Book Return

I’m Back, Canada Reads 2015 & #ReadHarder

And we’re back! I am once again working in Toronto after returning to school for another term, which means yet another foray into the world of blogging ha ha ha…

This also happens to be the day the Canada Reads 2015 longlist was released and it is delightful. So many diverse writers and the perfect theme: books which break barriers. I’m rooting for Ru by Kim Thuy, An Inconvenient Indian by Thomas King, and For Today I Am a Boy by Kim Fu for sure. I admit I haven’t read any of them yet but they’re all books which have caught my attention enough to make my to-read-shortlist. If they all make it in I have the perfect excuse to start reading them over the gross pile stewing beside my bed.

I’m willing to gamble on King’s newest book making it into the arena. It’s topical, very Canadian, and King has a fantastic reputation as a writer. There will probably also be a debut novel in the mix to represent Canada’s newest and upcoming authors. I like For Today I Am a Boy to open up the discussion about gender (it’s a topic that’s been on my mind lately). All in all super excited for another national discussion about books (!!!) this time with Wab Kinew taking over the reins from Jian Ghomeshi.

The Read Harder Challenge

I’m also excited to be kicking off 2015 with the Book Riot Read Harder Challenge–a list to freshen up your reading regime for the next year by trying out many different genres. A lot of my friends have also decided to get on board which makes for more fun over all!
I’ll be announcing which category I’m hitting as I go (there are too many great ones to choose from for me to decide right now–by January, I promise!) Here’s the list for anyone who wants to join in.

 

  1. A book written by someone when they were under the age of 25
  2. A book written by someone when they were over the age of 65
  3. A collection of short stories (either by one person or an anthology by many people)
  4. A book published by an indie press
  5. A book by or about someone that identifies as LGBTQ
  6. A book by a person whose gender is different from your own
  7. A book that takes place in Asia
  8. A book by an author from Africa
  9. A book that is by or about someone from an indigenous culture (Native Americans, Aboriginals, etc.)
  10. A microhistory
  11. A YA novel
  12. A sci-fi novel
  13. A romance novel
  14. A National Book Award, Man Booker Prize or Pulitzer Prize winner from the last decade
  15. A book that is a retelling of a classic story (fairytale, Shakespearian play, classic novel, etc.)
  16. An audiobook
  17. A collection of poetry
  18. A book that someone else has recommended to you
  19. A book that was originally published in another language
  20. A graphic novel, a graphic memoir or a collection of comics of any kind (Hi, have you met Panels?)
  21. A book that you would consider a guilty pleasure (Read, and then realize that good entertainment is nothing to feel guilty over)
  22. A book published before 1850
  23. A book published this year
  24. A self-improvement book (can be traditionally or non-traditionally considered “self-improvement”)
Help me out by telling me which category you think I should start with in the comments below and using the #ReadHarder tag!

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