Around the Year in 52 Books discussion
2022 Plans
>
Around the Year Again with Anastasia
date
newest »
newest »
✔️1. A book with a main character whose name starts with A, T, or Y
The Rage of Dragons
🍁🎧⭐⭐
🎥 Adam Project
✔️2. A book connected to a book you read in 2021
🏋️♀️🎧🏳🌈
Arrows of the Queen
⭐⭐⭐
✔️🎥 Spiderman : No way Home
7 ⭐'s
✔️3. A book with 22 or more letters in the title
Within the Sanctuary of Wings
🎧🏋️♀️⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
✔️🎥 The Witcher The Nightmare of the Wolf
4⭐'s
🥐 De Mimi petit a Tarzan Legrand by Bertrand Gauthier
4. A book that fits your favorite prompt that did not make the list
I do have a list of prompts that I like. I may or may not do a reject challenge this year. First I will finish the main challenge, then fill in this space.
✔️5. A book by an author with two sets of double letters in their name
Red Famine: Stalin's War on Ukraine, 1921-1933
by
Anne Applebaum
🌍🎧⭐⭐⭐⭐
✔️🥐
Hibou Hebdo: No 14 - �ve � La Plage
✔️6. A book with an image of a source of light on the cover
Sea of Rust
🏳🌈🎧⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
🥐🍁Plus Noir Que La Nuit
✔️7. A book related to psychology, neuroscience or the mind
Murderous Minds: Exploring the Criminal Psychopathic Brain: Neurological Imaging and the Manifestation of Evil
⭐⭐⭐
✔️🎥 Therapy for A Vampire 🤣
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt3400980/...
✔️8. 3 books set on three different continents - Book 1 The Eastern Europe
Mrs. Mohr Goes Missing
🏋️♀️🎧⭐⭐⭐
✔️🎥🏋️♀️The Great https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2235759/...
✔️9. 3 books set on three different continents - Book 2 Arabia - Middle East
A Thousand Splendid Suns
🌍⭐⭐⭐⭐
✔️🎥 Capernaum
10⭐'s
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt8267604/...
✔️10. 3 books set on three different continents - Antartica
Where'd You Go, Bernadette
✔️11. A book from historical fiction genre
🏋️♀️🎧
The Lost Jewels by Kirsty Manning - IRL Book Club Book
⭐⭐⭐⭐
✔️12. A book related to glass
Forensics: What Bugs, Burns, Prints, DNA and More Tell Us About Crime - the glass slides used under microscopes
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐🎧
✔️🎥 Godmothered https://www.imdb.com/title/tt11681250... 7⭐'s
✔️13. A book about a woman in STEM
Transcendent Kingdom
🎧🏋️♀️⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
✔️14. A book with fewer than 5000 ratings on Goodreads 
Ghost Legion
⭐⭐
✔️15. A book without a person on the cover
The Spoon Stealer
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐🍁🏋️♀️
✔️16. A book related to Earth Day
The Future We Choose: Surviving the Climate Crisis
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐🎧
✔️17. A book from NPR's Book Concierge
Ball Lightning
🌍🎧⭐⭐⭐
✔️18. A book by an Asian or Pacific Islander author🌍
Before the Coffee Gets Cold
🎧⭐⭐⭐⭐
✔️19. A book that involves alternate reality, alternate worlds, or alternate history
The Space Between Worlds
🎧🏳🌈🏋️♀️⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
✔️🎥 https://www.imdb.com/title/tt3865236/...
✔️🍁20. A fiction or nonfiction book that is set during 1900 -1951
🍁Adrift on an Ice Pan
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
✔️21. A book with one of the Monopoly tokens on the cover
The Physician
⭐⭐⭐🎧
✔️22. A book with a Jewish character or author
Gentlemen of the Road
Michael Chabon
⭐⭐⭐🎧🏳🌈
✔️23. A book that features loving LGBTQIA+ relationshipThe Heron's Cry - the main character is in a loving relationship with his husband.
