Ultimate Popsugar Reading Challenge discussion

Exactly what the title says... please tell me I'm not the only one in this respect.

I finished this challenge back in July, and now I'm working on a) finishing the series I've started such as "Chronicles of Prydain" and "Old Kingdom," and b) chipping away at my MASSIVE to-read list. However, I've hit a road block of sorts -- namely, that I'm looking at certain books on my bookshelf and list and wondering if I should put off reading them until next year so I can have them fit certain slots in next year's list, whatever it may be.

For example, today I picked up a steampunk novel that's been on my to-read list for some time now (Beauty and the Clockwork Beast), but part of me is going "but what if there's a prompt for a steampunk book next year? What'll you fit into that slot if you read this one THIS year?" Never mind that I have a good dozen or so steampunk books already on my to-read list and Kindle...

Does anyone else have this weird mental battle once they finish? Or am I the only one?

I've never finished a challenge (this is the first year I've taken it seriously), so I have no idea. However, I can see that I would think stuff like this. I would remind myself that I had plenty of valid options for every prompt this year, so I'm sure the same will be true next year.

So my advice is - read on!

Yes, I do this even when I'm still working on the challenge! You can drive yourself a little nuts if you think too much about what might work for next year. Read what you want and tackle next year's list when it gets here :)

Haha! I haven't finished the challenge yet either, but I've been itching for a new list for awhile now. Half the fun was choosing the books for each prompt.

I had that problem at the end of last year. I’d only just started reading again after more than 20 years and every book I picked up fitted prompts for Popsugar and ATY for this year.

I’m already thinking about next year even though I haven’t finished this year. ATY is already voting for next year’s prompts.

I'm definitely not going to finish before the end of the year (if i do finish), but I can still relate to this... I have 4 3 2 1 by Paul Auster lying and around waiting for me. But it's such a massive book and it doesn't really fit any prompts this year so I'm considering if I should wait till next year. You know it might fit a prompt then and I would be sorry to have read it now, when there are so many other books to read, right? Right? *brain goes on 'trying to make a decision' loop for rather minor problem*

I've not finished yet but I was sent a review copy of Claire Fuller's new book and she's my "local author" so I'm sat here thinking "What if there's another local author prompt? I should save it for next year..."

Johanne wrote: "I have 4 3 2 1 by Paul Auster lying and around waiting for me. But it's such a massive book and it doesn't really fit any prompts this year"

Fits a few from previous years, though, if you haven't ticked that box! (Number in the title, takes place over a character's life...)

Anna wrote: "Johanne wrote: "I have 4 3 2 1 by Paul Auster lying and around waiting for me. But it's such a massive book and it doesn't really fit any prompts this year"

Fits a few from previous years, though,..."

Thanks, I like the number prompt,so I can put it for that. But I think it may also just be due to me stressing over the challenge a bit, that it bothers me that it´s so long (which is also really stupid).

I completely get it...
Last year I put an entire series I have on hold for this reason alone. I've read the first 2 and there are still 6 books. I put a hold on them for this years challenge and actually ended up reading other books instead even though I had choosen them for several prompts. When it came to it I got caught up in other books and used them for the prompts. So I have now reached the point as where I look forward to reading them when I am done with the challenge. Propably do the same again later in the year where I save books just in case I can use them for next year. So perfectly normal ;-)

Definitely normal to think about saving books incase they fit next year, especially if they’re not your typical genre!

I always tell myself just to read what I want when the challenge is over and if it happens to be useful next year then oh well I’ll have a recommendation for the rest of you when the time comes!!! If you LOVE it, you can always re-read it for the challenge! If you didn’t love it, maybe you’ll find something you’ll enjoy more than that anyways for the prompt!

I also think half the fun is seeking out new books beyond whats already on your TBR and pushing yourself to read new things that may not be on your radar to find out if you actually like them or not, or at least to be able to relate to other readers and know what all the fuss is about!

Here is a link: https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/...
I´m not doing the ATY but now that curiosity got the better of me, I really want to... Oh well.

Johanne wrote: "Here is a link: https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/...
I´m not doing the ATY but now that curiosity got the better of me, I really want to... Oh well."

Ooh I like the sound of their list for next year already although I'm finding their group a bit confusing. I probably don't need any more challenges but I said that last year...

Ellie wrote: "Johanne wrote: "Here is a link: https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/...
I´m not doing the ATY but now that curiosity got the better of me, I really want to... Oh we..."

I really like the list for this year, many of the prompts there works for books I can´t fit in PS. So it´s really tempting. But I don´t need any more challenges either.

I do the opposite. As ATY creates their list and once the other lists get published, all the chatter reminds me of books on my TBR and I go off and read them too early!

I haven't even finished yet and I do the same thing, Kenya! Especially if it is tricky genre for me like fantasy/sci fi and their subgenres.

I only have 6 more books to read to finish, have books selected and am already worrying about next year!

Considering just how many towers of TBRs I have around my apartment....and on my Nook and Kindle...

It's ridiculous!

