It’s time for another reading challenge and Book Challenge by Erin is one of my favorites. Now in it’s 7th installment, the summer event runs from July 1st to October 31st and features 10 categories and the opportunity to get bonus points by re-doing the categories with different books that other participants have read.

I’ve participated a few times, the first time I didn’t even finish all the books I chose but with each attempt, I’ve gotten better – last time, I finished my list with a couple days to spare. This time, I chose my TBR well (I think) and I intend to complete the challenge so I can rack up some bonus points as well. If you’d like to join in the fun, visit the Facebook page to sign up and announce your TBR by June 15th.

These are the categories, with corresponding points and the book I selected for each one:

• • Freebie – Any book that is at least 200 pages – We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves /Karen Joy Fowler
  • 10 points: Title starts with the letter “B” – Born to Run /Christopher McDougall
  • 10 points: Yellow cover – A Brief History of Seven Killings /Marlon James
  • 15 points: Animal on the cover – The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time /Mark Haddon 
  • 20 points: 2017 publication The Best of Adam Sharp /Graeme Simsion
  • 20 points: Compass or cardinal direction in the title – Exit West /Mohsin Hamid
  • 25 points: Banned book (Wikipedia) The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian /Sherman Alexie
  • 30 points: Fictional book about mental illness (Bookriot; Wikipedia; Goodreads) The Bell Jar /Sylvia Plath
  • 30 points: Non-human main character (Goodreads, goodreads; forreadingaddicts) The Bees /Laline Paul
  • 35 points: A book a Disney movie was based on OR a book based on a Disney movie; (See wikipedia; goodreads) Heartless /Marissa Meyer

Book Challenge by Erin 7.0 – General Rules:

· The challenge will run from July 1st to October 31, 2017. No books that are started before 12 a.m. on July 1 or finished after 11:59 p.m. on October 31 will count. (follow according to your own time zone.)

· Each book must be at least 200 pages long. Audio books are fine too.

· A book can only be used for one category, and each category can only be completed once. If you want to switch the category of a book, or change the book you originally chose, no worries.

· You can read your books in any order you choose.

· Rereads can be used only once. If a book you love fits into a category, go ahead and visit it again. Read it in its entirety. But, only do this once for the challenge.

· There will be a photo album for each category with links to books chosen. Please comment on the photo for each of your books when you finish reading them. A comment can include a review, a rating, a recommendation…other readers want to hear what you thought of your choice.

· There will be 10 book categories with a possibility of earning 200 points. That’s 10 books in four months. For some of you, this will be a BIG challenge; for others it will be easy peasy. It’s all for fun, remember!

· Book categories will be posted June 1st to give you time to gather books in preparation. Post a preliminary list with books of your choice according to their categories on the facebook group page by June 15th (if possible – late entries will still be accepted.)

· Lastly, have fun. Don’t stress. No one is being judged, graded, or penalized. Even if you finish only one book the entire challenge, if you enjoy it and it’s an accomplishment for you, then that’s awesome. Wait, I’ve read that somewhere before…Good luck!