Wednesday, August 27, 2008

first things first


Okay, I've been mighty sporadic in both my blog reading and blog posting lately. We really haven't been home much during the past few weeks, and during the days we have been home, there's been so many other things to get done. So I have lots of things to post about (none of which are terribly exciting)...but first I must get on with the really important stuff. Yep, Carl has made the announcement that has Annie and I feeling giddy again. A creepy sort of giddy, of course, as we're talking about the R.I.P. III Challenge.

Yes, I know that just in my previous post I talked about knocking off this whole challenge obsession. But I did also clearly state that I would NOT be giving up Carl's Challenges. No way on earth that will ever happen!

Carl has made it exceptionally easy to participate, with levels of "challenge" to suit everyone. You can even choose to read just one book, and still be part of the fun. And believe me, participating in Carl's challenges is nothing if not fun! Seriously, it's way more than a challenge...it's non-stop contests, interesting posts on related subjects, and a big sense of community.

Anyway, another thing Carl has done with this challenge is to continue with the idea of a "book pool" as opposed to a strict list. I really, really, really love this concept! You still get the delight of gathering up piles of books and reading everyone else's possible reads, but you don't feel hemmed in when it comes to the actual reading. Truly the "book pool" is a stroke of genius, if you ask me.

My pool begins with the following:

*The Rest Falls Away by Colleen Gleason (yes, maybe this will be the time that I actually give this well-loved book a go)
*The Island of Dr. Moreau by H.G. Wells
*Heart-Shaped Box by Joe Hill
*Pedro Paramo by Juan Rulfo
*The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson
*We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson
*Dark Harvest by Norman Partridge
*Haunted by Chuck Palahniuk
*The Thirteen Tale by Diane Setterfield
*Witch-Hunt by Marc Aronson
*Dracula by Bram Stoker
*Lost Boy, Lost Girl by Peter Straub
*The Society of S by Susan Hubbard
*The Great and Secret Show by Clive Barker
*Daphne du Maurier's Classics of the Macabre

Edited to add:
(After reading a few other lists, I just had to go to the shelves and pull out a few more choices.)
*Tamsin by Peter S. Beagle
*From the Dust Returned by Ray Bradbury
*Samuel Blink and the Forbidden Forest by Matt Haig
*The Homecoming by Ray Bradbury
*Fragile Things by Neil Gaiman
*Black House by Stephen King and Peter Straub
*The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova
*The Witches by Roald Dahl




(P.S. I'm choosing Peril the First--four books.)

11 comments:

Becky said...

You've got some great books. I loved Dracula. I'm curious to see what you think about H.G. Wells. I fell in love with him last year around this time.

Becky

Ana S. said...

I love the concept of a book pool too. I want all my challenges to be like that! We have a few books in common on our lists...Lost Boy, Lost Girl, The Thirteenth Tale, We Have Always Lived in the Castle...I hope I can get to them all. That's the only downside of a pool...I wish I could read all the books!

DesLily said...

oh boy another Dracula!! :o) I am wondering if I can read it without hearing Bela Lugosia's voice?! heh.

Oh and DO read the Thirteenth Tale!

Anonymous said...

Miss you gobs and gobs, but understand the busy state of being. I am there too. :(

Melody said...

Great list, Debi! I can't wait to read your reviews. I really enjoyed reading The Thirteenth Tale!

Anonymous said...

Oh, The Thirteenth Tale is a good read for RIP. Enjoy!

Carl V. Anderson said...

You crack me up with your Colleen Gleason fears! I'm glad you are braving up and giving it a go! Thanks so much for your enthusiastic participation. I'm so thrilled to have you in the challenge again. Wouldn't be the same without you and Annie!

Debi said...

Becky,
I read my first H.G. Wells earlier this year with The War of the Worlds, and I have to admit I was really surprised by how much I absolutely loved it. So I'm really looking forward to trying another of his.

Nymeth,
I couldn't agree more...I really do want to read them all! Of course, knowing I don't "have" to makes them all the more enticing, I think.

Deslily,
Looks like there's a lot of who may tackle Dracula this year. And I really am looking forward to The Thirteenth Tale...everyone seems to love it!

J.Kaye,
I've missed you, too! Hoping the utter craziness is over now, so I can spend more time with my wonderful blogging friends like you!

Melody & Stephanie,
Sounds like I really do need to put that one at the top of the pile!

Carl,
I know, I know...I'm totally ridiculous with this whole thing! And it will probably turn out that I become a rabid fan after just one book.
Annie and I are both so excited to jump into our scary reads...and we've convinced Rich to join in, too. Actually, it didn't really take much convincing...he's seems to be pretty enthusiastic about it.

Trish @ Love, Laughter, Insanity said...

Wait! I know an addict when I see one!! And your pool must be olympic sized!! I think I'll join this one as well, but my pool will hopefully be a little kiddy pool. The Thirteenth Tale and The Historian are perfect RIP books! Have a great time.

Anonymous said...

Those are some great choices and are perfect for this challenge. I still need to start Colleen Gleason's series, I think we may be the only two people in blogland yet to start them. I read Dracula for this challenge last year and loved it and I want to read many of the others on your list.

Anonymous said...

Hey Debi! I hear you on the sporadic blogging thing. I think you have a better excuse than me though. :)

Give up Carl's challenges? The very idea... *grin*

Excellent list. I think you will really enjoy The Thirteenth Tale, and The Historian is a really perfect choice for the challenge.