Man, if this were a party, I’d have to be one heck of a hostess to actually have fun at my own soiree.

Actually, I suck at hosting parties, so it’s good that this thing is virtual.

So — I’ve got a whole bunch of Mad Men-related books in mind to read next year, so I’ve selected the “TV Ad” level and will read 7 books, of which at least 2 will be fiction and 2 nonfiction.

I’ve already read the most obvious choice, which is Mad Men Unbuttoned. So I’ll be heading in different directions.

Some of the books on my virtual Reading Madly nightstand (which may or may not get read, depending on my mood):

Confessions of an Advertising Man by David Ogilvy

Letters to Jackie: Condolences from a Grieving Nation by Ellen F. Fitzpatrick

Fifth Avenue, 5 A. M.: Audrey Hepburn, Breakfast at Tiffany’s, and the Dawn of the Modern Woman by Sam Wasson

The Liberal Hour: Washington and the Politics of Change in the 1960s by G. Calvin Mackenzie

I may also attempt Robert Caro’s 3-volume biography– or Robert Dallek’s 2-volume biography — of LBJ.

This page will be my home base for my own progress on this challenge. See you back here next year!

———–

Updates

1/23/11 — OK. This thing is starting out with a bang. Just realized I read the wrong book. I’d meant to read Letters to Jackie but instead just finished Dear Mrs. Kennedy. You can see why I got mixed up. Anyway, I think I’m not going to read them both. Dear Mrs. Kennedy was pretty sad, and I think that’s all I can take of the condolence letter books.

I’ve read two books I considered adding to the list for this challenge, but I’m going to refrain from doing so. Their link to Mad Men is not as strong as some of the other stuff I want to read for the challenge, so I’m going to consider these to be bonus, semi-Mad books:

Dylan in America by Sean Wilentz

[Dylan was in New York during the early 60s; I think maybe Peggy Olson mentions him once. Maybe?]

Hey Buddy: In Pursuit of Buddy Holly, My New Buddy John, and My Lost Decade of Music by Gary W. Moore

[Buddy Holly died in February 1959, and his music continued to be released into the 1960s. Plus, he was a huge influence on the Beatles and the Stones, so Buddy raved on even after he was gone.]

2/12/11 — Two more books finished (#2 and #3 below). Reviews coming soon. I’ll link ’em after I post ’em.

2/16/11 — OK. I’m actually *not* going to write about one of the books I just finished. I enjoyed it, enough, but I ain’t got nothing else to say about it. (I refer to #3 below.) That’s all.

3/23/11 — Just finished The Best of Everything by Rona Jaffe last night. Am still stunned by how much I liked it! Thanks to Bybee for recommending it on her blog.

9/22/11 — Added The Path to Power by Robert A. Caro to the list. I read it in May. It’s volume 1 of the 3-volume (so far) biography of LBJ, and it is nothing short of amazing.

10/27/11 — Finished After This by Alice McDermott, which was a really good choice for Reading Madly.

11/2/11 — Another one! Just finished listening to Jacqueline Kennedy:
Historic Conversations on Life with John F. Kennedy: Interviews with Arthur M.
Schlesinger, Jr., 1964. 

  

———–

Books Read

1. Dear Mrs. Kennedy: The World Shares Its Grief: Letters, November 1963 by Jay Mulvaney and Paul De Angelis (nonfiction)

2. Confessions of an Advertising Man by David Ogilvy (nonfiction)

3. 5th Avenue, 5 A.M.: Audrey Hepburn, Breakfast at Tiffany’s, and the Dawn of the Modern Woman by Sam Wasson (nonfiction)

4. The Best of Everything by Rona Jaffe (fiction)

5. The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath (fiction)

6. The Path to Power by Robert A. Caro (nonfiction)
7. After This by Alice McDermott (fiction)
8. Jacqueline Kennedy:
Historic Conversations on Life with John F. Kennedy: Interviews with Arthur M.
Schlesinger, Jr., 1964 (nonfiction)

