Reading Women 2021
Last year, I read somewhere around fifty books, with many of them derived from the Reading Women Challenge. I started it on a whim last year to broaden my reading interests, and it changed me in unexpected ways that I never anticipated. At the end of the year, I was anxiously awaiting the release of the next list so I could start filling in my picks for 2021. I love a reading challenge, and if you are thinking of wanting to read more for a 2021 goal, this is a great way to make that happen.
So, if you are interested in my picks for this year - read on. I’m sure there are some good ones in here!
A book long listed for the JCB Prize - Milk Teeth by Amrita Nahale I have to admit I’ve never heard of the JCB Prize - it’s an award for a distinguished work by an Indian author. I love India, and I’m looking forward to a book from India.
An author from Eastern Europe - Flights by Olga Tokarczuk I took a literature class in college where all we read was Nobel Prize Winners, but this is a newer win and I haven’t read it. It would be interesting to read the Nobel Prize winner every year — maybe I should do that…?
A book about incarceration - Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi
Cookbook by a woman of color - Full Plate by Ayesha Curry Funny story on this one - I got this last week, and it all sounded so good I started cooking from it. The recipes I’ve made are FANTASTIC. I was telling Tommy about it, and he asked me if that’s Steph Curry’s wife. I didn’t know who Steph Curry was, so her celebrity husband (apparently he’s a big deal, news to me) didn’t make an impression on me. Highly recommend this cookbook though.
Protagonist older than 50 - Like a Mule Bringing Ice Cream to the Sun by Sarah Ladipo Manyika
South American author in translation - The House of the Spirits by Isabel Allende
Reread a favorite - Little Women by Louisa May Alcott . My middle name is Louisa, for Louisa May Alcott. I want to re-read the book and then re-watch the movies (both of them) which are so enjoyable.
A memoir by an indigenous, First Nations, Native or Aboriginal woman - Crazy Brave by Joy Harjo
By a neurodivergent author - Get a Life, Chloe Brown by Talia Hibbert
Crime novel or thriller in translation - Confessions by Kanae Minato I’m not a big crime novel / thriller person, but this book does look intriguing.
About the natural world - Upstream: Collected Essays by Mary Oliver
Young adult novel by a Latinx author - Clap When You Land by Elizabeth Acevedo
Poetry collection by a Black woman - Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson I’m hoping to read this with the girls.
A book with a biracial protagonist - The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett This book has been loosely on my to-read list for a while, so looking forward to finally reading it.
A Muslim middle-grade novel - The Henna Wars by Adiba Jaigirdar
A queer love story - Cinderella is Dead by Kalynn Bayron
About a woman in politics - The Truths We Hold by Kamala Harris
A book with a rural setting - The Beet Queen by Louise Erdich
A book with a cover designed by a woman - A Hundred Summers by Beatriz Williams
A book by an Arab author in translation - Thirteen Months of Sunrise by Rania Mamoun
A book by a trans author - I’m Afraid of Men by Vivek Shraya
A fantasy novel by an Asian author - Descendant of the Crane by Joan He
A nonfiction book about social justice - Caste by Isabel Wilkerson
A short story collection by a Caribbean author - Everything Inside by Edwidge Danticat I read The Farming of Bones last year (great) so I’m excited to read more of Danticat’s work.
There are some bonus options, but I’ll decide about those later. Have you done a reading challenge? Do you have a goal for reading more in 2021?
My 2021 secret read-more weapon - these socks gifted from a friend.