Reflection Post on The Great American Read
I can not tell you how excited I was when I learned about The Great American Read around 4 or 5 months ago. So on a whim I decided to spend those next 100 days-ish taking a picture with each book, reading as many of the books as I could (even though I knew over the summer I couldn't read very many), but to try to get a general idea of each book and try writing a post about each one especially the books I love and the books I have yet to be familiar with. One of the biggest reasons I was and still am excited about this is I have wanted to work on completing a reading list for a long time but could not narrow down a list. Most of the list I had come across were not very diverse. Now this list is far from "perfect" but it is fairly eclectic and much broader then say a "classics list".
So the project started off fairly strong but of course there were a few bumps- unexpected, unplanned trips with no Internet, birthday parties I had work around, and visitors. But I FINISHED- I posted (some VERY short) and took a picture with all 100 books (one tiny cheat)! With the next episode of the show about to air tomorrow I wanted to do a little wrap up post.
When the list came out I had only read about 30 books out of 100 and that is counting abridged versions, series books that I have not read completely, and books I don't remember much about but I am almost positive I have read them. The check list challenge is- HERE in case you want to know how well you have read. I was hoping to read at least 20 more this summer- wishful thinking- but I read eleven books over the summer from the list and they ARE in a particular order...
Book I Read for Summer 2018 off The Great American Read List from my favorite to least favorite:
1. A Tree Grows in Brooklyn- excellent, absolutely brilliant, I connected with Francie Nolan
2. Ready Player One- Jason Taylor, a great friend of mine, speaking to me beyond the grave
3. The Count of Monte Cristo- proud of getting through this big book and what an EPIC story
4. The Help- loved it, the main characters were strong, inspiring women
5. The Color Purple- surprised by this beautiful but hard story
6. Ghost- short and very timely
7. The DaVinci Code- repetitive but fun ride
8. And Then There Were None- a little bland but interesting concept
9. The Little Prince- I liked the movie better, not much of a plot but had good quotes and was a beautiful allegory
10. Alice's Adventures in Wonderland- too weird
11. The Catcher in the Rye- Hated this book, I blame this one for not being able to read more books, depressing and made me want to tear my hair out
My Top 5 Favorite Posts I had fun writing about:
1. Little Women
2. Harry Potter Series
3. Charlotte's Web
4. Pride and Prejudice
5. To Kill a Mockingbird
My Top 10 Favorite Photos from this project:
*HONORABLE MENTIONS
Top 5 Posts I am disappointed in and wished I had spent more time on:
1. Wuthering Heights
2. Rebecca
3. Gilead
4. Siddartha
5. The Hunger Games
5 Least Favorite Pictures (I also wanted to use this challenge as a way to get better at selfies and be okay with pictures of myself because there are days I struggle but here are some I wish I could retake):
The books I voted for the most:
1. #VOTECharlotte (Charlotte's Web)
2. #VOTEPotter (Harry Potter Series)
3. #VOTEPridePrej (Pride and Prejudice)
4. #VOTEWuthering (Wuthering Heights)
5. #VOTEBrooklyn (A Tree Grows in Brooklyn)
6. #VOTEGables (Anne of Green Gables)
7. #VOTEUltima (Bless Me, Ultima)
8. #VOTENarnia (The Chronicles of Narnia)
9. #VOTEMonteCristo (The Count of Monte Cristo)
10. #VOTEFrankenstein (Frankenstien)
Books I voted for at least once:
Ghost
The Giver
Heart of Darkness
The Help
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
The Hunger Games
The Joy Luck Club
Left Behind
Little Women
The Lord of the Rings Series
Ready Player One
To Kill a Mockingbird
1984
The Book Thief
The Color Purple
Books I have read that I will never vote for aka books I did NOT like:
Gone Girl
Great Expectations- willing to reread
The Great Gatsby- willing to reread
Moby-Dick- MIGHT be willing to reread
Beloved
The Catcher in the Rye
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland
MEH or forgettable books for me:
The Little Prince
The Handmaid's Tale
The Notebook
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (I love The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn SO much more)
And Then There Were None
The Call of the Wild (I might have read this but in an abridged version so I can't remember much)
The DaVinci Code
This Present Darkness (I might have read this not sure)
Top 10 Books on the list I am Most Looking Forward to reading:
1. The Martian
2. Jurassic Park
3. Outlander
4. The Lovely Bones
5. Jane Eyre
6. The Pillars of the Earth
7. The Stand
8. Things Fall Apart
9. Alex Cross Mysteries
10. The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time
Top 10 Books on the list I am NOT looking forward to reading (if I were to be completely honest):
1. Fifty Shades of Grey
2. Atlas Shrugged
3. Twilight
4. Crime and Punishment
5. The Hunt for Red October
6. War and Peace
7. Dune
8. A Separate Peace
9. The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao
10. The Intuitionist
This project was a bit too ambitions but I am SO SO glad I started it and finished the pictures and the posts- now I have so much reading to look forward to. I am excited to watch the next episode on PBS and find out what book will win!
