Current Readathons and Challenges

So because I have no sense of proportion or time or my own limitations, I am doing THREE readathons this year – Book Riot’s Read Harder and Popsugar’s Ultimate Reading Challenge, as usual, and also the Reading Women Challenge. I was alerted to this last one when I downloaded Book Riot’s 2019 reading spreadsheet (which I am endeavouring to use for longer than I used my 2018 one…) and I’m not at all confident I’ll finish any of them! But a girl can dream and, as always, the goal is to expand my reading horizons and try new things. Any suggestions or recommendations for any of the topics are gratefully received. I’ll link to any reviews once I write them. Book titles in bold mean that the topic has been completed/I’m currently reading it/it’s set in stone. Ones in italics are options I’m considering but haven’t committed to yet. For the first half of the year at least I’m going to aim to read a different book for each topic in the challenge but I can overlap across the challenges. So a book can be used for one topic in each challenge but I’m trying to avoid using the same book more than once within a challenge. Do I make sense? Am I delusional? Maybe.

Since I’ve been adding some possibilities for each topic, I deleted the other options once I’d decided on the one I wanted for the topic. But then I started thinking about how I wanted to read the others as well anyway but now I can’t remember them…so I think I’ll keep the list of the ones I don’t choose anyway! For future reference and so forth (also I kinda forgot whether I actually put all of them in my want to read list on Goodreads…oops). I’ll just keep them after one category maybe? Which will make it less cluttered. Though that might get confusing? Let me know if it’s confusing to have the bold of my final choice followed by the list of italics of close considerations. I figure I’ll keep the list and then if I do end up reading the book I’ll just delete it since I’ll have added it to my spreadsheet then.

Feel free to follow me on Goodreads (Alicia M)! And go here to see the reading tracker I’m using – I’m pretty much using this exact one but I’ve added a sheet for the Popsugar challenge. Oh, and the page was getting pretty long so for convenience I’ve moved the past challenge lists to a whole new page. Find it at the top of the blog, or follow the link here.
2019 Reading Challenges
Book Riot 2019

An epistolary novel or collection of letters – Dear Committee Members by Julie Schumacher // Frankenstein by Mary Shelley
An alternate history novel – The Calculating Stars by Mary Robinette Kowal // Dread Nation by Justina Ireland // My Lady Jane by Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton & Jodi Meadows // Sorcery & Cecelia: or, The Enchanted Chocolate Pot by Patricia C. Wrede & Caroline Stevermer
A book by a woman and/or AOC that won a literary award in 2018 – Flights by Olga Tokarczuk (Man Booker International Prize 2018) // Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman (Bookseller Debut Book Of The Year 2018 // The Last Place You Look by Kristen Lepionka (Shamus Award for Best First PI Novel 2018) // Circe by Madeline Miller (Goodreads Readers Choice for Fantasy 2018)
A humor book – Dear Committee Members by Julie Schumacher // My Lady Jane by Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton & Jodi Meadows // Lumberjanes vol. 1: Beware the Holy Kitty // My Sister, the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite // The Colour of Magic by Terry Pratchett
A book by a journalist or about journalism – Bill Bryson // American Prison by Shane Bauer // The Bling Ring by Nancy Jo Sales // Bad Blood by John Carreyrou
A book by an AOC set in or about space – Ignite the Stars by Maura Milan // Binti by Nnedi Okorafor // The Galaxy Game by Karen Lord // An Unkindness of Ghosts by Rivers Soloman
An #ownvoices book set in Mexico or Central America – Signal to Noise by Silvia Moreno-Garcia (female, Mexican) // The Black Flower and other Zapotec Poems by Natalia Toledo, translated by Clare Sullivan (female, Mexican) // Gods of Jade and Shadow by Silvia Moreno-Garcia (female, Mexican) // Certain Dark Things by Silvia Moreno-Garcia (female, Mexican)
An #ownvoices book set in Oceania – The Swan Book by Alexis Wright (female, Australian Aboriginal) // Carpentaria by Alexis Wright (Australian Aboriginal) // The Whale Rider by Witi Ihimaera (Maori) // Where We Once Belonged by Sia Figiel (female, Samoan)
A book published prior to Jan. 1, 2019 with fewer than 100 reviews on Goodreads – Firebird by Elizabeth Wein (published 2018, 39 reviews/ratings on Goodreads)
A translated book written by and/or translated by a woman – Tentacle by Rita Indiana (translated by Achy Obejas)
A book of manga – She And Her Cat by Makoto Shinkai // My Brother’s Husband by Gengoroh Tagame // Saturn Apartment’s by Hisae Iwaoka
A book in which an animal or inanimate object is a point-of-view character – She And Her Cat by Makoto Shinkai // The Travelling Cat Chronicles by Hiro Arikawa // Fantastic Mr Fox by Roald Dahl // The Unadulterated Cat by Terry Pratchett // Fifteen Dogs by Andre Alexis // Wish You Were Here by Rita Mae Brown
A book by or about someone who identifies as neurodiverse – Oliver Sacks // The Kiss Quotient by Helen Hoang (Aspergers) // A Mango Shaped Space by Wendy Mass (synesthesia) // The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon (Aspergers) // The Eagle Tree by Ned Hayes (autism) // The London Eye Mystery by Siobhan Dowd (autism?) // On the Edge of Gone by Corinne Duyvis (autism) // Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? by Philip K Dick (anxiety, schizophrenia?)
