Book Riot's Read Harder Challenge discussion
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Read Harder 2016
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Julia
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Dec 17, 2015 10:16AM
Identifying as transgender is enough, I take it? And what if they've written under both names? I was thinking Zac Brewer particularly.
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Stephanie wrote: "Does anyone have any good recommendations for a book "that is by an author from Southeast Asia"? Or one that "identifies as transgender"? Just looking into some titles for next year.Thanks!"
I don't have one yet for "Southeast Asia" but for the transgender task I'm reading Luna by Julie Anne Peters
Satrina wrote:"Does anyone have any good recommendations for a book "that is by an author from Southeast Asia"?..."I am reading The Glass Palace
Rainey wrote: "Satrina wrote:"Does anyone have any good recommendations for a book "that is by an author from Southeast Asia"?..."I am reading The Glass Palace"
Isn't that by an Indian author? I am also baffled by the Southeast Asian author slot. Plenty of books are set there, but few are written by people actually from there.
I'm having trouble with the Southeast Asian slot, too. I am thinking of The Ghost Bride (author is from Malaya). I recommend Tash Aw and Tan Twan Eng as authors I've enjoyed from Southeast Asia. I'm also going to wait for the Book Riot posts on this particular category. My problem category is Biography. All the lists I'm looking at include memoir or autobiography as categories under biography. Some titles mentioned on this Listopia list also mention biography of cities or places. Do these qualify or does the biography have to be about a person?
I'm also having trouble finding an Audie award-winning audiobook in my library. Do the audiobooks that were submitted but that didn't win Best of qualify as a choice?
Yes, Carrie. Agoraphobia is a mental illness.
Carrie wrote: "Ok, Goodreaders! I need your opinion. I'm working on my TBR list for the Read Harder 2016 challenge. Does agoraphobia count as a mental illness. I'm thinking yes, but want some input. Thanks!"Yes, agoraphobia is a mental illness.
Hopefully the individual task threads will be up soon since clearly we are more than ready to discuss. :-)
Martha wrote: "I'm having trouble with the Southeast Asian slot, too. I am thinking of The Ghost Bride (author is from Malaya). I recommend Tash Aw and Tan Twan Eng as authors I've enjoyed from Southeast Asia. I'..."Yes, a biography is about a person, but it is not written by that person. And, I believe it says the audio book has to have won an Audie Award.
Mark wrote: "I can't see any opportunity where I'm going to be able to read a book out loud to someone else. So, I won't be completing the challenge this year; but I'll do the rest of it anyway." Maybe you could volunteer to be a surprise guest reader at the school or public library. We librarians love that kind of thing!
You could also check into nursing homes and maybe read to the elderly? They are usually welcoming of attention from anybody. Don't give up on completion before the year has even started! :)
If you need help figuring out books from Southeast Asian authors, I found this: http://ideas.ted.com/your-guide-to-re...Ted Talk by a woman who read a book by an author from every country in the world.
Allie wrote: "If you need help figuring out books from Southeast Asian authors, I found this: http://ideas.ted.com/your-guide-to-re...Ted Talk by a woman who read a book by an author from every cou..."
I follow Neil Gaiman on Twitter and he retweeted this link. I was just reading it before returning to this thread! Many great ideas in the article.
Allie wrote: "If you need help figuring out books from Southeast Asian authors, I found this: http://ideas.ted.com/your-guide-to-re...Ted Talk by a woman who read a book by an author from every cou..."
Oh wow, amazing link, thanks for sharing!
For the Southeast Asian author category, I'm planning on reading Beauty Is a Wound, which was already in my TBR pile. Kurniawan is from Indonesia.
Mod
Rainey wrote: "Julia wrote: Also horror. Maybe I'll try classic like Dracula or Shirley Jackson. That's more my..."I am reading The Library at Mount Char for my horror selection."
That looks like a good choice to me as I am also trying to select novels from the GR Good Choice Nominees. Also, did you notice that the NYPL's list of books for this challenge had filed this under the Religion section.
