Lunar18's challenge with unlimited overlaps and creative categories

Hello everybody,
reading more then in 2009 will be impossible so now i get even more creative and i will do, as last year, unlimited overlaps and i will define as i go some categories. So in honour of LT member Nickelini i will try to be as efficient as possible.
Already defined categories are also subject to change ;-)
Let's have fun, let's be creative, and let's start !
Lunar18

Categories already defined ....

I. Europa, Europa !
II. The Italian Job.
III. Around the world in 365 days.
IV. Lunatics, lovers and poets.
V. Scent of a woman.
VI. ..... Europa, Europa ! the second tour around
VII.
VIII.
IX. In Flanders Fields
X. One hundred and one Dalm.... oops, pages.

Category I. : Europa, Europa !

books from different european authors, as many different countries as my overlaps authorize.

1. Germany : Vrije val by Juli Zeh - finished 9th of january
2. Scotland : Als de doden niet herrijzen by Philip Kerr - finished 6th of february
3. Hungary : Kaddisj voor een niet geboren kind by 126563019::Imre Kertész - finished 8th of february.
4. England : Amsterdam by Ian McEwan - finished 13th of february.
5. The Netherlands : Joe Speedboot by Tommy Wieringa - finished 21st of february.
6. Belgium : Kaas by Willem Elsschot - finished 28th of march.
7. Ireland : Dubliners by james James Joyce - finished 18th of april.
8. Wales : Under Milk Wood by Dylan Thomas - finished 20th of september
9. Kroatia : De stoel van Elijah by Igor Stiks - finished 17th of october
10. Albania : De nis der schande by Ismail Kadare - finished 19th of december

Category II. : The Italian Job.

books from Italian authors, changed the Bella Italia title inspired by my LT friend Jebronse.

1. 9302821::Avondlucht by Silvio d'Arzo - finished 17th of january.
2. Iemand, niemand en honderdduizend by luigipirandello::Luigi Pirandello - finished 28th of february.
3. Laat het feest beginnen by Niccolo Ammaniti - finished 9th of april.
4. Kieuwen by Niccolo Ammaniti - finished 14th of may
5. Gedroomde tijd by Ugo Riccarelli - finished 20th of june
6. De nacht van de zwarte rozen by Nino Filasto - finished 11th of august
7. Achter de deur by Giorgio Bassani - finished 13th of august
8. The cloven viscount by Italo Calvino - finished 1st of november
9. Vita by Melania Mazzucco - finished 20th of november
10.

Category III. : Around the world in 365 days.

not in 80 days but target is too read 10 books from non-european authors.

1. De duivenplaag by Louise Erdrich, American novelist (march 14)
2. Wachten op de barbaren by J.M. Coetzee, South African writer (april 25)
3. Life of Pi by Yann Martel, Canadian writer (may 14)
4. Wereld en wandel van Michael K by J.M. Coetzee (may 29)
5. De goddelijke Marietta by Sergio Pitol, Mexican writer (july 21)
6. De schrijver by Tahar Ben Jelloun, Moroccan writer (september 13)
7. In ongenade by J.M. Coetzee, South African writer (november 28).
8.
9.
10.

My around the world seems to stop a lot in South-Africe, Coetzee is a discovery for me this year and i must say his books are very intriguing.

Category IV. : Lunatics, lovers and poets.

very open category, target is too read more poetry, but love stories can fit in as can books from lunatics, as some poets have some degree of ....

1. Vrije val by Juli Zeh (january 9), "lunatics" in the form of "multiversum" theories instead of the universum theory.
2. Aan schor en stad niks voorbij by Tsjebbe Hettinga (march 26)
3. Joe Speedboot by Tommy Wieringa (feb. 21) : clearly a bit of a lunatic, the main character.
4. Achter de deur by Giorgio Bassani - finished 13th of august, clearly a lover, the question is : who does he loves ?
5. Het meten van de wereld by Daniel Kehlmann, - finished 26th of august - clearly some lunatic aspects in the brains of the scientists ;-)
6. Toegedekt met een liedje by Charles Ducal, a poet, that's for sure - finished 15th of september
7. Under Milk Wood by Dylan Thomas - maybe this book doesn't contain poems, it most definitely is poetry for me, and Thomas is a poet, yes ? - finished 20th of september
8. Groot verzenboek vijfhonderd gedichten over leven, liefde en dood by Jozef Deleu - finished on 13th of october.
9. Een minuut stilte by Siegfried Lenz - a true love story - finished 18th of october.
10. De troost van vreemden by Ian McEwan - a fascinating and strange story on love (or rather obsession) - finished 31st of october