A cosy mystery – Murder at the Vicarage by Agatha Christie (Wish You Were Here by Rita Mae Brown // The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie // Agatha Raisin (Pushing Up Daisies, owned on Audible) by MC Beaton)
A book of mythology or folklore – The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller // Circe by Madeline Miller // The Silence of the Girls by Pat Barker // Norse Mythology by Neil Gaiman // The World of Lore (Monstrous Creatures; Wicked Mortals; Dreadful Places) by Aaron Mahnke // Mermaids: The Myths, Legends and Lore by Skye Alexander // A Thousands Beginnings and Endings edited by Ellen Oh & Elsie Chapman // The City of Brass by SA Chakraborty // Gods Behaving Badly by Marie Phillips // The Penelopiad by Margaret Atwood
A historical romance by an AOC – Butterfly Swords by Jeannie Lin // That Could Be Enough by Alyssa Cole // The Japanese Lover by Isabel Allende // The Perilous Life of Jade Yeo by Zen Cho // Like Water for Chocolate by Laura Esquivel
A business book – Bad Blood by John Carreyrou // The Four Hour Workweek by Timothy Ferriss // The 7-Step Guide to Authorpreneurship by Rochelle Carter // Instant: The Story of Polaroid by Christopher Bonanos // On Writing by Stephen King // Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking by Susan Cain // Feminist Fight Club by Jessica Bennett // Comics Creators on Spider-Man by Tom DeFalco // How To Find Your Vital Vocation by Brian Cormack Carr
A novel by a trans or non-binary author – Juno Dawson // An Unkindness of Ghosts by Rivers Solomon // All The Birds in the Sky by Charlie Jane Anders // Freshwater by Akwaeke Emezi // Confessions of the Fox by Jordy Rosenberg // Peter Darling by Austin Chant // I Wish You All The Best by Mason Deaver // If I Was Your Girl by Meredith Russo
A book of nonviolent true crime – The Bling Ring by Nancy Jo Sales // Bad Blood by John Carreyrou // The Library Book by Susan Orlean // Bringing Down The House by Ben Mezrich //Provenance by Laney Sailsbury & Aly Sujo // Hot Art by Joshua Knelman // Flawless by Scott Andrew Selby & Greg Campbell // The Man Who Loved Books Too Much by Allison Hoover Bartlett // The Art of the Con by Anthony M Amore // Can You Ever Forgive Me? by Lee Israel
A book written in prison – Cherry by Nico Walker // De Profundis by Oscar Wilde // Inside This Place, Not Of It edited by Ayelet Waldman & Robin Levi // Guantanamo Diary by Mohamedou Ould Slahi
A comic by an LGBTQIA creator – Lumberjanes vol. 1: Beware the Holy Kitty by Noelle Stevenson // The Prince and the Dressmaker by Jen Wang // Fun Home by Alison Bechdel
A children’s or middle grade book (not YA) that has won a diversity award since 2009 – George by Alex Gino (Stonewall Book Award for Children 2016) // Wonderstruck by Brian Selznick (Schneider Family Book Award for Middle Grade Fiction 2012) // The London Eye Mystery by Siobhan Dowd (Dolly Gray Children’s Literature Award 2010)
A self-published book – Belinda Blinked by Rocky Flintstone (self published on Amazon Kindle)
A collection of poetry published since 2014 – Rupi Kaur // To Make Monsters Out of Girls by Amanda Lovelace // Lang Leav

Reading Women 2019

A mystery or thriller written by a woman of color – Confessions by Kanae Minato // The Widows of Malabar Hill by Sujata Massey // What Lies Between Us by Nayomi Munaweera // Lullaby by Leila Slimani
A book about a woman with a mental illness – Made You Up by Francesca Zappia (schizophrenia) // Girl, Interrupted by Susanna Kayson // Everything Here Is Beautiful by Mira T Lee (depression, schizoaffective disorder) // Good Morning, Midnight by Jean Rhys (alcoholism?) // Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman // All My Puny Sorrows by Miriam Toews (suicidal ideation, depression?) // Broken Glass by Tabitha Freeman (suicide) // Unbearable Lightness by Portia de Rossi (eating disorder) // Freshwater by Akwaeke Emezi (DID?) // Little Darlings by Melanie Golding
