As you all know, I do the Pop Sugar reading challenge every year. Every January (or late December, in this case, I guess) I write out my best guess as to a plan and then I wrap it all up by the end of the year.
Just as a reminder, I try to get two to four titles for each prompt and I make very good use of the Goodreads conversations about the prompts. I'm going to try to read mostly women and non-binary authors again but I'm going to allow myself the grace to not be too rigid about this guideline. I also spent too much time trying to find these books using my library resources. If I can't find something, I've highlighted it. Can you help me track it down inexpensively?
Past challenge results:
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1. A book with the word "leap" in the title
Lucky Leap Day by Ann Marie Walker
Do Lobsters Leap Waterfalls? A Book about Animal Migration by Laura Purdie Salas
2. A bildungsroman
Anne of Green Gables (Anne of Green Gables #1) by LM Montgomery - Maybe I'm due a re-read?
Assassin's Apprentice (Farseer #1) by Robin Hobb - I'm definitely due for a re-read of this.
3. A book about a 24-year-old
My Year of Rest and Relaxation by Ottessa Moshfegh
Trespasses by Louise Kennedy
4. A book about a writer/author
The Paris Wife by Paula McLain
The Rom-Commers by Katherine Center - This author is usually a miss for me, but this sounds promising. Coming out in June.
5. A book about K-pop
Seoulmates by Susan Lee
Pop City: Korean Popular Culture and the Selling of Place by Youjeong Oh
6. A book about pirates
Fable (The World of the Narrows #1) by Adrienne Young
The Mermaid, the Witch, and the Sea (The Mermaid, the Witch and the Sea #1) by Maggie Tokuda-
Hall
Sea of Ruin (Sea of Ruin #1) by Pam Godwin
7. A book about women's sports and/or by a woman athlete
Icebreaker (Maple Hills #1) by Hannah Grace
8. A book by a blind or visually impaired author
Redsight by Meredith Mooring - This isn't coming out until February, but I'm very excited for it.
There Plant Eyes: A Personal and Cultural History of Blindness by M. Leona Godin
9. A book by a deaf or hard-of-hearing author
True Biz by Sara Novic
Sound: A Story of Hearing Lost and Found by Bella Bathurst
10. A book by a self-published author
Nice Dragons Finish Last (Heartstrikers #1) by Rachel Aaron (also could work for book featuring
dragons) - already on my list of best fantasy books by women - I really need to find this book! I guess it's less than $5 to buy a Kindle version, but I'd rather not spend it if I don't have to, you know?
Angelfall by Susan Ee (Penryn & the End of Days #1)
11. A book from a genre you typically avoid
Inevitably we'll read something for book club that I would normally avoid. I'll add it here.
12. A book from an animal's POV
Black Beauty by Anna Sewell - Any excuse to do a re-read, right?
The Bees by Laline Paull
13. A book originally published under a pen name
Strike book this year.
14. A book recommended by a bookseller
Hmmmm...not sure I'll do this. I do not like to buy books!
15. A book recommended by a librarian
Got it. I'll ask a librarian friend.
16. A book set 24 years before you were born (1955)
I don't even know how to search for this. LOL. Seems like a problem for Future Me to figure out. Figuring out when a book was published is far easier than when it was set.
17. A book set in a travel destination on your bucket list
Eh, I'll read a Maeve Binchy book for something set in Ireland. Unless you have a great Ireland book?
18. A book set in space
Walk the Vanished Earth by Erin Swan
Across the Universe (Across the Universe #1) by Beth Revis
The Galaxy Game by Karen Lord
Medusa Uploaded (The Medusa Cycle #1) by Emily Devenport
You know I'm just going to read the new Murderbot for this prompt, right? I already have it checked out from the library!
19. A book set in the future
Internment by Samira Ahmed
The Darkest Minds (The Darkest Minds #1) by Alexandra Bracken
Life As We Knew It (Last Survivors #1) by Susan Beth Pfeffer
20. A book set in the snow
Dark Matter by Michelle Paver
The Shipping News by Annie Proulx
Good Morning, Midnight by Lily Brooks-Dalton
21. A book that came out in a year that ends in "24" - All of my choices are from 1924.
The Man in the Brown Suit (Corporal Race #1) by Agatha Christie
The Boxcar Children (The Boxcar Children #1) by Gertrude Chandler Warner
Precious Bane by Mary Webb
22. A book that centers on video games
User Unfriendly (Rasmussen Corporation #1) by Vivian Vande Velde
Erebos (Erebos #1) by Ursula Poznazski
23. A book that features dragons
Dealing with Dragons (Enchanted Forest Chronicles #1) by Patricia C. Wrede - Already on my list of best fantasy books by women authors
Seraphina (Seraphina #1) by Rachel Hartman
How to Train Your Dragon (How to Train Your Dragon #1) by Cressida Cowell - If I do get to this book, I want to listen to the audiobook.
