Skip to main content

Reading challenges to tempt you, part V: Geographical challenges

Travelogues are my very favourite genre, but I also like to read other genres, both fiction and non-fiction, that feature locations that are well described and important for the story. If I know the location I can picture it in my mind. If not, I can imagine it and dream of visiting it some day (or make plans to avoid it all cost).

Here are some challenges dedicated to countries, areas and continents around the world, starting small and ending big. I found so many challenges with this one theme that I decided to dedicate a special post to them.

As before, you can click on either the link or the badge to be taken to the sign-up page.


First up is the Ireland Reading Challenge, hosted by Carrie of Books and Movies.

This challenge runs from January 1 to November 30, 2012. I did not see a deadline for signing up.

There are 4 levels. Crossovers and re-reads are allowed.

The challenge is to read "Any book written by an Irish author, set in Ireland, or involving Irish history or Irish characters, ... – fiction, non-fiction, poetry, audiobooks, children’s books – all of these apply."

Reviews are not required, but there is incentive to do so: A prize. There is a further twist that offers an increased chance to win the prize - check the host blog for more information. 25 people have signed up so far.


The Library of Clean Reads is hosting the I Love Italy reading challenge.

This is a year-long challenge and can be joined at any time.

Books must be "set in Italy, written by an Italian author or about Italy or an Italian person".

There are 4 levels. Reviewing is not required but is encouraged.

9 people have signed up so far.




Tasha of Book Obsessed is running The 50 States Reading Challenge.

This is a big challenge: To read books set in all 50 of the United States, although it doesn't say whether you must read one book for each state or if you can read books that cover several states.

It lasts all year and I didn't see a deadline for joining, although you would have to be a pretty prolific reader if you join any later than, say, August.

Crossovers are allowed, you need not have a blog to enter, and reviewing is encouraged. There are 27 participants already.


The following challenge is about a region close to my heart:


Swapna Krishna of S. Krishna's Books is hosting a South Asian Challenge

 This is a year long challenge, and I did not see a deadline for sighing up. 

The aim is to read books (the number is up to you), relating to India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal, and/or the Maldives.

To qualify, a book must either be written by a South Asian author or be about South Asia or South Asians (i.e. "the subject matter focuses on the region, peoples, or cultures in some way").

You need not have a blog and reviewing is not mandatory, but is welcomed. Crossovers are allowed. 32 people have signed up already.



 Rose City Reader is hosting a European Reading Challenge.

In her words: "The idea is to read books by European authors or books set in European countries (no matter where the author comes from). The books can be anything – novels, short stories, memoirs, travel guides, cookbooks, biography, poetry, or any other genre. You can participate at different levels, but each book must be by a different author and set in a different country – it's supposed to be a tour."

The challenge runs between  January 1, 2012 and January 31, 2013. I did not see a deadline for signing up.

There are 5 levels, 3 alternative variations, and 4 prizes. Reviewing is not mandatory, but you can only win prizes if you review and post links to those reviews (one review equals one ticket for the prize drawing). Go to the sign-up post to read the complete rules. 39 participants have signed up so far.

Last but not least:

Kerrie of Mysteries in Paradise is taking over from Dorte and hosting the third Global Reading challenge this year.

The challenge runs throughout 2012 and you can sign up at any time.

There are three levels, and the challenge is to read fiction from or about countries on the continents of Africa, Asia, Australasia/Oceania, Europe, North America, South America, and a seventh continent that can be either Antarctica or, in Kerrie's words: "eg the sea, the space, a supernatural/paranormal world, history, the future – you name it". 19 participants have already signed up.

Comments

Thanks for highlighting my "I Love Italy Reading Challenge"! I hope you decide to join us.
Carrie K. said…
Thanks for linking to my Ireland Challenge!

Popular posts from this blog

Book 40: The Martian by Andy Weir, audiobook read by Wil Wheaton

Note : This will be a general scattershot discussion about my thoughts on the book and the movie, and not a cohesive review. When movies are based on books I am interested in reading but haven't yet read, I generally wait to read the book until I have seen the movie, but when a movie is made based on a book I have already read, I try to abstain from rereading the book until I have seen the movie. The reason is simple: I am one of those people who can be reduced to near-incoherent rage when a movie severely alters the perfectly good story line of a beloved book, changes the ending beyond recognition or adds unnecessarily to the story ( The Hobbit , anyone?) without any apparent reason. I don't mind omissions of unnecessary parts so much (I did not, for example, become enraged to find Tom Bombadil missing from The Lord of the Rings ), because one expects that - movies based on books would be TV-series long if they tried to include everything, so the material must be pared down

List love: 10 recommended stories with cross-dressing characters

This trope is almost as old as literature, what with Achilles, Hercules and Athena all cross-dressing in the Greek myths, Thor and Odin disguising themselves as women in the Norse myths, and Arjuna doing the same in the Mahabaratha. In modern times it is most common in romance novels, especially historicals in which a heroine often spends part of the book disguised as a boy, the hero sometimes falling for her while thinking she is a boy. Occasionally a hero will cross-dress, using a female disguise to avoid recognition or to gain access to someplace where he would never be able to go as a man. However, the trope isn’t just found in romances, as may be seen in the list below, in which I recommend stories with a variety of cross-dressing characters. Unfortunately I was only able to dredge up from the depths of my memory two book-length stories I had read in which men cross-dress, so this is mostly a list of women dressed as men. Ghost Riders by Sharyn McCrumb. One of the interwove

First book of 2020: The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel by Deborah Moggach (reading notes)

I don't know if I've mentioned it before, but I loathe movie tie-in book covers because I feel they are (often) trying to tell me how I should see the characters in the book. The edition of Deborah Moggach's These Foolish Things that I read takes it one step further and changes the title of the book into the title of the film version as well as having photos of the ensemble cast on the cover. Fortunately it has been a long while since I watched the movie, so I couldn't even remember who played whom in the film, and I think it's perfectly understandable to try to cash in on the movie's success by rebranding the book. Even with a few years between watching the film and reading the book, I could see that the story had been altered, e.g. by having the Marigold Hotel's owner/manager be single and having a romance, instead being of unhappily married to an (understandably, I thought) shrewish wife. It also conflates Sonny, the wheeler dealer behind the retireme