A book set in your home state (see also The Home State folder)

[Juanita]

A book set in your home state ... how very American. We have many members outside of the U.S. What is your country's equivalent of our "state"? Canada has provinces, right?

Sincerely,
Your Geographically Challenged Mod (AKA Juanita)

[Sara]

At least this is slightly easier than hometown like last year (ugh). I'm from Virginia which means lots of revolutionary and civil war stuff. But there is a series set in old town Alexandria that's pretty entertaining. I read the first book this year so I will probably read book two next year. Sweet Expectations.

[Tara]

Typical American nearsighted challenge eh? Lol yes Canada has Provinces :) this is another one I'm not doing, for some reason my book club happened to pick a bunch of localish books this year so I read a lot set here.

[Megan]

Please Ignore Vera Dietz is my pick for Pennsylvania. I already read The Perks of Being a Wallflower and Me and Earl and the Dying Girl which are also PA.

[Katie]

I'm from Delaware! They're killing me here.

[Sara]

Katie wrote: "I'm from Delaware! They're killing me here."

Maybe something on this list will catch your eye?

https://www.goodreads.com/places/665-...

[Nenda]

I'm living outside USA now but I've lived in Maryland and commute to DC for a year. So I think (although it's bit stretch) I'll choose book that located in either DC or Maryland for the challenge. Maybe something by Dan Brown or Heartburn.

[Katie]

Sara wrote: "Katie wrote: "I'm from Delaware! They're killing me here."

Maybe something on this list will catch your eye?

https://www.goodreads.com/places/665-..."

Thanks Sara!

[[deleted user]]

Going out on a limb and guessing The Wizard of Oz doesn't count...

[Melody]

One of my best friends grew up in Kansas. Considering how many Wizard of Oz tourist attractions there are in the state, I feel like Wizard of Oz is totally culturally important enough to count for Kansas!

[Emma's Things to Read]

in the UK we have counties/London Boroughs. I might try and read something by a local writer for this one.

[Kirsten]

I agree with Emma just interpret it for your country: Mexico has states, Canada has provinces, France - is it a canton?

[Melody]

France has regions (i.e. Lorraine, Bretagne), actually! Italy (Sicilia, Veneto) and the Philippines (Calabarazon, Mimaropa) have regions too! Germany (Bavaria, Saxony) and India (Rajasthan, Goa) also have states, and those were the four other countries that I noticed we had group members in (although I'm sure there are more).

Edit: Did some digging, and Wikipedia classifies all of these (regions, provinces, counties, states, prefectures, etc) as "First Administrative Divisions", so the prompt could internationally be thought of as "A Book Set in your First Administrative Division", though that's less catchy than the current title.

[Tara]

I'm in a constant state of wonder, so maybe I should read state of wonder by Ann patchett ;)

[Christophe]

French régions were just reorganized into larger units. That should make it easier for my fellow French! Me - I live in the Île-de-France région which includes Paris; almost too easy.

[Kirsten]

You could pick one set on the Ile de France for the island prompt too!

[Christophe]

Eh, never quite got why it was called that! Nah, I'll probably read something from the Caribbean for that one.

[Monica]

This will help you find novels set in a particular U.S. state.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Categor...

[Tara]

Beloved by Toni Morrison is set in Delaware isn't it?

[Tara]

Beloved by Toni Morrison is set in Delaware isn't it?

[Ashly]

I'm guessing this is set in New York if not I will read

[Melody]

Tara wrote: "Beloved by Toni Morrison is set in Delaware isn't it?"

Beloved is mostly set in Ohio and Kentucky, from what I remember. But there's a chapter about one of the character's backstory where he escapes to Delaware before moving to Ohio with the protagonists.

Some other books that are set in Delaware, if you're still looking are: Fight Club by Chuck Palahniuk, which is set in Wilmington, and Steven Universe Vol. 1, which is set on the Delmarva Peninsula.