A book by an author from Nigeria or New Zealand – My Sister, the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite (Nigerian) // She Called Me Woman (anthology) by Azeenarh Mohammed, Chitra Nagarajan & Aisha Salau (Nigerian) // Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi (Nigerian-American) // The Bone People by Keri Hulme (New Zealand)
A book about or set in Appalachia – The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls // What You Are Getting Wrong About Appalachia by Elizabeth Catte // Flight Behaviour by Barbara Kingsolver // Becoming Odyssa: Epic Adventures on the Appalachian Trail by Jennifer Pharr Davis // Victuals: An Appalachian Journey with Recipes by Ronni Lundy // Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe by Fannie Flagg // Sugar Run by Mesha Maren // Amity and Prosperity by Eliza Griswold
A children’s book – Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone by JK Rowling // City of Ghosts by Victoria Schwab // The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate by Jacqueline Kelly // Nevermoor: The Trials of Morrigan Crow by Jessica Townsend // The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett // A Little Princess by Frances Hodgson Burnett // The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupery
A multi-generational family saga – Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi // Disoriental by Negar Djavadi & Tina Kover // The House of the Spirits by Isabel Allende // Salt Houses by Hala Alyan // Pachinko by Min Jin Lee
A book featuring a woman in science – Lab Girl: A Story of Trees, Science and Love by Hope Jahren // Enchantress of Numbers by Jennifer Chiaverini // The Movement of Stars by Amy Brill
A play – The Vagina Monologues by Eve Ensler // Detroit ’67 by Dominique Morisseau // The Seer by Ali Smith
A novella – Firebird by Elizabeth Wein
A book about a woman athlete – Grace, Gold and Glory by Gabrielle Douglas (gymnast) // The Fair Fight by Anna Freeman (boxers) // Life in Motion by Misty Copeland (dancer) // Taking Flight by Michaela DePrince (dancer) // Dancing Through It by Jenifer Ringer (dancer)
A book featuring a religion other than your own – Women Talking by Miriam Toews (Mennonites) // Watch How We Walk by Jennifer LoveGrove (Jehovah’s Witnesses) // All Other Nights by Dara Horn (Jewish) // Disobedience by Naomi Alderman (Jewish)
A Lambda Literary Award winner – A Safe Girl To Love by Casey Plett (Lambda Literary Award for Transgender Fiction 2015) // Hunger by Roxane Gay (for Bisexual Fiction 2018) // Under the Udala Trees by Chinelo Okparanta (for Lesbian General Fiction 2016) // Here Comes the Sun by Nicole Y Dennis-Benn (for Lesbian Fiction 2016) // Tipping the Velvet by Sarah Waters (for Lesbian Fiction 2000) // Holding Still For As Long As Possible by Zoe Whittall (for Transgender Fiction 2011)
A myth retelling – Forest Of A Thousand Lanterns by Julie C Dao // The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller // Circe by Madeline Miller // The Silence of the Girls by Pat Barker // Gods Behaving Badly by Marie Phillips // The Penelopiad by Margaret Atwood
A translated book published before 1945 – The Pillow Book by Sei Shonagon (c. 1000) // The Diary of Lady Murasaki by Murasaki Shikibu // Grand Hotel by Vicki Baum (1929)
A book written by a South Asian author – Want by Cindy Pon (Taiwan) // What Lies Between Us by Nayomi Munaweera (Sri Lanka) // On Sal Mal Lane by Ru Freeman (Sri Lanka) // A Golden Age by Tahmima Anam (Bangladesh) // The Flower Boy by Karen Roberts (Sri Lanka)
A book by an Indigenous woman – The Swan Book by Alexis Wright (Australian Aboriginal) // Carpentaria by Alexis Wright (Australian Aboriginal) // My Body Is A Book Of Rules by Elissa Washuta (Cowlitz Indian Tribe, US) // Starvation Mode by Elissa Washuta (Cowlitz Indian Tribe, US) // Trail of Lightening by Rebecca Roanhorse (US, Navajo?)
