Copy) in the mail!

• The King's Mistress by Emma Campion
• Plus, five more ARCs.

- Read my first manga and graphic novel.

• My first graphic novel: The Courageous Princess by Rod Espinosa
• My first manga: Crescent Moon, Vol. 1 by Haruko Iida

Reading Challenges:

• 2010 Pages Read Challenge: My goal was 15,000 pages.  My final tally was 13,600 pages, 90.6% of my goal. However, this number doesn't really represent all I've read.  One issue I struggled with was determining what types of materials to count as pages read.  I read a lot of manga this year and did not record most of it...thousands of pages worth.  At first, I didn't think I should incorporate them in this challenge, but I ended up adding a few in the total.  So if I did include all the manga, this number would be way beyond 15,000.  I have to decide if I will include them in my 2011 goal.
• Read Ten 1001-Books Challenge: I read six 1001-books this year.
• Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden
• The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time by Mark Haddon
• Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll
• Through the looking-glass, and what Alice found there by Lewis Carroll
• Ethan Frome by Edith Wharton
• The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway
•  A-Z Read & Release Challenge: Read and released 8 books (B, C, E, G, H, J, R and S). This challenge is on-going, so I'm not worried about completing it within a certain time period.  It's harder than I thought because of the releasing component.  Some of the books I read are library books or in my permanent collection, so completing this one will be a challenge.

My 2010 Favorites (and not-so-favorites):

- Favorite YA series: The Hunger Games series by Suzanne Collins.

- Favorite YA book: Paranormalcy by Kiersten White.

- Favorite adult series: Dark Days series by Jocelynn Drake. 

- Favorite adult book: Ethan Frome by Edith Wharton.

- Favorite manga series: Library Wars (v.1-3) by Kiiro Yumi.

- Favorite children's book: Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl.

- Favorite guilty pleasure: Vampire Diaries series (bks. 1-4) by L.J. Smith.

- Best obscure book (haven't heard of but you must read): Green Angel by Alice Hoffman.

- Most moving book: Tunes For Bears To Dance To by Robert Cormier.

- Most disappointing book: The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time by Mark Haddon.

- Least favorite book: Tithe by Holly Black.


I'll post again soon with my 2011 reading goals and challenges.  Meanwhile, I need to spend some time updating my blog and BC profile.

BC Bookshelf Update: End of 1st Semester!

BC Bookshelf Updates features my latest bookish and BookCrossing (BC) activities including book trades, RABCKs, book rings/rays, challenges, and all things BookCrossing. Enjoy!

I completed my first semester of grad school!  Plus, we got our grades already and I did really well! YAY!  So it's time to celebrate.  I'm going to catch up on my leisure reading over the next month of freedom before the grind starts up again.  Here's the latest BC updates:

Manga/Graphic Novel Bookbox: I signed up for my first BC bookbox. This box is full of manga and graphic novels shipped to participants across the U.S. (sorry not an international one). Participants take as many as they want, but add the same number back to the box and then send it on it's way to the next person on the list.  Here's the forum link if anyone else is interested in joining.  I received the box in the mail yesterday and I can't believe how many volumes are in it!  It's gonna take a few days to go through and decide what to keep.

Audubon BookCrossers:  The ABXC group meets monthly at the Panera Bread in Audubon, PA and last Sunday was the largest gathering that I've attended there so far.  We had the usual BCers attend, plus Flut3girl home from college and nat4lee visiting.  It was so large, we attracted attention from a number of Panera-goers who asked about what we were doing.  We informed them about BookCrossing and several people even left with books.  What a wonderful thing!  For the first time, I brought books to the meeting and left without any.  That's a good accomplishment for me right now since my bookshelves are overflowing.  I need to release more and bring home less (or at least stuff that I will read and release).

Park House Coffee OBCZ:  Sad news from Ridley Park, PA.  The Park House Coffee (a.k.a. Park House Cafe), which is home to an Official BC Zone, has closed.  The cafe changed ownership multiple times in the last few years, but the OBCZ (run by my pal Bascula) persevered. Park House Coffee was a wonderful place to grab a hot drink and relax. I hope it reopens again.  I'll keep you updated.  A group of BCers met there in November hoping to start a new meetup group, but plans will be postponed until we find another location.

