ŷ

Around the Year in 52 Books discussion

282 views
2025 Reading List Creation > [2025] Poll 17 Voting

Comments Showing 1-50 of 120 (120 new)    post a comment »
« previous 1 3

message 1: by Emily, Conterminous Mod (last edited Oct 06, 2024 05:57AM) (new)

Emily Bourque (emilyardoin) | 10909 comments Mod
It's now time to get ready to vote for our next set of prompts! The thread will be open for at least 24 hours before the poll gets posted. This is a good opportunity to ask any question you may have regarding the prompts, do some research, or ask for recommendations.

Voting will open in the morning of Sunday, October 6 and results will be posted in the morning of Thursday, October 10 (CST time).

How it works:
- When the voting opens, follow the link to the mini-poll that will be added at the end of this post
- You have a total of 8 votes this poll to spread across your favorite and least favorite prompts (you can also use less than 8 votes)
- You can find examples of acceptable voting practices on the Introduction thread.
- The prompts with the more favorable votes (comparing top votes to bottom votes, and looking at the overall number of votes it received) will be added to the final list

We are asking people to include their ŷ profile address when they vote. To find this, just go to your own profile and then copy the URL/web address. If for some reason you can't link to your ŷ profile, please post your full ŷ name with enough identifiable information that we'll be able to access your profile.

Poll Prompts:
1. A book set during a revolution, revolt, or rebellion
2. A book that has won an Alex Award
3. A book with a common household object on the cover
4. A book with zombies
5. A book with text partially obscured by the cover art
6. A book that includes something mentioned in William Shakespeare's Sonnet #25
7. A book related to one of the traditional full moon names
8. A book with a curmudgeon or grumpy character
9. A book that fits three other prompts on this list
10. A candidate for a prestigious literary award
11. A Gothic book
12. A book where you hope or expect to learn something new
13. A book you'd consider a comfort read
14. A book related to one of the top ten cereals of all time
15. A book with a trial

Feel free to discuss the prompts below, but please remember to be respectful to the other group members.

VOTE HERE:


message 2: by Emily, Conterminous Mod (last edited Oct 08, 2024 05:57AM) (new)

Emily Bourque (emilyardoin) | 10909 comments Mod
THOUGHTS AND IDEAS FROM THE SUGGESTIONS THREAD

1. A book set during a revolution, revolt, or rebellion
Examples: American, French, Russian, Mexican, Haitian, Cuban, Iranian, Nicaraguan, Arab Spring, Easter Rising (Irish Rebellion), Rebellions of 1837-38 (Canada), Cultural Revolution (People’s Republic of China), Sexual revolution, Industrial Revolution. There are many, many more!

2. A book that has won an Alex Award

ALA Alex Award Winners: /award/show/...

3. A book with a common household object on the cover
Whatever you consider a household object counts! This amazing site has lists of cover pictures of many, many things, including lots of household objects:

/list/show/1...
/list/show/3...
/list/show/7...
/list/show/6...
/list/show/3...
/list/show/7...
/list/show/6...
/list/show/3...
/list/show/7...

4. A book with zombies
/list/show/9...

5. A book with text partially obscured by the cover art
Subtle Examples:
Lucky Girl by Irene Muchemi-Ndiritu Beep by Bill Roorbach Never Split the Difference Negotiating As If Your Life Depended On It by Chris Voss The Speed of Light by Elissa Grossell Dickey The God of the Woods by Liz Moore

More Obvious Examples:
Wall of Silence by Tracy Buchanan Yes Please by Amy Poehler A Mind Spread Out on the Ground by Alicia Elliott The Sum of Us What Racism Costs Everyone and How We Can Prosper Together by Heather McGhee Fire Exit by Morgan Talty

6. A book that includes something mentioned in William Shakespeare's Sonnet #25
Let those who are in favour with their stars
Of public honour and proud titles boast,
Whilst I, whom fortune of such triumph bars,
Unlook'd for joy in that I honour most.
Great princes' favourites their fair leaves spread
But as the marigold at the sun's eye,
And in themselves their pride lies buried,
For at a frown they in their glory die.
The painful warrior famoused for fight,
After a thousand victories once foil'd,
Is from the book of honour razed quite,
And all the rest forgot for which he toil'd:
Then happy I, that love and am beloved
Where I may not remove nor be removed.

For instance a book with: princes, victories, honor, sun, stars, leaves etc..

