Traci's 2021 Summer Reading Challenge

[Traci]

JUNE: 4/4, 4/4, 4/4

1. Start of Summer
a. Read a happy book.
Real Men Knit by Kwana Jackson
b. Read a book published in June, July, or August.
One Last Stop by Casey McQuiston
c. Read a book from one of the following lists:
- Beach Read Royalty Recommends Summer Books
- Readers' Hottest Books of Summer
- Armchair Traveling: Books Set in Every U.S. State
Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens (list 3)

2. June Birthday: Octavia E. Butler
a. Read book whose main character is a Black woman.
Queenie by Candice Carty-Williams
b. Read a science fiction book.
The Dark Forest by Liu Cixin
c. Read a winner of the Hugo Award.
The Yiddish Policemen's Union by Michael Chabon

3. Pride Month
a. Read a book with at least 5 different colors of the rainbow on the cover.
by Susan Meissner
b. Read a book featuring an LGBTQIA+ protagonist (not side character).
The Prophets by Robert Jones Jr.
c. Read a book written by an author who was nominated for the Lambda Award.
Redefining Realness: My Path to Womanhood, Identity, Love & So Much More by Janet Mock

4. Set Sail
a. Read a book that starts with a letter in SAILING.
The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V.E. Schwab
b. Read a book with a boat on the cover.
You Have a Match by Emma Lord
c. Read a book that takes place completely on an island.
The Summer Book by Tove Jansson

[Traci]

JULY 4/4, 4/4, 4/4

1. Halfway there!
a. Read a book with a number in the title.
The 57 Bus: A True Story of Two Teenagers and the Crime That Changed Their Lives by Dashka Slater
b. Read a book that is divided into multiple parts (rather than, or in addition to, chapters).
A Ladder to the Sky
c. Read a book featuring twin characters.
I Know This Much Is True by Wally Lamb

2. July Birthday: Madeline Miller
a. Read a book whose author's initials are found in MADELINE MILLER.
Lyrics Alley by Leila Aboulela
b. Read a retelling of a myth, fable, or fairytale.
Of Curses and Kisses by Sandhya Menon
c. Read a book nominated for the Women's Prize for Fiction.
Girl, Woman, Other by Bernardine Evaristo

3. It's Winter Down South
a. Read a romance book.
The Switch by Beth O'Leary
b. Read a book with snow on the cover.
Migrations by Charlotte McConaghy
c. Read a book whose title starts with a letter in FROSTY THE SNOWMAN.
Transgender History: The Roots of Today's Revolution by Susan Stryker

4. Take a Dip
a. Read a book whose title starts with a letter in OCEAN.
The City We Became by N.K. Jemisin
b. Read a book whose author initials can be found in TAKE A DIP.
The Dutch House by Ann Patchett
c. Read a book featured on one of these lists:
- 34 of the Best Beach Reads to Help You Escape
- 2021 Summer Reading List: 48 of the Best Books for Adults, Teens, and Kids
- The Best Beach Reads of Summer 2021
The Guncle by Steven Rowley (lists 1 and 3)

[Traci]

AUGUST: 4/4, 4/4, 4/4

1. Back to School
a. Read a book by an author that is new-to-you.
The Sun Does Shine: How I Found Life and Freedom on Death Row by Anthony Ray Hinton
b. Read a YA book.
Furia by Yamile Saied Méndez
c. Read a book often tested on the AP Literature exam, as found on this list.
Cat's Eye by Margaret Atwood

2. August Birthday: John Green
a. Read a contemporary book.
The Editor by Steven Rowley
b. Read a stand-alone novel (not part of a series).
Confessions by Kanae Minato
c. Read a book nominated for the Printz Award.
An Abundance of Katherines by John Green

3. Summer Reading
a. Read the newest book by a favorite author.
The Fountains of Silence by Ruta Sepetys
b. Read the next book in a series you've already started.
UnWholly by Neal Shusterman
c. Read a book published in 2021 that you've been looking forward to.
The Road Trip by Beth O'Leary

4. Jump on a Plane
a. Read an adventure book.
The Burning God by R.F. Kuang
b. Read a book set in a country you've never visited.
A Golden Age by Tahmima Anam
c. Read a book featuring a character that travels to multiple countries.
People We Meet on Vacation by Emily Henry

[Traci]

Brainstorming

June 1c. Read a book from one of the following lists:
- Beach Read Royalty Recommends Summer Books
- Readers' Hottest Books of Summer
- Armchair Traveling: Books Set in Every U.S. State
One Last Stop (1, 2)
The Other Black Girl (1, 2)
Act Your Age, Eve Brown (1)
Rise to the Sun (1)
The Road Trip (2)
The Great Believers (3)
The Care and Feeding of Ravenously Hungry Girls (3)
The Lager Queen of Minnesota (3)
Where the Crawdads Sing (3)
(there are more of interest on all 3 lists, restricted to books I'm already thinking about for this year)

