But first, a throwback to my 2019 Beat the Backlist Challenge…

Okay, 2019 was such a hard year, at least in terms of my 2019 Beat the Backlist reading challenge. I originally posted 15 books from my backlist as part of the challenge but I failed. HORRIBLY. Although I am more of a backlist type of reader, I only managed to complete a dismal six books out of the fifteen I listed. It was an epic failure to say the least. Haha!

Because I simply cannot resist the temptation of buying another book (yes, I am the “just one more book” type of  impulsive buyer), my backlist has grown ever the longer. There is just no other way to shorten this list than by participating in yet another Beat the Backlist edition. The other solution is to fully stop buying book or go on a buying ban which I am not sure I can manage.

So here I am again, joining the 2020 edition of the Beat the Backlist reading challenge. This challenge was brought to life by NovelKnight. Essentially, the challenge is about ticking off older books from your to-be-read list. The books can be of any genre, format, or length. Beating the backlist will yet again form part of my 2020 Reading Goals and Resolutions.

The Rules

The Beat the Backlist challenge has one goal: helping you show your TBR who’s boss. The rules are simple:

  1. For a book to count, it must be published in the previous year or earlier. In 2020, that means that anything published in 2019 or earlier is fair game.
  2. You have to start AND finish the book in 2020. It is a challenge after all so there have to be some restrictions.
  3. And you have to sign up which means sharing your challenge TBR and/or goal somewhere online. This can be in the form of a Goodreads shelf, Tweet, instagram or blog post, YouTube video, etc. Don’t worry if you don’t stick to your initial TBR. It’s just to give you a starting place.

Everything beyond that is all optional and all for fun!

My total target for this year is 40 books. As I have mentioned, I am the backlist type of reader so hitting the target is not going to be a challenge. For the purposes of this reading challenge, I am enumerating 12 books which I resolve to read no matter what the circumstances maybe. Most of these books were published from way beyond and I bought them in 2018 or earlier.

Here’s my Beat the Backlist challenge list:

  1. KIM by Rudyard Kipling
  2. BLEAK HOUSE by Charles Dickens
  3. SATURDAY by Ian McEwan
  4. NORTHANGER ABBEY by Jane Austen
  5. ABSALOM! ABSALOM! By William Faulkner
  6. THE SATANIC VERSES by Salman Rushdie
  7. COLD MOUNTAIN by Charles Frazier
  8. THE ABSOLUTELY TRUE DIARY OF A PART-TIME INDIAN by Sherman Alexie
  9. THE ROAD by Cormac McCarthy
  10. THE HELP by Kathryn Stockett
  11. WIDE SARGASSO SEA by Jean Rhys
  12. THE SHADOW OF THE WIND by Carlos Zafran Ruiz Zafon

I hope I could finish all the books in this list. How about you fellow readers, what books are you planning to remove from your unread pile? Share it in the comment box or draw your own list, and don’t forget to tag me 😉