————

If you’re a Mad Men person, this reading challenge is for you! The challenge: Read books related to Mad Men. And when I say “related,” the relationship can be tangential… You get to choose.
Think: – books read by characters on the show – books published in the late 1950s and early/mid-1960s – books about the early/mid-1960s: JFK, LBJ, feminism, race relations, space race, Cold War, Vietnam War – books about advertising
Anything that you can tie in to Mad Men qualifies. If you can justify it to yourself, you’re all set.
Choose your level of participation: TV AD: Read 7 books—at least 2 fiction and 2 nonfiction. FULL-PAGE AD: Read 5 books—at least 2 fiction and 2 nonfiction. HALF-PAGE AD: Read 3 books—at least 1 fiction and 1 nonfiction.
Rules: 1. The challenge runs from January 1 – December 31, 2011. 2. Participants may join anytime before December 31, 2011. 3. Re-reads, audiobooks, and overlaps with other challenges are fine. 4. No need to list your books beforehand, and no need to write reviews. We’re keeping this simple, people. 5. Create an intro post linking to this blog. 6. Then sign up here via Mr. Linky (below), using your intro post’s address. 7. The graphic is yours to lift to use on your site—go ahead and take it. 8. Pour yourself a libation, grab a book, and enjoy!

The year’s halfway through (how did that happen?!) so I’m taking the pulse of my reading challenges.

Babbette over at Babbette’s Book Blog is hosting the 2010 Mixology Challenge, and I’m in! Here are the guidelines:
1. List how many books total you want to read in 2010.

2. List no less than 4 categories for these books and determine how many you’ll read in each category. Examples of categories:
by class: fiction / non-fiction / contemporary / classic / newly published / award winning (Booker, Pulitzer)
by genre: historical fiction, religious fiction, fantasy, sci-fi, dystopian literature, memoir, biography, personal or professional growth
by class of author: female / male / Asian / Middle Eastern
other: TBR / review (ARC) books

3. These books can overlap with other challenges AND even fit more than one category within this challenge.

4. Audio books do count; re-reads do not.
Here are my 2010 Mixology goals:
75 books total 10 newly published 10 biographies 5 audiobooks 5 romance the rest = anything at all
This page will be my home base for this challenge.
10 Newly Published 1. Eggsecutive Orders by Julie Hyzy 2. Fly by Wire: The Geese, the Glide, the Miracle on the Hudson by William Langewiesche 3. Government Girl: Young and Female in the White House by Stacy Parker Aab 4. The New Frugality: How to Consume Less, Save More, and Live Better by Chris Farrell 5. Slow Fire by Ken Mercer 6. A Night Too Dark by Dana Stabenow 7. Model Home by Eric Puchner 8. Drink the Tea by Thomas Kaufman9. This Is Just Exactly Like You by Drew Perry 10. FDR’s Funeral Train: A Betrayed Widow, a Soviet Spy, and a Presidency in the Balance by Robert Klara 11. The Lake Shore Limited by Sue Miller 12. The God of the Hive by Laurie R. King13. State Fair by Earlene Fowler14. The Art of Choosing by Sheena Iyengar15. Rolling Thunder by Chris Grabenstein16. War by Sebastian Junger17. Junkyard Dogs by Craig Johnson 18. The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake by Aimee Bender19. The Birthday Ball by Lois Lowry20. Based upon Availability by Alix Strauss21. A Vintage Affair by Isabel Wolff22. Game Change: Obama and the Clintons, McCain and Palin, and the Race of a Lifetime by John Heilemann and Mark Halperin23. The Viognier Vendetta: A Wine Country Mystery by Ellen Crosby24. Finding Chandra: A True Washington Murder Mystery by Scott Higham and Sari Horwitz25. Get Capone: The Secret Plot That Captured America’s Most Wanted Gangster by Jonathan Eig26. 168 Hours: You Have More Time Than You Think by Laura Vanderkam27. Moonlight Mile by Dennis Lehane28. The White House Doctor: A Memoir by Connie Mariano29. The Report by Jessica Francis Kane30. How Pleasure Works: The New Science of Why We Like What We Like by Paul Bloom31. Morning Miracle: Inside The Washington Post: A Great Newspaper Fights for Its Life by Dave Kindred32. Bliss, Remembered by Frank Deford33. The Widower’s Tale by Julia Glass34. Freedom by Jonathan Franzen35. News to Me: Adventures of an Accidental Journalist by Laurie Hertzel36. The Fiddler in the Subway: The True Story of What Happened When a World-Class Violinist Played for Handouts… and Other Virtuosic Performances by America’s Foremost Feature Writer by Gene Weingarten37. The Shimmering Blond Sister by David Handler38. Safe from the Sea by Peter Geye39. Making Toast: A Family Story by Roger Rosenblatt40. William and Harry: Behind the Palace Walls by Katie Nicholl41. The Last Boy: Mickey Mantle and the End of America’s Childhood by Jane Leavy42. Portrait of Camelot: A Thousand Days in the Kennedy White House by Richard Reeves43. A Week at the Airport by Alain de Botton44. The Kennedy Detail: JFK’s Secret Service Agents Break Their Silence by Gerald Blaine with Lisa McCubbin

