Around the Year in 52 Books discussion
2022 Plans
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Misty's 2022 reading challenge
ATY-2022 Book Collage:
2022 Non Challenge Book Collage:
Women Authors:
Women in Translation:
Book Count:January: 5
✭✭✭✭The Murders of Richard III Elizabeth Peters (14)(UK)
✭✭✭✭Lion in the Valley Elizabeth Peters (15) (Egypt)
✭✭✭✭The Wind Through the Keyhole Stephen King (53)
✭✭✭✭✭Rosemary: The Hidden Kennedy Daughter Kate Clifford Larson (1) (Massachusetts)
✭✭✭Mouse TV Matt Novak (1)
February: 10
✭✭Shatter Me Tahereh Mafi (1)
✭✭✭Three Men in a Boat Jerome K. Jerome (1) (UK)
To Say Nothing of the Dog: Or How We Found the Bishop's ✭✭✭✭✭Bird Stump at Last Connie Willis (2) (UK)
✭✭✭The Inimitable Jeeves P. G. Wodehouse (5) (UK)
✭✭✭✭✭All the Things We Never Knew: Chasing the Chaos of Mental Illness Sheila Hamilton (1) (Oregon)
✭✭✭✭✭House of Sky and Breath Sarah J. Maas (15)
✭✭✭✭✭Birds of a Feather Jacqueline Winspear (2) (UK)
✭✭✭Daughter of Fortune by Isabel Allende (1) (Chile)
✭✭✭Minimalists by K. Robert Schwartz (1)
✭✭✭The Land of Painted Caves by Jean M. Auel (6)
March: 9
✭✭✭✭Dragon Assassin: Volume 1 by Arthur Slade (1)
✭✭✭The Love Talker by Elizabeth Peters (16) (Maryland)
✭✭✭✭Passing by Nella Larsen (1) (New York)
✭✭✭✭High Stakes by Dick Francis (12) (UK)
✭✭✭✭I Came to Say Goodbye by Caroline Overington (1) (Australia)
✭✭✭✭Catherine de Medici: Renaissance Queen of France by Leonie Frieda (1) (France)
✭✭✭✭✭The Widow by K. L. Slater (1) (UK)
✭✭✭✭The Westing Game by Ellen Raskin (1) (Wisconsin)
✭✭✭✭The Way I See It: A Look Back at My Life on Little House by Melissa Anderson (1) (California)
April: 8
✭✭✭✭Across the Spectrum ed. Pati Nagle
✭✭✭✭✭The Travelling Cat Chronicles by Hiro Arikawa (1) (Japan)
✭✭✭Very Good, Jeeves! by P. G. Wodehouse (6) (UK)
✭✭Mary Poppins Opens the Door by P. L. Travers (3) (UK)
✭✭✭✭✭Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo (1)
✭Teach Me by Alexandria House (1) (US)
✭✭✭✭✭We Should All Be Feminists by Chimananda Ngozi Adichie (1)
✭✭✭✭✭Dear Ijeawele, or a Feminist Manifesto in Fifteen Suggestions by Chimananda Ngozi Adichie (2)
May: 1
✭✭✭✭✭Privilege, Power, and Difference by Allan G. Johnson (1)
June: 2
✭✭✭✭Oil and Marble: A Novel of Leonardo and Michelangelo by Stephanie Storey (1) (Italy)
✭✭✭✭✭Codependent No More: How to Stop Controlling Others and Start Caring for Yourself by Melody Beattie (1)
July: 12
✭✭✭A Game of Thrones by George R. R. Martin (1)
✭✭✭✭✭The Grumbly, Rumbly Thunder by Sue Baer (1)
✭✭✭✭✭Just Elliot by Sue Baer (2)
✭✭✭✭✭The Merciless Ones by Namina Forna (2)
✭✭✭✭Half of a Yellow Sun by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie (3) (Biafra)
✭✭✭✭✭Siege and Storm by Leigh Bardugo (2)
✭✭✭How the García Girls Lost Their Accents by Julia Alvarez (1) (Dominican Republic)
✭✭✭✭✭All American Boys by Jason Reynolds and Brendan Kiely (1) (US)
✭✭✭✭The Tenant of Wildfell Hall by Anne Bronte (1) (UK)
✭✭✭✭✭Such, Such Were the Joys by George Orwell (4)
✭✭✭✭✭Duma Key by Stephen King (54) (Minnesota, Florida)
✭✭✭✭✭The Guncle by Steven Rowley (1) (California)
August: 14
✭✭✭Out by Natsuo Kirino (1) (Japan)
✭✭✭✭Gods Behaving Badly by Marie Phillips (1) (UK)
✭✭✭✭✭Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel (1) (Canada)
✭✭✭✭✭The Ruin by Dervla McTiernan (1) (Ireland)
✭✭✭✭✭So You Want to Talk About Race by Ijeoma Oluo (1)
✭✭✭✭Finding the Mother Tree: Discovering the Wisdom of the Forest by Suzanne Simard (1)