A book from the 2018 Reading Women Award shortlist – Everyone Knows You Go Home by Natalia Sylvester // Fruit of the Drunken Tree by Ingrid Rojas Contreras // If You Leave Me by Crystal Hana Kim
A romance or love story – Pride by Ibi Zoboi // Great by Sara Benincasa // The Love & Lies of Rukhsana Ali by Sabina Khan // Tell Me How You Really Feel by Aminah Mae Safi // Field Notes on Love by Jennifer E Smith // The Proposal by Jasmine Guillory // The Little Paris Bookshop by Nina George // Midnight at Tiffany’s by Sarah Morgan // Sleepless in Manhattan by Sarah Morgan // Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins // The Weight of Feathers by Anna-Marie McLemore
A book about nature – The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate by Jacqueline Kelly // Lab Girl: A Story of Trees, Science and Love by Hope Jahren // The Sixth Extinction by Elizabeth Kolbert // The Essex Serpent by Sarah Perry // Through A Window by Jane Goodall
A historical fiction book – The Gilded Wolves by Roshani Chokshi // Enchantee by Gita Trelease // All Other Nights by Dara Horn // The Silence of the Girls by Pat Barker // The Alice Network by Kate Quinn // Between Shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys // Out of the Easy by Ruta Sepetys // Rose Under Fire by Elizabeth Wein // Black Dove, White Raven by Elizabeth Wein // Fever by Mary Beth Keane // Mademoiselle Chanel by CW Gortner
A book you bought or borrowed in 2019 – The Word for World is Forest by Ursula K Le Guin (bought March 2019)
A book you picked up because of the cover – Spin The Dawn by Elizabeth Lim // Enchantee by Gita Trelease // Dealing in Dreams by Lilliam Rivera // Tell Me How You Really Feel by Aminah Mae Safi // Circe by Madeline Miller // The Keeper of Lost Things by Ruth Hogan // The Silent Companions by Laura Purcell
Any book from a series – Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi // Harry Potter // Cassandra Clare // A Study in Scarlet Women by Sherry Thomas
A young adult book by a woman of colour – Nocturna by Maya Motayne // Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi // Pride by Ibi Zoboi // Juliet Takes A Breath by Gabby Rivera // The Weight of Feathers by Anna-Marie McLemore // Blanca & Roja by Anna-Marie McLemore // Legend by Marie Lu
BONUS: A book by Jesmyn Ward – Salvage the Bones // Sing, Unburied, Sign
BONUS: A book by Jhumpa Lahiri – Interpreter of Maladies // The Lowland

Popsugar 2019

A book becoming a movie in 2019 – The Woman in the Window by AJ Finn // Death on the Nile by Agatha Christie // A Dog’s Way Home by W Bruce Cameron // The Sun Is Also A Star by Nicola Yoon // The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt
A book that makes you nostalgic – Harry Potter // Famous Five // Roald Dahl // The Babysitter’s Club // Animal Ark // Frances Hodgson Burnett // The Railway Children
A book written by a musician (fiction or non-fiction) – The Tree of Seasons by Stephen Gately // Flight Behaviour by Barbara Kingsolver // Every Heart a Doorway by Seanan McGuire // Scrappy Little Nobody by Anna Kendrick (Scribd)
A book you think should be turned into a movie – Tell Me How You Really Feel by Aminah Mae Safi // All The Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr // A Darker Shade of Magic by V E Schwab // The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern // They Both Die At The End by Adam Silvera
A book with at least one million ratings on Goodreads
A book with a plant in the title or on the cover – Purple Hibiscus by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie // The Immortalists by Chloe Benjamin // The Essex Serpent by Sarah Perry // The Keeper of Lost Things by Ruth Hogan // The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett
A reread of a favourite book – Girl Under Fire by Elizabeth Wein // The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon // All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr // The Great Gatsby by F Scott Fitzgerald
A book about a hobby – Cookbook // Bill Bryson/Travel Memoirs // I’d Rather Be Reading by Anne Bogel // Not Afraid of the Fall by Kyle James // Silver Screen Fiend by Patton Oswalt
A book you meant to read in 2018 – Underworld London: Crime and Punishment in the Capital City by Catharine Arnold
A book with “pop”, “sugar”, or “challenge” in the title – Sugar Money by Jane Harris // Up Pops The Devil by Angela Benson // Welcome to Sugartown by Carmen Jenner