10 Biographies 1. Lincoln‘s Other White House: The Untold Story of the Man and His Presidency by Elizabeth Smith Brownstein 2. The Flyers: In Search of Wilbur and Orville Wright by Noah Adams 3. Lincoln’s Sanctuary: Abraham Lincoln and the Soldiers’ Home by Matthew Pinsker 4. Franklin Pierce by Michael F. Holt 5. George Washington: A Life by Willard Sterne Randall6. Thomas Jefferson by R. B. Bernstein7. Get Capone: The Secret Plot That Captured America’s Most Wanted Gangster by Jonathan Eig8. Calvin Coolidge: The Quiet President by Donald R. McCoy9. The Bridge: The Life and Rise of Barack Obama by David Remnick10. William and Harry: Behind the Palace Walls by Katie Nicholl11. The Last Boy: Mickey Mantle and the End of America’s Childhood by Jane Leavy12. The Diana Chronicles by Tina Brown (read by Rosalyn Landor)
5 Audiobooks 1. The Masque of the Black Tulip by Lauren Willig (read by Kate Reading) 2. Losing Mum and Pup: A Memoir by Christopher Buckley (read by the author)3. The Masque of the Black Tulip by Lauren Willig (read by Kate Reading)4. The Deception of the Emerald Ring by Lauren Willig (read by Kate Reading)5. The Temptation of the Night Jasmine by Lauren Willig (read by Kate Reading) 6. Virgin River by Robyn Carr (read by Therese Plummer)7. Shelter Mountain by Robyn Carr (read by Therese Plummer)8. Whispering Rock by Robyn Carr (read by Therese Plummer)9. Second Chance Pass by Robyn Carr (read by Therese Plummer)10. Temptation Ridge by Robyn Carr (read by Therese Plummer)11. What Happens in London by Julia Quinn (read by Rosalyn Landor)12. The Audacity of Hope by Barack Obama (abridged; read by the author)13. The Audacity to Win: The Inside Story and Lessons of Barack Obama’s Historic Victory by David Plouffe

