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3RC Reading Challenge
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Ridiculously Random Reading Challenge: Alyana {COMPLETED}
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Mod
Four times more people speak English as a second language than as a native one.
While more people speak English as a second language, nearly three times more people speak Mandarin Chinese natively.
English has nearly two billion people learning it as a second language and only 350 million people speaking it natively.
Complete ONE of the following tasks:
🗣 1. Read a book where the MC could be speaking English as a second language.
🗣 2. Read a book with all the letters of MANDARIN found in the title.
🗣 3. Read a book with more than 350 pages.
🗣 4. Read a book with the word NATIVE found in the text.
Completion Post:Prompt #: 28
Book/Author: Angels & Demons by Dan Brown
Date Read: 07/22/25
Task: 3
How it Fits: 736 pages
Mod
Dr. Seuss wrote "Green Eggs and Ham" on a bet.
Theodore Geisel's editor didn't believe the author could write a book in 50 words or less. The finished product contains 50 words on the dot.
Complete ONE of the following tasks:
🍳 1. Read a book where a character eats a meal.
🍳 2. Read a book with a 50 intact in the page count.
🍳 3. Read a book where a main/major character is a doctor.
🍳 4. Read a book where someone makes a bet of any kind.
Completion Post:Prompt #: 68
Book/Author: Just a Girl by Alyssa Cole
Date Read: 07/23/25
Pages: 127
Task: 1
How it Fits: Tiana ate a plate of spaghetti.
Mod
The odds of getting a royal flush are exactly 1 in 649,740.
Poker fiends have a slightly better chance of laying down a straight flush: Try 72,192 to 1. Out of the 7,462 distinct five-card poker hands, you have a 42% chance of getting a single pair though.
Complete ONE of the following tasks:
🃏 1. Read a book where a character plays a hand of cards.
🃏 2. Read a book with a bathroom scene.
🃏 3. Read a book with the word ROYAL found in the text.
🃏 4. Read a book with more than 649,740 ratings.
Completion Post:Prompt #: 23
Book/Author: The Highland Fling by Meghan Quinn
Date Read: 07/23/25
Pages: 341
Task: 3
How it Fits: “Hell, I should have been a lot of things to you, Bonnie, but I royally f**ked up.”
Mod
A baby puffin is called a "puffling."
To feed its chick, a puffin parent will carry around 10 fish in its beak at one time, but the biggest recorded haul is a whopping 62 fish, according to Audubon Project Puffin.
Complete ONE of the following tasks:
🐠 1. Read a book with a bird on the cover.
🐠 2. Read a book where the MC is a parent.
🐠 3. Read a book with a 6 and a 2 in the page count.
🐠 4. Read a book with all the letters of PUFFIN found in the title/subtitle.
Completion Post:Prompt #: 26
Book/Author: All I Ask by Corinne Michaels
Date Read: 07/27/25
Pages: 368
Task: 2
How it Fits: Both MCs are single parents.
Mod
Like Arm Wrestling or Thumb Wrestling, Toe Wrestling involves two competitors who lock bare feet in an attempt to pin the other person’s foot to the ground for at least 3 seconds.
There tends to be 3 rounds played with the winner having the best 2 out of 3.
Complete ONE of the following tasks:
👣 1. Read a book where a character does something you think is gross.
👣 2. Read a book where toes/feet are visible on the cover.
👣 3. Read a book you would rate between 2 and 3 stars.
👣 4. Read a book where the title starts with a letter in TOE and ends with a letter in WRESTLING.
Completion Post:Prompt #: 48
Book/Author: Us by Sarina Bowen
Date Read: 07/28/25
Pages: 320
Task: 2
How it Fits:
Mod
Elvis only won 3 Grammys.
The King of Rock and Roll had 18 #1 hits in his career, but struck out on 11 of his 14 nominations. The record for the most Grammy wins actually belongs to George Solti, the longtime leader of Chicago Symphony Orchestra, with 31 awards to his name.