Category V. : Scent of a woman.

books by female authors because ... i like woman ;-)

1. Vrije val by Juli Zeh (january 9).
2. De duivenplaag by Louise Erdrich (march 14)
3. The earth hums in b-flat by Mari Strachan (september 23)
4. This is how by M.J.Hyland - finished october 30
5. Vita by Melania Mazzucco - finished 20th of november
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.

Category VI. : ..... Europa, Europa ! the second tour around

1. Belgium : Sluitertijd by Erwin Mortier
2. Germany : Het meten van de wereld by Daniel Kehlmann
3. Wales : The earth hums in b-flat by Mari Strachan
4. England : This is how by M.J.Hyland - finished october 30
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.

Category VII. : ..... (bis)

to be inspired by possible ....

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.

Category VIII. : Books fitting in none of my other categories

not so inspired ...

1. Hannah by Armin Mueller Stahl - finished 24th of january.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.

Category IX. : In Flanders Fields

1. Kaas by Willem Elsschot - finished 28th of march.
2. Sluitertijd by Erwin Mortier - finished 23rd of may.
3. Het tankschip by Willem Elsschot - finished 27th of june.
4. Het dwaallicht by Willem Elsschot - finished 7th of august.
5. Toegedekt met een liedje by Charles Ducal - finished 15th of september.
6. Een beetje Columbus zijn by Jozef Deleu - finished 16th of september.
7. Groot verzenboek vijfhonderd gedichten over leven, liefde en dood by Jozef Deleu - finished on 13th of october.
8.
9.
10.

Category X. : One hundred and one Dalm..... ooops, pages.

inspired by my last category in the 999 challenge, under 99 pages, now : maximum 101 pages.

1. 9302821::Avondlucht by Silvio d'Arzo - finished 17th of january
2. Aan schor en stad niks voorbij by Tsjebbe Hettinga (march 26)
3. Het tankschip by Willem Elsschot - finished 27th of june.
4. Het dwaallicht by Willem Elsschot - finished 7th of august.
5. Toegedekt met een liedje by Charles Ducal - finished 15th of september. (82 pages)
6. Een beetje Columbus zijn by Jozef Deleu - finished 16th of september (32 pages)
7. Under Milk Wood by Dylan Thomas - finished 20th of september (62 pages)
8. The cloven viscount by Italo Calvino - finished 1st of november (74 pages)
9.
10.

Hello,
started my first book of 2010 : Vrije Val by Juli Zeh. And lets just give it a try : category 1, category 4 (the book combines Physics and Philosophy with a crime story, a bit lunatic too me...) and category 5.
Too reach the challenge : 3 overlaps will be the target for each book ;-)

Hello. Glad to have found you here for another year. Like the sound of those categories so far and interested to see where inspiration takes you.

The categories are really interesting - I'll be back to see what you're reading.

number 1 : Vrije val by Juli Zeh. Very nice book, philosophy, physics and a crime. Although i knew pretty fast who the kidnapper was, the book kept on being interesting because of the multiple variations in the social relations between the main characters. And of course because the crime is only one of the plot items in the book.
Nice start of 2010.

number 2 : Avondlucht by Silvio d'Arzo : short stories by this a bit mythical Italian author. Some very touching, some very weird.

I'm curious about this d'Arzo. I liked his Andermans huis very much. I already bought this one too.

Anyway, good luck on your new challenge!

number 3 : Hannah by Armin Mueller Stahl. Short novel about two man being friends or not, being the father of Hannah or not, ... in other words a confrontation of a pretty pure kind. Nice book and the best thing is that i got it for free on Boekenfestijn. ;-)

number 4 : Als de doden niet herrijzen by Philip Kerr. Strange book, by moments thrilling, on the other side sometimes boring. A combination of a crime novel, a love story, a war story and the maffia comes along as well, as does communism and revolution, a bit too much if you ask me. The end is pretty dull and farfetched.

number 5 : Kaddisj voor een niet geboren kind by Imre Kertész. A very powerfull novel, a true statement on "No", no i don't want children, i don't want them because of my history (as a jew during wartime) i don't want children because of how i was treated when i was myself a child ....
This book rages on, repeats words to empower them, gets you by your throat and doesn't looses it grip.
Truly beautiful written, with frases that you would like to read over and over again. Only 114 pages (in Dutch) but beware, all except an easy read.

