It’s time to announce my selections for Book Challenge by Erin 15.0!

Book Challenge by Erin 15.0 is a reading challenge (you guessed that, right?) that runs from July through October. For more information and to join in the fun, check out Erin’s Facebook page.

Here are the book categories and my selections:

• 5 points:  Freebie – Read a book that is at least 200 pages

Mary Coin by Marisa Silver

• 10 points: Read a book whose first word starts with the letter A (but not the articles A or An)

All We Ever Wanted by Emily Giffin

• 10 points: Read a debut book

Three Wishes by Liane Moriarty

I’m a fan of Liane Moriarty, so I think it will be fun to read her first published novel.

• 15 points: Read a book with the word to, too, or two in the title

Before It’s Too Late by Sara Driscoll

Yay! A dog novel and a mystery in one!

• 20 points: Read a book by an author who is a person of colour

Spirit Hunters by Ellen Oh

So cool, a ghost novel! One of my fave subjects. Plus, this is middle grade, which is the genre of the book I’m currently writing.

• 20 points: Read a book 500+ pages; when listing your choice, please list the number of pages in your edition.

Wanderers by Chuck Wendig [782 pages]

At 782 pages, this one will be a real challenge for me, and may be the reason I don’t complete the bonus round. I had given this book to my brother, and, while he loved it, he said it was about 100 pages too long. We shall see…

• 25 points: (selected by Carly) – Read a book about a famous woman; can be someone in real life or a fictional famous woman (an actor, a princess, a politician, etc.)

Mary Poppins by E.L. Travers

I researched this book a bit. Apparently the author was absolutely incensed with the movie production featuring Julie Andrews and refused to license further productions with Disney. The real (to the extent a fictional character can be real) Mary Poppins has a darker side not explored in the movie.

• 30 points: (selected by Darlene McN) – Read a book that has a colour of the rainbow in the title (red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, violet)

Blue Monday by Nicci French

I had a book on my shelf with a rainbow-colored title (The Indigo Girl), but did I choose that? No, why make it easy? I read another Nicci French novel for an earlier challenge and found it interesting (though a little dark).

• 30 points: Read a book with a song title or song lyrics in the title; when listing your choice, please note the song & artist that influenced your book choice.

The Hideaway by Lauren K. Denton

[Song title: Hideaway by Kiesza]

I did this selection backwards. I looked at titles of books I owned, and then went searching for song lyrics.

• 35 points:  (selected by Vinay) – in honour of October hosting an “International Day of the Girl Child,” read a book in which the protagonist (leading character) is a girl younger than 15 years old OR a book written by a girl author younger than 15 years old.

Snow Flower and the Secret Fan by Lisa See

I’m reading this one together with one of my students. The subject matter–foot binding–is so hard to read about. The other storyline though–that of a lifelong arranged friendship between two girls sounds very interesting. And doesn’t it have a gorgeous cover?

So, there you have my selections for Book Challenge by Erin 15.0. Have you read any of these books? What do you think of my choices?

Again, check out Book Challenge by Erin and join the fun!