Read Harder Challenge 2016

My friend Kelli Nicole of Nails and Novels shared with me an annual reading challenge hosted by Book Riot currently in it’s second year is called the Read Harder Challenge 2016. Kelli and I are both avid readers however she can most certainly devour many more books then I can on an annual basis. I try my best to read as often as I can but a targeted booklist will most certainly help me along.

This particular challenge does not simply list an array of books for you to read but you have to do a little bit of digging and research for yourself to put your list together. Actually, for me, that was the most enjoyable part so far although having to chose between a few books was enjoyably frustrating. I went to my bookshelves at home for some and the internet via Google searches, Goodreads and Amazon for others. Several of the categories/genres took me way out of my element such as reading a nonfiction book about feminism or feminist themes and non-superhero comics. There is also a selection for a genre that I didn’t even know existed, the food memoir. Who knew?!? Well I’m sure many people did, I however did not. By the end of 2016, I’m certain to feel like a more well rounded reader. I am happy to do a bit of branching out this year as I tend to stick with Mysteries.

If you would like to join in on the reading fun, you can grab the challenge checklist PDF HERE.

It took me a few days to curate but here are my personal selections for this year’s challenge. There are a few that I haven’t entirely decided on one choice and a few books may change but I plan to do a quarterly update and will have decided all books by then. Wish me luck!!

Horror – The Exorcist by William Peter Blatty
Nonfiction science – The World Without Us by Alan Weisman
Collection of essays – Bad Feminist by Roxane Gay
Read a book out load to someone – Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs by Judi Barnett
Middle grade – Uglies by Scott Westerfield
Biography (not a memoir or autobiography) – The Notorious RBG by Irin Carmon and Shana Knizhnik
Dystopian or post-Apocalyptic – Cinder by Marissa Meyer
Published in the decade I was born – The Day of the Jackal by Frederick Forsyth
Audiobook that has won an Audie Award – I am Malala by Malala Yousafzai
Over 500 pages – Clockwork Angel by Cassandre Clare or Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell
Under 100 pages – Utopia by Thomas More
A person that identifies as transgender – Redefining Realness by Jackie Mack
Set in the Middle East – The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
Author from Southeast Asia – And the Mountains Echoed by Khaled Hosseini
Historical fiction set before 1900 – Crocodile on the Sand by Elizabeth Peters
1st in a series by a person of color – Reaper’s Novice by Cecilia Robert
Non-superhero comic – Beauty by Jeremy Haun and Jason Hurley
Movie adaptation – Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan or The Hours by Michael Cunningham
Feminism or dealing with feminist themes – We Should all be Feminist by Chipmamanda Ngozi Adichie
Religion – Living Buddha, Living Christ by Thich Nhat Hanh
Politics – Idiot America by Charles Pierce or The Breakthrough by Gwen Ifill
Food memoir – *The Cooking Gene by Michael Twitty or Yes, Chef by Marcus Samuelsson
Play – The Tempest by William Shakespeare
Main Character has a mental illness – The Hours by Michael Cunningham

With the exception of The Tempest, I have never read any of the books listed above and I tried very hard not to double up on books for more than one reading task. Wish me luck and happy reading.

Live and love in positivity,