So I started my reading challenge this month, which you can read about here. This post will be a bit of an update on how things are going, and a little behind the scenes of how I am going about choosing books.

This month, I completed Think Like A Freak, BtVS: New Rules, and During the Reign of the Queen of Persia. One non-fiction, one graphic novel, and one fiction.

I LOVED New Rules, which may not be all that surprising to those of you who know how much I love Buffy the Vampire Slayer, but this one exceeded my expectations. I got that one for Christmas and was looking forward to reading it before knowing how awesome it was. I am super excited about the following books in this series, and am champing at the bit for the next one to come out.

I read Think Like A Freak because I had requested it several months ago from the library and my turn came up. Like I mentioned in my review, it was just a rehash of topics they’d covered in the podcast, so I felt like it was a waste of my time. I doubt I will read any other books they have put out. At least it was short.

I still have mixed feelings about During the Reign of the Queen of Persia. When choosing, I searched “best books of 1983” and I found an old New York Times Book Review article that had about ten books listed on it, and this was the most interesting sounding one. Now I feel bad for the other books on the list. Perhaps I should have read some reviews first? Although I also found glowing reviews from NPR and other places, so maybe I’m just too picky about silly things like plots.

I haven’t chosen the next book I’m going to read yet. I’ve been thinking about doing the 500+ pages one, the classic romance, or the one set in the place I was born. The latter is proving to be more difficult than I expected, and I didn’t even expect it to be easy. Most books are set in Cape Breton, which is technically Nova Scotia, but so far away from where I was born I don’t know how it would count. Many others are historical books about Halifax, in the time of the Halifax Explosion. Which could be cool. I found one that takes place in “rural Nova Scotia”, but doesn’t specify where exactly. Another takes place near Kejimkujik Park, which is fairly close but still not exactly it. There was a surprising amount of erotica that takes place in Halifax. So I haven’t quite decided yet. Part of it does depend on the availability of said book.

As far as 500+ paged books, I have a lot of choices. I’ve listed a few on my Goodreads shelf for this challenge, contenders that I’ve “bookmarked” for later reference. I had originally intended to read Outlander by Diane Gabaldon for this one, but 850 pages is quite the commitment! I would like to combine classic romance with this also, but I’m not sure I’m in the mood for Jane Eyre.

If you are doing a reading challenge, I’d love to hear an update on your progress!