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It’s hard to believe it’s the last month of 2019! Use this thread to share your reading plans for your trip around the world in 2020 - bon voyage!

Well, I've mentioned in another thread that I have two themes I want to focus on in 2020; food and gothic fiction.

I made good use of the Black Friday sales buying a few books in these categories from my TBR, and have spent some downtime sourcing others at various libraries that I belong to.

Out of the two, I think the food theme fits more with ATW, but I'll have to be careful not to spend the entire year in France!! It seems that's where many of my unread titles will take me. Similarly, I expect to spend some time in Britain with my gothic fiction, but who knows where else it may take me.

Sounds fun Andrea. I’ve read a few with a food theme or food is featured prominently. The ones I enjoyed were:

32 Yolks: From My Mother's Table to Working the Line
Funny in Farsi: A Memoir of Growing Up Iranian in America
The Seven Culinary Wonders of the World: A History of Honey, Salt, Chile, Pork, Rice, Cacao, and Tomato
With the Fire on High
Honeymoon in Tehran: Two Years of Love and Danger in Iran

I have a few on my TBR list I want to get to next year - two for sure:

Mastering the Art of Soviet Cooking: A Memoir of Food and Longing
Where I Come From: Life Lessons from a Latino Chef

Mine focused on the country where the author is born. I noticed I don't particularly care for literary fiction books, so this time I've googled around to find books in genre fiction, mostly fantasy, some thriller, poetry, and memoir.

My list so far:
Chile Canto General poetry
China To the Sky Kingdom fantasy
Cuba The Firefly Letters YA poetry
Denmark Cold Fear thriller
Finland The Moomins and the Great Flood children fantasy
Iceland The Casket of Time YA fantasy
Malawi The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind: Creating Currents of Electricity and Hope memoir
Malaysia The Night Tiger historical/fantasy
Mexico The Wild Book middle grade fantasy
South Africa Devil's Peak thriller
Spain The Shadow of the Wind historical/fantasy

For 2020 I plan to continue to try and knock off the oldest books on my TBR list from around the world. I have one from 2013 - Mastering the Art of Soviet Cooking: A Memoir of Food and Longing and 50 from 2014! I’m going to either have to knock a hole through that list or get very picky about what I keep and which ones I’ll need to drop off. I keep getting distracted by newly published books, which doesn’t help...

One of my main goals is to become more active with GoodReads! I joined a few years ago, but I found it a bit overwhelming and life got in the way.

So, I don't have a specific theme--I just want to read at least 60 books from various locations around the world and write reviews for all. I'm on track to read 54 this year which surpasses my goal for this year and means 60 next year will push me even harder!

I have so many unread books on my Kindle, phone, and bookshelves that my other goal is to not buy a new book unless it's for a book club!

Looking forward to communicating with you all!

Travel wrote: "One of my main goals is to become more active with GoodReads! I joined a few years ago, but I found it a bit overwhelming and life got in the way.

So, I don't have a specific theme--I just want to..."

Hi Travel - good to have you traveling around with us. Fifty-four is a nice number for 2019; 60 even better for 2020 - hope to see you in a distant land over the next few months!

I’ve gone ahead and created a 2020 - Personal Lists folder. Feel free to create your personal sub-folders for 2020 - bon voyage!

Lilisa wrote: "For 2020 I plan to continue to try and knock off the oldest books on my TBR list from around the world. I have one from 2013 - [book:Mastering the Art of Soviet Cooking: A Memoir of Food and Longin..."

That one’s actually on my food list from when Jenny recommended it, and I’ve located a copy at my library - we should buddy read it!

I’m also planning to show a bit more restraint with the ARCs next year, but sometimes it’s easier said than done!

Andrea - I must have gotten it from Jenny too. It’s been on my list since September 2013 - lol! Great idea on buddy read - want to start some time in January? Re: ARCs, same boat - I found myself trying to keep up. I haven’t requested anything for awhile either.

Lilisa wrote: "Great idea on buddy read - want to start some time in January?..."

Sounds like a plan - I’d just need a few days notice to get it from the library. Alternatively we could open it up as an official group read and give people a few weeks to get hold of it and join us.

Andrea wrote: "Lilisa wrote: "Great idea on buddy read - want to start some time in January?..."