7. A book related to one of the traditional full moon names



January: Great Spirit Moon / Wolf Moon
February: Sucker Moon / Snow Moon
March: Crusted Snow Moon / Worm Moon
April: Sugaring Moon / Pink Moon
May: Flower Moon / Milk Moon / Mother's Moon
June: Strawberry Moon / Planting Moon / Mead Moon
July: Halfway Through Summer Moon / Buck Moon
August: Blueberry Moon / Sturgeon Moon / Dispute Moon
September: Ricing Moon / Harvest Moon
October: Bright Leaves Moon / Hunter Moon
November: Icing Over Moon / Beaver Moon / Mourning Moon
December: Little Spirit Moon / Cold Moon

There are usually 13 full moons in a year, so by month isn't particularly accurate, but works for this purpose!

8. A book with a curmudgeon or grumpy character
/shelf/show/...



9. A book that fits three other prompts on this list
A KIS option is to count "Reader’s choice" from the 2016 list and only fit your book to two other prompts.

Examples:
Translated novel from Asia, coastal setting, fantasy or sci-fi by a woman Kiki's Delivery Service
Art, music, etc., Irish author, secrets, lies, or deception The Picture of Dorian Gray
Best book of the month thread 2024, waves on the cover, reader’s choice from 2016 Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow
Related to fire, title with ten or fewer letters, suggestion that didn’t make the list (set before 1900) Jane Eyre

10. A candidate for a prestigious literary award
A finalist, nominee, short list, or long list candidate
National or international
General or genre- specific

Examples:

Pulitzer Prize
Nobel Prize in Literature
National Book Award
Man Booker Prize
International Booker Prize
PEN America Literary Awards
National book critics circle award
Women's Prize for Fiction
International Dublin Literary Award
Hugo Award
Nebula Award
Edgar Allan Poe Awards
Costa Book Awards
John Newbery Medal
Asian American Literary Awards

==

Mystery Writers of America. (2021). Edgar Awards.
National Book Critics Circle. (2021). Awards.
National Book Foundation. (2021). National Book Awards.
Nobel Prize. (2021). Nobel Prize in Literature.
PEN/Faulkner Foundation. (2021). PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction.
Pulitzer Prizes. (2021). Fiction.
Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America. (2021). Nebula Awards.
The Booker Prizes. (2021). The Booker Prize.
Women’s Prize for Fiction. (2021). Overview.
World Science Fiction Society. (2021). Hugo Awards.

11. A Gothic book
Gothic Genre:
/genres/gothic
This genre includes Gothic horror, Gothic romance, Southern gothic, Modern gothic, classics like Bram Stoker's Dracula, and more.

Gothic nonfiction: /list/show/8...
Examples include Histories, True Crime, Science vs Occult, Analytical books about Film Noir and Dark Storytelling, and others

14. A book related to one of the top ten cereals of all time
These are from list but any list will do.

Fruity Pebbles - could use a book with fruit on the cover
Quaker Life - maybe a book about a Quaker romance
Frosted Mini-Wheats - Mini could be a book with a child in it
Froot Loops - what's a froot? Maybe a book with a made up word in the title
Lucky Charms - Perhaps a book with a lucky or charmed character
Cinnamon Toast Crunch - maybe a book with a wedding toast
Honey Bunches of Oats - you could read Mad Honey, because it is a good book.
Frosted Flakes - A snowy setting or a flakey character
Honey Nut Cheerios - A book about bees or with nuts on the cover
Cheerios - Hmmm not sure


message 3: by Michelle (new)

Michelle H | 72 comments Great list. I hope we get a bunch of winners!


message 4: by Nike (new)

Nike | 1326 comments I like
Nr 3 Household objects
Nr 7 Full moon names
Nr 9 Fits three other prompts
Nr 10 Prestigious literary award
Nr 11 Gothic
Nr 12 Learning something new

I'm okay with
Nr 2 Alex Award
Nr 4 Zombies
Nr 14 Top ten cereals

I'm neutral considering
Nr 5 Text partially obscured
Nr 6 W S Sonnet
Nr 8 Curmudgeon (learned a new word!)