June 2c. Won Hugo award
The Yiddish Policemen's Union
The Calculating Stars

June 3a. Read a book with at least 5 different colors of the rainbow on the cover
The Dragonfly Sea
A Fall of Marigolds? (orange/yellow?)
The Girl with the Louding Voice

June 4c. Read a book that takes place completely on an island.
The Summer Book

July 2a. Read a book whose author's initials are found in MADELINE MILLER.
Cat's Eye by Margaret Atwood
The Great Believers by Rebecca Makkai
You Have a Match by Emma Lord
*Lyrics Alley by Leila Aboulela

July 2c. Nominated for Women's Prize for Fiction
How the One-Armed Sister Sweeps Her House (2021 longlist)
Detransition, Baby (2021 longlist)
Queenie (2020 longlist)
*Girl, Woman, Other (2020 longlist)

July 3b. Read a book with snow on the cover.
Migrations by Charlotte McConaghy
How the Penguins Saved Veronica by Hazel Prior

July 4c. Read a book featured on one of these lists:
- 34 of the Best Beach Reads to Help You Escape
- 2021 Summer Reading List: 48 of the Best Books for Adults, Teens, and Kids
- The Best Beach Reads of Summer 2021
Act Your Age, Eve Brown (1)
The Other Black Girl (1)
The Guncle (1, 3)
*People We Meet on Vacation (1, 3)
(Again, there are more, but restricted this list)

August 1c. AP lit exam
Cat's Eye

August 2c. Nominated for Printz award
*An Abundance of Katherines
Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe

August 3a. Read the newest book by a favorite author
The Dutch House by Ann Patchett
Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents by Isabel Wilkerson
The Night Watchman by Louise Erdrich
The Road Trip by Beth O'Leary
The Fountains of Silence by Ruta Sepetys
-There are some others I don't recall right now (GR didn't save my last attempt at this list!)

August 4a. Adventure Book
The Burning God by R.F. Kuang?

[Traci]

June Books

Read:
Redefining Realness: My Path to Womanhood, Identity, Love & So Much More by Janet Mock
June - 2a, 3b, 3c
July - 3c
August - 1a

A Golden Age by Tahmima Anam
June - 4a
July - 4b
August - 1a, 4b

The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V.E. Schwab
June - 4a
August - 1a, 2b, 4c (? is in different countries but "travels"?)

A Ladder to the Sky by John Boyne
June - 1b (first published), 4a
July - 1b
August - 2a, 2b, 4c

You Have a Match by Emma Lord
June - 4b (*, boat)
July - 2a, 3c
August - 1b, 2b, 3a, 3c

Transgender History: The Roots of Today's Revolution by Susan Stryker
June - 3b (maybe? no real protagonist, but about transgender in general)
July - 3c
August - 1a

The Editor by Steven Rowley
June - 3b
July - 3c, 4a
August - 2a, 2b

The City We Became by N.K. Jemisin
July - 4a

One Last Stop by Casey McQuiston
June - 1b, 1c, 3b
July - 1a, 3a, 3c, 4a
August - 2b, 3c

The 57 Bus: A True Story of Two Teenagers and the Crime That Changed Their Lives by Dashka Slater
July - 1a
August - 1a, 1b, 2a

[Traci]

July Books

Read:
Girl, Woman, Other by Bernardine Evaristo
July - 2c

An Abundance of Katherines by John Green
August - 2c

A Fall of Marigolds by Susan Meissner
June - 3a
August - 2b

People We Meet on Vacation by Emily Henry
July - 4c
August - 3c, 4c

Cat's Eye by Margaret Atwood
August - 1c

The Burning God by R.F. Kuang
August - 4a

The Prophets by Robert Jones Jr.
June - 3b
August - 1a, 2b, 3c

Migrations by Charlotte McConaghy
July - 3b

UnWholly by Neal Shusterman
August - 1b, 3b

The Sun Does Shine: How I Found Life and Freedom on Death Row by Anthony Ray Hinton
August - 1a

Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens
June - 1b, 1c

[Traci]

August Books

Read
The Road Trip by Beth O'Leary
June - 1a?, 1c
July - 3a
August - 2b, 3a, 3c

Of Curses and Kisses by Sandhya Menon
July - 2b

The Dutch House by Ann Patchett
July - 4b
August - 3a

The Guncle by Steven Rowley
June - 3a, 3b, 4a
July - 4c
August - 2b, 3c

The Dark Forest by Liu Cixin
June - 2b
August - 3b

The Summer Book by Tove Jansson
June - 4c

Furia by Yamile Saied Méndez
August - 1b

Queenie by Candice Carty-Williams
June - 2a
August - 2b

Lyrics Alley by Leila Aboulela
July - 2a

The Switch by Beth O'Leary
July - 3a
August - 2b

The Fountains of Silence by Ruta Sepetys
August - 2b, 3a

Real Men Knit by Kwana Jackson
June - 1a

The Yiddish Policemen's Union by Michael Chabon
June - 2c

Confessions by Kanae Minato
August - 2b

I Know This Much Is True by Wally Lamb
July - 1c