24. A book that takes place over the course of 24 hours
Today Tonight Tomorrow (Rowan & Neil #1) by Rachel Lynn Solomon
This Lie Will Kill You by Chelsea Pitcher
25. A book that was published 24 years ago (2000)
Maybe a reread of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (Harry Potter #4) by JK Rowling is due?
Because of Winn-Dixie by Kate DiCamillo
26. A book that was turned into a musical
The Color Purple by Alice Walker - Someone recently gave me this book as a gift, so it's going to have to be this one!
Gypsy: Memoirs of America's Most Celebrated Stripper by Gypsy Rose Lee - $15 for a Kindle version. Steep! I'm probably going to read the book I already have on hand for this prompt, so I'm not terribly worried about this one.
27. A book where someone dies in the first chapter
Payback in Death (In Death #57) by JD Robb - I haven't read this one! Woot woot! Already have a Libby hold on it.
The Seven Sisters (The Seven Sisters #1) by Lucinda Riley - Local setting.
28. A book with a main character who is 42 years old
Open House by Elizabeth Berg
The Knockoff by Lucy Sykes and Jo Piazza
29. A book with a neurodivergent main character
Miracle Creek by Angie Kim - I didn't love Happiness Falls, but maybe this one would be better?
The Colour of Bee Larkham's Murder by Sarah J. Harris
Thinking in Pictures by Temple Grandin
30. A book with a one-word title you had to look up in a dictionary
Zazen by Vanessa Veselka
Gilgamesh by Joan London - This is a name of a historical figure, right? But I don't know who!
31. A book with a title that's a complete sentence
Clap When You Land by Elizabeth Acevedo
I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter by Erika L. Sánchez
I Know What's Best for You: Stories on Reproductive Freedom, edited by Shelly Oria
There's No Such Thing as an Easy Job by Kikuko Tsumura (translated by Polly Barton)
None of This is True by Lisa Jewell - I already have a hold on this because people have said it's good.
32. A book with an enemies-to-lovers plot - This is not my favorite trope. There's usually a lot of bickering and meanness. Hm.
A Pho Love Story by Loan Le
Lunar Love by Lauren Kung Jessen
33. A book with an unreliable narrator
Allegedly by Tiffany D. Jackson
Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier (also could work for the 42-year-old character prompt)
34. A book with at least three POVs
Everything I Never Told You by Celeste Ng
If I Had Your Face by Frances Cha
Aurora Rising (The Aurora Cycle #1) by Amie Kaufman, Jay Kristoff
35. A book with magical realism
Awayland by Ramona Ausubel
All the Names They Used for God by Anjali Sachdeva
Vampires in the Lemon Grove: Stories by Karen Russell
36. A book written by an incarcerated or formerly incarcerated person
The Face of a Stranger (William Monk #1) by Anne Perry
If They Come in the Morning: Voices of Resistance, edited by Angela Y. Davis
37. A book written during NaNoWriMo
Side Effects May Vary by Julie Murphy
With the Fire on High by Elizabeth Acevedo
Modern Girls by Jennifer S. Brown
38. A cozy fantasy book
Paladin's Grace (The Saint of Steel #1) by T. Kingfisher - It's on my list already!
Nettle & Bone by T. Kingfisher
Bookshops & Bonedust (Legends & Lattes #1) by Travis Baldree
39. A fiction book by a trans or nonbinary author
The Deep by Rivers Solomon - This is already on my Libby hold list. I heard the audiobook was a must listen.
Magic for Liars by Sarah Gailey
Hurricane Child by Kacen Callender
40. A horror book by a BIPOC author
The Weight of Blood by Tiffany D. Jackson
The Good House by Tananarive Due
41. A memoir that explores queerness
We Have Always Been Here: A Queer Muslim Memoir by Samra Habib
Zami: A New Spelling of My Name by Audre Lorde
Diary of a Misfit: A Memoir and a Mystery by Casey Parks
42. A nonfiction book about Indigenous people - I've already a bunch of the most widely read in this category. Hm.
Heart Berries by Terese Marie Mailhot
43. A second-chance romance
Before We Were Strangers by Renee Carlino
Any suggestions from you all on this one?