🎧🏳🌈⭐⭐⭐⭐
✔️🎥 Fire Island 🏳🌈🏋️♀️https://www.imdb.com/title/tt15218000...
✔️24. A book related to inclement weather
Stolen Tongues
⭐⭐🎧
✔️25. A book less than 220 pages OR more than 440 pages
A Spindle Splintered
⭐⭐⭐
✔️26. 2 books with the same word in the title - Book 1 "Woman"
The Island of Sea Women
🌍⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐🏋️♀️
✔️🎥 🏋️♀️Bombshell - about the "Me Too" movement at Fox News
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt6394270/...
✔️🎥🏋️♀️ Bombshell - The Hedy Lamar Story
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt6752848/
✔️27. 2 books with the same word in the title - Book 2 "Women"
When Women Were Dragons
🏳🌈🏋️♀️⭐⭐⭐
✔️28. A book that won an award from Powell's list of book awards
A Canticle for Leibowitz byWalter M. Miller Jr.
🎧⭐⭐⭐
✔️29. A book set on or near a body of water
The Book of Cold Cases
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐🍁
✔️30. A book related to mythology
The Centaur's Wife
🏳🌈🏋️♀️⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐🦄
✔️31. A book published at least 10 years ago 
🏋️♀️🎧 ⭐⭐⭐⭐
By the Sword by Mercedes Lackey
published in 1991
✔️32. A book where the main character is a female detective/private eye/police officer
The Verifiers
🏳🌈⭐⭐⭐⭐
✔️🎥The Alienist - Season 2 https://www.imdb.com/title/tt4604612/...
✔️33. The next book in a series
The Dragon Reborn by Robert Jordan
⭐⭐⭐
✔️34. A book with an academic setting or with a teacher that plays an important role
Blood Song
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
✔️35. 2 books related to flora and fauna - Book 1
All Over Creation - Flora
🎧⭐⭐🍁
✔️36. 2 books related to flora and fauna - Book 2 Fauna
The Island of Missing Trees
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
✔️37. A book that uses all five vowels in the title and/or author's name
Because You're Mine
⭐⭐⭐🎧
✔️38. A book by a Latin American author
Little Eyes
by Samanta Schweblin
🌍⭐
✔️🎥 Miss Bala https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5941692/...
✔️39. A book from the TIME list of 100 Best YA Books of All Time
Anne of the Island 🍁
⭐⭐⭐
✔️40. A book related to one of the 22 Tarot Major Arcana cards
The Calculating Stars
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐🏋️♀️
✔️41. A book with a theme of food or drink
Light from Uncommon Stars
🏳🌈🏋️♀️⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
✔️42. A book with a language or nationality in the title
How to Be an American Housewife
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
✔️43. A book set in a small town or rural area
The Operator
⭐⭐⭐
✔️44. A book with gothic elements
The Sun Down Motel
🍁⭐⭐⭐⭐
✔️45. A book related to a game
Against All Odds: The Untold Story of Canada's Unlikely Hockey Heroes
🍁⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
✔️46. A book with a non-human as one of the main characters
🎧🏳🌈Network Effect
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
✔️🎥 Three Thousand Years of Longing https://www.imdb.com/title/tt9198364/...
✔️47. A book with handwriting on the cover
Searching for Sylvie Lee
🎧⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
✔️🎥 Purple Hearts https://www.imdb.com/title/tt4614584/...
✔️48. A book posted in one of the ATY Best Book of the Month threads in 2021 or 2022
Convenience Store Woman
🎧🏋️♀️🌍⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
✔️🎥 Big Little Lies https://www.imdb.com/title/tt3920596/...