Complete ONE of the following tasks:
🎙 1. Read a book where a famous person is mentioned.
🎙 2. Read a book with an 11, 14, or 18 intact in the page count.
🎙 3. Read a book where NO letters of KING are found in the title.
🎙 4. Read a book with the word AWARD(S) found in the text.
Completion Post:Prompt #: 31
Book/Author: The Perfect Psychopath by Alice Hunter
Date Read: 07/30/25
Pages: 352
Task: 3
How it Fits: NO letters of KING are found in the title.
Mod
Chocolate is (kinda) a fruit.
In more great chocolate news, the cocoa powder that goes into our fave best dark chocolate bars comes from the "beans" — or fruit of the cacao tree.
Complete ONE of the following tasks:
❓1. Read a book with a brown cover. {Your discretion.}
❓2. Read a book with all the letters of CACAO found in the title.
❓3. Read a book with the word BEANS found in the text.
❓4. Read a book where a character gets great news.
Completion Post:Prompt #: 59
Book/Author: Line of Vision by David Ellis
Date Read: 08/03/25
Pages: 437
Task: 3
How it Fits: Threatening him not to spill the beans about you and Mr. Sprovieri? p.404
Mod
Snail Racing is essentially a race between ordinary garden snails, with snail racing events taking place around the world.
The snails tend to race on a 13 - 14 inch circular track and start in the center with the winning snail being the first to reach the perimeter. Racing numbers or stickers are often put on the shells in order to distinguish each competitor.
Complete ONE of the following tasks:
🐌 1. Read a book with the word CRAWL in the text.
🐌 2. Read a book where the MC's first initial is found in SNAIL.
🐌 3. Read a book where the author's last initial is found in GARDEN.
🐌 4. Read a book where the publisher's name starts with a letter in SHELL.
Completion Post:Prompt #: 45
Book/Author: The Turn of the Key by Ruth Ware
Date Read: 08/04/25
Pages: 356
Task: 1
How it Fits: The bed was warm, and it was tempting to crawl back under the duvet and pretend I hadn’t heard anything, but I knew that I wouldn’t sleep well unless I at least tried to check out the source. p.98
Mod
The longest wedding veil was longer than 63 football fields.
If you thought Meghan Markle's wedding veil was long, get this: there's a woman in Cyprus who set the Guinness World Record for the longest wedding veil. How long was it, you ask? Nearly 23,000 feet, which is the same length as about 63.5 football fields.
Complete ONE of the following tasks:
👰🏻♀️ 1. Read a book with something related to a bride on the cover.
👰🏻♀️ 2. Read a book where someone gets married.
👰🏻♀️ 3. Read a book that is long - more than 400 pages.
👰🏻♀️ 4. Read a book with a 6 and a 3 in the total number of reviews.
Completion Post:Prompt #: 5
Book/Author: The Cornerstone by Kate Canterbary
Date Read: 08/08/25
Task: 3
How it Fits: 454 pages
Mod
There are over 10 holidays that celebrate chocolate.
The National Confectioners Association recognizes everything from National Milk Chocolate Day to National Bittersweet Chocolate With Almonds Day. National Chocolate Day alone happens three times annually: July 7, October 28 and December 28.
Complete ONE of the following tasks:
🍫 1. Read a book where a character eats chocolate.
🍫 2. Read a book where the same type of thing happens at least 3 times.
🍫 3. Read a book with a bittersweet ending.
🍫 4. Read a book where the MC's FIRST initial is NOT found in ALMONDS.
Completion Post:Prompt #: 58
Book/Author: With a Vengeance by Riley Sager
Date Read: 08/09/25
Pages: 383
Task: 2
How it Fits: Multiple characters were shot in the story.
Mod
We're all stars.
Okay, technically we're all made of stardust, but that's still pretty cool. Recent research found that humans and the galaxy share 97% of the same kind of atoms.
Complete ONE of the following tasks:
🌌 1. Read a book with a nighttime scene on the cover.
