Reading challenge

Saw this over at Angel’s, and even though my track record at reading challenges hasn’t been good this year, this one appeals because it aims to tackle that perennial, neverending To Read Pile.

The rules (from Habitually Probing Generalist):

• Pick 12 titles from your To Read Pile. These should be titles you currently own in whatever format you prefer.
• Acquisition of other formats or translations is permitted. So, if you have a paperback but want to read on your Kindle, you can get a Kindle copy. If you have a library copy but want to buy your own, that’s kosher. Heck, if you own a copy and want to check another out from the library, I’m not gonna stop you.
• Post your list in your public space of choice by September 1, 2010. If you prefer not to post, you can just leave a comment with your list.
• Read all 12 titles between now and September 5, 2011. Might as well tack on an extra long weekend at the end for cramming.
• When you finish a title on your list, post about it in your public space of choice. If you prefer not to post, you can just leave a comment with your review.
• Once a month, I’ll post a round-up of the reviews posted from that month so that we all know what everyone else has read.

I like the fact that the rules say you are to read all 12 titles between now and 5 September 2011, rather than insisting on one title a month. I’m already a little late, given that September’s almost over. I was vaguely tempted to list Freedom by Jonathan Franzen, which I have just finished. But that would be cheating. (Verdict on Freedom: wow. I’m glad I ignored my aversion to hype and read it.)

My list, in no particular order:

1.  Kristin Lavransdatter by Sigrid Undset. I’ve actually got a paper edition (bulky hardback; trans. Charles Archer) and an epub edition (trans. Tiina Nunnally)
2. Hujan Pagi by A. Samad Said
3. The Tale of Genji by Murasaki Shikibu. Kindle edition (on iPad), trans. Royall Tyler
4. The Kindly Ones by Jonathan Little, trans. Charlotte Mandell
5. The Snow Leopard by Peter Mathiessen
6. Palace Walk by Naguib Mahfouz
7. Sandera by Arena Wati. I remember reading his Rontok as a young teenager and being utterly shocked and distressed by his depiction of the lives of two very poor street children.
8. Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides
9. The God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy
10. Youth by J.M. Coetzee. Actually, I’d like to start reading his work
11. Darby: 100 Years of Life in a Changing Culture by Liam Campbell
12. A Midsummer Night’s Dream by William Shakespeare

Yes, I actually own all these.

Not sure how successful I’ll be with the paper books, to be honest. These days my preference for reading continues to be using my Kobo. Also, my paper books (all 3,500 or so of them) are in a state of unsorted disarray at the moment – still haven’t tidied since the move – and finding things could be a bit of a challenge.

If you were going to do this, what would your 12 books be?