7th book : Joe Speedboot by Tommy Wieringa, great coming of age style book, some real "The Netherlands" stuff, a bad joke about us Belgians, but all in all a very nice book, it makes you smile and some of the comparisons or metaphors if you like are true jewels.
Wieringa can write, that's for sure, but for us Flemish speaking people in Belgium, it's so Dutch, so unreal that it stays hard to believe that for the rest of the world we have the same language.

i forgot to register number 6 : Amsterdam by Ian McEwan : great story on friendship that turns into hatred. Also a magnificent sketch on perception and egomania.

8th book of 2010 : Iemand, niemand en honderdduizend by Luigi Pirandello. Fascinating book, the first 30 pages are really hard work but then the story gets a grip on you and the selfdestruction of the main character, to become a new, free, person is impressive.

number 9 : De duivenplaag by Louise Erdrich, a fantastic novel on family histories of native Americans, the murders by lynching on mere suspicion, the loss of their land, the collapse of their traditions ... very dramatic. But also hilarious stuff on impossible loves, clashes between new and old religions, halloween and the rest.
Story telling in the old tradition, a great book, told by different narrators and that is the icing on the cake, the same stories get light from different angles and in that way they receive all their complexity.

Glad you enjoyed book number 9. On your recommendation I have got hold of a copy of it so I hope I like it as much.

i hope so as well, so after Giraffe that would make two :-)

10 ! Aan schor en stad niks voorbij by Tsjebbe Hettinga. A wee poetry booklet but so beautiful. Too know that the poet is blind makes it even more spectacular.

and 11 : Kaas by Willem Elsschot : a social satire about an office clerk wanting to be a trader (in cheese, or actually not). Painfull and laughable at the same time.

11 sounds interesting. I don't suppose it is available in English?

Hello Sanddancer, yes, the novel is translated and is available on Amazon.co.uk, but it is very expensive, even if used (still 10 £). Written in 1933 it isn't of course that much present-day satire, but still very enjoyable.

It does seem rather expensive, but I've just checked and one of the libraries near me has a copy, so I will try to get it soon (although often what they say they have is different from what I can actually find in there).

Back from Tuscany, great weather, up till 27° C., in the sun even 30 or more, until this morning flooding rain. I didn't read that much, there is too much too see in Florence, Pisa, Siena, Volterra, San Gimignano and other Castelina in Chianti's. I did read though, one for my The Italian Job category : Laat het feest beginnen by Niccolo Ammaniti, not his best but a funny read for the holidays. I also started Dubliners by James Joyce, not finished yet ...

Been to Tuscany? Lucky you :-(

to Jebronse, yes lucky me, certainly that i went there the first week of the easter holidays ... originally we planned the second week, would have been nicely blocked then, Tuscany may be great, Pisa airport isn't ;-)

number 13 : Dubliners by James Joyce, mixed feelings about this one. You clearly feel the literary capabilities of JJ but the stories are so weird, especially the endings that it leaves one, at least me, with some raised eyebrows now and then.
The cover mentions it was considered as a dangerous book back then because of the raw descriptions of the people, for me it's just the opposite, the rawest aspects are covered in beautiful descriptions.
Anyhow, no Ulysses for me the coming weeks.

book 14 : Wachten op de barbaren by J.M. Coetzee. I will read more Coetzee books because this one really pleased me. The descriptions of this person representing "a system, an authority" and his changing mindset confronted with the violent excesses of this system are very intriguing.
The atrocities of the torturers and the peaceful, psychological resistance of one man make this book an intense read.

15 : Life of Pi by Yann Martel. Strange book, the first chapters are not attractive to read on, once Pi is on his own in his lifeboat, with his tiger, it becomes more fascinating and then it ends with his story told to examiners once he's on land again and a very short, intriguing, alternative story.
It is or my shortage on imaginational powers, or the book, the story that has a strange build up. Pi is constantly wondering about the great religions but finally isn't it the practical guide how to survive that helps him most ?
I stay confused.

