TBR Takedown 5.0

#TBRTakedown is a Twitter-based read-a-thon taking place from February 6-12th 2017. The goal is to read a few of the books on our ever-expanding TBR piles. Want to keep track of what's going on? Follow @TBRTakedown .

The thing that grabbed my attention about this read-a-thon is that there are themed challenges to help participants select their TBRs. Here are my picks for each category:

1. On Your TBR Shelf For Ovr A Year

Redeemed
by P.C. and Kirtsten Cast

In the final electrifying novel in the HoN series, Neferet has finally made herself known to mortals. A Dark Goddess is loose on Tulsa and the world. No single vampyre is strong enough to vanquish her - unless that creature has the power to summon the elements as well as the ability to wield Old Magick. Only Zoey Redbird is heir to such power…but because of the consequences of using Old Magick, she is unable to help. Find out who will win and who will lose in this epic battle of Light versus Darkness.

The House of Night has been one of my favorite series since the beginning. I got into this before I started my blog. And yet, I haven't read the final book yet. It's time to fix that. I want to know what happens to these characters.

2. Most Recent Book Haul

The Underground Railroad
by Colson Whitehead

Cora is a slave on a cotton plantation in Georgia. Life is hellish for all the slaves but especially bad for Cora; an outcast even among her fellow Africans, she is coming into womanhood - where even greater pain awaits. When Caesar, a recent arrival from Virginia, tells her about the Underground Railroad, they decide to take a terrifying risk and escape. Matters do not go as planned and, though they manage to find a station and head north, they are being hunted.

In Whitehead's ingenious conception, the Underground Railroad is no mere metaphor - engineers and conductors operate a secret network of tracks and tunnels beneath the Southern soil. Cora and Caesar's first stop is South Carolina, in a city that initially seems like a haven - but the city's placid surface masks an insidious scheme designed for its black denizens. Even worse: Ridgeway, the relentless slave catcher, is close on their heels. Forced to flee again, Cora embarks on a harrowing flight, state by state, seeking true freedom.

As Whitehead brilliantly re-creates the unique terrors for black people in the pre-Civil War era, his narrative seamlessly weaves the saga of America from the brutal importation of Africans to the unfulfilled promises of the present day. The Underground Railroad is at once a kinetic adventure tale of one woman's ferocious will to escape the horrors of bondage and a shattering, powerful meditation on the history we all share.

This was suppose to be read during DiverseAThon, but I joined that late and read  a 450 page book for oe of my picks, so the fact that I didn't get this done doesn't surprise me. However, I do feel that this book is important and really want to read it, so here it is. This could have easily been the 'out of my comfort zone' pick, but since it is the most recent thing I've purchaed, I'll put it here.

3. First Book In A Series

Catching Jordan

by Miranda Kenneally

ONE OF THE BOYS

What girl doesn't want to be surrounded by gorgeous jocks day in and day out? Jordan Woods isn't just surrounded by hot guys, though-she leads them as the captain and quarterback of her high school football team. They all see her as one of the guys and that's just fine. As long as she gets her athletic scholarship to a powerhouse university.

But everything she's ever worked for is threatened when Ty Green moves to her school. Not only is he an amazing QB, but he's also amazingly hot. And for the first time, Jordan's feeling vulnerable. Can she keep her head in the game while her heart's on the line?

I started this years ago and ended up having an arthritis flare that prevented me from finishing it. However, I enjoyed the part I did read so I think it will be fun to sit down and finish this fully.

4. Catch Up On A Series

Romancing The Nerd
by Leah Rae Miller

Cool guy. Geeky girl. Let the games begin.

Dan Garrett has become exactly what he hates—popular. Until recently, he was just another live-action role-playing nerd on the lowest rung of the social ladder. Cue a massive growth spurt and an uncanny skill at taking three-point shots in basketball and voila…Mr. Popular. It’s definitely weird.

And the biggest drawback? Going from high school zero to basketball hero cost Dan the secret girl of his dorky dreams.

