Participating in 2011 Challenges!

The first of the three challenges I've decided to partake in is the 2011 2nds Challenge hosted by Katy over @ http://fewmorepages.blogspot.com/ (A Few More Pages), which will be starting up come January of 2011. Now, what the heck is this 2nds Challenge you speak of, Asher? It's pretty easy really. Basically if you've ever fallen in love with an author's work and have been tempted to go back and read more by _____ then you've just gone back to have seconds. This second novel doesn't H A V E to be the second novel in a series or the second novel this author has ever written or it C O U L D be both... *shrugs* You get to decide, so long as it's the second book of something pertaining to ______ author.

This challenge is open to everyone & you do not have to be a blogger to sign up. Sign ups begin from now until December 31, 2011. Want more information? Great! Go (here) to find out more. Now for my list...

I actually had a difficult time tracking down some authors and novels, trying to figure out whether I've read them or not (I've read a lot of books up 'til now, some not as memorable), but I think I've compiled a pretty decent starters list. Here goes:

* =tentative

• Original Sin by Lisa Desrochers
• Clockwork Prince by Cassandra Clare
• Vanish by Sophie Jordan *
• Beautiful Darkness by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl
• Captivate (Need, #2) by Carrie Jones
• Wolfsbane by Andrea Cremer
• Blood Feud by Alyxandra Harvey

With 7 books up, that puts me at level 2 -A few more bites
Keep in mind though that this list is bound to change as more novels keep releasing (being that 2011 is going to be another fabulous year for the YA genre) and most likely grow, pushing me passed level 2...And that's it for now on this challenge. Make sure to check back for any updates. :)

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My next challenge sign up is the GLBT (or LGBT) Reading Challenge hosted by Amanda (I think) @ http://glbt-reading.blogspot.com/ (GLBT-reading). I really like the concept behind this challenge, hence why I signed up. I think it's extremely imperative that not only readers read books incorporating LGBT characters, but also for authors to include them as well. Through reading these kinds of novels, a hopeful, optimistic, maybe a little bit naive blogger like myself can believe in a future where this generation will become more open-minded, more accepting of/about alternative lifestyles, homosexuality and what have you. Too often have I run across (now ex-) friends who claim that they would not only be very uncomfortable if his/her friend was a homosexual or bisexual, but refuse to continue being friends with them.

"Everybody's journey is individual. If you fall in love with a boy, you fall in love with a boy. The fact that many Americans consider it a disease says more about them than it does about homosexuality." --James A. Baldwin

Some of them have even gone as far as to say that they wouldn't be able to be friends with them for fear of this homosexual/bisexual friend(s) liking them in that way. Ignorance of that magnitude doesn't just anger me, but has me running scared in terms of thinking of the future, and firms my belief that if teens read novels where the protaganist suffers from this type of mentality, this abuse, then hopefully it will push them to become open-minded, open-hearted young adults...

This challenge is year-round, which means you can sign up whenever, but you can't start reading (and reviewing) until January of this upcoming year. For more information click (here).

Here's my (tentative) list for this one:
* =just added

• Luna by Julie Anne Peters
• The Boy in the Dress by David Walliams
• Boy Meets Boy by David Levithan
• The Realm of Possibility by David Levithan
• Keeping You a Secret by Julie Anne Peters
• My Heartbeat by Garrett Freymann-Weyr
• The Side Door by Jan Donley
• Freakshow by James St. James
• Finlater by Shawn Stewart Ruff
• Rainbow Boys by Alex Sanchez
• Tale of Two Summers by Brian Sloan
• Between Mom and Jo by Julie Anne Peters
• David Inside Out by Lee Bantle
• Peter by Kate Walker
• I am J by Cris Beam *

I know it's quite a list, but well it's important to me that I succeed in this challenge because of what it stands for, you know... Again, check back for updates as this list may fluctuate depending if I can get access to many of these.

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And finally on the list of recently joined challenges, I'm participating in the YA Historical Fiction Challenge hosted @ http://www.yabliss.com/ (YA Bliss) also for 2011. So, if you've ever read a novel set in the past (doesn't matter exactly when/what era) and the characters are fictional, then you've got yourself a historical fiction novel. B U T, this is only YA historical fiction.

"Historical fiction tells a story that is set in the past. That setting is usually real and drawn from history, and often contains actual historical persons, but the principal characters tend to be fictional. Writers of stories in this genre, while penning fiction, attempt to capture the spirit, manners, and social conditions of the persons or time(s) presented in the story, with due attention paid to period detail and fidelity" (Wikipedia) (pasted from YA Bliss)

The YA Historical Fiction Challenge is a public challenge available to absolutely anyone. You can sign up at anytime. Keep in mind that this challenge starts in January of 2011 and ends on Dec. 31, 2011. Click (here) to learn more & sign up!

I'm going to stick with level 2 for now (which is 10-14 books)... My list:
italics =I own or most definitely have access to
* =tentative

Revolution by Jennifer Donnelly 
Forge by Laurie Halse Anderson
Chains by Laurie Halse Anderson *
Bright Young Things by Anna Godberson
Luxe Series by Anna Godberson
The Healer's Apprentice by Melanie Dickerson
The Vespertine by Saundra Mitchell
Vixen by Jillian Larkin
A Northern Light by Jennifer Donnelly
The Lost Crown by Sarah Miller *
The Explosionist & Invisible Things by Jenny Davidson
Wildwing by Emily Whitman *
Between the Shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys
Wrapped by Jennifer Bradbury
Wildthorn by Jane Eagland
Annexed by Sharon Dogar

And that's all I've got for this challenge. I really hope to read all these novels, some more than others, and I don't want to fail this challenge either (though I'm not going to feel guilty necessarily either which way). This list may also change, so check back for updates...

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 Also, please be sure to check out my 2011 Debut Author Challenge Post, because I'm participating in that as well! Thanks for reading!

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Disclosure: Any images incorporated in the banners I made for each challenge (except the story siren's challenge, obviously) came from all over google (hope that's not a problem). If for whatever reason you'd like to use 'em please give credit or contact me letting me know that you're using them. 'Kay?