I'm a bit late to this party but that's because I've only just got to know Rosemary who blogs at, Scones and Chaise Longues. At the beginning of the year Rosemary created a personal challenge and encouraged anyone who was interested to join in. It's called 'Projectplaces 2020' and simply involves reading books whose titles include a place name of some sort. This can be very widely interpreted:
What is a place name? Does it need to be a town? A country? A village? Can it include a house name, or even something as vague as The Homesick Restaurant? And does it have to be 'real'? - what about Cold Comfort Farm, Hangover Square or even Kirrin Island?
So I decided not only to join in with this year long project but also to take her words to heart. I had a brief look at my shelves and came up with this pile. (If I'd had a 'long' look it's likely the pile would've collapsed the shelf...)
Some of these will double up for other challenges or reading projects I'm doing, the European Reading one, Mount TBR, Venture Forth etc. And all but one are TBRs, the 'one' being Puck of Pook's Hill by Rudyard Kipling which I read about 30 years ago. I've also tried to mix up the genres for a nice bit of variety, so I have three murder mysteries, a fantasy, a supernatural story, four non-fictions and so on.
I'm pretty sure that more will be added as the weeks go by and maybe not all of these will be read. I'm looking at this lot as my summer reading along with the books for Carl's Venture Forth, and some will be read for both.
I don't usually take on summer reading challenges but this year, with lockdown still affecting us due to my husband's underlying health issues, I'm determined to have fun wherever I can find it.
Are you reading anything in particular for summer? Joining any summer challenges? Whatever you're doing enjoy your summer reading plans.
8 comments:
Cath - I am so thrilled to have your company on this one! And I haven't read a single one of your books, so I am looking forward to hearing about them. I have read other books by Colin Thubron, but many years ago, and I think I may have the Frank Muir one, but certainly haven't read it. I remember him from Call My Bluff (showing my age here...)
It's great when one book can fit into two themes, isn't it? Wonderful sense of achievement!
Rosemary
This looks like the kind of challenge in which you end up with a lot of different types of books instead of a bunch of mysteries, a bunch of travel books, etc. I like that most about it.
Speaking of the lockdown, I drove by the big bookstore I've been shopping weekly for at least a couple of decades, and it absolutely broke my heart to see it dark inside and it's big parking lot almost completely empty. This is the first time I've ever seen the store without its lights on...and it was a bit of a jolt.
That is a nice mix of books. I like reading challenges, but I decided not to do any this year. Still, this one sounds like a lot of fun. Happy reading! :)
This sounds like a fun project. And it will be fun for me to see where you end up going (by book). A lot of those books are new to me.
This does sound like a fun reading project! I always join reading challenges, just for fun, but I rarely end up actually completing them. Being quarantined has helped me do a little better this year!
Rosemary: I'm quite excited about doing this with you. It's going to be very interesting to see the kind of journeys we end up taking with both the fiction and the non-fiction. Don't worry, I too remember Call My Bluff very well, hilarious without ever being crude.
Yes, #ProjectPlaces will fit very well with the other things I'm doing, bookwise, and the real plan is to reduce the tbr pile a bit.
Sam: Yes, you can read 'anything' for this as long as the title involves the name of a place. It's hugely flexible.
I feel for you seeing your favourite bookshop in darkness like that. It's so heart-breaking. Let's hope it will be safe for it to open soon.
Lark: I decided not to do very many reading challenges this year too. I signed on for two in January and now two more, but they're not really 'challenges' in the sense that you 'have' to read a certain number of books. So it's more flexible while still giving me some focus.
Tracy: That's why I decided to join in, because it really does sound like fun *and* hopefully it'll remove a few books off the tbr mountain.
Susan: I actually think the fun side of challenges is the thing to concentrate on. The joy of them is not the end result but the taking part. The people you meet etc.
Hi Cath,
I don't think I have ever known you sign up for quite so many challenges in one year - it's the sheer volume of books you have pledged to read that makes my eyes water!
I shall be off to check out Rosemary's site in a moment, although I see she beat me to it with the observation and memory of Frank Muir taking part in 'Call My Bluff'- so we must all be of that same 'certain' age! His Wikipedia entry, and no doubt the memoir you feature, are full of names which are real 'blasts from the past', although Robert Robinson is always the first to spring to mind, as the other face from 'Call My Bluff' and of course 'Ask The Family'.
I scanned your selection for this shelf and the one which really caught my eye is the John Brandon 'A Scream In Soho', I'm really interested in reading that one!
Thanks for sharing and have fun with the challenge :)
Yvonne
xx
Hi Yvonne, oh yes I have signed up for more challenges before, sometimes six to eight in one year. I started out with two this year, The European one and Mount TBR. I've read more than the required amount of books for the European and am only 4 short for Mount TBR. So needing a bit more motivation I've signed up for two more. I like help to stay focussed. LOL
I think we're all of that certain age. Yes, Robert Robinson hosted Call My Bluff and I remember Ask the Family very well too. Somehow there seemed to be more to watch in those days.
Take care and have a good weekend.
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