This is why I didn't do the challenge for two years. The stress got way out of control. It was supposed to be something fun, but it turned into an obsession in a bad way. I had to take a step back from reading challenges to get my perspective back. This year was a lot more fun without the lists and worry. I'm definitely prone to doing this, but like Sara said, it drove me a little nuts, so I don't let myself do it anymore.

I have another question - I hope it's ok to post it here. Are you meant to post when you have finished the main challenge or both the main and advanced lists?
Thanks!

I would say you’re meant to post on the I’m finished thread when you’re finished whatever challenge you were aiming for 🙂

I do find myself wondering what might be on the next challenge list, but I don't get too worried about it. I remind myself that, if I'm reading a book that I enjoy that does fit a future prompt, I can always use it as a back up and re read it if I don't feel like reading anything else.

I have a book on my shelf I've been meaning to read for a few years, but it is about 1200 pages long. Since I'm probably going to finish this challenge by the end of September, I thought I might read it toward the end of the year. And then I thought that I should wait in case I need a really long book for next year's challenge, so I guess I do this a little bit after all.

I can see myself doing something like this but I don't think I'll finish early. I still have 15 books to go!

I've got 17 left counting the one I'm reading now. Usually, I have a print book, ebook, and audio book going all at once but I was feeling overwhelmed. I don't want to make this a chore and not enjoy it!

This year is easier, now that I am doing audio as well as digital. In other years it helped my numbers to mix in shorter/lighter titles and some graphic novels. However, focus on why you are doing the challenge and then focus on your successes. If you read 30 books this year, aim for at least 31 next year.

It's not a silly question, but I don't have that problem since I have finished only one of the four challenges I am doing (15 to go on Popsugar including the long book I am currently reading).
That said, my advice is to read what interests you now. There will be a steampunk (a prompt that requires research for me to find a book) book next year to handle that prompt. I have found fellow readers to be extraordinarily helpful in identifying books to fit prompts... hence my current list of over 500 TBR.

I've never finished an entire challenge, either, and this is my third or fourth year doing it. I'm taking it more seriously this year, because I discovered this Popsugar Goodreads group! And, because I talked my husband into doing it with me, and we are reading (listening) to some books together. (Love that some prompts are customized to you, like the decade of your birth, your favorite country, color, etc.)

I may not have finished a challenge, but I have two or three books in some of the categories, so I guess I'm more scattered in my approach. I've tried to go back and finish some prompts from earlier years, putting them on my list as "favorites" from earlier challenges, when they are really just catching up!

I guess if I actually FINISHED my challenge this year, I would really apply myself to my little sub-category personal challenge this year, of reading books for different prompts, all having my favorite color (green) in the title! Next year, it could be books with red covers, (like I remember from one year), or with a cat on the cover, food in the title... the possibilities are endless!

Not a silly question at all; I do that all the time with my "Aussie readers" group, I find myself saving Australian authors for later so I can use them for challenges.

Myself, I try hard NOT to save them up, but to read whatever I please when I please: challenges I think, are meant to encourage rather than discourage reading. But, reading is for fun, whatever you choose to do is right for you.

I have had the same problem for the last two years. It particularly starts to hit in December when I know the list is coming out and every book I look at could be a potential for next year. What I do now is to just try to finish series that I have started since they are hard to get to if you are restricted by challenges.

I wish they would release the list a little bit earlier (say November) to give me a bit more time to prepare. With the lead up to the Xmas/New year period I am pretty busy and would like more time to at least get some of my books together so I am ready to go.

Maybe I just take it a bit too seriously lol! :-)

Tricia wrote: "I have had the same problem for the last two years. It particularly starts to hit in December when I know the list is coming out and every book I look at could be a potential for next year. What I ..."

It is our competitive nature... we need to chill :)

Every year I wish that the list come earlier, so I can have a few on hand to read and be more prepared!

I didn't relate to this when you first posted, but now I'm totally doing this exact thing! My husband just convinced me that I might actually enjoy reading Twilight and I should give it a shot, but I'm definitely saving it in case one of those 'book you were never going to read' prompts actually makes it onto the list next year. :-P

Anyone knows when the list for next year is supposed to come out??

I do this while still working on the challenge lol.

I have a lot of books on my to-read list, so I do think about this, but for contemporary novels, it doesn't concern me. I only worry about the older books on my shelf. I don't want to dive into a 19th century novel near the end of the year without the possible reward of filling a slot in next year's lists.

Nicole wrote: "Anyone knows when the list for next year is supposed to come out??"

Nicole, historically Popsugar has released the new challenges in early November. I would assume we'll see it around the same time this year.

Nicole wrote: "Anyone knows when the list for next year is supposed to come out??"

I have no idea, but the list for this year came out sometime in November of 2017 if I remember right. So sometime in the next couple of months?

I suggest starting the books now, but try not to finish them until the new list comes out. Then you can figure out if any of the books fit a prompt and save them to finish until January. You might get a good head start on the challenge. Otherwise, you'll be able to enjoy finishing them this year if they don't fit a prompt.

So I probably have an unorthodox way of addressing the challenge: I read what I want and clear off the challenges that I can. Then at a certain point in the year, August in this case, I see what holes I have and find books to fill them. As of this moment, I have 4 more to read between now and the end of the year.