A tuba-playing nerd with an eclectic fashion sense, Zelda Potts’s “coolness” stat is about minus forty-two. Dan turning his back on her and the rest of nerd-dom was brutal enough, but when he humiliates her at school, Zelda decides it’s time for a little revenge—dork style. Nevermind that she used to have a crush on him. Nevermind that her plan could backfire big time.

It’s time to roll the dice…and hope like freakin’ hell she doesn’t lose her heart in the process.

After reading and enjoying The Summer I Became A Nerd, reading this seems like a natural next step for this category. I'm looking forward to seeing what crazy, nerdy antics will happen in order for these two to get together.

5. Out Of Your Comfort Zone

The Fire This Time
by Jesmyn Ward

National Book Award winner Jesmyn Ward takes James Baldwin’s 1963 examination of race in America, The Fire Next Time, as a jumping off point for this groundbreaking collection of essays and poems about race from the most important voices of her generation and our time.

In light of recent tragedies and widespread protests across the nation, The Progressive magazine republished one of its most famous pieces: James Baldwin’s 1962 “Letter to My Nephew,” which was later published in his landmark book, The Fire Next Time. Addressing his fifteen-year-old namesake on the one hundredth anniversary of the Emancipation Proclamation, Baldwin wrote: “You know and I know, that the country is celebrating one hundred years of freedom one hundred years too soon.”

Award-winning author Jesmyn Ward knows that Baldwin’s words ring as true as ever today. In response, she has gathered short essays, memoir, and a few essential poems to engage the question of race in the United States. And she has turned to some of her generation’s most original thinkers and writers to give voice to their concerns.

The Fire This Time is divided into three parts that shine a light on the darkest corners of our history, wrestle with our current predicament, and envision a better future. Of the eighteen pieces, ten were written specifically for this volume.

In the fifty-odd years since Baldwin’s essay was published, entire generations have dared everything and made significant progress. But the idea that we are living in the post-Civil Rights era, that we are a “postracial” society, is an inaccurate and harmful reflection of a truth the country must confront. Baldwin’s “fire next time” is now upon us, and it needs to be talked about.

I saw this book on many must-read non-fiction of 2016 lists, and it immediately piqued my curiosity. That said, a book like this should never feel easy or 'comfortable' to me. In a perfect world, a book like this would not be needed. However, two of my goals for 2017 are to read at least one non-fiction book a month and to read more diversely, so here we go.

Are you taking part in TBR Takedown? Leave a link to your post and I'll take a look at what you're reading, too. 

Let's Talk About Love: A 2012 Romance Reading Challenge

Okay, here's a big surprise: I love romantic fiction. Gasp! I bet you're just dying over there, aren't you? :) ;)

Okay. Now that we've got the totally obvious out of the way, let's get to the not so obvious. I've been looking for a romantic fiction challenge to join for 2012 but have not come across one that would be right for me. The main reason for this is that a lot of them do not qualify YA as a valid source of reading material. And that's totally fine. It just means I've needed to come up with my own.

And so the Let's Talk About Love Reading Challenge is born.

But now you're probably wondering what the heck it entails and just why you should sign up for another reading challenge. Well read on and I'll share all the details.

What's The Challenge?

The goal of the Let's Talk About Love Reading Challenge is to get you to read twelve different books and consider them from a romance point of view. You've read at least one of my reviews here on I Write, I Read, I Review, right? (Right?) Every time I review a book I talk about the romance as its own category if any form of real or valid romance was shown in the book.

I'm not necessarily asking you to read twelve *more* books here. What I'm challenging you to do is to give twelve books, over a variety of categories, a bit more consideration in the romance department. By the time this year is over, if you stick with me on this, you may know a little more about what you like about couples in books -- or why romance is totally not your cup of tea. At the very least, its not going to be boring.

Challenge Levels:

Amethyst Heart -- Read and talk about four books / categories
Emerald Heart -- Read and talk about eight books / categories
Sapphire Heart -- Read and talk about twelve books / categories
Ruby Heart -- Read and talk about sixteen books / categories

But Kat, you mentioned categories...