A book with an item of clothing or accessory on the cover – Pretty Girls by Karin Slaughter // Where’d You Go, Bernadette by Maria Semple // Equal Rites by Terry Pratchett // My Sister, The Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite // The Perfect Nanny by Leila Slimani // Cinder by Marissa Meyer
A book inspired by mythology, legend or folklore – Forest Of A Thousand Lanterns by Julie C Dao // The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller // Circe by Madeline Miller // The Silence of the Girls by Pat Barker // Norse Mythology by Neil Gaiman // A Thousands Beginnings and Endings edited by Ellen Oh & Elsie Chapman // The City of Brass by SA Chakraborty // Gods Behaving Badly by Marie Phillips // The Penelopiad by Margaret Atwood // The Lunar Chronicles by Marissa Meyer // The Girls at the Kingfisher Club by Genevieve Valentine // The Lightening Thief by Rick Riordan // The Bear and the Nightingale by Katherine Arden // Bitter Greens by Kate Forsyth // The Golem and the Jinni by Helene Wecker // Little Darlings by Melanie Golding // Mythos by Stephen Fry // Norse Mythology by Neil Gaiman // The Wrath & The Dawn by Renee Ahdieh // The Mermaid’s Daughter by Ann Claycomb // The Mermaid by Christina Henry // Lost Boy by Christina Henry // Alice by Christina Henry // The Bleak and Empty Sea by Jay Ruud // A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J Maas // The Boy Made of Snow by Chloe Mayer
A book published posthumously – The Tree of Seasons by Stephen Gately // Sleeping Murder by Agatha Christie // When Breath Becomes Air by Paul Kalanithi // I’ll Be Gone in the Dark by Michelle McNamara // The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank
A book you see someone reading on TV or in a movie – Death in the Clouds by Agatha Christie (Doctor Who, The Unicorn and the Wasp) // Ballet Shoes by Noel Streatfeild (You’ve Got Mail) // Something from the Rory Gilmore list // Swann’s Way by Marcel Proust (On the Road) // Mastering the Art of French Cooking by Julia Childs (Julie & Julia) // Dubliners by James Joyce (Orange is the New Black) // Love Me Back by Merritt Tierce (Orange is the New Black)
A retelling of a classic – Pride by Ibi Zoboi // Great by Sara Benincasa // The Afterlife of Holly Chase by Cynthia Hand // The Lunar Chronicles by Marissa Meyer // A Study in Charlotte by Brittany Cavallaro // The Wendy by Erin Michelle Sky & Steven Brown // Curiouser and Curiouser by Melanie Karsak (Steampunk Fairy Tales series) // Sea Witch by Sarah Henning // The Girls at the Kingfisher Club by Genevieve Valentine // The Mermaid’s Daughter by Ann Claycomb // Alice by Christina Henry // Lost Boy by Christina Henry // House of Names by Colm Toibin // The Children of Jocasta by Natalie Haynes // The Dark Descent of Elizabeth Frankenstein by Kiersten White // A Blade So Black by L L McKinney // Second Star by J M Sullivan // Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister by Gregory Maguire // The Mere Wife by Maria Dahvana Headley // The Surface Breaks by Louise O’Neill // Peter Darling by Austin Chant // Tiger Lily by Jodi Lynn Anderson // Maskerade by Terry Pratchett // To Kill A Kingdom by Alexandra Christo // A Study in Honour by Claire O’Dell & Beth Bernobich // The Forest Queen by Betsy Cornwell // Jane Steele by Lyndsay Faye
A book with a question in the title – Where’d You Go, Bernadette? by Maria Semple // Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? by Philip K Dick // Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? by Mindy Kaling // Why Not Me? by Mindy Kaling // What If It’s Us by Becky Albertalli & Adam Silvera // Who Could That Be At This Hour? by Lemony Snicket // The End of Harry Potter? by David Langford
A book set on a college/university campus – Dead Poet’s Society by N H Kleinbaum // Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell // I Was Here by Gayle Foreman // Vicious by V E Schwab // Dear Committee Members by Julie Schumacher // The Rules of Attraction by Bret Easton Ellis
A book about someone with a superpower – Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs // Comic book volume // Lexicon by Max Barry // Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi // The Young Elites by Marie Lu // Matilda by Roald Dahl // Vicious by V E Schwab // Make Way for the Superhumans by Michael Bess // Firestarter by Stephen King // The Darkest Minds by Alexandra Bracken // The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin // Hero by Perry Moore
