Every January, like so many others, I make a list of resolutions I do not intend to keep.
One “resolution” I actually do every year is complete a reading challenge. Reading challenges are a great way to expand your reading horizons and open you up to books and authors you might have never heard of. There are a few different popular ones:
- The Princeton Review
- POPSUGAR
- Audry Fryer … and
- Beyond the Bookends… just to name a few.
The one that I use every year is Book Riot. Their prompts often emphasis diversity and representation in fiction. This is a topic that is important to me. The world we live in is a diverse place. Its diversity is something to celebrate and something that should be seen in fiction. This is something that the Book Riot challenge excels in. See below for my selections for this year’s challenge.
#1: Read a novel about a trans character written by a trans author.
There are some books that are difficult to describe. The ones that when you try to tell your friends about them, it sounds like you are making it up or recounting a fever dream. This book is kinda like that.
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#2: Read one of your favorite author’s favorite books.
Whenever a character with dubious morality is the main character, the story just feels more complex. You are rooting for the person that breaks the law, that breaks the rules.
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#3: Read a book about activism.
You may be wondering how it is possible to have a positive perspective on a book surrounding the AIDS epidemic. Seeing the positives does not mean only focusing on light-hearted stories.
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#4 Read a book that’s been challenged recently in your school district/library OR read one of the most-challenged/banned books of the year by a queer and/or BIPOC author
I was both surprised and disappointed to learn that one of Ellen Hopkins’ books, Tricks, is banned in my local county school district.
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#5 Read a completed webcomic
This is one of the best young adult historical fiction books I have ever read. Despite the violence and the pain that is in this book, there is also hope.
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#6 Finish a book you’ve DNFed
The story is a Red Riding Hood and Beauty And The Beast hybrid retelling. It has elements of both. Girl with a red hood goes into the forest and encounters a wolf. Grumpy boy is grumpy.
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#7 Listen to an audiobook performed by a POC of a book written by an AOC
It is rare that a story manages to get you equally invested in this many characters. Typically, I’ll have one favorite and be completely ambivalent to the fates of the rest. But not this series.
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#8 Read a graphic novel/comic/manga if you haven’t before; or read one that is a different genre than you normally read.
Being a collection told through the eyes of Indigenous creators, you can feel how much each author cares about their people and their culture. It leaves you with a burning desire to know more.
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#9 Read an independently published book by a BIPOC author.
Instead of taking the big city route with lots of craziness and people hitting each other with two-by-fours to get the last can of beans from the supermarket, the intimate setting conveys the story in a way that feels completely original.
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#10 Read a book you know nothing about based solely on the cover.
There are some books that just stay with you, leave a lasting impression on your heart and mind. This is one of those books.
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#11 Read a cookbook cover to cover.
Have you ever wondered the proper etiquette involved in communications with vampires, witches, and trolls? I know those are circumstances that all of us struggle with daily. This book has you covered.
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#12 Read a nonfiction book about BIPOC and/or queer history
From the shy and aloof Garbo to the strategic and seductive Dietrich to the absolute insane in the best of ways Bankhead, these vibrant women leap off of the page. Their shared lovers are just the tip of the iceberg.
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#13 Read an author local to you
I have lived in Tennessee for my entire life. It is not an exaggeration that a love for Dolly Parton is next to godliness. And considering that we are part of the Bible-Belt, that’s saying something.
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#14 Read a book with under 500 Goodreads ratings
History is especially enjoyable when it focuses on lesser known histories. Subjects and peoples that are often overlooked reflect a more accurate view of the past. That’s why books like Female Husbands are so important.
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#15 Read a historical fiction book set in an Eastern country.
There is something about a family saga. Reading a family’s journey through life, through the trials and tribulations that accompany it, is one of the most powerful forms of fiction.
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#16 Read a romance with bisexual representation
Oh and the romance aspect chef’s kiss. It is the perfect balance between taking charge and prioritizing consent. There is just something about a man lifting you onto a counter top…
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#17 Read a YA book by an Indigenous author
There are several moments where you feel like crying only for a character-driven moment to make you laugh. But none of these moments are at the expense of the underlying messages and themes.
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#18 Read a comic or graphic novel that features disability representation.
The story of Barbara Gordon shows that there is more than one way to be a superhero. Her transformation into The Oracle is one of the best comic book arcs ever.
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#19 Read a nonfiction book about intersectional feminism
When most people think of feminist issues, they think of things like the wage-gap, the glass ceiling, the pink tax, etc. Kendall, however, expands the definition of what constitutes a feminist issue. She argues that any issue that affects the lives of women is a feminist issue.
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#20 Read a book of poetry by a BIPOC or queer author
A memoir in verse
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#21 Read a book of short stories
We can always look at the rational explanations for mermaids. There is speculation that, at least the Western idea of mermaids, is from drunk sailors seeing manatees and thinking they were sexy ladies. Which is possibly the best historical explanation that I’ve ever heard.
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#22 Read any book from the Ignyte awards shortlist/longlist/winner list
Anything based on or inspired by mythology from any culture is an instant add to my TBR shelf.
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#23 Read a social horror, mystery, or thriller novel
You know a book is spooky when you are compelled to read it with the lights on even though NOTHING has happened yet.
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#24 Pick a challenge from any of the previous years’ challenges to repeat
For this, I picked “Read a debut novel”, a challenge from 2017.
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