Book Riot's Read Harder Challenge discussion
2017 Read Harder Challenge
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Task #3: Read a book about books
I've been considering Reading Lolita in Tehran, as it caught my attention awhile back when I worked at a bookstore. I am also considering Used and Rare: Travels in the Book World and Fahrenheit 451.
This is a slightly different take on the task, but as I was registering books on BookCrossing this morning, I found a copy of Buzz Books 2016: Young Adult Fall/Winter that I won as a door prize at a bookstore party. I simply don't read excerpts or previews, so I would be happy to see this book find a new home where it is appreciated. It does have a BookCrossing bookplate and ID# now, but I'm a low-pressure BookCrosser. Anybody want me to mail this to them?
The Thursday Next books by Jasper Fforde would be great for this.
Thought this would be hard to find then looked at these posts and my TBR has on it Ink and Bone and it's sequel, The Book of Lost Books: An Incomplete History of All the Great Books You'll Never Read, Title Deeds: How 50 Books Got Their Name and The Eyre AffairAmongst others mentioned Seems I'm actually spoilt for choice!
Although I may use this as a good reason to splash out and buy The Book: A Cover-to-Cover Exploration of the Most Powerful Object of Our Time
Just an FYI for those considering The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society. It's on sale at Amazon kindle US $1.99 I picked it up plus audio for $6.99
Sophie wrote: "I was thinking of Reading Lolita in Tehran for this one."That would be perfect - and it's a great read!
Margaret wrote: "I'm thinking The Dancing Mind by Toni Morrison. It's short, but I'd like to read more people of color, and especially women of color. Not many to choose from in this ca..."Margaret, I'm trying to choose writers of color for every item on this challenge list, and this is the category that has been giving me trouble, too! (I've already read Reading Lolita in Tehran, which would have been a good choice otherwise.)
For anyone who likes Russian literature, The Possessed: Adventures with Russian Books and the People who Read Them by Elif Bautman is excellent!
I think I might read Reading Lolita in Tehran by Azar Nafisi. It's been on my bookshelf for WAY too long!
I am hoping to find a copy of Cody's Books: The Life And Times Of A Berkeley Bookstore, 1956 To 1977. I've been meaning to read it for years.
Sam wrote: "Britt wrote: "The Book of Lost Things by John Connolly :)"That is one of my all time favorites.
I'm thinking about The Thirteenth Tale, [book:When I Was a Child I Read Books|120950..."
When I was a Child I Read Books is absolutely lovely! I felt connected to reading/writing as a part of my identity in a way I hadn't for a very long time while reading it.
It's a little off center, but I'm counting it anyway. I'm reading Superman: The High-Flying History of America's Most Enduring Hero for the book about books challenge. My justification to myself is that comic books are still books, and that's where Superman got his start.
Martin wrote: "It's a little off center, but I'm counting it anyway. I'm reading Superman: The High-Flying History of America's Most Enduring Hero for the book about books challenge. My justification to myself is..."Oooh, that's an interesting pick! I've been wanting to read about the history of comic books for a while, so maybe I can fit it in here? I'm thinking specifically of The Secret History of Wonder Woman, or maybe Disguised as Clark Kent: Jews, Comics, and the Creation of the Superhero.
I wasn't even thinking about this challenge, but now I'm 70% of the way through The Professor and the Madman: A Tale of Murder, Insanity and the Making of the Oxford English Dictionary, so I'm going to use that!
Karen wrote: "Although I'm going to read: The Shelf: From LEQ to LES: Adventures in Extreme Reading since it has been sitting on my to-read shelf for too long!"I came here to recommend this book. It's really interesting.
I'm going with You Can't Read This, about censorship or Reading Up A Storm, a cozy mystery set in a library.
I just read The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society for my RL book club because potato peel pie, which I will make for our meeting is in The Book Club Cook Book. As well as ticking this box, The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society is also a debut novel.
Marloes wrote: "What about Borges' Library of Babel?"It's fantastic, but does it count as a book?
Laura wrote: [about Jill Lepore's Secret History of Wonder Woman]The Secret History of WW is a good read (and mind blowing because WW's creators had some weird ... things ... going on). Jill Lepore's writing is fun -- and her reading of the audio book is also fun.
