FALL 2023 READING CHALLENGE

[Rachel]

Please post all questions/comments/updates about the Fall 2023 Challenge in this thread. :)

The Fall Reading Challenge will start September 1st and end November 30th.

Rules of the challenge:

Read 3 books (or more)
Complete 3 prompts (or more)
Any genre ok
Rereads ok

This fall, complete 3 (or more) of the following:

1. Many talented authors have birthdays this season.

So this fall,
READ A BOOK BY ONE OF THE FOLLOWING:

Ann Cleeves
William Kent Krueger
Ursula K. LeGuin
Ann Napolitano
Zadie Smith

2. My Big Fat Greek Wedding 3 will premiere in theaters on September 8th. The family heads to Greece for a reunion.

So this fall,

READ A BOOK THAT IS SET (AT LEAST IN PART) IN GREECE.

OR

READ A BOOK IN WHICH A WEDDING IS PART OF THE STORY.

3. National Taco Day is October 4th.

So this fall,

READ A BOOK WITH THE LETTERS T-A-C-O IN THE TITLE/SUBTITLE.

4. Killers Of The Flower Moon will premiere in theaters in October. At some point, it will also be on Apple TV. The FBI investigates the serial murders of members of the oil wealthy Osage Nation. The film is directed by Martin Scorsese and is based on the book of the same name.

So this fall,

READ ANY BOOK MADE INTO A FILM DIRECTED BY MARTIN SCORSESE.

5. All The Light We Cannot See will premiere on Netflix on November 2nd. A blind French girl and a young German’s paths collide during WWII. The limited series is based on the Pulitzer Prize Winning Novel of the same name.

So this fall,

READ A PULITZER PRIZE WINNING NOVEL.

6. The Reformatory by Tananarive Due will be released October 31st. It’s the group read.

So this fall,

READ THE BOOK AND DISCUSS IT WITH THE GROUP.

BONUS GROUP READS:

Happiness Falls by Angie Kim
The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store by James McBride

7. Random-This counts towards the challenge but isn’t inspired by the season. The latest season of Black Mirror premiered this past June.

So this fall,

READ A BOOK WITH BLACK MIRROR VIBES.

HAPPY AUTUMN, EVERYONE! :D

[Rachel]

I always appreciate feedback about the challenges. Always curious to see which authors you’ll try and the books everyone chooses.
Enquiring minds want to know lol.

Hope you like the group reads.

Happy Reading! :D

[Franzi]

Hello
I love the challenge!
I have This Tender Land by William Kent Krueger waiting on my kindle and been meaning to read it for ages :)
I yet have to do some research for the other prompts but they’re as ever a fab variety! Thanks so much for creating it.
I didn’t manage to read lots for the challenge last quarter but think I’ll manage better this time round :)

Looking forward to the group read too. Think it’ll be an audio for me .

[Rachel]

Franzi wrote: "Hello
I love the challenge!
I have This Tender Land by William Kent Krueger waiting on my kindle and been meaning to read it for ages :)
I yet have to do some research for the other prompts but t..."

You’re welcome, Franzi! Glad you like it. :D

I haven’t read anything by William Kent Krueger-look forward to hearing your thoughts.

Hope you enjoy all of your books.

[Dustin the wind Crazy little brown owl, Colorful Colorado]

I'm excited to read The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store as well as two stand-alone novels by William Kent Krueger.

[Rachel]

Dustin the wind Crazy little brown owl wrote: "I'm excited to read The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store as well as two stand-alone novels by William Kent Krueger.
[bookcover:This Tender Land|2581..."


I think you will enjoy James McBride’s writing. I thought Deacon King Kong was a great book so I’m looking forward to his new one.
Also looking forward to hearing your thought’s about William Kent Krueger’s books. Hope you enjoy them all. :)

[Rachel]

[Christine]

So many great prompts. I, too, am looking forward to reading The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store I can read almost every book just from the list of birthday authors too. I think I have one from every author, lol.

I'm not sure where all your prompts come from but they are always fresh.

[Rachel]

Christine wrote: "So many great prompts. I, too, am looking forward to reading The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store I can read almost every book just from the list of birthday authors too. I think I have..."

Glad you like it, Christine! :D
I’m always just happy everyone wants to keep doing the challenges with me.

I believe all of the authors (except Ursula K. LeGuin) have new books out this year -some this fall.

Hope you enjoy all of your books.

[Rachel]

I finished The Road by Cormac McCarthy. It’s a Pulitzer Prize winner.
I thought it was really well done. It’s very heavy because the post-apocalyptic world he creates is so bleak so I’d suggest reading it with something lighter. It’s worth it though-I get why he won the Pulitzer.