I won't worry about next year's challenge until the new list is posted. Then I'll go through and see what books I have set to read in 2019 that will meet challenges and start there.

But, saying all that, I've read 256 books in 2018 so far. It might be different if I were only reading 100 books a year.

Susan, I do similarly. And I read just under your rate.

I generally feel that there’s never only one or two good books to fill a prompt - I’m sure there are dozens I could find and like per prompt generally. Where I might struggle more to fill a prompt, like poetry or westerns, I almost never read those at random anyway.

Right, Chinook! And sometimes halfway through a book I realize it will meet multiple prompts and have to decide which one to use it for! The ones I still have for 2018 are real outliers for me (with the exception of micro-history because I own that book and keep putting it off to read others).

When do they typically post the next year's reading list?

Sometime in November, I think.

I read whatever I felt like for the first few months of the challenge and slotted books in, but there were definitely prompts I knew I wouldn't read by chance. The risk of doing zero planning means you might get stuck with your least favourite things at the end. I need to be comfort reading in the winter months!

I usually read about 120 books a year and I've finished without too much planning. I think it would be harder for readers who only tend to stick to one or two genres.

Susan wrote: "So I probably have an unorthodox way of addressing the challenge: I read what I want and clear off the challenges that I can. Then at a certain point in the year, August in this case, I see what holes I have and find books to fill them."

I do the same thing. Although, I panicked a little bit early and convinced myself I'd never stumble upon a book with song lyrics in the title so I found one to read early in the year. Turns out, I did stumble upon song lyrics in the title just 2 months later. Sigh. I liked the second book much better too. I like your idea of waiting until a certain point to go searching for books. I might do that next year.

I have this problem every year! I always end up kicking myself for reading something that would have been perfect for a prompt (I'm looking at you Hallowe'en Party...I read it last year as a fun Halloween book and now it's a prompt?!?) but I realized two really important things: 1) I never actually end up reading the books I initially pick for the challenge because there are always new and exciting releases that fit it just as well and 2) life's too short not to read the books you want to read, and there will always be more books to choose from. I usually just end up reading what I like even during the challenge and find mid-book it works for a prompt that I didn't even think about. Some prompts I have to go out of my way to find a book for, but that's why I do the challenge, and half the time those are my favorite books!

Absolutely, haha!
But I've just started reading my TBR list with date added the longest ago. I'll find new books if a prompt fits, but I need to get these books off of my list - now!

All my books are about to be in boxes. My collection in Canada is already in boxes in my brother’s basement and when we move this part of the collection will be too. I was thinking of opening a box at a time and just reading whatever is inside because a lot of those books are unread. I’m great at weeding out books I have read and only keeping really special ones but if I haven’t read something, I can’t part with it because of the idea that one day it will be the perfect book for my mood!

Chinook wrote: "All my books are about to be in boxes. My collection in Canada is already in boxes in my brother’s basement and when we move this part of the collection will be too. I was thinking of opening a box..."

For about 8 years after law school, my books lived in different places in boxes. Oh, and there were of course boxes in storage at my parents from high school and undergraduate. Of course, each place I lived during those years (I moved a lot), I'd accumulate more books which got boxed and stored. When I eventually settled in one place for an indefinite period, I brought all my boxes of books together and started sorting and organizing. I discovered that I had doubles, triples and even quadruples of some books!

So bad.

That was also back in the dark ages before everyone had a home computer, and such. You had to hand write and laboriously organize any list. You certainly had no device the size of your palm to carry around with the list on it to reference when you were at the bookstore!

Theresa wrote: " I discovered that I had doubles, triples and even quadruples of some books!

So bad. "

I feel like this would be me to a tee if I had've been part of your generation!

Before I used Goodreads, I'd find myself shopping in the used book store or at the library picking out books...reading the first page or in some cases bringing them home only to realize it's something I'd already read years ago! xD

I almost never re-read books so I usually pass them on/donate them to the used book store for credit when I'm done etc. and then would forget because I wasn't looking at them on my shelves.

Thankfully now when I'm browsing I can just quickly scan the covers with my GR app and double check that I haven't already marked them read...I also look at average rating if I'm having a hard time deciding on a book too! I just wish I'd started using GR ages ago so that I could have marked everything appropriate as read and don't have to rely on my memory still!! xD

Stacey wrote: "Theresa wrote: " I discovered that I had doubles, triples and even quadruples of some books!

So bad. "

"Thankfully now when I'm browsing I can just quickly scan the covers with my GR app and double check that I haven't already marked them read...."

This is genius and I really need to start doing this, although I would have to upload all of my kindle books into my TBR, as well as what is on my actual shelves. But seriously, I have so many duplicates. I know I posted recently that Im using Doctor Sleep next year. I just bought it in Mass market paperback because I was reading The Shining this year....... the other day I was looking through my shelves for the 2019 list and I found Doctor Sleep in hardcover sitting at the bottom of the bookcase. No recollection of having it.

It really is a problem. Its gotten so bad that the last few times i went to Barnes and Noble I came out empty handed because I was afraid I already owned everything, LOL.