As we come to the end of the year, I am taking stock of the books I read and the many many books I did NOT read. I made myself (and a handful of friends) a reading challenge for 2020 that amounted to 21 books: 7 categories, 3 books per category. I finished that challenge, just barely in time, last week! Now, I have devised a new reading challenge for next year.

First, I thought I’d share all the books I read for each category for this year’s challenge. Keep in mind that these are, of course, not the only books I read this year, just the ones that fit the challenge. I’m not going to share my TOTAL book count for the year yet, because I still have a couple weeks left to try to top it off! But here’s the books I read for the 2020 “Storm the Castle” Reading Challenge:

Challenge 1: “It’s dangerous to go alone, take this!” – a book that was gifted or recommended to you
a. The Wee Free Men by Terry Pratchett
b. Death Masks by Jim Butcher
c. The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan

Challenge 2: Receive advice from an ancient hermit in the woods – a book that’s been in your TBR pile the longest
a. Solaris by Stanislaw Lem
b. A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle
c. Charmed Life by Diana Wynne Jones

Challenge 3: Consult the tomes of wisdom and knowledge at the Great Library – a nonfiction book on science, history, etc
a. Lawrence in Arabia by Scott Anderson
b. Disney’s Land by Richard Snow
c. Queens of Animation by Nathalia Holt

Challenge 4: Battle ghosts in a haunted castle – a book you intended to read in 2019 but didn’t get around to
a. Monster of Elendhaven by Jennifer Giesbrecht
b. Binti: Home by Nnedi Okorafor
c. Space Opera by Catherynne M. Valente

Challenge 5: Witness the birth of a baby unicorn – a book newly released in 2020
a. The Body in the Garden by Katharine Schellman
b. Order of the Pure Moon Reflected in Water by Zen Cho
c. Unconquerable Sun by Kate Elliott

Challenge 6: Recover a long-lost mythical treasure – a book you started but never finished
a. Middlegame by Seanan McGuire
b. The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making by Catherynne M. Valente
c. Out of the Silent Planet by C.S. Lewis

Challenge 7: Storm the villain’s castle – a book in the epic fantasy genre
a. Clariel by Garth Nix
b. Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss
c. Hall of Smoke by H.M. Long

So there you have it! My 2020 Reading Challenge. And now, on to next year. For 2021 I am ditching the cutesy category “themes” and I am expanding from 7 categories to 10 categories, keeping it to 3 books per category. If that goes well, I may expand to 12 categories in 2022, but we’ll see. As the title of this post declares, these categories are pretty idiosyncratic and specific to my own interests and things I want to read. If anyone would like to join me in this challenge, please feel free! If you do, I’d love to hear about it in the comments. But this is not a formally organized thing, and there are no prizes. This is literally just for myself. So, without further ado, here’s my 2021 Reading Challenge:

10 Categories, 3 Books Each, 30 Books Total:

1. Space Opera
2. Award-Winning Books (can be any recognized award including but not limited to Hugo, Nebula, Booker, National Book Award, Goodreads Choice Awards, Nobel, etc)
3. Books In Translation
4. Romance Novels
5. Books Bought in 2020
6. Mystery Novels
7. Nonfiction: history/science/biography
8. Poetry Collection Books
9. Historical Fantasy
10. Books You’ve Been Meaning to Re-Read