... and 16 : Branchie by Niccolo Ammaniti. A very easy read, hilarious, exaggerated and proof of the great imagination of the author.

number 17 : Sluitertijd by Erwin Mortier : i read all of his novels now and i must say that from his debut Marcel over his second Mijn tweede huid, till this one the topics (family memories by young boys), the style (very lyrical and detailed) and the overall atmosphere (typical Flemish catholics not really saying what has to be said), his oeuvre is consistent, if not too much and borderline repeating the same things.
His two last novels stay very lyrical, in Godenslaap excelling to un-Flemish heights and bring other themes.
For me his second book and Godenslaap are the best novels. Now i'll read some of Mortier's poetry.

Hm. Are you sure he likes being called a "typical Flemish catholic"? Seems more like a "relnicht" to me (pardon my flemish) ;-)

Hello Jeb, i was referring to the characters in his books, but you're right, then it must be catholics instead of catholic. I like the word "relnicht" but i don't think Mortier fits in that category, he's the complaining type, no ? Or do you have information that i'm not aware of ?

In my opinion, he likes the controverse a bit too much. Hence the "relnicht". But that's just a personal opinion ;-)

18 : Wereld en wandel van Michael K by J.M. Coetzee. A repulsive tale of the situation in South Africa in times, i guess, just before the end of the "apartheid". Michael K is the outer example of the man who is in the wrong place at the wrong time. The novel is a fabulous construction about the story of his live, narrated in the third person, then accounted by a doctor who, suddenly, cares for him and at the end he's back in his old situation. Truly disturbing. This story catched me by its cruelty, arbitrariness and unforgiving nature.
Coetzee impresses me.

and after a long wait, due to garden work and preparations of house renovation works, number 19 : Gedroomde tijd by Ugo Riccarelli. Not an easy read, this epic story of some hundred years in Italian history told by the lives of two families, a lot of tragedies, complicated relations and misery over all.
At the point of abandoning i gave it another 20 pages and didn't stop reading untill the end.

20 : Het tankschip by Willem Elsschot, a small novel, only 50 pages on a typical Belgian topic related to commercial activities : how to avoid paying taxes. Litterary not his best work but still an amusing short read.

I've just finished reading a book which would have been perfect for your 999 Challenge! Gold by Dan Rhodes which is set in a Welsh village, mainly in various pubs where everyone drinks local real ales. Sorry the recommendation is coming a year too late.

47> Just yesterday I was updating my Amazon wishlist and noticed Gold, which has been on there for a couple of years, and realized that I could no longer remember anything about it and thus didn't know whether I still cared. But then my computer went wonky before I could click on it and refresh my memory. I was thinking it was a graphic novel for some reason. The cover, I guess.

Now I'll definitely leave it on there.

Wacky.

Hello Sanddancer, thanks for the tip ! As i am still defining categories for this year (a kind of movie title should fit in the category name) i can still read it. I checked, it has been translated.
Seems you're very busy in Welsh lately, your comment on The earth hums in B-flat was also very inviting but i can't find easily the book although it has been translated. I will have to buy it via a webshop, i do prefer buying books in physical bookshops but ... no success there.
You give me a lot to read ;-)
Now i just have to find the time ...

finally number 21, almost a month since number 20. And oh boy, it was a torture this one : De goddelijke Marietta by Sergio Pitol. Don't read this book about a man, waiting for someone and meanwhile getting drunk and boring the others present in the house with a history in Istanbul. Really boring. This author got the Cervantes prize for his oeuvre but i may hope not based on this book.
I hope my job will give me more time in the coming weeks to read some better stuff.

22: ijzeren tijd by J.M. Coetzee, a tough read again but this time "quality tough", Coetzee is for me a real revelation since i read Wachten op de barbaren. This one is a hard story on a dying woman getting in conflict with society in South-Africa and the apartheid regime. One more day at work and my holidays start, some renovation works in the house and then off to France and hopefully some interesting books to read.