[Dustin the wind Crazy little brown owl, Colorful Colorado]

Interesting. I will also be attempting The Road by Cormac McCarthy for the first time. I like the Pulitizer Prize prompt as it opens the door to many possibilities. I'll be reading lots of Pulitzer Prize winners this Fall!

[Rachel]

Dustin the wind Crazy little brown owl wrote: "Interesting. I will also be attempting The Road by Cormac McCarthy for the first time. I like the Pulitizer Prize prompt as it opens the door to many possibilities. I'll be reading lots of Pulitzer..."

Which other Pulitzer Prize winners are you considering?
Look forward to hearing what you think of The Road.

[Dustin the wind Crazy little brown owl, Colorful Colorado]

Pulitzer Prize Winning Books that I'm planning to read this Fall:
Less by Andrew Sean Greer
The Road by Cormac McCarthy
One of Ours by Willa Cather
The Overstory by Richard Powers

It's possible I find more, but I've already got these four lined up.

[Rachel]

Dustin the wind Crazy little brown owl wrote: "Pulitzer Prize Winning Books that I'm planning to read this Fall:
Less by Andrew Sean Greer
The Road by Cormac McCarthy
One of Ours by Willa Cather
The Overstory by Richard Powers

It's possible I ..."

Look forward to hearing your thoughts. :)

[Danell]

I read The Road a few years ago and enjoyed it.

[Christine]

I finished
It counts for my TACO book. Its a fun retelling of Pride & Prejudice with great descriptions of food!

My Pulitzer choice is going to be I read The Road a while back. I found it to be grim but so meaningful. There is such elegance to Cormac McCarthy's writing. Its well worth the read.

[Rachel]

Christine wrote: "I finished
It counts for my TACO book. Its a fun retelling of Pride & Prejudice with great descriptions of food!

My Pulitzer choice is goin..."

Thanks for the update, Christine! :D
I’m looking forward to hearing your thoughts on Trust -hope you enjoy it.

[Danell]

Finished my first book for the challenge I Was Told To Come Alone, which works for T-A-C-O. Book was good but Tacos are always good!

[Dustin the wind Crazy little brown owl, Colorful Colorado]

I've been reading and enjoying Dear Edward by Ann Napolitano. Looking forward to reading her newest book, Hello Beautiful - there's quite a long wait list at the library for that one. This is my first time reading Napolitano and I'm already considering her a new must-read author.

[Rachel]

Danell wrote: "Finished my first book for the challenge I Was Told To Come Alone, which works for T-A-C-O. Book was good but Tacos are always good!"

Gotta love tacos :D
Thanks for the update!

[Rachel]

Dustin the wind Crazy little brown owl wrote: "I've been reading and enjoying Dear Edward by Ann Napolitano. Looking forward to reading her newest book, Hello Beautiful - there's quite a long wait list at the library for that one. This is my fi..."

Thanks for the update, Dustin! :D
I haven’t read anything by her but thinking I should give one of her books a try. Glad you enjoyed it.

[Danell]

I finished The River We Remember by William Kent Krueger. First time reading this author and enjoyed this book, another favorite of the year.

[Dustin the wind Crazy little brown owl, Colorful Colorado]

I also read two William Kent Kreuger books this fall, and I'm gonna stop with those two, Ordinary Grace, and This Something Land.
This was also my first introduction to the author.
I think Krueger is a good storyteller, but it's just not my favorite type of literature.

[Dustin the wind Crazy little brown owl, Colorful Colorado]

Dear Edward by Ann Napolitano was definitely among my favorites of the year. I highly recommend.

[Rachel]

Danell wrote: "I finished The River We Remember by William Kent Krueger. First time reading this author and enjoyed this book, another favorite of the year."

Thanks for the update, Danell! Glad you enjoyed it. :)

[Rachel]

Dustin the wind Crazy little brown owl wrote: "I also read two William Kent Kreuger books this fall, and I'm gonna stop with those two, Ordinary Grace, and This Something Land.
This was also my first introduction to the author.
I think Krueger ..."

Glad you gave him a try even if ultimately his books aren’t for you.

[Rachel]

Dustin the wind Crazy little brown owl wrote: "Dear Edward by Ann Napolitano was definitely among my favorites of the year. I highly recommend."

Glad you found a new favorite! :D

One of my favorite things about creating the challenges is seeing which authors everyone picks and which ones everyone enjoys. I’ve been wanting to feature William Kent Krueger for awhile now and Ann Napolitano is getting a lot of buzz this year.

