Read 15,000 pages in 2005

Didn’t meet the goal in 2005…will try again this year!

I finished reading 15,000 pages earlier this year and upped the goal to 20,000. I’m not sure if I’m going to make it as the end of the year seems to get too crazy to leave much time for reading, but I’m up to a little over 17,000 and the goal is within sight!

15. Matilda – Roald Dahl – 240 pages, finished 5/29/05

16. The Witches – Roald Dahl – 208 pages, finished 5/29/05

17. The Lake of Dead Languages – Carol Goodman – 390 pages, finished 6/6/05

18. Day Job: A Workplace Reader for the Restless Age – Jonathan Baird – 147 pages, finished 6/15/05

19. The Samurai’s Garden – Gail Tsukiyama – 211 pages, finished 6/23/05

20. Shockrockets: We Have Ignition – Kurt Busiek – 160 pages, finished 7/5/05

21. Transformation – Carol Berg – 439 pages, finished 7/7/05

22. Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil – John Berendt – 386 pages, finished 7/15/05

23. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince – J.K. Rowling – 652 pages, finished 7/16/05

24. The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe – C.S. Lewis – 186 pages, finished 7/20/05

Books: 24/50 (48%)
Pages: 7,677/15,000 (51.18%)

10. Garlic and Sapphires: The Secret Life of a Critic in Disguise – Ruth Reichl, 333 pages (5/1/05)

11. Zen in the Art of Archery – Eugen Herrigel, 81 pages (5/7/05)

12. Sickened: The Memoir of a Munchausen by Proxy Childhood – Julie Gregory, 244 pages (5/10/05)

13. The Beekeeper’s Apprentice – Laurie R. King, 341 pages (5/24/05)

14. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory – Roald Dahl, 155 pages (5/26/05)

4,658/15,000

7. My Sister’s Keeper – Jodi Picoult, 423 pages (3/14/05)

8. Life of Pi – Yann Martel, 326 pages (3/23/05)

9. The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay – Michael Chabon, 639 pages (4/12/05)

3,504/15,000

6. The Shipping News – E. Annie Proulx, 337 pages (3/11/05)

Total pages: 2,116/15,000

4. Catch-22 – Joseph Heller, 463 pages (2/14/05)

5. Fixer Chao – Han Ong, 377 pages (2/25/05)

Total pages: 1,779/15,000

Tracy Kidder – House. I couldn’t put down this brilliantly written account of the design and construction of a suburban family home. 341pp.

2349/15000

Wow, I’m not alone in my fastidious page-counting! I proofread for a living, which is almost like cheating, but not quite. So far this year (some for work, some for pleasure & edification):

Kathryn Shevelow – Charlotte: Being a True Account of an Actress’s Flamboyant Adventures in Eighteenth-Century London’s Wild and Wicked Theatrical World. Cross-dressing daughter of Colley Cibber. 418pp.

Margaret Mittelbach & Michael Crewdson – Carnivorous Nights: On the Trail of the Tasmanian Tiger. Interesting natural history adventure written by the duo who did the wildlife of NYC book. 320pp.

George Orwell – 1984. Timely and…wow! 267pp.

Nigel Spivey – Songs on Bronze: The Greek Myths Made Real. Not as great as I’d hoped and far too spastically punctuated, but it was interesting to see various heroes shouting “Oi!” 255pp.

Anne Carson – Autobiography of Red. Be still my beating heart! 149pp.

John Gribbin – Deep Simplicity: Bringing Order to Chaos and Complexity. Fantastically interesting if not always understandable. 261pp.

Simon Barnes How to Be a Bad Birdwatcher. Starts off poorly but his enthusiasm just wears you down. 221pp.

William Coperthwaite A Handmade Life: In Search of Simplicity. Thought-provoking if a bit didactic. 117pp.

2008/15000

1. Found: The Best Lost, Tossed, and Forgotten Items from Around the World – Davy Rothbart, 252 pages (1/6/05)

2. The Princess Bride: S. Morgenstern’s Classic Tale of True Love and High Adventure (The ‘Good Parts’ Version) – William Goldman, 399 pages (1/13/05)

3. The Joy Luck Club – Amy Tan, 288 pages (1/18/05)

Total pages: 939/15,000