✭✭✭✭The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde (1) (UK)
✭✭✭✭Ties That Bind, Ties That Break by Lensey Namioka (1) (China)
✭✭✭✭✭The Bone Farm by Dean Koontz (1)
✭✭✭✭The Copenhagen Connection by Elizabeth Peters (16) (Denmark)
✭✭✭Framed by Carolyn Keene (1) (Italy)
✭✭✭✭Grace by Natashia Deon (1) (Alabama)
✭✭✭✭✭The Daughters of Temperance Hobbs by Katherine Howe (2) (Massachusetts)
✭✭✭✭Agatha Raisin and the Quiche of Death by M. C. Beaton (1) (UK)
September: 17
✭✭✭✭The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood (2)
✭✭✭✭✭Ruin and Rising by Leigh Bardugo (3)
✭✭✭Tink's Treasure Hunt by Melissa Lagonegro (1)
✭✭✭✭✭Sisters & Husbands by Connie Briscoe (2) (Maryland)
✭✭✭✭Hitting a Straight Lick with a Crooked Stick: Stories from the Harlem Renaissance by Zora Neale Hurston (2)
✭✭✭✭Debt of Bones: A Sword of Truth Prequel Novella by Terry Goodkind (1)
✭✭✭✭✭Roseanna by Maj Sjowall and Per Wahloo (1) (Sweden)
✭✭✭✭✭Glory by NoViolet Bulawayo (1)
✭✭✭✭✭Up From Slavery: The Autobiography of Booker T. Washington by Booker T. Washington (1) (Alabama)
✭✭✭✭The Secret Adversary by Agatha Christie (2) (UK)
✭✭✭The House at Pooh Corner by A. A. Milne (1)
✭✭✭✭✭The Final Empire by Brandon Sanderson (1)
✭✭✭✭The Colorado Kid by Stephen King (55) (Maine)
✭✭✭✭✭The Island of Missing Trees By Elif Shafak (1) (Cyprus)
✭✭✭✭The White Book by Han Kang (1) (South Korea)
✭✭✭✭vIn the Time of the Butterflies by Julia Alvarez (2) (Dominican Republic)
✭✭✭✭✭Singing in the Comeback Choir by Bebe Moore Campbell (2) (Pennsylvania)
October: 21
✭✭✭✭✭Go, Went, Gone by Jenny Erpenbeck (1) (Germany)
✭✭✭Mr. Putter & Tabby Dance the Dance by Cynthia Ryland (1)
✭✭✭Kitzikuba by Joy Cowley (1)
✭✭✭✭Dune: The Lady of Caladan by Brian Herbert (1) and Kevin J. Anderson (1)
✭✭✭✭✭Abigail by Magda Szabo (1) (Hungary)
✭✭✭✭Booker T. Washington: Leader and Educator by Patricia C. McKissack (1)
✭✭✭✭Snow Day! by Patricia Lakin (1)
✭✭✭The Sympathizer by Viet Thanh Nguyen (1) (Vietnam)
✭✭✭✭Marie Curie by Isabel Sanchez Vegara (1)
✭✭✭The Sloths Get a Pet by Maribeth Boelts (1)
✭✭✭Sophie by Mem Fox (1)
✭✭✭✭The Girl with the Louding Voice by Abi Dare (1) (Nigeria)
✭✭✭✭The Shift: One Nurse, Twelve Hours, Four Patients' Lives by Theresa Brown (1)
✭✭✭Mary Poppins in the Park by P. L. Travers (3)
✭✭✭Mary Poppins in Cherry Tree Lane by P. L. Travers (4)
✭✭✭✭Pearls, Girls And Monty Bodkin by P. G. Wodehouse (7) (UK)
✭✭✭✭Four Women Camping Across the United States in 1930 by Mildred Walk Lowe (1)
✭✭✭✭Mugabe, My Dad & Me by Tonderai Monyevu (1) (Zimbabwe)
✭✭✭✭Raybearer by Jordan Ifueko (1)
✭✭✭✭Mercy Watson to the Rescue by Kate DiCamillo (1)
✭✭✭✭Odd Thomas: You Are Destined To Be Together Forever by Dean Koontz (2)
✭✭✭✭✭Under the Udala Trees by Chinelo Okparanta (1) (Nigeria)
✭✭✭✭✭Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry by Mildred D. Taylor (1) (Mississippi)
November: 1
✭✭✭Niya: Rainbow Dreams by Fabiola Jones (1) (New York)
December:
✭✭✭Hurricane Child by Kacen Callender (1) (U.S. Virgin Islands)
✭✭✭✭Secondhand Time: The Last of the Soviets by Svetlana Alexievich (1) (Russia)
✭✭✭✭✭Finding Me by Viola Davis (1) (Rhode Island)
✭✭In the Country of Others by Leila Slimani (1) (Morocco)
✭✭Blood Scion by Deborah Falaye (1)
✭✭✭✭When the Ground Is Hard by Malla Nunn (1)
✭✭✭✭Mercy Watson Goes for a Ride by Kate DiCamillo (2)
✭✭✭✭✭My Real Name Is Hanna by Tara Lynn Masih (1) (Ukraine)
✭✭✭✭✭Life Among The Piutes: Their Wrongs And Claims by Sarah Winnemucca Hopkins (1) (Nevada)