[Dustin the wind Crazy little brown owl, Colorful Colorado]

If anyone is looking for a delightful easy Ursula LeGuin selection, I highly recommend Catwings. This is an illustrated children's series that I adore and I might re-read them again this Fall. There are four books in the series: Catwings, Catwings Return, Wonderful Alexander and the Catwings, Jane On Her Own

[Rachel]

Dustin the wind Crazy little brown owl wrote: "If anyone is looking for a delightful easy Ursula LeGuin selection, I highly recommend Catwings. This is an illustrated children's series that I adore and I might re-read them again this Fall. Ther..."

Thanks for the recommendations. :)
Her adult novels are a bit intimidating.

[Dustin the wind Crazy little brown owl, Colorful Colorado]

I'm currently reading LESS by Andrew Sean Greer. This is a Pulitzer Prize Winning Novel that I recently found in my neighborhood Little Free Library.

[Dustin the wind Crazy little brown owl, Colorful Colorado]

Two years ago, I started reading some of Ursula Le Guin's Young Adult Novels, but I lost interest.

[Rachel]

Thanks for the updates, Dustin! :D

[Danell]

I listened to Chasing the Boogeyman which works for T-A-C-O. Good book!

[Rachel]

Danell wrote: "I listened to Chasing the Boogeyman which works for T-A-C-O. Good book!"

Thanks for the update, Danell! Glad you enjoyed it. :D

[Rachel]

Has anyone watched the show Jury Duty? I believe it’s still available on Amazon freevee (I hope I spelled that right). Anyway it’s free -no subscription required.

I meant to recommend it when I watched it over the summer because it’s so fricking funny. If you’re not aware of it- it’s a reality show with a twist-everyone is an actor except for one person. The non actor thinks he’s serving on a civil case and participating in a documentary about what it’s like to sit on a jury. James marsden plays an exaggerated obnoxious version of himself. The other actors are character actors and mostly unknown or it wouldn’t have worked.

It’s silly and good natured and I haven’t laughed that much at a screen in a long time. Anyway just wanted to share. Hope all of you are well. :D

[Dustin the wind Crazy little brown owl, Colorful Colorado]

Recent T-A-C-O reads:
Bel Canto by Ann Patchett
Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark by Alvin Schwartz

[Dustin the wind Crazy little brown owl, Colorful Colorado]

T-A-C-O currently reading
Across the Universe by Beth Revis. This is a re-read for me. First read in 2019 and recently read book three in the trilogy for first time.

[Rachel]

Thanks for the updates, Dustin!

[Dustin the wind Crazy little brown owl, Colorful Colorado]

I'm too old school for streaming. Otherwise, I'd check out Jury Duty.

[Rachel]

Dustin the wind Crazy little brown owl wrote: "I'm too old school for streaming. Otherwise, I'd check out Jury Duty."

It’s a shame it’s not available on dvd-I think you’d get a kick out of it.

[Danell]

I read Happiness Falls. Enjoyed it

[Rachel]

Danell wrote: "I read Happiness Falls. Enjoyed it"

Thanks for the update, Danell! Glad you enjoyed it.

[Danell]

I listened to The Haunting of Maddy Claire, which works for TACO. It was a good book.

[Rachel]

Danell wrote: "I listened to The Haunting of Maddy Claire, which works for TACO. It was a good book."

Thanks for the update, Danell! :D

[Danell]

I read Killers of the Flower Moon. Enjoyed it!

[Rachel]

Danell wrote: "I read Killers of the Flower Moon. Enjoyed it!"

Glad you enjoyed it, Danell! :D
I really need to read it.

[Dustin the wind Crazy little brown owl, Colorful Colorado]

Danell wrote: "I read Killers of the Flower Moon. Enjoyed it!"

I had such a hard time getting through The Wager, I haven't given Killers of the Flower Moon much consideration.

[Dustin the wind Crazy little brown owl, Colorful Colorado]

I recently read a Pulitzer Prize winning novel titled The Overstory by Richard Powers. This was one of my favorite books read this year. I intend to explore more by this author.

[Rachel]

Dustin the wind Crazy little brown owl wrote: "I recently read a Pulitzer Prize winning novel titled The Overstory by Richard Powers. This was one of my favorite books read this year. I intend to explore more by this author.
[bookcover:The Over..."

Thanks for the update, Dustin! Glad you enjoyed it. :D

[Danell]

I read Trust which works for the Pulitzer Prize winner. Wasn’t for me.