This is the sixth year of the Read Harder Challenge and my fourth year participating. This challenge really does help me “break out of your reading bubble and expand your worldview through books”. This year’s challenge seems relatively easy, or rather, not too far from what I normally read. The only one that’s a little challenging is the play, which I won’t imagine picking up to read unless I’m in a class, lol.
2020 Around the Year in 52 Books
Last year I stumbled across this challenge rather late in the year, but easily managed to fit the books I’ve read into most prompt, and in fact it was the first yearly challenge I completed for the year. Let’s see how I do this year!
1. A book with a title that doesn’t contain the letters A, T or Y: Frog Music
2. A book by an author whose last name is one syllable: The Ghost Bride (Yangsze Choo)
3. A book that you are prompted to read because of something you read in 2019: Stargirl
4. A book set in a place or time that you wouldn’t want to live: The Zombie Autopsies
5. The first book in a series that you have not started: Kare First Love
6. A book with a mode of transportation on the cover: A Whale Hunt
7. A book set in the southern hemisphere: A Long Petal of the Sea
8. A book with a two-word title where the first word is “The”: The Betrayal
9. A book that can be read in a day: Dare to Disappoint
10. A book that is between 400-600 pages: Russian Winter
11. A book originally published in a year that is a prime number: In the Garden of Beasts
12. A book that is a collaboration between 2 or more people: Overdue: The Final Unshelved Collection
13. A prompt from a previous Around the Year in 52 Books challenge (Link) – A dual-timeline novel: Easter Island
14. A book by an author on the Abe List of 100 Essential Female Writers (link): Everything I Never Told You
15. A book set in a global city: The Sun Is Also a Star
16. A book set in a rural or sparsely populated area: Himalayan Dhaba
17. A book with a neurodiverse character: Motherless Brooklyn
18. A book by an author you’ve only read once before: The Rabbi’s Cat 2
19. A fantasy book: Graceling
20. The 20th book [on your TBR, in a series, by an author, on a list, etc.]: Living in a Foreign Language (20th oldest TBR)
21. A book related to Maximilian Hell, the noted astronomer and Jesuit Priest who was born in 1720: South Pole Station
22. A book with the major theme of survival: Song Yet Sung
23. A book featuring an LGBTQIA+ character or by an LGBTQIA+ author: Every Day
24. A book with an emotion in the title: I Shall Not Hate
25. A book related to the arts: Russian Winter
26. A book from the 2019 Goodreads Choice Awards: The Starless Sea
27. A history or historical fiction: The Twentieth Wife
28. A book by an Australian, Canadian or New Zealand author: Tall, Dark & Hungry
29. An underrated book, a hidden gem or a lesser known book: Dare to Disappoint
30. A book from the New York Times ‘100 Notable Books’ list for any year: A Mercy
31. A book inspired by a leading news story: Oranges and Sunshine
32. A book related to the 2020 Olympic Summer Games in Japan: The Fire Kimono
33. A book about a non-traditional family: The Storied Life of A. J. Fikry
34. A book from a genre or sub genre that starts with a letter in your name: Supernaturally
35. A book with a geometric pattern or element on the cover: MWF Seeking BFF
36. A book from your TBR/wishlist that you don’t recognize, recall putting there, or put there on a whim: Graceling
37. Two books that are related to each other as a pair of binary opposites: Book #1: Supernaturally
38. Two books that are related to each other as a pair of binary opposites: Book #2: Naturally Tan
39. A book by an author whose real name(s) you’re not quite sure how to pronounce: Ciao, America!
40. A book with a place name in the title: The Dressmaker of Khair Khana
41. A mystery: The Clockwork Scarab
42. A book that was nominated for one of the ‘10 Most Coveted Literary Prizes in the World’: Everything Inside
43. A book related to one of the four horsemen of the apocalypse: I Shall Not Hate
44. A book related to witches: Tarnished and Torn
45. A book by the same author who wrote one of your best reads in 2019 or 2018: Clockwork Angel
46. A book about an event or era in history taken from the Billy Joel song “We Didn’t Start the Fire”: The Girl-Son
47. A classic book you’ve always meant to read: Tisha
48. A book published in 2020: The Henna Artist
49. A book that fits a prompt from the list of suggestions that didn’t win (link) – A book featuring a child being raised by someone other than their biological parents: The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August
50. A book with a silhouette on the cover: Nip the Buds, Shoot the Kids
51. A book with an “-ing” word in the title: Spinning Silver
52. A book related to time: Nineteen Minutes
2020 Ultimate Popsugar Challenge
My third year doing this challenge. Of all the challenges I participate in, this one really takes me out of my comfort zone, not to mention introduces me to some new genres and words, like bildungsroman. Of course I’ve read my fair share of “coming of age” stories but I didn’t know there’s a fancy word for that.
This is the first year I manage to complete the advance prompts as well! There are quite a few books in this list that I really enjoy, including the medical thriller which is totally out of my normal reading preference.
