50 or Bust

There's a 50 book challenge floating around out there for 2006, and I've decided to throw my hat in the ring. Reading fifty books in a year isn't that hard, I don't think - when you break it down, it's less than a book a week. Granted, that's about 48 books more than your average American reads in a year, but I remain confident that I'm 25 times as literary savvy as your average American too.

There are several keys to success here. One is cutting down the television. As I only have five channels and there's usually nothing on, that's not hard. (NOTE: even with cable or satellite, I still believe there's usually nothing on television, with the benefits of broadcast-only being that I realize this faster because there are fewer channels to check, plus I save $50-100 a month). Another is reading short books. Again, I usually read a bunch of short books a year, because after finishing a 500-pager it's satisfying to burn something in a day or two ain't it? Also, quitting bad books is essential too, as those never get read and tend to kill momentum.

So far, I'm three down, 47 to go:
Close Range by Annie Proulx (Brokeback Mountain's in there, and lived up to the hype)
The March by E.L. Doctorow (a few outstanding scenes, but generally I found the review "a scrapbook of cliches" apt)
Time's Arrow by Martin Amis (the narrator is trapped inside the body of a Nazi doctor who escapes to the US - but time runs backwards for him, from death to birth. It's a one-trick pony but refreshingly short at 163 pages and the language is mesmerizing. The 2006 winner thus far.)

Any suggestions? I'd like to hear about off-beat relatively unknown authors/works in particular, stuff I wouldn't find out about through newspapers or PR.