✭✭✭✭The Twentieth Wife by Indu Sundaresan (1) (India)
This year I thought I would try mostly reading in order. I started with Lion in the Valley by Elizabeth Peters. The first prompt is "A book with a main character whose name starts with A, T, or Y," and the protangonist's name is Amelia Peabody Emerson. I love these silly books.
So far, I'm reading in order. We'll see how long that lasts! LOL. My second book for the year is also #2 on the list: A book connected to a book you read in 2021. I read books 1-7 of The Dark Tower series by Stephen King. King wrote The Wind Through the Keyhole after the series was finished. It is technically 4.5 in the series. I chose to read them in the order he published them. I really enjoyed the book, but I wanted to hear more about the characters of the series, and this was more of a story told by one of the characters. I still enjoyed it though.
Still in order! For #3 - A book with 22 or more letters in the title, I read Rosemary: The Hidden Kennedy Daughter by Kate Clifford Larson. This book was fascinating. I mean, it was heartbreaking what happened to Rosemary Kennedy. There was so much history in the book that I didn't know.
For prompt #4 - A book that fits your favorite prompt that did not make the list, I read Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi. I started this book in mid-January, and it took forever to finish. I just couldn't get into it. It got a bit better toward the end but not much. I ended up giving it three stars, but that was probably generous. Apparently there is a whole series with these characters, but I seriously doubt I will read any of the others. It was just boring. The characters were not interesting. The writing was juvenile. The whole thing just kind of sucked.
My first out of order book is Three Men in a Boat by Jerome K. Jerome. I had started To Say Nothing of the Dog by Connie Willis when someone on one of these threads said to read Three Men in a Boat first, so I did! I hadn't yet picked out a book for #31 - A book published at least 10 years ago, and this one fits the bill having been published at the end of the 19th century. It was dry, British humor, which I love, but the casual sexism and racism colors it. Ugh.
For prompt #5 - A book by an author with two sets of double letters in their name - I read: To Say Nothing of the Dog by Connie Willis. It was fabulous - hilarious. I would highly recommend it. I thoroughly enjoyed the whole story. I'm so glad I read this book, and I don't know why it has taken me so long to read more of Willis' books. I also found out that she's a Coloradan, and since I am as well, that is pretty cool.
I'm in the middle of reading a book for prompt #7, but it is a very heavy book, so I needed to take a levity break. The Inimitable Jeeves by P. G. Wodehouse was just what the doctor ordered. It also works for prompt #26 - 2 books with the same word in the title - Book 1. I also have a Jeeves book for #27.
I just finished All the Things We Never Knew: Chasing the Chaos of Mental Illness by Sheila Hamilton for prompt # 7 - A book related to psychology, neuroscience or the mind. Wow. What an incredible book. It was so raw and honest. She managed to dig into her husband's mental illness and her and her daughter's trauma while not demonizing him. It was well-researched, well-written, and deeply emotional. I'm going to recommend this book to a lot of people.
