This year I re-signed up for some old favorites and discovered some new ones, too.
If, like me, you haven't signed up for your reading challenges for 2018 yet - or you just want to add an extra one or two to your list - check out the Master List of 2018 Reading Challenges posted by Girlxoxo. This post was SO helpful to me!
You can check out how I did last year in my 2017 Reading Challenges Wrap-Up (many of the same ones). And anytime this year, you can stop by my 2018 Reading Challenges tab to see how I am doing.
Here are the reading challenges I chose for 2018 - I can't wait to get started!
Despite my efforts to read my own books every year, my TBR bookcase now has double rows on 3 shelves! A review job where I receive 3 books every month but only need to review one of them isn't helping. I am losing ground but will keep trying. Since I read 28 TBR books last year, I am signing up for the Mount Vancouver level this year and aiming to read at least 36 books from my own shelves.
There will be quarterly check-ins (I will try to remember!)
A favorite challenge that I sign up for every year, with a different theme for one book each month. This one has monthly check-ins, which I never realized before, so I will try to keep up! Here are this year's themes - I dd well in January, despite my late sign-up!
JANUARY – Diversify Your Reading
Kick the reading year off right and shake things up. Read a book with a character (or written by an author) of a race, religion, or sexual orientation other than your own.
FEBRUARY – One Word
Read a book with a one word title.
MARCH – Travel the World
Read a book set in a different country than your own, written by an author from another country than your own, or a book in which the characters travel.
APRIL – Read Locally
Read a book set in your country, state, town, village (or has a main character from your home town, country, etc)
MAY- Book to Screen
Read a book that’s been made into a movie or a TV show.
JUNE- Crack the Case
Mysteries, True Crime, Who Dunnit’s.
JULY – Vacation Reads
Read a book you think is a perfect vacation read and tell us why.
AUGUST- Award Winners
Read a book that has won a literary award or a book written by an author who has been recognized in the bookish community.
SEPTEMBER- Don’t Turn Out The Light
Cozy mystery ghost stories, paranormal creeptastic, horror novels.
OCTOBER- New or Old
Choose a new release from 2018 or a book known as a classic.
NOVEMBER- Family
Books where family dynamics play a big role in the story
DECEMBER- Wrapping It Up
Winter or holiday themed books or books with snow, ice, etc in the title or books set in winter OR read a book with a theme from any of the months in this challenge (could be a theme you didn’t do, or one you want to do again).
Back to the Classics hosted by Books and Chocolate.
Another one I am returning to this year. I aimed to read 6 classics last year and managed just 5, so I am once again setting my goal at 6 classics. Here are the categories:
1. A 19th century classic - any book published between 1800 and 1899.
2. A 20th century classic - any book published between 1900 and 1968. Just like last year, all books MUST have been published at least 50 years ago to qualify. The only exception is books written at least 50 years ago, but published later, such as posthumous publications.
3. A classic by a woman author.
4. A classic in translation. Any book originally written published in a language other than your native language. Feel free to read the book in your language or the original language. (You can also read books in translation for any of the other categories). Modern translations are acceptable as long as the original work fits the guidelines for publications as explained in the challenge rules.
5. A children's classic. Indulge your inner child and read that classic that you somehow missed years ago. Short stories are fine, but it must be a complete volume. Young adult and picture books don't count!
6. A classic crime story, fiction or non-fiction. This can be a true crime story, mystery, detective novel, spy novel, etc., as long as a crime is an integral part of the story and it was published at least 50 years ago. Examples include The 39 Steps, Strangers on a Train, In Cold Blood, The Murder of Roger Ackroyd, etc. The Haycraft-Queen Cornerstones list is an excellent source for suggestions.
7. A classic travel or journey narrative, fiction or non-fiction. The journey itself must be the major plot point -- not just the destination. Good examples include The Hobbit, Around the World in 80 Days, Unbeaten Tracks in Japan, Kon-Tiki, Travels with Charley, etc.
8. A classic with a single-word title. No articles please! Proper names are fine -- Emma, Germinal, Middlemarch, Kidnapped, etc.
9. A classic with a color in the title. The Woman in White; Anne of Green Gables; The Red and the Black, and so on. (Silver, gold, etc. are acceptable. Basically, if it's a color in a Crayola box of crayons, it's fine!)
10. A classic by an author that's new to you. Choose an author you've never read before.
11. A classic that scares you. Is there a classic you've been putting off forever? A really long book which intimidates you because of its sheer length? Now's the time to read it, and hopefully you'll be pleasantly surprised!
12. Re-read a favorite classic. Like me, you probably have a lot of favorites -- choose one and read it again, then tell us why you love it so much.
2018 Badass Books Reading Challenge hosted by Melissa Hawkins, Badass by Design.
This is a new one for me (thanks to Girlxoxo for their comprehensive list of challenges!)
The idea is to use this checklist (below) to read at least one book in each category during the year - looks like fun!
A book published in 2018.
A book published the year you were born.
A classic book or a book published over 100 years ago.
A book that you’ve started before and never finished.
A book you should have read in school, but didn’t.
A Book you’ve already read – time for a re-read!
A book that you’ve put off reading.
A banned book.
A book by an author you’ve never read.
A popular author’s first book.
A book turned movie you’ve seen but haven’t read.
A book turned TV show you’ve seen but haven’t read.
A funny book.
A book that will make you smarter.
An award-winning book.
A book based on a true story.
A book chosen for you by a friend.
A book set during Christmas.
Travel the World in Books Reading Challenge hosted by Mom's Small Victories, one of my favorite blogs. I signed up for this one back in 2014, so this is a continuation (it's a perpetual challenge) - I can't wait to see what places I visit in books in 2018! Last year I read 27 books set in other countries/cultures (14 different countries/regions), so I hope to do even better this year.
2018 Literary Escapes Challenge hosted by Escape with Dollycas Into a Good Book.
I love tracking where I read! Last year, I read books set in 24 different states for this challenge, so I hope to do even better this year.
Alabama
Alaska
Arizona
Arkansas
California
Colorado
Connecticut
Delaware
District of Columbia
Florida
Georgia
Hawaii
Idaho
Illinois
Indiana
Iowa
Kansas
Kentucky
Louisiana
Maine
Maryland
Massachusetts
Michigan
Minnesota
Mississippi
Missouri
Montana
Nebraska
Nevada
New Hampshire
New Jersey
New Mexico
New York
North Carolina
North Dakota
Ohio
Oklahoma
Oregon
Pennsylvania
Rhode Island
South Carolina
South Dakota
Tennessee
Texas
Utah
Vermont
Virginia
Washington
West Virginia
Wisconsin
Wyoming
Big Book Summer Challenge hosted by Book By Book (me!)
My own challenge! It will run again from Memorial Day weekend (last in May) to Labor Day (first Monday in September) - any books with 400 or more pages count. I look forward to this one every summer as a chance to finally get to some of the bigger books I never seem to have time for - and they are usually TBR books, so that helps my Mount TBR Challenge, too!
What reading challenges have you signed up for this year?
So many challenges! I always worry that if I sign up for too many that I'll feel like I only read books that satisfy a challenge, but I realize that most books could qualify for more than one. I am so tempted to do the motif challenge!
ReplyDeleteYes, I don't actually "read to the challenges", i.e. pick books to fit a challenge. Instead, I just read what I want - book group choices, review books, stuff on my shelf - and then check at the end of the month to see which challenges they fit into. I am going to try to at least look at the Monthly Motif each month, though! lol
DeleteSue