50 Book Challenge 2022 Part One

[southeastdweller]

Welcome to the first thread of the 50 Book Challenge for this year.

The challenge is to read fifty books (or more!) in 2022, though reading fifty isn't mandatory. Any type of book can count, and please try to let us all know your thoughts on what you've read.

If possible, please can you embolden your titles and maybe authors as well of books you've read or going to read? It makes it much easier to keep track, especially when the threads move quickly at this time of the year.

Who's in for this year?

Currently reading saint deaths daughter

@SuperLoudPoppingAction It is!

I'm in!

I've been on and off these threads over the years under various names but have always followed from afar whether I've joined or not. This year I have a newborn so I imagine much of my reading will be done bleary-eyed during night feeds.
Thank you for setting up the new thread southeast!

Currently reading War and Peace and Mr Loverman by Bernardine Evaristo.

Hello I would like to join in this year - I've often lurked on previous threads to get some reading inspiration.
I've started the year on a bit of a World War Two theme having reread life after life over Christmas (in isolation)
Now just started with The Camomile Lawn and next plan to read The light perpetual which was mentioned a couple of times in favourite reads of 2021 by a few people I follow on Instagram who like similar books to me.
My favourite books of last year that I read were still life by sarah winman , three hours and the push .

@LadybirdDaphne

Yes I’m in! Thanks for setting us up for the new year southeast!

I’ve finished my first book of the year (to be fair, I’m 13 hours ahead of the UK so had a head start on most of you, and only had a little bit of the book left to listen to):

1. Writing the Bible: Origins of the Old Testament - Martien Halvorson-Taylor
Exploration of the historical context in which the Old Testament books were written, tracking the development of the stories from oral tradition to something like the corpus of texts we have today (not fixed until the early centuries of the first millennium AD). Fascinating if you’re interested in ancient history, and plenty of material to save up for an argument with my biblical literalist DF. The last bit is possibly not a benefit available to most readers.

Picked up Luster and Contented Dementia (Oliver James) in the January monthly deals, and may go back in for a few more - some good stuff in there this time.

I was going to ask if anyone has been into the deals yet. I'll reward myself by looking at a page every time I match a pair of socks. I am in my underwear drawer and it's quite scary. I have found a pair of pants that I know I bought in 1988. I don't know if this makes me a minger or if it's testimony to the quality of M&S back in the day. I also distinctly remember them costing £1.49 which was a huge amount then! (I am not the knicker troll)

@Covetthee

I’d like to join. I love reading but I am also another phone scroller. Need to detox a bit from my phone and i know once I get back into reading i love it and hardly touch my phone. I set myself a goal of 50 last year and did great first half and read about 30 books then i had a baby and lost the mojo

i’m starting one today and hopefully i can hit my 50 this year.

So true about the scrolling. I say it every year. I think I need to put my phone in a different room.

@MegBusset
Sounds like we have a similar taste in books, I loved A Walk In The Woods also listened on Audible. I love Bryson, and I think it's my favourite (Closely followed by The Thunderbolt Kid> Also enjoyed Prisoners of Geography

I also have three or four on the go. - one Kindle, one Audible and a hard copy downstairs.
Currently have The Rose Code on Kindle for in bed, The Rotters Club on Audible (but not really feeling it so might give up) and just about the start The Woman Reader by Belinda Jacks (Hardback Xmas present from DD)

Can I join in please?

I have a lovely notebook to keep a record of reading in and have done for a few years now, I'm reading more and more each year. This year I will have a bit more childfree time so hoping to fit in some reading then.

I'm currently reading Winter Solstice by Rosamunde Pilcher

Thanks so much for the new thread, south

Happy New Year's Reading to all, and welcome to the new joiners - this is the best bit of MN, as I keep saying . I don't make NY resolutions normally but if I did I'd resolve not to be spooked by the cracking pace of the thread at the start....I just plod on with my reads regardless and it all comes right in the end.

Is there really a January Kindle deal page, as distinct from the 12 days of Kindle? If so, could some kind person link to it?!

@DelightfulDinosaurs

I'm in!

I've been on and off these threads over the years under various names but have always followed from afar whether I've joined or not. This year I have a newborn so I imagine much of my reading will be done bleary-eyed during night feeds.
Thank you for setting up the new thread southeast!

Currently reading War and Peace and Mr Loverman by Bernardine Evaristo.

mr loverman is on my TBR @DelightfulDinosaurs what do you think of it?

@Terpsichore I find Amazon's Kindle deals increasingly hard to navigate but did notice they are offering a five pound voucher if you spend 15 on Kindle books before 7th Jan.

Please could I join? I used to read all the time and then life took over with a busy job and since I had a baby but I know sumx it's just a case of me not prioritising time for myself. Like others when I've actually taken time to do it I love the escape. Not quite decided on the books yet but excited to make a list

Happy new year everyone. I lurked on the thread last year and managed 51 books! Which is a vast improvement. Like others I need to scroll less and read more. Thanks southeast for starting the thread.