🌌 2. Read a book where the word STAR is found in the text.
🌌 3. Read a book with a 9 OR a 7 found in the page count.
🌌 4. Read a book with an MPG of NON-FICTION.
Completion Post:Prompt #: 53
Book/Author: Marrow by Aditi Brennan Kapil
Date Read: 08/11/25
Task: 3
How it Fits: 139 pages (following HOB's guidelines for audio)
Mod
Originally invented in Finland, Wife Carrying is a sport that involves a male competitor racing through 2 dry obstacles and 1 water obstacle approximately 1 meter deep all while carrying a female teammate.
The female must weigh at least 108 lb (49 kg) or additional weight will be added to her. Teams who complete the course in the shortest time win with additional prizes for best costume, etc.
Complete ONE of the following tasks:
💍 1. Read a book with a married MC.
💍 2. Read a book set at least partially in Finland.
💍 3. Read a book where a character feels weighted down in some way.
💍 4. Read a book where a character carries something or someone.
Completion Post:Prompt #: 63
Book/Author: My Friends by Fredrik Backman
Date Read: 08/13/25
Pages: 436
Task: 3
How it Fits: Louisa carries grief over her foster friend Fish’s overdose.
Mod
Extreme Ironing is considered a ‘danger sport’ in which people take ironing boards to various, often remote, locations to iron clothes and take a picture.
Some of the locations have included cliff tops, underwater, in the middle of a motorway, and also while skiing and parachuting.
Complete ONE of the following tasks:
🧺 1. Read a book where the MC has a dangerous career/hobby.
🧺 2. Read a book where the title starts with a letter in EXTREME.
🧺 3. Read a book set at least partially in a remote location.
🧺 4. Read a book where a character irons or does other household chores.
Completion Post:Prompt #: 21
Book/Author: The Good Life by Jeremy Hall
Date Read: 08/15/25
Pages: 142 (following HOB's guidelines for audio)
Task: 3
How it Fits: Set in Applegate, a rural community in Oregon.
Mod
Apple Pie isn't actually American at all.
The next time you call something "as American as apple pie," you might want to consider the fact that neither apple pies nor apples originally came from America. Apples are in fact native to Asia, and the first recorded recipe for apple pie was actually written in England.
Complete ONE of the following tasks:
🥧 1. Read a book set in America, England, or Asia.
🥧 2. Read a book that includes a recipe.
🥧 3. Read a book with a cliché in the text.
🥧 4. Read a book with an apple or other fruit on the cover.
Completion Post:Prompt #: 8
Book/Author: Flight by Laura Griffin
Date Read: 08/16/25
Pages: 352
Task: 1
How it Fits: Set in TX, USA
Mod
A team of six women programmed the first digital computer.
While historians have only recently recognized their achievements (or female discoveries credited to men), the female mathematicians participated in a World War II program coding instructions into the revolutionary Electronic Numerical Integrator and Computer (ENIAC).
Complete ONE of the following tasks:
⌨️ 1. Read a book with a strong female lead.
⌨️ 2. Read a book with all the letters of ENIAC found in the title.
⌨️ 3. Read a book set during World War II.
⌨️ 4. Read a book where a character uses a computer.
Completion Post:Prompt #: 65
Book/Author: Ghost Squad by Claribel A. Ortega
Date Read: 08/17/25
Pages: 272
Task: 1
How it Fits: Lucely and Syd are strong female leads. They embody teamwork, courage, and loyalty — qualities that make them standout strong female leads for a middle grade novel.
Mod
The unicorn is the national animal of Scotland.
Yes, although it's a fabled creature, the national animal of Scotland is actually the mythical unicorn — chosen because of its association with dominance and chivalry as well as purity and innocence in Celtic mythology. BRB, moving to Scotland real quick.
Complete ONE of the following tasks:
🦄 1. Read a book set in Scotland.
🦄 2. Read a book with all the letters of UNICORN found in the title.
🦄 3. Read a book tagged MYTHOLOGY any number of times.
