I don't really do reading challenges, but at the beginning of 2015, I decided to see if I completed the Popsugar 2015 Reading Challenge. Later, I saw BookRiot's Read Harder challenge, and decided to see how my reading measured up with that too. I did not intentionally try to follow either challenge, and so did not entirely complete either, but I am impressed with how close I came!
Popsugar 2015 Reading Challenge
1. A book with more than 500 pages: Bitterblue by Kristin Cashore
2. A classic romance: Outlander by Diana Gabaldon
3. A book that became a movie: I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith
4. A book published this year: Against the Country by Ben Metcalf
5. A book with a number in the title: Three Parts Dead by Max Gladstone
6. A book written by someone under 30: Dispatch from the Future by Leigh Stein (she was 29 when it was published)
7. A book with nonhuman characters: The Galaxy Game by Karen Lord
8. A funny book: hypocrite in a pouffy white dress by susan jane gilman
9. A book by a female author: The Boston Girl by Anita Diamant
10. A mystery or thriller: The Cuckoo’s Calling by Robert Galbraith
11. A book with a one word title: Sisterland by Curtis Sittenfeld
12. A book with short stories: Love InshAllah
13. A book set in a different country: The Creation of Eve by Lynn Cullen
14. A non-fiction book: Radical by Michelle Rhee
15. A popular author's first book: How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents by Julia Alvarez
16. A book from an author you love that you haven't read yet: The Paying Guests by Sarah Waters
17. A book a friend recommended: All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr
18. A Pulitzer Prize winning novel: All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr
19. A book based on a true story: Saving Fish from Drowning by Amy Tan
20. A book at the bottom of your TBR list: The Night Watch by Sarah Waters
21. A book your mom loves:
22. A book that scares you:
23. A book more than a 100 years old: The Bondwoman’s Narrative by Hannah Crafts
24. A book based entirely on its cover:
25. A book you were supposed to read in school and didn't:
26. A memoir: The Republic of Imagination by Azar Nafisi
27. A book with antonyms in the title:
28. A book you can finish in a day: Seraphina by Rachel Hartman
29. A book set somewhere you've always wanted to go: The Lowland by Jhumpa Lahiri (Calcutta)
30. A book published the year you were born: The Writing Life by Annie Dillard
31. A book with bad reviews: Wild by Cheryl Strayed
32. A Trilogy: Ancillary Justice, Ancillary Sword, Ancillary Mercy (only read the last this year)
33. A book from your childhood: The Runaway Teddy Bear by Ginnie Hofmann
34. A book with a love triangle: The Lonely Polygamist by Brady Udall
35. A book set in the future: Cinder by Marissa Meyer
36. A book set in high school: Taming the Star Runner by S.E. Hinton
37. A book with a color in the title: Bitterblue by Kristin Cashore
38. A book that made you cry:
39. A book with magic: Blood and Iron by Elizabeth Bear
40. A graphic novel:
41. A book by an author you've never read before: Snowflower and the Secret Fan by Lisa See
42. A book you own but never read: The Angel’s Game by Carlos Ruiz Zafon
43. A book that takes place in your hometown: Digging to America by Anne Tyler
44. A book that was originally written in another language: The Prisoner of Heaven by Carlos Ruiz Zafon
45. A book set during a Jewish holidayChristmas:
46. A book by an author who had your same initials:
47. A play:
48. A banned book: How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents by Julia Alvarez
49. A book based on or turned into a tv show: The 100 by Kass Morgan
50. A book you started but never finished: American Gods by Neil Gaiman
Read Harder Challenge 2015
A book written by someone when they were under the age of 25: I'm not sure? There are soem contenders, but I'm having trouble confirming data on authors' ages.
A book written by someone when they were over the age of 65: See above.
A collection of short stories: Brave New Girls ed. Mary Fan and Paige Daniels
A book published by an indie press: Beirut Noir (Akashic Books)
A book by or about someone who identifies as LGBTQ: The Night Watch by Sarah Waters
A book by a person whose gender is different from your own: Statisticity by Yaron Glazer
A book that takes place in Asia: The Valley of Amazement by Amy Tan
A book by an author from Africa:
A book that is by or about someone from an indigenous culture:
A microhistory: On the Same Track: How Schools Can Join the Twenty-First Century Struggle Against Resegregation by Carol Corbett Burris (I had to look up what a microhistory was).
