2020 Reading Challenge Wrap-Up

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January 1, 2021

11:53 pm

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Oh, Beth of December 2019, you had no idea what was coming. You went and signed up for a bunch of challenges again, and then… well. Let’s round ’em up!

Back to the Classics (hosted by Books and Chocolate)
Goal: 12 books
Result: 5 (42%)

Yes, I did use the maximum of 3 children’s books. Still considerably better than last year.

  • 19th Century Classic (1800-1899): Looking Backward: 2000-1887 by Edward Bellamy (1888) (12/29/20)
  • 20th Century Classic (1900-1970): Basil and the Lost Colony (1964) by Eve Titus (1/27/20)
  • A Genre Classic: The Time Machine by H.G. Wells (1/29/20)
  • Classic with a Person’s Name in the Title: Tales from Shakespeare by Charles & Mary Lamb (12/31/20)
  • Classic with a Place in the Title: Basil of Baker Street (1958) by Eve Titus (1/25/20)
  • Classic by a Woman Author
  • Classic in Translation
  • Classic by a Person of Color
  • Classic with Nature in the Title
  • Classic About a Family
  • Abandoned Classic
  • Classic Adaptation

Georgian Reading Challenge (hosted by Becky’s Book Reviews)
Goal: 4 books
Result: 1 (25%): Tales from Shakespeare by Charles & Mary Lamb (1807)

Victorian Reading Challenge (hosted by Becky’s Book Reviews)
Goal: 20 books
Result: 1 (5%)

  • JANUARY/FEBRUARY – JOURNEYS and TRAVELS: The Time Machine by H. G. Wells (1895)
  • FEBRUARY/MARCH – LOVE and MARRIAGE
  • MARCH/APRIL – SECOND CHANCES
  • APRIL/MAY – NAMES AS TITLES
  • MAY/JUNE – LONG TITLE OR LONG SUB-TITLES
  • JUNE/JULY – ADAPTATIONS
  • JULY/AUGUST – FAVORITE AUTHORS, NEW-TO-ME BOOKS
  • AUGUST/SEPTEMBER – BACK TO SCHOOL
  • SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER – CRIME OR TRUE CRIME
  • OCTOBER/NOVEMBER – HOME AND FAMILY
  • NOVEMBER/DECEMBER – COMFORT READS

Read Harder (Book Riot)
Goal: 24 Books
Result: 19 (79%)

  1. A YA nonfiction book: Flowers in the Gutter by K.R. Gaddy
  2. A retelling of a classic of the canon, fairy tale, or myth by an author of color: A Study in Scarlet Women by Sherry Thomas
  3. A mystery where the victim(s) is not a woman: The Alienist by Caleb Carr
  4. A graphic memoir: Spinning by Tillie Walden
  5. A book about a natural disaster: The Thief of Worlds by Bruce Coville
  6. A play by an author of color and/or queer author
  7. A historical fiction novel not set in WWII: The Deep by Alma Katsu
  8. An audiobook of poetry: Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, translated by Simon Armitage, read by Bill Wallis
  9. The LAST book in a series: The Tower of Nero (The Trials of Apollo #5) by Rick Riordan (This one was Maureen Johnson’s The Hand on the Wall, but then she announced a forthcoming fourth book!)
  10. A book that takes place in a rural setting: The Lost Man by Jane Harper
  11. A debut novel by a queer author: Red, White & Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston
  12. A memoir by someone from a religious tradition (or lack of religious tradition) that is not your own: Educated: A Memoir by Tara Westover
  13. A food book about a cuisine you’ve never tried before
  14. A romance starring a single parent: Courting the Countess by Jenny Frame
  15. A book about climate change
  16. A doorstopper (over 500 pages) published after 1950, written by a woman
  17. A sci-fi/fantasy novella (under 120 pages): The Time Machine by H.G. Wells
  18. A picture book with a human main character from a marginalized community: Double Bass Blues by Andrea J. Loney
  19. A book by or about a refugee: Other Words for Home by Jasmine Warga
  20. A middle grade book that doesn’t take place in the US or the UK: Sherlock Sam and the Missing Heirloom in Katong by A.J. Low
  21. A book with a main character or protagonist with a disability (fiction or non): Song for a Whale by Lynne Kelly
  22. A horror book published by an indie press: The Southern Book Club’s Guide to Vampire Slaying by Grady Hendrix
  23. An edition of a literary magazine (digital or physical)
  24. A book in any genre by a Native, First Nations, or Indigenous author: I Can Make This Promise by Christine Day

Reading Women (Reading Women podcast)
Goal: 24 Books
Result: 8 (33%)

  1.  Book by an Author from the Caribbean or India
  2. A Book Translated from an Asian Language
  3. A Book about the Environment
  4. A Picture Book Written/Illustrated by a BIPOC Author: Sulwe by Lupita Nyong’o, illustrated by Vashti Harrison
  5. A Winner of the Stella Prize or the Women’s Prize for Fiction
  6. A Nonfiction Title by a Woman Historian:  Flowers in the Gutter by K.R. Gaddy
  7. A Book Featuring Afrofuturism or Africanfuturism: The City We Became (Great Cities #1) by N.K. Jemisin
  8. An Anthology by Multiple Authors
  9. A Book Inspired by Folklore
  10. A Book about a Woman Artist: The Anatomist’s Wife by Anna Lee Huber
  11. Read and Watch a Book-to-Movie Adaptation
  12. A Book about a Woman Who Inspires You
  13. A Book by an Arab Woman
  14. A Book Set in Japan or by a Japanese Author
  15. A Biography
  16. A Book Featuring a Woman with a Disability
  17. A Book Over 500 Pages
  18. A Book Under 100 Pages: What is Given from the Heart by Patricia McKissack, illustrated by April Harrison
  19. A Book That’s Frequently Recommended to You
  20. A Feel-Good or Happy Book: Red, White & Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston
  21. A Book about Food
  22. A Book by Either a Favorite or a New-to-You Publisher: To Fetch a Felon by Jennifer Hawkins (Berkley Publishing Group)
  23. A Book by an LGBTQ+ Author: Spinning by Tillie Walden
  24. A Book from the 2019 Reading Women Award Shortlists (Nonfiction | Fiction) or Honorable Mentions
  25. BONUS: A book by Toni Morrison
  26. BONUS: A book by Isabel Allende

I suspect I read some things that satisfied a couple more of those Reading Women tasks.

Overall, I did way better than last year, which actually surprised me a little bit. 2020 was quite a year, y’all.