The 2015 Reading Challenge

We look behind us and see how the year passed so quickly. All the problems, worries, moments of happiness, sadness and angst that we have gone through in this year will soon become nothing more than a shadow, a memory of a distant 2014. My grandmother used to say, that we should always sweep the dust out the door when the clock struck midnight on December 31^st. This was a symbol of sweeping all our problems and unfinished business out the door and start the new year like a white page. Nothing should bind us to the old year, since a new one is full of opportunities and hidden treasures. So what better way to start the year than with a good book? Books are a source of knowledge, bright jewels in its own sense, and treasure of human understanding of life. Something I have learned during all my years studying and understanding Literature is that a writer's creed surely should be: “When we don't write, we read.”

Every year there is a proliferation of reading challenges online, on bookstores and probably among several reading groups. Reading challenges are meant for impulsive people to read more and to not get stuck on the first or second book they read during the whole year. Here are some of the most interesting reading challenges I have found surfing the web.

This is a challenge hosted by Books and Chocolate (my favorite two things in the world). This is a challenge the people from this blog hold every year in order to “encourage bloggers to read more classics.” This is one of the most fun and important challenges I found out there. In one of my past hubs I mentioned the importance of reading classics and how writers can benefit from them. This particular challenge has twelve categories of books you can choose from, since no category seems to be obligatory. Among the categories, you will find: 19^th Century classics, classics written by women, classic novella, forgotten classic, and more.

Ah, banned books! The trouble makers, outlaws, deviants, and ruble-rousers of literature. This challenge is about reading books that have been censored or tried to be kept out of the shelves for some reason. This challenge accepts all. Children's books, graphic novels, and in any genre. The name of the categories for this challenge proves it to be very fun. You can be: Making Waves with 1-2 books, a Troublemaker with 3-5, a Rabble-Rouser with 6-9, or Rebel by reading 10-14 books, and finally you could be the Leader of a Revolution when you read 15 books or more. This challenge is being hosted by the good people at Buckling Bookshelves.

This one can be described by its name. For this particular challenge you are to read a book that falls under the umbrella of each movement. The movement list is as it follows:

• January: Medieval
• February: Renaissance
• March: Enlightenment
• April: Romanticism
• May: Transcendentalism
• June: Victorian
• July: Realism
• August: Naturalism
• September: Existentialism
• October: Modernism
• November: The Beat Generation or The Bloomsbury Group
• December: Post-Modernism

This challenge is being hosted by Fanda Classiclit.

This is a challenge I participate every year in. It is very fun to join the group for support, or if you are more of a loner, to do it by yourself. The challenge this year consists in filling the following card:

This Challenge is a challenge of challenges! It is hosted by Cheryl and Gina from CMash Loves to Read and Hot Books respectively, and it is pretty crazy. The rules are simple: enter several challenges which will go through January 1 to December 31^st. You shall track your progress on each challenge

This challenge has different levels, each fitting a different crave for books and challenge. The levels are:

• Easy as Pie: 1-5 Challenges
• On the Roof Top: 6-10 Challenges
• In Flight: 11-15 Challenges
• Out of this world: 16+ Challenges

Some people complain about these reading challenges, saying that dealing with the pressure of reading so many books in a year is too much to bear. For some people these challenges are a way to read as much as they can in a year and they find it fun, because books burn under the stroke over the pages when they turn them. But others feel that a book should be savored and enjoyed with time. This is why some people read up to 300 books in a year (My hat off to all of you, because I am a slow reader), while others are happy by reading maybe twelve or twenty, you know, keeping it on the double digits.

However, I believe these challenges should be fun and a chance for enrichment, nothing more, nothing less. Reading challenges are a great kick start for the new year. You start the year with a purpose and even if you don't accomplish your goals of reading as much as you planned, at least you read something and hopefully you took something from it. Happy reading, Crafters, and Happy New Year.

Back to the Classics Challenge 2015 http://karensbooksandchocolate.blogspot.com/2014/12/announcing-back-to-classics-challenge.html

Banned Books Challenge 2015

http://bucklingbookshelves.blogspot.com/2014/12/banned-books-challenge-2015-sign-ups.html?showComment=1417916431854#c5891137589169298591

Literary Movement Challenge 2015

http://klasikfanda.blogspot.co.uk/2014/10/literary-movement-reading-challenge.html

The GoodReads Reading Challenge 2015

http://www.goodreads.com/group/show/152301-2015-reading-challenge

Reading Challenges Addict 2015

http://readingchallengeaddict.blogspot.com/p/about.html