14. The Last Olympian by Rick Riordan
15. Blind Side by Catherine Coulter16. Ape House by Sara Gruen (read by Paul Boehmer)17. Up in Honey’s Room by Elmore Leonard (read by Arliss Howard) 18. Paradise Valley by Robyn Carr (read by Therese Plummer)19. Dreamers of the Day by Mary Doria Russell (read by Ann Marie Lee)20. The Diana Chronicles by Tina Brown (read by Rosalyn Landor)
5 Romance 1. Dreams of Stardust by Lynn Kurland2. The Masque of the Black Tulip by Lauren Willig3. The Deception of the Emerald Ring by Lauren Willig4. The Seduction of the Crimson Rose by Lauren Willig5. The Temptation of the Night Jasmine by Lauren Willig 6. Dark Lover by J. R. Ward 7. On the Edge by Ilona Andrews 8. Virgin River by Robyn Carr9. Shelter Mountain by Robyn Carr10. Whispering Rock by Robyn Carr11. A Virgin River Christmas by Robyn Carr12. The Witness by Sandra Brown13. The Widow by Carla Neggers14. Second Chance Pass by Robyn Carr15. Temptation Ridge by Robyn Carr15. What Happens in London by Julia Quinn 16. Paradise Valley by Robyn Carr 17. Once upon a Rose by Judith O’Brien18. Anyone But You by Jennifer Crusie
The full list of 75 1. A Great Day to Fight Fire: Mann Gulch, 1949 by Mark Matthews 2. The Kennedy Assassination–25 Hours After: Lyndon B. Johnson’s Pivotal First Day as President by Steven M. Gillon 3. East of Peculiar by Suzann Ledbetter 4. The Masque of the Black Tulip by Lauren Willig 5. Unclutter Your Life on One Week by Erin Rooney Doland 6. Eggsecutive Orders by Julie Hyzy 7. Loving Frank by Nancy Horan 8. Fly by Wire: The Geese, the Glide, the Miracle on the Hudson by William Langewiesche 9. Dreams of Stardust by Lynn Kurland 10. Government Girl: Young and Female in the White House by Stacy Parker Aab 11. The Deception of the Emerald Ring by Lauren Willig 12. The New Frugality: How to Consume Less, Save More, and Live Better by Chris Farrell 13. Apollo: Race to the Moon by Charles Murray and Catherine Bly Cox 14. The Balance Thing by Margaret Dumas 15. Losing Mum and Pup: A Memoir by Christopher Buckley 16. Lincoln‘s Other White House: The Untold Story of the Man and His Presidencyby Elizabeth Smith Brownstein 17. They Dared Return: The True Story of Jewish Spies behind the Lines in Nazi Germany by Patrick K. O’Donnell 18. Slow Fire by Ken Mercer 19. Live a Little! Breaking the Rules Won’t Break Your Health by Susan M. Love and Alice D. Domar 20. The Seduction of the Crimson Rose by Lauren Willig 21. Tortilla Flat by John Steinbeck 22. Dark Lover by J. R. Ward 23. On the Edge by Ilona Andrews 24. A Night Too Dark by Dana Stabenow 25. Model Home by Eric Puchner 26. Drink the Tea by Thomas Kaufman 27. The Peep Diaries: How We’re Learning to Love Watching Ourselves and Our Neighbors by Hal Niedzviecki 28. When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead 29. FDR’s Funeral Train: A Betrayed Widow, a Soviet Spy, and a Presidency in the Balance by Robert Klara 30. This Is Just Exactly Like You by Drew Perry 31. The Camera Never Blinks: Adventures of a TV Journalist by Dan Rather 32. Prayers for Sale by Sandra Dallas 33. The Flyers: In Search of Wilbur and Orville Wright by Noah Adams 34. The Temptation of the Night Jasmine by Lauren Willig 35. Lincoln’s Sanctuary: Abraham Lincoln and the Soldiers’ Home by Matthew Pinsker 36. Franklin Pierce by Michael F. Holt 37. Provenance: How a Con Man and a Forger Rewrote the History of Modern Art by Laney Salisbury and Aly Sujo 38. Cat’s Cradle by Kurt Vonnegut 39. Virgin River by Robyn Carr 40. Womenomics: Write Your Own Rules for Success by Claire Shipman and Katty Kay 41. The Lake Shore Limited by Sue Miller 42. The God of the Hive by Laurie R. King43. The Beckham Experiment: How the World’s Most Famous Athlete Tried to Conquer America by Grant Wahl44. Four Freedoms by John Crowley
45. Shelter Mountain by Robyn Carr46. State Fair by Earlene Fowler47. Whispering Rock by Robyn Carr48. A Virgin River Christmas by Robyn Carr49. The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick50. The Art of Choosing by Sheena Iyengar51. Rolling Thunder by Chris Grabenstein52. The Witness by Sandra Brown53. The Widow by Carla Neggers54. War by Sebastian Junger55. Second Chance Pass by Robyn Carr56. Past Imperfect: Facts, Fictions, Fraud—American History from Bancroft and Parkman to Ambrose, Bellesiles, Ellis, and Goodwin by Peter Charles Hoffer57. Junkyard Dogs by Craig Johnson