23 : Het dwaallicht by Willem Elsschot, the final work of the author, nice read with hints to religion, race, politics and some nice allegories on these themes. Short, very pleasant read.
Where my "home" category (Flemish authors) was last year pretty much an Erwin Mortier category, this year it is becoming a Willem Elsschot category. In Antwerp there is lots of things to do this year around Elsschot, even a walk, i'll do that one day, now i'm on holidays.

24 : De nacht van de zwarte rozen by Nino Filasto, announced as a crime novel but the story is told by a lawyer (Filasto was also a lawyer) and goes more about his interpretation and the relationships between the participants then about solving the crime.
Relaxing read, but the plot is a bit thin and the role of some main characters is not very well constructed.

number 25 : Achter de deur by Giorgio Bassani : a short novel on the, sudden, coming of age of a young boy in school in Italy. Friendship and love, hate and repulsion, gay or straigth, mixed in a story told by the young boy, confused and searching.

26 : Het meten van de wereld by Daniel Kehlmann, a very nice novel about two scientists (Gauss & Von Humboldt) and their approach to know and understand "the world". Humour and lightweight science combined.

number 27 : De schrijver by Tahar Ben Jelloun, a novel willing to be the notes of a "scribe" written down to describe the live of someone else although ample warnings are present that fantasy will be mixed within it.
This story depicting everyday life of a boy coming of age in a Moroccan village is rather spread upon images, thoughts, memories and imaginations preventing it to become a real story. The only surreal aspect are the unexpected scenes describing the sexuality but repeated with a certain vulgar aura around it that take away every erotic aspect.
Not my style of book, maybe the cultural difference is too big.

28 : finally some poetry : Toegedekt met een liedje by Charles Ducal : of the finest poetry written in Flanders, on the same level as Luuk Gruwez.
A peach for another reason as well : fits in 3 categories, always nice as a support to reach the challenge target. ;-)

29, a quicky, only 32 pages, an essay more than a book, but hey, i have my category under 101 pages for something ;-)
Een beetje Columbus zijn by Jozef Deleu, a plea for writers, publishers, libraries, bookshops and .... readers. Good to read that we, readers, are the most important part of the chain. Again, good for multiple categories.

30 and this is one i wanted to read already for some time, since in a Flemish television series a band of friends got through a big chunk of europe on their motorcycles and stopped at his tomb in Wales : Under Milk Wood by Dylan Thomas. I got it by mail today and started reading a few phrases to have a first impression but i didn't stop ... One should read this book already for the first sentences only. It's a "play for voices" but in fact it is pure poetry from start to finish. Amazing.

and 31 : The earth hums in b-flat by Mari Strachan with great thanks to LT member Sanddancer ! A marvellous book, told by a young girl, written by a less young girl. The allusions to the supernatural, combined with the "detective" part of it and the story of the family life, actually a very sad family life, of the main 12 year old, character make it a fascinating book. A book that makes you laugh one sentence but the next one makes you gloomy.
But it tells you above all how strong a child can be, especially Gwenni.

Glad you enjoyed The Earth Hums in B Flat. If you are looking for something else set in Wales, I would also recommend Gold by Dan Rhodes - completely different from your other two Welsh reads, but good fun.

Hello Sanddancer, Gold is on my wishlist so but a bit hard to find in the bookshops. If i can't find it in the next weeks i will buy it on the web. The earth hums in b-flat is surely one of the most original books i read in the past years and very touching.

number 32, on a rather sad occasion, one of my dearest friends her mother died, i re-read Jozef Deleu's collection of poems, by various authors, on mothers, fathers, birth and dead, entitled Groot verzenboek vijfhonderd gedichten over leven, liefde en dood. Very touching, certainly with the recent death in mind.

33 : De stoel van Elijah by Igor Stiks, a complex story on a writer going to Sarajevo during the Bosnia-Servia war early '90s, in search of a family member he never knew.
Love, war, family, betrayal ... all come to live in a very complex, precisely described and tragic story.
Not a fluent read, due to the back and forward time frames in which the story takes place, making it hard to carry on but as often if you persist through the first hundred pages the story itself sucks you in and one wants to know how this will end.
Pleased to have hold on.

