2021 Reading Challenges


Tracking my progress with 2021 reading challenges. Books completed will be in blue.

(Links to all challenges with full details, and to sign-up, can be found in this post.)




I'm hosting this one at Castle Macabre since it is horror. Here are the prompts and levels: 
  • Winter theme, or winter appearance on the cover (snow, ice, etc.)
    The Ascent, Ronald Malfi
  • Ghosts or spirits
  • Psychological
  • Monster or monsters
  • A body of water (featured in story, on cover, or in title)
    Cradle Lake, Ronald Malfi
  • Really scary book cover
  • Woman on cover
    Mexican Gothic, Silvia Moreno-Garcia 
  • Written by a woman 
    The Witch's Trinity, Erika Mailman currently reading
  • Written by a best-selling horror author
  • Written by an indie author
  • Historical horror (must be an historical novel written by a contemporary author. Example: The Historian, Mexican Gothic, Interview with the Vampire
    The Historian, Elizabeth Kostova 
  • Folk horror (Ideas: https://tinyurl.com/yy8jj56a)
Spooky: Read 6 books from 6 categories
Chilling: Read 12 Books from all 12 categories
Frightful: Read 2 books from each category for a total of 24 books
Horrifying: Read 3 books from each category for a total of 36 books

I'm doing the Chilling level. I've listed some of my planned reads above.


The Enthusiast: Read 1-3 books with movies/shows releasing in 2021
My tentative list - The Woman in the Window, A.J. Finn, Wicked, Gregory Maguire, The Wheel of Time, Robert Jordan (first book in the series), Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, Douglas Adams, or Dune, Frank Herbert
Behind Her Eyes, Sarah Pinbourough (2021 Netflix series)

Not Ready to Let Go: read at least one (1) book made into a movie or series in 2020
To be determined

Living in the Past: read at least one (1) book made into a movie in previous years
The Painted Veil, W. Somerset Maugham (2006 film)

The Movie Was Better (What!?): watch the movie(s) for the book(s) you read.
Behind Her Eyes (Neflix series 2021)


The basic concept of this challenge is...
  • Go to your bookshelves, or stack on the floor, or on your nightstand, etc. Pick out a book that you've been wanting to read on a particular shelf.
  • Now continue down that line of books on the shelf (in order) until you have 12 books. (See my shelf for the 2021 challenge below as an example.) There are a total of 19 books in my chosen shelf. I have already read three of the books by Ronald Malfi so that brings my total to 16 books. That gives me four alternates.
Here's the picture of my chosen shelf


List form:

More Than a Skeleton, Paul L. Maier
Ancient Evenings, Norman Mailer
Fallen, David Maine
The Infinite, Nicholas Mainieri
Infinite Days, Rebecca Maizel
The Rock: A Tale of Seventh-Century Jerusalem, Kanan Makiya
Heart of Deception, M.L. Malcolm
Bone White, Ronald Malfi (previously read)
Little Girls, Ronald Malfi (previously read)
December Park, Ronald Malfi
Floating Staircase, Ronald Malfi (previously read)
Henry and Clara, Thomas Mallon
Le Morte D'Arthur, Sir Thomas Malory
Nobody's Girl, Hector Malot
Little Wolves, Thomas Maltman


Freebie – Read a book that is at least 200 pages

August’s Eyes by Glenn Rolfe

Read a book that’s first word starts with the letter A

All Things Cease to Appear by Elizabeth Brundage

Read a debut book

The Infinite by Nicholas Mainieri

Read a book with the word to, too, or two in the title

The Door to Witchcraft: A New Witch's Guide to History, Traditions, and Modern-Day Spells by Tonya A. Brown

Read a book by an author who is a person of colour

Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

Read a book 500+ pages

Ancient Evenings by Norman Mailer

Read a book about a famous woman; can be someone in real life or a fictional famous woman (an actor, a princess, a politician, etc.)

The Blood Countess by Andrei Codrescu (Elizabeth Bathory)

Read a book that has a colour of the rainbow in the title (red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, violet)

Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard

Read a book with a song title or song lyrics in the title

Infinite Days by Rebecca Maizel (Infinite by Eminem)

in honour of October hosting an “International Day of the Girl Child”, read a book where the protagonist (leading character) is a girl younger than 15 years old OR a book written by a girl author younger than 15 years old.

