Each time a new year rolls around, it seems the age-old resolution to “read more books” does too. This year, we challenge you to not only read more books but to read 23 books for 2023! And, we've developed a list to guide your reading and encourage you to step outside your comfort zone.
So, in 2023, we challenge you to read:
- A book for the new year (check out some of our New Year's booklists for inspiration!)
- A book with a bookmark from a previous patron
- A book in translation
- An audiobook or eBook
- A graphic novel
- A book that’s been challenged or banned
- A book you’d previously started and put down
- A book with a pink cover
- A book that takes place in a country you’d like to visit
- A book written by a trans author
- A book about science
- A romance novel
- A childhood favorite
- A book by an Indigenous writer
- A book of poems
- A book of short stories
- A book from your local library’s book display
- A memoir or a play
- A book that takes place in the future
- A book published posthumously
- A book written in the form of letters or diaries (epistolary)
- A book that someone recommended to you
- A book with an animal in the title
- BONUS: Book flex (a book over a thousand pages)
If this number is sounding alarm bells (on average, Americans read four books a year), never fear! There are many ways to complete this year’s challenge. Our dedicated staff has created a bingo board so you can read just five books in a row or in a column to get little bingo boosts along the way!
So, you can read a book that has been challenged or banned (such as All Boys Aren’t Blue by George M Johnson), a book that you’ve previously started and put down (Down Below by Leonora Carrington, in my case), a book with a pink cover (such as Elif Batuman’s The Idiot), a book set in a country you’d like to visit (like Imminence by Mariana Dimópulos, set in Argentina), and a book by a trans author (Detransition, Baby by Torrey Peters, also a BPL Book Prize finalist in 2021) … and BINGO!
Or, maybe you’re more of a vertical reader, and you plow through A Career in Books by Kate Gavino, Detransition, Baby by Torrey Peters, Matilda by Roald Dahl, I’ll Be Gone in the Dark by Michelle McNamara and Les Miserables by Victor Hugo (a graphic novel, book by a trans author, a childhood favorite, a posthumously published book and a “book flex” book that’s over 1,000 pages) ... and you’ve got bingo from top to bottom!
Print out a copy of our bingo board (PDF here)! As you complete each "bingo," share a picture of your board (as a selfie, or even alongside a stack of books you read to get there) with the hashtag #BPLbookbingo and we’ll post your accomplishments on our blog! Check in with us throughout the year for updates from staff who’ve accepted the challenge. They’ll be sharing ideas for some of the tougher categories. ?
And, if you’re ready for the ultimate challenge (The Power Broker book flex, anyone?), read 23 books (or 24, with the bonus!) by the end of the year, and we’ll give you a special prize! More information on that to come in the following months.
Oh, and The Rules:
- No double-dipping (i.e. a book in translation that also has a pink cover can only be used in one category).
- We are a library founded on TRUST and TRUTH so … be honest about what you’ve read!
- Have fun! Expand your reading horizons!
Unsure where to start? Our staff has compiled a list of books that satisfy each of the categories on the board. And, kids and teens can complete the challenge, too! Check out our suggested list of books for children and for teens.
Okay … are you ready? Set? Read!