🦄 4. Read a book where the author's first initial is NOT found in CELTIC.
Completion Post:Prompt #: 10
Book/Author: The Tenant by Freida McFadden
Date Read: 08/20/25
Pages: 372
Task: 4
How it Fits: Freida McFadden
Mod
Baby sea otters can't swim right away.
Their moms will wrap them in pieces of kelp while they hunt until the buoyant pups learn how to paddle around on their own. A raft of otters will also hold hands while they sleep so they don't drift apart!
Complete ONE of the following tasks:
🦦 1. Read a book where someone swims.
🦦 2. Read a book with people holding hands on the cover.
🦦 3. Read a book with the word SLEEP found in the text.
🦦 4. Read a book MC's first initial is found in BUOYANT.
Completion Post:Prompt #: 49
Book/Author: Tell No Lies by Allison Brennan
Date Read: 08/27/25
Pages: 425
Task: 3
How it Fits: “I’m at my house. I’m going to the plant in a minute, but I could hardly sleep last night. p.24
Mod
The largest known living organism is an aspen grove.
Pando (Latin for "I spread out") is a group of genetically identical quaking aspens in Utah with an interconnected root system. It's an estimated 80,000 years old and takes up more than 100 acres.
Complete ONE of the following tasks:
🟡 1. Read a book set in Utah.
🟡 2. Read a book with more than 80,000 ratings.
🟡 3. Read a book with more than 100 reviews.
🟡 4. Read a book with a mostly yellow cover. {Your discretion.}
Completion Post:Prompt #: 14
Book/Author: Lalani of the Distant Sea by Erin Entrada Kelly
Date Read: 08/29/25
Pages: 400
Task: 3
How it Fits: 723 reviews as of read date.
Mod
Ultimate Taser Ball is a kind of extreme and crazy sport that not many would have heard of or believe that it is true. It involves players carrying a real taser gun and using it on opponents to gain possession of the ball. If you are thinking, who would have come up with such an idea, the honors go to three California natives: Leif Kellenberger, Eric Prum, and Erik Wunsch.
The game is played on a 200 x 85 feet field. The ball used is a large 24 inch diameter inflated ball. The objective of the sport is to successfully carry the ball onto the opponents goalpost without getting tased en-route.
Rather than allowing players to go wild with their stun guns, the game fortunately has a rule that only players that have possession of the ball can be tased. The stun guns used emit a maximum of five milliamps, enough to cause muscle spasms to give up the ball, but well under the 1 amp lethal dose, and hence causes no permanent damage.
It's not hard to imagine that the sport was not well received. People would rather play than get tased and fall on their face. The founders, however, seem to be working towards getting a minor league going for the sport.
Complete ONE of the following tasks:
🔫 1. Read a book with a character who is in law enforcement.
🔫 2. Read a book where the title ENDS with a letter in EXTREME.
🔫 3. Read a book with a plot that seems too crazy to be true.
🔫 4. Read a book where the MC's first name ENDS with a letter in LETHAL.
Completion Post:Prompt #: 54
Book/Author: Eavesdropper by Elliot Wolf
Date Read: 08/31/25
Pages: 116 (following HOB's guidelines for audio)
Task: 2
How it Fits: Title ends with R.
Mod
Cycleball is also known as “Radball” and is essentially a game of football (or ‘soccer’ depending on which country you’re from) played on bicycles.
Unlike traditional football, however, players use the bike to control, flick, and move the ball into the opposing team’s goal. The bikes used have fixed gears with no brakes and there tends to be 2 players on each team.
Complete ONE of the following tasks:
🚴♀️ 1. Read a book with two main/major characters.
🚴♀️ 2. Read a book that has also been known by another title.
🚴♀️ 3. Read a book with a bicycle on the cover.
🚴♀️ 4. Read a book where the author's first initial is NOT found in FIXED GEARS.
