50 Book Challenge 2015 in Not All Who Wander Are Lost

This year I decided to attempt the Popsugar “50 book challenge” and I’m pleased to say I actually finished! I know, you’re asking yourself how I managed to read 50 books when I barely have the focus to read the instructions on a recipe these days. Well, friends, audio books are my friend. And since I have the most insanely boring job ever, I can spend my days listening to books instead of wanting to jab pens in my eyes.

A book with more than 500 pages
The Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follet - This book was EPIC. Super long and you super hated the bad guys and super loved the good guys and sometimes you got mad and wanted to throw things at it but in the end, two thumbs up, would definitely recommend.

A classic romance
The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton - Uhm, yeah. Failing to see the “classic romance” part of the book.

A book that became a movie
Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn - Spent the first half of the book second guessing EVERYTHING. Honestly both the characters were terrible people and deserved what they got. Still, interesting read that kept me on my toes.

A book published this year
The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins - I think pretty much everyone read this book this year and for good reason. It definitely held my interest and I loved the narrators.

A book with a number in the title
1984 by George Orwell - This book was published in 1949? Could George Orwell see into the future??

A book written by someone under 30
Mr. Fox by Helen Oyeyemi - As someone who writes fanfic, and a lot of AUs of that fanfic, I LOVED THIS BOOK. Oh my gosh. Beautifully crafted and gorgeous writing and I felt it.

A book with nonhuman characters
The Golem and the Jinni by Helene Wecker - Yes, yes, YES, this book was awesome. Magic and romance and more magic and yay!

A funny book
Bossy Pants by Tina Fey - Nuff said.

A book by a female author
Yes, Please by Amy Poehler - Also nuff said.

A mystery or thriller
And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie - I’ve loved Agatha ever since I read A Murder is Announced in 8th grade, but never got around to reading this classic. It was well crafted and kept you guessing.

A book with a one word title
Horns by Joe Hill - I really liked this book, it was really funny at times and other times chilling and depressing.

A book of short stories
Very Good, Jeeves by P.G. Wodehouse - This was hysterical. A rich English dude gets into all sorts of trouble and his valet Jeeves gets him back out of it in the most unusual and incredibly funny ways.

A book set in a different country
Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier - I really loved the movie so I was excited to read the book. Both are definitely classics.

A nonfiction book
The Most Dangerous Animal of All by Gary Stewart - This book was terribly written and nonsensical. Basically it’s the “true” account of this dude and why he thinks his father was the Zodiac Killer. But his evidence is shady to begin with and it was honestly so poorly written. DID HE NOT HAVE AN EDITOR??? Plus he tried to make it like an actual novel instead of just a factual account? So he writes about what his father was thinking or doing and like, how can he know that, he never even met the guy? Ugh. Do not recommend.

A popular author’s first book
Carrie by Stephen King - Really enjoyed this one. Read by Sissy Spacek, too, and how knows Carrie better?

A book from an author you love that you haven’t read yet
Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman - I mean . . . It’s Neil. Also read by Neil. Neil Gaiman doing a Scottish accent is known to bring women (and some men) to orgasm.

A book a friend recommended
Life As We Knew It by Susan Beth Pfeffer - My friend Jenny recommended this to me. It’s the diary of a girl who’s world is, literally, thrown off balance when a big meteor hits the moon and knocks it out of sync with the earth. Basically everything goes to shit, there’s tons of tsunamis and earth quakes and the gas runs out and food and disease and yadda yadda yadda. The narrator wasn’t that annoying through so that was good. Good, easy read.

A pulitzer prize winning book
Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides - Good read. Not much to say about it.

A book based on a true story
Between Man and Beast by Monte Reel - This is the true story of an explorer named Paul Du Chaillu and his discovery of gorillas in Africa in the mid 1800s. It actually a really fascinating read, going into a lot of the politics of scientists of that time and how a lot of them were kind of dickheads.

A book at the bottom of your to-read list
The Art of Fielding by Chad Harbach - So I basically just went to my goodreads, sorted by date added, and went from there, lol. This was one John Green had recommended in a vlogbrothers video that I added and never got around to reading. Until now. It was pretty good, a lot of baseball talk but I enjoyed it.

A book your mom loves
King Peggy by Peggielene Bartels - My mom read this for her book club and loved it. It’s the true story of a woman who was working at the American embassy and receives a phone call one morning that her uncle back in Ghana has died and she is now the king of this village. It’s really awesome and really inspirational.

A book more than 100 years old
The Awakening by Kate Chopin - Meeehhhh. Like I get it? But I don’t get it.

A book based entirely on its cover
Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro - Man this book was depressing as hell. Still. Good read. Just. Depressing.

A book you were supposed to read in school but didn’t
Where the Red Fern Grows by Wilson Rawls - brb, crying FOREVER.

A memoir
Tibetan Peach Pie by Tom Robbins - Tom Robbins is absolutely one of my favorite authors ever so I was really excited to listen to this. The narrator was excellent, sounding exactly the way you would expect Tom Robbins to sound, and the memoir did not disappoint. Man. He’s just so awesome.

A book you can finish in a day
Brideshead Revisted by Evelyn Waugh - Super saaaaad.