44. An autobiography by a woman in rock 'n' roll - I'm 90% sure I will not do this prompt.
Just Kids by Patti Smith
Still Woman Enough: A Memoir by Loretta Lynn - Is this rock 'n' roll? Probably not.
Daybreak by Joan Baez
45. An LGBTQ+ romance novel
Iris Kelly Doesn't Date (Bright Falls #3) by Ashley Herring Blake - I already have a Libby hold for this.
Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda (Creekwood #1) by Becky Albertalli
Or Stephany will recommend something and I'll read it!
Advanced prompts
1. A book in which a characters sleeps for more than 24 hours
Sometimes I Lie by Alice Feeney (could also work for unreliable narrator)
The Last Cuentista by Donna Barba Higuera
2. A book with 24 letters in the title
The Bookish Life of Nina Hill (The Bookish Life of Nina Hill #1) by Abbi Waxman
The Truth According to Ember by Danica Nava
3. A collection of at least 24 poems
Call Us What We Carry by Amanda Gorman
Devotions: The Selected Poems of Mary Oliver by Mary Oliver
4. The 24th book of an author
French Braid by Anne Tyler
Gallant by V.E. Schwab
5. A book that starts with the letter "X"
X (Kinsey Millhone #24) by Sue Grafton (could also work for the 24th book of an author) - I mean, there's basically no way I'm going to read anything other than this book for this prompt. Dare I say I should re-read the entire Alphabet series just to get to this one?
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Okay, friends, can you help me fill out this list? Books set in 1955 (so specific!)? Maybe I'll adapt that prompt to books published in 1955 to make it easier to find. Books set in Ireland? Second chance romances? Give me your recommendations!
Book set in Ireland: Trespasses by Louise Kennedy. I just started a book called Maybe Once Maybe Twice which is about second chances, I think. I'm only two pages in so not sure if it's a recommendation or not.
ReplyDeleteI have Trespasses for a book about a 24yo. It's good do know it can do double duty if I need it to.
DeleteWow! This looks like a lot of fun and a great challenge for you! I read only 16 books last year, most of which I listened to...I wouldn't know what to do with this list! <3
ReplyDeleteThis list is not for the weak-hearted! There are a lot of reading challenges out there, though, so if you were to look for one, you'd be able to find one that matched your reading interests and reading level.
DeleteOkay, I know you said only highlighted, but I have some thoughts on your other categories! Book about writer/author -- definitely Paris Wife. Book about female athlete - Lauren Fleishman or Kara Goucher's books were both eye opening.
ReplyDeleteHere is a link re 1955 (I have not read any of these) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Fiction_set_in_1955. For books set in Ireland, you could read any Maeve Binchy, Marian Keyes or Tana French book. Second chance romances sounds like something I would not want to read...but you let me know what you find!
I have some bad news for you, Kyria. I have the audiobook for The Paris Wife and so far it's not doing it for me. I'll keep plugging away, but I don't know about this one!
DeleteYes, I looked at that Wikipedia page, but most of those are written by men. I mean, I guess I'll do it if I have to, but I'd prefer a female author.
Re Paris Wife...oh no! Is it Hemingway you don't like? Or is it her writing style in general? I read that book as a paper book, so I don't know how it is as an audiobook, but I enjoyed it and I am NOT a Hemingway fan (the man or his writing).
DeleteI'm about 20% in and I think it's mostly the 1920s of it all. So much drinking and dancing and not talking about things that really matter, like how they're paying the bills or the political environment that's going to lead to WWII. I dunno. I feel this way whenever I read about the 20s. I should have known better. Oh, well. Maybe it will get better.
DeleteThat is pretty much how I feel about Hemingway as a whole; he can write entire books about being drunk and having fun and fishing... I wonder if she is trying to channel his vibe in her book?
DeleteRandom reponses...
ReplyDelete#7 Mary Pilon is the co-author of Kara Goucher's book that I'm listening to now. I guarantee that it will not be an easy read (as if we couldn't tell that already from the title), but it will most likely be very well written and important.
#26 I read both of these books as a young 'un. I'm feeling a reread of Purple. I think that Gypsy had a fascinating life but for the life of me I can't remember anything about her story.
#29 All I'm saying is that I made it 30% through Happiness Falls but didn't get through the first chapter of Miracle Creek.