49. A book connected to the phrase "Here (There) Be Dragons"50. A book that involves aging, or a character in their golden years
🏋️♀️🎓The Ride of Her Life: The True Story of a Woman, Her Horse, and Their Last-Chance Journey Across America
51. A book published in 2022
TBD
52. A book with a time-related word in the title
Future Feeling
Book covers
31. A booked published at least 10 years ago
By the Sword by Mercedes Lackey
🎧🏋️♀️⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
I love Mercedes Lackey. She has been writing of strong female characters in Fantasy settings for years. Her women are warriors, mages, queens and more. She includes the realities of being a woman in a tough world. She also includes nods to LGBTQ characters in her stories, as well as women who do not want families, or want families and a career.
She is one of a few female writers who broke through the stigma of writing in a genre that did not welcome women at the time.
This novel takes place in the world of Valedmar. I read it as a standalone book with no problems. She fills in the knowledge gaps with quick references making it unnecessary to read the other books in the series. (I will be going back to the other books since I loved this one.) The world is also well fleshed out in this book as well.
I recommend it to all level of readers who enjoy the fantasy genre. It is highly recommended to those who are looking for strong female leads who do not conform to the traditional roles.
11. Historical Fiction
The Lost Jewels by Kirsty Manning
⭐⭐⭐⭐
🎧🏋️♀️
This was a IRL book club pick for January. The The Gown was a similar pick by this group, which was an okay read, so my expectations were low for this one. It ended up being more similar to People of the Book, just less intense.
There is a ton of food references in the book. The characters kept meeting at restaurants, ordering food, or discussing food so my diet was put to the test reading it. The ending was the typical happy ending that is to be expected of this genre now. While feel good endings are nice they are not necessary.
2. A book connected to a book you read in 2021
Arrows of the Queen by Mercedes Lackey
🏋️♀️🎧🏳🌈⭐⭐⭐
This is the first novel in a fantasy series that was written in the 1980's. It may be considered YA now.
It has same sex relationships, platonic relationships, mentions women's bodily functions without linking it to child birth or bad images. It has strong female characters in several roles of power as if it is a natural occurrence.
I mention all of this because it was published in the 1980's by a female author in the fantasy genre. Not an easy genre for female authors to break into at the time. She did this with an entire series in which women are treated as equals. Menstruation is not a taboo subject. It is mentioned at least twice as a normal bodily function. That is still something that is very hard to find in today's books. Well worth the read for that reason alone.
6. A book with an image of a source of light on the cover
Sea of Rust by C. Robert Cargill
🏳🌈🎧
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
This takes place after AI's have wiped out the human race. What then?
The world was amazing. The problems faced by the physical AI's, the question of what happens when they "die", what the do with the world once they rule it? All of these are explored. The answers that the author comes up with are interesting.
BTW the main character identifies as female but I thought of her as non-binary until a human gives her a gender.
28. A book that won an award from Powell's list of book awards-Hugo
A Canticle for Leibowitz by Walter M. Miller Jr.
⭐⭐⭐🎧
Another end of the world novel. This one revolved around religion. It turned religion on it's head by having an order dedicated to preserving knowledge from before the nuclear holocaust. Women were barley present in this book. When they were present it was to prove a point. Because of this lack of representation I have lowered my rating.
14. A book with fewer than 5000 ratings on Goodreads
Ghost Legion
⭐⭐
I read this because it was supposed to be similar to Star Ship Troopers. It was. It did not have the problems of the original, but needed to develop the characters more.
19. A book that involves alternate reality, alternate worlds, or alternate history
The Space Between Worlds
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
🏳🌈🏋️♀️🎧
I loved this book. I want to read more of her books!!!!!
Highly recommend
26. 2 books with the same word in the title - Book 1 Woman
The Island of Sea Women
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐🌍🏋️♀️
Lisa See is always a good read. Her descriptions are amazing, as well as her characters.
37. A book that uses all five vowels in the title and/or author's name
Because You're Mine
⭐⭐⭐🎧
I had a difficult time rating this book. I ended rounding it up because it was very twisted. You may like it if you liked Big Little Lies but it is not as good.