Sounds like a plan - I’d just need a few days notice to get it from the library. Alternatively we could open it up..."

Sounds great - the more the merrier and a few weeks out is perfect!

Lilisa wrote: "Andrea - I must have gotten it from Jenny too. It’s been on my list since September 2013 - lol! Great idea on buddy read - want to start some time in January? Re: ARCs, same boat - I found myself t..."

It's so funny because I loved that book and had my book club read it. My book club leader hated it! But I stand firm in my adoration.

I am really looking forward to 2020!
Hoping to knock a few off the teetering Mount Toobie, so I'll be trying to read more from my shelves. I'm also hoping to read more Women authors who's work is translated into English from another language.
Australian women authors will feature heavily in my reading year and I really love reading some of the Literary Prize lists, so I'll be looking out for what's on the Costa, Womens Prize, Booker, Miles Franklin and Stella longlists amongst others.
Might try to add some food theme books because it's a genre that is pretty new to me (I rarely even read cookbooks).
One that I do remember is an old favourite that I have a hardback copy of The Family Frying Pan by Bryce Courtenay. It's a gorgeous book.

Kim wrote: "Might try to add some food theme books because it's a genre that is pretty new to me (I rarely even read cookbooks). One that I do remember is an old favourite that I have a hardback copy of The Family Frying Pan by Bryce Courtenay. It's a gorgeous book. ..."

I've never heard of that one, Kim, but it sounds really good. Might look it up and add it to my list if I can find it.

Andrea wrote: "I've never heard of that one, Kim, but it sounds really good. Might look it up and add it to my list if I can find it."

I had a paperback copy which is good to read but if you can find a secondhand copy of the hardback it's worth it. I managed to get mine for $3 earlier in the year from a charity sale. A real score :D

Does anyone look to the The International Dublin Literary Award for some of their reading? It's a huge longlist over 156 books, nominated by librarians from all over the world.
This years list is here:


I've also started alphabetically entering a 2020 list on ŷ������ , so I can track what I've read and I sometimes use the average ratings to decide on which book to read. If anyone would like to add the last 56 books to the list feel free- I've reached my total limit of 100 that I can enter.
/list/show/1...

Oh my, that is a good list.

Kim wrote: "Does anyone look to the The International Dublin Literary Award for some of their reading? It's a huge longlist over 156 books, nominated by librarians from all over the world.
This years list is ..."

Agree with Karen - great list, Kim - thanks! I’ve added the rest to the ŷ������ list.

Kim wrote: "I had a paperback copy which is good to read but if you can find a secondhand copy of the hardback it's worth it. I managed to get mine for $3 earlier in the year from a charity sale. A real score :D..."

I've located a hardback/illustrated edition of The Family Frying Pan at Brotherhood Books. Now I just have to pick two more titles so I qualify for free postage. Shouldn't be difficult! Gotta love charity bookshops.

Lilisa wrote: "Does anyone look to the The International Dublin Literary Award for some of their reading? It's a huge longlist over 156 books, nominated by librarians from all over the world.
This ye..."
Thanks for adding the rest of the list Lilisa!
Hope it is helpful for both yourself and Karen to find some fun titles :D
Glad you've found a copy of the Family Frying Pan Andrea, hope you enjoy it as much as I did :D

Kim wrote: "Lilisa wrote: "Does anyone look to the The International Dublin Literary Award for some of their reading? It's a huge longlist over 156 books, nominated by librarians from all over the world.
This..."

I’ve only read nine and a couple are on my TBR list. Many more sound really interesting - hope to get to them in 2020.

I think I've only read Circe. Haven't seen all the list, though.

Thanks for adding the remaining titles Lilisa. It is interesting that the longlist seems to span several years.

I have read 6 -- mostly, if not all, associated with the Women's Prize Longlist and have 22 on various TBR shelves on ŷ������ -- yes, I am an avid listreader and bookcounter.

The Around the World 2020 Challenge is up - feel free to add the challenge you set for yourself. I’m going to shoot for 104 books. May the Book Force be with you!