Yes, I did. Because romances come in many different shapes and sizes. What kinds of books are we looking for romance in for 2012?

Contemporary

Romance that takes place in a book that happens in the 'real world'.

Fantasy

For the sake of clarification, this category is for books that don't happen on our world. (They *can* happen on a world similar to ours, historically or through time travel or alternate universes, though.)

Urban Fantasy

Fantasy that takes place within our world, in a generally modern setting.

Science Fiction

Aliens, spaceships, steampunk, mad scientists... The sky's the limit, pretty much.

Dystopian

Apocolyptic fiction, dystopian fiction or utopian fiction applies here. They're falling in love while the world is going to Hades in a handbasket. ;)

Paranormal

Vampires, werewolves, shifters, zombies and anything else that is creepy / scary.

Angels & Demons

Good angels, bad angels, demons... Anything that falls into the above will work.

Beautiful Creatures

Faeries, mermaids, nymphs... Anything that is pretty, even if it can be dangerous.

Fairytale Retellings

Retellings of fairy tales, myths or legends.

Historical

Stories that happened in our world, but that are from the past.

LGBT Romance

Romance between characters who are gay, lesbian, bi, etc.

Romance from a Male POV

Romance where we get to see the guy's point of view. This can either be fully a male pov or a book where both the male and female pov of the hero and heroine are used.

There are also four bonus categories. If any of the above really don't work for you, you are allowed to swap for one of these instead:

Romance in a 2012 Debut

Talk about the romance that happens in a 2012 debut that you read.

Romance in the Classics

Take a look at a classic book -- and I'm leaving this one very open for you -- and talk about the romance in it.

Romance in a Sequel / Series

Talk about how the couple(s) inside one of your favorite series are growing from book to book. (If you do this one I would suggest a spoiler warning.)

Romance that involves a love triangle. 

Love them or hate them, they happen. Talk about a love triangle in a book you read this year.

Rules:

1. The Reading Challenge will begin on January 1st, 2012 and continue until January 31st of 2013. The reason for the extra time is to make sure that people who want to read a December '12 book for their debut book can do so.

2. A book can only be counted once, even if it is technically able to fulfill two or more slots. For instance, Insurgent by Veronica Roth could count as dystopian, science fiction and a sequel. But you would have to pick which category you want to use it for.

3. There is no need to select a challenge level. All you need to do is come back for the appropriate badge(s) as you earn them. (Badges coming soon.)

4. You need to write and post a review for each book in this challenge. If you do not have a blog, you are welcome to link GoodReads reviews. Remember that the point of the challenge is to examine the romance in books you are reading. :)

5. Books read for this challenge are welcome to be used in other challenges as well. You read the book. As far as I'm concerned you've earned the right to use it in any challenge you desire. (At least in mine.)

6. The books for this challenge can be YA or adult. You may have noticed that I did not include any type of categorization that would make someone have to read a book that has a specified level of sensuality / sexuality. This was on purpose, because I feel we all have our own comfort levels with this. If you *do* read and link up adult books on my challenge linky once the challenge starts, please put (not YA) after the book name so readers will know. Thanks!

Prizes:

People who reach at least Emerald level by the end of the year will be entered into a draw for a prize. People who reach between Emerald and Ruby will get +1 entries for each additional book that they got closer. People who reach ruby (crazy, crazy people!) will be entered for a bigger and better prize.

Depending on my blog schedule, financing, etc. there may also be surprise contests that come up in conjunction with Let's Talk About Love.

Badges:

I am aiming to have badges done for each challenge level, as well as for each challenge category. When they go up you are totally welcome to put them in your posts to promote Let's Talk About Love.

Guest Posts:

My other goal is to have a guest blogger each month to talk about a category from this challenge and how they feel abou it. Watch out for these -- they will likely be where I set up surprise contests.

Sign Up!

Anyway, this challenge is still under a certain amount of construction, but thanks so much for taking a look. Have I grabbed your interest. Are you totally excited and ready for a super fun year of reading and discussion? Then please add your name to the linky below.