2015 Reading Challenge: January Update

At the beginning of January, I announced my goal of reading 100 books in 2015. January went by quickly, and when looking over my total for books for the first month of 2015, it turns out that I have read 5 book. Which does put me a little behind on my goal. Not too much though, and since I have a two week holiday coming up in February, I will definitely have more time to read over the next few weeks.

Here's what I read this month.

Harry Potter et le prisonnier d'Azkaban - J.K. Rowling
To help improve my French, I've been reading Harry Potter in French. It does take longer for me to read in French (which is part of why my book number is low this month), but I've reached the point where I sometimes forget that I am reading in a different language which seems like a success for me.

The Reluctant Fundamentalist - Mohsin Hamid
My book club read this book recently (and by book club, I mean a group of English assistants who decided to get together sporadically to talk about books). It's a love story mixed in with the events that occur to Pakistani man after September 11. The form of narration is interesting, and although I would not have picked up the novel on my own, I found it thought-provoking.

Harry Potter et la Coupe de Feu - J.K. Rowling
More Harry Potter in French. This fourth book is so long. I wasn't sure for a while how I was ever going to finish it especially because I borrowed it from the library and I couldn't renew it because someone else was on the list to borrow it next. Reading back through the books, I remember why I like them so much. These books are good.

The Life of St. Francis of Assisi - Paul Sabatier
As the title suggests, this book is about the life of St. Francis of Assisi. I enjoyed learning more about St. Francis and the time period in which he lived. I felt sometimes as if I should have done a bit more research on my own first before trying to read this book, but overall, I think it was a good introduction to St. Francis.

Neuf Contes - Charles Perrault
Charles Perrault is a French author who is best known for rewriting folk tales into the fairy tales that many of us know today including Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, and Little Red Riding Hood. I actually found these slightly more difficult to read in French than Harry Potter just because the some of the words used in the story are older and used less frequently today. However, I would definitely advise reading these in French if you can. The French elementary teachers that I worked with suggested these to me when I asked what I should read that was traditionally French but not too difficult for someone who speaks French as a second language.

So that's what I read in January. I am proud of the amount of French that I read even if it means that it is slowing down my reading. While I am here in France and have access to all the French books I want (libraries are amazing), I am trying to read as much in French as possible. I'm currently about halfway through the 5th Harry Potter book so I will definitely finish that in February. I've also got another book of fairy tales and a book of poetry from the French teachers as well. And, my book club has picked another book for our next meeting. I will try to read a few more books in February, and I'll update you on my progress at the end of the month.

Also, if you're looking to read Harry Potter in French too and you have Amazon Prime, the French versions of Harry Potter are available to borrow for your kindle. If you don't have Amazon Prime, and you're interested in getting it, the link above will take you to sign up for a free 30 day trial. It's an affiliate link, so it's a win for both of us. I have used Amazon Prime in the past, and the only reason I didn't renew for this year is that I'm not in the US right now.

What did you read in January? Which books would you recommend?