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Because It's never too early to think about 2015 challenges...
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Rhondak101
Posted 2014-11-17 1:06 PM (#8885)
Subject: Because It's never too early to think about 2015 challenges...		Quote Reply



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Recently, I've been adding a bunch of books to WWE but with a purpose. They all fit the parameters of a challenge that I will add for 2015. I'm excited about it, so I thought that I'd go ahead and put the information up here.

Tour the Solar System

This challenge asks you to read 12 books that are set in our solar system. You should read one book set on each of the other 8 planets (yes, I am counting Pluto) and then four more set elsewhere in the solar system--our Moon, the Sun, the moons of other planets, a repeated planet or anywhere else you’d like (except Earth). Obviously, you may interpret “set on” any way that you like: Kim Stanley Robinson’s Mars series and Edgar Rice Burrough’s are both set on Mars, but the versions of the planet presented are totally different. Choose the presentations that you like—pulps, space opera, planetary romance, hard sf, soft sf, or the juveniles of Asimov, Heinlein or the Winston series—mix and match, and just have fun. 

I am now compiling a list of books set on the different planets and moons. I will eventually link to it on the challenge page. I am trying to add most of the books that I'm finding that are not already in WWE and marking those that are already found here.

And as a way of advertisement--this will be a great challenge to pair with The Grand Masters, the Masterworks and the Killer B's Challenges. 

As my title says, it's never too early to start thinking about next year's reading

 

 

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dustydigger
Posted 2014-11-17 2:05 PM (#8888 - in reply to #8885)
Subject: Re: Because It's never too early to think about 2015 challenges...		Quote Reply



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Location: UK		Sounds great Rhonda. I am already around 50 books marked for reading next year and some fit in quite well with your idea. Greg Bear's Moving Mars.Clarke's 2010 about the monolith on Europa circling Jupiter. Ben Bova's Titan and probably a few more by him from his sequence on the solar system!. I look forward to your list of books. You know how I adore lists!
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Rhondak101
Posted 2014-11-17 2:13 PM (#8889 - in reply to #8885)
Subject: Re: Because It's never too early to think about 2015 challenges...		Quote Reply



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Location: SC, USA		Dusty, I am having a great time putting together the lists. I just wish that I had read more of these books so that I knew whether I am reporting the correct thing or not. Once I get the lists up, I will ask for help with the corrections, because the collective mind of WWE will be very helpful. We are a well-read group. However, one reason that I'm doing this challenge is because it covers a lot of books that I don't know much about and feel that I should have read already.
BTW, good luck on your upcoming surgery. I meant to post that on the other thread and forgot.
Rhonda
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daxxh
Posted 2014-11-17 2:56 PM (#8890 - in reply to #8889)
Subject: Re: Because It's never too early to think about 2015 challenges...		Quote Reply



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Location: Great Lakes, USA		How fun! I already have 60 books on my 2015 list. I will have to start rearranging already. I have a backlog of Bova's books that would fit nicely in this challenge.
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DrNefario
Posted 2014-11-18 7:25 AM (#8891 - in reply to #8885)
Subject: Re: Because It's never too early to think about 2015 challenges...		Quote Reply



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Location: UK		Are there many books about Uranus, Neptune and Pluto? Or Mercury, for that matter?

I'm not really sure what I want to do next year. I think I took on too many challenges this year, and it dominated my reading a bit too much. I might want to avoid the longer challenges unless they run for more than a year (or even indefinitely).
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justifiedsinner
Posted 2014-11-18 8:25 AM (#8893 - in reply to #8885)
Subject: Re: Because It's never too early to think about 2015 challenges...		Quote Reply



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Pluto will be tough. There are books where Pluto is featured but most of them aren't on the (Dwarf) planet. And I'm guessing 'Breakfast on Pluto' wont count.
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Rhondak101
Posted 2014-11-18 8:49 AM (#8895 - in reply to #8885)
Subject: Re: Because It's never too early to think about 2015 challenges...		Quote Reply



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I'm just now getting into the Outer Planets. I have found several independent lists that have a lot of Pluto on them, but some of them are probably short stories.
I'm having more trouble with Uranus and Neptune. I was surprised that there are not more planetary romances set on Uranus and Neptune. However, there are several books that seem to take on large chunks of the solar system that might work, like KSR's Icehenge, Memory of Whiteness, and 2312. I can always modify "set on" to mean "in the atmosphere around."
I have a dozen or so that are set on Mercury.
I should finish the list by this weekend. When I do, I will put it up for comments, corrections, and additions.
rhonda
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spoltz
Posted 2014-11-20 9:52 AM (#8902 - in reply to #8885)
Subject: Re: Because It's never too early to think about 2015 challenges...		Quote Reply