Stephanie wrote: "Does anyone have any good recommendations for a book "that is by an author from Southeast Asia"? Or one that "identifies as transgender"? Just looking into some titles for next year.Thanks!"
I have had this book highly recommended to me and as a bonus it is on my TBR shelves. The Garden of Evening Mists. It won the Man-Asia literary prize and was a Booker shortlisted novel in 2012. Tan Twan Eng was born in Malaysia. Hope that helps ...
Rainey wrote: "Julia wrote: Also horror. Maybe I'll try classic like Dracula or Shirley Jackson. That's more my..."I am reading The Library at Mount Char for my horror selection."
I loved The Library at Mount Char! It's great for people who are iffy about horror because it blends a few genres together and is very creative.
Questions, questions! What qualifies as a "nonfiction book about science"? Any kind of academic publication, regardless of field? Specifically, would something like Austin's "How to do things with words" count? Or maybe something else on linguistics or literature? Do textbooks count? Or does it have to be "science-y" science like math/physics and whatnot? Also, do I have to read all the books in English? Not that it would be a problem if I did, but, for example, if I had to read Wilhelm Tell for one of my classes anyway, could that be my play? I'm trying to see if the challenge will merge in any way with my required/recommended reading... Ooh, final question: would "The curious incident of the dog in the Night-Time" by Mark Haddon work for both a middle grade novel and one with a protagonist with mental illness?By the way, Dracula is an awesome choice for horror! I'm reading that right now (just for fun, not challenge-related) and I'm loving it. Considering the time when it was written, Mina is a great female character, too, clever and strong and a source of inspiration for the men around her. Still plenty of sexism there, but I honestly feel like she's a stronger female character than some YA heroines we get today who are all about tearing down other women and having all the guys fight over them. (Dracula also has a great story about guys who are in love with the same girl and respect her feelings/decisions on the matter and respect and become friends to each other rather than getting all territorial and hateful and gloomy).
Lucia wrote: "Questions, questions! What qualifies as a "nonfiction book about science"? Any kind of academic publication, regardless of field? Specifically, would something like Austin's "How to do things with ..."Agree on Dracula! My son read "Curious Incident" for school in 8th grade, so it seems it should work. The protagonist is not mentally ill though, he has a developmental disability. I read it years ago so maybe I forgot a mental illness component, but as far as I recall he simply has an autism spectrum disorder.
Trudie wrote: "Stephanie wrote: "Does anyone have any good recommendations for a book "that is by an author from Southeast Asia"? Or one that "identifies as transgender"? Just looking into some titles for next ye..."Thank you! I just put this on my TBR.
I am reading Slade House for horror I think. I don't plan my list in advance, but I planned to read it anyway. Not a huge horror fan, but I loved The Bone Clocks (which I would not classify as horror) and this is a linked book which the reviews say is horror.
Bonnie wrote: "Trudie wrote: "Stephanie wrote: "Does anyone have any good recommendations for a book "that is by an author from Southeast Asia"? "I realized my original pick doesn't qualify so I am now going to do Smaller and Smaller Circles. She is from the Philippines.
Allie wrote: "If you need help figuring out books from Southeast Asian authors, I found this: http://ideas.ted.com/your-guide-to-re...Ted Talk by a woman who read a book by an author from every cou..."
Thanks! What a great resource to expand my reading.
Martha wrote: "I'm having trouble with the Southeast Asian slot, too. I am thinking of The Ghost Bride (author is from Malaya). I recommend Tash Aw and Tan Twan Eng as authors I've enjoyed from Southeast Asia. I'..."I think I'm reading the Wright Brothers biography by David McCullough or Rosemary (about Rosemary Kennedy) by Kate Larson. Both are supposed to be excellent.