#33 oh God I love Rebecca so much so I'm rooting hard for you to read it. This is one where it's a tie between whether the book or the movie is better.
Advanced #5 I just finished B and I'm trying to figure out how to pace myself - either I'll make every other book an Alphabet book or do one a month but for sure I'm reading the entire series. I'm late to the party but now that I'm here I'm having a blast.
I have tried hard to read Rebecca at least three other times in my life and have not gotten very far. I'm hoping that maybe this will be the time I can power through.
DeleteI'm so glad you like those Sue Grafton books. I just feel like I can pick with Kinsey at any time and the world will be okay.
A bildungsroman - I have never heard this word IN MY LIFE. So I got an education today <3
ReplyDeleteI wrote about this when I first wrote about My Brilliant Friend! That's how I learned the word!
Deletehttps://ngradstudent.blogspot.com/2016/04/my-brilliant-friend-by-elena-ferrante.html
Well Bildungsroman is a german word and literally translates to educational novel. However a quick googling says on a german website it is a coming-of-age novel. So basically it is just a fancy/academic word of what you already know.
Deletewhat a fun challenge! I'm so impressed by how much you read, have you posted about your reading routine/schedule?
ReplyDeleteHa! Well, I haven't really written about my reading routine/schedule because the truth is that I read pretty much constantly. So any time I'm working out, cooking, or walking the dog I'm probably listening to an audiobook (or a podcast), I read whenever I have a spare three or four minutes, and I read when my husband watches tv. I read before bed. If I'm not actively working, I'm probably in a book somehow. LOL.
DeleteOoh, I'll be interested to see what you come up with for the difficult ones. And if you read Miracle Creek I want to hear all about it. I did like Happiness Falls but not sure I'll read anything else by that author. Elisabeth Berg, I love her. And yes to a new Cormoran Strike book (fingers crossed!)
ReplyDeleteIt seems like we've been getting one Strike book every year, so I'm hopeful!
DeleteIf you haven't read Lauren Fleshman's memoir Good for a Girl: A Woman Running in a Man's World, it is FANTASTIC
ReplyDeleteYeah, these running memoirs (Fleishman and Goucher both have books out that people recommend a lot) have no appeal to me at all. LOL. I sort of want it to be this book about a female athlete to NOT focus on sport somehow. We'll see. Maybe I'll cave and read one of those memoirs.
DeleteI knew NOTHING about that sport before I read the book-- didn't even know who she was. But! It reminded me SO MUCH of grad school the way she talked about the system that prpduces athletes. SO many parallels between R-1s churning out scholars
DeleteYou are one ambitious reader. I'm blown away. And you blog daily? Yikes. I should know a book set in Ireland, but I'm struggling to come up with one. I guess you could read a Maeve Binchy - those are set in Ireland. Not sure that those are your cup of tea though. I read some of her books years ago.
ReplyDeleteI don't blog daily!! I am not posting anything this upcoming weekend!
DeleteEh. Okay. Maeve Binchy is out of here. I'll figure something else out for that prompt.
Love and Luck by Jenna Evans Welch is a book set in Ireland. It won't be a standout but it will be an easy one, ha.
ReplyDeleteLots of good second-chance romances to try on this list: https://theeverygirl.com/second-chance-romance-books/
Oooohhhh... this is super helpful. Thanks for the assist!
DeleteJust want to point out that a recommendation from a bookseller does not = buying the book. ;) (You could also look at online recommendations; Dragonfly Books (a favorite independent bookstore in Iowa) has a full page of staff picks (https://www.dragonflybooks.com/staff-picks), and so does Room of One's Own in Madison (https://www.roomofonesown.com/, look at the left side). I'm not trying to add to your list, but if you want to be a completist about it... ;)
ReplyDeleteOh, I didn't even consider this! I'll do that and then I don't have to wander into a bookstore, interact with a person, and then leave without buying something. Thanks for the idea.
DeleteI have some thoughts:
ReplyDelete7) I also need to find a book by a female athlete.
16) How about Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus. i think it was set in the 1950's.
17) As for Irland I say "Norther Spy" by Flynn Berry. It is about the IRA and their doings combined with a thriller aspect and two sisters.
16) I've already read Lessons in Chemistry! I guess I could do a reread...and I thought it was the 60s? Hmm...I'll look into this.
Delete17) Great suggestion! I didn't know Flynn Berry was a woman. Thanks so much for this rec!