2022 Nonfiction Reader Challenge

 

At the beginning of 2021 I decided to join the Nonfiction Reader Challenge 2021, which I read about on the book blog Book’d Out. I decided to become a “Nonfiction Know-It-All” by reading 12 nonfiction books, one in each category listed on that website. I also read other nonfiction books, which I reviewed on this blog, but the ones for the Challenge (in this order) were:

1. Biography: The Five: The Untold Lives of the Women Killed by Jack the Ripper (Hallie Rubenhold)
2. Inventions: Longitude: The True Story of a Lone Genius Who Solved the Greatest Scientific Problem of His Time (Dava Sobel)
3. Food: Extra Virginity: The Sublime and Scandalous World of Olive Oil (Tom Mueller)
4. Indigenous Cultures: From Black Land to Fifth Sun (Brian Fagan)
5. Wartime Experiences: The Norman Conquest (Marc Morris)
6. Oceanography: The Sea Around Us (Rachel Carson)
7. Travel: Neither Here Nor There (Bill Bryson)
8. Disease: The Great Mortality: An Intimate History of the Black Death, The Most Devastating Plague of All Time (John Kelly)
9. Self-help: The Artist’s Way for Retirement (Julia Cameron)
10. Essay Collection: Visiting Mrs. Nabokov and Other Excursions (Martin Amis)
11. Hobbies: Garden Bird Behaviour: How to recognize and interpret everyday bird activities  (Robert Burton)
12. Published in 2021: Rationality: What It is, Why It Seems Scarce, Why It Matters (Steven Pinker)

The final book was finished just in the final week of December, so I am now a Nonfiction Know-It-All.

Now I’m beginning the 2022 Nonfiction Reader Challenge, and already have a few books that I’m looking forward to reading. The categories this year are:

  • Social History
  • Popular Science
  • Language
  • Medical Memoir
  • Climate/Weather
  • Celebrity
  • Reference
  • Geography
  • Linked to a podcast
  • Wild Animals
  • Economics
  • Published in 2022

And my goal is to become what is now called a “Nonfiction Nosher” (although it feels like more than noshing). Some categories will be a challenge in itself: I’m not interested in ‘economics,’ I don’t listen to ‘podcasts,’ and I’m not sure what ‘reference’ will involve (reading a dictionary?).

But, again, I’m looking forward to what I learn from nonfiction and to discovering new topic areas.

For more information on the Challenge, go to the Book’d Out website: https://bookdout.wordpress.com/2022-nonfiction-reader-challenge/

 

Comments

  1. shelleyrae @ book'd outJanuary 1, 2022 at 1:50 PM

    Congratulations on completing the 21 challenge!
    Nosher was the best I could come up with, It was hard to keep the theme up ;)
    I’ll have recommendations for categories later this month, hopefully something will appeal.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Reader, teacher, thinkerJanuary 3, 2022 at 9:52 AM

    Thank you. I'll be looking forward to your recommendations and will also be checking other blogs that are part of this Challenge. It's true that there are not enough words starting with "N" that mean 'voraciously devour'!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Mary R.January 3, 2022 at 6:02 PM

    I have a suggestion for you for the "related to a podcast" category: Anne Bogel is the host of the podcast What Should I Read Next and has written a couple of books - including one about reading called I'd Rather be Reading. It was a charming book which as a reader you may enjoy.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Reader, teacher, thinkerJanuary 8, 2022 at 10:01 AM

      This sounds like a topic that was made for me! I'll be listening to her podcast. Thank you so much for the suggestion!

      Delete
  4. TinaJanuary 4, 2022 at 11:46 PM

    I'm impressed woith your reading goal! Looking forward to starting my nonfiction reading.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Reader, teacher, thinkerJanuary 8, 2022 at 10:02 AM

      I think any kind of reading is impressive - hope you enjoy the books you choose!

      Delete
  5. Jinjer-The Intrepid AngelenoJanuary 9, 2022 at 1:25 AM

    Wow! You did a great job completing the 2021 challenge! I'm curious to see how we both do in 2022!

    ReplyDelete
  6. scraptraciApril 28, 2022 at 1:34 AM

    Hi, I was looking over your books you've read so far some interesting ones I might want to check out. traci@ titlesurfingwithtraci

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Reader, teacher, thinkerMay 9, 2022 at 8:49 AM

      Thank you for checking out my blog, Scraptraci! If you read any of the books, it would be interesting to know what your opinions are. Hope to hear from you again.

      Delete

Post a Comment