In A Land Far Far Away 2020

✔️��Dirt Music 12 Oct
Tim Winton
Australia

✔️Travels with Gannon and Wyatt 10 Mar
Patti Wheeler
Botswana



✔️How the Light Gets In 7 Mar
Louise Penny
Canada

✔️A Trick of the Light 23 Aug
Louise Penny
Canada

✔️Galore 22 Mar
Michael Crummey
Newfoundland

✔️The Shipping News 14 Jun
Annie Proulx
Newfoundland

✔️The House of the Spirits 4 Oct
Chile

✔️The Bonesetter's Daughter 18 Feb
Amy Tan
China

✔️For All the Tea in China 8 Sep
Sarah Rose
China

✔️The Good Earth 4 Sep
Pearl S. Buck
China

✔️The Library of Legends 22 Aug
The Library of Legends
China



✔️The Kite Rider 15 Jun
Geraldine McCaughrean
China

✔️The Painted Veil
W. Somerset Maugham
China

✔️The Emperor of Shoes 13 Aug
Spencer Wise
China

China:

✔️The Chestnut Man 18 Aug
Søren Sveistrup
Copenhagen Denmark

✔️We,the Drowned 25 Oct
Carsten Jensen
Denmark

✔️The Bloody Tower 12 May
Carola Dunn
London, England

✔️The Gown: A Novel of the Royal Wedding 6 Oct
Jennifer Robson
London, England

England

✔️The Confessions of Catherine de Medici 22 Jan
C.W. Gortner
France

✔️Gargantua and Pantagruel 2 Nov
François Rabelais
France

✔️The Girl at the Lion d'Or 23 Sep
Sebastian Faulks
France

✔️The Sacrament 31 Aug
Olaf Olafsson
France

✔️Happy People Read and Drink Coffee 25 Jan
Agnès Martin-Lugand
France

✔️Trapeze 12 Mar
Simon Mawer
France

✔️Death at the Chateau Bremont 2 Apr
M.L. Longworth
Aix-en-Provence, France

✔️Germinal 29 Apr
Émile Zola
France

✔️Thérèse Raquin 11 May
Émile Zola
France

✔️The Vintage Caper
Peter Mayle
France

France

✔️Broken Ground: A Novel 7 May
Kai Maristed
Germany

✔️Solo 26 Jun
Kwame Alexander
Ghana

✔️Mrs Hudson's Olympic Triumph 7 Oct
Barry S. Brown
Athens

Greece

✔️The Water Rat of Wanchai 29 Jan
Ian Hamilton
Guyana

✔️The Door 29 Nov
Magda Szabó
Hungary

✔️The Legacy 6 Feb
Yrsa Sigurðardóttir
Iceland

✔️The Woman at 1,000 Degrees 26 Sep
Hallgrímur Helgason
Reykjavik Iceland

✔️The Henna Artist 20 Sep
Alka Joshi
India

✔️Shiva's Fire 288 pages 16 Oct
Suzanne Fisher Staples
India

✔️Kim 29 Oct
Rudyard Kipling
India

✔️They Came to Baghdad 10 Jul
Agatha Christie
Iran

✔️Dubliners 2 Oct
James Joyce
Ireland

✔️Christine Falls 9 Jun
Benjamin Black
Ireland

✔️Elegy for April 11 Aug
Benjamin Black
Ireland

Ireland

✔️The Cloven Viscount 20 Dec
Invisible Cities
Italo Calvino
Italy

✔️August Heat 15 Mar
✔️The Snack Thief 26 Jun
Andrea Camilleri
Italy

✔️A Murder on the Appian Way 28 Sep
Steven Saylor
Rome

✔️Pompeii 11 Sep
Robert Harris
Italy

✔️Michelangelo and the Pope's Ceiling 9 Aug
Ross King
Italy

✔️Unnatural Selection 26 Jan
Aaron Elkins
Isles of Scilly

✔️The Tale of Genji 11 Oct
Murasaki Shikibu
Japan

✔️The Memory Police 7 Feb
Yōko Ogawa
Japan

✔️The Devil of Nanking 28 May
Mo Hayder
Japan

✔️The Devotion of Suspect X 4 Aug
Keigo Higashino
Japan

✔️Salvation of a Saint 6 Aug
Keigo Higashino
Japan

✔️My Heart Is a Golden Buddha: Buddhist Stories from Korea 11 Mar
Chong Go "Daehaeng" Sunim, Seon Master
Korea

✔️The Delightful Life of a Suicide Pilot 25 Jun
Colin Cotterill
Laos

✔️��The Second Biggest Nothing
Colin Cotterill 9 Oct
Laos

✔️Just Deserts 354 pages 1 May
Jinx Schwartz
Mexico

✔️Under the Volcano 30 Sep
Malcolm Lowry
Quauhnahuac, Mexico.