I will use either The Cookbook Library: Four Centuries of the Cooks, Writers, and Recipes That Made the Modern Cookbook by Anne Willan or The Novel Cure: From Abandonment to Zestlessness: 751 Books to Cure What Ails You by Berthoud and Elderkin.
Currently reading Every Exquisite Thing by Matthew Quick to satisfy this challenge!
Started the year with the 3rd task. Reading The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield. Halfway through, going good so far.
I will read Jean-Paul Sartre's "The Words," for this one. As is the case with so many of these, this is an opportunity for me to read something that I've been wanting to read for a long while.
A friend gave me the book, Among the Janeites: A Journey through the world of Jane Austen Fandom and I have discovered it fits this category really well. For anyone that enjoys Austen, this book about her fans and her books is an enjoyable read and may give new perspectives to her work and the impact she has had in both high-brow literature and in pop culture.
Would The Magicians by Lev Grossman count, seeing as the book is based on the concept of a fictional book series being real? I know it's technically about a school for magic but the protagonist has an obsession with books and it continuously talks about them.
Loved The World's Strongest Librarian by Josh Hanagarne for this one. More about a librarian than books, but I think it fits.
Ari wrote: "Would The Magicians by Lev Grossman count, seeing as the book is based on the concept of a fictional book series being real? I know it's technically about a school for magic but the protagonist has..."Hi Ari! At first instinct I'm inclined to say The Magicians doesn't really count. I read it several years ago and don't remember much reference to a particular book or books (though yes, there is a lot of talk of the fictional land of Fillory, similar to Narnia or Middle Earth). However, this is your reading challenge - do as you will! :)
Marloes wrote: "What about Borges' Library of Babel?"If you want to read a Borges book, Professor Borges: A Course on English Literature - a collection of lectures - would fit.
I just read a review of a new YA book The Book Jumper "A teen girl discovers she is a book jumper – she can leap directly into books, meet the characters, and experience the world of the book – in this fantasy import from Germany." I've now added it for this challenge!
I'm going to read Fat Skeletons by Ursule Molinaro for this one. I haven't read it since college, so it will be interesting to see if I like it now as much as I did then.
I, too, read The Readers of Broken Wheel Recommend. It drags a bit at places but overall a really cute book. I recommend.
Amanda wrote: "The Readers of Broken Wheel Recommendis my in person book groups Jan pick. I'm thinking that will work for this one."I just started this book today, now a quarter of the way through and really enjoying it
Julia wrote: "I just read The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society for my RL book club because potato peel pie, which I will make for our meeting is in [book:The Book Club Cook Book|13447..."I read this in my book club last year, it was one of only a few books that everyone enjoyed
Since I've been trying to read the Thursday Next books, I picked Well of Lost Plots, appropriate choice as it turns out since it's set in the BookWorld. I will never look at my unpublished manuscripts and side characters the same way again.
Would the book thief work even though it has another story line?
Olana wrote: "Would the book thief work even though it has another story line?"I would say absolutely yes.
Would books about poetry (and the writing of) work for this challenge?alternatively, what about House of Leaves? or would that be disqualified because it's more a book about...another book.
I read The Bad-Ass Librarians of Timbuktu: And Their Race to Save the World’s Most Precious Manuscripts for this challenge and it was awesome! Books, adventure, and bad-assery. Non-fiction and full of information but in a super readable way. One of those 'I want to know what happens but don't want it to end' reads!
I'll be using either "Why Not Catch-21?: The Stories Behind the Titles" by Gary Dexter or "Dancing with Mrs. Dalloway: Stories of the Inspiration behind Great Works of Literature" by Celia Blue Johnson
Book Riot's Read Harder Challenge
Books mentioned in this topic
The Book Thief (other topics)The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society (other topics)
The Book Thief (other topics)
Weird Things Customers Say in Bookshops (other topics)
Ex Libris: Confessions of a Common Reader (other topics)
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Authors mentioned in this topic
Markus Zusak (other topics)Rachel Caine (other topics)
Ali Smith (other topics)
Jenny Colgan (other topics)
Helene Hanff (other topics)
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(I meant to read the second one for my "about food" in last year's challenge, but didn't get to it.)