So the project started off fairly strong but of course there were a few bumps- unexpected, unplanned trips with no Internet, birthday parties I had work around, and visitors. But I FINISHED- I posted (some VERY short) and took a picture with all 100 books (one tiny cheat)! With the next episode of the show about to air tomorrow I wanted to do a little wrap up post.
When the list came out I had only read about 30 books out of 100 and that is counting abridged versions, series books that I have not read completely, and books I don't remember much about but I am almost positive I have read them. The check list challenge is- HERE in case you want to know how well you have read. I was hoping to read at least 20 more this summer- wishful thinking- but I read eleven books over the summer from the list and they ARE in a particular order...
Book I Read for Summer 2018 off The Great American Read List from my favorite to least favorite:
1. A Tree Grows in Brooklyn- excellent, absolutely brilliant, I connected with Francie Nolan
2. Ready Player One- Jason Taylor, a great friend of mine, speaking to me beyond the grave
3. The Count of Monte Cristo- proud of getting through this big book and what an EPIC story
4. The Help- loved it, the main characters were strong, inspiring women
5. The Color Purple- surprised by this beautiful but hard story
6. Ghost- short and very timely
7. The DaVinci Code- repetitive but fun ride
8. And Then There Were None- a little bland but interesting concept
9. The Little Prince- I liked the movie better, not much of a plot but had good quotes and was a beautiful allegory
10. Alice's Adventures in Wonderland- too weird
11. The Catcher in the Rye- Hated this book, I blame this one for not being able to read more books, depressing and made me want to tear my hair out
My Top 5 Favorite Posts I had fun writing about:
1. Little Women
2. Harry Potter Series
3. Charlotte's Web
4. Pride and Prejudice
5. To Kill a Mockingbird
My Top 10 Favorite Photos from this project:
 |
| Anne of Green Gables |
 |
| A Tree Grows in Brooklyn |
 |
| Charlotte's Web |
 |
| Ghost |
 |
| The Color Purple |
 |
| Harry Potter Series |
 |
| The Notebook |
 |
| Left Behind |
 |
| Pride and Prejudice |
 |
| Jurassic Park |
*HONORABLE MENTIONS
 |
| Americanah |
 |
| The Catcher in the Rye *a favorite picture but least favorite book |
 |
| The Help |
Top 5 Posts I am disappointed in and wished I had spent more time on:
1. Wuthering Heights
2. Rebecca
3. Gilead
4. Siddartha
5. The Hunger Games
5 Least Favorite Pictures (I also wanted to use this challenge as a way to get better at selfies and be okay with pictures of myself because there are days I struggle but here are some I wish I could retake):
 |
| Beloved |
 |
| The Hunger Games |
 |
| Flowers in the Attic |
 |
| Where the Red Fern Grows |
 |
| I don't know why I put my hand there. |
The books I voted for the most:
1. #VOTECharlotte (Charlotte's Web)
2. #VOTEPotter (Harry Potter Series)
3. #VOTEPridePrej (Pride and Prejudice)
4. #VOTEWuthering (Wuthering Heights)
5. #VOTEBrooklyn (A Tree Grows in Brooklyn)
6. #VOTEGables (Anne of Green Gables)
7. #VOTEUltima (Bless Me, Ultima)
8. #VOTENarnia (The Chronicles of Narnia)
9. #VOTEMonteCristo (The Count of Monte Cristo)
10. #VOTEFrankenstein (Frankenstien)
Books I voted for at least once:
Ghost
The Giver
Heart of Darkness
The Help
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
The Hunger Games
The Joy Luck Club
Left Behind
Little Women
The Lord of the Rings Series
Ready Player One
To Kill a Mockingbird
1984
The Book Thief
The Color Purple
Books I have read that I will never vote for aka books I did NOT like:
Gone Girl
Great Expectations- willing to reread
The Great Gatsby- willing to reread
Moby-Dick- MIGHT be willing to reread
Beloved
The Catcher in the Rye
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland
MEH or forgettable books for me:
The Little Prince
The Handmaid's Tale
The Notebook
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (I love The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn SO much more)
And Then There Were None
The Call of the Wild (I might have read this but in an abridged version so I can't remember much)
The DaVinci Code
This Present Darkness (I might have read this not sure)
Top 10 Books on the list I am Most Looking Forward to reading:
1. The Martian
2. Jurassic Park
3. Outlander
4. The Lovely Bones
5. Jane Eyre
6. The Pillars of the Earth
7. The Stand
8. Things Fall Apart
9. Alex Cross Mysteries
10. The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time
Top 10 Books on the list I am NOT looking forward to reading (if I were to be completely honest):
1. Fifty Shades of Grey
2. Atlas Shrugged
3. Twilight
4. Crime and Punishment
5. The Hunt for Red October
6. War and Peace
7. Dune
8. A Separate Peace
9. The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao
10. The Intuitionist
This project was a bit too ambitions but I am SO SO glad I started it and finished the pictures and the posts- now I have so much reading to look forward to. I am excited to watch the next episode on PBS and find out what book will win!
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