[Kirsten]

Finding books set in New York or California isn't incredibly difficult. I live in Washington and will either read a J.P. Beaumont mystery by J.A. Jance (set in Seattle) or one of the Mercy Thompson books by Patricia Briggs

[Sara]

Kirsten *Dogs Welcome - People Tolerated" wrote: "Finding books set in New York or California isn't incredibly difficult. I live in Washington and will either read a J.P. Beaumont mystery by J.A. Jance (set in Seattle) or one of t..."

Most, if not all, of Kristin Hannah's books are set in Washington. Not sure if those appeal to you. I have found some of them to be very, very good and others to be off the mark. Firefly Lane and Winter Garden were probably the best.

[Britt]

Any good suggestions for Illinois

[Melody]

Britt wrote: "Any good suggestions for Illinois"

Native Son by Richard Wright is AMAZING and still relevant some 70 years later! The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros is a beautiful coming of age story about a young Latina girl growing up in Chicago. Multiple books by Ray Bradbury are set in Illinois from spooky fiction like Something Wicked This Way Comes and The Halloween Tree to fictionalized autobiographies like Dandelion Wine.

If you like poetry, parts of David Rakoff's Love, Dishonor, Marry, Die, Cherish, Perish take place in Illinois. It's heartbreakingly beautiful.

Also, if you like plays A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry is one of my favorites! Absolutley fantastic! Most of her work takes place in Chicago, and it's all great.

I haven't read it, but David Foster Wallace's The Pale King is supposed to be really good. Also, a lot of my friends are obsessed with the Dreseden Files series by Jim Butcher. Loving Frank is a historical fiction romance about Frank Lloyd Wright that I haven't read, but have heard great things about.

[Britt]

Awesome, thanks for the suggestions. Something Wicked this Way Comes is on my TBR list. And I totally agree with Native Son being so amazing and relevant

[Athol-mary]

Australia has states as well, so I'll be doing one from Victoria.

[Alison DeGrave]

I'm from Wisconsin, so my plan is to read Little House on the Prairie or Little House in the Big Woods

[Nadine in NY]

I grew up in NJ, and I'm actually having an amazingly hard time finding a book I want to read! There's a Judy Blume book for grownups, but it gets middling reviews and just doesn't sound good. There's a few books by Phillip Roth, Harlan Coben, and Richard Price, all of which sound amazingly testosterone-soaked. There's a few mysteries by Mary Higgins Clark. And there's this small indie book by C.E. Grundler that I've got on my Kindle, No Wake Zone, and this actually looks like my best bet. (I think Harlan Coben is my back-up choice.)

Anyone else from New Jersey?

[Tara]

I read indignation by Philip Roth and it was definitely readable although it's more set in Ohio even though the main character is from Newark

[Monica]

Nadine, I'm from NJ, and I plan to read Wifey, as I love Judy Blume. I also love Mary Higgins Clark, so if you can find a book she wrote that's set in NJ, grab it! A couple of years ago, I read American Pastoral by Philip Roth and liked it very much.

[Nadine in NY]

I have never read Wifey! Is that set in NJ too? I know a bunch of Blume's books are. Okay, that's another option :-)

[Melody]

The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao and Diaz's other work is set in New Jersey, mostly around Patterson and New Brunswick. Americanah by Chimimanda Ngozi Adichie is set partially at Princeton and This Side of Paradise by F. Scott Fitzgerald is set almost entirely at Princeton.

Also in some continuities Gotham is in New Jersey, so you could read any Batman book and count it. Also, Bludhaven, where Nightwing (formerly Dick Grayson/Robin) lives and fights crime is supposed to be near Newark. I personally recommend Batman: The Killing Joke, Batman #44: ASimple Case, and Batman: Year One.

[Juanita]

While searching last night, I discovered a Goodreads' shelf for New Jersey. If you are looking for suggestions for your home state, spend some time on GR.