A book told from multiple characters POVs – The Mermaid’s Daughter by Ann Claycomb // Lilac Girls by Martha Hall Kelly // Tomorrow There Will Be Apricots by Jessica Soffer // Nick & Norah’s Infinite Playlist by Rachel Cohn & David Levithan // The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern (Audible) // What If It’s Us by Becky Albertalli & Adam Silvera // The Distant Hours by Kate Morton // The Secret Keeper by Kate Morton // People Kill People by Ellen Hopkins // Salt to the Sea by Ruta Sepetys // City of Bones by Cassandra Clare // Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare // All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr // The Immortalists by Chloe Benjamin // Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo // Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi // We Were the Lucky Ones by Georgia Hunter // Into the Water by Paula Hawkins // Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn // Wink Poppy Midnight by April Genevieve Tucholke // The Lying Game by Ruth Ware // Spinning Silver by Naomi Novik // Broken Things by Lauren Oliver // This Is Where It Ends by Marieke Nijkamp // Lies We Tell Ourselves by Robin Talley // A Spark of Light by Jodi Picoult // The Ice Twins by S K Tremayne
A book set in space – The Loneliest Girl in the Universe by Lauren James // Ignite the Stars by Maura Milan // Binti by Nnedi Okorafor // The Galaxy Game by Karen Lord // An Unkindness of Ghosts by Rivers Soloman // Good Morning, Midnight by Lily Brooks-Dalton // These Broken Stars by Amie Kaufman & Meagan Spooner // Across the Universe by Beth Revis // Last Day On Mars by Kevin Emerson // Zathura by Chris Van Allsburg // Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card // Hold Back the Stars by Katie Khan
A book by two female authors – Cast Long Shadows by Cassandra Clare & Sarah Rees Brennan (audiobook) (Sorcery & Cecelia: or, The Enchanted Chocolate Pot by Patricia C. Wrede & Caroline Stevermer)
A book with a title that contains “salty”, “sweet”, “bitter”, or “spicy” – Bitter Sweets by Roopa Farooki // Bitter Orange by Claire Fuller // Sweetbitter by Stephanie Danler // Salt by Pauline Creeden // Salt Houses by Hala Alyan // The Salt Line by Holly Goddard Jones // Bitter Greens by Kate Forsyth // Sweet Little Lies by Caz Frear // The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie by Alan Bradley // Sweeth Tooth by Ian McEwan // Bitter by Francesca Jakobi // Sweet Fruit, Sour Land by Rebecca Ley // Welcome to Rosie Hopkins’ Sweet Shop of Dreams by Jenny Colgan // The Witch of Salt and Storm by Kendall Kulper // Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat by Samin Nosrat // Bitter is the New Black by Jen Lancaster
A book set in Scandinavia – The Ice Child by Camilla Lackberg // The Ice Princess by Camilla Lackberg // The Palace of the Snow Queen by Barbara Sjoholm // The Boy in the Suitcase by Lene Kaaberbol // Across the China Sea by Gaute Heivoll // Let the Right One In by John Ajvide Lindqvist // Number the Stars by Lois Lowry // Norse Mythology by Neil Gaiman // I’m Travelling Alone by Samuel Bjork
A book that takes place in a single day – Nick & Norah’s Infinite Playlist by Rachel Cohn & David Levithan (A Spark of Life by Jodi Picoult // The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton // The Sun is Also a Star by Nicola Yoon // Long Way Down by Jason Reynolds // The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight by Jennifer E Smith // The Weight of Silence by Heather Gudenkauf // A Night to Remember by Walter Lord // The Lobby by Randi M Sherman // Rose Sees Red by Cecil Castellucci // This is Not a Drill by Beck McDowell // The Night My Sister Went Missing by Carol Plum-Ucci // Kiss Me in New York by Catherine Rider // After Dark by Haruki Murakami // Arlington Park by Rachel Cusk // Time Bomb by Joelle Charbonneau // This is Where It Ends by Marieke Nijkamp // Last Night at the Lobster by Stewart O’Nan // No Exit by Taylor Adams)
A debut novel – Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi // The Immortalists by Chloe Benjamin // Looking for Alaska by John Green // The Beauty that Remains by Ashley Woodfolk // Girl Made of Stars by Ashley Herring Blake // The Book of Essie by Meghan MacLean Weir // The Paper & Hearts Society by Lucy Powrie // The Woman in the Window by A J Finn // Purple Hibiscus by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie // Legacy by Linda Govik // Caraval by Stephanie Garber // Dark Rooms by Lili Anolik // The House of Impossible Beauties by Joseph Cassara // My Sister, The Serial Killer // White Chrysanthemum by Mary Lynn Bracht // The Hazel Wood by Melissa Albert // Song of a Captive Bird by Jasmin Darznik // The Good Son by You-Jeong Jeong // Everything Here is Beautiful by Mira T Lee // Bearskin by James A McLaughlin // The Perfect Mother by Aimee Molloy // Only Child by Rhiannon Navin // The Perfect Nanny by Leila Slimani // The Chalk Man by C J Tudor