Regular prompts
1. A book that’s published in 2020: The Henna Artist
2. A book by a trans or nonbinary author: Fierce Femmes and Notorious Liars
3. A book with a great first line: Raspberries on the Yangtze
4. A book about a book club: The Storied Life of A. J. Fikry
5. A book set in a city that has hosted the Olympics: The Fire Kimono
6. A bildungsroman: Graceling
7. The first book you touch on a shelf with your eyes closed: Ka Shin Fu
8. A book with an upside-down image on the cover: A Thousand Pieces of You
9. A book with a map: The Twentieth Wife
10. A book recommended by your favorite blog, vlog, podcast, or online book club: The Henna Artist
11. An anthology: Switch Bitch
12. A book that passes the Bechdel test: Frog Music
13. A book with the same title as a movie or TV show but is unrelated to it: Internment
14. A book by an author with flora or fauna in their name: Magyk
15. A book about or involving social media: The Power Formula for LinkedIn Success
16. A book that has a book on the cover: The Storied Life of A. J. Fikry
17. A medical thriller: The Sisterhood
18. A book with a made-up language: The Artemis Fowl Files
19. A book set in a country beginning with “C”: A Long Petal of the Sea
20. A book you picked because the title caught your attention: The Solitude of Prime Numbers
21. A book published in the month of your birthday: Spinning Silver
22. A book about or by a woman in STEM: The Pull of the Stars
23. A book that won an award in 2019: The Grief Keeper
24. A book on a subject you know nothing about: The Power Formula for LinkedIn Success
25. A book with only words on the cover, no images or graphics: Eating Animals
26. A book with a pun in the title: Naturally Tan
27. A book featuring one of the seven deadly sins: Switch Bitch
28. A book with a robot, cyborg, or AI character: Clockwork Prince
29. A book with a bird on the cover: Dare to Disappoint
30. A fiction or nonfiction book about a world leader: In the Garden of Beasts
31. A book with “gold,” “silver,” or “bronze” in the title: McIlhenny’s Gold
32. A book by a WOC: A Mercy
33. A book with at least a four-star rating on Goodreads: Graceling
34. A book you meant to read in 2019: The Solitude of Prime Numbers
35. A book with a three-word title: Howl’s Moving Castle
36. A book with a pink cover: Fierce Femmes and Notorious Liars
37. A Western: The Vengeance of Mothers
38. A book by or about a journalist: The Dressmaker of Khair Khana
39. Read a banned book during Banned Books Week: George
40. Your favorite prompt from a past POPSUGAR Reading Challenge – A book that involves a bookstore or library (2018) – The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue
2020 Challenge – Advanced prompts
1. A book written by an author in their 20s: Barnheart
2. A book with “20” or “twenty” in the title: The Twentieth Wife
3. A book with a character with a vision impairment or enhancement (a nod to 20/20 vision): Castle of Water
4. A book set in the 1920s: Tisha
5. A book set in Japan, host of the 2020 Olympics: The Samurai’s Tale
6. A book by an author who has written more than 20 books: Clockwork Prince
7. A book with more than 20 letters in its title: The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pim
8. A book published in the 20th century: Home Sick
9. A book from a series with more than 20 books: Tall, Dark & Hungry
10. A book with a main character in their 20s: Farewell to the East End
1. A book written by an author in their 20s: Barnheart
2. A book with “20” or “twenty” in the title: The Twentieth Wife
3. A book with a character with a vision impairment or enhancement (a nod to 20/20 vision): Castle of Water
4. A book set in the 1920s: Tisha
5. A book set in Japan, host of the 2020 Olympics: The Samurai’s Tale
6. A book by an author who has written more than 20 books: Clockwork Prince
7. A book with more than 20 letters in its title: The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pim
8. A book published in the 20th century: Home Sick
9. A book from a series with more than 20 books: Tall, Dark & Hungry
10. A book with a main character in their 20s: Farewell to the East End
Azuki's Book Cafe 
1. Read a YA nonfiction book – Tisha
2. Read a retelling of a classic of the canon, fairytale, or myth by an author of color – Revenge of the Mooncake Vixen
3. Read a mystery where the victim(s) is not a woman – The Fire Kimono
4. Read a graphic memoir – Dare to Disappoint
5. Read a book about a natural disaster – The Preservationist
6. Read a play by an author of color and/or queer author – Yellow Face
7. Read a historical fiction novel not set in WWII: A Mercy
8. Read an audiobook of poetry – Poetry of K.Y. Robinson
9 Read the LAST book in a series – Silvertongue
10. Read a book that takes place in a rural setting: Driving Over Lemons
11. Read a debut novel by a queer author: You Should See Me in a Crown
12. Read a memoir by someone from a religious tradition (or lack of religious tradition) that is not your own: The Betrayal
13. Read a food book about a cuisine you’ve never tried before: Gastronaut
14. Read a romance starring a single parent: Born to Bite
15. Read a book about climate change: South Pole Station
16. Read a doorstopper (over 500 pages) published after 1950, written by a woman: Midnight Sun
17. Read a sci-fi/fantasy novella (under 120 pages): The Artemis Fowl Files (includes two novellas)
18. Read a picture book with a human main character from a marginalized community: The Last Story of Mina Lee
19. Read a book by or about a refugee: I Shall Not Hate
20. Read a middle grade book that doesn’t take place in the U.S. or the UK: Lara’s Gift
21. Read a book with a main character or protagonist with a disability (fiction or non): Ghost Boy
22. Read a horror book published by an indie press: Slightly Spooky Stories
23. Read an edition of a literary magazine (digital or physical): Tiny Words
24. Read a book in any genre by a Native, First Nations, or Indigenous author: The Song the Owl God Sang