✔️The Murmur of Bees 23 Mar
Sofía Segovia
Northern Mexico

✔️The Storyteller of Marrakesh 28 Jun
Joydeep Roy-Bhattacharya
Marrakesh Morocco

✔️Autumn 23 Dec
Karl Ove Knausgaard
Norway

✔️Norwegian by Night 29 Dec
Derek B. Miller
Norway

✔️Knife 2 Mar
Jo Nesbo
Oslo (Norway)

✔️The Leopard 6 Mar
Jo Nesbo
Oslo (Norway)

Norway

✔️Disappearing Earth 6 Apr
Julia Phillips
Russia

✔️The Charm School 30 Dec
Nelson DeMille
Russia

✔️The Secrets We Kept 17 Apr
Lara Prescott
Russia

✔️The Madonnas of Leningrad 14 Mar
Debra Dean
Russia

✔️Deathless 13 Feb
Catherynne M. Valente
Russia

✔️Devil of the Highlands 12 Nov
Lynsay Sands
Scotland

✔️Where the Bodies Are Buried 25 Sep
Christopher Brookmyre
Scotland

✔️Raven Black 29 May
Ann Cleeves
Scotland

Forth Rail Bridge Scotland

✔️Wake Up Dead 5 Mar
Roger Smith
South Africa, Cape Town

✔️The Power of One 28 Aug
Bryce Courtenay
South Africa

✔️Born a Crime: Stories From a South African Childhood 11 Aug
Trevor Noah
South Africa

South Africa

✔️The Amber Room 12 Apr
Steve Berry
Soviet Union

✔️All This I Will Give to You 27 Sep
Dolores Redondo
Spain

✔️Viva Jacquelina! Being an Account of the Further Adventures of Jacky Faber, Over the Hills and Far Away! 24 Nov
L.A. Meyer
Spain

✔️The Prince of Mist 24 Nov
Carlos Ruiz Zafón
Spain

✔️Hot Milk 21 Jun
Deborah Levy
Spain

✔️The Winter Soldier 15 Sep
Daniel Mason
Galicia, Spain

Spain

✔️The Turtle of Oman 15 Aug
Naomi Shihab Nye
Sultanate of Oman

✔️The Department of Sensitive Crimes 26 Jun
Alexander McCall Smith
Sweden

✔️A Man Called Ove 3 Aug
Fredrik Backman
Sweden

Sweden

✔️The Noodle Maker of Kalimpong: The Untold Story of My Struggle for Tibet 12 Jun
Gyalo Thondup
Tibet

✔️ 23 Dec
Orhan Pamuk
Turkey

✔️The Architect's Apprentice 29 Dec
Elif Shafak
Turkey

✔️Inside Out & Back Again 10 Mar
Thanhha Lai
Vietnam

✔️The Mountains Sing 7 Sep
Nguyễn Phan Qu�� Mai
Vietnam

✔️The Delightful Life of a Suicide Pilot 25 Jun
✔️The Second Biggest Nothing 9 Oct
✔️Don't Eat Me 15 Dec
Colin Cotterill
Vietnam

Hi Almeta - good to see you here! Nice list - have to check out a few. Funny, I thought of mentioning the The Water Rat of Wanchai at the other place - guessing you’re looking at using it for the theme thread? Love Ava Lee!

Lilisa wrote: "Hi Almeta - .......Funny, I thought of mentioning the The Water Rat of Wanchai at the other place - guessing you’re looking at using it for the theme thread?"

Yes, doing exactly that. Caught me. lol!

Almeta wrote: "Lilisa wrote: "Hi Almeta - .......Funny, I thought of mentioning the The Water Rat of Wanchai at the other place - guessing you’re looking at using it for the theme thread?"

Yes, d..."

Awesome :-) hope you enjoy it and get hooked on the series...for the serial killing challenge! 😂

I will be reading from the International Booker long list again, when it is announced. I will probably read a few more Scandinavian and Latin American books as well, since I have enjoyed others from those groups of countries. (I haven't decided which ones yet.)