Reading Challenges:  Since I haven't reached my challenge goals yet, I'm going to hold my own little read-a-thon next week.  What else would a bookcrosser want to do on vacation!?!  I'll be away visiting family for the holidays, but will host my own 24 hour read-a-thon on Tuesday or Wednesday.  It'll come down to the wire, but I think I can pull off my "Pages Read Challenge" goal of 15,000 pages. I have about 1,700 pages to go.  I have four books to read for the "Read Ten 1001 Books Challenge."  Not sure if I'll reach that one, but I'd be satisfied with one more completed.  I'm still figuring out my challenge goals for 2011 so stay tuned.

I'll post again next week, until then...

HAPPY HOLIDAYS! 

Completely Unrelated To Books...Seven Days of Yoga

Lynn from The Next Chapter is hosting the Seven Day Yoga Challenge this week. It has nothing to do with books or libraries so why am I posting about it?

Well, sometimes you need a jump start or a change in pace to shake up your routine...like reading a book completely outside your genre comfort zone. Yoga was hobby of mine during college.  I attended yoga classes at my school's fitness center whenever I had free time between my studies and other responsibilities.  It was a fun stress reliever that was different from any other activity in my life at the time.

Today I spend my days working in a library and my free time reading, BookCrossing, blogging and attempting to keep up with all my Google Reader feeds. So when I saw Lynn's yoga challenge it reminded me that even though books are such a huge part of my life, I need to throw other stuff in the mix...to break up my reading, to relieve stress after work and to keep everything feeling fresh (and fun).  That's why I decided to take the Seven Day Yoga Challenge. Hopefully it'll spark my passion for yoga again.

If you want to learn more, head over to Lynn's blog and cheer on the other participants.  I'll update this post throughout the week to share my progress in this challenge.  Have a great week everyone!

Sunday: Zen in Your Den, 20 minutes, from Exercise TV On Demand.
Monday: Yoga on the Edge Sunset, 27 minutes, from Exercise TV On Demand.
Tuesday: The Biggest Loser: The Workout: Weight Loss Yoga, 30 minutes, DVD
Wednesday: Louise Solomon's Yoga & Pilates: Total Body Toner, Workout One, 20 minutes?, DVD

The Summer of Reading Challenges

This summer is my chance to catch up on a bunch of books I want to read before starting grad school this fall (eek!). So here's two awesome summer reading challenges I found.  Compile your summer TBR list and join in!

Summer Reading Challenge 2010 - hosted by Julie at My Book Retreat. It kicked off last Monday, June 21 (the first day of summer) and runs until September 21.  Three whole months!  To participate, create a list of the books you’d like to read or finish during this summer season...there's no minimum and no requirements as to the type of books you put on your list. YAY!  See her blog for more details.

Summer Slimdown - Carina's (Reading Through Life) reading challenge starts TODAY June 29 and ends on September 6.  Her one rule: it has to be on your shelf already by June 28 to count. Check out blog and post your TBR list.

Since I seem to change my reading goals every few days, I can't guarantee I'll stick to it 100%.  The books with the asterisks (**) are titles that won't count toward the Summer Slimdown because they're not on my shelf yet (i.e. not yet released). 

My TBR list for these summer challenges: (in no real particular order)

The King's Mistress by Emma Campion - I won an ARC...this book releases on July 6!

Dawnbreaker (Dark Days, 3) by Jocelynn Drake

Pray for Dawn (Dark Days, 4) by Jocelynn Drake** Releases TODAY June 29!!

Dracula In Love by Karen Essex - I have an ARC. This book releases on August 10!

Dracula by Bram Stoker - I attempted to read it once but got sidetracked...need to read it before I start Dracula In Love. Plus, it's a 1001 book.

The Puzzle Ring by Kate Forsyth

Graceling by Kristin Cashmore - I feel like I'm the only person who hasn't read this one yet.

The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield

Mockingjay (The Final Book of The Hunger Games) by Suzanne Collins** Releases on August 24!  I can't wait for this one!!

The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman

Fairest by Gail Carson Levine

Frankenstein by Mary Shelley - 1001 Book.  I'm behind in my 1001 book challenge (reading ten 1001 books this year).

Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson - 1001 Book (part of an anthology with Frankenstein and Dracula)

That's 13 books!  I'll update my progress throughout the summer.  Happy readings!