Last year, I lost my mom, my fil, my uncle, my nephew-in-law, and a dear friend as well as my dad having a heart attack and being hospitalized twice and my husband losing his job. It was a stressful year to say the least. My solace was most definitely reading. A friend asked me to read A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas. Well, I loved it and read 14 of her books last year. My favorite was House of Earth and Blood. The sequel was released on Tuesday. It was absolutely amazing, and I am sitting over here dying waiting for my friends and daughter to finish. There is a cliffhanger and one helluva twist, and it's all I can do to stay quiet! LOL. I used House of Sky and Breath by Sarah J. Maas for prompt # 51 - A book published in 2022. I would love to recommend this book to everyone, but you really need to read the other 14 books first. LOL.
When I started House of Sky and Breath, I was already reading Birds of a Feather by Jacqueline Winspear. I really didn't want to put it down because I was enjoying it so much. I finished it up this morning for prompt #32 - A book where the main character is a female detective/private eye/police officer. I feel like I am late to the game with this series, but I am loving it. I was wrapped up in the story.
Gosh Misty, that sounds really tough. My condolences. Hope this year will be better for you.
Yes -- what Hilde said! I'm glad that reading helped a little.
Thank you. <3 I really appreciate it. <3 Reading did help - a lot. This year has got to be better, or I'm just going to curl up in a ball in a corner. LOL. :)
I read about someone doing a challenge of 52 books in 52 countries. I thought it sounded really fun, so I thought I would try something similar. 25 books (by women authors) set in 25 different countries. I'm just going to keep track of it here. 1. ✅ United Kingdom - Birds of a Feather by Jacqueline Winspear
Agatha Raisin and the Quiche of Death by M. C. Beaton
The Tenant of Wildfell Hall by Anne Bronte
The Secret Adversary by Agatha Christie
Gods Behaving Badly by Marie Phillips
The Widow by K. L. Slater
Mary Poppins in the Park by P. L. Travers
Mary Poppins in Cherry Tree Lane by P. L. Travers
To Say Nothing of the Dog by Connie Willis
2. ✅ United States - The Westing Game by Ellen Raskin (Wisconsin)
3. ✅ Egypt - Lion in the Valley by Elizabeth Peters
4. ✅ Chile - Daughter of Fortune by Isabel Allende
5. ✅ Biafra - Half of a Yellow Sun by Chimananda Ngozi Adichie
6. ✅ Australia - I Came to Say Goodbye by Caroline Overington
7. ✅ Nigeria - The Girl with the Louding Voice by Abi Dare
Under the Udala Trees by Chinelo Okparanta
8. ✅ Ireland - The Ruin by Dervla McTiernan
9. ✅ Italy - Oil and Marble: A Novel of Leonardo and Michelangelo by Stephanie Storey
Framed by Carolyn Keene
10. ✅ France - Catherine de Medici: Renaissance Queen of France by Leonie Frieda
11. ✅ Japan - The Travelling Cat Chronicles by Hiro Arikawa
Out by Natsuo Kirino
12. ✅ Dominican Republic - How the García Girls Lost Their Accents by Julia Alvarez
In the Time of the Butterflies by Julia Alvarez
13. ✅ Cyprus - The Island of Missing Trees by Elif Shafak
14. ✅ Canada - Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel
15. ✅ Eswatini - When the Ground Is Hard by Malla Nunn
16. ✅ Russia/USSR - Secondhand Time: The Last of the Soviets by Svetlana Alexievich
17. ✅ Germany - Go, Went, Gone by Jenny Erpenbeck
18. ✅ South Korea - The White Book by Han Kang
19. ✅ India - The Twentieth Wife by Indu Sundaresan
20. ✅ Hungary - Abigail by Magda Szabo
21. ✅ Ukraine - My Real Name Is Hanna by Tara Lynn Masih
22. ✅ China - Ties That Bind, Ties That Break by Lensey Namioka
23. ✅ Denmark - The Copenhagen Connection by Elizabeth Peters
24. ✅ Sweden - Roseanna by Maj Sjowall and Per Wahloo
25. ✅ Morocco - In the Country of Others by Leila Slimani
Misty wrote: "Last year, I lost my mom, my fil, my uncle, my nephew-in-law, and a dear friend as well as my dad having a heart attack and being hospitalized twice and my husband losing his job. It was a stressfu..."That was a very tough year for you, Misty. I hope 2022 is better for you.
Kathy wrote: "Misty wrote: "That was a very tough year for you, Misty. I hope 2022 is better for you."Thank you. <3 I hope so, too!
For prompt #10 - 3 books set on three different continents - I chose - Daughter of Fortune by Isabel Allende which is set in both Book 3 South and North America. I have to admit that I was very disappointed with this book. It read very much like just a list of things that happend. "This happened and then this happened and then this happened....." It was just a bit boring.
