Tired of reading the same old stuff? Find most reading challenges to be too demanding?

I participated in a popular reading challenge last year with some friends and the number of books, coupled with bizarre categories, left many of us feeling as if we had to read challenge books instead of books we wanted to read.

Now, it wouldn’t be a challenge if it were too easy, but when it’s too restrictive or includes too many books, it can start to feel like homework. Reading should be fun!

That’s why I’m announcing my own reading challenge for 2017. The challenge includes 24 categories (two books a month on average) with 3 substitute categories in case you get completely stuck.

The Rules:

There are no real rules. Feel free to interpret the categories loosely. You can choose to count 1 book for multiple categories or pick 1 book for each of the 24 categories. “Read” your books using whatever method works best for you – paper, ebook, or audio (I would consider movies to be a cheat, but that’s up to you). It can be a long book or a short book.

This list is meant to be a very loose reading guide and can be as challenging as you want to make it. Mostly, I want it to be fun and to stretch your reading while still leaving plenty of room for non-challenge books.

I’ll be posting regularly to this blog, focusing on a new category every couple of weeks, including suggestions of books that will help you check off the list. However, you can read them in whatever order you want.

The Categories:

1. A book that teaches you something new
2. A book with a purple cover
3. A library book
4. A book written the year you were born
5. A book written by a woman or with a kickass woman protagonist
6. A book by a new-to-you classic author
7. A coffee table book
8. A book with the name of flower or plant in title
9. A book set somewhere you’ve never been
10. A book based on a true story/historical event
11. A collection of short stories
12. A book with a one-word title
13. A book that helps explore your family history/heritage
14. A recommendation from a friend
15. A book written by an author of another race or belief system
16. A book set in a school
17. A memoir or biography
18. A banned book
19. A book by a one-hit wonder author
20. A thriller
21. A book adapted into a movie or tv show
22. A famous author you’re embarrassed to admit you’ve never read
23. A book you’re embarrassed to be seen with in public
24. A book that takes place during winter

Substitute Categories:

1. A book written by a doctor
2. A book with a punny title
3. A book that’s been on your TBR for more than 3 years

Want to print a handy PDF version? Here it is!

Tweet using the hashtag #rwc2017RC to let me know if you plan to participate and/or have questions. Look for my tweets (@WordsByStacia) using that hashtag throughout the year – and be sure to tag your books accordingly! You can also follow my reading progress on Goodreads and a dedicated Pinterest board.

I’ll post an official kick-off in early January. In the meantime, happy reading!

Special thanks to #jhbc and Sarah for their input as I developed this challenge.