I'm not sure if I'm putting this question in the right place but how do you guys use the 'around the world reads' tracker widget? Do you allocate 1 book per country or count all books that you consider to be ATW? And if the latter, which countries do you count? All except your own? All except the 'western world'? I'm guessing we can do it however we like but I'm intrigued to see what people prefer :)

@Hannah: my goal is to read at least one book from (an author born in) a country. So I put only one book from one country in the widget.

I also use a website where I can mark my "visited" countries. It's nice to see visually how many countries I've covered so far.
If you want to see, this is so far.

Hi Hannah - you’ll not be surprised to hear - no rules here at ATW - it’s what you'd like to include as part of your travels - wherever you go - stress free. I’m not consistent in how I track books - lol. I don’t limit one per country. I did a quick check on my ATW books - I seem to have multiple books set in India and a few each from other countries. I probably need to update my list! I do include some books set in the U.S. depending on the storyline - my logic that those books would resonate globally.

Hannah wrote: "I'm not sure if I'm putting this question in the right place but how do you guys use the 'around the world reads' tracker widget? Do you allocate 1 book per country or count all books that you cons..."

I use every book that I shelve as "around the world." It makes up for the year I spent four months just reading books from Papua New Guinea. Ha!

Hannah wrote: "I'm guessing we can do it however we like but I'm intrigued to see what people prefer :) ..."

I’m not the most consistent, but I tend to go by the location of the story rather than the nationality of the author. If there are multiple countries, I would usually choose the most prominent, unless there’s a really obscure one I can add to my map 😃 (I’m thinking here of The Electric Hotel which I recorded as Andorra rather than the USA).

As for what to exclude, that gets even more subjective for me. I don’t usually include Australia unless the location is quite unique or special or unfamiliar to me. For other western countries I won’t add them if the location isn’t a feature (i.e. if it could be Anywheresville).

But as Lilisa said, it’s up to you! It’s your journey.

Andrea wrote: "Hannah wrote: "I'm guessing we can do it however we like but I'm intrigued to see what people prefer :) ..."

I’m not the most consistent, but I tend to go by the location of the story rather than ..."

Andrea - have you read 32 Yolks: From My Mother's Table to Working the Line - that was my first and only book for Andorra. The food theme may be of interest if you haven’t read it.

Jenny (Reading Envy) wrote: "Hannah wrote: "I'm not sure if I'm putting this question in the right place but how do you guys use the 'around the world reads' tracker widget? Do you allocate 1 book per country or count all book..."

Lol Jenny! I like your style :-)

Lilisa wrote: "Andrea - have you read 32 Yolks: From My Mother's Table to Working the Line - that was my first and only book for Andorra. The food theme may be of interest if you haven’t read it..."

No, I hadn’t heard of it. Thanks - now on my list!

Thanks for the input guys!

Hi everyone - it’s close to the end of the third quarter and we’re getting ready to dive into the last quarter of 2020! Where did the year go? How are folks doing with their reading goals for 2020? Is Q4 going to be a casual amble, jog, or mad dash? Inquiring minds want to know!

Lilisa wrote: "Hi everyone - it’s close to the end of the third quarter and we’re getting ready to dive into the last quarter of 2020! Where did the year go? How are folks doing with their reading goals for 2020?..."

Oh, I have fallen totally off-board. So many worries and distractions - both work and family. I've fallen back to Anglo-sphere reading. The New Year will be a relief, I hope.
Still intend to complete the Book Riot Read Harder Challenge that should bring me to Syria, Germany, and Poland.

At night, Daughter is reading to me a wonderful middle grade children's story based in China - Where the Mountain Meets the Moon by Grace Lin.

I did finish the Women's Prize 2020 winner Hamnet by Maggie O'Farrell. Very good.

Hope everyone is well.

Lilisa wrote: "Hi everyone - it’s close to the end of the third quarter and we’re getting ready to dive into the last quarter of 2020! Where did the year go? How are folks doing with their reading goals for 2020?..."

September was a big slow down for me after the rhythm of August and Women in Translation month, where I read some excellent books of varying genres.

I was heartened by the diversity shown in the Booker Prize, which has not interested me in recent years, so reading Zimbabwe and Ethiopia there and have a Zambian title The Old Drift to read, and a few others that make this last quarter potentially very exciting.