My current reads are War and Peace with the read along thread, and the third Strike book Career of Evil. I love Strike, I’m new to the books, read the first in November.

Happy New Year 50 Bookers! Thanks to @southeastdweller for hosting. Welcome back to the regular posters, and welcome to those joining us for the first time - congratulations on finding the best corner of Mumsnet. I didn't manage 50 last year, but have in the past and hope to again.

A long soak in the bath has given me the opportunity to finish my first of the year:

1.No-one is Talking About This by Patricia Lockwood
This is a novel of two parts. In the first part, an unnamed female protagonist negotiates her way through online life. Largely unstructured, she records a series of vignettes about her encounters on The Portal. In the second part she experiences a family crisis, which affects how she views life on and offline.

The first part is sharply well-observed, and mostly funny. There is a tiny hint of Austen in how she reflects online etiquette and interactions. The lack of any structure or significant biographical detail did affect how engaging this was, however. The second part has more of a traditional plot, more detail about the protagonist’s life, and is therefore much more affecting. The protagonist’s experiences of love and grief are touching and relatable.

I did really like this, but feel that there was a possibly an even better book to have been had here, combining the wit of the first part with the warmth of the second.

Also, I would like to be horribly superficial, and discuss the fact that the paperback cover is awful. I assume intentionally, ironically so, but it reminded me most of something self-published from evangelical Christian bookshop, which was quite off-putting.

Next up: Merivel by Rose Tremain

I’m in! I read a lot last year but not quite 50! Keen to give it a go.

Just started Klara and the Sun.

I'm in! Happy New Year all

Currently finishing the perfect family- Robyn Harding really enjoying it, about five pages to go.

@Terpsichore

Thanks so much for the new thread, south

Happy New Year's Reading to all, and welcome to the new joiners - this is the best bit of MN, as I keep saying . I don't make NY resolutions normally but if I did I'd resolve not to be spooked by the cracking pace of the thread at the start....I just plod on with my reads regardless and it all comes right in the end.

Is there really a January Kindle deal page, as distinct from the 12 days of Kindle? If so, could some kind person link to it?!

I’m dipping my toe in here this year. I have joined before (under different names) but always given up and so this advice not to be spooked by the pace really resonates. The speed of the thread (and the speed some people get through books) can be a bit startling at first. Last year I stayed with the 26 books thread the whole year (and smashed my goal with 72!) but actually read quite a bit of the 50 book threads too, so I’m going to try to contribute this year.

I’m starting the year with Hungry by Grace Dent which I’ve had on my Kindle for ages after getting it at a deal price, but had sort of forgotten about. It came highly recommended on the round up of last year’s threads though, which prompted me to dig it out. I’m also in the mood for more late 20th century memoir, after finishing Josh Widdicombe’s 90s TV based memoir Watching Neighbours Twice a Day, which was a surprise laugh-out-loud hit for me.

Thanks @southeastdweller I'm in!

I managed 108 books in 2021 but am aiming for 50 this year as I want to focus on quality rather than quantity and want to read more classics and non-fiction which take me a bit longer to read.

Im currently reading Needful Things by Stephen King and am listening to This Much is True by Miriam Margolyes. I'm also doing the War and Peace read along so will read my first chapter today.

I'd like to join too please. I was on the 50 book thread a few years ago under a different name, so hoping to keep going this year. I managed just over 100 books last year.

I'm reading The Man Who Died Twice.
Off to count how many books I read last year. Definitely wasn't 50!

YnsMon uh-oh. That's torn it

TheAnswerIsCake Great to see you on this thread. The first year I joined in properly here I got in a real panic because I wasn't reading nearly as fast as I thought I should be - but a year is a long time and it's surprising how things even out. I read 108 books last year (snap with MamaNewt) but my January tally wasn't that spectacular because I had a lot of distractions and personal problems that stopped me concentrating on books. So yes, just keep the faith!

Apologies for mis-spelling your name, YnysMonCrone, autocorrect says no!

I’m finishing off Vanity Fair (today hopefully as I am sick with a disgusting cold and have lost my voice) and joining the W&P and Hard Times readalong.

I went through my kindle a few weeks ago and created a spreadsheet with a column for books I would like get to sooner, books I would like to read eventually and non fiction. It sort of feels the same as looking at my bookshelves when deciding on a hard copy.

Forgot to add what I'm reading - The Suspicions of Mr Whicher by Kate Summerscale. It's really interesting, raising lots of questions about how investigations of crimes were carried out, how limited the police were in those days. Also shocking how poorly the investigation was carried out, evidence tampered with and lost or allowed to be destroyed, and anyone could just march in and start throwing around theories and muddying the waters, accusing anyone, without proper evidence.

The added layer of interest for me is that the crime took place only a few miles up the road from where I live and I'm familiar with a lot of the places mentioned.