and 34 : Een minuut stilte by Siegfried Lenz, a German writer who writes since the early 1950's and all of a sudden is popular in Flanders and the Netherlands with this small novel on a forbidden lovestory.
Described by the publisher as a jewel, it is a nice story, elegantly written and an easy read, beautiful in the way the boy fantasises about his beloved one, but a bit too light for me to be really captivating.
Reading too many German authors apparently, my two European topics already host a German, so again not much overlaps ;-(

number 35 : Dit is echt by M.J.Hyland, a strange but intense story. Not sure yet what i have to think of this one, like my LT friend Sanddancer described it, it feels like watching a car crash.
It's a mystery to me how an author can describe in this intense way every day aspects of prison life, unless she has done some time herself which i can hardly imagine.
Writing this i have a feeling that it is the nervousness of the story that makes you feel uncomfortable.

number 36 : De troost van vreemden by Ian McEwan, a harrowing story, first gently flowing then turning cramped and finally frightfully. Some details like on furniture are absolutely precise, really McEwan, and to the contrary nowhere an explanation for what is happening, no reason, no salvation for the victims. Strange, very strange.

I see you had a similar response to M J Hyland's book that I did - it is easy to admire the writing but hard to actually enjoy the book.

I read that Ian McEwan book years ago but I can't remember much about it now.

Yes, my response is similar to yours and i will be looking for one of her other books, just because the authors empathy with i suppose unknown aspects of life is so intriguing. Did you read her debute ?
Overall, i seem to be attracted in this challenge by rather bleak and "cold" stories, Coetzee's books aren't that joyfull, McEwan's one (36) is also very well written but oppressive in atmosphere, as is De stoel van Elijah. Gedroomde tijd and Hannah are also pretty black in setting.
Oops, got to read some more fun ;-)

number 37 : The cloven viscount by Italo Calvino, part of the omnibus Onze voorouders. A short novel on good and bad, narrated through an absurd story of a count cut in half ... typical Calvino.
Not sure what the little shepherdess stands for but it is surely another allegory.
Good for my challenge because usefull in different categories.

and finally 38 : Vita by Melania Mazzucco, a real fatty ... a long story on two Italian children as immigrants in the USA at the start of the 20th century. The time lapses and the historical data break the storytelling. It is still a nice book, touching too read by the detailed descriptions of the pityfull conditions of life for immigrants, but the story is not fluently written.

number 39 : In ongenade by J.M. Coetzee. Catching story, certainly if you're a father of a daughter yourself, two daughters in my case. I can feel what David Lurie feels when he arrives to the conclusion that he can't protect his daughter.
The most devastating conclusion after reading a number of novels by Coetzee, is that the beautiful land that South Africa must be, seems lost in violence, rape and murder. Or did the world championships of football change this ? I really hope so.

A bit of a slowdown in my reading... I got myself a gift in the form of an ipad... The good news is that LT is perfectly working on this device, i'm typing this post on it. Real fun.
I just added my first book via ipad as well, maybe i should start a separate collection now with ebooks. The Pessoa book is still a paper version

Finally number 40 : De nis der schande by Ismail Kadare, a very special novel, depicting the Albanians in their, so it seems, permanent state of opposition against the Osman empire.
The story goes on the different main characters all ending in a state of disgrace to the top of the Osman empire and losing their heads that are then exposed in this alcove of shame as the title suggests.
Nice, very intriguing read.
Long time no new book in my list, my ipad and an intense work period (budgets, planning, contract renewals, etc) and professional reads kept me from my challenge. Still very happy to have reached the 40 books mark.

First of all : a very happy new year to all of you, may 2011 bring good health, fortune and a lot of nice books.
Didn't get any further in my challenge this year, book 41 is started but not finished.
40 something books seems a maximum in one year for me, but that's OK.
Is there any challenge like this next year ?
Hope to see you all here in 2011
Lunar18

Happy New Year! It looks like you still managed to enjoy some great books. In answer to your question, Yes there is another category challenge for 2011 - it is called "The 11 in 11 Challenge" where you structure 11 categories to group you reading. Just like the 2010 Challenge, you can decide how many books you want to read in each category. You can find the group main page "HERE".

A job well done, Lunar! The important thing is enjoying what you read. I'll follow your this year too, if you decide to take the challenge. Let me know the link, so I don't miss anything ;-)

Hello Jeb,
great to hear from you again, i'm still following your reads and reviews as well.
My 11 in 11 can be followed here : http://www.librarything.com/topic/106285
Lunar 18