Lucia wrote: "Questions, questions! What qualifies as a "nonfiction book about science"? Any kind of academic publication, regardless of field? Specifically, would something like Austin's "How to do things with ..."I'm looking to this year's (and past year's) GR Choice Awards nominations in the Science & Technology category for "nonfiction book about science" inspiration. Found a couple in this year's nominations that tweaked my oddball curiosity:
Gut: The Inside Story of Our Body’s Most Underrated Organ
Forensics: What Bugs, Burns, Prints, DNA and More Tell Us About Crime
Or maybe I could go with Headstrong: 52 Women Who Changed Science-and the World and check off both the nonfiction science category and biography category in one go. Have to think about that though. I'm trying to read a different book for each category even if a couple of the ones I've picked out could complete two or three categories by themselves. Maybe I'll rethink this if I'm pinched for time as the year progresses.
Trudie wrote: "Stephanie wrote: "Does anyone have any good recommendations for a book "that is by an author from Southeast Asia"? Or one that "identifies as transgender"? Just looking into some titles for next ye..."I am going to read First They Killed My Father: A Daughter of Cambodia Remembers for Southeast Asia and Stone Butch Blues for trans-gendered. Hope that helps! :-)
Bonnie wrote: "Rainey wrote: "Satrina wrote:"Does anyone have any good recommendations for a book "that is by an author from Southeast Asia"?..."I am reading The Glass Palace"
Isn't that by an Ind..."
In the Shadow of the Banyan
First They Killed My Father: A Daughter of Cambodia Remembers
Does the Southeast Asia category need to be a single author? There's a couple of steampunk anthologies: Sea is Ours and Steampowered Globe with SEA authors.
Stephanie wrote: "Does anyone have any good recommendations for a book "that is by an author from Southeast Asia"? Or one that "identifies as transgender"? Just looking into some titles for next year.Thanks!"
I'm planning to read "The Sympathizer" by Viet Thanh Nguyen. I've heard it is great!
Martha wrote: "My problem category is Biography. All the lists I'm looking at include memoir or autobiography as categories under biography. Some titles mentioned on this Listopia list also mention biography of cities or places. Do these qualify or does the biography have to be about a person?..."This list has a some suggestions for Biography
Mod
We'll be including links to resources and ideas to help in the initial board posts, as well as throughout the new year.
@Bonnie: right, that was that... Oh well, not like there aren't enough options ;)@Elle: so it has to be real science-y science? Dammit, I'd been hoping to get away with Linguistics. Thanks anyway :) I'm trying to read different books for each category, too, but between my lectures and the commute and the social responsibilities that I absolutely can't avoid (aka letting my friends know that I'm still alive every now and then), I barely have time to keep up with the required reading for my classes, so I'll just have to see what I can manage while still getting at least two hours of sleep per night...
Shannon wrote: "Mark wrote: "I can't see any opportunity where I'm going to be able to read a book out loud to someone else. So, I won't be completing the challenge this year; but I'll do the rest of it anyway." ..."
Shannon, I loved your reply. Since I was a little girl I wanted to read for the elderly, but it is not so easy. I wish it was. Do you have any more tips? My city isn't famous for avid readers. As a matter o fact, it's very expensive being a Brazilian reader. :/
Mark, I know how you feel. Where I live there aren't many libraries, but there is a school for the blind and sometimes people go there to read. I'm Brazilian and there are few good audiobooks in portuguese. Maybe I'll try this. If that fail, I'm probably going to force someone to hear me. I hope that counts ;)
I was actually worried about the audiobook. I used to be on audible, but it got so expensive! Thankfully I already have Amy Poehler's "Yes Please", a free gift from audible when I sadly had to cancel my subscription. I'm still worried about some other categories, but I hope I can make it.
Rainey wrote: "Bianca wrote: " a food memoir?! never heard of one! I'm going to have to see what other people make of that one ."I have a couple books selected for food Memoir: [book:Day of Honey: A Memoir of F..."
Thanks! Now I know what to look for
I'm actually confused about this one:Read the first book in a series by a person of color
Any ideas? I can't seem to put my hands on a series..
Nelly wrote: "I'm actually confused about this one:Read the first book in a series by a person of color
Any ideas? I can't seem to put my hands on a series.."