A book with antonyms in the title
Big Girl Small by Rachel DeWoskin - Hated this book. Hated the writing, hated the narrator, hated the story. Also, I was excited at first because the book took place in Ann Arbor, which is very close to here, but sometimes it sounded like a fucking road map. “We drove down Washtenaw, and then turned left and then we were in Ypsilanti, which I’d never been to before.” Uh, no, you don’t live in A2 all your life and never go to Ypsi. I CALL FALSE.

A book set somewhere you’ve always wanted to visit
Life After Life by Kate Atkinson - Takes place in England, mostly around the second WW. EXCELLENT book, again, because I write fanfic I really, really enjoyed the concept of this book, of living the same life over and over again until you “get it right” so to speak.

A trilogy
Magicians Trilogy by Lev Grossman - This was explained to me as “Harry Potter for adults” which I guess is true in that it’s a magic school and there’s a lot more sex, drugs, and drinking, but that’s a very small part of it. I’d call it half HP for adults and the other half Narnia for adults. It was interesting, definitely, I liked the world he created and the magic used was new and different.

A book from your childhood
Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson - brb STILL CRYING FOREVER

A book with a love triangle
The Diviners by Libba Bray - So the love triangle is actually a very small part of this book OMG THIS BOOK made me want to move to 1920s New York and become a flapper and drink gin. Well, I do the gin drinking anyway, but, for reals, this book was amaze. The sequel just came out and I can’t wait to listen to it.

A book set in high school
Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher - Interesting concept for a book - a girl kills herself and leaves cassette tape messages to all the people who had a hand in her suicide. It was an okay book, I didn’t particularly care for the narrators, though, and being an adult it was a little hard for me to sympathize with the main character.

A book with a color in the title
Anne of Green Gables by Lucy Maud Montgomery - Loved this one. Loooooooved.

A book that made you cry
Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell by Susanna Clarke - Honestly, I don’t think this book was even supposed to make me cry, but cue the waterworks for me, I was bawling at the end. It’s sort of an alternate version of history where England has magicians and employs them during the war and it was very good. Very long. But very good.

A book with magic
The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstein - Okay, so, this book was read by Jim Dale which is automatically amazing but but BUT, I just adored this book. It had magic, it had romance, it had mystery and intrigue and I adoooored it. Five stars would recommend.

A book by an author you’ve never read before
I Am Not Myself These Days by Josh Kilmer-Purcell - This memoir is equal parts hysterical and heartbreaking. Reminded me so much of David Sedaris, whom I love, so I enjoyed every minute of it.

A book you own but have never read
World War Z by Max Brooks - I really liked the audio of this. The book is formatted as interviews so each section had a different narrator. Rob Reiner was even one!

A book that was originally written in a different language
Love in the Time of Cholera by Gabriel García Márquez - I . . . Did not care for this one. I loved the language, it was gorgeous, but I did not care for the story at all.

A book written by an author with your same initials
Amy and Roger’s Epic Detour by Morgan Matson - So this was one book that I gasp actually had to read. But it was worth it. Super cute, YA, quick, enjoyable read.

A play
A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry - So Jo is awesome and found me a recording of the original Broadway version of this play, so I still got to listen to it. :D VERY good play, really enjoyed listening to it.

A banned book
Animal Farm by George Orwell - Another classic. Really loved it.

A book based on or turned into a TV show
The 100 by Kass Morgan - I really liked this book, I really enjoyed the narrators. Adam watched the TV show so I tried to watch it and honestly couldn’t stomach it. They changed SO MUCH and wrote out two of my favorite characters. No, thanks.

A book you started but never finished
Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov - Sooo, yeah. I mean. Again, this book is beautifully written but the content makes me squidgy. However, it was read by Jeremy Irons so . . .

A graphic novel
Blankets by Craig Thompson - Love love lovely.

A book that takes place in your hometown
How To Tell Toledo From the Night Sky by Lydia Netzer - So I was just excited to find an audio book that takes place in Toledo. However, this book was . . . Weird. Like. I don’t know. Weird? Weird. A narwal lives in the Maumee River. But whatever. It was cool hearing about some local stuff. Even if the book was fucking weird.

A book that came out the year you were born
The Bourne Identity * by Robert Ludlow - One of the few time where I love the book and I love the movie and they are NOTHING LIKE EACH OTHER. Seriously, pretty much the name Jason Bourne is the same and nothing else. But they’re both still so good. I’d definitely recommend reading it if you like the movie.

A book set in the future
Feed by M. T. Anderson - Basically in the future we all have computers in our brains. Doesn’t seem that surprising.

A book that scares you
The Shining by Stephen King - Uhm, yes, this book is terrifying. Very different from the movie as well but again, I really enjoy both.

A book with bad reviews
The Pearl by John Steinbeck - And I can see why. This book is depressing AF.

A book set during Christmas
My True Love Gave To Me by various authors - This is a collection of holiday themed stories. I was excited for this one because of Rainbow Rowell and Stephanie Perkins, and without a doubt their stories were my two favorites. Most of the stories were hit or miss for me, but none of them were terrible. Well, maybe the one where this girl goes to college in the midwest and has SUCH an attitude about mid-westerners, but that might be because I’m from the midwest, lol. All in all very cute and fun and perfect for the holiday season.