The 2024 Reading Challenge!
A book a month. You know the drill.
January 12, 2024
Happy Friday, travelers! The sun is shining and today is the day for our 2024 Reading Challenge. Last November, I pulled up my Stickies on my desktop and jotted down a few categories. Every time I thought about it since, typically in fleeting moments while doing reading for grad school, I read it over. Shifted some things around. Read it again.
And now, here it is. A book a month, both fiction and non, with categories that (hopefully) make you think. Some categories may already be on your TBR, buried deep and waiting for their day in the sun. Today is that day. :-)
Others may be more challenging, making you spend time to figure out what sounds good and fits with the theme. My goal is for at least one month to have you read a book you never heard of before the challenge. I know it’ll happen to me at least once.
January — A novel set in India (I recommend looking into Thrity Umrigar’s work. I’m planning to read Honor and I reviewed The Museum of Failures for Chapter 16 in case you’re interested in that book instead.)
February — Set in a rural placeÂ
March — Book of any kind set in Poland
April — A book all about food
May — Translated novel
June — Novel by a First Nations author (Think globally, too. This could apply to the USA, Canada, all of Latin America, Australia, New Zealand…so many opportunities for this one!)
July — Book-turned-movie set in another country (Another country = a country different from those you call home, currently or previously.)
August — Inside the mind of an animal
September — Published under duress
October — Your local indie bookseller or librarian recommended it
November — Author is a native Spanish speaker
December — A love story. Doesn’t matter what kind. Love of self, love of God, love of another, love of dog. Platonic or romantic. As long as there’s love and pages for you to discover it in the characters, it counts.
I’ll be here with recs for each category throughout the year. Stay tuned. :-)
The beginning of my 2024 reading wishlist looks like this right now:
The Poisonwood Bible
The Bee Sting
North Woods
Roman Stories
The End of the World is a Cul de Sac
Prophet Song
Breasts and Eggs
The Wren, The Wren
Julia
The Heaven and Earth Grocery Store
Silver Nitrate
January
Laurus
The Sun Walks Down
Still Born
The Luminaries
Crooked Plow
The Love Songs of W.E.B. Dubois
Happy reading,
Sarah
P.s. If you’re new and want to see last year’s reading challenge, here it is. And here are my picks from the categories!
If anyone is looking for a May recc. (translated novel), The Sound of Life’s Unspeakable Beauty by Martin Schleske (German author) is one of the most beautiful + profound books I’ve read on life with God.