I really don't like
Nr 1 Revolution
Nr 13 Comfort reading - have never connected to that expression. I read despite being in need of comfort or not. And I don't change genre because of that. It's like comfort eating, when I've been depressed or sad I've never wanted to eat, on the contrary I loose my apetite. I don't quite get it. How does comfort reading look to you?
Nr 15 Trial


message 5: by Tracy (new)

Tracy | 2621 comments I think I understand we get better results if we actually down vote prompts, but downvoting any of these is going to be hard. Some neutrals I can see, but not sure about down.

Maybe we did TOO good of a job this week?


message 6: by Tracy (new)

Tracy | 2621 comments Emily �

I have a question about "9. A book that fits three other prompts on this list" (but I think I know the answer):

Can we count the 2025 Anniversary prompts side challenge prompts as one of the 3 prompts? I'm guessing 'not', since the prompt says "this list", and those prompts are on a different list. I just don't want to limit myself unnecessarily.


message 7: by Sandra (new)

Sandra | 149 comments Tracy wrote: "Emily �

I have a question about "9. A book that fits three other prompts on this list" (but I think I know the answer):

Can we count the 2025 Anniversary prompts side challenge prompts as one of..."


I suggested that one. I would say that that counts if you want it to. I'm sort of considering the anniversary list as an extension of the main list. It's really up to you.


message 8: by MJ (new)

MJ | 900 comments This is a good list! Fingers crossed that at least a couple get in!


message 9: by LeahS (new)

LeahS | 1260 comments I try not to do re-reads for this, but the only thing I could face reading for zombies is:

The Ladybird Book of the Zombie Apocalypse


message 10: by NancyJ (last edited Oct 05, 2024 12:35PM) (new)

NancyJ (nancyjjj) | 3205 comments Awards prompt.

I hope people aren’t turned off by the word prestigious for the literary award suggestion. They aren’t all stuffy. They cover different genres, F/NF, and judge excellence in different ways. I typed the awards I saw mentioned most often in blogs, but I know there are more.

You can you can pick a respected award from your favorite genre, or from your own country. Most awards are for specific books but a couple are for an author’s whole body of work.


message 11: by Sandra (new)

Sandra | 149 comments LeahS wrote: "I try not to do re-reads for this, but the only thing I could face reading for zombies is:

The Ladybird Book of the Zombie Apocalypse"


There's also Pride and Prejudice and Zombies.


message 12: by LeahS (new)

LeahS | 1260 comments I've just remembered that one!


message 13: by Emily, Conterminous Mod (new)

Emily Bourque (emilyardoin) | 10909 comments Mod
I agree with Sandra - I'd say if you're doing the anniversary list, you should be able to count it for that prompt.


message 14: by dalex (new)

dalex (912dalex) | 2646 comments I’m confused about “prestigious literary award.� Doesn’t that mean � well, literary? I would think that would be things like the Booker and the Pulitzer, not the Hugo.


message 15: by Tracy (new)

Tracy | 2621 comments Thanks Sandra and Emily for okaying the use of the Anniversary Prompts for the “Fits 3 Prompts� prompt.


message 16: by Tracy (new)

Tracy | 2621 comments Emily - don’t forget to remove the “close calls� paragraph in the intro�

(and I’m sure this was a “Sorry! Toddlers!� moment 😉)


message 17: by dalex (last edited Oct 05, 2024 01:05PM) (new)

dalex (912dalex) | 2646 comments What a fantastic list! I’ve suggested something similar to “fits three prompts� several times in past challenges. Hopefully it gets in this year! The cereal prompt is super fun, I love award prompts, gothic is a favorite genre, and many fantasy & sci-fi books have revolutions.

Not a fan of curmudgeon because I don’t like those kinds of characters and I’ve seen it in many challenges over the years. I’m not crazy about the Shakespeare prompt simply because I’m not much of a fan of Shakespeare.

I could definitely do 8 upvotes this round, though.


message 18: by Jennifer W (new)

Jennifer W | 661 comments If you haven't heard of them before, the Alex Award is given out annually to 10 adult books that would also appeal to teens.


message 19: by Dixie (last edited Oct 05, 2024 02:02PM) (new)

Dixie (dixietenny) | 778 comments dalex wrote: "I’m confused about “prestigious literary award.� Doesn’t that mean � well, literary? I would think that would be things like the Booker and the Pulitzer, not the Hugo."

You can scroll up and look at the list under 2. item 10 for a list of included awards. And I would definitely say the Hugo is prestigious! And that good science fiction is literature. I think it's a great "awards" prompt suggestion.