Nobody’s Girl by Hector Malot


My list (I may change some of these):

1. A 19th century classic: any book first published from 1800 to 1899 
Uncle Silas by Sheridan Le Fanu

2. A 20th century classic: any book first published from 1900 to 1971. All books must have been published at least 50 years ago; the only exceptions are books which were written by 1971 and posthumously published. 
Becoming a Writer by Dorothea Brande

3. A classic by a woman author. 
If You Want to Write: A Book about Art, Independence and Spirit by Brenda Ueland

4. A classic in translation, meaning any book first published in a language that is not your primary language. You may read it in translation or in its original language, if you prefer. 
Les Miserables by Victor Hugo

5. A classic by BIPOC author; that is, a non-white author. 
The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas

6. A classic by a new-to-you author, i.e., an author whose work you have never read. 
The Painted Veil by W. Somerset Maugham

7. New-to-you classic by a favorite author -- a new book by an author whose works you have already read. 
The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby by Charles Dickens

8. A classic about an animal, or with an animal in the title. The animal can be real or metaphorical. (i.e., To Kill a Mockingbird). 
I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou

9. A children's classic. 
The Witchcraft of Salem Village by Shirley Jackson (Published March 12th 1963 by Random House Books for Young Readers)

10. A humorous or satirical classic. 
Emma by Jane Austen

11. A travel or adventure classic (fiction or non-fiction). It can be a travelogue or a classic in which the main character travels or has an adventure. 
The Sheltering Sky by Paul Bowles

12. A classic play. Plays will only count in this category. 
Murder in the Cathedral by T.S. Eliot


Books to be determined. 



I'm doing Fortnightly | 26 books One category from each topic--you can choose one wildcard
Books to be determined. (Any planned reads will be in bold.)

Who's in charge?
A book about an empire Ancient Evenings, Norman Mailer
A book about a social movement
A book about being a first time parent
A book about a cat

Make 'em Laugh
A funny comic or graphic novel
A book about a comedian
A book with a pun in the title The Wind Done Gone, Alice Randall
A book with someone laughing on the cover

Where You Sleep At Night
A book about a hotel
A book with the word "house" in the title
A book with a cabin on the cover
A book about a haunted house Slade House, David Mitchell

Ways To Die
A book with "poison" in the title
A book with a knife on the cover
A true crime murder story
A book about dealing with suicide


Occupations
A book about a farmer
A book about a librarian or bookseller
A book written by a college professor
A book about a scientist

Generations
A book about millenials
A book about hippies
A book about baby boomers
A book about flappers

Plaids
A book with a kilt on the cover
A book written by someone from Scotland
A book with a plaid cover
A book with a flannel shirt on the cover

Those Bodies
A book by a celebrity known for body positivity
A book with a picture of an ocean on the cover
A book with a dead body on the cover
A children's book about body parts

The Tools of Writing
A paperback book On Becoming a Novelist, John Gardner
A book with a typewriter on the cover
A book with "words" in the title
A book with "deadline" in the title


That Creepy Feeling
A horror story or thriller Cradle Lake, Ronald Malfi
A book with an insect on the cover
A book about something that scares you
A book with a monster on the cover


Favorites
A book by your favorite author
A book in your favorite genre
A book with your favorite color on the cover
A book from a celebrity favorite list

Crossing Boundaries
A book about an interracial romance
A book about the immigrant experience
A book about reconciliation
A book about cross dressing

Bringing the World into Your Home
A book about hygge, feng shui, or home harmony
A book about taking in a stranger
A book about a culture other than your own
A book about how radio, television, or the internet has changed us

Things We Don't Talk About
A book with the word "naked" in the title
A book by a politician
A book about oppression
A book about terminal illness

Reflections
A book with a mirror on the cover
A memoir
A fiction book about reminiscing
A self help book

Swashbuckling
A book with a sword on the cover
A book about pirates
A rollicking adventure story
A book with a map on the cover

Shapes and Colors
A book with a primarily black cover
A book with a shape-shifting character
A book with a shape on the cover that reminds you of a Roschach test
A book by an author whose name is a color

Picture This
A book with the word "picture" in the title
A book with a photograph on the cover
A book by a journalist or news photographer
An illustrated book

Shh…
A book about secret societies/clubs
A children's book about bedtime
A book with the word "secret" in the title
A book with a peaceful cover

Challenges
A book over 500 pages
A book about overcoming obstacles
A book you've set aside in the past because it was hard to get into
A book with the word "hard" in the title

Drinking Game
A cozy mystery with a beverage in the title
A book with a picture of an alcoholic beverage on the cover
A book title that could be a drinking game
A nonfiction book about alcohol

It's All Relative
A book set in your grandparents' era
A book with the word "father" in the title
A book you'd share with your child
A book about an estranged family

Weather
A book with the word "snow" in the title Snow, Ronald Malfi
A nonfiction book about a weather related disaster
A book with a picture of clear blue sky on the cover
A book that comforts you on a rainy day

TBR Burners
A book that had been on your TBR list more than a year Behind Her Eyes, Sarah Pinborough
A book someone gave to you that you haven't read yet
Anything you want
A book you're excited to read


Borrowing
A book with a character from a different book
A fairytale or myth retelling in a modern setting
A book written by an author with a pseudonym
A book borrowed from the library

Putting 2020 Behind Us
A book with a crowded cover
A book about self care or recovery
A book set after a major world event (war, weather disaster, etc.)
A book with the word "better" in the title

+++ Wildcards +++
A book by an author under 30
A 2021 release
A comic book
A book by two or more authors
A collection of essays
- See more at: http://www.techtrickhome.com/2013/02/show-comment-box-above-comments-on.html#sthash.TjHz2Px9.dpuf