For prompt #12 - A book related to glass - I read Minimalists by K. Robert Schwartz. I don't think it is exactly what was in mind with this prompt, but it fits! One of the main minimalists is a composer named Philip Glass, and a huge section of the book was about him. I enjoyed learning about these composers, but I did have to slog through a bunch of it. Parts of it were inspiring though. As a composer myself, I enjoyed learning about their process.
For prompt #33 - The next book in a series - I chose The Land of Painted Caves by Jean M. Auel. I started reading this series about 1992. I read that Ms. Auel had a stroke between #5 and #6. If that is true, you can tell with the writing. This book doesn't hold a candle to the rest of the series. I still enjoyed it, and I'm sad that the series is over. It was nice to wrap up Ayla and Jondalar's story.
I have to admit that I wasn't really expecting much from this next book. I found Dragon Assassin: Volume 1 by Arthur Slade free on Audible, and it looked like something my kiddo might enjoy. She has dyslexia and sometimes decides to not read because it's more challenging for her. So, I thought if I could get her some audio books, maybe she'd dig into them. I had to push a little which included me saying that if she read it, I would, too, then we could discuss it. It took a while, but she finally read it. :) I kept up my end of the bargain and finished it today. It was actually quite enjoyable, and we will probably read more in the series. I put it in for prompt #49 - A book connected to the phrase "Here (There) Be Dragons." One of the main characters is a very bored with humans and life dragon. :)
As a rule, I adore Elizabeth Peters' books. So for prompt #50 - A book that involves aging, or a character in their golden years, I read Peters' The Love Talker. The main character is not older, but there are several characters who are and the age of one of them is a major plot point in the story. This book had enjoyable moments, but there were things about it I just didn't care for.
#20BooksByBlackWomen Challenge:1) Passing by Nella Larsen
This book was fabulous. It was a fast read. The writing really flowed. The story was captivating and had a great twist at the end.
Everything I know about horse racing, I learned from Dick Francis. I really enjoy his books. I hadn't read one in quite some time though, but for prompt #21 - A book with one of the Monopoly tokens on the cover - I decided to read High Stakes by Dick Francis. It has a sports car on the cover. I really enjoyed it. It was a quick and clever read.
I just finished I Came to Say Goodbye by Caroline Overington. It wasn't for the ATY 2022 challenge, but I am using it for my 25 countries challenge. It is #4. I enjoyed the book, but it was very different. It was told in the form of a letter.
For prompt #8 - 3 books set on three different continents - Book 1 - I chose Catherine de Medici: Renaissance Queen of France by Leonie Freida (Eurasia). I didn't know much about this historical figure. My oldest daughter was the one who was telling me about this book, so I decided to give it a shot. It was a really good book. At times the biography reads like a novel. It is fascinating. Catherine was a colorful character who is so much more than the almost exclusively negative reputation that has been passed down through history.
I first picked The Westing Game by Ellen Raskin for prompt #45 - A book related to a game, but I have a couple of different possibilities for that one. Then I saw that it would fit with prompt #28 - A book that won an award from Powell's list of book awards. My middle daughter LOVED this book when she was younger, and recently she told me I should read it. Since I will pretty much read anything they want me to :) I decided to read it this year for the challenge. I have a great picture of her as a fifth grader sitting in a Costco shopping basket reading this book. By the end of the shopping trip, she was covered in food purchases. I had to dig her out once we got to the car. LOL. I really enjoyed the book. It was smart, fun, and fast-paced.
I just finished The Way I See It: A Look Back at My Life on Little House by Melissa Anderson for prompt #14 - A book with fewer than 5000 ratings on Goodreads. I really enjoyed it. I grew up with those books and the television show, and it was a lot of fun to read about the behind the scenes stuff. Also, my daughter is attending an arts high school as a theatre major and is planning to study theatre in college next year, so I enjoyed reading about "the business."
I have many "free" books on Audible. One that I found that I was interested in reading was Across the Spectrum which is a group of short stories by various authors. I saw that it was that it was being taken off the included list later this month, so I decided to go ahead and read it. It was a very long book. I really enjoyed it. There were a few stories that were so-so, but honestly, most of them were quite good. It took a bit to get through, but I am glad that I read it. It was not for my ATY challenge. The majority of the stories were by women authors which I thought was very cool.
I just finished The Travelling Cat Chronicles by Hira Arikawa. It wasn't for this challenge, but it was a fantastic book. I was literally bawling like a baby at the end. *sniff, sniff* I highly recommend it.