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Location: Beaverton, Oregon, USA		Great challenge Rhonda! I think it's a great, original theme for a challenge. And thanks for getting so many books into WWE. As for my own plans for next year, I'm already planning on doing a 35 challenge to get the books on my shelves read, a Tolkien challenge to get through some of the posthumous History of Middle Earth books and his Beowulf translation, and a possibly a dive into the Dresden Files and/or Discworld. At the same time, I'm thinking of taking it easier in 2015. My reading pace has really slowed down, and I don't think I'll be able to keep up this more than a book a week pace much longer ;-)
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Rhondak101
Posted 2014-11-22 8:42 AM (#8908 - in reply to #8902)
Subject: Re: Because It's never too early to think about 2015 challenges...		Quote Reply



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Location: SC, USA		Steve, Thanks. I'm doing this one because this is a sub-genre that I've never really read much. I'm doing the 35 as well to read all the books that I bought this year while I was reading for other challenges. Like you, I need to slow-down and not over commit this coming year. I've spent so much time reading SFF that I'm really behind on the other genres that I read.
Rhonda
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justifiedsinner
Posted 2014-11-23 9:24 AM (#8909 - in reply to #8885)
Subject: Re: Because It's never too early to think about 2015 challenges...		Quote Reply



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Ditto for me. I was hoping to read a few more Booker prize winners but so far I've only managed one.
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Rhondak101
Posted 2014-11-23 9:41 AM (#8910 - in reply to #8885)
Subject: Re: Because It's never too early to think about 2015 challenges...		Quote Reply



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Location: SC, USA		Justified, Two on my neglected list are Hillary Mantel's two Booker winners, Wolf Hall and Bring Up the Bodies. I'm very excited to read them.
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spoltz
Posted 2014-11-23 12:25 PM (#8911 - in reply to #8885)
Subject: Re: Because It's never too early to think about 2015 challenges...		Quote Reply



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Location: Beaverton, Oregon, USA		I've been wanting to read some non-fiction: "The Celts", "A History of the Irish Race", a collection of essays on Poland, and Czeslaw Milosz's "Year of the Hunter", as well as Jodi Picoult's "The Storyteller." Not sure how many of those I'll be fitting into my growing list of genre books next year.
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justifiedsinner
Posted 2014-11-24 9:19 AM (#8918 - in reply to #8910)
Subject: Re: Because It's never too early to think about 2015 challenges...		Quote Reply



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They're wonderful. The RSC is doing a stage production of them which will be on Broadway in March for a limited run.
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Rhondak101
Posted 2014-11-25 1:47 PM (#8928 - in reply to #8918)
Subject: Re: Because It's never too early to think about 2015 challenges...		Quote Reply



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Here is the revised blurb for the Tour the Solar System challenge and the link to the list I've compiled. These are only suggestions, and as I say in the blurb, I'm sure that there will be need for correction as people who've read some of these books report back

Tour the Solar System

This challenge asks you to read 12 books that are set in our solar system. My original idea was to read at least one book set on each planet (except Earth.) However, my research shows that the choices are slim for the outer planets. Therefore, you may target specific planets, or moons, or read works that are set on multiple locations through out our solar system. Obviously, you may choose any sub-genres that you like. For example, Kim Stanley Robinson’s Mars series and Edgar Rice Burrough’s Barsoom series are both set on Mars, but the versions of the planet are totally different. Choose the presentations that you like—pulps, space opera, planetary romance, hard sf, soft sf, or the juveniles of Asimov, Heinlein or the Winston series—mix and match, and just have fun. 

I have compiled a partial list of works that fit this challenge. They are divided by location. I have read very few of the books on this list; therefore, I am depending on the reports of others. These mostly come from Wikipedia and Science Fiction Encyclopedia entries. I am sure that there are some errors and omissions; so don’t trust this list entirely. If a book seems to focus on two or three locations, I placed it under those names. If the book seems to “tour” the solar system without too much focus on one area, I placed it in the multiple locations section.

The books and series marked with an asterisk are in WWE. The ones with a number sign are not.

If you have additions or corrections that you’d like to submit, let me know on the thread.


 


 

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