Around the Year in 52 Booksdiscussion

The 2018 List

1. A book with the letters A, T & Y in the title -Mrs. McGinty's DeadbyAgatha Christie

2. A book from the first 10 books added to your To Be Read list -Starting NowbyDebbie Macomber

3. A book from the 2017 Goodreads Choice Awards (link) -Before We Were YoursbyLisa Wingate

4. 4 books linked by the 4 elements: Book #1 Earth (in title, cover, content, setting, author...) -Earth Is Room EnoughbyIsaac Asimov&The Man Who Fell to EarthbyWalter Tevis&The Green Hills of EarthbyRobert A. Heinlein

5. A book about or inspired by real events -1776byDavid McCullough

6. A book originally written in a language other than English - probably a classic by a French author: Hugo, Dumas, Moliere?

7. A gothic novel -The Mysteries of UdolphobyAnn Radcliffe

8. An "own voices" book* -The ChosenbyChaim Potok

9. A book with a body part in the title (heart, bones, teeth, skin, blood, etc) -Splintered Bones&Crossed Bones&Bones To Pick&Ham Bonesall byCarolyn Haines

10. An author's debut book (their first book to be published) -A Portrait of the Artist as a Young ManbyJames Joyce

11. A literary fiction -The Invisible Man&The Island of Dr. Moreauboth byH. G. Wells.&One of OursbyWilla Cather

12. A book set in Africa or South America -Out of AfricabyIsak Dinesen

13. A book with a plot centered around a secret (forbidden love, spies, secret societies, etc) -The Spy Who Came In from the ColdbyJohn le Carré

14. 4 books linked by the 4 elements: Book #2 Fire -Fire Burn and Cauldron BubblebyH.P. Mallory&Chasing FirebyNora Roberts

15. A book with an unique format/writing structure -My Dearest Friend: Letters of Abigail and John AdamsbyAbigail Adams

16. A narrative nonfiction -The Selfish GenebyRichard Dawkins

17. A book you expect to make you laugh

18. A book with a location in the title -They Came to Baghdad&Death on the Nileboth byAgatha Christie

19. A book nominated for the Edgar Award or by a Grand master author (books & authors) -More Forensics and Fiction: Crime Writers' Morbidly Curious Questions Expertly Answered

20. A book rated 5 stars by at least one of your friends -Firefly LanebyKristin Hannah&The Glass LakebyMaeve Binchy

21. A book written in first person perspective -The Sweetness at the Bottom of the PiebyAlan Bradley

22. A book you have high expectations or hope for

23. A medical or legal thriller -Body DoublebyTess Gerritsen

24. A book with a map -The Silmarillion

25. A book with an antagonist/villain point of view -Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West

26. A book with a text only cover -In the WoodsbyTana French

27. A book about surviving a hardship (war, famine, major disasters, serious illness, etc) -Saved!: The Story of the Andrea Doria, the Greatest Sea Rescue in History

28. 4 books linked by the 4 elements: Book #3 Water -Taken at the FloodbyAgatha Christie

29. A book with a "Clue" weapon on the cover or title (lead pipe, revolver, rope, candlestick, dagger, wrench) -The Hollow&One, Two, Buckle My Shoeboth byAgatha Christie

30. A short book -Oedipus Rex

31. A book set in a country you'd like to visit but have never been to - (probably somewhere in Europe?) likely a classic set in France or the UK

32. An alternate history book -The Man in the High CastlebyPhilip K. Dick

33. A book connected (title, cover, content) to a word "born" in the same year as you (https://www.merriam-webster.com/time-...) - Words included: road trip, B & B, audiobook, UFO, and scanning electron microscope. I'll bet I am one of few here who has actually used an SEM.Love Letters&Silver Linings&Sweet Tomorrowsall byDebbie Macomber

34. A suggestion from the AtY 2018 polls, that didn't win but was polarizing or a close-call (paranormal WITCH) -The Witches' Tree&Equal Rites&Wyrd Sisters&Witches Abroad&The Worst Witch&The Trouble With Magic&A Charmed Death&Hex Marks the Spot&No Rest for the Wiccan&Where There's a Witch&A Witch in Time&Home for a Spell&In Charm's Way&A Modern Witch