After reading The Travelling Cat Chronicles, I felt like I needed a little dry, British humor. So, for prompt #27 - 2 books with the same word in the title - Book 2 - I read Very Good, Jeeves! by P. G. Wodehouse. I didn't enjoy it as much as some of his other books I have read, but it was cute, and I did enjoy it.
I just finished Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo for prompt #22 - A book with a Jewish character or author. I loved it. It was fantastic. My husband wanted me to read it because he wants me to watch the Netflix show with him. LOL. He also read the book, but he has only read the first one. There is a trilogy plus there is Six of Crows and Crooked Kingdom, and the show is based on them all. He said, "So, can we watch the show now?" I said, "As soon as I finish the other four books." LOL. I loved it. Five stars.
I just finished Teach Me by Alexandria House for prompt #34 - A book with an academic setting or with a teacher that plays an important role. I haven't read a romance novel in a lot of years. I stopped reading them because they were full of misogynistic bs, gaslighting, and Stockholm Syndrome. I was recently convinced to give romance novels another try. So, I did, and I'm done with them. There was a lot about this book that I did enjoy. I am not into the particular kink enjoyed in this book, so that made it uncomfortable. Nothing wrong with anyone else enjoying that kink. I just did not. Then she throws in a very old, very inaccurate, very misogynistic trope, and I was done. If I hadn't been so close to the end, I wouldn't have even finished. Yuck. I won't be reading anymore of her books.#20BooksByBlackWomen Challenge - #2
I did not realize just how tiny We Should All Be Feminists by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie actually is until I read it. I used it for prompt #25 - A book less than 220 pages OR more than 440 pages. It was definitely worth the read. It is small but mighty. I really enjoyed reading what she had to say. I highly recommend this book for everyone (and particularly young women and girls). I am going to ask my husband to read it.#20BooksByBlackWomen Challenge - #3
#20BooksByBlackWomen Challenge:4) Dear Ijeawele, or a Feminist Manifesto in Fifteen Suggestions by Chimananda Ngozi Adichie
This book was fabulous. My friend group is pretty much all past the new baby phase, but this book will be added to all new mom/baby shower gifts that I give from now on. She really has a way of just getting to the heart of the matter immediately. She is clear and concise, and I really love the way she writes. I am excited to dig into one of her novels.
I didn't use this book for the challenge, but I read Privilege, Power, and Difference by Allan G. Johnson. It is really a fabulous book. It is more of an overview than an in-depth look at different privileges. He was a straight, cisgender, white man, and to be honest, I am always a little cautious when reading a book about privilege written by a person of the most privileged group, but this book is really great. People with privilege need to be doing this work, so it's not that I think he shouldn't have written it. I'm just cautious. I think this book would be a good one to recommend to someone who is early in their journey of anti-racism, feminism, etc.
After not reading much in May (school plays and concerts, a graduation, birthdays, and so much other stuff!), today I finished prompt #15 - A book without a person on the cover - Oil and Marble: A Novel of Leonardo and Michelangelo by Stephanie Storey. I don't remember how I found this book. I think it was a free one on Audible. I'm really glad I found it. I thought it was very enjoyable. I was invested in the story, and I would definitely recommend it.
Codependent No More: How to Stop Controlling Others and Start Caring for Yourself by Melody Beattie (new author) I have been in a bit of a tough situation for sometime, and my counselor suggested reading this book. It is a very good book. I'm rereading it and doing all the activities now. I would definitely recommend it. It was not a book for ATY.