43. Set in a small town or rural setting
The Operator
⭐⭐⭐
When I was very young, almost too young to remember, our telephone was on a party line. That is a landline that has more than one house on the same telephone line. There were four houses on the road and each one of them was on the same telephone line. If someone else was using the phone, or forgot to hang it up properly then you had to wait until they were finished to make a call.
I thought this may have a few funny uncomfortable moments like an "I Love Lucy" episode. It didn't. It did have the morals of "Leave it to Beaver" though.
Not a bad story.
46. A non-human character as one of the main characters
Network Effect
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐🎧
I love Murder Bots dry wit.
15. A cover without a person on it
The Spoon Stealer
🍁🏋️♀️⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
This was on the long list for Canada Reads this year.
The story starts in the middle with the main character attending a memoir writing class in her local library. We learn about her beginnings from the reading of her memoir while participating in her current life.
This is not a technique I have encountered in novels before. It really worked well here. The back story was necessary for the current story to make sense. It was covered quickly with some character building in the present as well.
Highly recommend.
1. Character whose name starts with A, T or Y
The Rage of Dragons
🎧⭐⭐🍁
The main character, Tau was annoying. He kept focusing on revenge and did not learn anything by the end of the book. The side characters in the book had more growth then he did. I read the second book in the series hoping that the introduction of a female character would help. It did not.
21. A monopoly token on the cover- horse and rider
The Physician
⭐⭐⭐
I liked the premise of this book. Women were not well represented, but it was not about women. It was about a man who wanted to expand his knowledge of medicine to help others. To that end it did fulfill it's purpose.
3. A book with 22 or more letters in the title
Within the Sanctuary of Wings
🏋️♀️🎧⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
My son started listening to this series after I suggested it. He listened to all of the series in about a week this summer. I had to listen to this one before he spoiled the book 🤣 It was also made for a great discussion.
7. A book related to psychology, neuroscience or the mind
Murderous Minds: Exploring the Criminal Psychopathic Brain: Neurological Imaging and the Manifestation of Evil
⭐⭐⭐
The few studies that have been completed on this subject have few people in them. It makes them unreliable. The author does state this once, but keeps using those studies to definitively support his ideas. Take this one with a grain of salt.
8. 3 books set on three different continents - Book 1Eastern Europe
Mrs. Mohr Goes Missing
🌍🏋️♀️⭐⭐⭐
I despaired of finding a book that was not based on the world wars. This book takes place before the WWI in Poland when it was part of the Austrian-Hungarian Empire. All of the important characters are female. They are all from different parts of the empire ending up in a home for the aged.
It was a fun mystery. It is the first book in the series, although I do not believe the rest are translated yet.
9. 3 books set on three different continents - Book 2Middle East
A Thousand Splendid Suns
🌍🏋️♀️⭐⭐⭐⭐
I love this authors books. The characters are always so well written. His descriptions of the city make into another character as well.
5. A book by an author with two sets of double letters in their name
Red Famine: Stalin's War on Ukraine, 1921-1933
by
Anne Applebaum
🎧🌍⭐⭐⭐⭐
I did not like the original book that I planned for this prompt so went searching through the libraries audio ebooks. With current events what they are in it seemed like the perfect time to learn some history of the area.
Some of you may notice my name, I was named after the last Czar's daughter. My great grandfather emigrated from Ukraine to Canada before WW1. He never gave details of his life before coming to Canada. He never spoke anything but English to his children and wife. Listening to this book gives me some insight into why he may have decided not to divulge that information to his family.
It also explains the deep rooted anger that is felt by Ukraine at Russia and why Russia is so determined to wage war on Ukraine.
13. A book about a woman in STEM
Transcendent Kingdom
by Yaa Gyasi
🏋️♀️🎧⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
It was surprisingly difficult to fill this prompt. I have already read most of the books on the list with women in stem. I also wanted to read a fiction book. It is obviously an area that needs more books to be written.