[Nadine in NY]

Ah! Bingo! AMERICANAH!!! Thank you, I did not know that was set partly in NJ. I have been planning to read that book, I read Half of a Yellow Sun this year and thought it was fantastic.

I've never heard of Gotham being in NJ, Gotham has always been NYC in my mind.

[Melody]

Here's an article that details a couple of instances of it being in New Jersey as well as one in New York: http://io9.gizmodo.com/5934987/is-got...
Of course there isn't any consistency, in one comic Robin will say Gotham is just south of Jersey City and in an episode of the animated series running at the same time they'll visit the skating rink at Gotham's Rockefeller Center for Christmas. And who knows where the canon location of Gotham is in the New 52 continuity.

Anyways, glad I could help! Enjoy the Adichie!

[Arka]

Wait I'm from India.... So Shall I choose A Novel Set in India or Set in the Specific State of India I belong to

[Nadine in NY]

Arka said: " Wait I'm from India.... So Shall I choose A Novel Set in India or Set in the Specific State of India I belong to "

I interpret it to mean you should read a book set in the specific state of India that you live in or grew up in ... if you can find one. Last year the category was "book set in your home town" and that was, literally, impossible for me to find (nor could I find a book set in my home county - the area that includes my home town) so I settled for a book set in my home state.

So I think you interpret each category in the way that works best for you.

[Brittani]

The lux series is set in west va and the last couple of books in the series I think are in New Mexico. I am from Texas but I figured those states might be a little hard to find in books for any of you from there :)

[Rachel]

I'm Canadian, and I really don't like hometown/home state items because I often don't like Canadian books, at least those where they make it really obvious that it's Canadian (ie. commenting about the cold weather). In general, I've found a lot of the Canadian books I've read just didn't appeal to me.

For this category so far, I've picked The Incredible Journey, but I wouldn't mind having some other options. I live in Ontario, so if anyone has any ideas please let me know.

Technically I could also use Quebec since I was born there, but moved when I was 4. Last year for the "hometown" category, I picked my hometown in Quebec just because it was easier to find books for. Maybe a bit of a cheat, but it was the best I could do.

[Katie]

Rachel, I'm not sure if you're into YA paranormal, but Anna Dressed in Blood and its sequel are set in Ontario. And they're not obnoxiously commenting on things like Canadian weather.

[Tara]

I've read a couple books set in Ontario that were pretty good. The Best Laid Plans is set in Ottawa but it's political so it's definitely "obvious" it's Canadian. The Killing Circle by Andrew Pyper, The Incredible Journey, The Last of the Crazy People are all set at least partly in Ontario. Bang Crunch Stories are all short stories set in Montreal, Rotten Perfect Mouth is a book of poetry about Toronto, also A Prayer for Owen Meany and Margaret Atwood's newest novel, Alias Grace.

[Katie]

Also Station Eleven is set in both Ontario and Michigan. It's an awesome apocalyptic book. Really really good.

[Nadine in NY]

I also recommend Station Eleven for Ontario!

[Tara]

Turns out "historical fiction" isn't a prompt so I'm putting barometer rising here since it was set in my province

[Melody]

Rachel wrote: "I'm Canadian, and I really don't like hometown/home state items because I often don't like Canadian books, at least those where they make it really obvious that it's Canadian (ie. commenting about ..."

Cat's Eye by Margaret Atwood is set in Toronto, Ontario, Canada!

[Juanita]

I am thinking of setting up a folder for this prompt (ala The Job Folder) in which we could have a thread for each state our members live in (be it a U.S. State, Canadian province, etc.)

Thoughts?

[Katherine]

Ooh, that would be nice, actually.

[Tara]

I wonder how useful it would be, you did it for jobs which was a great idea but ppl are mostly going to the original thread. Maybe do the folder and people can post a discussion with their state/province/region or whatever and others can check and make suggestions? Like you did with the jobs.