For prompt #45 - A book related to a game, I read A Game of Thrones by George R. R. Martin. I know this is basically a phenomenon amongst the fantasy crowd and has been hailed as one of the best ever written, but I just don't see it. I mean, it was okay, but it was just okay. I read it because my kiddo wanted me to, but it took forever to get through it. I was so bored. I'm very glad it's over, and I am kind of hoping my kiddo forgets about the series and doesn't ask me to read another one! LOL. I mean, I will. If my kid asks me to read a book, I'll do it because - come on - they're sharing a book they enjoy with me. :)
I used The Merciless Ones by Namina Forna for prompt #46 A book with a non-human as one of the main characters. Deka, the main character, is a lot of things, but human is not one of them! Forna tackles a lot of social issues in this trilogy, and I am here for it. I would definitely recommend this book. I can't wait to read the final installment in the series. I have no idea when it is scheduled to be released, but it is too far away. :)#20BooksByBlackWomen #5
For prompt #9 - 3 books set on three different continents - Book 2 (Africa) I read Half of a Yellow Sun by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. I have some mixed feelings about this book. Overall, it was a fabulous, if incredibly sad and depressing book. The subject matter is very sad and hard to read, but it is very powerful. There is one character that I had a very hard time reading, and I am still processing how she wrote that character. I'm not sure what I think right now. I was happy to read about Biafra though as I honestly did not know that much about it and the conflict surrounding it. #20BooksByBlackWomen #6
I finished Siege and Storm by Leigh Bardugo today. It is not for this challenge. I am really enjoying this series. My husband and oldest daughter are both reading it as well. It ended on a bit of a cliffhanger, so I am anxious to dig into the third book. My husband has been on me to read it because he wants to watch the television series with me, and I told him I wouldn't do it until I am finished with the books. LOL. I have one left in the triology, and then I have to read the Six of Crows duology. They are pretty quick reads though - if I don't lose the book. I think I misplaced this book maybe five of six times. LOL. Oops. Oh well, I'll get there. :)
My middle daughter had to read How the García Girls Lost Their Accents by Julia Alvarez for school this spring. She is a very slow reader and asked us to get it on Audible. I have been wanting to read Alvarez's work for a while, so I read it for prompt #38 - A book by a Latin American author. I really wanted to love it, but I didn't. I did enjoy it, and I want to read more of her work. The book was just jumbled and hard to follow. Plus, it seemed like many of her stories were unfinished. She may have intended it that way, but I didn't think it worked well.
I don't have enough good to say about the book I read for prompt #42 - A book with a language or nationality in the title. I had originally planned another book for this prompt, but the youth group at church is reading All American Boys by Jason Reynolds and Brendan Keily for a book discussion on Sunday. My youngest is a part of the group, and she is reading it. I had told the pastor assistant that I would also read it and participate in the discussion. I am so glad I did. This book is unbelievably brilliant. I mean, it is sad, heartbreaking, and challenging, but it is so well written. Everyone should read this book. It is a very frank look at police brutality and young Black men in our country.
I wasn't too jazzed about prompt #44 - A book with gothic elements because I'm not really sure what is supposed to represent gothic elements. Someone mentioned The Tenant of Wildfell Hall by Anne Bronte for this prompt, and I had this one on Audible, so I plugged it in here. The book is very old-fashioned and flowery, but I enjoyed it. I enjoy that kind of literature - in small amounts at a time. :)
I just finished Such, Such Were the Joys by George Orwell. While this book wasn't for the ATY-22 challenge, I am using it for the summer challenge. I have become a big fan of Orwell. His fiction is okay, but his non-fiction is very good. In this collection he comes for fascism, racism, colonialism and I am here for it. I had to look up some of the things he wrote about since they were references to popular art and writing of the time, but I still enjoyed it very much. He did not spare much love for Rudyard Kipling. I was facinated by the essay on Gandhi. Knowing what we know about Gandhi now and seeing how so much of the world began to idolize him, Orwell's essay was my favorite part of the collection.
For prompt #17 - A book from NPR's Book Concierge, I read The Guncle by Steve Rowley. This book was a complete five star read. It was hilarious and heartbreaking. I literally laughed and cried. I listened to the book on Audible, and I was laughing so much the first night I listened that I went down and laid on the couch because I was keeping my husband awake! My only complaint is that his sister character is so steeped in his own ingrained misogyny. For someone who has been at the receiving end of hurtful stereotypes and misinformation, he should know better.