As you mentioned, I'm thinking about science fiction revolutions, too!


message 20: by dalex (last edited Oct 05, 2024 02:14PM) (new)

dalex (912dalex) | 2646 comments Cereal mascots might be another direction to go with the cereal prompt.

Fruity Pebbles - Flintstones
Quaker Life - Mikey (not a mascot but featured in commercials)
Frosted Mini-Wheats - Mr and Mrs Mini Wheat
Froot Loops - Toucan Sam
Lucky Charms - Lucky the Leprechaun aka Sir Charms aka L.C. Leprechaun
Cinnamon Toast Crunch - Crazy Squares. Previously Chef Wendell, a jolly baker who worked at CTC with his sidekick bakers, Bob and Quello.
Honey Bunches of Oats - no mascot
Frosted Flakes - Tony the Tiger
Honey Nut Cheerios - BuzzBee
Cheerios - no mascot


message 21: by dalex (new)

dalex (912dalex) | 2646 comments Dixie wrote: "And I would definitely say the Hugo is prestigious! And that good science fiction is literature."

Personally I think there’s a difference between literary fiction and genre fiction (sci-fi, fantasy, horror, mystery, etc.). I would prefer that the prompt did not include confusing qualifiers and was worded something like “a book that was nominated for or won an award.� If I only looked at the prompt without reading the list and explanation I would assume it meant awards like the Booker and the Pulitzer.


message 22: by Sandra (new)

Sandra | 149 comments Fun fact: Lucky the Leprechaun was voiced by my friend Jason. He took me to my first gay bar.


message 23: by Dixie (new)

Dixie (dixietenny) | 778 comments dalex wrote: "Dixie wrote: "And I would definitely say the Hugo is prestigious! And that good science fiction is literature."

Personally I think there’s a difference between literary fiction and genre fiction (..."


Interesting. I see things a little differently, with what I think of as "literature" being a cut above the ordinary in quality and style, regardless of what genre it could be sorted into. I realize that is somewhat arbitrary - after all, I choose where I draw the lines - but all categories are a bit arbitrary, I think.


message 24: by Dixie (new)

Dixie (dixietenny) | 778 comments Sandra wrote: "Fun fact: Lucky the Leprechaun was voiced by my friend Jason. He took me to my first gay bar."

Wow! I can still hear his voice, straight out of my childhood!


message 25: by Dubhease (last edited Oct 05, 2024 03:30PM) (new)

Dubhease | 1006 comments What a great group of prompts.

The moons, Shakespeare, and cereal are my favourites because I love creative prompts and we only have 3 of them so far this year.

But really, I could do any of them.

The three prompts is my least favourite. If it gets in, I'll use book from 2016 - Reader’s Choice and either author publishing for 10 years, author with 7 books, or intriguing title to basically allow me to read anything I want. That's the KIS approach.


message 26: by Pamela (new)

Pamela | 1949 comments Sandra wrote: "LeahS wrote: "I try not to do re-reads for this, but the only thing I could face reading for zombies is:

The Ladybird Book of the Zombie Apocalypse"

There's also [book:Pride and P..."


My mom thought that was really by Austen and that the editor had taken it out, depriving her of being the first horror novel. My mom is gullible.


message 27: by NancyJ (new)

NancyJ (nancyjjj) | 3205 comments dalex wrote: "I’m confused about “prestigious literary award.� Doesn’t that mean � well, literary? I would think that would be things like the Booker and the Pulitzer, not the Hugo."

Dalex, I think you’re confusing the term “literary� with the genre of literary fiction. Literary is a much broader term. There were 10-20 different awards that consistently came up in articles and other discussions of “prestigious literary awards.� Fewer than half of them seemed to focus on the genre of literary fiction. Many reward non-fiction books, historical fiction, sci-fi, mysteries, and more.

The Hugo is a very prestigious award, as are PEN America Literary Awards, National book critics circle award, International Dublin Literary Awards, International Booker Prize, etc.

I really didn’t want to be limited to Pulitzer, Nobel or Man Booker, but I didn’t want it to be too broad either. I didn’t want to include awards that could be purchased with a membership in a marketing company, or an award given by an MFA program to its own students. It needed a qualifier.

Good writing and excellence are honored in every genre, and the goal of this prompt is to help us find great choices, and maybe a new favorite award to follow. Like I said in my notes, I know it sounds stuffy but it’s really not. If I said the “most� prestigious award, you might think of Nobel or Pulitzer, but they tend focus on books that have a bigger message. They also tend to be heavier. I’m hoping this prompt will give us all a lot of well written choices that are entertaining as well as worthwhile.

