Some reading challenges for the new year

I’m a little late this year on my New Year’s resolutions; fortunately, I don’t have to come up with anything on my own, since the folks at WeAreTeachers have come up with a great challenge to help me jumpstart my reading this year. I shared this challenge with several friends and colleagues, some of whom adopted it for use in their classrooms this semester. There are twelve items in the challenge, so you get to read one book a month for the next year. There’s still time to squeeze one in for January, or you can double up one month. I’m covering the first six challenges in the order they appeared from WeAreTeachers, but there’s no requirement to tackle the challenges in the posted sequence. Are you ready? Here are the challenges:

First, read a book published this year. If you’re compulsive, and you like to do things in order, this will limit you to a book published in January only. On the other hand, if you get this one ticked off early, you’ve picked up some momentum to take you into the next challenge. I’m not sure if I’ll tackle this one first or wait for something else, but I was excited that Ian Rankin’s new novel, Even Dogs in the Wild, comes out today. I’ve been a fan of Rankin’s since the early 90’s; his Scottish mysteries featuring John Rebus and Malcolm Fox are incredible.

Challenge #2: Read a book you can finish in a day. I do not recommend Gone with the Wind or any of the Game of Thrones series here. One of my favorites in recent years is Daniel Woodrell’s Winter’s Bone. At less than 200 pages, it’s a quick read, and Woodrell writes so beautifully about brutal circumstances that the narrative takes one’s breath away. Added bonus: Jennifer Lawrence stars in the film adaptation—one of her earliest movies.

Challenge #3: Read a book you’ve been meaning to read. I have a long list here, and with new books coming in regularly, my list just gets longer all the time. I struggled trying to choose one of the many for this challenge, but I decided to trust to serendipity. This morning I noticed that a student had returned Cloud Atlas, which has been on my list since the movie came out in 2012 (I haven’t seen the movie yet, either). The student who returned it said it was not her favorite book, but I still want to give it a try, and, in the name of the challenge, I decided to take whatever book from my list came my way first, and this is it.

Challenge #4: Read a book recommended by your local librarian or other bookseller. Feel free to drop in and ask the friendly folks at Fireside Books, but if you don’t want to leave your house, I’ll make a few suggestions. I’ve been recommending Elizabeth Wein’s books to lots of students who are fans of historical fiction. Code Name Verity, Rose Under Fire, and Black Dove, White Raven are all great WWII stories. Action-packed, Wein’s novels take you right into the world of wartime espionage and intriguing characters. While reading Code Name Verity, I actually screamed aloud at one point, and then I cried. That’s a good book. For a book aimed at more of an adult audience, try Michael Connelly’s latest, The Crossing. This one features both Connelly’s veteran detective Harry Bosch and his half-brother, Lincoln Lawyer Mickey Haller. It’s a great book, and if you’re a Connelly fan, check out the Amazon series called Bosch—you can binge-watch the first season’s 10 episodes starring Titus Welliver.

Challenge #5: Read a book you should have read in school. True confessions time: Despite 17 years of teaching English and 6 as a librarian, I have never read Catch 22, Slaughterhouse Five, or The Outsiders—classics all. I could double up and use The Outsiders for both this challenge and the book I can finish in a day, but I think that might be cheating. I’ll probably go with Slaughterhouse Five. I’d bet most of you have a list of books you should have read back in the past, so dig out your list and get to the library!

Challenge #6. Read a book chosen for you by your spouse, partner, sibling, child, or BFF. One of our English teachers has been talking about Lauren Groff’s Fates and Furies for a week. First she said she was about a third of the way through the book and couldn’t figure out where it was going. Then she said it had taken a turn that shocked her more than Gone Girl. Then she told me she stayed up late because she couldn’t stop reading the last 100 pages. And I just discovered that it’s a free read on Kindle Unlimited, so I have downloaded it. I am ready to go with this one!

That’s six books to get you started. Several years ago, I started a Facebook page for the Colony High Book Club, but we don’t use it. I am going to re-activate it, and I will post all 12 of the challenges. Even if you’re not a CHS student or parent, please join our page and let us know what you’re reading for the challenge and how it’s going for you. Happy reading!

Prudence Plunkett is the librarian at Colony High School.