17. A book from NPR's Book Concierge
Ball Lightning
🎧🌍⭐⭐⭐
After reading his other book The Three-Body Problem I expected more from this.
23. A book that features loving LGBTQIA+ relationship
The Heron's Cry
🏳🌈⭐⭐⭐⭐🎧
I was not sure if I would include this one here. It has a loving relationship between the main character and his husband. It is not the main focus of the novel, but their relationship is important to the development of the character.
It is the second book in the series and I love it so far. The author is very inclusive. She also is very true to her characters avoiding stereotypes by writing each person as a whole. I really recommend this series to those who enjoy mysteries.
27. 2 books with the same word in the title - Book 2 "Women"
When Women Were Dragons
🏋️♀️🏳🌈⭐⭐⭐
This book resonated politically with our current times. I brought to mind the International Women's Strikes.
32. A book where the main character is a female detective/private eye/police officer
The Verifiers
🏳🌈⭐⭐⭐⭐
The MC is a "private detective" who is hired to verify dating profiles. I loved that she rides her bike everywhere, is dealing with being a second generation American and is LGBTQ.
33. The next book in a series
The Dragon Reborn
⭐⭐⭐
The first time I started reading this series I was heading off to college for the first time. That was so many years ago. As a young adult there was way too many things demanding my time, like school, work, a husband, children, etc. That I never did finish the series.
Now that the "Wheel of Time" series is showing on Amazon, and my sister is watching the series with me, I have restarted it. The books are dated. There are strong female characters, good world building, just that the story moves at a more plodding pace that I feel would have been edited.
34. A book with an academic setting or with a teacher that plays an important role
Blood Song
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
This is done with a little tongue in cheek. The setting is a monastery in which young boys are trained in the art of war. The brothers form an army to protect the kingdom. I am counting that as a school setting similar to a boarding school that includes sever corporal punishment.
38. A book by a Latin American author
Little Eyes
by Samanta Schweblin
🌍⭐
I really have not found a Latin American author that I like yet.
41. A book with a theme of food or drink
Light from Uncommon Stars
🏋️♀️🏳🌈⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
This was an amazing book that I needed to fit in somewhere. One of the characters owns a doughnut shop and they try different foods from different restaurants highlighting the diversity of the city they are in. The giant doughnut is important to the story as well. I highly recommend it.
44. A book with gothic elements
The Sun Down Motel
🍁⭐⭐⭐⭐
It is a spooky story that includes a rundown motel in a small town with women who have gone missing.
✔️45. A book related to a game
Against All Odds: The Untold Story of Canada's Unlikely Hockey Heroes
🍁⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
It was fascinating that Canada almost did not have a hockey team at the Olympics in 1948.
47. A book with handwriting on the cover
Searching for Sylvie Lee
🎧🏋️♀️⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
This was a very difficult prompt to fill. I went through quite a few books before I found this one. It was a great choice. A mystery wrapped in an immigrant families trauma. The ending was not what I expected at all.
Around the Year in 52 Books
Books mentioned in this topic
The Calculating Stars (other topics)How to Be an American Housewife (other topics)
Anne of the Island (other topics)
The Island of Missing Trees (other topics)
The Book of Cold Cases (other topics)
More...
Authors mentioned in this topic
Samanta Schweblin (other topics)Samanta Schweblin (other topics)
Michael Chabon (other topics)
Yaa Gyasi (other topics)
Anne Applebaum (other topics)
More...
This year will be a go with the flow year, even though most of the books have been planned already. 😊
I will be doing a TV/Movie Challenge again this year and French children's books as well. The last is to help with advance my study of the language this year.
My Icons
🍁 Canadian
🏳🌈 LGBTQ+
🌍 Around the World
🎧 Audio book
🎥 Movie or TV show that fits the prompt
🥐 French Language
🏋️♀️ Strong female MC
🎓Non fiction
✔️ Completed