Lilisa wrote: "Hi everyone - it’s close to the end of the third quarter and we’re getting ready to dive into the last quarter of 2020! Where did the year go? How are folks doing with their reading goals for 2020?..."

I decided months ago that my 2020 plans were rolling over to next year, so I’m not stressing about it too much. While reading has been pretty much my only comfort for the past 6 months of isolation, even now I still find my concentration is not what I would like. So I’ve been giving myself permission to read what I feel like (which is probably why I’ve been back in France in particular more than expected in 2020).

August and September have also been slower months for me for various reasons, including watching Resurrection Ertugrul cutting into my normal reading time (still have a season and a half left). I started out the year at a good clip, so overall I think I’m doing okay with my reading goal. I generally don’t have a list of must-read books at the start of the year. I kind of use the meandering method although I wanted to read a few of the oldest books on my TBR shelf and did knock off a few - not enough though.

I'm doing pretty well in reading from the Middle East, but as per usual, not as well reading the books from the Middle East I ALREADY OWN. I get distracted by the new and shiny. I've read 29 books so far in 2020 that are set in or about the Middle East. My most recent is also the read for my book club, which I nominated - Our Women on the Ground: Essays by Arab Women Reporting from the Arab World which I haven't reviewed in ŷ������ yet.

I still have ten in my pile at home! Ha.

At the beginning of the year, I wanted to read at least 20 books by authors from countries I've never read another book from before. Just so I would be half-way in my personal around the world challenge. Currently, I only read seven, so I'm probably not going to make it. That's okay though. Goal number one is to have fun in my literary travels, and I've definitely enjoyed lingering in the various corners of the world that I did visit.

I also really enjoyed finding some more lighter reads from around the world. (Wasn't exactly a goal, but a side-effect of the kind of year it has been) Searching for world literature does tend to steer you to books with heavier themes and writing styles that make you work a lot harder. It's been great to find books that put a smile on your face, or are simply great page turners.

I checked to see which countries I hadn’t been to before and read this year. They are: Mongolia, Finland, Panama, and about six or more Caribbean islands with The Spice Necklace: A Food-Lover's Caribbean Adventure. And, not surprisingly, I ended up traveling again to some of my favorite countries - Turkey, India, France, Italy, Iran, Syria, and the U.S.

Sanne wrote: "I also really enjoyed finding some more lighter reads from around the world. (Wasn't exactly a goal, but a side-effect of the kind of year it has been) Searching for world literature does tend to steer you to books with heavier themes and writing styles that make you work a lot harder. It's been great to find books that put a smile on your face, or are simply great page turners."

I completely agree, Sanne. I think when I started doing this I just was reading very full on in content or really dense books. I had to take a step back and read some lighter things, for me including mysteries, and folklore/fantasy/sci fi. Otherwise, I was just reading book after book on war and genocide. And while important and I think these books should be published, it does do a little disservice to other cultures that all we hear about them is in their worst times. Sometimes, reading a country's version of Sex in the City or Miss Phyrne's Murder Mysteries or Friends, is just as good an insight into the culture as the heavy reads.

I'm only halfway through where I wanted to be this year. It's been another year of strained reading. But I've been to places I've never been before, which is great. And I have at least 7 more books I hope to get through before the end of the year that will count. So who knows :D

Rusalka wrote: "I completely agree, Sanne. I think when I started doing this I just was reading very full on in content or really dense books. I had to take a step back and read some lighter things, for me including mysteries, and folklore/fantasy/sci fi. Otherwise, I was just reading book after book on war and genocide. And while important and I think these books should be published, it does do a little disservice to other cultures that all we hear about them is in their worst times. Sometimes, reading a country's version of Sex in the City or Miss Phyrne's Murder Mysteries or Friends, is just as good an insight into the culture as the heavy reads."

That is so true! There are huge parts of the world where - if you don't dig deeper - it seems all literature is about war and genocide. Your comment reminds me of . It's so important to realize that these stories about war and misery are not the only stories from those places.

For me, the lighter reads are also mysteries - my favorite brand of mystery is one that has a strong sense of place, and preferably in a part of the world I'm completely unfamiliar with. Starting this year, I'm dipping my toes in fantasy/sci fi and chick lit.