50 Book Challenge: First Quarter Update

It is the last day of April. Do you know what that means? The year is already ¼ over. How many books have you read so far? To be on track to finish the 50 by the end of the year, you should have read about 12 books so far. My count right now is 21 (21.5 if you count the book I’m currently reading), and that doesn’t even include my text book from my class (and I read every page, I swear!). I know I am ahead of the curve, but hey- where I work, there are books EVERYWHERE.

A lot of the books I have read so far this year are books I’ve spotlighted in earlier posts; but here is a little description of each.

1.Just Kids by Patti Smith-(Nonfiction)
A biography of Patti Smith’s early years with Robert Mapplethorpe in NYC.

2.Uglies by Scott Westerfeld- (Teen Fiction)
What if everyone was “ugly” but turned pretty on their 16th birthday? That’s all Tally wanted until she meets Shay, who might just want to stay ugly.

3. Houdini the Handcuff King by Jason Lutes- (Graphic Novel)
A short story about one of Houdini’s greatest illusions and set in early 1900s Boston

4. Return to Paradise by Simone Elkeles- (Teen Fiction)
I read the first book, Leaving Paradise, last year about two teens’ unlikely friendship and romance after a horrific car accident. Return to Paradise wraps up Maggie’s and Caleb’s story nicely.

5. Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist by Rachel Cohn and Levithan- (Teen Fiction)
I’ve seen the movie and read one of Cohns and Levithan's other books, Dash and Lily’s Book of Dares so I thought I would give it a try. Follow Nick and Norah for one night all around New York City just as they are getting to know each other and Norah is in the middle of making a big life decision.

6. I Know I Am, But What Are You? by Samantha Bee- (Nonfiction)
A collection of funny essays written The Daily Show’s Samantha Bee. Find out what it was like to grow up in Canada and be just a little bit different.

7. The Eternal Smile by Derek Kirk Kim and Gene Luen Yang- (Graphic Novel)
Three intriguing, thought-provoking stories about how what we believe in shapes our decisions.

8. Janes in Love by Cecil Castelucci and Jim Rugg-(Graphic Novel)
Continues the story of four teenage outsiders named Jane. They started PLAIN, sort of a guerilla neighborhood beautification project but will they be foiled by friends, parents and the local government? I was sad to hear that a sequel to this book was scrapped during the planning phase; But do not let that stop you from reading it. It is a great standalone story.

9. The Imperfectionists by Tom Rachman-(Fiction)
This book focuses on interconnected stories about people at an English language newspaper in Rome. Narrators of each story are all connected to the newspaper from all departments and all time periods throughout the paper’s history.

10. Sleepwalk with Me by Mike Birbiglia- (Nonfiction)
Another collection of humorous essays about being a little bit different, but this time it is hazardous to his health. The author has a sleep disorder and once jumped out of window while asleep. You should also check out some of his stories on This American Life. And he is from Massachusetts.

11. 12. 13. 14. 15. Fables 11-14 and 1001 Nights of Snowfall by Bill Willingham (Graphic Novels)
I highly recommend this series about Fables who set out to make a new home in NYC, but just can’t ever seem to catch a break. Great art and funny and thrilling storylines always keep me interested. I am currently reading Fables #15 Rose Red now and cannot put it down.

16. The Help by Kathryn Stockett- (Fiction)
I listened to the audio book version and really enjoyed the performances. Both Diane and I have mentioned this book so you can read what we’ve previously said here and here.

17. Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins- (Teen Fiction)
Sort of a cringe-worthy title to me, but I really enjoyed the book and read it very quickly. Anna spends her senior year at a boarding school in France, learning the language and making new friends including the dreamy Etienne.

18. Pretties by Scott Westerfeld- (Teen Fiction)
This is a sequel to Westerfeld’s Uglies. I do not want to give too much away because you need to start with the first book, but just know that is it the continuation of Tally’s story and her place in the Ugly/Pretty/ Special society.

19. Jumpstart the World by Catherine Ryan Hyde- (Teen Fiction)
When Elle’s mother remarries, she is forced to live in her own NYC apartment. That is a dream come true for any 15 year old, right? Well Elle doesn’t see it that way, but when the kind couple next door takes her under their wing, it doesn’t seem that bad.

20. One of Our Thursdays is Missing by Jasper Fforde- (Fiction)
The sixth book in the series about Thursday Next that I recommend to anyone who will listen. This time it is fictional Thursday’s turn to save the day, but can be as cunning, clever and brave as her real-life counterpart if she wasn’t written that way?

21. Bossypants by Tina Fey- (Nonfiction)
Once getting past the slightly creepy cover, inside you will find many funny (and even some laugh-out-loud) stories about Tina Fey’s childhood, time at SNL, and about her current position as writer and star of 30 Rock.

22. (Currently Reading) A Red Herring without Mustard by Alan Bradley- (Fiction)
Flavia de Luce and her bike, Gladys, are back solving mysteries around Bishop’s Lacey, a small village in England. The youngest daughter, she is still exacting revenge on her sisters Ophelia and Daphne, while befriending a girl named Porcelain and finding out more about her mother Harriet, who went missing during a mountain expedition 10 years earlier.

And I was going to star* the books that I most highly recommended, but I couldn’t pick which ones were the best. I have been really lucky so far this year because I have not read one book that I didn’t enjoy.


So what is the best of the best that you have read so far this year? Or have you been and lucky and I have been and liked them all? Either way, let me know!