85. 168 Hours: You Have More Time Than You Think by Laura Vanderkam86. Stuff: Compulsive Hoarding and the Meaning of Things by Randy O. Frost and Gail Steketee87. Moonlight Mile by Dennis Lehane88. The White House Doctor: A Memoir by Connie Mariano89. The Report by Jessica Francis Kane90. The Audacity to Win: The Inside Story and Lessons of Barack Obama’s Historic Victory by David Plouffe91. Shadow Divers: The True Adventure of Two Americans Who Risked Everything to Solve One of the Last Mysteries of World War II by Robert Kurson92. Personality: What Makes You the Way You Are by Daniel Nettle93. How Pleasure Works: The New Science of Why We Like What We Like by Paul Bloom94. Morning Miracle: Inside The Washington Post: A Great Newspaper Fights for Its Life by Dave Kindred95. The Last Olympian by Rick Riordan96. The Left-Hander Syndrome: The Causes and Consequences of Left-Handedness by Stanley Coren97. Blind Side by Catherine Coulter98. Bliss, Remembered by Frank Deford99. The Widower’s Tale by Julia Glass100. Freedom by Jonathan Franzen101. News to Me: Adventures of an Accidental Journalist by Laurie Hertzel102. Austenland by Shannon Hale 103. Wait Till Next Year: A Memoir by Doris Kearns Goodwin 104. Schooled by Gordon Korman 105. Deadlines Past: Forty Years of Presidential Campaigning: A Reporter’s Story by Walter R. Mears106. The Fiddler in the Subway: The True Story of What Happened When a World-Class Violinist Played for Handouts… and Other Virtuosic Performances by America’s Foremost Feature Writer by Gene Weingarten107. Ape House by Sara Gruen (read by Paul Boehmer)108. Animal Farm by George Orwell109. Up in Honey’s Room by Elmore Leonard (read by Arliss Howard)110. Calvin Coolidge: The Quiet President by Donald R. McCoy111. The Shimmering Blond Sister by David Handler112. Safe from the Sea by Peter Geye

I’ll bet you thought I was being a reading challenge bum when it comes to my own darn reading challenge.

Actually, I’ll bet you forgot I was hosting a reading challenge at all.

Meanwhile, I’ve been toiling away in the trenches in silence. It’s true.

I write about it over here, and it is not impressive.

But, it’s something.

I’ve just joined one more: The “Truth Is Stranger Than Fiction Challenge,” hosted by Caitlin at Chaotic Compendiums. The reading challenge has its own page.

Yes, this one’s all about nonfiction. I can support that!

Here are the guidelines:

1. Only non-fiction books apply! These can be anything you’re interested in: memoirs, history, geography, politics, religion, sports – whatever non-fiction you’ve put your hands on and your nose into.
2. Overlaps with other challenges allowed!
3. Post a list of choices if you want, or make it up as you go along.
4. Any book format is allowed.

There are four levels:

• Just the Facts – Read two non-fiction books.
• The Scoop – Read four non-fiction books.
• The Whole Story – Read six non-fiction books.
• Nothing But the Truth – Read eight (or more) non-fiction books.

The challenge will run from February 1, 2010 through February 28, 2011.

I’m going to participate at the “Nothing But the Truth” level by reading eight or more nonfiction books.

This page will be my home base for the project. I love this one!

1. Government Girl: Young and Female in the White House by Stacy Parker Aab

2. The New Frugality: How to Consume Less, Save More, and Live Better by Chris Farrell

3. Apollo: Race to the Moon by Charles Murray and Catherine Bly Cox

4.

The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen R. Covey
5. The Day Lincoln Was Shot by Jim Bishop