35. A book featuring a murder

36. A book published in the last 3 years (2016, 2017, 2018) by an author you haven't read before -Mrs. Jeffries and the Three Wise WomenbyEmily Brightwell

37. A Women's Prize for Fiction winner or nominee -My Name Is Lucy BartonbyElizabeth Strout

38. A science book or a science fiction book -The Origin of SpeciesbyCharles Darwin&The Martian ChroniclesbyRay Bradbury

39. A book with a form of punctuation in the title -Whose Body?byDorothy L. Sayers&N or M?byAgatha Christie

40. A book from Amazon's 100 Books to Read in a Lifetime list (link) -The Long GoodbyebyRaymond Chandler&The Color of MagicbyTerry Pratchett&RingworldbyLarry Niven

41. A book by an author with the same first and last initials -Casting SpellsbyBarbara Bretton&Paging the Dead&Picture Them Deadboth byBrynn Bonner

42. A book that takes place on, in, or underwater -Mr. Midshipman HornblowerbyC.S. Forester&The SeaWolfbyJack London

43. A book with a title that is a whole sentence -Elephants Can Remember&Lord Edgeware Diesboth byAgatha Christie

44. A ghost story -Something Wicked This Way Comes&The Ghost and the Dead Deb&The Ghost and the Bogus Bestseller&Ghost at Work&A Wild Ghost Chase&An Open Spook&A Ghostly Undertaking&What's a Ghoul to Do?

45. A book that intimidates/ scares you - Maybe I will tackleUlysses

46. 4 books linked by the 4 elements: Book #4 Air -Castle in the AirbyDiana Wynne Jones&Dead AirbyMary Kennedy

47. A book where the main character (or author) is of a different ethnic origin, religion, or sexual identity than your own -The Red TentbyAnita Diamant&Incidents in the Life of a Slave GirlbyHarriet Ann Jacobs&The Life and Times of Persimmon WilsonbyNancy Peacock

48. A book related to one of the 7 deadly sins (pride, greed, lust, envy, gluttony, wrath, sloth) -The Illiad of Homer(wrath) &Death of a GluttonbyM.C. Beaton&A Confederacy of Dunces(sloth) byJohn Kennedy Toole&Patterned After Death(greed) byElizabeth Lynn Casey

49. A book from one of the Goodreads Best Books of the Month lists -The Storied Life of A.J. FikrybyGabrielle Zevin&Marry in HastebyAnne Gracie

50. A book with a warm atmosphere (centered on family, friendship, love or summer) -Firefly SummerbyMaeve Binchy

51. An award-winning short story or short story collection -The Complete StoriesbyFlannery O'Connor

52. A book published in 2018 -

YES, it is a bit heavy on mysteries. However, in 2016, I read 325 books and did 4 challenges with no overlaps. In 2017, I have already read almost 400 and I am working on 5 challenges with no overlap. NO overlap means NO book may be used for more than one category NOR for more than one challenge.

I do read sci-fi, fantasy, non-fiction (both science and history), historical fiction, romance, and biography as well. AND I try to read lots of classics. So I don't feel badly about my current weakness for cozy mysteries.

In addition to Around the Year 2017 and 2018, I also do the Ultimate Popsugar Challenge here at Goodreads and the 50 States/50 Authors Challenge. In addition, this year I did the Jane Austen Challenge at NBRC and the Classics Challenge at Books and Chocolate!

Holy libraries, batman, that's a lot of books!

Amazing! Do you listen to audiobooks as well?

OMG Marilyn, you're a machine!!! Congrats!

Stephanie wrote: "Amazing! Do you listen to audiobooks as well?"

Since I am retired I do very little driving. Audio books take longer than actually reading AND I can only do an audiobook when Roger isn't home. IF he is here he interrupts and you can not back up an audiobook by a few sentences. They jump back to the beginning of the chapter.