These are some that I found, but we are not limited to this list.
PEN America Literary Awards
National book critics circle
Women's Prize for Fiction
International Dublin Literary Award
Hugo Award
Nebula Award
Edgar Allan Poe Awards
Costa Book Awards
John Newbery Medal
Asian American Literary Awards


message 28: by Pamela (new)

Pamela | 1949 comments Dubhease wrote: "The three prompts is my least favourite. If it gets in, I'll use book from 2016 - Reader’s Choice and either author publishing for 10 years, author with 7 books, or intriguing title to basically allow me to read anything I want. That's the KIS approach"

I love the 3 prompts- it's creative and challenging and will take some thought to address


message 29: by NancyJ (new)

NancyJ (nancyjjj) | 3205 comments Nike wrote: "comfort reading
.."


Nike, if you’re feeling stressed out for some reason, do you have a type of book you’d prefer to read? Or if you’re bored (which is stressful too) do you have a go to type of book ?

I think comfort reading is shorthand for reliable stress free entertainment. We might all pick different kinds of books when we’re under stress. Familiarity is part of it, When you pick up a book by a favorite author, you can often immerse yourself in it very quickly and shut out the world. I usually prefer reading books that will challenge my world view a little, but when I’m overloaded by decisions, responsibility or information, I want something more familiar or distracting t9 help me to relax.

Comfort reading is good for stress management. Studies have found that rereading a favorite book, or watching a favorite movie, will reduce blood pressure faster than unfamiliar books or movies.


message 30: by Pam (new)

Pam (bluegrasspam) | 3765 comments Definite yes - Revolution, fits 3 prompts, and learn something new. Definite no - Zombies and curmudgeons. Maybe - household item. The rest I’ll have to think about.


message 31: by Nike (last edited Oct 05, 2024 06:11PM) (new)

Nike | 1326 comments nto i>NancyJ wrote: "Nike wrote: "comfort reading
.."

Nike, if you’re feeling stressed out for some reason, do you have a type of book you’d prefer to read? Or if you’re bored (which is stressful too) do you have a go..."

Hmm, when you say stress - if you mean to stressed to submerge yourself in a heavier book then I might get it. If I'm tired mentally (which happens a lot since I suffer from ME/CFS) and can't concentrate well then I do prefer crime novels, preferably British crime. Does that count as comfort reading?


message 32: by Nike (new)

Nike | 1326 comments dalex wrote: "Cereal mascots might be another direction to go with the cereal prompt.

Fruity Pebbles - Flintstones
Quaker Life - Mikey (not a mascot but featured in commercials)
Frosted Mini-Wheats - Mr and Mr..."



I think it's fun but I don't know many of these cereals. I think we've only got Frosty flakes and Cheerios here (from this list), maybe Honey nut Cheerios.


message 33: by Jillian (new)

Jillian | 2830 comments Nike wrote: "nto i>NancyJ wrote: "Nike wrote: "comfort reading
.."

Nike, if you’re feeling stressed out for some reason, do you have a type of book you’d prefer to read? Or if you’re bored (which is stressful ..."


Nike, that is what it means. The past two weeks have been extra stressful so I’m reading middle school books right now.


message 34: by Samantha (new)

Samantha | 1486 comments dalex wrote: "Cereal mascots might be another direction to go with the cereal prompt.

Fruity Pebbles - Flintstones
Quaker Life - Mikey (not a mascot but featured in commercials)
Frosted Mini-Wheats - Mr and Mr..."

What a fun direction! I originally was playing with the idea of cereal box toys but ran short on time this morning to really flush out the idea. I think the mascots might be better than cereal.


message 35: by Rachel (new)

Rachel A. (abyssallibrarian) | 3238 comments First impressions:

1. A book set during a revolution, revolt, or rebellion - I really like this, especially if it's open to fictional rebellions/revolutions too

2. A book that has won an Alex Award - I'd have to look at the list more carefully. At first glance I saw a few things I could read but nothing I very strongly wanted to read either, so it will probably just be neutral

3. A book with a common household object on the cover - I like this! I'm not quite sure what direction I'd go with it, but it seems like a fun scavenger hunt

4. A book with zombies - I wouldn't downvote necessarily, but I rarely read books involving zombies so probably not an upvote either

