TBR Pile Challenge 2015

I probably have no business signing up for a reading challenge for 2015, as I've been in a terrible blogging slump lately.  However, I've signed up for the TBR Pile Challenge for three years in a row -- I can't not even try.

For the past three years, I've just chosen books that have been hanging around the TBR shelves for a long time.  They seem so random that when I've finished them, it doesn't even seem to have made an impact on the rest of the pile.  This year, I decided to select books all from the same shelf, so when they're done, it will seem more noticeable, if that makes any sense.  I made several lists grouping books together, like 12 Persephones, 12 Penguin Classics, 12 Viragos, etc., but what I finally decided on is a dozen nonfiction books.  I've really been into nonfiction the past few years.  Here's what I came up with: 

My attempt at an artistic photo.  

In alphabetical order, by author (the books in the photo are sorted by size, alternates in the small pile):

1.  Demobbed:  Coming Home After the Second World War by Alan Allport.  A follow-up to one of my 2014 reads about WWII, Few Eggs and No Oranges.  I'm interested to see how people reacted as they adjusted to life after the war.  Completed 1/30/15.

2.  The Girls from Winnetka by Marcia Chellis.  A gift from BookSnob back in 2010.  Completed 1/19/15.

3.  The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down by Anne Fadiman.  It's been on my to-read list for years, and a couple of years ago I found a copy for $1 at the Friends of the Library Sale. Completed 5/18/15.

4.  Jane Austen and Crime by Susannah Fullerton.  I had to include at least one book about Jane Austen, since I have at least ten unread on my shelves!  I bought this one at my very first Jane Austen Society convention, in 2009. Completed 4/8/15.

5.  Modoc: The True Story of the Greatest Elephant That Ever Lived by Ralph Helfer.  I just hope it doesn't make me cry.  Stories with animals nearly always have sad endings.  Completed 2/5/15. 

6.  I Married Adventure: The Lives of Martin and Osa Johnson by Osa Johnson. Two pioneering adventurer/photographers and their memoir.  I bought this at DisneyWorld back when I lived in Florida.  You'd be surprised at how many interesting books they have in the gift shops at Disney. Completed 3/24/15. 

8.  The Woman Warrior by Maxine Hong Kingston.  I'll probably read this in May for Asian-Pacific Heritage Month. Completed 5/2/15.

9.  Victoria's Daughters by Jerrold M. Packer.  Because I'm fascinated by the Victorian period.  Completed 2/12/15.

9.  Renoir, My Father by Jean Renoir.  I bought this at the Frick Museum gift shop in New York, because it's an NYRB classic and because I love Impressionists.  I just couldn't resist the cover.

10.  Tasting Pleasure: Confessions of a Wine Lover by Jancis Robinson.  I think I bought this shortly after I was married, when I went to a lot of wine-tastings and read lots of books about wine.  If I don't love it, it's going into the donation bin at the library. Completed 9/21/15. 

11.  Katherine Mansfield: A Secret Life by Claire Tomalin.  Another book from the Friends of the Library Sale (I've stopped going to these, because they're just too tempting).  I just finished reading The Garden Party and Other Stories, so now I want to read all about her. 

12.  Letters From Hawaii by Mark Twain.  Bought in Honolulu in 2010.  I should have read it while I was there.  

Alternates:

A Very Great Profession by Nicola Beauman.  A nonfiction book about mid-century women authors from my Persephone shelf.

Hons and Rebels by Jessica Mitford.  Because I loved The Sisters: The Saga of the Mitford Family, which was my favorite book from the 2014 TBR Challenge, and one of my top reads this year.

So, bloggers, what do you think?  I'm pretty excited about all of these, and none of them seem like homework (which is holding me back from the last few reads on my 2014 list).  Which ones have you loved?  Which ones should I ignore in favor of my alternates?