Completion Post:Prompt #: 18
Book/Author: Vera Wong's Guide to Snooping On a Dead Man by Jesse Q. Sutanto
Date Read: 09/01/25
Pages: 325
Task: 4
How it Fits: Jesse Q. Sutanto
Mod
The famous Tuna Toss is held as part of the Tunarama Festival in Port Lincoln, South Australia, in celebration of the local fishing industry. The event was first held in 1979, and is still going strong.
The competition is to throw a tuna as far as possible. Originally, a fresh tuna fish was used. Since 2008, competitors throw a weighted, plastic tuna in the initial heats. In the finals, they use a frozen 9 or 10kg Southern Bluefin Tuna, with a rope handle threaded through its gills. No fish are killed for the competition, only undersized fish that have died naturally are used.
The most successful competitors use a hammer throwing technique, spinning several times before unleashing the tuna. The current record for the longest throw is held by Australian Olympic hammer thrower, Sean Carlin, who threw 37.23 meters in 1998. Carlin also holds the Australian hammer throw record. The women's record of 22.15m was set in 2002 by hammer thrower Brook Kruger. The winners take home $1,000, and second place wins $500.
Complete ONE of the following tasks:
🐟 1. Read a book set at least partially in Australia.
🐟 2. Read a book published since 2008.
🐟 3. Read a book where a character eats any kind of fish.
🐟 4. Read a book where the MC or the author is named Sean or Brook. {spelling variations accepted}
Completion Post:Prompt #: 51
Book/Author: Murder at the Patel Motel by Maulik Pancholy
Date Read: 09/02/25
Pages: 161 (following HOB's guidelines for audio)
Task: 2
How it Fits: Published in 2025.
Mod
Giant Pumpkin Kayaking is quite simply the sport of kayaking inside of a giant, hollowed-out pumpkin.
The most famous race takes place on Lake Pesaquid in Nova Scotia at the annual Windsor Pumpkin Regatta. The course is a half-mile long and competitors often decorate their pumpkins with paint and flags.
Complete ONE of the following tasks:
🎃 1. Read a book set at least partially in Canada.
🎃 2.Read a book with all the letters of KAYAK in the title. {2 As, 2 Ks}
🎃 3. Read a book with something painted or flags on the cover.
🎃 4. Read a book with the word PUMPKIN found in the text.
Completion Post:Prompt #: 24
Book/Author: In This Moment by Karen Kingsbury
Date Read: 09/07/25
Pages: 334
Task: 4
How it Fits: Every fall on the first Saturday in October, the Baxters and their kids met at Hanson’s pumpkin patch.
Mod
The largest sand castle in the world measured 54 feet high.
It took 168 trucks over a week to deliver enough sand for this carefully sculpted masterpiece.
Complete ONE of the following tasks:
🏝 1. Read a book with sand visible on the cover.
🏝 2. Read a book with a 5 OR a 4 in the page count.
🏝 3. Read a book with a 1, 6, AND 8 in the publication date.
🏝 4. Read a book that took place over more than a week's time.
Completion Post:Prompt #: 56
Book/Author: Hoot by Carl Hiaasen
Date Read: 09/08/25
Task: 2
How it Fits: 304 pages
Mod
CONGRATULATIONS!! You did it! You completed all 72 Ridiculously Random prompts in this challenge. I hope you enjoyed it and I'll see you again soon!
Hooked on Books
Books mentioned in this topic
Hoot (other topics)In This Moment (other topics)
Murder at the Patel Motel (other topics)
Vera Wong's Guide to Snooping [On a Dead Man] (other topics)
Eavesdropper (other topics)
More...
Authors mentioned in this topic
Carl Hiaasen (other topics)Karen Kingsbury (other topics)
Maulik Pancholy (other topics)
Jesse Q. Sutanto (other topics)
Elliot Wolf (other topics)
More...
Prompt #: 34
Book/Author: The Golden Couple by Greer Hendricks
Date Read: 07/19/25
Pages: 329
Task: 3
How it Fits: “I slept in the back room. Marissa knows—there’s a mouse problem at my house.” p.118