Recently Read | 2015 recap

At the start of last year, I set my 2015 Goodreads Reading Challenge at 101 books. I reached 100 in 2014, and figured that a one-book increase would be doable. On Dec. 31, I finished read number 101.

I totally admit to cheating slightly on occasion with short stories and graphic novels/comic trades, particularly toward the end of the year. But reading is reading! And those types of reading are just as valuable and real as any other. (Side note: I reviewed 67 of the 101 reads for Forever Young Adult. Click the covers below for links to my full reviews.)

My top 15 reads of the year—in no particular order—were:

1. I'll Give You the Sun by Jandy Nelson
2. Winter by Marissa Meyer
3. The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman
4. Every Word by Ellie Marney
5. Lost Stars by Claudia Gray
6. A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas
7. Made You Up by Francesca Zappia
8. I'll Meet You There by Heather Demetrios
9. Of Dreams and Rust by Sarah Fine
10. Illuminae by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff
11. Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo
12. Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins
13. The Heart of Betrayal by Mary E. Pearson
14. Beastly Bones by William Ritter
15. Uprooted by Naomi Novik

For 2016, I've set a goal of 100 reads. I'd like to attempt to read more variety—nonfiction, adult books, etc.—rather than just striving for quantity.

Below is the full list of my 2015 reads. You can also see a fun infographic of my 2015 stats here. (I unfortunately couldn't figure out a way to embed it.)

What were your favorite reads of the past year? Any that you think I should add to my 2016 TBR list?

Last call! | 2015 Curtismas Card Exchange

If you haven't already—and want to, of course—don't forget to sign up for the 2015 Curtismas Card Exchange!

Fill out the form on this post to join the fun.

Fancies & Fascinations | DJ Earthworm's United States of Pop 2015

Each year since I discovered it was a thing, I've looked forward to hearing DJ Earworm's end-of-year mashup. They were great to start with, but they just keep getting better, and this years' is no exception. I can't even imagine how long this takes to put together.

(Check out a list of all 50 included songs here.)

Check out last year's post about my love of these mashups for the 2014 edition and links to previous years' editions. (I actually posted last year's mashup on Dec. 4 as well—it's a tradition now!)

Hey, December

The 2015 Man Calendar:

Mr. December: Jake Gyllenhaal
Mr. November: James McAvoy
Mr. October: Lee Pace
Mr. September: Idris Elba
Mr. August: Chris Hemsworth
Mr. July: Benedict Cumberbatch
Mr. June: Chris Evans
Mr. May: Henry Cavill
Mr. April: Michael Fassbender
Mr. March: Jensen Ackles
Mr. February: Tom Hiddleston
Mr. January: Eoin Macken

Download this page of the 2015 Man Calendar for personal use by clicking on the image; it will open in a new window. Right/control click to save it. Then print the page on letter-size cardstock, and trim it to 6"x9".

P.S.—It's time to start work on the 2016 calendar! If you have any ideas for who should be included, please leave names (and photos!) in the comments.

Hi there, November

The 2015 Man Calendar:

Mr. November: James McAvoy
Mr. October: Lee Pace
Mr. September: Idris Elba
Mr. August: Chris Hemsworth
Mr. July: Benedict Cumberbatch
Mr. June: Chris Evans
Mr. May: Henry Cavill
Mr. April: Michael Fassbender
Mr. March: Jensen Ackles
Mr. February: Tom Hiddleston
Mr. January: Eoin Macken

Download this page of the 2015 Man Calendar for personal use by clicking on the image; it will open in a new window. Right/control click to save it. Then print the page on letter-size cardstock, and trim it to 6"x9".

Everyone appreciates you, October

The 2015 Man Calendar:

Mr. October: Lee Pace
Mr. September: Idris Elba
Mr. August: Chris Hemsworth
Mr. July: Benedict Cumberbatch
Mr. June: Chris Evans
Mr. May: Henry Cavill
Mr. April: Michael Fassbender
Mr. March: Jensen Ackles
Mr. February: Tom Hiddleston
Mr. January: Eoin Macken

Download this page of the 2015 Man Calendar for personal use by clicking on the image; it will open in a new window. Right/control click to save it. Then print the page on letter-size cardstock, and trim it to 6"x9".

Lookin' good, September

The 2015 Man Calendar:

Mr. September: Idris Elba
Mr. August: Chris Hemsworth
Mr. July: Benedict Cumberbatch
Mr. June: Chris Evans
Mr. May: Henry Cavill
Mr. April: Michael Fassbender
Mr. March: Jensen Ackles
Mr. February: Tom Hiddleston
Mr. January: Eoin Macken

Download this page of the 2015 Man Calendar for personal use by clicking on the image; it will open in a new window. Right/control click to save it. Then print the page on letter-size cardstock, and trim it to 6"x9".

Good to see you, August

The 2015 Man Calendar:

Mr. August: Chris Hemsworth
Mr. July: Benedict Cumberbatch
Mr. June: Chris Evans
Mr. May: Henry Cavill
Mr. April: Michael Fassbender
Mr. March: Jensen Ackles
Mr. February: Tom Hiddleston
Mr. January: Eoin Macken

Download this page of the 2015 Man Calendar for personal use by clicking on the image; it will open in a new window. Right/control click to save it. Then print the page on letter-size cardstock, and trim it to 6"x9".

