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Every year, I try and use this to tick off as many books on by TBR as possible (although it never seems to get any shorter!). This year there are a lot of prompts that can be used for many of my TBR books, so my initial plan looks pretty crazy, but I am sure it will slim down pretty quickly.

Overall, this is a good list for me - there are lots of books on my TBR for almost every single category, and I don't feel like I need to stretch to meet any of them, which I usually do for at least one.

italics = In Progress
crossed out = Finished

1. A book related to “In the Beginning…� - A Thousand Beginnings and Endings by Ellen Oh

2. A book by an author whose name doesn't contain the letters A, T or Y - 1,001 Voices on Climate Change: Everyday Stories of Flood, Fire, Drought, and Displacement from Around the World by Devi Lockwood

3. A book related to the lyrics for the song "My Favorite Things" from The Sound of Music - Finding the Mother Tree: Discovering the Wisdom of the Forest by Suzanne Simard

4. A book with a monochromatic cover - Gemina by Amie Kaufman

5. A book by an author on USA Today's list of 100 Black Novelists You Should Read - Parable of the Sower by Octavia E. Butler

6. A love story - Big Friendship: How We Keep Each Other Close by Aminatou Sow and Ann Friedman

7. A book that fits a prompt suggestion that didn't make the final list - "A book written from the point of view of a child" - Séance Tea Party by Reimena Yee

8. A book set in a state, province, or country you have never visited - The Book Collectors: A Band of Syrian Rebels and the Stories That Carried Them Through a War by Delphine Minoui

9. A book you associate with a specific season or time of year - (Summer) To Yellowstone Park and Back: A Journal by Irene Angus

10. A book with a female villain or criminal - A Murder Is Announced by Agatha Christie

11. A book to celebrate The Grand Egyptian Museum - The Curse of the Pharaohs by Elizabeth Peters

12. A book eligible for the Warwick Prize for Women in Translation - Convenience Store Woman by Sayaka Murata

13. A book written by an author of one of your best reads of 2020 - The Galaxy, and the Ground Within by Becky Chambers

14. A book set in a made-up place - The Fellowship of the Ring by J.R.R. Tolkien

15. A book that features siblings as the main characters - Pride by Ibi Zoboi

16. A book with a building in the title - The Body in the Library by Agatha Christie

17. A book with a Muslim character or author - Our Women on the Ground: Essays by Arab Women Reporting from the Arab World by Zahra Hankir

18. 3 books related to "Past, Present, Future" - Book 1
19. 3 books related to "Past, Present, Future" - Book 2
20. 3 books related to "Past, Present, Future" - Book 3 - I went with books that have terms related to Past, Present and Future

- Past: The Office of Historical Corrections by Danielle Evans
- Present: The Time for Murder is Meow(Now) by T.C. LoTempio
- Future: Islands of Abandonment:Nature Rebounding in the Post-Human Landscape by Cal Flyn

21. A book whose title and author both contain the letter “u" - The Duke and I by Julia Quinn

22. A book posted in one of the ATY Best Book of the Month threads - A Tale for the Time Being by Ruth Ozeki

23. A cross genre novel - The Good Luck Girls by Charlotte Nicole Davis

24. A book about racism or race relations - I'm Still Here: Black Dignity in a World Made for Whiteness by Austin Channing Brown

25. A book set on an island - The House in the Cerulean Sea by T.J. Klune

26. A short book (<210 pages) by a new-to-you author - All Systems Red by Martha Wells

27. A book with a character who can be found in a deck of cards - A Thousand Ships by Natalie Haynes

28. A book connected to ice - In the Kingdom of Ice: The Grand and Terrible Polar Voyage of the USS Jeannette by Hampton Sides