I plan on reading Sea of Poppies which is book 1 of the Ibis Trilogy
Rainey wrote: "Nelly wrote: "I'm actually confused about this one:Read the first book in a series by a person of color
Any ideas? I can't seem to put my hands on a series.."
I plan on reading [book:Sea of Po..."
Thanks a lot Rainey ! that one was really driving me crazy :)
Rainey wrote: "Nelly wrote: "I'm actually confused about this one:Read the first book in a series by a person of color
Any ideas? I can't seem to put my hands on a series.."
I plan on reading [book:Sea of Po..."
This was the book I was thinking of reading too!
Parable of the talents x Octavia Butler is great!
Sea of Poppies is great - I was thinking this might be a good excuse for a reread and a chance to read the rest of the series. But Sorcerer to the Crown sounds great too: Rebecca Schinsky has had good things to say about it on a number of occasions.
I do not see a new thread for
Bonnie wrote: "Rainey wrote: "Satrina wrote:"Does anyone have any good recommendations for a book "that is by an author from Southeast Asia"?..."I am reading The Glass Palace"
Isn't that by an Ind..."
I am going to read Smaller and Smaller Circles. The author is from the Philippines.
So excited for this! I had a rubbish year for reading last year but want to get back on it in style this year. I'm actually making it even harder for myself by trying to read mostly women and books by diverse authors with a smattering of books I've been meaning to get through anyway.
I'm going to read the passion of Alice by Stephanie grant for a character with mental illness as the main character has anorexic and as a plus it was long listed for the orange prize back when it started which is a personal goal of mine to read through the archives.
Would it be ok to read some of the books in my own mother tongue? there are issues that i would like to know more about in my own culture and country,for example the task of "read a book about feminism"..I would like to know more about this in reference to my country..I am from the Middle East, and such books about my country are not published in English..would that count?
Nelly wrote: "Would it be ok to read some of the books in my own mother tongue?
there are issues that i would like to know more about in my own culture and country,for example the task of "read a book about fem..."
I think so, absolutely. There's nothing about this challenge that suggests it's to be done monolingually, and if you're reading in two tongues I'd say you're already reading harder than we mere mortals! So kudos to you! :)
there are issues that i would like to know more about in my own culture and country,for example the task of "read a book about fem..."
I think so, absolutely. There's nothing about this challenge that suggests it's to be done monolingually, and if you're reading in two tongues I'd say you're already reading harder than we mere mortals! So kudos to you! :)
Dom wrote: "Nelly wrote: "Would it be ok to read some of the books in my own mother tongue? there are issues that i would like to know more about in my own culture and country,for example the task of "read a ..."
thanks a million Dom :) that's really encouraging ! will go ahead with my Arabic book then :)
I was hoping to complete the 2016 challenge using only books from the "1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die" list. However, after reviewing the challenge tasks, there are a few that clearly I will not find books on the 1001 list to read (food memoir, non-fiction science & comic). So, my Plan B is to use a book from the 1001 list for every task where I can find a match.
Carrie wrote: "Stephanie wrote: "Does anyone have any good recommendations for a book "that is by an author from Southeast Asia"? Or one that "identifies as transgender"? Just looking into some titles for next ye..."Leslie Feinberg's Stone Butch Blues is a classic and just incredible. It's a great one for a book by a person who identifies as transgender.
Mary Sue wrote: "I was hoping to complete the 2016 challenge using only books from the "1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die" list. However, after reviewing the challenge tasks, there are a few that clearly I wi..."
I like this idea, I'm going to try it.
I like this idea, I'm going to try it.
Is there a list posted with all of the categories for 2016? I see separate blogs for each category, but not one list I can print out. If it's out there can someone tell me where it's at?
Book Riot's Read Harder Challenge
Books mentioned in this topic
Stone Butch Blues (other topics)Smaller and Smaller Circles (other topics)
The Glass Palace (other topics)
Sea of Poppies (other topics)
First They Killed My Father: A Daughter of Cambodia Remembers (other topics)
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