A book that’s published in 2019 – Spin The Dawn by Elizabeth Lim // Enchantee by Gita Trelease // Nocturna by Maya Motayne // The Love & Lies of Rukhsana Ali by Sabina Khan // Tell Me How You Really Feel by Aminah Mae Safi // The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern // Something from my “not yet published” list
A book featuring an extinct or imaginary creature – Jurassic Park by Michael Creighton // The Golem and the Jinni by Helene Wecker // Harry Potter // The Oyster Thief by Sonia Faruqi // The Shape of Water by Guillermo del Toro & Daniel Kraus // The Book of Lost Things by John Connolly
A book recommended by a celebrity you admire – Our Shared Shelf recommendation (Emma Watson) // Sarah Jessica Parker book club recommendation // Oprah Winfrey book club recommendation // Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library book list // Reese Witherspoon’s book club recommendation
A book with “love” in the title – The Love & Lies of Rukhsana Ali by Sabina Khan // Field Notes on Love by Jennifer E Smith // The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight by Jennifer E Smith // How to Find Love in a Bookshop by Veronica Henry // Love in the Time of Cholera by Gabriel Garcia Marquez // Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert
A book featuring an amateur detective – Agatha Raisin by MC Beaton (audible) // Nancy Drew // Miss Marple by Agatha Christie // Meddling Kids by Edgar Cantero // Famous Five by Enid Blyton // A Curious Beginning by Deanna Raybourn // The Last Time I Lied by Riley Sager // Midnight at the Bright Ideas Bookstore by Matthew J Sullivan // The Strange Case of the Alchemist’s Daughter by Theodora Goss // Truly Devious by Maureen Johnson // Murder Most Unladylike by Robin Stevens // The Woman in Cabin 10 by Ruth Ware // The Trouble with Goats and Sheep by Joanna Cannon // The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton
A book about a family – Like Water for Chocolate by Laura Esquivel // Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi // Disoriental by Negar Djavadi & Tina Kover // The House of the Spirits by Isabel Allende // Salt Houses by Hala Alyan // Pachinko by Min Jin Lee // This is How it Always Is by Laurie Frankel // The Nest by Cynthia D’Aprix Sweeney // Commonwealth by Ann Patchett // Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jamie Ford // A Night Divided by Jennifer A Nielsen
A book written by an author from Asia, Africa, or South America – Want by Cindy Pon (Taiwan) // The Goddess Chronicle by Natsuo Kirino (Japan) // What Lies Between Us by Nayomi Munaweera (Sri Lanka) // Isabel Allende (born in Peru) // Yes, Chef by Marcus Samuelsson (Ethiopia) // Love, Loss and What We Ate: A Memoir by Padma Lakshmi (India) // Rainbirds by Clarissa Goenawan (Indonesia) // Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro (Japan)
A book with a zodiac sign or astrology term in the title – The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater // These Broken Stars by Amie Kaufman & Meagan Spooner // The Mars Room by Rachel Kushner // Orbiting Jupiter by Gary D Schmidt // The Pisces by Melissa Broder // Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen // Into the Water by Paula Hawkins
A book that includes a wedding – Vision in White by Nora Roberts // The Upside of Unrequited by Becky Albertalli // The Wedding Date by Jasmine Guillory // Save the Date by Morgan Matson // A Place for Us by Fatima Farheen Mirza // Less by Andrew Sean Greer // The Wrath and the Dawn by Renee Ahdieh // The People We Hate at the Wedding by Grant Ginder
A book by an author whose first and last names start with the same letter – After the Party by Cressida Connolly
A ghost story – The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman // Little Darlings by Melanie Golding // The Broken Girls by Simone St James // The Clockmaker’s Daughter by Kate Morton // Affinity by Sarah Waters // The Woman in Black by Susan Hill // The Winter People by Jennifer McMahon // The Haunting of Sunshine Girl by Paige McKenzie // The Walls Around Us by Nova Ren Suma // Leaving Time by Jodi Picoult // Rooms by Lauren Oliver // The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold // Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency by Douglas Adams // City of Ghosts by Victoria Schwab // Wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson
A book with a two-word title – The Girls by Emma Cline // Social Creature by Tara Isabella Burton // Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn // Dark Places by Gillian Flynn // Heretics Anonymous by Katie Henry // Peter Pan by JM Barrie // Nineteen Minutes by Jodi Picoult // Norse Mythology by Neil Gaiman // On Writing by Stephen King // Little Women by Louisa May Alcott // Jurassic Park by Michael Crichton // Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card // Tiger Lily by Jodi Lynn Anderson // Peter Darling by Austin Chant // Beautiful Exiles by Meg Waite Clayton // Bitter Orange by Claire Fuller // Pretty Baby by Mary Kubica // Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead // Summer Sisters by Judy Blume // Broken Things by Lauren Oliver // The Passengers by John Marrs
A novel based on a true story – The Stars are Fire by Anita Shreve // Z: A Novel of Zelda Fitzgerald by Therese Anne Fowler // The Paris Wife by Paula McLain // Beneath a Scarlet Sky by Mark T Sullivan // Victoria by Daisy Goodwin // The Gilded Years by Karin Tanabe // The Cottingley Secret by Hazel Gaynor // Alice I Have Been by Melanie Benjamin // Every Man For Himself by Beryl Bainbridge
A book revolving around a puzzle or game – The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton // Ready Player One by Ernest Cline // Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card // The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan // The Bookshop of Yesterdays by Amy Meyerson // Curtain by Agatha Christie // Midnight at the Bright Ideas Bookstore by Matthew J Sullivan // Of Dice and Men by David M Ewalt // The Maze of Bones by Rick Riordan
Your favourite prompt from a past Popsugar Reading Challenge – Firebird by Elizabeth Wein (Set during wartime, Popsugar 2017)
A “cli-fi” (climate fiction) book – Tentacle by Rita Indiana (Legend by Marie Lu // Flight Behaviour by Barbara Kingsolver // Under the Never Sky by Veronica Rossi)
A “choose your own adventure” book – Neil Patrick Harris: Choose Your Own Autobiography // Romeo and/or Juliet by Ryan North
An “own voices” book – Signal to Noise by Silvia Moreno-Garcia (female, Mexican) // The Black Flower and other Zapotec Poems by Natalia Toledo, translated by Clare Sullivan (female, Mexican) // Gods of Jade and Shadow by Silvia Moreno-Garcia (female, Mexican) // Certain Dark Things by Silvia Moreno-Garcia (female, Mexican) // The Swan Book by Alexis Wright (female, Australian Aboriginal) // Carpentaria by Alexis Wright (Australian Aboriginal) // The Whale Rider by Witi Ihimaera (Maori) // Where We Once Belonged by Sia Figiel (female, Samoan) // Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo (disabled) // Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Saenz (owned on Audible, LGBT) // Blanca & Roja by Anna-Marie McLemore (Latinx)
Read a book during the season it is set in – The Tree of Seasons by Stephen Gately (all) // Wintersong by S Jae-Jones (winter) // The Bear and the Nightingale by Katherine Arden (winter) // We Were Liars by E Lockhart (summer) // Dash & Lily’s Book of Dares by Rahcel Cohn (winter) // The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett (spring) // A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J Maas (winter into spring)
A LitRPG book – Ready Player One by Ernest Cline (Audible) // Warcross by Marie Lu // Otherworld by Jason Segel & Kirsten Miller
A book with no chapters/unusual chapter headings/ unconventionally numbered chapters – The Escape Book by Ivan Tapia
Two books that share the same title (1) – Ink and Bone by Lisa Unger/Rachel Caine // Drift by Jim Miller/Victoria Patterson // Nemesis by Brendan Reichs/Agatha Christie // Good Morning, Midnight by Lily Brooks-Dalton/Jean Rhys
Two books that share the same title (2)
A book that has inspired a common phrase or idiom e.g Big Brother from 1984 – A Game of Thrones by George R R Martin (“winter is coming”) // Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll (“mad as a hatter”) // The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L Frank Baum (“we’re not in Kansas anymore”) // The Story of Doctor Doolittle by Hugh Lofting (“doctor doolittle”)
A book set in an abbey, cloister, monastery, vicarage or convent – Murder at the Vicarage by Agatha Christie

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