29. A book that you consider comfort reading - Circle of Friends by Maeve Binchy

30. A long book (for me, this is a book with over 500 pages/over 15 hours on audio) - Flood of Fire by Amitav Ghosh

31. A book by an author whose career spanned more than 21 years - The Thirteen Problems by Agatha Christie

32. A book whose cover shows more than 2 people - River Town: Two Years on the Yangtze by Peter Hessler



33. A collection of short stories, essays, or poetry - Erosion: Essays of Undoing by Terry Tempest Williams

34. A book with a travel theme - In the Quick by Kate Hope Day

35. A book set in a country on or below the Tropic of Cancer - The House of the Spirits by Isabel Allende

36. A book with six or more words in the title - A Psalm for the Wild-Built by Becky Chambers

37. A book from the Are You Well Read in World Literature list - Independent People by Halldór Laxness

38. A book related to a word given by a random word generator - One of the words I got was "blonde", which is related to the plot of this book Unnatural Habits by Kerry Greenwood

39. A book involving an immigrant - Transcendent Kingdom by Yaa Gyasi

40. A book with flowers or greenery on the cover - Small Wonder by Barbara Kingsolver

41. A book by a new-to-you BIPOC author - Tokyo Ueno Station by Miri YÅ«

42. A mystery or thriller - The Moving Finger by Agatha Christie

43. A book with elements of magic - The Two Towers by J.R.R. Tolkien

44. A book whose title contains a negative - No Place for Wolverines by Dave Butler

45. A book related to a codeword from the NATO Phonetic Alphabet - Alpha Female by April Christofferson

46. A winner or nominee from the 2020 Å·±¦ÓéÀÖ Choice Awards - The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett

47. A non-fiction book other than biography, autobiography or memoir - Say Nothing: A True Story of Murder and Memory in Northern Ireland by Patrick Radden Keefe

48. A book that might cause someone to react “You read what?!?� - In the Dream House by Carmen Maria Machado

49. A book with an ensemble cast - The Copper Beech by Maeve Binchy

50. A book published in 2021 - Arsenic and Adobo by Mia P. Manansala

51. A book whose title refers to person(s) without giving their name - The Princess Spy by Larry Loftis

52. A book related to "the end" - Miss Marple's Final Cases by Agatha Christie

January Update:

This month, I read 10 books, 9 of which fit easily into challenges.

1.) (30) - A long book Flood of Fire by Amitav Ghosh

This is an ensemble cast historical fiction set in India and Chine by an Indian author. It wraps up a pretty epic trilogy about the opium wars, and it fit numerous categories (4,7,8,10,17 and so on), but in the end it was longer than 600 pages, so I used it for the prompt above

2.) (29) - A book you consider comfort reading Circle of Friends by Maeve Binchy

I started a Maeve Binchy reread in December specifically because I needed a comfort reading binge to take my mind off things, so this was a perfect fit for this prompt.

3.) (23) - A cross genre novel The Good Luck Girls by Charlotte Nicole Davis

I like it when my reasons for picking a book match up with the prompt, and this is a great example. This was pitched to me as a YA fantasy/western (3 genres!), and that is a big reason why I picked it up, so it fits right here.

4.) (31) - A book whose author spanned more than 21 years The Thirteen Problems by Agatha Christie

When I saw this prompt, it was clear to me that this was only going to be an Agatha Christie book since that is my official reread project for the year. This is the first Christie I read this year and so here it goes.

5.) (45) - A related to a NATO codeword (Alpha) Alpha Female by April Christofferson

This wasn't on my radar when I first saw this prompt, but I new I wanted one with an actual NATO alphabet word in the title, and this made a lot of sense and was a great fit.

6.) (15) - A book with siblings as main characters Pride by Ibi Zoboi

To start with, the original Pride and Prejudice is centered on 5 siblings, and this adaptation has the Bingley/Darcy characters being siblings as well, so this has TWO sets of siblings as main characters.

7.) (16) - A book with a building in the title The Body in the Library by Agatha Christie

This was an easy one - I wanted a word that was clearly an actual building, and this is a good one.

8.) (17) - A book with a Muslim author or character Our Women on the Ground: Essays by Arab Women Reporting from the Arab World by Zahra Hankir

This is the most shaky fit of the month. This collection of essays is by women from around the Arab world. Not all of them are Muslim, but since the majority of the countries and people talked about in this book are Muslim, I figured it was a solid, if not inspired fit.

9.) (49) - A book with an ensemble cast The Copper Beech by Maeve Binchy

Maeve Binchy books are the definition of ensemble casts, and this book, with every chapter told by a different character was a perfect fit for this prompt.