5. A book with text partially obscured by the cover art - Neutral. Could be fun to search for, but I have other things on this list that I want more

6. A book that includes something mentioned in William Shakespeare's Sonnet #25 - I like the creativity, but I'm not really interested in this. For any kind of lyrics/poem-related prompt, I prefer something where I can look at a book and know that it fits, and I'm just not familiar enough with this one to do that

7. A book related to one of the traditional full moon names - I'm a little burnt out on these kinds of astronomy/astrology-related prompts

8. A book with a curmudgeon or grumpy character - I love this! Definite upvote

9. A book that fits three other prompts on this list - Most likely a downvote. My planning process already takes a while, and I'm not really interested in adding an extra step of cross-referencing each book to see if it fits multiple

10. A candidate for a prestigious literary award - Likely downvote. I'm really not interested in awards prompts generally.

11. A Gothic book - Most likely an upvote!

12. A book where you hope or expect to learn something new - Neutral. If it gets in, I can slot in a non-fiction audiobook to listen to while I work sometimes, but it's not something I'd actively want

13. A book you'd consider a comfort read - I have a little prompt fatigue with this one. It comes up on a lot of challenges.

14. A book related to one of the top ten cereals of all time - No clue how I'd tackle this one, but I love the creativity of the concept!

15. A book with a trial - Definite upvote


message 36: by Pam (new)

Pam (bluegrasspam) | 3765 comments Rachel - Thanks for bringing up the possibility of a fictitious revolution, revolt or rebellion. I wasn’t even thinking about going that direction but yes, that works! A good example is Red Rising by Pierce Brown.


message 37: by Charlsa (new)

Charlsa (cjbookjunkie) | 419 comments LeahS wrote: "I try not to do re-reads for this, but the only thing I could face reading for zombies is:

The Ladybird Book of the Zombie Apocalypse"

Thanks for noting The Ladybird Book of the Zombie Apocalypse" because all I could think of was to re-read Pride and Prejudice and Zombies which was well-done and entertaining. Now I have a new book to read if the prompt makes it.


message 38: by JessicaMHR (new)

JessicaMHR | 288 comments The only thing I can think of with regards to Cheerios cereal is... "Cheeri-O" said in a British accent, LOL!!


message 39: by Angela (last edited Oct 05, 2024 09:04PM) (new)

Angela (skiesclear) | 61 comments Of all the suggestion lists, this one is my favorite. I usually have at least one or two that are instant downvotes but not this time. None of them have the 'read-any-book' vibe that I avoid.

I especially like the moon prompt.. I might BIO it by narrowing it down to my birth month if it makes it in. The sonnet is interesting too. I think I'll be happy with any of these!


message 40: by Chrissie (new)

Chrissie (haru_ran) | 50 comments Doing my first impressions with this one. Maybe input might help.

1. A book set during a revolution, revolt, or rebellion - not vibing it currently, might stay neutral
2. A book that has won an Alex Award - I have a few options, but I somehow connect more with the other award prompt
3. A book with a common household object on the cover - so basically anything on the cover, as I understand it?
4. A book with zombies - while I kind of like it, I have no idea right now what I would want to read
5. A book with text partially obscured by the cover art - not sure I really want this
6. A book that includes something mentioned in William Shakespeare's Sonnet #25 - I kinda like this and its possibilities
7. A book related to one of the traditional full moon names - I'm curious enough to consider this
8. A book with a curmudgeon or grumpy character - I bet I have a grumpy softie in my pile of unread mangas for this, so a strong maybe
9. A book that fits three other prompts on this list - I kind of like the challenge
10. A candidate for a prestigious literary award - I like the openness of this and could always come back to Deutscher Buchpreis
11. A Gothic book - I could always come back to my favorite classics for this
12. A book where you hope or expect to learn something new - I'm intrigued to be honest
13. A book you'd consider a comfort read - whether it makes it or not, I'll do a rejects anyway so I might stay neutral
14. A book related to one of the top ten cereals of all time - I think we have 6 of these over here and I actually like the creativity of this one
15. A book with a trial - I wonder if this is just meant for law or also in the sense of an experiment or a test?


message 41: by LeahS (new)

LeahS | 1260 comments I think the worry with an interesting list like this is that there are lots of upvotes and in the end something fairly neutral will get in.