Hi July!

The 2015 Man Calendar:

Mr. July: Benedict Cumberbatch
Mr. June: Chris Evans
Mr. May: Henry Cavill
Mr. April: Michael Fassbender
Mr. March: Jensen Ackles
Mr. February: Tom Hiddleston
Mr. January: Eoin Macken

Download this page of the 2015 Man Calendar for personal use by clicking on the image; it will open in a new window. Right/control click to save it. Then print the page on letter-size cardstock, and trim it to 6"x9".

June has arrived

The 2015 Man Calendar:

Mr. June: Chris Evans
Mr. May: Henry Cavill
Mr. April: Michael Fassbender
Mr. March: Jensen Ackles
Mr. February: Tom Hiddleston
Mr. January: Eoin Macken

Download this page of the 2015 Man Calendar for personal use by clicking on the image; it will open in a new window. Right/control click to save it. Then print the page on letter-size cardstock, and trim it to 6"x9".

Cheers, May

The 2015 Man Calendar:

Mr. May: Henry Cavill
Mr. April: Michael Fassbender
Mr. March: Jensen Ackles
Mr. February: Tom Hiddleston
Mr. January: Eoin Macken

Download this page of the 2015 Man Calendar for personal use by clicking on the image; it will open in a new window. Right/control click to save it. Then print the page on letter-size cardstock, and trim it to 6"x9".

'Ello, April

The 2015 Man Calendar:

Mr. April: Michael Fassbender
Mr. March: Jensen Ackles
Mr. February: Tom Hiddleston
Mr. January: Eoin Macken

Download this page of the 2015 Man Calendar for personal use by clicking on the image; it will open in a new window. Right/control click to save it. Then print the page on letter-size cardstock, and trim it to 6"x9".

Welcome, March

The 2015 Man Calendar:

Mr. March: Jensen Ackles
Mr. February: Tom Hiddleston
Mr. January: Eoin Macken

Download this page of the 2015 Man Calendar for personal use by clicking on the image; it will open in a new window. Right/control click to save it. Then print the page on letter-size cardstock, and trim it to 6"x9".

Why hello, February

The 2015 Man Calendar:

Mr. February: Tom Hiddleston
Mr. January: Eoin Macken

Download this page of the 2015 Man Calendar for personal use by clicking on the image; it will open in a new window. Right/control click to save it. Then print the page on letter-size cardstock, and trim it to 6"x9".

The 2015 Man Calendar + Mr. January

Happy 2015, friends! Here's to a new year, filled with fun times, good health ... and handsome men.

I might not be able to help you with the first two items on that list, but I can help you with the third. Allow me to present:

Hot Under the Collar | The 2015 Man Calendar

For you new readers (Hello! And thanks for reading!), here's a little background on this project: At the end of each year since 2004, I've worked on creating a loosely-themed calendar featuring photos of my favorite non-Mister men, which I call my Man Calendar. Colt is, as he is about most things, an extremely good sport about this project (although I'm sure it doesn't hurt that I hang my physical version at work rather than in our home).

Some of the menfolk in this year's edition were featured in last year's calendar, but a few are new faces. If you're curious about previous years, you can check them out at the following links: 2014, 2013, 2012, 2011, 2010, 2009. (2008–2005 are in Word Docs, which says a lot about how far my design abilities have come.)

Without further ado, I'd like you to meet Mr. January: Eoin Macken, the dreamiest and most jovial of Arthur's loyal knights.

The whole year looks a little something like this:

Mr. February is Tom Hiddleston; Mr. March is Jensen Ackles; Mr. April is Michael Fassbender; Mr. May is Henry Cavill; Mr. June is Chris Evans; Mr. July is Benedict Cumberbatch; Mr. August is Chris Hemsworth; Mr. September is Idris Elba; Mr. October is Lee Pace; Mr. November is James McAvoy; and Mr. December is Jake Gyllenhaal.

Narrowly missing the cut this year were: Chris Pratt—there is a depressing lack of photoshoots featuring Mr. Pratt—David Tennant, Michael Ealy, Robert Downey Jr., Johnny Depp, Andrew Lee Potts, Daniel Henney and Troy Baker.

Want one of your own?

As a "Happy 2015!" present to you: Here's a ZIP file of all of the months for your personal use.

I print them on white card stock, and then trim the sheets to 6"x9". I then punch a hole at the top and hang the lot from a large jumpring. Note: The files are 150 dpi, which means they'll look larger than 6"x9" when you open or embiggen them—and some of the photos might look a little grainy—but they should print fine. Let me know if you have any issues and I'll try to assist!

Also, I know there's been talk in the past of me printing these to sell. Unfortunately, I can't, since these images don't belong to me. However, I might be able to print them for the cost of shipping and materials. Let me know in the comments if you'd be interested.

What do you think of this year's calendar? Who'd I miss including? I'm always open to suggestions for next year, and including pictorial evidence to back up your suggestions is never a bad idea.