10.) (unknown) Séance Tea Party by Reimena Yee

I don't know what I will use this for yet (if I do), but it could be a 6, 7, 18/19/20 (it's about a ghost and a lot about the intersection of past and present), 32, 41 or 43)

February Update:

Running total - 20/52 (38%)
- 3 unknown/possibilities

Whew! In a crazy, weird month, despite a bit of a reading slump/slowdown at the end, I ended up reading 13 books.

My page numbers are significantly lower than last year, in part due to the specific delicate, dense editions of Agatha Christie books I am reading, but overall, I am enjoying myself, and that is always the ultimate goal.

Not all of these fit into prompts yet - I'm reaching the midway point of the book challenge, and that is always where I slow down and pursue interests over books that "fit" a prompt.

1.) (1) - A book related to “In the Beginning...� A Thousand Beginnings and Endings by Ellen Oh

Unless I am dealing with a prompt I have a particular dislike of or that is just hard, I generally start with 1 and put a book in the first spot. With the title, this just made a lot of sense.

2.) (44) - A book whose title contains a negative No Place for Wolverines by Dave Butler

This worked. I wasn't particularly worried about this prompt, but this book didn't fit naturally into most other prompts.

3.) (42) - A mystery or thriller The Moving Finger by Agatha Christie

So, I am finding that Agatha Christie is a LOT harder than Austen when it comes to prompts. I was always going to use this one, and I am only sad that it only took like 4 books!

4.) (40) - A book with flowers or greenery on the cover Small Wonder by Barbara Kingsolver



This was easy mostly because the cover of this book is stunning, and easily fits this prompt. I'm aware it isn't punch you in the face greenery, but I chose it for the artistry and the fact that the subject matter ALSO dealt with greenery and nature.

5.) (43) - A book with elements of magic The Two Towers by J.R.R. Tolkien

I'm doing a ton of re-reading this year which is hurting my TBR goal, but soothing my soul, and this was one of them. I like the way the prompt is phrased, and I think it matches this book perfectly. Magic is there, but it is in the fabric of the story and is not front and center.

6.) (4) - A book with a monochromatic cover Gemina by Amie Kaufman



I did sort of want this one to be even more monochromatic, but I always love getting prompts kicked out as fast as possible, and this just didn't fit super well into much else.

7.) (26) - A short book (<210 pages) by a new-to-you author All Systems Red by Martha Wells

I feel like I almost cheated on this one because I listened to it. But the actual book IS under 210 pages, and the audio is super short too so I am going to allow it.


8.) (22) - A book posted in one of the ATY Best Book of the Month threads A Tale for the Time Being by Ruth Ozeki

I usually sort of hate these prompts because they feel more like "look for the book I am currently reading" options, which is how I got there with this one. I considered it for 25 (the island one) because it is about two islands, one small one in the Pacific Northwest and Japan, but ended up figuring that island books are my jam, and I'm sure I'll find another one.

9.) (21) - A book whose title and author both contain the letter "u" The Duke and I by Julia Quinn

Even when I do the research and have a full list of options, these are the type of prompts that annoy me, so my rule of thumb is that the first book that fits the rule goes, even if it fits another category better.

10.) (10) - A book with a female villain or criminal A Murder Is Announced by Agatha Christie

Yes, I know this gives away the ending a bit, but I'm not the one who wrote this insane prompt. For what it is worth, I know a lot of books don't hide the identity of the baddie, but the ones I read that will fit this prompt are almost all mysteries, so there you go......

Books That Need Categories:

- Options are: 6,7,32,41 Séance Tea Party by Reimena Yee

- Options are: 7, and tenuously 28 and 48 Trapped by April Christofferson

- Options are: 7, 27 (sort of - a "King" and "Queen" figure in the story in a certain way), 32, 36) A Pocket Full of Rye by Agatha Christie

December Update -

Whoops - I forgot about this for a while this year, but I am revisiting it and found that I basically have two categories left to get! I literally JUST bought Independent People yesterday, and this will kick-start me reading it, and I am sure I can find a good audio Egyptian book to read which I will like.

I finished this one in a little of a muddle as I hadn't really tracked my reading for a few months, but I was surprised and happy that I didn't struggle much to make every category work!