At this stage, I'm voting purely selfishly for something that will fit my plan for the year, and is obtainable from the library. That narrows it down a bit.

I think I will only upvote 2 or 3, and leave the rest neutral, except for zombies and grumpy character (I don't like having to guess whether a character will fit a prompt in my view),


message 42: by Erica (new)

Erica | 310 comments You can interpret zombies more broadly than a dead human that eats brainz. I always think of myself as a zombie in the morning before coffee. :) Necromancy will have reanimated corpses so that’s a zombie. As well as vampires are dead and then come out of the grave walking around and eating people. You can also read nonfiction about zombie movies or zombies animals. (Bees)


message 43: by LeahS (new)

LeahS | 1260 comments That's all true.


message 44: by Jette (new)

Jette | 300 comments I don't usually do this, but I'm working the end of a night shift in the Helene Zone and trying to keep busy and awake. Please forgive me if I offend...it's not my intention, just brain exhaustion.

1. A book set during a revolution, revolt, or rebellion - Probably a no, but I'm still thinking about it
2. A book that has won an Alex Award - Its an interesting idea since I was a 7th grade student reading Agatha Christie and Jane Eyre
3. A book with a common household object on the cover - neutral
4. A book with zombies - I'm pretty much over Zombies at this point after WWZ and The Walking Dead (they need to put that universe out of its misery)
5. A book with text partially obscured by the cover art - I have an option that I meant for this year, but moved it off my list. I'm not sure if it fits this or not anyways.
6. A book that includes something mentioned in William Shakespeare's Sonnet #25 - possible upvote, will have to reread it more carefully
7. A book related to one of the traditional full moon names - a downvote...as another member said, I'm over astrology/astronomy type prompts and it feels too familiar to me.
8. A book with a curmudgeon or grumpy character - probable upvote - I like these types of characters
9. A book that fits three other prompts on this list - an interesting challenge.
10. A candidate for a prestigious literary award - an open take on the award prompt
11. A Gothic book - I'm looking at you, Southern Gothic
12. A book where you hope or expect to learn something new - I'm constantly exposed to new learning on the job, will take a pass on this one.
13. A book you'd consider a comfort read - always an upvote since I read for escapism
14. A book related to one of the top ten cereals of all time - its creative, but probably would be hard to fill
15. A book with a trial - I love a good legal thriller, so will upvote this one.


message 45: by dalex (new)

dalex (912dalex) | 2646 comments For those who don’t want to read a book that actually has zombies, you could approach the prompt sideways and read something about Haitian culture or the practice of voodoo, which is the origin of the zombie myth.


message 46: by Michelle (new)

Michelle H | 72 comments I think my favorites are the Alex award, fits three other prompts, household object on cover, and comfort read. It’s hard to narrow it down though. The Shakespeare one is cool too.


message 47: by Emily, Conterminous Mod (new)

Emily Bourque (emilyardoin) | 10909 comments Mod
Voting is open!




message 48: by Dixie (new)

Dixie (dixietenny) | 778 comments Chrissie wrote: "Doing my first impressions with this one. Maybe input might help.

3. A book with a common household object on the cover - so basically anything on the cover, as I understand it?.."


Only if you have everything imaginable in your house, including text only, geometric patterns, people, animals, forests, ocean... If I phrased this suggestion poorly enough to make it seem as if anything fits, that was my mistake. It needs to be an item that can commonly be found in a house. That does cover a lot of objects, but far from "anything".


message 49: by dalex (new)

dalex (912dalex) | 2646 comments Chrissie wrote: "3. A book with a common household object on the cover - so basically anything on the cover, as I understand it?"

Definitely not “anything.� Think about the kinds of things that are needed to furnish a home - furniture, dishes, appliances, decor, textiles, etc.

I think this prompt could be hard or easy, depending on the genres you read most often. It seems to be most common in books that focus on domestic matters, like contemporary fiction, which just makes sense, I guess.


message 50: by Angela (last edited Oct 06, 2024 09:18AM) (new)

Angela (skiesclear) | 61 comments Initially, I also thought any household item sounded crazily broad, until I scanned my TBR of hundreds and found.. three covers that seemed appropriate..four maybe? It was a much more elusive thing than expected. There are likely a few more on my list if I look again but I like this prompt. It's definitely very specific if you take it as written.
Think: "If I needed to ask a random neighbor to borrow what's on this cover, are they likely to have it in their home?"


« previous 1 3
back to top