A YA novel: Seraphina by Rachel Hartman
A sci-fi novel: Ancillary Mercy by Ann Leckie
A romance novel: Outlander by Diana Gabaldon
A National Book Award, Man Booker Prize or Pulitzer Prize winner from the last decade: The Lowland by Jhumpa Lahiri
A book that is a retelling of a classic story: Cinder by Marissa Meyer
An audiobook: The Wise Man's Fear by Patrick Rothfuss
A collection of poetry: Lightwall by Liliana Ursu
A book that someone else recommended to you: All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr
A book that was originally published in another language: Nightwatch by Sergei Lukyanenko
A graphic novel, a graphic memoir, or a collection of comics of any kind:
A book that you would consider a guilty pleasure: Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert
A book published before 1850: The Bondwoman's Narrative by Hannah Crafts (It was written around 1850, although not published till 2002)
A book published this year: Make Your Home Among Strangers by Jeanine Capo Crucet
A self-improvement book: The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up by Marie Kondo
Popsugar 2015 Reading Challenge
1. A book with more than 500 pages: Bitterblue by Kristin Cashore2. A classic romance: Outlander by Diana Gabaldon
3. A book that became a movie: I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith
4. A book published this year: Against the Country by Ben Metcalf
5. A book with a number in the title: Three Parts Dead by Max Gladstone
6. A book written by someone under 30: Dispatch from the Future by Leigh Stein (she was 29 when it was published)
7. A book with nonhuman characters: The Galaxy Game by Karen Lord
8. A funny book: hypocrite in a pouffy white dress by susan jane gilman
9. A book by a female author: The Boston Girl by Anita Diamant
10. A mystery or thriller: The Cuckoo’s Calling by Robert Galbraith
11. A book with a one word title: Sisterland by Curtis Sittenfeld
12. A book with short stories: Love InshAllah
13. A book set in a different country: The Creation of Eve by Lynn Cullen
14. A non-fiction book: Radical by Michelle Rhee
15. A popular author's first book: How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents by Julia Alvarez
16. A book from an author you love that you haven't read yet: The Paying Guests by Sarah Waters
17. A book a friend recommended: All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr
18. A Pulitzer Prize winning novel: All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr
19. A book based on a true story: Saving Fish from Drowning by Amy Tan
20. A book at the bottom of your TBR list: The Night Watch by Sarah Waters
21. A book your mom loves:
22. A book that scares you:
23. A book more than a 100 years old: The Bondwoman’s Narrative by Hannah Crafts
24. A book based entirely on its cover:
25. A book you were supposed to read in school and didn't:
26. A memoir: The Republic of Imagination by Azar Nafisi
27. A book with antonyms in the title:
28. A book you can finish in a day: Seraphina by Rachel Hartman
29. A book set somewhere you've always wanted to go: The Lowland by Jhumpa Lahiri (Calcutta)
30. A book published the year you were born: The Writing Life by Annie Dillard
31. A book with bad reviews: Wild by Cheryl Strayed
32. A Trilogy: Ancillary Justice, Ancillary Sword, Ancillary Mercy (only read the last this year)
33. A book from your childhood: The Runaway Teddy Bear by Ginnie Hofmann
34. A book with a love triangle: The Lonely Polygamist by Brady Udall
35. A book set in the future: Cinder by Marissa Meyer
36. A book set in high school: Taming the Star Runner by S.E. Hinton
37. A book with a color in the title: Bitterblue by Kristin Cashore
38. A book that made you cry:
39. A book with magic: Blood and Iron by Elizabeth Bear
40. A graphic novel:
41. A book by an author you've never read before: Snowflower and the Secret Fan by Lisa See
42. A book you own but never read: The Angel’s Game by Carlos Ruiz Zafon
43. A book that takes place in your hometown: Digging to America by Anne Tyler
44. A book that was originally written in another language: The Prisoner of Heaven by Carlos Ruiz Zafon
45. A book set during a Jewish holiday
46. A book by an author who had your same initials:
47. A play:
48. A banned book: How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents by Julia Alvarez
49. A book based on or turned into a tv show: The 100 by Kass Morgan
50. A book you started but never finished: American Gods by Neil Gaiman
Read Harder Challenge 2015
A book written by someone when they were under the age of 25: I'm not sure? There are soem contenders, but I'm having trouble confirming data on authors' ages.A book written by someone when they were over the age of 65: See above.
A collection of short stories: Brave New Girls ed. Mary Fan and Paige Daniels
A book published by an indie press: Beirut Noir (Akashic Books)
A book by or about someone who identifies as LGBTQ: The Night Watch by Sarah Waters
A book by a person whose gender is different from your own: Statisticity by Yaron Glazer
A book that takes place in Asia: The Valley of Amazement by Amy Tan
A book by an author from Africa:
A book that is by or about someone from an indigenous culture:
A microhistory: On the Same Track: How Schools Can Join the Twenty-First Century Struggle Against Resegregation by Carol Corbett Burris (I had to look up what a microhistory was).
A YA novel: Seraphina by Rachel Hartman
A sci-fi novel: Ancillary Mercy by Ann Leckie
A romance novel: Outlander by Diana Gabaldon
A National Book Award, Man Booker Prize or Pulitzer Prize winner from the last decade: The Lowland by Jhumpa Lahiri
A book that is a retelling of a classic story: Cinder by Marissa Meyer
An audiobook: The Wise Man's Fear by Patrick Rothfuss
A collection of poetry: Lightwall by Liliana Ursu
A book that someone else recommended to you: All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr
A book that was originally published in another language: Nightwatch by Sergei Lukyanenko
A graphic novel, a graphic memoir, or a collection of comics of any kind:
A book that you would consider a guilty pleasure: Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert
A book published before 1850: The Bondwoman's Narrative by Hannah Crafts (It was written around 1850, although not published till 2002)
A book published this year: Make Your Home Among Strangers by Jeanine Capo Crucet
A self-improvement book: The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up by Marie Kondo
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