2012 TBR Pile Reading Challenge

It's that time of year again when we all start thinking about what reading challenges we want to undertake in the new year! Well if you're looking to shrink down your TBR pile than this is the challenge for you! I know I am incredibly guilty of buying books, with every intention of reading them and then they sit on my shelves for months...even years...completely untouched. This year may finally be the year I get around to reading them!

Here are the Challenge Guidelines:

1. This challenge will run from Jan 1, 2012 - Dec 31, 2012.
2. As we would like to see quality reviews linked up to our monthly wrap-ups, only bloggers can enter. Sorry about that!
3. Any genre, length or format of book counts, as long as it is a book that's been sitting on your shelf for some time now. Only books released in 2011 and earlier! NO ARCs and 2012 fresh-off-the-press releases allowed!
   
4. You can list your books in advance or just put them in a wrap-up post. If you list them, feel free to change them as the mood takes you.
5. When you sign up in the linky, put the direct link to your post about joining the 2012 TBR PILE Reading Challenge (You need to include the info + host list + challenge button. You can also grab the button code and add it to your sidebar!)
   
6. You can move up levels, but no moving down.
7. Sign-ups will be open until Dec 15, 2012, so feel free to join at any time throughout the year.
8. At the end of each month one of the hosts will post a wrap-up. Every wrap-up will have it's unique theme, a mini-challenge, a giveaway and place for you to link up your reviews from this month. For each review you link up, you will get one entry in a drawing of one book of choice from Book Depository. It's open to INTERNATIONALS. For participating in the mini-challenge you'll get +1 entry in the giveaway.
   
9. If you miss a wrap-up post + giveaway, you can link up your reviews next month. Do not, however, try to link up one review twice - we will be checking ;)
10. December is a wrap-up for the whole year. All the book reviews you linked up January-November + the ones you'll link up in December will be entered into a HUGE giveaway - 12 books, 12 winners, INTERNATIONAL. 
11. You don't have to follow all the hosts to join the challenge, but you do have to follow all of us to be entered in giveaways!

Levels:
1-10 - A Firm Handshake
11-20 - A Friendly Hug
21-30 - A Sweet Kiss
31-40 - Love At First Sight
41-50 - Married With Children

I'm going to aim for the Friendly Hug level!

Got the idea? Excellent! Still interested in the challenge? Even more excellent!
You may have noticed the guidelines mention hosts. They're listed below and it's a stellar crew we've got. Each one of us will be taking control of a month and running the giveaway and mini challenge for that particular month. As it just so happens my month is May Day...my theme will be MAY DAY and there will be a cover disaster challenge. It's going to be awesome! Make sure you check out all the awesome blogs below!

Evie from Bookish - http://www.evie-bookish.blogspot.com @SeoEvie
Nicole from All I Ever Read - http://www.nicoleabouttown.com/ @Nicoleabouttown
Bonnie from Hands and Home - http://www.handsandhome.ca/ @HandsHomeBlog
Donna from Book Passion For Life - http://bookpassionforlife.blogspot.com/ @BookPforLife
Caitlin from WatchYA Reading - http://whatchyareading.net @caitlingss
Rie from Mission To Read - http://missiontoread.com/ @missiontoread
Vicky from Books, Biscuits & Tea -http://booksbiscuitsandtea.blogspot.com/ @alouetteuette
Christa from Hooked On Books - http://christashookedonbooks.blogspot.com @ChristasBooks
Jenna from Fans Of Fiction - http://fansoffiction.blogspot.com/ @fansoffiction
Angel from Mermaids Vision - http://mermaidvision.wordpress.com @mermaidvisions

Interested in what themes and mini-challenges you'll be seeing through out the year? Here's the schedue

January - Donna (Theme: Let It Snow + Book Cover Challenge)
February - Nicole (Theme: Un-requited Love/Love Gone Wrong + Advice Column Challenge)
March - Rie (Theme: Green or Pinched + Green Cover Challenge)
April -  Bonnie (Theme: Easter + Mini Challenge)
May - Christa (Theme: MayDay - Disaster Books! + Cover Disaster Challenge)
June - Jenna ( Theme: Camping + Sentence Challenge)
July - Rie (Theme: International Day + Cover Comparison Challenge)
August - Angel (Theme: Summer Memories + Send Your Fav Character On Vacation Challenge)
September - Nicole (Theme: Life Changing Books + Mini Challenge)
October - Caitlin (Theme: Thanksgiving Theme + Share-A-Book Challenge)
November - Vicky (Theme: Spooky Halloween + Book Puzzle Challenge)
December - Evie (Theme: Xmas Bliss + Book Bachelor Challenge)

Here are just a few of the books I'm hoping to dust off and finally read:

• The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay by Michael Chabon
• Annabel by Kathleen Winter
• Norwegian Wood by Haruki Murakami
• My Mother She Killed Me, My Father He Ate Me edited by Kate Bernheimer
• The Amber Spyglass by Philip Pullman
• Lost in a Good Book by Jasper Fforde
• Uglies by Scott Westerfeld
• Blood Red Road by Moira Young
• Ash by Melinda Lo

Interested in participating? There are only two things you need to do first:

1) Make sure you grab this absolutely gorgeous button! Stick it in your post, put it on your sidebar, print it off and plaster the walls with it!

<center><a href="http://christashookedonbooks.blogspot.com/2011/11/2012-tbr-pile-reading-challenge.html"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ULiNSADK35M/TsAmvDkki1I/AAAAAAAACnA/GoduRwvOGZo/s1600/2012-TBR-Reading-Challenge-Button.png" /></a></center>

2) Link up your first post here! Feel free to make a list of books you want to read or share a photo of your TBR mountain! Whatever you want to get the ball rolling!