Around the Year in 52 Books
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1. ✅ A book with a main character whose name starts with A, T, or Y
Lion in the Valley (Amelia Peabody) by Elizabeth Peters
2. ✅ A book connected to a book you read in 2021
The Wind Through the Keyhole by Stephen King
3. ✅ A book with 22 or more letters in the title
Rosemary: The Hidden Kennedy Daughter by Kate Clifford Larson
4. ✅ A book that fits your favorite prompt that did not make the list
Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi
5. ✅ A book by an author with two sets of double letters in their name
To Say Nothing of the Dog by Connie Willis
6. ✅ A book with an image of a source of light on the cover
Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel
7. ✅ A book related to psychology, neuroscience or the mind
All the Things We Never Knew: Chasing the Chaos of Mental Illness by Sheila Hamilton
8. ✅ 3 books set on three different continents - Book 1 (Eurasia)
Catherine de Medici: Renaissance Queen of France by Leonie Freida
9. ✅ 3 books set on three different continents - Book 2 (Africa)
Half of a Yellow Sun by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
10. ✅ 3 books set on three different continents - Book 3 (South and North America)
Daughter of Fortune by Isabel Allende
11. ✅ A book from historical fiction genre
The Daughters of Temperance Hobbs by Katherine Howe
12. ✅ A book related to glass
Minimalists by K. Robert Schwartz
13. ✅ A book about a woman in STEM
The Shift: One Nurse, Twelve Hours, Four Patients' Lives by Theresa Brown
14. ✅ A book with fewer than 5000 ratings on Goodreads
The Way I See It: A Look Back at My Life on Little House by Melissa Anderson
15. ✅ A book without a person on the cover
Oil and Marble: A Novel of Leonardo and Michelangelo by Stephanie Storey
16. ✅ A book related to Earth Day
Finding the Mother Tree: Discovering the Wisdom of the Forest by Suzanne Simard
17. ✅ A book from NPR's Book Concierge
The Guncle by Steve Rowley
18. ✅ A book by an Asian or Pacific Islander author
Out by Natsuo Karino
19. ✅ A book that involves alternate reality, alternate worlds, or alternate history
The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood
20. ✅ A fiction or nonfiction book that is set during 1900 -1951
Hitting a Straight Lick with a Crooked Stick: Stories from the Harlem Renaissance by Zora Neale Hurston
21. ✅ A book with one of the Monopoly tokens on the cover
High Stakes by Dick Francis
22. ✅ A book with a Jewish character or author
Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo
23. ✅ A book that features loving LGBTQIA+ relationship
Under the Udala Trees by Chinelo Okparanta
24. ✅ A book related to inclement weather
Dune: The Lady of Caladan by Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson
25. ✅ A book less than 220 pages OR more than 440 pages
We Should All Be Feminists by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
26. ✅ 2 books with the same word in the title - Book 1
The Inimitable Jeeves by P. G. Wodehouse
27. ✅ 2 books with the same word in the title - Book 2
Very Good, Jeeves! by P. G. Wodehouse
28. ✅ A book that won an award from Powell's list of book awards
The Westing Game by Ellen Raskin
29. ✅ A book set on or near a body of water
Duma Key by Stephen King
30. ✅ A book related to mythology
Gods Behaving Badly by Marie Phillips
31. ✅ A book published at least 10 years ago
Three Men in a Boat by Jerome K. Jerome
32. ✅ A book where the main character is a female detective/private eye/police officer
Birds of a Feather by Jacqueline Winspear
33. ✅ The next book in a series
The Land of Painted Caves by Jean M. Auel
34. ✅ A book with an academic setting or with a teacher that plays an important role
Teach Me by Alexandria House
35. ✅ 2 books related to flora and fauna - Book 1
The Island of Missing Trees by Elif Shafak
36. ✅ 2 books related to flora and fauna - Book 2
Glory by NoViolet Bulawayo
37. ✅ A book that uses all five vowels in the title and/or author's name
The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde (and sometimes y)
38. ✅ A book by a Latin American author
How the García Girls Lost Their Accents by Julia Alvarez
39. ✅ A book from the TIME list of 100 Best YA Books of All Time
Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry by Mildred D. Taylor
40. ✅ A book related to one of the 22 Tarot Major Arcana cards
Sisters & Husbands by Connie Briscoe
41. ✅ A book with a theme of food or drink
Agatha Raisin and the Quiche of Death by M. C. Beaton
42. ✅ A book with a language or nationality in the title
All American Boys by Jason Reynolds and Brendan Keily
43. ✅ A book set in a small town or rural area
The Bone Farm by Dean Koontz
44. ✅ A book with gothic elements
The Tenant of Wildfell Hall by Anne Bronte
45. ✅ A book related to a game
A Game of Thrones by George R. R. Martin
46. ✅ A book with a non-human as one of the main characters
The Merciless Ones by Namina Forna
47. ✅ A book with handwriting on the cover
The Secret Adversary by Agatha Christie
48. ✅ A book posted in one of the ATY Best Book of the Month threads in 2021 or 2022
The Final Empire by Brandon Sanderson
49. ✅ A book connected to the phrase "Here (There) Be Dragons"
Dragon Assassin: Volume 1 by Arthur Slade
50. ✅ A book that involves aging, or a character in their golden years
The Love Talker by Elizabeth Peters
51. ✅ A book published in 2022
House of Sky and Breath by Sarah J. Maas
52. ✅ A book with a time-related word in the title
In the Time of the Butterflies by Julia Alvarez