I really enjoyed working on Linz the Bookworm’s reading challenge last year, so decided to go back for seconds this year! One thing I liked about her list was that it had lots of choices and some quirky ideas (I’m all for quirky). She includes books in levels from easier to more challenging. I read all over the list and filled in wherever. I’ll do the same this year. I’m not linear.
As I’ve done for the past few years, I’m focusing on reading works by female authors and writers of color, which means I might select a different author than the one recommended. Those will be marked with an asterisk. I’ll be updating this list with the titles and authors I chose as the year goes on. I’ll also try to be better at updating Goodreads so you can read my reviews as well.
Level 1: Book of the Month Club
1. Read a book with a title that starts with a “W” – Wunderland by Jennifer Cody Epstein
2. A book you got for under $3 – The Perfume Collector by Kathleen Tessaro
3. A book with a blue cover – Beloved by Toni Morrison
4. Read a book by your favorite author – Emma by Jane Austen
5. A book with the word “Light” in the title – The Book of Candlelight by Ellery Adams
6. A book that is set in the future – Parable of the Sower by Octavia Butler (graphic novel edition)
7. A book from Project Gutenberg (https://www.gutenberg.org/) – The House of Mirth by Edith Wharton
8. Read a book of short stories or a novella – A Kiss for Midwinter by Courtney Milan
9. Read a book you’ve had on your “to be read” shelf for more than a year – Everglades: River of Grass – Marjory Stoneman Douglas
10. Read a book that takes place in winter – Talk Sweetly to Me by Courtney Milan
11. Reread a book you have recommended to a friend – Horse Heaven by Jane Smiley
12. Free Space – Pick any book! – White Fragility by Robin DiAngelo
Level 2: Casual Reader Club
13. A book under 400 pages – The Kiss Quotient by Helen Hoang
14. Read a book by Julie Garwood – Fire and Ice
15. Read a classic fairy tale – The Snow Queen by Hans Christian Andersen
16. Read a retelling of the classic fairy tale – The Ice Queen by Alice Hoffman
17. Read a suspense or horror book – Black-Eyed Susans by Julia Heaberlin
18. A book you got for free (gift, found or book exchange) – A Treacherous Curse by Deanna Raybourn
19. Read a book with a building on the cover – A Dangerous Collaboration by Deanna Raybourn
20. Read a historical fiction from the World War II-era – Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein
21. Read a book that was turned into a movie or tv show – Wild by Cheryl Strayed
22. A book by an author named James/Jim or a variant – If Beale Street Could Talk by James Baldwin
23. Read a book recommended on your local library’s website – The Testaments by Margaret Atwood
24. Free Space – Pick any book! – The Patron Saints of Nothing by Randy Ribay
Level 3: Dedicated Reader Club
25. A book with the word “book” in the title – The Book of Unknown Americans by Cristina Henríquez
26. Read an urban fantasy novel – Brown Girl in the Ring by Nalo Hopkinson
27. A book published in 2000 – Prodigal Summer by Barbara Kingsolver
28. A book recommended to you by a friend – With the Fire on High by Elizabeth Acevedo
29. Read an author’s debut novel – Everything I Never Told You by Celeste Ng
30. Read a book from the BBC’s list of Top 100 Books You Must Read Before You Die (
here) –
The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
31. Read a book that is over 600 pages – Life After Life by Kate Atkinson
32. Read a book by N. K. Jemisin* – The Broken Kingdoms
33. Read a book with the word “Star” in the title – Star Struck by Val McDermid
34. Read a book about a historical figure (fiction or non-fiction) – The Only Woman in the Room by Marie Benedict
35. Read a book about an assassin – Graceling by Kristin Cashore
36. Free Space – Pick any book! – When They Call You a Terrorist by Patrisse Khan-Cullors and asha bandele
Level 4: Speed Reader Club
37. Book 1 of a Trilogy – A Study in Scarlet Women by Sherry Thomas
38. Book 2 of a Trilogy- A Conspiracy in Belgravia by Sherry Thomas
39. Book 3 of a Trilogy- The Hollow of Fear by Sherry Thomas
40. Read a book from NPR’s favorite books of 2019 (
here) –
Children of Virtue and Vengeance by Tomi Adeyemi
41. Read a novel by an author using a pseudonym – Lethal White by Robert Galbraith
42. Read a graphic novel – They Called Us Enemy by George Takei
43. A book with a season in the title – Summer by the Sea by Susan Wiggs
44. Read a book with exactly four words in the title – On the Come Up by Angie Thomas
45. Read a book about a writer (real or fictional) – Vanessa and Her Sister by Priya Parman
46. Read a book with a title that rhymes – Holly Banks Full of Angst by Julie Valerie
47. A book by an author named Elizabeth/Beth or a variant – The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo
48. Free Space – Pick any book! – The Daughters of Temperance Hobbs by Katherine Howe
Level 5: Overachiever Club
49. Read a motivational/inspirational book – You Do You by Sarah Knight
50. Read a book with two or more authors – Persona Q: Shadow of the Labyrinth by Atlus/Mizunomoto (series of 4 manga)
51. Read a book by Val McDermid* – Dead Beat by Val McDermid
52. Read a book published in 1980 – Princess Daisy by Judith Krantz
53. Read a “rags to riches” story – The Good Luck Girls of Shipwreck Lane by Kelly Harms
54. Read a book with an occupation in the title – The Henna Artist by Alka Joshi
55. Read a book about travel or that involves travel – The Art of Inheriting Secrets by Barbara O’Neal
56. A book that takes place in outer space/another planet – The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupery
57. Read a book that starts with the letter J – Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson
58. Read a book that takes place in the Middle East or is inspired by Middle Eastern Culture – Exit West by Mohsin Hamid
59. Read a book about a video game or virtual reality – Bioshock: Rapture by John Shirley
60. Free Space – Pick any book! – Long Way Down by Jason Reynolds
