TPL Reading Challenge 2021: A Year in Review
Another year has passed and another Reading Challenge has ended. Of course, the 2022 Reading Challenge is already underway. Before we rush headlong into new adventures, let’s pause a moment to look back on the year that was.
In 2021, there were 12 Reading Challenge events that were viewed by 1251 people. Events were also replayed 210 times.
Our first reading challenge event in 2022 will be on January 20, at 7 PM. All are welcome.
Register: Reading Challenge 2022 Online Book Discussion: Kick Off!
Our Facebook community grew and now has over 2100 members. There were 875 posts–a 7.8% increase from last year and 6919 comments posted — an increase of 11.5% from 2020. If you use Facebook, consider joining us for friendly discussions and great book recommendations.
These are the top 10 most frequently mentioned books on Reading Challenge entries and the categories that were used.
Klara and the Sun by Kazuo Ishiguru
Set in a dystopian future where some children have lifelike androids who take the place of human friends. Klara an Artificial Friend, narrates the book. Although she knows little about the world she is constantly observing and trying to understand the complicated behaviour of the humans around her.
- A book where the main character is not human
- A book published this year
- A book of speculative fiction by a BIPOC author
- A book set in the future
Five Little Indians by Michelle Good
Five survivors of a residential school try to rebuild their lives with varying degrees of success after leaving the school. This novel won'the 2020 Governor General’s Award for English-Language Fiction.
- A debut book
- A book by an Indigenous woman or Two-Spirit Indigenous person
- A book of speculative fiction by a BIPOC author
- A book about growing older
The Outsiders by S. E. Hinton
Fourteen-year-old Ponyboy Curtis struggles to find a place in a society that doesn’t welcome him.
- A book written before the author turned 21 (for 2021!)
Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus by Mary Shelley
The classic novel about a scientist who creates a monster.
- A book written before the author turned 21 (for 2021!)
Crosshairs by Catherine Hernandez
2SLGBTQ+ and BIPOC people are forced into labour camps after environmental disasters destroy much of society’s infrastructure. This dystopian novel is set in near-future Toronto.
- A book of speculative fiction by a BIPOC author
- A book set in the future
All Systems Red by Martha Wells
The first book in the Murderbot Diaries series introduces readers to Murderbot, a self-aware cyborg security unit designed to protect human scientists on a mission to an alien planet. Unknown to the scientists, Murderbot has hacked into its own programming to become independent.
- A book that is the first in a series
- A book where the main character is not human
Harriet the Spy by Louise Fitzhugh
Eleven-year-old Harriet wants to be a spy. She observes everyone and records her thoughts about them in a notebook. Things get awkward when Harriet’s classmates find her notebook and read her descriptions of themselves.
- A children’s book by an LGBTQ2S+ author
- A book that is someone else’s favourite
I Am Malala: The Girl who Stood Up for Education and was Shot by the Taliban by Malala Yousafzai with Christina Lamb
Malala Yousafzai became an activist after threats to girls’ educations in Pakistan. She survived an assassination attempt by the Taliban when she was 15.
- A book written before the author turned 21 (for 2021!)
- A book about someone unlike yourself
- A book by two or more people
A Mind Spread Out on the Ground by Alicia Elliott
Haudenosaunee writer Alicia Elliott’s memoir explores the long-term damages and generational trauma resulting from colonialism.
- A book by an Indigenous woman or Two-Spirit Indigenous person
A Promised Land by Barack Obama
Barak Obama’s latest memoir focuses on the first term of his presidency.
- A book about fame
- A book that is narrative non-fiction
One thought on “TPL Reading Challenge 2021: A Year in Review”
I love how much of an impact the “A book written before the author turned 21 (for 2021!)” category had on these results. There was a fairly small pool of potential reads there, it seems!